Election Saturday in Brooklyn Park

Residents can add "choose new mayor" to their weekend to-do lists. The 12-candidate ballot comes at a crucial time for the city.

April 29, 2011 at 1:06AM

Along with trips to the hardware store and baseball practice on Saturday, many Brooklyn Park residents will be planning a visit to the polls.

City voters will be choosing a mayor to succeed Steve Lampi, who died from cancer in February, two months after starting his third term. The new mayor will complete the four-year term.

Twelve candidates are on the ballot: Billy B. Bishop, Laurie Hilgers, Jim Krautkremer, Jeffrey Lunde, Mark Mata, Jeannette Meyer, Boyd Morson, Tony Pistilli, Wynfred N. Russell, Scott Denver Scheid, Joe Tanner and Tait Turnquist.

The election comes as the city works to address various challenges, including a high foreclosure rate, concerns about crime, and issues with rental housing. At the same time, it is looking at opportunities for development and redevelopment and working to engage an increasingly diverse population.

City Clerk Devin Montero said he presented the City Council with two election options at the first meeting after Lampi's death: a traditional Tuesday runoff or a Saturday election.

"They chose Saturday because they wanted maximum participation," he said.

Statewide, primaries and general elections are on Tuesdays. But local officials can choose any day for a special election, said Pat Turgeon, spokeswoman for the Minnesota Secretary of State's office. Still, Saturday elections appear to be quite rare.

Montero is optimistic about turnout in a race that seems to have generated a lot of buzz.

Hundreds of people attended three candidate forums in the past month. Each household has been sent a postcard reminder, and exhortations to vote are on sandwich signs on the city's corners and on official message boards.

"The word is out," Montero said, adding that people appear to be engaged in the process. "They want to know who is going to be leading the city."

Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday. For further information, including your polling place, go to the city's website at www.brooklynpark.org or call the city clerk's office at 763-493-8180.

Absentee voting is available today from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at City Hall, 5200 85th Av. N. You can vote absentee if you can't go to the polls on Saturday because you'll be away from home, are ill or disabled, serving as an election judge in another precinct, or can't go because of a religious holiday or belief.

Maria Elena Baca • 612-673-4409

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MARIA ELENA BACA, Star Tribune