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Sebastian Benitez is a candidate for Ogden City Council. He meets Bart Blair in the vote, which will culminate on November 2, 2021.
OGDEN – Sebastian Benitez lost to incumbent Mike Caldwell in the 2015 Ogden mayor’s race, but that defeat doesn’t stop him from fighting for another chance to serve and represent others.
“I’ve lost really badly, but I got my message out there and things are being fixed,” Benitez said, citing public sidewalks, parks and body cameras for Ogden police officers.
Benitez believes he would be more efficient on city-wide problems like the budget if he could secure a seat on the city council. Benitez is running for a seat at large against incumbent Bart Blair, the current city council chairman who will end his third term in December. All offices in the Council are limited to four years.
Two terms are enough, said Benitez. He believes the city council needs new eyes and fresh ideas. He declined to discuss his ideas for setting the city’s budget, instead referring to his track record of owning two businesses and never going into debt in 25 years.
Benitez not only wants to create a fair budget for all residents of the community, but also wants to help improve air quality. After a 2017 tornado ripped through Weber County, he donated 500 trees to the city at a cost of $ 10,000.
“I will continue to push and get involved to improve the quality of life,” he said.
Benitez said he didn’t want to cause problems; he just wants to see positive changes in the city that he and his family love.
Six years after his family moved from Paraguay to Ogden in 2001, Benitez founded Intermountain Cleaning Service and currently has a contract with the city to clean windows.
Benitez spoke four languages before coming to the United States. He now speaks five after learning English himself. The son of a sailor in the Paraguayan Navy, he lived in nine countries before coming to America.
“I’ve learned a lot and I have to learn more,” said Benitez. “I run to be of service.”
The parliamentary elections are scheduled for November 2nd.
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