I'm running: Bring council back to the people

Talk about it

My name is Jerry Norberg and I am seeking the city council at-large seat in Two Harbors. I am a lifelong resident of Lake County and have lived in the city for the past 22 years. I graduated from Two Harbors High School and, in one week, will retire from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.

I have a strong working knowledge of government, having been the undersheriff for the past five years. I have no agendas. I simply want to continue to serve my community.

Government has become very complex and, sometimes, the constituency gets lost in the shuffle. We need to bring government back to the people. Elected officials need to listen, not just hear, their constituents. I will do that.

I believe the taxpayers of Two Harbors deserve to know how their money is being spent. For the past five years, I have been responsible for the sheriff’s office budget and I made sure that the money spent was in the best interest of the taxpayer.

I believe we need to make Two Harbors a destination and not just a “stop and go” for gas and food. How do we do that? We have to make our community attractive to visitors and give them a reason to stay. We have many great attractions to draw people: Heritage Days, the campground, Lakeview National Golf Course, and Superior Hiking trail, to name a few. All of these are fine summer attractions.

We need to focus on the other three seasons. The fall season in Two Harbors brings many changes to our area. We need to capitalize on that. Maybe a harvest festival of some sort. Two Harbors can be a winter mecca with its cross country ski trails, the snowmobile trail, along with ice fishing opportunities. I am an advocate of all of these activities and we need to expand the snowmobile trail system to encourage people to stay in Two Harbors and ride right from their hotel. We also need to expand the cross country ski trails beyond the golf course area. Imagine a ski trail that parallels the walking trail.

Along with the tourism trade, we need to attract new businesses into our area. We must do this prudently so as not to lose our small-town atmosphere but we do need to grow. Bringing in new businesses will attract residents and keep our young people here instead of moving to the “big city.”

I have found, in my 25 years of public service, micro-managing departments is counter-productive. We hire good people to run the various departments within our city. Let them run it. I am strongly opposed to micro-managing.

I can’t think of a place on earth that I would rather live than in Two Harbors. It is my home. It will always be my home. I would like to help keep it that way by seeking the at-large seat in the Nov. 2 election.

Being retired, I will have the time to dedicate to the citizens of Two Harbors. I would appreciate your vote.

Tags: two harbors, election 2010, jerry norberg, city council, opinion