By Emilee Mae Struss
If elected as Bellevue’s next mayor, Wisconsin-native Jared Murphy, 26, hopes to make the city more sustainable by bringing in new revenue to improve the town’s infrastructure.
Murphy has lived in the Wood River Valley since March and is currently a parole officer for the Hailey Police Department.
“I’m a quick learner,” Murphy said. “And I’m excited to jump feet first in by running for mayor.”
Murphy said that, upon entering the Valley, he was astonished by the mountains and how connected he felt to this place. Since March, he has been taking note of how well the community stands together in support of one another and hopes to enhance the connections within Bellevue by hosting an open forum and getting not only city employees engaged, but citizens as well.
During an interview, Murphy touched on some hot topics in the Valley, including the housing market and the long line of cars headed north every morning to work. He pointed out that, due to a lack of affordable housing here, people are living outside of the community and paying registration fees to their counties while adding wear and tear on roads entering Bellevue.
“We need to build the tax base in Bellevue,” he opined. “And improve the poorly constructed roads, like Pine Street.”
This issue, Murphy said, is a major motivation to improve the housing market locally so more people can live where they work.
Bellevue may not know Murphy well yet, but Murphy said he knows Bellevue. He was raised in a similar small rural town of hardworking people in Chamberlain, Wisc.
Murphy said that he has always been intrigued by the law and interested in politics, and got his bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. He ran for, but lost, a write-in campaign to be a municipal judge in his hometown before graduating and serving six years in the U.S. Army.
Murphy then worked as a police officer in South Dakota and had eyes on the sheriff’s position; however, he got a job offer in Hailey and chose to move to Idaho.
With his political science background and military training, Murphy believes that he has the skills to effectively listen to the public and build confidence in the region.
“The biggest thing I want to work on here is community engagement,” Murphy said. “Citizens don’t [currently] believe in the city council and that is crucial for success.
“Give me two years, and see what I can do,” Murphy said. “And if the people of Bellevue don’t like my leadership, then they can vote me out, but all I ask is they just give me two years.”