Five candidates are seeking two at-large seats on the Brooklyn Center City Council. Incumbents are Dan Ryan and Carol Kleven, the latter of whom is not running for re-election. The terms are four years. Council members receive an annual salary of $9,070.
Randy Christensen
Randy Christensen
Address: 7001 Regent Ave. N. Brooklyn Center, MN 55429
Age: 48
Family: My wife Wendy, a daughter and a grandson
Education: Graduated Park Center High School; attended Mankato State University with three years of credits towards Marketing/Management Degree; many hours of continuing education for real estate license
Occupation: Association property manager with ACT Management
Years living in Brooklyn Center: 42 (five in Brooklyn Park, one in Plymouth)
Community/civic organizations involvement: Planning Commission member since January 2013 and vice chair since May 2013; volunteer/member at Minneapolis Market Food Share; block captain since August 2000; previously a BPAA Soccer coach
Information: 763-561-6533; randy4bc@gmail.com
Q. Why are you seeking election to the Brooklyn Center City Council? I want to make a difference in my community and felt this was a great way to do so. Working on the Planning Commission created a new passion to serve as a voice of common sense and excitement for the future of Brooklyn Center. The city and our council are filled with many great opportunities to better our community for businesses and residents alike and I want to be a part of it.
Q. What are the top two or three priorities for the city of Brooklyn Center in the coming year, and how would you address them? Continue bringing in development/business to the area. We have so many areas available to develop or repurpose. We need to continue to focus on marketing those opportunity sites. Keep city staff: work the plans or use creative ideas or other marketing to achieve the goal of the long-term plans. Creating jobs for our residents: we have a great and available workforce that needs more opportunities for employment. When the opportunity sites get built there will be jobs while they are being created and after business have moved here. Keep the public image and safety a priority: Brooklyn Center has made great strides in making the city’s image better by being a safe place, but we can still make improvements through continued commitment to our police and fire departments.
Q. What is your overall philosophy in attracting and maintaining businesses and economic growth in Brooklyn Center? I believe we have a lot of wonderful opportunities to offer the right people or business. These opportunities will allow us to keep the great staff we do have and attract the new staff as needed bring in and grow the business we already have. Business is what will make us prosper and the right group of staff will help us all have a great city to come to or be in.
April Graves
April Graves
Address: 6136 Brooklyn Blvd. Brooklyn Center, MN 55429
Age: 33
Family: Four children; two boys and two girls, ages 4-17
Education: Bachelor of Arts from Metropolitan State University in Writing and Social Science; trained yoga instructor and community mediator
Occupation: Independent consultant
Years living in Brooklyn Center: Three
Community/civic organizations involvement: Served through AmeriCorps at Brooklyn Center Community School for 2013/2014 school year; helped create, recruit, plan and facilitate District Parent Advisory Council for District 286; several other programs and initiatives in metro area
Information: 763-561-0413; april.graves1221@gmail.com
Q. Why are you seeking election to the Brooklyn Center City Council? The city council is meant to be representative of the people of Brooklyn Center, but the current and past councils are lacking in this respect. There has never been a woman of color on the city council and women of all colors continue to be a minority in elected offices locally and nationally. I also believe that my experience with diverse populations – whether you’re talking about the diversity of culture and ethnicity, or differences in age and generational worldview – would be an invaluable and unique asset that would give voice and insight to the council’s decision-making, where up until now there has not previously been or has been lacking.
Q. What are the top two or three priorities for the city of Brooklyn Center in the coming year, and how would you address them? I believe the two most important priorities are interconnected and mutually dependent: the continued redevelopment of our city’s infrastructure system and a renewed and more encompassing sense of community. Redevelopment is a natural and reoccurring part of a city’s life cycle. The key is to make sure that all stakeholders have a voice in the process of decision-making, so that the changes made take into account a variety of ideas and perspectives on what these changes should be and how they should be implemented. Gentrification or degradation of community can be a by-product of redevelopment – so listening to our constituent’s desires in addition to the suggestions of city planning committees will help us create a more well-rounded and sustainable plan for redevelopment that serves both our residents and the interests of potential investors.
Q. What is your overall philosophy in attracting and maintaining businesses and economic growth in Brooklyn Center? In some situations the use of incentives may be helpful or necessary to attract businesses and economic growth. Unfortunately, the process is often fraught with risk and also over-focuses on outside entities coming in to help save those already present. Rather than focusing solely on enticements for big businesses, I’d like to see increased opportunities for locally owned small businesses in our community. The variety of cuisine, arts, culture and skills within our city are strengths worth investing in. Doing so would create more understanding and collaborations across demographic groups and contribute to a renewed sense of shared community. A positive sense of community is what will fill our empty single-family homes with families who want to put down roots and invest. I think the best way to attract economic growth is to make our city a place where people feel they can add value and be valued. A place where we all can feel at home.
Dan Ryan
Dan Ryan
Address: 6442 Indiana Ave. N. Brooklyn Center, MN 55429
Age: 65
Family: Wife, Nora E. Ryan; no children.
Education: B.A. degree in political science from the University of Minnesota
Occupation: Currently retired; former warehouse manager
Years living in Brooklyn Center: 38 years. Grew up in Brooklyn Center, returned to the city and bought a home here in 1991.
Community/civic organizations involvement: Serving on the Brooklyn Center City Council since 2007; Lions Club member; Neighborhood Watch captain; and Brooklyn Center High School Alumni Association Board member.
Information: 763-535-4177; noradanryan@comcast.net
Q. Why are you seeking re-election to the Brooklyn Center City Council? I want to continue to build on the success we have achieved over the last four years. The redevelopment of Brookdale Mall, the FBI and France IV projects, the new Luther Auto dealerships have brought jobs and economic growth, while rebuilding the city’s tax base. Through sound financial management we held down property taxes and improved our bond rating to AA. Crime is the lowest it has been in Brooklyn Center in 20 years. The city’s foreclosure strategy reduced the negative impact of vacant properties on our neighborhoods. And through the Brooklyn Alliance we expanded youth programs. The city has made great progress, but there is more work to be done.
Q. What are the top two or three priorities for the city of Brooklyn Center in the coming year, and how would you address them? A top priority will be the construction of the new water treatment plant and the financing of next year’s city street utility and capital improvement projects. This has been accomplished through our comprehensive capital improvement financial plan. Crime reduction along with code enforcement to improve the livability and appearance of our neighborhoods are also key priorities. The police department’s Community Policing Model and citizen participation through Neighborhood Watch have proven effective against crime. An additional staff position has been added to improve response time for code enforcement.
Q. What is your overall philosophy in attracting and maintaining businesses and economic growth in Brooklyn Center? To ensure our future growth, the city should aggressively market our excellent location here in the metro area; make needed investments in public spaces that improve the city’s image; and grant limited financial incentives to developers when necessary. Our location has brought us the five new Luther car dealerships and the FBI Headquarters; the Bass Lake Road streetscape improvements convinced the developer that the former Brookdale site was the place to risk his capital. The extraordinary cost of demolition for the old mall – $19 million – required some financial incentive to the developer. Therefore the city provided a subsidy of less than a third of that cost to the developer so that the project could go forward. The growth of Shingle Creek Crossing and other improvements have created additional traffic and positive momentum for our existing businesses. New businesses like the Restaurant Depot brought 75 jobs when it took over the former Best Buy store; Sign Zone, Inc., bringing 275 new jobs here, was assisted in its relocation to Brooklyn Center by state grant money applied for by the city.
Jeremiah Sandahl
Jeremiah Sandahl
Address: 6819 Drew Ave. N. Brooklyn Center, MN 55429
Age: 30
Family: My beautiful wife Verity and I have four children: Jedidiah, Aletheia, Alice, and Katja
Education: Bachelor’s in Bible and Music from Northland Baptist Bible College; Master’s Certificate in Web Design and Development from Denver University
Occupation: Web and Mobile Developer
Years living in Brooklyn Center: Six
Community/civic organizations involvement: My family and I walked the Earle Brown Days Parade. We like to take walks around the neighborhood and my children love talking to anyone we meet. I also teach firearms safety classes to help make our neighborhoods safer.
Information: 763-732-9710; jeremiahsa@gmail.com
Q. Why are you seeking election to the Brooklyn Center City Council? I want to be someone who helps to improve local government’s efficiency, and protect the rights and values of the people and protect the future of the young people in Brooklyn Center.
Q. What are the top two or three priorities for the city of Brooklyn Center in the coming year, and how would you address them?
1. Fiscal responsibility must be achieved by cutting wasteful spending. This means finding the best price for services the city provides, and spending within budget. It also means looking for creative solutions to minimize city spending. When the city functions more efficiently, those savings will help the people. Even if it means cutting my own salary, I will find a way to save the people money.
2. Attracting small businesses by reducing regulations that stand in the way to success. Regulations often mean that a business needs to spend money on compliance rather than on the product or service they offer. This drives up prices and deters small businesses from Brooklyn Center.
3. Recognizing ethnic diversity. Many minorities make Brooklyn Center their home. Having spent five years living in a foreign country, I respect the struggle to live as a subculture within a culture. The people of Brooklyn Center should be treated well, regardless of ethnicity or cultural background.
Q. What is your overall philosophy in attracting and maintaining businesses and economic growth in Brooklyn Center? I believe in free markets. The economy grows when the government gets out of the way and lets the people decide how to spend their money. Wasteful spending and needless regulation drive businesses away. My vision is to have Brooklyn Center be a haven in the metro area where business enjoy a relief from regulations and tax burdens. Fewer regulations mean more jobs and lower taxes means that businesses have more money to lower prices or pay employees. Furthermore, many small businesses are started in people’s homes or garages, but ordinances, such as zoning ordinances, can make it harder for those businesses to get off the ground. I want to make sure that the city government is getting out of the way as much as possible. Finally, the government is often used as a means for one business to take advantage over another. I want to be sure that the city does not cater to special interests that put any one business at an advantage over another.
Ned Storla
Ned Storla
Address: 6536 Willow Lane, Brooklyn Center MN 55430
Age: 56
Family: Single
Education: Graduated from the University of Minnesota
Occupation: Assessor
Years living in Brooklyn Center: 26
Community/civic organizations involvement: For 10 years I served as chairman of the Brooklyn Center DFL Organization. I also served the city as a member and vice chair of the Brooklyn Center Financial Commission advising the City Council on the city’s financial issues. Also, I was a participant in many neighborhood clean-up efforts, neighborhood meetings and neighborhood “crime watch” evenings.
Information: 763-370-3391
Q. Why are you seeking election to the Brooklyn Center City Council? I am running to promote my top priority for Brooklyn Center – “Promoting Voting, with E-Z Early Voting.”
Q. What are the top two or three priorities for the city of Brooklyn Center in the coming year, and how would you address them? I want to make this primary election all about the people and voters of Brooklyn Center. Running in this primary election gives me the opportunity to tell the voters of Brooklyn Center about the new voting system in Minnesota. It is called “Early Voting.” I think of it as “E-Z Early Voting.” In past elections, we never had “E-Z Early Voting.” Now we do. You, today, can go to Brooklyn Center City Hall and vote, if you live in Brooklyn Center and if you go during normal business hours. This is true up to Monday Aug. 11, the day before the primary election on Aug. 12. Minnesota, in the past, did have “absentee voting” but this required a person to be absent during an election. They changed the voting laws. “Absentee Voting” is now for everyone! City Hall will even be open the last Saturday, before the election, just for “E-Z Early Voting.” Call City Hall for the voting hours if you want to vote that Saturday. Best of all, when you vote in the primary with “E-Z Early Voting” up to Monday, Aug. 11, you can ask them to mail your November election ballot to your home. No more driving, in November weather, just to stand in a long election line on election night. (I think voting from the comfort of your own home sounds much better.) So, this is why I am running, to tell you about the choice you now have.
Q. What is your overall philosophy in attracting and maintaining businesses and economic growth in Brooklyn Center? I would love to see Brooklyn Center have the best voter turnout in the state in this primary election. As you know, voting is historically low in a primary election. So, if we all try, I just know we can put Brooklyn Center “On the Top of the State” this election. “E-Z Early Voting” – Try it, you just might love it! P.S., if I come through the primary election then, next time, I promise to talk more about me.