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Andrews, Larson favored in municipal
elections
Meth levy fails in county
Election 2006 Results
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Sundeen ousts Ragsdale in Dundee race |
Pugsley joins council in at-large position |
By David Sale, Newberg Graphic
reporter
E-mail David at
dsale@eaglenewspapers.com
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DUNDEE
— Former city council member Don Sundeen will replace Diane Ragsdale
as mayor of Dundee, and he will inherit a full agenda.
“My first priority is to replace (City Administrator Eve Dolan, who
retires Dec. 31),” Sundeen said, “then address the sewage treatment
plant.”
Dundee’s treatment plant is at capacity, and the city faces a choice
between extensive upgrades and connecting to the Newberg sewer
system.
Sundeen won the office by 552 votes to Ragsdale’s 480, a margin of
victory of 53 percent, and a surprise to many observers of the race.
Ragsdale’s term in office was marked by controversy and Dundee
residents may have been ready for a change, Sundeen said.
“I ran (for mayor) two years ago, and got a positive response, but in
this election, there was an underlying encouragement that I didn’t
feel last time around,” Sundeen said. “The citizen support was
really there.”
“It was a pretty contentions term overall, and the voters have spoken,”
Ragsdale said of her loss.
“We have good people on the council, but they’ve had hard decisions to
make, and we’ll see how it all unfolds,” she added. “There’s a lot
of infrastructure issues to be addressed, and I wish the council
well in handling them.”
Among these issues is Dundee’s Main Street Refinement Plan, a vision
statement that proved a lightning rod for controversy. As a member
of Dundee’s Transportation Advisory Committee, Sundeen helped craft
the plan, but said he is willing to accommodate changes.
“The council has already suggested changes, and I fully support that,” he
said. “I have some concerns of my own, especially surrounding the
right-of-way for Highway 99W. But I hope we don’t throw the whole
plan out, because there’s a lot of effort and expertise represented
in it.”
Incumbent council members Craig Roggers and Storr Nelson will maintain
their seats. Newcomer Doug Pugsley will replace councilor Cindy
Robeson, who did not seek re-election.
Together with candidate Gary Rodney, four candidates ran in an at-large
election for three council seats. Nelson received 655 votes out of
2,313 ballots cast, followed by Pugsley with 579 votes and Roggers
with 568, while Rodney trailed with 474 votes.
“I’m absolutely excited and honored,” Pugsley said of his victory. “I
think this will be a good council and a more harmonious one.”
His words were echoed by Nelson, who serves as council president.
“I served my first two years on the council together with Sundeen — he
has a lot of experience with the issues the city is facing, and I’m
definitely looking forward to working with him,” Nelson said. “But I
am sorry to see Diane (Ragsdale) lose. I think she would have done
well, and two years isn’t a lot of time in office.”
Pugsley and Sundeen will join the returning members of the Dundee city
council at their next regular meeting, at 7 p.m. Nov. 20, at Dundee
City Hall, 620 S.W. Fifth St. |
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From
Nov. 11,
2006, Newberg Graphic
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