Star Herald Canidate Questions

10/07/2016

Name: Chuck Bradford
Age: 51
Occupation: Firmware Engineer

Government Experience:

Elected	National Alternate Delegate	2016
Elected	Mayor, City of Mantorville	2012,14
Elected	Mantorville Councilman	2008
Elected	Dodge County Republicans Chair	2005
Elected	Deputy Chair First Congressional District	2009
Appointed	Park Board Commissioner	2011
Appointed	Acting Mayor for the City of Mantorville	2011
Appointed	Personnel Committee	2010
Appointed	Committee on Budget and Finance	2010
Appointed	Mantorville Historic Dam Committee	2010
Appointed	City infrastructure Committee	2010
Appointed	Mantorville Planning and Zoning Commissioner	2009
Appointed	Mantorville Economic Development Commissioner	2009
Appointed	Mantorville Liaison for Fire Dept and City Council	2009

Please give a brief Bio (200 words or less)
Family: Chuck and Abby have been married for over 25 years. They have a beautiful 8 year old son named Spencer. One of Chuck's driving motivations for running for office is his desire to leave an even better State for his son Spencer than the one in which he was raised. Chuck has leveraged this passion to fight for the citizens of Mantorville.

Community:
Chuck continues to be involved with his local community. He has been a member of ad-hoc community organizations that are formed to better the community environment and in more formal groups. As a member of the Kasson-Mantorville Lions club, Chuck has served his community as a volunteer by raising money and working on community improvement projects. Chuck's volunteerism has served both Dodge and Olmsted counties promoting tourism, local projects and local policy issues. Chuck also volunteers on the Welch Village Ski Patrol where he helps provide emergency medical assistance to injured skiers. Chuck understands that serving, as an elected official is the highest form of community service.

Education:
Bachelor of Science degree from Iowa State University.
Area of Study, Electrical Engineering with a undeclared minor in Mathematics.

What office are you running for?
Mayor

What would you say your accomplishments have been during your last term in office?
We have been working on the plans for the new Waste Water Treatment Plant for several years now. We were able to find a mutual agreement with the City of Kasson for a joint effort on a combined treatment system. Both cities approached the State Legislature and were identified as recipients for grant dollars for each of our projects. The City of Mantorville has been finally granted a permit for the construction of our phase of the project and we are looking at a summer of ’17 ground breaking.

The City of Mantorville has also been able maintain a reasonable tax rate and we have even reduced the tax rate a few times over the last few years. The overall tax burden placed on the citizens is a significant item when residents consider a new community. We have increased the attractiveness of Mantorville to new residents by placing taxation as a primary focus.

We have been able to work on infrastructure needs as well and have several new street projects either planned or in process. These investments in our community will serve Mantorville well into the next several decades.

The City was able to update the City Hall and Fire Hall. We were able to replace the siding on the building, replace some weakened wood and replace some of the lighting with L.E.D. lighting.

The City is continuing to work with the Safe Routes to School program as well as the Dodge County Trails Association to identify, secure and build a new trail system connecting Rochester and Owatonna.

What issues do you anticipate facing if you are elected?
The ongoing focus will be balancing the budget and addressing project needs. The largest project for next year that is sure to present challenges is the completion of the Waste Water Treatment Plant.

What will be your top five priorities if you are elected? (Please explain why)
1,2 & 3. The Waster Water Treatment plant is finally getting close to a start date. The City of Mantorville’s current plant is well past its design life expectancy and we will need to do something to meet future needs of the city.

4. The cities taxes rate will continue to be a focus area that will be reviewed and scrutinized over the next few years. The current plan is to have city revenue grow no faster than the housing values within the community. This will place more money into the private sector, increase Mantorville’s marketability and reduce financial stress on our residents.

5. The cities Infrastructure will need to be a continued focus. Some the roads in town are in bad need of repairs/replacement and this needs to be addressed so that our citizens have viable roadways to utilize within the city.

What is the most important problem facing your city today, and how would you work to solve it?
The aging Waste Water Treatment Plant is the single largest issue for the City. Mantorville recently found out that our permit has finally cleared both the EPA and the MPCA evaluation criteria and we are able to proceed with our connection to Kasson. We are planning on breaking ground next summer.

Affordable housing is a growing issue in Dodge/Mower/Olmsted County how would you try to help combat the problem in your city?
The City is already working on addressing this need. We have been working with developers, realtors and the township focusing on new sub divisions, planning of mixed housing types and expanding the cities available housing.

Anything else that you would like to add?
Mantorville has a great potential to be a tourism destination. The city will need to develop this while continuing to meet the communities’ infrastructure needs and maintain a reasonable tax rate.
This summer we were able to celebrate the reopening of the historic courthouse. This reopening marks the continued commitment of the county to work with the community of Mantorville for the next several decades. It has been an honor and privilege to serve my neighbors as your Mayor and to work with the State Legislature on behalf of the citizens of Mantorville. With your support we will continue to grow our community together. Please vote November 8th.