Voters Choose Reed, Culver For Springdale Council

SPRINGDALE —Voters chose Incumbent Jim Reed and challenger Rick Culver as Springdale City Council aldermen.

In unofficial final voting results released Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning, Jim Reed won Ward 1, Position 1 with 6,498 votes (63 percent) to Bob Caudle’s 3,868 (37 percent). Caudle was challenging incumbent Reed for the position on the council.

Culver won Ward 3, Position 1 with 5,727 votes (55 percent) to Bruns’s 4758 votes (45 percent) in unofficial final voting results. Culver was challenging incumbent Bruns for the position on the council.

Reed, 60, has lived in Ward 1 since 1964. He retired in September as a master maintenance specialist and construction manager for the Springdale School District, has a high school diploma and spent four years in the Air Force. He has been a Springdale alderman since 2007.

Reed said in September city officials did their best with the money they had under the Capital Improvements Program. Bids came in higher than expected on some projects, but nothing could be done about that, he said.

Reed agreed with the city’s decision to purchase the Rabbit’s Foot Lodge. He said the history connected to the lodge is important and the city bought a small part of the 42-acre property.

Bruns, 58, has lived in Springdale for 33 years and an alderman since 2011. He is a real estate agent with Lindsey & Associates and is retired from the University of Arkansas Police Department.

Bruns said in September the city’s largest challenge is retention rates within the police and fire departments. He said salaries for police officers and firefighters should match those in other Northwest Arkansas cities.

Caudle, 58, has lived in Springdale since 1997. He is a freelance journalist. He served on the West Fork Planning Commission, West Fork Park Commission and West Fork Public Safety Commission from 1985 to 1987.

Caudle said in September there wasn’t enough money in the capital program to cover all the projects in the first place. He said the money wasn’t correctly prioritized.

Culver, 58, has lived in Springdale since 1959. He is executive director of the Rodeo of the Ozarks.

Culver said in September the city’s biggest challenge will be to find ways to complete capital improvement projects delayed because of higher than expected bids. He said an increase in sales tax returns from new commercial developments, like the Walmart Supercenter at 4870 Elm Springs Road, could help.

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