Stephens City Town Council election to be uncontested – The Winchester Star

STEPHENS CITY It should be smooth sailing for Stephens City candidates this year, as the Town Council elections in Stephens City on Nov. 3 will be uncontested, according to the Frederick County Office of Elections.

The filing deadline for candidates was 7 p.m. Tuesday. Three of councils six seats are up for election. Members of town council are elected for four-year terms, and they run without a party designation on the ballot.

Incumbent Ronald Bowers, who has been on town council for 32 years, is seeking another four-year term. Im Just Me Movement Co-Founder Christine Tina Stevens, who won a special election to Town Council in November, is seeking her first four-year term. Newcomer Julia Young, who is studying political science at Lord Fairfax Community College, is seeking office for the first time.

Council member Joseph Hollis, who has been on the council for 18 years, did not file for re-election.

Stevens, 45, said her priorities for the next four years include continuing to make adjustments to the Capital Improvement Plan, improving the sidewalks and finding ways to expand the roads to improve traffic.

She would also like to see a community center that could be used by the elderly and veterans. She also wants there to be interest and young blood on the council and hopes to encourage more town residents to attend council meetings. Helping the community heal from the COVID-19 pandemic is another priority.

We are in a double whammy here, Stevens said. Weve got COVID-19, but we also have a lot of racial tensions around the world. I think as a council we can be more intentional in our messages. I think we can help support our communities and people of color and let them know that their voices do matter and that Stephens City is here for them. We are here for them for any concerns they may have with these racial tensions. And in terms of COVID-19, we are stronger together, so being able to support our community with any challenges they have faced.

Young, 28, grew up in Winchester and currently lives in Stephens City with her husband and three children. She would like to see Stephens City become a more welcoming place for people of color and the LGBTQ community.

I definitely think theres still a lot of work that needs to be done, said Young, who is bisexual. My husband and my children, they are actually Latino. They are white-passing so nobody would expect it. But we live right on Main Street. I see kids with their basketball and running. And I see people cross the street to avoid teenage black men. We see things all of the time because we are always sitting on our porch. And so there is definitely work to be done. I think theres work to be done everywhere, but especially in a place like this where our history is the Civil War. Our history is divisive. Theres a lot more work to be done than people would like to admit needs to be done.

Like Stevens, Young also wants council to find ways to support the community during and following the COVID-19 pandemic. She said she would like there to be a town-commissioned food pantry drop off or coordination to help the Sherando Food Pantry. She also wants the town to provide handicapped-accessible playgrounds and parks for disabled children.

If elected, Young also hopes to foster growth of residential and commercial development.

To be perfectly honest, I think the only way is to move forward and growth is key, Young said. There are things that are treasured about small towns, but you dont have to lose the neighborly quality that people desire and knowing each other and the warmth that small towns can exude when you wind up expanding.

As for Bowers, 83, he said, I just would like to continue to serve the citizens of the town. He said there are several housing developments planned and that there certainly is going to be a lot of changes in the next four years.

Rich Venskoske, director of elections/general registrar for Frederick County, said because the three candidates are the only ones who filed by Tuesdays deadline, they are expected to win the election unless there is an extremely popular write-in candidate. Town council members are not paid.

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Stephens City Town Council election to be uncontested - The Winchester Star