Elections to lead new Weber County city draw 37 mayoral, city council hopefuls
The filing period to run for mayor or one of five city council seats that will serve the new city ended last Friday, and a total of 37 people have stepped forward to run for the six leadership posts. Four mayoral candidates have emerged: Janet Wampler, Kyle Reeder, Andrew Newton and Shanna Francis.
'It's an indication that this community is eager to get on with being its own municipality,' said Nick Dahlkamp, who helped with initial organizing efforts that led to last November's vote to create the city. 'This just again exemplifies how important people feel that they want to take control of their destiny and are eager to get on with it.'
Apart from the four mayoral hopefuls, the District 1 and 5 City Council races have drawn five candidates each, the District 2 contest has seven candidates and the District 3 and 4 races have eight hopefuls each. Dahlkamp said the numbers exceeded his expectations.
The Ogden Valley city, to be officially named by the slate of leaders who win, covers an expansive area around Pineview Reservoir on the eastern side of the Wasatch Mountains, east of Weber County's population cluster around Ogden. It's a picturesque zone, home to three ski resorts, and boosters of incorporation touted becoming a city as a means of maintaining local control as growth pressures mount. An estimated 7,600 people live within the planned city's boundaries.
The long list of candidates will be whittled to two in each contest in primary voting, which culminates on Aug. 12. The winners will be selected in general election balloting, which ends on Nov. 4. Those victors will be sworn in on Jan. 5 next year, when the city formally comes into being, according to Ogden Valley Inc., the organization that promoted incorporation.
While campaigning has yet to begin in earnest, the filing paperwork offers some information about the candidates.
In the mayoral race, Wampler's filing says she serves as chairwoman of the Ogden Valley Planning Commission, which serves as an advisory body to Weber County commissioners on planning issues in the Ogden Valley. The Weber County Commission is the ruling body that now governs the unincorporated area, pending installation of the newly elected leaders next January. She also serves the Community Foundation of Ogden Valley, a nonprofit group that raises funds for other nonprofits serving the area.
Reeder is an attorney 'specializing in business transactions and commercial litigation,' reads his filing.
Newton is owner of two small businesses, Composet Products and Proformance Services, and served in a volunteer post with the Pineview West Water Co., a provider of secondary water, according to the Utah Division of Water Rights.
Francis is the owner and operator of the Ogden Valley News, a newspaper serving the Ogden Valley. She was also one of the six original sponsors who pursued incorporation of the Ogden Valley.
Separately, incorporation proponents have been working with the public to plan for the transition to incorporation. Some 180 people have stepped forward to assist with things like budget preparation, creating an organizational structure for the city and crafting of zoning ordinances and other codes, according to Kay Hoogland, who's helping with transitional efforts and also running for a city council seat. She called the volunteers 'the advance team' for the eventual winners in elections and said the many candidates will be invited to take part in the efforts.
While the Ogden Valley locale will be the newest Utah city, a new town is taking shape in Utah County, Spring Lake, which sits between Payson and Santaquin and is home to around 600 people. Residents there last year also voted to become a new locale and will pick leaders in this year's election cycle.
Wade Menlove is the sole mayoral candidate, according to Utah County election officials. Seven hopefuls are running for two four-year town council posts, and seven are running for two two-year town council seats.
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