There are two newcomers but no contested seats on the ballot for Brunswick Town Council this November.
District 3, 4 and one at-large seat will be on the referendum.
The candidate for District 3 is Abby King, who would be taking the seat of Councilor Dan Jenkins. Jenkins was elected in 2018 and told The Times Record in July he would not be seeking re-election due to increasing responsibilities at work. District 3 includes the southwestern portion of Brunswick.
Brunswick Town Council District 3 candidate Abby King. Courtesy of King
King, 43, has lived in Brunswick for about six years and since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic has been a stay-at-home-parent. King’s past experiences include over 20 years in education, consulting work as well as student government in college.
“Over the past few years there has really been an intense hyper-focus on national and state politics,” King said. “I’d like to do my part to ensure that people know who their councilor is, and that information on what’s happening in our own community is easily gained and accessible.”
Issues that King said she would like to address include affordable housing and promoting a sustainable workforce in Brunswick, as well as working on the revitalization plan for Cook’s Corner – a heavily commercial area in town.
“I think council is doing a great job at looking at some of these issues, but the reality is we are in a housing crisis, and we don’t have the workforce that we need in terms of true economic growth, and that’s true both at the local and at the state level,” King said. “The pathways that we need to take are clear, but the answers to solving these very big issues are not clear, so I’m really excited to dive in deeper.”
In District 4 – which makes up the northwestern portion of Brunswick – Sande Updegraph is looking to fill the seat of Council Chairperson John Perreault, who, after 12 years, will not be seeking re-election.
Attempts to contact Perreault for further comment were unsuccessful on Wednesday. A new chairperson will be selected at the first council meeting of 2022.
Brunswick Town Council District 4 candidate Sande Updegraph. Courtesy of Updegraph
Updegraph, 77, is a 20-year resident of Brunswick, and has served on the planning board for roughly 10 years, in addition to other town committees. Now retired, Updegraph has worked as the executive director of the Freeport chamber of commerce as well as the director of economic development in Freeport.
Issues that Updegraph hopes to tackle, she said, include managing Brunswick’s shoreland in terms of development and protection, help to address traffic on Pleasant Street, work to improve the relationship between the school board and the council and pay close attention to growth in Brunswick town wide.
“Even if we’re following all the guidelines, I think the town council has an obligation – and the planning board but the council in particular – to correctly communicate how and why growth is occurring where it is,” Updegraph said.
Councilor Dan Ankeles is running unopposed for his second term in one of the two at-large seats.
Brunswick Town Councilor Dan Ankeles. Photo by Michele Stapleton
“There continue to be a lot of major, unfinished projects that I think are going to be approaching critical decision points in the next year, and I would like to see those through,” Ankeles said.
According to Ankeles, examples of work to come includes the downtown sidewalk project, ongoing conservation and preservation efforts, affordable housing initiatives and the Cook’s Corner revitalization plan.
Terms are for three years. The election will be held on Nov. 2, 2021, at the Brunswick Junior High School from of 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Absentee ballots are now available.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
