Murphy, not Dill, now represents Two Harbors

• Mary Murphy

File photo.

Talk about it

After redistricting plans were announced for Minnesota legislative districts last week, Two Harbors found itself without state representative David Dill. Rep. Dill has represented Two Harbors since 2002. Instead they will be in new House district 3B which DFL Rep. Mary Murphy will represent if she wins re-election this fall.

Rep. Dill was presented a key to the city on Tuesday. He said Two Harbors had been a great place to represent because the people are honest. “It’s just a great fit for me,” Dill said.

Rep. Dill said not a week went by at the Capitol where someone did not stop him and tell them they had visited his district up north. While he will not be representing Two Harbors any longer, he pointed out if he is reelected his district will still include the area that surrounds Two Harbors. “We will still be working collaboratively,” Dill said.

He said he was proud of what he had been able to help accomplish while serving Two Harbors but especially of getting funding for the Burlington Bay campground expansion. Rep. Dill said the high recognition of the North Shore helped to show why such a project would be critical to the area. “The thing about the North Shore, about Two Harbors is that just about everybody at the state capital, Minnesota, and surrounding states, can identify the North Shore because it’s such a destination,” he said.

However, Rep. Dill said he told Mayor Randy Bolen and other Two Harbors representatives this week that funding for the Two Harbors marina would probably have to wait despite his support of the project. Bolen had said the Two Harbors group planned to make a state bonding request for $12 million at the Feb. 13 city council meeting. According to Rep. Dill, while the 2012 bonding bill hovers around $500 million, other projects like developing the water system to provide irrigation and water for the ski course and businesses in Cook County cost about $3 million and quickly add up. “This is a small bonding bill,” Dill said.

But Rep. Dill said he looked forward to working with Rep. Murphy and thought she would be a good fit for Two Harbors because she’s a hard worker. “She usually turns on the lights at the legislature and she is one of the last ones out,” he said.

Rep. Murphy is the longest serving DFL legislator in the region and the highest ranking DFL member on the redistricting committee. She says there were some days of mourning after she found out how the redistricting went. “I lost three areas I have had since the beginning,” she said.

But Murphy said the important thing is that the people are fairly represented. “It’s right and proper,” she said.

“I think a good state representative learns about the district and about the people and does their very best to help people when they are called up on to do so,” Murphy said.

Rep. Murphy has been to Two Harbors many times before. Murphy was a longtime teacher before entered politics and her first teaching job was in the Two Harbors area at Clover Valley High School. She said Two Harbors residents are people with good work and family ethics who care about education, water, and having good-paying jobs. “That’s the kind of people I’ve been working with all my life,” said Murphy.

Murphy said she visited Judy’s Café in Two Harbors last Saturday and talked to some constituents about their ideas and concerns. “I thought it would be good and helpful to learn what they thought,” she said.

She also took the time to drive around the area and check out the local scenery, including the area around the lake. Murphy said she was really impressed by the trail and also saw the campground. “It seemed inviting for people to come and stay for a day or a week or a month and for residents to have access to the lake,” she said.

While Murphy said she still has a lot to learn about the area, she says she expects the issues will be similar to what she has been facing. “Good paying jobs, jobs that can feed the family, and money for education so that our local school districts can meet the needs of the children and be trained in some kind of job or go on to higher education,” Murphy said. “If we do our part on that, we can keep our kids in the area and they won’t have to leave northeastern Minnesota.”

Redistricting is required by the U.S. Constitution after every census to keep populations levels equal in the districts. Northeastern Minnesota’s population either grew smaller or held its numbers while areas to the south near the Twin Cities reported increases. A special panel of judges appointed by the Minnesota Supreme Court created the new district maps when Republican lawmakers and Democratic Governor Mark Dayton clashed and both could not find a plan that they both agreed on.

Tags: two harbors, mary murphy, david dill, news