7 candidates vie for 3 Bangor council seats

BANGOR – On Nov. 4, three new city councilors will be elected. The second terms of councilors Nichi Farnham, John Rohman and Michael Crowley are expiring, and they are not eligible to run again until next year. There are seven candidates for the three seats:

. John Cashwell III, 56, is president of Seven Islands Land Co. and former director of the Maine Forest Service under Gov. John McKernan. He served on transition teams for former Gov. Angus King and current Gov. John Baldacci. Mayor of Calais in 1985, Cashwell served two terms as a city councilor in Calais before moving to Bangor. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Montana and a master’s degree from the University of Maine. Cashwell was a chief warrant officer in Vietnam, earning several medals.

. Peter D’Errico, 72, served briefly on the council in the late 1960s and early ’70s. He coordinated the former Dow Air Force Base’s transition to civilian use, and was director of Bangor International Airport for 20 years. He also has held other positions with the city. A recipient of the Bangor Jaycees Distinguished Service Award, the Maine Jaycees Outstanding Young Man Award and the Chamber’s Paul Bunyan Ward, D’Errico has served on several boards, and is a graduate of New York University.

. Dr. Geoff Gratwick, 60, is a rheumatologist, served as chairman of Physicians for Social Responsibility of Eastern Maine from 1982 to 1988, and in 1985 represented Maine at a Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Olso, Norway. He was chairman of the Maine Humanities Council 2002-2003 and is a member of Bangor Noontime Rotary. Gratwick has a bachelor’s degree form Harvard University and is a graduate of Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons.

. John Hiatt, 20, is active in the Penobscot County Republican Committee. A student at University College of Bangor, Hiatt serves as president of UCB’s Republican Committee.

. Michael J. Robinson, 48, is a loan officer for Bangor Federal Credit Union and graduate of Maine Maritime Academy. A member of Bangor Breakfast Kiwanis, Robinson has served as that organization’s president, and as chairman of the Fourth of July parade. Robinson worked in the city’s tax office for seven years. A trustee of the city’s Kirstein Loan Committee, he has been a volunteer with the Special Olympics and the local homeless shelter and is a communicant at St. John’s Catholic Church.

. James Tyler, operations manager for Northern Maine Independent System Administrator, served as a councilor from 1993 to 1999 and as a planning board member from 1989 to 1993. He has been general manager for Bangor Gas Co. and an engineer for Bangor Hydro-Electric Co. and the Edwards Co. His activities include serving on the boards of the homeless shelter and the Bangor Nursing and Rehabilitation Facility, on the Governor’s Task Force on Bangor International Airport, and on the Bangor Area Comprehensive Transportation System’s policy committee. Tyler has degrees from the University of Maine and Husson College.

. Torvic Vardamis, 23, is a member of the city’s recycling committee and urban renewal authority, an intern for U.S. Rep. Michael Michaud, manager of a locally owned video business and a Web site designer and developer. Vardamis has also volunteered for United Way and Big Brothers Big Sisters and is a student at the University of Maine.

School committee terms are expiring for Ellen Tobin and Martha Newman. Both are running for reelection, and Pamela Stokes is also running for one of the two spots available on the committee.