Voters to decide city and school races, county term limits
LAKEWOOD – City voters will determine which three candidates will help the current City Council guide the city through a budget-busting economic quagmire, the redevelopment of West Colfax, the on-coming West Corridor Light Rail line and a changing of the guard at City Hall.
The ballot also will determine the makeup of future Jefferson County government through the results of two separate issues that would change term limits for most elected county officials.
And three spots on the roster of the Jefferson County School Board are up for grabs.
Three of five races for council seats are contested. Two council members – Vicki Stack in Ward 1 and Sue King in Ward 3, have no opponent and will return to Council unchallenged.
In Ward 2, where Light Rail’s impact may hit hardest, Scott Koop and Frank Teunissen are campaigning to fill the seat of Debbie Koop, who is term-limited after eight years in office. She is the wife of candidate Scott Koop.
The Ward 4 race began with three candidates, but only two – Amy Attwood and Dave Wiechman – remain on the ballot after Randy Little bowed out of the campaign in June.
Changes in development plans of the sprawling Rooney Valley on the western edge of Lakewood and the ward loom in the near future, with options that could include moving the National Western Stock Show and the Jefferson County Fairgrounds to the area.
In Ward 5 on Lakewood’s southeastern side, incumbent Councilwoman Diana Allen faces a challenge from long-time Lakewood activist Natalie Menten. Few major issues have arisen in Ward 5 since Sam’s Club lost a heated battle to place a store on a cow pasture, they do face the issues facing the city as a whole.
Among those issues are how the city responds under a new city manager and how the city’s finances fare through the economic downturn.
Long-time manager Mike Rock retired in September after more than a decade and a half as the city’s top administrator. His replacement, Kathy Hodgson, is a career Lakewood employee who started as a lifeguard.
Lakewood ‘s mail-in ballot also includes two county-wide ballot questions, both dealing with term limits.
Ballot Question 1A, if approved by voters, would grant the District Attorney for the 1st Judicial District the opportunity to seek a third term. Colorado’s district attorneys are limited to two four-year terms unless voters decide otherwise. Because the District Attorney serves both Jefferson and Gilpin counties, the question must gain voter approval in each county to be effective.
Jeffco’s Ballot Question 2 would permit a third four-year term for the Sheriff, the Assessor, the Clerk and Recorder, the Treasurer, the Coroner and the Surveyor.
In the race for the Jefferson County School District Board of Directors, two seats are contested. Incumbent Sue Marinelli faces a challenge by Laura Boggs for the District 2 seat and incumbent Richard Rush is campaigning against Paula Noonan for the District 5 seat. Robin Johnson, who was appointed to the District 1 seat after former board member Scott Benefield resigned in June, has no opponent.
The county Clerk’s office began mailing ballots out Monday and they must be returned by 7 p.m. Election Day, Nov. 3. For a list of sites collecting ballots, see the county Clerk’s web site. Ballots returned by mail need two First Class stamps.
