Letter to the Editor: City Council Candidate Looks at Community Building

Dear Editor: 

I have attended numerous city council work sessions of the council during these past few months as they develop capital improvements and operating budgets for 2013, and have found the council to be making some very thoughtful decisions about budget reductions and belt tightening, which contrary to some people, has been going on for several years.

They are striving to wean the city budgets off the Host Community Fund and other funds balances, cautiously approaching that goal where all budgets will be balanced without extra help beyond net revenue.

My campaign for city council has always been based on my varied level of experience that I feel best qualifies me for council, from service on City Task Forces, including the current Housing Task Force, to nine years on the Environmental and Planning commissions and most recently eight years on the school board.

As a candidate for City Council, my hope has been to bring my energy, experience and expertise to help Inver Grove Heights become an even better place to live.

I was out front calling for changes to the EDA (Economic Development Authority), which, due to its structure, can also function as a Housing Redevelopment Authority, able to strengthen the quality ofour housing stock.

My goal is to improve and broaden their membership to both increase the resources at their disposal and help them become more proactive in bringing more well-paying jobs and stronger economic development to our city. At the same time, I continue to hear from many about the decline in housing stock, something that’s not unique to Inver Grove Heights.

However, one of the most important things we as a community and our new council must pay attention to is the vision and core of what brings us all together in Inver Grove Heights. An important part of this is our schools.

While only a small percentage of our households have school-aged kids—my youngest graduated in 2008—our school system is one of the most important community assets we all have a stake in.

Many economic studies have found that the strength and vitality of a community is directly related to the strength of their schools, and we should all recognize that the kids are our future.

There are so many ways for our community to become more invested in both our schools and the kids, from joining the volunteer corps to attending school events to supporting levies when the need is there.

As a school board member for the past eight years, should I be elected to the council, I will never forget to promote and make decisions with an eye on how those decisions affect our schools.

It must be part of who we are as a community.

Paul Mandell
651-270-7573