Sterling Goodspeed is interim Johnsburg Town Supervisor

By Cathy DeDe, Chronicle Managing Editor

The Johnsburg Town Board appointed Sterling Goodspeed to complete the one-year term of newly elected Town Supervisor Mark Smith, who died on January 26, just weeks after he took office Jan. 2.

Town board member Mindy Preuninger was named Deputy Supervisor.

Mr. Goodspeed, 63, previously served as Town Supervisor from 2008 to 2011.

He tells The Chronicle he does not intend to run for the seat in the November election. “This isn’t any sort of a political comeback. It’s me trying to do the right thing,” he said.

“A number of people…reached out to me and expressed an interest in me running,” Mr. Goodspeed said.

“The death of (Supervisor Smith) really shocked a lot of us. He was a great guy. I was friends with both he and Kevin Bean, who is the prior Supervisor….

“There’s a high level of complexity going on in Johnsburg right now. We have a half dozen issues which are fairly difficult. I feel knowledgeable in those. I felt like I had an obligation to try and be the bridge to the next step,” the November election.

“I know that there are a lot of disagreements in our small town. I hope I can be a bridge to all of the groups and represent all in a manner that’s consistent with moving our town forward.

“I think I’m equipped to deal with growth issues, issues with the Town and ORDA,” the Olympic Regional Development Authority that runs Gore Mountain and the Ski Bowl in North Creek.

Also, he said, “issues with the Sewer District, with water, infrastructure, and I think issues at the County,” where he will be a member of the Warren County Board of Supervisors.

Mr. Goodspeed said, “I’ve stayed active. I’ve volunteered for the town these many years. I recently ran a forum on the Sewer District a couple of months ago. I felt like I had an obligation to step forward.”

He listed several areas of interest.

“The new lodge at the Ski Bowl is open. It’s already very successful. There will be a second component of the lodge for the summer and fall, which will include a zip line roller coaster.

“The projections are that that’s going to bring 40,000 people annually to North Creek. So it’s a heightening of an age-old tension,” he said, “the desire to grow and have an economy, simultaneously with maintaining the definition of who the community is.”

“For as long as I’ve been alive, Gore, I should say North Creek, has the broadest, longest shoulder season of almost any community. This will potentially eliminate (that).

“It provides the possibility of creating more of a 12 month economy that businesses can thrive in and that can attract new businesses.

“At the same time, we still want it to be our hometown. To borrow a cliché, we want to have our cake and eat it too.

“We have a sewer district that is partially installed. It has been supported by many and opposed by many.

“One of my priorities will be to do what we can to finish it as quickly as possible, with the least bit of intrusion on traffic and on the residents.
“I want to create a better dialog with ORDA, and reach out to the officials here at Gore and in Lake Placid. I want communications to be open.

“At my heart, I am a fiscal conservative. I’m very conscious of the issues associated with taxation, and diving into the budget to control economic concerns.”

He also listed efforts to connect downtown North Creek with the Ski Bowl, maintaining affordable housing for residents, and the soon-to-open Public House Hotel reviving the former Copperfield Inn, recently known as the Phoenix Hotel.

Copyright © 2026 Lone Oak Publishing Co., Inc. All Rights Reserve