Editor’s Note: This is just a sampling of the questions asked during the candidate forum. Visit OwatonnaLive.com to watch the full forum.
How to support the community well into the future was at the top of every candidates’ mind Monday, as four of the five candidates for Steele County Board of Commissioners gathered for a candidate forum.
Hosted by the People’s Press, Owatonna Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism and Owatonna Noon Rotary Club, people from throughout the county gathered at the Owatonna Country Club to hear from incumbents Rick Gnemi (District 3), Jim Abbe (District 4) and Greg Krueger (District 5), as well as political newcomer Josh Prokopec, who is challenging Gnemi to represent District 3.
Challenger Scott Prestegard, running to represent District 5 against Krueger, was not in attendance.
Acting as the emcee for the forum, Julie Rethemeier allowed each candidate time to introduce themselves before diving into questions previously prepared and asked by those in attendance. Rethemeier stated none of the candidates had access to any of the questions prior to the forum.
Top goals
When asked about what the candidates’ top goals would be for Steele County if elected in November, finances were among the common responses for most of the candidates. Abbe specifically said they don’t want to “tax people out of our community,” while both Krueger and Gnemi said they would like to see building projects for the Community Corrections office and the Steele County Sheriff’s Office be complete. Gnemi further stated there are maintenance projects being done on a variety of buildings and that he would like to continue to keep the county’s budget low.
While not a “penny pincher,” Prokopec said he would like to see “more action taken up front” on certain county projects, believing it makes the most financial sense in the long run.
“When you do things right the first time, it save money on the long run,” he said. Prokopec also listed affordable housing and working closely with local nonprofits as goals of his if he were to be elected.
Aside from finances, the uncontested Abbe said he views quality of life and economic growth as his priorities for the county, noting they tend to go hand-in-hand.
“I want to see economic growth, but growth within our means — I want to grow out communities in a way we can handle, not only on the city side by with utilities and the county side. We need to be able to handle the infrastructure that goes with it,” he said. “Jobs need to pay a living wage so individuals working in these corporations are paid enough to live on their own and we’re not subsidizing them on the back end the difference of what they’re being paid.”
Piggybacking on the wages, Krueger said it is a priority of his to keep quality people working for the county.
“High quality employees means a high quality county,” Krueger said, noting they have worked hard to pay county employees an equitable wage and provide them “nice benefits packages.”
East side corridor
For more than two years, residents of a northside development have been bringing concerns to the county regarding a proposed east side corridor along what is referred to as 29th Avenue. The proposed plan would construct a north-south collector route from near the Highway 218/18th Street SE intersection to County State Aid Highway 34, also known as 26th Street. Construction for the project is not estimated to begin until 2026.
During the forum, Rethemeier asked the candidates what they believe the next steps in this process should be to both alleviate residential concerns and get the road built.
Quoting Ben Franklin on how pleasing everyone is impossible, Gnemi referred to a 61-page report from the Federal Highway Administration that has been submitted to the commissioners for review and consideration.
“Ironically the East Side Corridor has been discussed over the last 20 years; this isn’t something that just happens to be coming to a head now, we’re going to be doing it,” Gnemi said, stating the report identifies the 29th Avenue route as the prefered location for the project. “I know that the people are very — there’s a couple dozen of them — however for the good of mankind we have the north and southway alignments and documented evaluation, the utilities, flood plain, protected species, estimated project costs, for what they’re stating to us as far as the Federal Highway Administration, the county engineer’s office and the project development engineer, they’ve all said this is the most logical and cost effective way to do this.”
Gnemi also offered his phone number for people to call to discuss the report with him.
Both Krueger and Abbe said it is important to follow the process, specifically now that the federal government has approved the engineering feasibility study that identifies a preferred route on 29th. Abbe said as a commissioner they may have to make decisions that don’t make people happy, but that the route was vital for alleviating busy traffic in the downtown area. Krueger said the next steps will include conceptual plans being brought forth in early 2025 that will then lead to public input opportunities.
“I appreciate the right for people to state their opinions and concerns, but we must respect our duty to see the entire process to conclusion,” Krueger said.
Prokopec said he believes the main issue that has taken place between the residents at the North Country development and the county has been a lack of transparency, and he believes it is on the county to find a way to work with the residents of the area.
“I think I could bring some value to that and be able to ask the right questions, work with the residents and the county engineer and staff to see what alternative there might be,” Prokopec said. “It’s a tough project, but I do think there can be a happy medium in there.”
Homelessness
When asked about what role the county can play in addressing the homelessness population, Prokopec and Krueger noted the strong nonprofit efforts happening in that area already. Prokopec said he would like to see the county providing aid and assistance to help push forward the “leg work” the nonprofits are already doing, and Krueger said he would like to see the county’s human services and public health services working in alignment with the nonprofits to help get people out of the homelessness cycle.
Abbe said he believes more than funding and providing services, it is about education — specifically with mental health and getting people back into the workforce.
Gnemi talked about services in town, too.
“We have various groups in Owatonna. We have South Central Human Relations Center, we have Drug Court and we also have Workforce as far as providing jobs to helping individuals to be appropriate to their life,” he said. “As far as these people who are homeless, I know we’ve talked about people right behind the Human Relations Center where we had some various incidents take place. We have the various groups, even take what we have with Drug Court — we work with them as far as people that have addictions within their lives to help them straighten themselves around to help them, as I mentioned previously with every dollar we spend we receive three dollars back in saving some money, helping people get their lives straightened around and get a job and work within the community.”
Emergency management
When asked what resources the candidates feel the county should give for local emergency management, noting the recent natural disasters that have taken place over the summer in the region and more recently on the east coast, three of the candidates praised the current emergency management system within the county.
Abbe said he believes the priority is to support the emergency management program as well as local law enforcement, keeping in mind they also must be ready to call in the National Guard if needed.
“Whoever is needed to help the citizens in Steele County get back on their feet. That is the number one role of government — to take care of our people,” Abbe said. “I believe we are trending in that direction, but there is always room to improve.”
Krueger agreed, saying he applauds the county’s emergency management director with having constant contact with all the townships in Steele County and ensuring they too are prepared for whatever may come up. He said the director has also built good relationships with the various volunteer groups such as Skywarn, CERT and local HAM radio groups.
Prokopec said both the emergency management department and the Steele County Sheriff’s Office already do a great job for the local community, and he believes the county should also be mindful of what resources they have that they can afford to give to other communities when they are in need.
Gnemi again referenced Drug Court and SCHRC.
“We have Workforce as far as helping supply people as far as helping them realign themselves as far as finding a job or being able to get a job, we have Drug Court — when you say Drug Court there is more to it than that, these people maybe have addiction or either alcohol, drugs or some really pitiful addiction that they help them realign their lives so they can direct their lives in a proper fashion,” he said. “Then we have the South Central Human Relations Center that helps these individuals. Anybody can come, at this table or in this room anybody can have this problem as far as feeling addicted or having problems in their lives and they help them to get direction so they can put themselves in a proper fashion.”
The entire Steele County Board of Commissioners candidate forum can be found on OwatonnaLive.com, with the playback free to the public. The forum will also appear on Public Access and can be found in its entirety on Owatonna Live’s Facebook page.
UPCOMING FORUMS
The People’s Press, Owatonna Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism and Owatonna Noon Rotary Club will continue the candidate forums starting at 11:30 a.m. every Monday at the Owatonna Country Club until Election Day. To register for the forums, visit Owatonna.org/events.
Oct. 14: Owatonna Mayor and Owatonna City Council Ward 2
Oct. 21: Owatonna City Council Ward 4 and At Large
Oct. 28: Congressional District 1
Nov. 4: MN House Representative District 19BReach Associate Editor Annie Harman at 507-444-2378. ©Copyright 2024 APG Media of Southern Minnesota.
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