Rundown for the May Election

The special district election will take place on May 20. Here’s a complete list of upcoming levies, school and park board candidates in Deschutes County.

School Boards
For the Bend-La Pine Schools district, candidates for Zone 1, 2 and 4 are running unopposed – Jennifer Lynch for Zone 1, Marcus LeGrand for Zone 2 and Shirley Olson for Zone 4.

For Zone 6, candidates include Theo Wilhelm and incumbent Ross Tomlin. Wilhelm, currently an author, was previously a classroom teacher at Cascades Middle School.

While Tomlin currently serves on the school board, he also teaches part-time at Central Oregon Community College as a forestry instructor.

Candidates running for Zone 7 include incumbent

Kina Chadwick and Justin Van Patten. Chadwick, a program director supporting rural healthcare access, has served on the Board from 2022 through today. Van Patten is a small business owner, father and longtime community volunteer.

For the Redmond School District, incumbent Michael Summers, who ran for the Senate Seat in the 27th District during the general election, is running unopposed for Position 2 on the board.

Candidates for Position 1 include incumbent Eric Lea and Ashley Proctor. Lea serves as the current School Board director, while Proctor is a Deschutes County social worker and a developmental disability specialist.

For Position 3, Joelle Beget and Amanda Page are running.

Page previously served as the Redmond School Board director. Beget worked as an elementary school teacher and operates a small family farm.

In the election for the Sisters School District board, residents Megan Jamieson and Sarah Keeton are running for Position 1. Jamieson has worked for universities, independent schools and small start-ups. Keeton is an orthopedic surgical nurse and a long-time Sisters resident.

For position 5, Emily Horton and Edie Jones are facing off. Horton is a parent of three children and a Deschutes County Program Manager in environmental health. Jones is a retired educator who previously served as school board director. Erik Benton is running unopposed for Position 2.

Parks and Recreation
For the Bend Metro Park and Recreation District, incumbent Nathan Hovekamp is running unopposed for Position 3. Incumbent Debra Schoen is also running unopposed for Position 5. Current board member, Cary Schneider, is running for re-election against Austin Mazzolini for Position 4. Mazzolini is a software engineer who served on a parks and recreation board in Texas.

For the La Pine Park and Recreation District, all candidates are running unopposed, including Janilee Carpenter, Joel Brader, Brandon Tirrill, Carlos Soto and Shara Bauman.

In the Redmond Area Park and Recreation District, Dave Cosper and Katie Jalo are running for Position 1. Cosper is an engineer and was a director of public works for 15 years. Jalo is a third generation Central Oregonian and currently works for a nonprofit.

The unopposed candidates for the Redmond Area Park and Recreation District include Mercedes Cook-Bostick for Position 2 and Kevin Scoggin for Position 3.

For the Sisters Park and Recreation District, candidates running unopposed include Bob Keefer for Position 1, Katie Bunce for Position 2 and Julie Sarver for Position 3.

Measures
One levy up before voters includes the Black Butte Ranch Service District Five-Year Option Levy, Measure 9-180. The levy is asking for a five-year local option tax at $0.78 per $1000 for operations.

The language of the Black Butte Service District measure says it will use the revenue to maintain current service levels. Approving the proposed rate will generate approximately $651,872 from 2025 through 2026. The measure may cause property taxes to increase more than 3% for property owners within the district. On a $500,000 home, the assessment will be $32.50 per month, or $390 per year.

Another levy on the ballot include a local option levy for road improvements and maintenance. This measure would levy $1.39 per $1,000 assessed value for five years for repaving projects, beginning in 2025-2026. The measure would direct levy taxes to finance the repair and resurfacing of the paved roads within the Cascade View Estates Tract 2 Special Road District. The total estimated cost of the project is $330,503.

This article appears in Source Weekly April 17, 2025.