Age: 49

Occupation: Financial Advisor

Have you been on the Village Board or held any other public office before? If so please describe: I am currently nearing the end of my third term on the New Glarus Village Board.

Why are you running for Village Board? It has been my pleasure to serve the Village of New Glarus both as a Trustee and as the Chairman of the Community Development Authority. I feel we’ve enjoyed important accomplishments during that time, but there is much work left to be done, and I’m eager to continue building upon our previous successes.

If elected, do you have any specific goals for your term in office? My primary goal is (and has been) to promote responsible economic growth in our community, which is appropriate with regards to both scale and design. I am fortunate that I am able to work toward this objective both as a Village Trustee and as the Chairman of the Community Development Authority.

I would ideally like to work toward the creation of a second business park, so that New Glarus can attract more businesses to locate here. Doing so will both increase the Village’s property tax revenues and create new job opportunities for residents.

What precisely do you believe is the biggest challenge for the Village Board? Recent Village budgets have been tight and challenging. There are a variety of needs and wants championed by various citizens and groups in New Glarus, but the Village simply does not have the money to address the wide range of important issues at hand. These shortfalls have resulted in decreased ability to allocate money to sinking funds for important expenditures such as vehicle replacements and building maintenance, and thus increased reliance on borrowing.

It is with these challenges in mind that I emphasize the importance of responsible growth, which will increase Village property tax revenues, without placing an increased burden on current residents and businesses.

What other issues would you like to see addressed by the Village Board? If elected, how would you handle these issues? A few readily come to mind. First, we’ve made great progress in the past few years in catching up on past-due maintenance on our streets and infrastructure. However, there’s much work left to be done. I will continue to work with Village Board and Village Staff to keep maintenance projects moving forward at an ambitious but achievable pace.

Second, I am pursuing the re-invigoration/re-development of the 400 block of Second Street. As a Trustee and Chair of the CDA, I have worked with our Village Administrator to meet with local business/property owners on that block, to help them understand and make use of the tools available to improve their properties. Success in this area will both increase our property tax base and enhance New Glarus’s desirability as a tourism destination.

Third, there has been a call from many local residents for the establishment of a dog park in (or near) New Glarus. I believe this idea has the potential to be a low-cost opportunity to improve the quality of life in our community. I have worked with Village Staff and the Town Parks Commission to search for a suitable location, and will continue to do so until we either succeed or exhaust all possibilities.

Finally, the Emerald Ash Borer has unfortunately arrived in Green County. As Chairman of the Tree Board, I am working with the Village Forrester, Village Staff and the Village Board to do all we can to minimize the financial and aesthetic impact of this pest on the Village of New Glarus.

Do you have any additional comments? I would like to thank the citizens of New Glarus for allowing me to be of service to the community for the past six years. I look forward to continuing to do so, and finishing what we’ve started!