Wells Lyons emerges from a strong field of candidates in the District 2 City Council race to be our choice to represent the West End and adjacent neighborhoods.

We were impressed with Lyons’ grasp of the issues and his priorities.

He identifies the heroin crisis as the major threat to the health and safety of our community, and has some concrete steps that the city could take right away to combat it.

He proposes a “Good Samaritan” ordinance, through which the City Council could direct the police not to arrest people for drug law infractions if they call for emergency help when someone has overdosed. Lyons cites examples of other cities that have grant-funded drug treatment programs, which could get people help without straining local property taxpayers.

He said he even would propose hiring city grant writers who would focus on bringing revenue to the city to fund other necessary programs.

These are good ideas, but serving on the City Council requires more than just having good ideas. Good public service also requires working with people who have differing views and coming up with solutions that balance competing interests.

We think that Lyons’ experience as a lawyer, an activist and the owner of a small manufacturing company uniquely qualifies him to work through the difficult problems the council faces on a regular basis.

We also find that his calm demeanor and ability to present succinct but persuasive arguments would make him an ideal member of the council.

There was a lot to like about his opponents as well. We were impressed with Spencer Thibodeau’s energy and enthusiasm. And we found Rob Korobkin to be a sincerely compassionate activist who wants more people to have a say in the operation of our city.

But we found Lyons represented the best balance of compassion, experience and creative thinking to make him the best choice for District 2.