Three new faces elected to Eagle board

What a difference two years makes.

In 2002, with two candidates running for two seats on the Eagle Town Board, fewer than 50 voters bothered to cast ballots. This year, with nine candidates – none of them incumbents – seeking three seats on the board, 395 voters turned out to cast ballots.

Jon Stavney, who was running unopposed to replace term-limited Mayor Roxie Deane, was elected to his post with 299 votes.

The top finishers among a crowded field were Ed Woodland, who earned 227 votes, Kraige Kinney, who collected 147, and Jay Bryant, who received 138. They all earned seats on the town board.

“I welcome a change to the old guard,” said Eagle voter James Boyd Jr. “I think they’ll bring a different outlook. I’m hoping for some new ideas.”

The other candidates receiving votes were: Mikel Kerst, 122; Bill Schierkolk, 91; Tommy Helms, 83; Bob Magdzuik, 75; Bob Egan, 74; and Shawn Koch, 65.

The three winners will replace Tom Ehrenberg, Paul Gregg and Bruce Hasbrouck, who were all forced out of office by term limits.

The 395 ballots cast were the most cast in several years, but still represent only about 20 percent of the town’s 2,047 registered voters.

The biggest turnout for a municipal election in memory was the 522 votes cast in a 1982 recall election prompted by controversy over the proposed Adam’s Rib ski area. That number, tallied in a year when the town had just 675 registered voters, represented a 77 percent turnout.

Former board member Bill Heicher, who served as an election judge Tuesday and has lived in town more than 30 years, remembered that contentious vote. “That was a rough one,” he said.

Heicher also said this is the first election in his memory that hasn’t been affected by Adam’s Rib issues in some way. The town in 2002 reached an agreement with project developer Fred Kummer putting firm limits on potential development in the Brush Creek valley.

While the Adam’s Rib controversy is mostly the stuff of memories now, some voters Tuesday said they welcomed the opportunity to change the makeup of the town board.

:It’s an opportunity for a change for the town of Eagle,” said resident Mary Moore. “We’ve been here through the last board and I wanted to get my say in about the next few years.”

“Mostly we just have a general interest in the community,” said Moore’s husband, Mike.

Eagle results

Mayor:

Jon Stavney (incumbent/unopposed), 82 percent

Town Board:

Ed Woodland, 57 percent

Kraige Kinney, 37 percent

Jay Bryant, 34 percent

Mikel Kerst, 31 percent

Bill Schierkolk, 23 percent

Tommy Helms, 21 percent

Bob Magdzuik, 19 percent

Bob Egan, 19 percent

Shawn Koch, 16 percent.

* Top three vote-getters elected