My name is Roger Swanson, and I’m running for the 3rd Ward City Council position currently held by the Rev. George Marin. I feel Mr. Marin has been a strong voice for the residents of the 3rd Ward. I would feel especially honored to continue George’s vision for the city of Albert Lea by working to help keep city spending in check and establishing a workable plan for true economic growth — growth that will benefit current and future citizens of Albert Lea through higher-paying jobs and population growth. 

I have 40 years of experience in business management, having handled administrative and management duties at Eastside Truck Stop, Bauer Built Tire and now Trails Truck Service Center. In addition, I have been working with various local business leaders over the past few years, attending many pre-agenda and City Council meetings to identify and minimize excessive government spending, which results in high taxation on city residents and area businesses. Our city debt has tripled in the last four years, and the planned future spending on government projects is projected to exceed $100 million. Over the past 10-plus years, we have been and still continue to be one of the higher taxed communities in all of Minnesota. Our population has been declining for several decades, and growth has been at a standstill. 

I fully understand that our city has a lot of community needs with maintaining our roads, aging infrastructure, a really expensive wastewater treatment plant mandate and, of course, addressing our severe flooding issues.  I feel strongly that these projects should be our primary focus of spending. It comes down to proper prioritizing and addressing the list of our community needs first, rather than spending millions of tax dollars on an ever increasing list of wanted items: 

• City garage remodel: $1.5 million

• City garage expansion: $10 million

• New fire department facility: $8.5 million

• Blazing Star Landing: $36 million (including new City Hall, new City Arena, new YMCA facility, new library, etc.)

I do agree that, yes, it would be nice to have all these new government projects, but feel strongly that these should come about through times of economic growth and increased tax base to fund the construction of these new desired facilities. 

In summary, I think we need to change our priorities and focus our time and efforts on maintaining and improving our existing infrastructure, while doing everything within our power to attract good, high-paying jobs to our community. Could we try and lower our permit fees and/or create a city mentality of “What can we do to help you” when it comes to the regulation side of expansion or new business growth? I will work with all sides to promote a better working relationship to move our community forward. I ask for your vote Nov. 8, as I think I have the background to make informed, logical decisions for the current and future citizens of Albert Lea.

Roger Swanson

Albert Lea