1. Four years ago, I ran for mayor on bringing another broadband solution to Annandale, adding and improving recreational facilities, improving our infrastructure and creating an environment for positive business opportunities to occur. I believe we’re accomplishing all of the above.
However, there is one project I ran on that has yet to be accomplished. That project is revitalizing our downtown. It is a complicated project which affects a lot of people. I’m running again to see this project through. I’m excited about it and am confident it is going to be something we can all be proud of for the coming decades.
2. I have 17 years experience serving the City of Annandale. I served nine years on the Planning Commission, four on the City Council, and four as your Mayor. I’ve also been a board member on our Wastewater Treatment Commission for six years.
I am a licensed civil engineer with vast and diverse experience in designing, building, and managing construction projects of all sorts. I know how cities physically grow and what makes them grow.
I’ve lived in Annandale all of my life. I started off as a nerdy kid, getting into trouble and have become a software developer, salesperson, process improver, a modern day marketeer and overall entrepreneur. Out of the ashes of near ruin during the "Great Recession," I’ve built a successful and growing software development company from scratch. And I did it all within our great city of Annandale.
My entire life I’ve worked hard and learned. I have amassed a great balance of skills, knowledge, experience, confidence and glimpses of wisdom.
I believe I am at my peak and I am ready and willing to give all I got to the City of Annandale for another two years.
3. I have three priorities over the next two years and they are as follows:
■ Work smarter and faster.
By design, government runs slow. On many of our projects, we work with other entities such as engineers, finance people, planners, and other governments. All of which have their own hoops to jump through. I often get frustrated at the slow pace of some of these processes. One of my priorities is keeping our projects moving forward as fast as possible while being logical and thorough.
■ Make city hall more efficient
When compared to neighboring cities, Annandale gets just as much work done with fewer people. However, our city is growing not only in population, but demands for services as well. This requires either hiring more staff or becoming more efficient. Over the next two years, we’ll be doing both. However, one of my priorities is to work with staff on becoming more efficient with the staff we have by improving processes, policies and investing in modern day tools and technology.
■ Help our business community level up
I am amazed by how massively successful some of our businesses are. They are taking risks while continuing to learn and improve.
I am equally amazed by how many businesses are still operating like they did decades ago. The unfortunate truth is we live in a society where the internet does not care if we’re a small town. With the ability for instant anonymous feedback and reviews, I’m afraid some of our local businesses will fail or be overtaken if they don’t improve.
Therefore, I will be working with our local chamber of commerce and business community to provide resources to help our businesses be the best they can be.
4. Under construction – Over the next five years, Annandale is going to be under construction.
Our new market rate apartment complex has started and Pintail Ponds is bustling with activity and this will continue through 2019. Our downtown project is scheduled to commence with MnDOT in 2020. This project will affect most of Oak and Park Streets. Immediately after in 2021, MnDOT will be resurfacing all of Highway 55 through Annandale. Also, I would not be surprised if the area around Highland and Brown Streets gets talked about shortly. When all of these projects are completed, Annandale will be in a unique position where all of our infrastructure can be considered up-to-date and we can then focus on maintenance instead of reconstructs.
We’re going to be busy and it is going to take massive amounts of smart communication to keep people informed.
Labor crunch – Our city staff is amazing. They are truly great people. They provide support, structure, and safety for our great city and they receive little accolades. For that, I thank them all.
Having said that, there is a skilled labor shortage and a great economy. The job market today is more competitive than ever. As with any business, finding and keeping great staff is going to become more difficult over the next two years. Unfortunately, government by design can’t react as fast as a business nor can it provide new benefits that are appealing to the modern day worker.
However, I believe there are other opportunities we can implement and look forward to doing so over the next two years.
5. In budget issues, I don’t believe it is an either-or situation. I believe both options have to be looked at. However, the best approach is to not get into a position where you have a budget crisis.
It’s always a healthy exercise to reevaluate the services the city provides and determine if they are still of value. If they are, we must always see if they can be done better. I am a big fan of process improvement and a little money spent today that reduces costs over time is in most cases a good idea. When it comes down to it, the basic duties of government are to provide infrastructure and protect its people. In a budget crisis, that’s what we’ll try to maintain.
6. I am extremely optimistic about this project. I believe this project to be one of the most important projects in recent decades. A downtown is what a small town gets judged on. It is our geographical center of pride and strength. For the past 40-years, Annandale has benefited from having a unique and interesting downtown.
But as with all things, age has taken a toll on our downtown. It’s losing is aesthetic appeal and is becoming unsafe. Our downtown streets contain infrastructure that is exactly 100-years old (oldest in town). It’s still working, but if something isn’t done soon, it will most certainly be a costly headache in the near future.
Over the past five years, we’ve brought the stakeholders and many talented people together to think and to plan. We’ve logged many hours discussing economic development, awnings, pavements, sidewalk types, trees, bump-outs, light posts, and so on. We’ve met with and learned from other communities that have gone through similar experiences.
I think it’s safe to say that all stakeholders are just as much nervous as they are excited and they have every right to be. But this project needs to be done. We’re all going to do our best to make this project a success and something that everyone can be proud of over the next four decades.
Currently, we are nearing the end of the design process with MnDOT and in a couple of months, we’ll have a final plan prepared. I can’t wait for all of you to see it.
7. It is true that the city and the school district have been working well together on this project. A lot of thought, time, and effort have been put into this facility and it is extremely exciting to see it opening for use. This project contributes in making Annandale a destination which is great for our local economy and quality of life.
In addition to the city and the school district, many residents and service organizations such as the Annandale Lions Club are contributing massive amounts of time, money, and labor to ensure this project is a success.
Even though the park is almost complete in its initial phases, there is still a lot of work to do. Now that it’s built, focus will be shifting towards coordinating activities with the local economy to get the biggest bang for our buck out of this facility.
8. I believe we have and are doing a great job in helping set the business community up for success. We’ve provided a broadband connection to the world. We’re getting really good at finding grants for new and existing businesses to expand. We’re rebuilding our infrastructure while making it more appealing for commerce. We’re providing additional housing choices and recreational options to provide a higher quality of life for our workers.
So, now that we’ve got a great foundation for business to flourish we need to let the world know that Annandale is open for business. Therefore, I will be working closely with our economic development committee, our business community and our area chamber of commerce to better market our city to attract and expand our business opportunities.
9. I would like to see the CP Railway become no whistle. You ever wonder why CP rail always seems to be working on the railway along Highway 55? It’s because they have stated it is their intent to run more trains at higher speeds. Also, a few years ago they received approval to increase the decibel level of their horns. This means over the coming years, there will be more trains along our railway. Since I believe this to be an issue in the not so distant future, a no whistle zone with upgraded rail crossings would definitely improve the quality of life.
I would also like to see our economic development committee become more active. The purpose of this committee is to seek and attract business opportunities that provide something that is lacking such as a particular service and/or jobs.
10. Economically I would like to see Annandale be an attractive business destination. I would like to see more working opportunities here so less of our citizens have to commute. Successful businesses and their passionate owners play a big role in how our community develops, how it plays, and how it grows.
I hope our community’s willingness to volunteer, start businesses, and get involved never changes. There is so much diverse talent and skill that we benefit from and we see that through our service organizations and businesses. By being successful, we encourage and inspire those positive actions to reoccur over and over.
I love our small town and want to keep it small. But just because we’re small does not mean that we have to do small things. I hope our small town feel with big opportunity never changes.
11. I believe the city has done a great job in leveling up Annandale in many ways. We’ve improved our broadband, we’ve improved and added to our recreational facilities and trails, we’ve improved our infrastructure with our street and revitalization projects, and we’re becoming more sophisticated with our operations and processes. We’ve strengthened our relationships with our businesses, school district, service organizations, and other communities.
Over that past decade, we’ve worked on building an amazing and stable foundation for all of Annandale to grow and prosper. The city can only build the door. But, it’s up to the rest of us to walk through it. Hopefully what we’ve done will inspire and encourage our businesses, service organizations, school district, and everyone else to continue to take pride in our community and work on being the best they can be.
We’re doing great work. I’ve enjoyed my time on the council and appreciate the opportunity to share my talents and skills with Annandale. With your help on election day, we can continue the positive path we’re on.
Annandale candidates questions
1. Why are you running for office?
2. What qualities, skills and experience qualify you to hold this office?
3. If elected, what would your top priorities be as a council member?
4. What do you think are the major issues facing Annandale in the two years you would be mayor or the four years you would be on the city council? How can the city proactively prepare?
5. If faced with a decision to raise taxes or cut services in order to balance the budget, which would you choose? Be specific about which services could be reduced or which services would justify a tax increase to maintain.
6. Please speak about Annandale’s Main Street project. How do you feel the project is going are you optimistic for the future of Main Street, etc.?
7. The city and school district are currently cooperating well in the construction of the Annandale Recreation Park. Please speak to the park and how the project is progressing.
8. Has the city done enough to create a positive business climate in Annandale? Could more be done to recruit businesses and bring jobs to town? If so, what?
9. Cost is always a factor, but if adequate funds were available what additional services would you like to see the city offer in order to improve the quality of life for Annandale residents?
10. If you could change two things about Annandale, what would they be? What are two aspects of town you hope never change?
11. If there are any other issues not mentioned above that you believe are important, please comment on them.
Gunnarson, 44, is a lifelong Annandale resident and the owner of ThinkUp Technologies, a web-based software company in Annandale. Gunnarson has two daughters, ages 17 and 14. He did his undergraduate study at St. Cloud State University, and earned his Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. Gunnarson served on the city planning commission from 2004 through 2013, joined the city council in 2010 and is completing his second two-year term as mayor. In other community involvement, Gunnarson has been a member of the Annandale Lions Club for 19 years, has served as the Fourth of July parade chair for seven years, and is the founder of DaBand.