2022 Scanlon Mayoral race: Kolodge, Stigers seek to lead city

SCANLON — The city of Scanlon will have a new mayor following the Nov. 8 election.

Vying for the seat are Josh Kolodge and Ron Stigers.

More information about the candidates is below. They are listed in alphabetical order, and their responses have been edited for style and grammar.

Age: 24

Family: Single, no children.

Occupation: Maintenance employee.

Community service involvement: None.

Previous experience in elected office: None.

Contributed / Josh Kolodge

Why are you running for office?

To bring a new and younger perspective to the table. The city of Scanlon has been a lot of the "same old, same old" for a long time. Many citizens' voices are not heard, and problems within the city are not addressed. I am running to give all citizens a voice when it comes to issues they see within our city.

What big challenges do you see facing the community?

The infrastructure of our city is aging and in need of immediate repair. We have roads falling apart, and the infrastructure below them in need of repair in the future. The leaders of our city for the past several years have remained mostly unchanged. I feel that some are out of touch with the city and its citizens and have lost sight of what the priorities should be.

If elected, how would you work to address those issues?

I would work with our public works department to see what issues we can handle on our own within the city. Due to Scanlon being a small city with a small budget, the city's leaders and myself would have to work together to prioritize where the funds are being spent with the most critical issues topping the list.

I want to get out in the community and talk with real people to get their point of view on what issues they see that are impacting our city.

What successes do you hope to build on, if elected?

I have had a lot of success in my young life being very open and honest when having conversations with people. I feel this is one of the most effective qualities of an elected official. I want to see more citizens attending city council meetings and voicing their opinions. A small council of people should not be making all our city's decisions without anyone from the community weighing in. I will also use my experience in the maintenance field to help our public works department improve our city.

Age: 66

Family: Married with two children and three grandchildren.

Occupation: Retired from the U.S. Air Force and the Carlton County Transportation Department.

Community service involvement: Commander of the VFW Post 3979, American Legion Post 262 and Disabled American Veterans Chapter 18.

Previous experience in elected office: Currently serving on the Scanlon City Council, planning commission and streets committee.

Why are you running for office?

After being on the Scanlon City Council for the last four years I am now ready to move onto the next level of our city government as the city’s leader. As I’m now retired, I can dedicate the time and energy necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of the office of mayor.

Contributed / Ron Stigers

What are the big challenges you see facing the community?

First, we need to continue to move forward in making improvements to infrastructure services the city provides to our community.

Secondly, keeping up with the fast-changing technologies will allow us to better serve our citizens and keep them informed about what is going on in their city.

If elected, how would you work to address those issues?

We should continue to update the city’s current Capital Improvement Plan for Infrastructure as was developed by the streets committee, city engineer and city maintenance staff.

To better respond to the needs of our citizens, we need to encourage them to express their concerns during both our formal meetings, i.e., city council, various committees, and informally during contacts in the office or over coffee sessions.

What successes do you hope to build on, if elected?

I believe the city has a good reputation for quickly responding to our citizens' calls for assistance. But, as with most things, there is room for improvement by the both the city and its citizens. We need the citizens' help — by their exchange of ideas — to discover what they think we need to improve.