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| Councilwoman Jan Brown "Queen of Mean" talked Johnson opponent out of running for City Council |
| Ward II Candidate Forfeits Race To Carol Johnson Mary Bahus-Meyer, candidate for Loveland City Council Ward II, informed her supporters she dropped out of the race for City Council. This leaves only Carol Johnson in Ward II to run incontested unless committee for Bahus-Meyer appoints replacement. This now makes two candidates who filed and qualified to run but later decided not to run. Tony Adams also dropped out of the City Council race on August 28. Read the full story |
Mary
Mahus-Meyer
Mahus-Meyer
Loveland - September 22, 2007
City Council candidate Carol J. Johnson, 58, has posted a letter to the community online that
starts, "thank you for the opportunity to serve the citizens of Loveland, particularly Ward 2."
While it reads more like an acceptance speech than an appeal for a vote, Johnson has a
pretty good chance of being elected this November; she is now running unopposed.
Thanks to some meddling by Councilwoman Jan Brown (Ward I), Johnson's opponent was
finally convinced to withdraw her qualified candidacy and allow Johnson to win by default
thus eliminating the other name on the ballot and any democratic choice for the voters in
Ward II. Brown, like Johnson, is opposing Loveland's campaign finance reform initiative
intended to increase the competitiveness of City Council elections and give voters more
choices.
The only chance of Carol Johnson not being elected in November is if Ward II voters decide
to write-in the name of another person and that person receives more votes than Johnson.
This is very unlikely unless someone decides to run a write-in campaign against Johnson.
Johnson Recently Moved to Loveland from Arizona
Johnson was an active member of her community, Peoria Arizona, until sometime in 2004 or
2005 when she decided to move to Loveland. The address she has used to register as a
candidate in Ward II is a duplex that county records indicate is owned by a Mr. Robert
Ragsdale of Newhall, California. Ragsdale bought the duplex new from Lennar Homes in
December of 2004.
It is assumed she is renting the 2 1/2 year old duplex here in Loveland. There is no evidence
in Larimer County records that she owns any property in Larimer County.
Hiding Her Tracks?
Johnson's list of civic activities on her website lists the dates for all her activities in Golden,
Colorado and Peoria Arizona but the Loveland list of civic affiliations is conspicuously empty
of any dates at all. One civic activity in Peoria Arizona, a clean-up campaigns initiative, lists
her activities going until 2004 and another until "Present." She is claiming to have now lived in
Loveland for 3 years.
Johnson Lost Re-Election Bid for Golden City Council in 2000
Johnson did serve in the Golden City Council in the late 90's but was unsuccessful in 2000
when she ran for re-election. According to one Golden community activist contacted by
LovelandPolitics, Johnson was "nastier than cat #*^*." She alludes to her aggressive style on
her website when she states he she has "the guts to tell people what they need to hear as
opposed to what they want to hear."
Wants Higher Taxes For Lovelanders
According to Carol Johnson, "cities need to work with the legislature through Colorado
Municipal League and their state legislators to increase property, income and
transportation-related taxes." She is an advocate for "tax reform" which is often code for
eliminating the limits in tax increases imposed by TABOR (Taxpayer Bill of Rights).
Development
Johnson represents herself as a strong advocate for downtown. She was an unabashed
mouthpiece for any new development in Golden, according to some in Golden who opposed
her, but will likely bring a more sophistication and understanding of development issues than
Loveland's current City Council.
She makes interesting comments regarding McWhinney but of course it is hard to say as she
didn't live in Loveland when the Master Financing Agreement (MFA) was being debated.
Her only knowledge on such issues would be limited to reading the Reporter-Herald archives
or talking with people who know the community and have some history here.
Johnson's Profession is as an Attorney
Johnson is an Attorney but doesn't appear to be a member of Colorado's Bar Association
(optional in Colorado) nor is she registered to practice law in Colorado before the judiciary.
Johnson Takes Swipe At Current Council
While Johnson has complimented the role of some on the current City Council, she also takes
a swipe by stating, "Since Council seems to take so much direction from city staff, I feel
Council really needs to show more leadership in putting city staff to the test on these regional
collaboration issues."
Johnson's Website
Johnson's website for her City Council race is being maintained by Dave Hollingsed and can
be seen by clicking here.
City Council candidate Carol J. Johnson, 58, has posted a letter to the community online that
starts, "thank you for the opportunity to serve the citizens of Loveland, particularly Ward 2."
While it reads more like an acceptance speech than an appeal for a vote, Johnson has a
pretty good chance of being elected this November; she is now running unopposed.
Thanks to some meddling by Councilwoman Jan Brown (Ward I), Johnson's opponent was
finally convinced to withdraw her qualified candidacy and allow Johnson to win by default
thus eliminating the other name on the ballot and any democratic choice for the voters in
Ward II. Brown, like Johnson, is opposing Loveland's campaign finance reform initiative
intended to increase the competitiveness of City Council elections and give voters more
choices.
The only chance of Carol Johnson not being elected in November is if Ward II voters decide
to write-in the name of another person and that person receives more votes than Johnson.
This is very unlikely unless someone decides to run a write-in campaign against Johnson.
Johnson Recently Moved to Loveland from Arizona
Johnson was an active member of her community, Peoria Arizona, until sometime in 2004 or
2005 when she decided to move to Loveland. The address she has used to register as a
candidate in Ward II is a duplex that county records indicate is owned by a Mr. Robert
Ragsdale of Newhall, California. Ragsdale bought the duplex new from Lennar Homes in
December of 2004.
It is assumed she is renting the 2 1/2 year old duplex here in Loveland. There is no evidence
in Larimer County records that she owns any property in Larimer County.
Hiding Her Tracks?
Johnson's list of civic activities on her website lists the dates for all her activities in Golden,
Colorado and Peoria Arizona but the Loveland list of civic affiliations is conspicuously empty
of any dates at all. One civic activity in Peoria Arizona, a clean-up campaigns initiative, lists
her activities going until 2004 and another until "Present." She is claiming to have now lived in
Loveland for 3 years.
Johnson Lost Re-Election Bid for Golden City Council in 2000
Johnson did serve in the Golden City Council in the late 90's but was unsuccessful in 2000
when she ran for re-election. According to one Golden community activist contacted by
LovelandPolitics, Johnson was "nastier than cat #*^*." She alludes to her aggressive style on
her website when she states he she has "the guts to tell people what they need to hear as
opposed to what they want to hear."
Wants Higher Taxes For Lovelanders
According to Carol Johnson, "cities need to work with the legislature through Colorado
Municipal League and their state legislators to increase property, income and
transportation-related taxes." She is an advocate for "tax reform" which is often code for
eliminating the limits in tax increases imposed by TABOR (Taxpayer Bill of Rights).
Development
Johnson represents herself as a strong advocate for downtown. She was an unabashed
mouthpiece for any new development in Golden, according to some in Golden who opposed
her, but will likely bring a more sophistication and understanding of development issues than
Loveland's current City Council.
She makes interesting comments regarding McWhinney but of course it is hard to say as she
didn't live in Loveland when the Master Financing Agreement (MFA) was being debated.
Her only knowledge on such issues would be limited to reading the Reporter-Herald archives
or talking with people who know the community and have some history here.
Johnson's Profession is as an Attorney
Johnson is an Attorney but doesn't appear to be a member of Colorado's Bar Association
(optional in Colorado) nor is she registered to practice law in Colorado before the judiciary.
Johnson Takes Swipe At Current Council
While Johnson has complimented the role of some on the current City Council, she also takes
a swipe by stating, "Since Council seems to take so much direction from city staff, I feel
Council really needs to show more leadership in putting city staff to the test on these regional
collaboration issues."
Johnson's Website
Johnson's website for her City Council race is being maintained by Dave Hollingsed and can
be seen by clicking here.
| Who Is Carol J. Johnson? |
| Johnson hopes to raise taxes “….cities need to work with the legislature through Colorado Municipal League and their state legislators to increase property, income and transportation-related taxes…. � |
| City Council Candidate Carol J. Johnson Summary Single, 58 years old Attorney New to the community / rents a duplex Advocates rasing property, income and sales taxes Promoter of Downtown Loveland Against Campaign Finance Reform Running Unopposed Lost re-election bid in Golden, CO Council race Opinion of Loveland's City Council: "takes too much direction from staff.." Supports subsidies for McWhinney Talks As If She Has Already Won |