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Published March 28, 2012, 03:58 PM

Town of St. Joseph features two supervisor races

There are two contested races for supervisor posts in the town of St. Joseph in Tuesday’s spring election. The Supervisor 1 race features incumbent Kevin Adkins and challenger Tom Spaniol; the Supervisor 3 race features incumbent Brian Gullickson and challenger Dan Thompson.

  • Town of St. Joseph candidates
    • image
    Town of St. Joseph candidates are, left side: Brian Gullickson, top, and Dan Thompson, running for Supervisor 3 position; right side: Kevin Adkins, top, and Tom Spaniol, running for Supervisor 1 position.

There are two contested races for supervisor posts in the town of St. Joseph in Tuesday’s spring election.

The Supervisor 1 race features incumbent Kevin Adkins and challenger Tom Spaniol; the Supervisor 3 race features incumbent Brian Gullickson and challenger Dan Thompson. Information on each candidate:

Supervisor 1

  • Name: Kevin Adkins, 52

  • Occupation: Commercial realtor

  • Prior Elected Office: Town of St. Joseph supervisor

    What is /are the most important issue(s) in the town of St. Joseph and how would you address it/them?

    The Town of St. Joseph will face some challenging crossroads during the next several years as decisions about the Stillwater Bridge are made. Changes will come to St. Joe as these decisions are made and the Town needs to be prepared to handle those changes even as moneys from state and federal dollars continue to decline.

    During the last two years as the Town’s First Supervisor, I’ve made many contacts with a number of organizations and governmental entities that will be either a part of the decision making processes as this project moves forward or valuable advisors to the town as the town works toward maintaining the ambiance of a small, rural Town.

    My business experience has taught me how to be fiscally responsible in the private sector and I will continue to draw on that experience to allocate Town tax dollars judiciously. Most importantly, I want to see greater citizen involvement and participation in the decision making process in the future. If the voters choose to re-elect me on April 3, I will work toward getting citizen groups together to discuss the issues facing the town so that we can all move forward in a positive manner.

    _____________________________________

  • Name: Thomas J. (Tom) Spaniol, 59

  • Occupation: I retired in 2008 from 3M after a successful 32 year career. I held Senior Management positions in Sales, Marketing, Supply Chain, Information Technology, and Global Business Analytics. Most recently I managed the hiring, training, and directing of Business Analysts on a global basis for the Consumer Group (Scotch Brand Tape, Post-it Notes, etc). The Analysts were responsible for analyzing data to help retailers make multi-million dollar data driven decisions.

  • Family: I have been happily married to my wife, Kelly, for 35 years. We have been blessed with three children, all of whom are enjoying successful business careers. Our first grandchild is due the end of April.

  • Prior elected office: Currently I hold the office of secretary, Bass Lake Rehabilitation District (BLRD). This is a unit of government that improves and protects the environmental quality of Bass Lake and its immediate watershed and assures its use for recreational purposes for this and future generations. Recently, I led the Wildlife and Fisheries Habitat Improvement Project effort for the BLRD which was completed primarily through grants and volunteerism.

    What is/are the most important issue(s) in the town of St. Joseph and how would you address it/them?

    It is obvious that the new river bridge crossing is the most important issue. It is not a singular issue, it is multiple complex issues, and will take a dedicated effort beginning immediately. Even though construction will not be completed for four years we need critical simultaneous efforts.

    Approximately 2.5 million dollars of mitigation funds, which has been designated for the town of St. Joseph, can only be garnered if all the appropriate town plans, applications, permits, are submitted on time and correctly. We will lose these funds if we wait. Committees of respected and knowledgeable individuals must be formed and volunteers appointed to ensure all this work is completed on a timely basis.

    I will represent all the people for I have nothing personal to gain from the decisions I will be asked to make. I will bring integrity, honesty, and good decision making to this board.

    The second issue is the maintenance of our infrastructure. By studying the issue(s) and using best practice methodologies to make intelligent and informed decisions for the long term rather than cheap, quick fix decisions. I don’t have all the answers, but I will know how and where to go to get them.

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    Supervisor 3

  • Name: Brian Gullickson, 40

  • Occupation: Senior Business Systems Analyst

  • Family: Married to Constance Gullickson. We are blessed with our son Logan who is anxious to start kindergarten at Houlton Elementary this fall.

  • Prior elected office: 3rd Supervisor – town of St. Joseph since April 2010.

    What is/are the most important issue(s) in the town of St. Joseph and how would you address it/them?

    The town of St. Joseph will play a critical role over the next several years as decisions are made about the Stillwater bridge project.  In the two years since my election to the town board, the town of St. Joseph has dealt with critical issues dictated by events beyond the control of the town board or its residents.  These events have brought to light many areas that are now being addressed.

    If I am fortunate enough to be re-elected to serve another two years, I look forward to the opportunity to be proactive rather than reactive in the town’s approach to the issues it faces. My professional training has given me a keen sense of analyzing the details of whatever I am working on. In addition, I believe the town must be fiscally responsible in response to the decreasing allocation of funds from both the federal and state governments.

    Finally, as a town supervisor, I’ve been a strong advocate for transparency in government and will continue to work hard to implement ways for residents to have a larger voice and be more active in the future of the town of St. Joseph.

    ______________________________________________

  • Name: Daniel Thompson, 40

  • Occupation: Owner/ Operator “Guv’s Place” in Houlton (five years); member St Joseph Fire Department (six years)

  • Family: Wife Jessica. Two daughters aged 18 and 14

  • Prior Elected Office: None

    What is/are the most important issue(s) in the town of St. Joseph and how would you address it/them?

    I feel the most important issue in our town is the advent of the St Croix River Crossing Project.

    I will address this issue by:

    1). Creating an honest, open, and professionally run government that can be run efficiently and with integrity.

    2). Being involved in all aspects of the bridge project to make sure our residents (stakeholders) do not become an afterthought in the process. I feel we need to be prepared and have systems in place to deal with growth responsibly (both fiscally and environmentally), so that we may preserve the way of life that we have become accustomed to.

    3). Engaging and involving the many diverse and talented people we have in our town that want to be involved.

    I feel my background in both business and construction; make me an ideal candidate for the St Joseph Town board. I will bring honesty, integrity, and a “commitment to service” to the position. I intend to “do my homework” and be deeply informed of the issues that face our town. Through careful planning and fiscal responsibility we can together have a town we can all be proud of.

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