Who's running for Assembly?

Sept. 2, 2005

DARRELL L. BREESE\Frontiersman reporter

PALMER - Election season is upon us, and that means it is time for Mat-Su Borough voters to select two new assembly members. Residents of assembly districts 4 and 5 will have to choose their new representatives .

Among those seeking office are a retired bridge builder, travel agent, former assembly member, an incumbent and a contractor.

In the District 4 race, Greg Koskela is making his first run for political office, squaring off against incumbent Mary Kvalheim.

Term limits are forcing Jody Simpson, District 5's assembly member, out of office . Her departure has attracted three candidates to fill the vacancy. Former assembly member Jay Nolfi is ready for action once again. She will face challenges from first-time candidates Cindy Bettine and Hank Corbin.

So who are the candidates? What do they want to accomplish? And how long have they lived in the borough?

Assembly District 4

Serving the area from Seward Meridian to Vine Road, including the city of Wasilla.

€ Greg Koskela

Greg moved to Wasilla with his wife and children in the spring of 1995.

He is a general contractor who specializes in building log homes. For the last five years, Koskela has served on the Wasilla Planning Commission. He and his family are active at Lamb of God Lutheran Church in Wasilla.

If elected, Koskela indicated he would work on developing a comprehensive economic development plan for the borough with the new economic development manager. He also would work on implementing control on spending and making things more efficient in the borough.

"My big concern is that the borough looks to the future," he said. "With the growth we need new schools, roads and other infrastructure put into place. If elected, I will work towards accomplishing that, while looking after the best interest of the people from my district and the borough as a whole."

€ Mary Kvalheim, incumbent

Kvalheim moved to the Valley from Kodiak in 1970 with her husband, Ray, and two children, first living in the Meadow Lakes area before moving to Wasilla in 1979. She managed the Mat-Su Legislative Information Office for 20 years and retired in 1999.

Kvalheim has been active in the community for many years, serving on committees for school sports activities, as well as various boards of Valley nonprofit agencies. She presently sits on the Board of Mat-Su Services for Children and Adults. Her local government service includes being instrumental in starting the Meadow Lakes Community Council and serving on that board. Mary has also served on the Mat-Su Borough Board of Ethics and the Planning Commission prior to her election to the assembly.

Elected in 2002, Kvalheim is seeking her second term on the assembly.

If elected, she would like to continue work on agriculture land preservation, see the borough work on further developing and marketing for tourism and address the increased transportation concerns in the community.

"Establishing an additional east-west corridor is among the transportation issues I'd like to see completed," Kvalheim said. "We've started working on this, but I would like to see it completed while I'm still on the assembly."

Assembly District 5

Serving the Knik-Goose Bay, Port MacKenzie, Houston and Big Lake areas.

€ Cindy Bettine

Bettine, a lifelong Valley resident, launched ABC Travel Time Inc. 27 years ago in Wasilla. Additionally, she and her husband of 24 years, Michael Butcher, a general contractor, have developed commercial property in the Valley. She identifies herself as a fiscal conservative and a strong supporter of maintaining the values that attract residents to the Valley.

She founded and served as first president of the Mat-Su Convention and Visitors Bureau in 1986. She has served on Chamber of Commerce boards, community council boards and borough advisory committees, participates in the United Way campaign and has served as a youth activity fund-raiser.

Bettine and Butcher make their home in the Big Lake area. They have one son, Owen Butcher, a college student who lives in the area. The family's Valley roots go back to 1932 when Bettine's mother, Bonnie Moore Bettine, arrived in Matanuska.

"I have been in business and worked as a volunteer in our community during the good times and the hard times. There are no quick or slick answers to our challenges as we try to balance growth with the quality of life we enjoy in the Valley. It requires hard work, straight talk and the ability to make tough decisions. I feel my record in both the public and private sector reflects those qualities," Bettine said.

€ Hank Corbin

An Alaska resident since 1948, Corbin moved from Nome to Wasilla with his wife in the spring of 1992.

He is a retired construction worker who has 30 years of experience building bridges and docks around Alaska. He owns several apartments in the borough and in Nome.

Corbin has served on the road service board and has been on the borough travel advisory board.

If elected, Corbin would like to see taxpayer money designated for road service return to the control of the local service area and not placed in the hands of the borough.

He said he would also work to eliminate waste he sees in several departments, including fire service and schools.

"I'm a working man, with working-man values and point of view," Corbin said. "I will keep my eye on the bottom line and work for the people."

€ Jay Nolfi

Nolfi homesteaded with her husband in 1957 at Big Lake. She served on the assembly from 1993-99, surrendering her seat to term limits.

In addition to serving on the assembly, she has been active in the Big Lake Community Council and Chamber of Commerce, having served as president for both organizations.

She has also served on countless borough boards and commissions.

If elected, Nolfi plans to address increasing property taxes by examining ways of diversifying the tax base. She also views Port MacKenzie as an economic gold mine that has yet to be fully tapped. One of her biggest concerns is the quality and need for schools in the borough.

"I'd like to see the residents reclaim the ownership of their community," Nolfi said. "It that happens, more work can be done at the local level."