Three words that define you?

Driven, Compassionate, Purposeful

Why are you running for the City Council, and what related experience do you bring to the table that makes you uniquely qualified?

Public service has been an important thing for me all of my life, and I consider it to be a part of my ministry, to serve the community. I have come to love Sauk Centre, and I would love to make a positive impact on the community.  I have experience of serving on boards, and making a difference in the communities that I serve. I served on the Paynesville School Board when I lived there, I served on the Stearns County Board of Adjustment (served as chair for two years as well) I currently serve as the Stearns County Sheriff’s Chaplain, on the Stearns County Planning Commission and I serve as the Chair of the Stearns County Opioid Taskforce. I have great relationships with legislators, as I’ve served as Chaplain for the State House and Senate. I would be able to bring our concerns to the legislature.

Do you think it is important to have a competitive business climate and how can we improve our competitiveness to make sure private sector businesses can start and grow in our community?

A competitive business climate is extremely important to any community of any size, that is an understatement. Any business of any size needs not only community support, but also support of the local governing authority. We cannot afford stagnant leadership who is content with the status quo, but we need to be willing to take on new challenges as local leaders, try something different, reach out and then you will find growth when you open up opportunities to new and different business ventures. Tax credits, working with new companies to get them to invest in our communities, and of course taking the time to make sure we can get some great small businesses in our community- those are keys to fostering growth of businesses, and by doing that, as a whole you make the community a better place.

Name the two or three most critical issues you believe the City of Sauk Centre faces and how would you address those issues?

Stagnancy- it is important for us not to stay in the ways of “the good ole days” While small town living is great, we need to look at some of the smaller rural communities and see that being stagnant and not changing things isn’t working. We need to be forward thinking, we don’t want younger people to leave our town for college or whatever, and then never come back, because the community doesn’t have anything they want or need. The City needs to take a major role in reqruiting young people back to the community with good job opportunities, and more places to live. More businesses and housing opportunities are key. As with the Field of Dreams, “If you build it they will come.”

Transparency and honesty- I’ll admit I’ve had many people come up to me and speak out how upset they were with some of the city elected officials about how much more the cost of improvements to the street, curbs and drainage was. The reply from the leadership when this was asked was not just unkind, it was incredibly disrespectful. There are numerous instances of comments like that from leadership. We cannot have that in city leadership. I am more than willing to have difficult conversations with folks, and will provide honest and transparent leadership on the council. Communication is key.

How would you engage the business community as you weigh your decisions?

Businesses are the backbone of our community. Both big and small, I will commit to engaging with our business communities and seeking their input as we would move on projects within the city. They should always have a voice at the table. I would go out and visit with businesses and check in on their opinions, and I would honestly just stop by and see how they are doing.

*All candidates were contacted at email addresses and phone numbers listed in public filing records. Questionnaires had word/time limits and are published EXACTLY as submitted. No info is displayed if a candidate didn’t respond. If you would like a copy of the PDF forms that were submitted by the candidate, please submit that request to saukcentrechamber@gmail.com. Thank you.

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