Three newcomers win borough assembly seats

October 4, 2006

By Michael Rovito/Frontiersman

PALMER - The Mat-Su Borough will be represented by three new assembly members of varying experiences after Tuesday's boroughwide vote.

Michelle Church, Rob Wells and Tom Kluberton all won their districts. Church easily defeated Ron Arvin and current borough mayor Tim Anderson in the District 3 race. She said she is looking forward to serving the borough on future issues.

&#8220I had a great team to help me,” Church said from the Valley Hotel, where she was celebrating with her family and campaign

volunteers.

Church said her first order of business is to meet with her fellow assembly members and the new mayor to figure out where everyone is coming from.

This is the first time Church has been

elected to public office, and the new District 3 representative said she is looking forward to tackling issues that have faced the borough for some time.

One of her fellow assembly victors, Wells, who completed his term on the borough school board this year after serving two terms on the assembly in the 1990s, said he also is ready to face the issues in the assembly.

&#8220I'm grateful and I'm willing to serve,” Wells said.

Wells defeated longtime borough resident and political novice Nola Bragg, who was involved in the recent lawsuit against the borough's new tobacco tax. He said he is pleased that Curt Menard is the new mayor, saying he supported the former legislator all along.

Kluberton, who will represent District 7, is also a newcomer to the assembly. The Talkeetna resident ran unopposed in that district's race, although he faced an unsuccessful write-in challenge.

Contact Michael Rovito at 352-2252 or michael.rovito@

frontiersman.com.