Idaho Falls couple running for different seats on the city council

Idaho Falls couple Teresa, left, and Jared Dominick are running for separate city council seats. Meet them in the video above. | Rett Nelson, EastIdahoNews.com

IDAHO FALLS – An Idaho Falls couple is among the candidates running for the Idaho Falls City Council.

Teresa Dominick, 60, is running for the seat currently occupied by Councilwoman Lisa Burtenshaw, who hopes to become the next mayor. Teresa is competing against Jordan Bardsley, Brandon Lee, Mosy Moran, and James Skinner for the same seat.

Jared Dominick, 57, is running against current city councilman Jim Francis for Seat 4.

Although the Dominicks didn’t plan to run for office together, Teresa tells EastIdahoNews.com that someone initially approached her about the idea. When she told her husband about it, not only did he support it, but he also decided to put his hat in the ring.

Jared tells EastIdahoNews.com that their desire to run was prompted by the city’s growth and the construction of numerous townhomes and apartments.

“We’ve noticed that the infrastructure isn’t keeping up with the growth that’s in process. You used to be able to get across town in 15 minutes, and now you’re waiting in traffic a very long time,” Teresa says. “It’s been frustrating seeing what’s going on.”

Teresa has problems with the city’s future plan for growth, which was laid out several years ago. She disagrees with the current city council’s vision and wants to make changes.

If elected, Jared wants to look at the growth rate, dive-deep into the cause, and promote the development of single-family homes and reduce multi-use development.

“There’s not a whole lot that can be done when something is approved to be constructed, but we don’t have to continue down that path,” Jared says. “We want to bring Idaho Falls back to more of a small-town feel.”

The pair has never run for or held public office before. Still, they feel their employment with the Idaho Environmental Coalition for the last 15 years qualifies them to address these issues.

Teresa is a senior regulatory consultant who manages nuclear waste shipments out of Idaho. Jared is a waste disposal specialist.

“We both have a strong regulatory background and we’re familiar with regulation, how it works and how it’s applied. We both have led different groups, projects and teams,” Jared explains.

Aside from that, Teresa says they also work well together as critical thinkers solving problems in the regulatory field. For her, holding public office jointly is a good fit personally and professionally.

The couple moved to Idaho Falls in 2011 after living in California for a time. Teresa was previously employed by the West Valley Demonstration Project in New York, which is home to the nation’s only commercial spent nuclear fuel reprocessing facility. That’s where they met years ago.

Jared worked at the Laurence Livermore National Laboratory in northern California for 12 years. Before that, he lived in Las Vegas while working at a Nevada test site.

A job at what was then Bechtel is what brought the couple to Idaho Falls initially. Teresa was pregnant with their third and youngest child then.

The Dominicks love calling Idaho Falls their home and they’re hoping to represent citizens as city council members. They’re asking for your vote on Nov. 4.

The couple will be kicking off their campaign during a meet and greet at Kate Curley Park this Saturday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. The flyer below has more information. You can also visit their website.

Jim Freeman’s seat on the city council is also up for re-election. Thus far, he is running unopposed. Other mayoral candidates include Jeff Alldridge, Christian Ashcraft and Brian Tomasko.

WATCH OUR INTERVIEW WITH THE DOMINICKS IN THE VIDEO ABOVE.