This story will be updated with initial election results after 8 p.m.
Read previous coverage of this race and the recall that initiated it. The candidates are listed in voting order.
The current mayor of Cottage Grove is facing a re-election challenge from a city council member. Meanwhile, 10 Cottage Grove residents have filed for five seats on the City Council, and voters will decide on two tax measures in an election just three months after three council members were recalled.
Cottage Grove 2024 Mayoral Candidates
Dana Merryday is a retired teacher and current Cottage Grove city councilor. He said as mayor he wants to tackle three big issues: finding solutions for the unhoused that the rest of the community will support, reducing the city’s housing shortage with an emphasis on affordable housing and bringing industry to Cottage Grove. He promoted the city’s plans for the Cleveland Avenue property as a way to address those problems.
Candace Solesbee is the current mayor of Cottage Grove and is an entrepreneur and business owner. Before becoming mayor, Solesbee was a city council member and president of the Chamber of Commerce. Solesbee said her “goals focus on public safety, fiscal responsibility, the housing shortage and supporting and growing businesses” and include advocating for reform of HB 3115, which would allow cities to adopt stricter rules on where people can’t camp .
On homelessness, Solesbee said, “I have consistently opposed low-barrier shelters that do not require individuals to pursue sobriety or undergo criminal background checks.” While Merryday said, “With the city manager’s decision to implement a 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. camping program, we have essentially returned to what the city experienced a decade ago: people camping out of sight and discreetly.”
Cottage Grove City Council, Ward 1
Kevin Adamski is a retired forestry technician with the Cottage Grove Ranger District of the Umpqua National Forest. He graduated from Roseburg High School and Umpqua Community College with an associate degree in forestry. According to his Facebook page, Adamski is against gun control. According to the Chronicle, he is against the sale of the Cottage Grove Armory. In 2022 he argued against the rules of Climate Friendly & Equitable Communities.
Christine Hyink is a regional manager for the Oregon Department of Transportation and has served as a project manager for the Economic Development Corporation. According to her campaign website, Hyink would prioritize law enforcement for resources, pursue affordable housing while maintaining small-town character, advocate for government transparency, especially with the city budget, and “promote welfare and well-being.”
Cottage Grove Municipal Council, at large (2 years)
Jim Settlemeyer is a retired teacher and coach. He worked as a science teacher in Cottage Grove for 36 years, as a mill worker for 15 years and graduated from Cottage Grove High School. Settlemeyer said he has worked with community projects including Tree of Joy, The Great IceCream Bowl and the creation of CG Peace Pole. Settlemeyer said he wants to “help build unity” in Cottage Grove and help the community and council “combine their talents and efforts in positive ways.”
Chris Holloman is director of business development at Nebraska Irrigation and former owner and operator of Holloman Ford, Cottage Grove. He studied business administration at the University of Oregon and served on the South Lane Fire Board. In 2022, he ran for city council and lost to Merryday, but earned almost 49% of the vote. According to the Cottage Grove voter pamphlet, Holloman will “advocate for fiscal responsibility and economic growth.”
Cottage Grove Municipal Council, at large (4 years)
Darrel Wilson is a “semi-retired” driver for the Ascot Park Senior Center. Previously he was an armored car courier/driver and corrections officer. Wilson served on the Springfield Downtown Revitalization Committee. In 2022, Wilson ran for City Council and lost to Mike Fleck, one of the council members recalled this year. In that campaign, he told the Chronicle he wanted to fight council decisions that made it “harder to afford basic services” in Cottage Grove.
Richard Andrew Vasquez is an independent consultant. He served on the advisory boards and committees of Lane County Parks & Recreation and Cottage Grove Urban Forest, and also served as a trustee of San Joaquin Delta College. Andrew Vasquez said Cottage Grove’s most critical issue is homelessness and he wants to find functional homelessness sites; partners who provide housing, employment, mental health and recovery options; and create a task force on homelessness.
Patrick Cartwright is co-owner of Northwest Automotive Customs. Cartwright has an MBA from the University of Oregon and a business degree from Lane Community College. He serves on the Precinct Committee for the local Republican Party. On his campaign’s Facebook page, Cartwright said the city should boost economic development by easing restrictions, curb tax incentives for development and not run homeless shelters.
According to the Chronicle, city council candidate Bernie Donner dropped out of the race.
Tax measures
Ballot Measure 20-365 is a bond measure that would increase property taxes by 50 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value over the next five years to repair Cottage Grove’s streets. The city would raise $2.5 million to repair Row River Road between Thornton Lane and Currin Connector, Taylor Avenue between Gateway Boulevard and Sixth Street, and Harrison Avenue east of R Street. The measure would also create a “Citizen Oversight Committee” to oversee bond financing.
Ballot Measure 20-366 would increase Cottage Grove’s gas tax from three to nine cents per gallon. By law, gas taxes must be spent on road construction or maintenance, and the city estimated the tax would raise $750,000 annually for this purpose. This measure would also create a Citizen Oversight Committee. This would be the second-highest city gas tax in Oregon, according to the Oregon Department of Transportation.
Alan Torres handles local government for the Register-Guard. Reach him out atorres@registerguard.com or @alanfryetorres.
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Election results: Cottage Grove mayor, city council, actions
