By Cameron Rasmusson
Reader Staff
The race for the Bonner County Board of Commissioners got yet more crowded this week with Steve Lockwood’s announcement he is running in the Democratic primary election for Seat 3.
An 18-year resident of Bonner County, Lockwood, presuming he remains uncontested or wins the primary, will face the winner of the Republican primary in the general election. Incumbent Dan McDonald and Carol Kunzeman, former mayor of Ponderay, face off in the Republican primary election this May.
Steve Lockwood.
“I plan to run an active campaign,” Lockwood said. “A lot of people asked me to run for the commission, and I ultimately agreed to do it.”
After retiring as an operations manager for AT&T, Lockwood volunteered on the Air Quality Committee in Portland, Ore. In Bonner County, he served on Sandpoint’s Planning and Zoning Commission, the City Council and the Lake Pend Oreille School Board. He currently serves on Sandpoint’s Urban Renewal Board and the boards of the Idaho Conservation League and Kinnikinnick Native Plant Society.
“I want to help Bonner County in addressing important issues,” Lockwood said in a press release. “We need to respond vigorously to the possibility of a smelter on the county’s western border, promote affordable housing and create economic development strategies that attract jobs paying a living wage for a family. It is important that County policies preserve the small town and rural character of our community in the face of inevitable growth.”
To date, Lockwood is unchallenged in the Democratic primary. However, the first day to file candidacy paperwork hasn’t yet arrived, so time will tell if he attracts a challenger.
“I really look forward to the campaign and having all the candidates expressed what their interests are,” he said. “I know there have been (voter) concerns, so let’s find out what they want.”
While we have you ...
... if you appreciate that access to the news, opinion, humor, entertainment and cultural reporting in the Sandpoint Reader is freely available in our print newspaper as well as here on our website, we have a favor to ask. The Reader is locally owned and free of the large corporate, big-money influence that affects so much of the media today. We're supported entirely by our valued advertisers and readers. We're committed to continued free access to our paper and our website here with NO PAYWALL - period. But of course, it does cost money to produce the Reader. If you're a reader who appreciates the value of an independent, local news source, we hope you'll consider a voluntary contribution. You can help support the Reader for as little as $1.
You can contribute at either Paypal or Patreon.
Contribute at Patreon Contribute at Paypal
Coming up this week! Don’t miss out on Online Auctions, Purse Parties, Parties, Craft Fairs, and more! See the full list of events in the 
