ROCKLAND, Maine — The race for two seats on the City Council and a pair on the school board is about to start.
Nomination papers for the seats will be available at the city clerk’s office beginning Aug. 10. Candidates have until Sept. 26 to gather at least 100 signatures of registered Rockland voters to get on the Nov. 8 ballot.
The council seats held by Mayor Louise MacLellan-Ruf and Councilor Larry Pritchett are up for election.
Pritchett said Monday he has not decided whether he would run for another term. He said he was not leaning one way or the other on the choice.
MacLellan-Ruf also said she has not decided. She said she has accomplished many of the items on her “to do” list. Included in those goals was to stop dumping snow in the harbor which she said has slowed down damage to the fish pier. She said the new snow removal policy has reduced overtime and increased efficiency.
She also cited a grant received to upgrade the fish pier, and progress on the Harbor Trail.
“I love Rockland. To run or not to run is a discussion that my family and I will have,” she said. “The amount of time and hours needed to be on council is an investment that tasks all of our families. Much more thought is needed before a decision will be reached.”
MacLellan-Ruf was elected to the council in 2013 and her fellow councilors chose her as mayor last November. Pritchett is completing his second consecutive three-year term, winning in 2010 and 2013. In 2010, he won the seat by three votes over Frank Isganitis after a recount was held. Pritchett served as mayor for one year after being elected in November 2013.
Two Rockland seats on the Regional School Unit 13 board also are up for election. Those seats are held by Chairman Steve Roberts and member Donald Robishaw Jr.
Roberts was first elected to the Rockland-area school board in November 2013 and has been chairman since February 2014.
Roberts said Monday he would be seeking re-election.
“I am committed to seeing this vision for the future of our region through to its realization so I am seeking a second term on the board. I would like to continue the work of unification and building on that foundation for the future of education and for the future of the youth in our region,” Roberts said.
“The quality of our schools is not just a matter of the service we render for our kids, it is also a matter of importance for the economic development of our region. It is vital to our community that we continue addressing the quality of education we offer with this in mind,” he said.
Robishaw, who has been on the board since 2011, said Monday that he would not be seeking re-election. A Republican, Robishaw announced in March that he would run for the Maine House seat that represents Rockland and Owls Head. He will be seeking the seat held by District 93 Rep. Anne “Pinny” Beebe-Center, D-Rockland, who is seeking re-election.
City voters also will get to select a port district member, an election warden and a ward clerk.