The deadline for Sebastian City Council candidates to turn in their paperwork is August 19, 2022. So far, five people have turned in their paperwork and are now eligible to run for Sebastian City Council. There will be two seats available for the November 2022 city council election.
Mayor Jim Hill will not be running after 20 years of service to our community. Ed Dodd’s seat will be open. However, he is running and hoping to keep his seat.
As we do each year, Sebastian Daily will host its annual City Council forum at a place and time to be announced soon. We will also be live streaming it as we do every year. The City Council is a non-partisan position.
So far, the candidates are:
- Kelly Dixon
- Ed Dodd
- Louise Kautenburg
- Sherrie Matthews
- Charles St John Stadelman
We will publish more detailed information about each candidate once we begin the interviews. But, so far, here are some of the things we know about each candidate.
Kelly Dixon is a newcomer to the election who was in the top 10% of her class in 2001 at the Sebastian River High School. She has a degree in Broadcast Journalism and is a full-time TV Production Teacher in education. We look forward to learning more about Dixon.
Ed Dodd has a proven track record and has been on the council for many years. When the city was in turmoil a couple of years ago, he kept the city safe when Damien Gilliams was trying to steal the mayor’s seat from under him. Dodd is a man of integrity and honesty.
Louise Kautenburg has volunteered on several boards with the city. A lot of people were hoping to see Kautenburg run for City Council. She has devoted herself to serving and helping the city for several years. Kautenburg currently serves on the Planning & Zoning board with the City of Sebastian.
Sherrie Matthews served on the most recent Sebastian charter committee and retired from the sheriffs office after 35 years where one of her many duties was correction accreditation manager and in charge of the print shop. Matthews also ran for council in 2020 and 2021.
Charles Stadelman serves on the National Resources Board for the City of Sebastian. In addition, he has been with the Rotary Club of Sebastian for many years and is the President-Elect for next year. Stadelman is an environmentalist and can be found at every community event having to do with the environment. We look forward to learning more about Stadelman in the coming weeks.