Grant Olson, Ward 5 councilman, has announced he will not be taking another term on the council if re-elected in November. P-J photo by Dennis Phillips

A member of the Jamestown City Council is bowing out of the November election.

On Thursday, Grant Olson, Ward 5 councilman, announced that he would not be taking another term on the council if re-elected in November. Olson, a Republican, is running against Democrat Douglas Lawson in Ward 5.

Olson, who first was elected two years ago to the council, said he is not seeking another term because as a young professional — general manager at Axiom Office Imagining — and father his time has become increasingly limited.

“I would like to thank all of the constituents that I represented,” he said. “Especially those who took the time to reach out over the past two years. I encourage everyone to contact their council members and keep them up to date on the issues in your neighborhood.”

Olson said he has learned a lot about how the city operates during his two years on the council.

“When I started my run for office over two years ago, it was a completely different time in the city,” he said. “We were potentially months away from a control board and the administration, at the time, had become stagnant. I was ready and willing to make some difficult decisions to move the city forward.”

Olson said the current administration under the charge of Jamestown Mayor Eddie Sundquist has not only managed to weather a global pandemic, but also has brought about a feeling of change about what goes on in the “big gold building downtown.”

“I think things are on the right track … sales tax revenue is up and negotiations with the unions seem to have a different, less controversial, feel about them,” he said, “as well as new and unique economic development ideas that are being explored to grow our area.”

In November 2019, Olson defeated incumbent Maria Jones to win the Ward 5 seat on the council.

Should Olson win in the November general election and declined the seat, Sundquist would then need to appoint a Republican from Ward 5 to finish the two-year term.