Dick Schouten.
(Photo © J. Maus)
Washington County Commissioner, former Alice B. Toeclips Award winner, and active bike advocate Dick Schouten is running (or should I say riding) for what the Beaverton Valley Times refers to as “Washington County’s top job.”
Schouten announced his intentions to run for the position of chairman of the Washington County Board of Commissioners last week. Schouten is well-known for his dedication to active transportation. He won an Alice B. Toeclips award from the Bicycle Transportation Alliance in 2001 and in fall of 2009, as a member of Metro’s Executive Council for Active Transportation, he went on a study tour to learn more about bikeways in Amsterdam and Copenhagen.
Get Together next week:
- Max’s Fanno Creek Pub
6-8pm, Event info here
According to the Beaverton Valley Times, Schouten faces a serious contender in Andy Duyck (another current commissioner). Here’s the lowdown on the two front-runners (schoolteacher Doak Schulte is also on the ballot) :
Duyck, a Republican, is known for his straight talk and ties to the county’s agricultural community. Schouten, a Democrat, is a brainy planning advocate more often than not seen riding his bicycle through the county.
You might recall back in 2007 when Schouten got his bike stolen from a MAX train while he sat nearby. Schouten is a regular on the bike advocacy scene. He has attended the National Bike Summit in Washington D.C. several times and most recently, he joined a small group of advocates for a bike ride through Helvetia to meet farmers and experience how the urban/rural reserves process could impact one of our region’s most important natural areas.
You can meet Commissioner Schouten and hear him talk about bike issues on the West Side at our Get Together in Tigard next week (1/27).