Farmington Voters Return Incumbent, Pick Two Newcomers

Farmington voters overwhelmingly returned incumbent JoAnne McShane to city council Tuesday, while selecting newcomers Kristin Kuiken and Greg Cowley to take the places of Valerie Knol and David Wright, whose terms expired this year.

Knol and Wright announced their intentions to step down early, so this year's election drew a large field of candidates. Kuiken said she is "very honored" to have been selected for a four-year term. She received the second-highest number of votes cast for candidates on Tuesday's ballot.

"I'm very thankful to my supporters, the people who gave money, the people who knocked on doors ... and to the citizens of Farmington," she said. "I'm very excited to represent them and serve the community."

Kuiken said she plans to get her bearings, then focus on economic development. "I think that's an area of the community that really needs some shoring up," she said. "I look forward to digging into it."

For Cowley, winning a seat on council means giving up his seat on the Farmington Downtown Development Authority board. City council members will appoint a replacement. He said he plans to stay involved with the DDA and the Main Street program as a volunteer.

"We've been trying to get a council person onto all of the DDA committees," he said, adding that he'll still have a vested interest in the organization, as city officials approve the DDA budget.

"I'm happy the voters put confidence in me," Cowley said, "and I'm glad a business person was elected to council. I think that's important."