Newcomer Brownlee leads School Board election; Incumbent narrowly returned

Clear Lake School Board President Chyrl Bergvig and newcomer Tony Brownlee captured the two board seats up for decision in the Regular School Election Tuesday, Sept. 12.

Brownlee was the top vote getter in the local election with 306 votes.  Bergvig was next with 252, followed by another first-time candidate, Rick Knudson, with 237 votes.

“I am honored to serve a second term.  My goal is to continue to make the Clear Lake School District the best that it can be,” said Bergvig.

“Today, families have choices when it comes to selecting a school for their children.  I want to see Clear Lake become a destination not just for tourism, but also for school education and community experience,” said Brownlee.  “I believe if we focus on teacher pay, technology, and facilities, we will make Clear Lake more attractive to these families that are considering relocating to our community.”

Just over 7 percent (454) of the 6,425 registered voters in Clear Lake turned out for the election.

GHV

First-time candidate Jay Larkin received the most votes in the Garner-Hayfield-Ventura School District election.  Larkin garnered 240 votes, while incumbents Jack Toppin and Steve Watson earned 222 and 191 votes respectively.  Write-in candidate Brian Roberts received good support with 113 votes.  An additional six votes were cast for scattered persons.

The newcomer, Larkin, will fill Larry Costello’s seat on the board, while Wat-

[wlm_nonmember]To read more of this article, please login or sign up for our E-Edition[/wlm_nonmember][wlm_ismember]

son and Toppin were returned to office.    Watson will be beginning his 11th year on the School Board, having served two four-year terms at Ventura and one two-year term after the schools consolidated.  Toppin served six years on the Garner-Hayfield Board of Education, then two years on the GHV Board.  Costello decided not to seek re-election after 41 years of service on Ventura and GHV School Boards.

While campaigning Larkin noted he is young and interested in making the school district the best one possible, especially since he has children in the school district.  “Being a self-employed contractor and dealing with homeowners, I feel I will be good at communicating with other board members and parents,” he said.

[/wlm_ismember]