Four open council seats in Carroll Valley [The Evening Sun, Hanover, Pa.]

Oct. 30--Carroll Valley Borough has four open council seats and six candidates to choose from in the Nov. 5 general election.

There are three open seats on the council for four-year terms and one open seat for the remaining two years of a term left vacant by a councilman's resignation.

Republican John Cazalas is running for one of the three four-year seats, in addition to the three running for re-election: Republican Daniel Joseph Patton Sr., Republican John Van Volkenburgh and Democrat Kenneth Lundberg.

First-time candidate Cazalas has lived in the borough for 29 years and retired from the U.S. Department of the Treasury 10 years ago. Cazalas said he's running for office for the first time because he believes things have stayed the same in Carroll Valley for too long.

"Change is needed in Carroll Valley," Cazalas said. He would not discuss specific changes he would like to see.

Patton has lived in the borough for 13 years and has worked as a risk manager in Frederick, Md., for 16 years. Patton, the council's vice president for about six years, wants to keep up what he believes is a good rhythm in the borough.

"Our council is so united and we work so well together," Patton said. "My vision is to keep it simple and focus on what the community really wants."

Lundberg has lived in the borough for 36 years and has been on the council for 13. A retired IBM employee, he said in the past 21 years, the borough has only had three tax increases, so he wants to keep up the trend of low tax increases.

"I don't want to rock the boat if I don't have to," he said.

Van Volkenburgh, the council's current president running for re-election, did not return several phone calls.

In addition, two candidates are running to fill an open spot left when Bill Rainke stepped down mid-term for personal reasons, council Vice President Daniel Patton said. Frank Buhrman has been serving as interim councilman in Rainke's place but is not running for election.

Republican Thomas K. Fitzsimmons and Democrat Donna A. DesPres are on the ballot to fill out the remaining two years of Rainke's term.

Fitzsimmons served on the borough council about four years ago. He has lived in Carroll Valley for 12 years and currently serves on the finance committee. Fitzsimmons retired from the property and liability insurance industry in 1993 and believes his work experience will be beneficial to the borough.

He is specifically concerned with the future of an undeveloped tract of land, and said developments have the potential to change life in the borough.

"As the council, our decisions have a profound effect on the local community," he said.

DesPres has lived in Carroll Valley Borough for 35 years. She works as a town clerk for Emmittsburg, Md., and has a background in accounting.

She has lived in the borough since she was a young married woman and plans to retire in the coming months, which she said gives her the ability to relate to a wide cross section of borough residents and serve the community with her financial knowledge.

" I look forward to embracing citizen concerns and doing what I can to address them," DesPres said in an email.

Contact Sarah Fleischman at 717-637-3736 x151

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