This is the latest entry in my series covering the Newcastle City council race, and the four MAGA candidates running under the banner of “Newcastle First: Small, Safe, Quiet” (Sarah Goodman, Kevin Kirkaldie, Maggie Lo, and Jim Quigg). In opposition are four non-MAGA candidates endorsed by the democratic party (Andy Jacobs, Chris Villasenor, Paul Charbonneau, and Karin Blakley).
This article will go over the Position #4 candidate Jim Quigg, and explain why you should vote for Blakley instead.
Jim Quigg’s vision of a worldwide HOA
Jim Quigg is the President of the Vineyard HOA in Newcastle, which means his role is to enforce uniformity throughout the neighborhood, to ensure they all share the same character. That’s fine if everyone in the neighborhood is okay with it, but Quigg has higher ambitions. Condo associations on the other side of town can’t tell Quigg he’s not allowed to have a house, but Quigg thinks he can tell other side of town they can’t have a condo. From his website:
My goal as your Councilmember has been to preserve what’s special about our beloved hometown. We can raise our quality of life without raising our taxes. Newcastle is our shining city on the hill. I promise to protect what you love about living here.
Just as “Newcastle First” is an obvious reference to Trumpism, the “shining city on the hill” is an obvious reference to Reaganism and American exceptionalism. The phrase was first coined by colonist John Winthrop, which was a reference to the sermon on the mount. Winthrop claimed that the colony was the will of God, a “shining” beacon of hope and a moral example for the rest of the world to follow. His words were largely forgotten for hundreds of years, until they were revived during the cold war in opposition to Russia.
Lots of politicians on both sides of the aisle have used the phrase to describe America as a whole after over 300 years of history. But Quigg is doing something very different: He is using the phrase to single out Newcastle as exceptional from the rest of the world because Newcastle is “special,” even though the city is still in its infancy.
In doing so, Quigg effectively positions himself as an agent of God and the father of a movement that goes beyond the Vineyard, beyond the city of Newcastle, and beyond the United States. A global HOA.
A model based on exclusion and control
Earlier this year, Quigg tried to defend his vote against the pride flag because he was simply hesitant to set a long term precedent for the city. This seems a very odd response, but it makes perfect sense in the context of the “shining city.” Newcastle is supposed to be a moral example for the world, and he doesn’t want the moral example to be tainted with gay pride.
Democrats defending the pride flag noted that Newcastle would stand out as the only city in the region to take it down. IBut when you view Newcastle as “the shining city” as Quigg does, then that’s actually the point. Indeed, the takedown of the pride flag made national news, with the right-wing NY Post praising the decision.
Quigg wants a one-way street where Newcastle “shines” for the rest of the world to follow, but is “protected” from outside influence (But not outside money, since Newcastle doesn’t really have any industries of its own).Just like with the biblical rapture, salvation is only meant for the select few true believers, the rest of the population will be left behind. Quigg is convinced he’s found paradise in Newcastle, but he’s also reluctant to share that paradise with anyone else.
Jim Quigg’s focus on exclusion and smallness undermines every other goal
Unfortunately for Jim, the focus on exclusion and low-density housing undermines the very paradise he’s trying to create. In a previous article, I explained how 100 houses in an HOA require far more time, land, and resources compared to 100 apartment units, in addition to needing several additional miles of complicated roads and infrastructure, and all for the sake of supporting an expensive lawn fetish.
When you look at Jim Quigg’s website in this context, nearly every single thing he advocates is undermined by his weird fetish for mandatory lawns. Let’s summarize this point by point:
- Wasteful spending: Go look at the above image, and try convincing me that low-density housing isn’t vastly more wasteful.
- Lower taxes: Housing shortages means artificially inflated property values, which means higher taxes.
- Never-ending construction: The apartments are faster, cheaper, and easier to build due to far fewer resources and basic economies of scale. For instance, consider the work to install underground sewage lines connecting every individual house, or roof replacements every 30 years.
- Traffic congestion: Suburban sprawls means everyone needs a car, which means more congestion. Denser neighborhoods encourage walkability and mass transit. Since commuters use Newcastle as a detour when I-405 is congested, mass transit is the only was to reduce congestion.
- Protecting people from crime: Sprawling neighborhoods makes it harder for the police to patrol, takes longer for the police to arrive, and makes it easier for criminals to hide.
- Protecting people from speedsters: The long and empty roads encourage drivers to speed, and the twisty layouts limit visibility, which is a perfect recipe for hitting children.
- Work with local businesses: Local businesses benefit from having access to more customers who have more disposable income, especially if they they happen to be within walking distances. His opponent, Karin Blakley, was president of the Newcastle Chamber of Commerce.
In short, Quigg’s platform for exclusion completely fails by his own metrics.
Jim Quigg's war on renters
Quigg hypes up Newcastle as a place for raising families, but what happens when the children move out? Renting out those extra rooms seems like a prefect win-win when homeowners are experiencing a recession and renters are experiencing a housing crisis. But just as Kemper Freeman wages wwages war on mass transit because he associates it with poor people, Quigg has waged his own war on housing. The rules of the Vineyard HOA includes the following:
No Home in the Vineyard ca nbe rented for less than 90 days nor can a home be subdivided into rental units….As growth in the Puget Sound area continues, the VHOA Board has strived to help our homeowners preserve our friendly neighborhood and improve the safety and stability of our community. In order to maintain the stability of a community, it is imperative that homeowners have the chance to know their neighbors. This is something that cannot happen in an area with short term rental properties.
This policy means that any new resident is presumed to be a criminal, and must prove themselves "worthy" by committing a minimum of $20,000 to rent an entire house for the next three months, as well as subjecting themselves to the judgemental of the neighborhood.
This has nothing to do with safety of stability, as does nothing to stop actual criminals from visiting in the dead of night. It's entirely about exclusion and control, because Quigg wants to ensure that only the "special" people are allowed inside of the "shining city."
if the goal is to ensure that everyone knows who you are, then why ban subdivisions? Surely it would be easier to know the new tenants and ensure they aren't committing crimes if the homeowner was allowed to stay behind? This policy leans heavily in favor of Wall Street property management companies where the house is owned by a faceless corporation and not a person, in an attempt to keep rent prohibitively expensive so only the elite can afford them.
The HOA claims that 60% voted to support this policy, but they don't mention how many people actually showed up, but I do know most people don't bother, so it could just mean 4 people out of 6.
Jim Quigg keeps dodging basic questions
VIewing yourself as an agent of God means you never have to answer to the actual people. Quigg frequently cites he cut millions of dollars from the city budget, but no one seems to have any idea idea what he’s talking about because Quigg refuses to show his work.
In late August, the conservative members of the Newcastle City Council tried to cancel the upcoming 9/30 town hall to discuss the city budget, by holding an unannounced and unofficial vote during the last five minutes of the meeting in defiance of city rules. MAGA Mayor Rob Clark argued that it would “waste our time” to hear from public right before an election, citing previous controversies involving Steve Tallman.
Jim Quigg joined the vote to cancel the meeting, but was pressured to backtrack later on. As the only sitting member who is also on the ballot, canceling the town hall was a very bad look for him.
On the night of the Town Hall, conservatives faced heavy criticism from their own supporters regarding their actual ability to balance the budget, with no real idea on where else they could cut. Jim Quigg, the only conservative sitting conservative who is also on the ballot, conveniently declined to show up until after the questions were already over, and never had to answer how he intends to deliver on his promised budget cuts.
Prosperity gospel and the book of Job
In the book of Job, God destroys everything Job has to test his faith, including Job’s family. But then God rewards Job later on for staying loyal, i.e., classic lovebombing. One of the main selling points of the “shining city” is the idea that the colony has God’s blessing, any all their faith would eventually be rewarded regardless of any momentary hardships. That’s why so many Trump supporters continue to defend Trump despite being hurt by his policies.
And that’s why Quigg doesn’t care if the numbers don’t add up. As long as we keeps the faith, God will reward us in the end. And if God doesn’t reward us, it can only be because we had too much affordable housing, which allowed for the heathen non-believers.
Even if you’re a devout believer in God, that doesn’t mean you should trust that Quigg acts on God’s behalf. In fact, that should be all the more reason for skepticism.
Make Newcastle Great Again
Imagine a young college frat bro who gets piss drunk every night, but has lower medical bills than his 60 year-old sober grandfather. The frat bro is convinced that his drunken lifestyle is “special” and tries to use it as a beacon of hope for his grandfather to follow.
Most of can immediately see the problem: The young frat bro has low medical bills because he’s young, and not because he’s “special.” In a previous article, I explained how roads and infrastructure are cheap to repair when everything is brand new, but gets more expensive with age, just like medical bills and car ownership.Most Newcastle homes are under 30 years old, but the cracks are already forming. The city budget is already increasing faster than we can keep up. Every other city eventually learns that you either embrace efficient affordable housing, or you end up going bankrupt. But the “Newcastle First” movement is still convinced that they can keep Newcastle affordable as long as they stay faithful to the original plan of low density, even though low-density is far more expensive. They desperately want to believe that Newcastle is “special” in a way where the standard rules no longer apply.
Why you should support Karin Frost Blakley instead
From Karin’s website:
Over the past 30 years, Newcastle has proven to be a wonderful place to raise a family, to start a business, to make friends, and to give back. I have been honored to serve as President of Hazelwood PTSA, President of the Greater Newcastle Chamber of Commerce (board member for over 10 years), a Planning Commissioner (serving for 10 years), as well as organizing fun events such as the 2022 Newcastle Murder Mystery theatrical event. I am running for Newcastle City Council because I believe it is vitally important to ensure that the City of Newcastle continues to be a place that is welcoming and safe for all of its residents and businesses.
Karin’s goal is to create an inclusive Newcastle, the opposite of Quigg. They both view Newcastle as “special,” but Karin was here since the beginning, and views the city as a child that will grow and adapt over time. She helped file the paperwork to annex her own neighborhood into the city, because that’s the type of person she is. Quigg arrived 12 years ago and views Newcastle as a parent, the “shining city” who we must all learn to obey. He’s also very jealous of other children getting similar attention. Whereas Quigg tries to maintain a friendly demeanor, Karin is the type of person who will actually listen to the community, and she has the background to prove it.
In a previous article, we discussed how “Newcastle First” is tied to the creationist movement, especially for candidate Sarah Goodman. Karin has a background in financial planning. Not only is she good with numbers, but she also understands the importance of a diverse portfolio. She wants the city to allow for different types of housing for different types of people, because the resulting population will be far more resilient to economic changes.
Quigg, by contrast, believes in the idea of the monoculture, putting all your eggs in one basket, because that’s how God would have wanted it. He believes that everyone should live in the same type of housing, based on outdated ideals from the past, and ignore current market pressures.
If you know anyone who lives in the Seattle greater area, please continue to spread the word. Even if they don’t live in Newcastle, they might know someone else who does. At the very least, it’s important to keep people informed of what’s happening in local races, especially for smaller cities that get ignored by the news.
