At a Jan. 28 Special City Council meeting, King City Councilors voted to swear in Gary Mitchell and Linda Quanstrom to one and three-year terms as councilors, replacing councilors Randy Olsen and Jessica Braverman, who resigned in December.
Mitchell, who previously served on the King City Planning Commission, was appointed to a one-year term, while Quanstrom, who has no former city government experience and expressed a preference for the one-year term, was elected to serve three years with the council.
“I’m honored, of course, and in a sense flabbergasted as well,” Quanstrom told Tigard Life after her election. “I feel really privileged to be able to step in at a time when I hope I can help continue that new vein of doing business.”
Mitchell similarly told Tigard Life that he was happy to help out on the council in an “important transitional time.”
“It’s an important transitional time for the city,” Mitchell said. “With a new city manager coming on board, there are a lot of issues that the council needs to address and come up with a strategic plan and set some priorities.”
In addition to Mitchell and Quanstrom, the council interviewed candidates Karl Swanson and Gretchen Buehner at Wednesday night’s meeting. The council asked all candidates a set of questions concerning city issues, like a growing population and transportation problems on Fischer Road.
The council also asked candidates whether they would prefer to serve for the one- or three-year term left by Braverman and Olsen. Buehner and Mitchell both voiced an interest in the longer position, and Quanstrom expressed an interest in the one-year term, explaining that the job could compete with her work as a reverend with the United Methodist Church.
“I would prefer the one,” Quanstrom said. “I am still working even though I am retired, and I am committed to working. I am not ready to give up the pastor, and I hope to continue on that for a while to come.”
In Swanson’s answer, he told the council that he would prefer they vote for either Quanstrom or Mitchell, as opposed to himself or Buehner.
“I ask you all to vote for Linda Quanstrom or Gary Mitchell, not the candidate that previously served on council from 2017 to 2020, who started a fight against citizens and took us to court to stop us from voting on their plan for city expansion,” Swanson said.
Swanson’s comments refer to the King City Council Buehner sat on prior to 2020, which worked on the city’s Transportation System Plan as well as the Kingston Terrace Master Plan expansion.
Swanson has previously been an outspoken opponent of electing Buehner to council, writing in a 2024 Tigard Life OpEd prior to the 2024 council election, “Please do NOT vote Gretchen Buehner back to council. We must have new people for council that will give control back to the citizens.”
Buehner, who sat on the King City Council from 2016 to 2020, has an extensive history of city management experience with Portland’s city government. She was also on the Tigard City Council for eight years, and she is currently on the King City Planning Commission.
After hearing from candidates, the council cast a tight vote between Buehner and Mitchell for the three-year seat. Mitchell received two votes from Council President Steve Gearhart and Councilor Sandra Cunningham, and Buehner received two votes from councilors Arditi and Jan Tysoe, while King City Mayor Rachel Kazmierski voted for Quanstrom.
Kazmierski explained that her vote for Quanstrom was to keep her name in the running for the one-year position.
“There is a provision in our charter that says ‘if there are any vacancies left after that process, any applicant that receives at least one vote shall be considered nominated for the second vacancy,’” Kazmierski said.
In between the vote, other councillors discussed their choices, with Arditi explaining that he felt the city needed to put the past behind them and thought Buehner was a qualified candidate for the council. Other councilors explained that Mitchell’s experience on the planning commission and detailed understanding of the city’s Transportation System Plan were significant components of his qualification.
“I’ve worked in city government for 14 years now, and Gretchen is the only person who has more experience than I do,” Arditi said. “I think we need to put the past behind us.”
After another tie vote for the three-year term, the council moved to vote on the one-year term and then circle back to the more permanent position. The council elected Mitchell in a vote of four to one, with councilor Tysoe voting for Quanstrom.
On returning to the three-year vote, the council elected Quanstrom in a three-to-two vote, with Arditi and Tysoe voting for Buehner and Gearhart, Cunningham and Kazmierski for Quanstrom.
After voting, the council quickly moved to swearing in Quanstrom.
Mitchell, because of the requirement that he resign from his position as a King City Planning Commissioner before becoming a councilor, agreed to be sworn onto the council on Friday, Jan. 29.
Mitchell’s term, along with Gearhart, Cunningham and Tysoe’s, are set to expire in 2026. Councilors Arditi, Quanstrom and Mayor Kazmierski have three years remaining.
