A high school teacher of civics and government wants to apply some of his lessons to the Lawrence City Commission, and he has plenty to say about what he considers the less-than-textbook process the city used to build the Rock Chalk Park sports complex.

Matthew Herbert, a teacher at Lawrence High School, has filed for one of three seats to be filled in the 2015 Lawrence City Commission election. The City Hall process that involved issuing a no-bid contract for almost $12 million worth of infrastructure work at Rock Chalk Park is one of several issues that he plans to address in the campaign.

“I don’t hate Rock Chalk Park, but I hate the process of Rock Chalk Park,” said Herbert, who has labeled the process a “fiasco.” “There is nothing right about a no-bid process.”

Herbert also said he is becoming concerned about the increased use of City Hall financial incentives to assist private development projects. He said his economic development strategy would focus on creating “a level playing field” and would include an expectation that “private industry finance private development with private dollars.”

Herbert, 32, has been in Lawrence since 1995, when he moved here as a seventh-grader. After graduation from Kansas University, he worked for five years as a teacher in Highland Park School District in Topeka, and has been at Lawrence High since 2011. In addition to his teaching career, he and his wife also own a property maintenance company, Renaissance Property Management, which owns several rental properties in the area.

Landlord issues may find their way to the campaign trail this election season, as this is the first election since the city approved a contentious new rental registration and licensing program. Herbert said he largely supports most of the program, but wants to ensure that it remains focused on inspecting for true life and safety issues.

“If my tenants don’t weed the garden, that is not a life and safety issue,” Herbert said. “I’m a big believer in property rights.”

Herbert — who says he will donate all his salary as a city commissioner, if elected, to charity — said he has been interested in local politics for a number of years. He thinks the timing is right to make a run at office.

“I think there is a lot of anger and resentment in the community right now,” Herbert said. “I really don’t think there is much benefit to being an incumbent right now.”

The seats currently held by commissioners Mike Dever, Terry Riordan and Bob Schumm are set to expire. Candidates have until noon Jan. 27 to file for one of the three at-large seats. If seven or more candidates file for a seat on the commission, there will be a primary election March 3 to narrow the field to six candidates. The general election will be April 7.

Herbert is the second candidate to file. Stan Rasmussen, an attorney for the U.S. Army, also is seeking a seat on the five-member commission.