Voters in Albertville will have an interesting process to follow when they enter the polls on Tuesday, Nov. 4, as only one name will appear on the ballot for the two open seats on the city council.
Rob Olson, current council member, filed in time to seek re-election. However, incumbent Dan Wagner decided to step aside, leaving a void on the ballot after nobody filed.
In steps Walter Hudson, who is waging a “write-in” campaign for the open seat. While voters do have the choice of filling in literally anyone’s name, Hudson, a newcomer, is hoping it will be his as he participates in the process, including next Tuesday’s Voters’ Forum.
Here’s more on the two men:
Walter Hudson
Age: 35
Address: 10546 64th St NE, Albertville, MN 55301
Family: Carrie (wife, 34); William (son, 5); Gabriel (son, 1)
Years Albertville community: 2
What inspired you to run for Albertville City Council?
Albertville is the community where my wife Carrie and I have elected to raise our boys, William and Gabriel. Public service has always been an aspiration, because I care deeply about the effect government has upon our pursuit of prosperity and happiness.
I have worked as an activist and commentator for many years, advocating for individual rights and fiscal responsibility, while our family has gotten its start. We’ve lived several places around the metro after returning from Carrie’s graduate schooling at the University of Iowa. After settling in Albertville, we’ve begun to lay roots, serving in church ministries and other organizations around the community. An opportunity to serve further has presented itself with an open seat on the city council, and I believe I can represent my neighbors faithfully.
What are the biggest challenges currently facing the community, and into 2015?
Albertville is a growing community. Our future includes new neighbors, more businesses, and greater demands upon city services. The challenge this growth presents involves scaling our operations to provide an expected level of service without placing an undue burden upon residents and property owners. Our hopeful reach must not exceed our fiscal grasp. There will always be more wants than resources. Thought and foresight must be applied to the question of how to prioritize new demands.
At the time of this writing, the city council continues to deliberate how to prioritize calls for increased law enforcement coverage, a new full-time fire chief, and a new full-time public works employee. It’s a situation where we can’t have it all without raising the levy on property owners. Much thought has been given to which of these needs should be granted priority. Such decisions should be based as much as possible on objective criteria and resident will.
How might Albertville change as a community with a three-lane freeway possibly on the docket for 2015
Freeway expansion will signal continued growth, both in population and new businesses serving the community. This will contribute to the challenge of scaling services appropriately. Traffic patterns surrounding the freeway will need to be monitored so we can get ahead of problems before they develop. There may also be challenges related to property adjacent to the freeway, particularly if the three-lanes end up extending all the way to County Road 19.
What is your vision for future commercial development in the City of Albertville, particularly in the area of County Road 19 and 57th Street?
It has been encouraging to witnesses new businesses take root in locations around the city where previous businesses had shut their doors. But a stronger indicator of economic growth in our city would be new development on currently vacant lots. Certainly, we have the space near and around the intersection of County Road 19 and 57th Street.
In my view, the best incentive to new development would be city hall’s assurance that business is welcome, that the council will not put up undue obstacles, and that Albertville stands committed to maintaining a welcoming environment for many years to come.
Albertville is considering a full-time fire chief to serve both the city and the city of Otsego in 2015. Is this an idea you support? Why or why not?
I would support the hiring of a full-time fire chief under particular circumstances. First, the cost would have to factor into a budget which, when all things were considered, did not raise the levy burden upon property owners. In addition, we would need to work out an agreement with Otsego which ensured Albertville would not be left holding the proverbial bag in shifting circumstances. Either Otsego would need to commit to shared fire coverage for a period of time which makes fiscal sense, or some contingency would need to be in place for Albertville to adjust in the event Otsego develops their own fire department. Finally, any plan would need to be informed by the expert opinion of our firefighters.
Do you have anything else to add?
Much of the policy which affects municipalities is drafted by the state legislature. When facing issues like the unequal funding of the St. Michael – Albertville school district, local officials operate at the mercy of state lawmakers. Over the past few years, I have developed strong relationships with many of our state leaders and would be well equipped to advocate for our community as a council member.
I’m asking you to write in my name – Walter Hudson – on your ballot for Albertville City Council. The election will be on Tuesday, November 4th. The second or two you take to write in my name means a lot, and I appreciate the trust which it implies. If elected, I commit to proving worthy of that trust by working to provide the services you expect, and otherwise stay out of your way.
Rob Olson
Age: 35
Address: 6278 Kahler Dr NE
Family: Wife Kelly, Children Tyler (10), Ella (8), Gavin (4), and Madelyn (2)
Years Albertville community: 9 Years
What inspired you to run for Albertville City Council?
Two years ago I felt that I would be a good candidate for City Council and ran for my first election but was not elected. Fortunately I was appointed to fill the vacant seat of council member Hendrickson in January 2013. Since then I have been an active member of the Council and have learned a lot about the City and have enjoyed my past two years serving the residents. I feel like I still have more to learn and can still be a beneficial member of the Council and that is why I chose to run for reelection.
What are the biggest challenges currently facing the community, and into 2015?
One of the biggest challenges facing the City is keeping up with maintenance and up keep of the existing infrastructure. The City’s streets and utilities are aging and current budgets are not enough to keep up with the deterioration of the roads. Also, the wastewater treatment plant will need to undergo a major renovation to meet new guidelines set by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. Funding for this has not yet been identified and the City is working hard at determining the most cost effective solutions to meet these strict requirements.
How might Albertville change as a community with a three-lane freeway possibly on the docket for 2015?
The addition of a three-lane freeway has major impacts for the City in two ways. The first and most important factor is it will allow our residents to travel to and from our City on the Interstate, thus relieving the County Roads from high volumes of traffic and saving travel time so our residents can be home with their families versus being stuck in bumper to bumper traffic. The second factor is it will spur growth along the corridor that will trickle down into the cities along I-94. This growth will bring jobs, residents, and new businesses to help support the established local businesses and help lower the taxes for the City by increasing the tax base.
What is your vision for future commercial development in the City of Albertville, particularly in the area of County Road 19 and 57th Street?
I am open to development along County Road 19 and look forward to this area being developed. Past Councils have adopted a land use plan that zones this area as Commercial. The commercial development it is currently zoned is on the restrictive side and with the amount of vacant commercial buildings in town, it will take time before this area is developed fully. I have been open to looking at rezoning the west side of 19 south of the Cottages to a residential use to complement the existing residential area.
Albertville is considering a full-time fire chief to serve both the city and the city of Otsego in 2015. Is this an idea you support? Why or why not?
Over the past few years Albertville has been fortunate to have Tate Mills as their volunteer fire-chief and earlier this year he chose not be return as fire chief once his term expires at the end of 2014. A recommendation was made that the City considers a full-time chief as his replacement. While listening to both sides of the argument I decided to support the full-time fire chief to serve the City of Albertville moving forward in 2015. My decision was based on realizing the need to provide the residents of Albertville with a full time chief that will perform department management, emergency management, and fire inspections for the fire department. Emergency management is not actively being done within the fire department due to the lack of time available for a volunteer position. Another reason I support the full-time chief is to provide the level of service that is expected to meet the requirements for the portion of the City of Otsego that we provide fire coverage for. The City of Otsego has been a great partner in supporting our fire department and I look forward to working hard to keep this relationship moving in a positive direction.
Do you have anything else to add?
I just want to thank the residents for their support over the past two years and I am looking forward to serving them again for four more years. Please feel free to contact me at any time with any questions or concerns they have.