Election 2020: St. Augusta City Council

ST. AUGUSTA -- A St. Augusta woman is one of four candidates seeking one of two open seats on the city council. Mary Coleman has lived in St. Augusta for 15 years and works in town as the Marketing Manager of Custom Stone Interiors. She wants to help plan the city's future growth...

I've taken a look at the long-term plans for kind of what the development of St. Augusta is, meaning roads and walking paths and it's like I just feel like it's something I'd like to be involved with, giving input on.

Coleman also wants to help attract more businesses to St. Augusta and wants to make the city more welcoming...

I think at this point, St. Augusta is pretty much a bedroom community. There isn't a huge amount of businesses. So, I kind of think the residential is going to happen anyway, and we really have to encourage the business aspect of it because it's good for the tax base.

A business owner and longtime resident of St. Augusta also wants a chance to serve on the city council. Jeff Schmitz and his wife own Lux Trucks and Dreams-2-Reality Daycare. He says friends and neighbors convinced him to run for the seat so he can help shape the community moving forward...

As a mechanic, I do a lot of problem-solving. And, I look outside the picture. Everything I do isn't for just me, I've been devoting myself to other people to make life better for them whether it's with their vehicle or taking care of their kids.

Schmitz says he'd like to help clear some of the red tape required to start a business or improve your property. He says the Highway 15 corridor on the west end of the city is ripe for development too...

I think Highway 15 brings a lot in. I think St. Augusta needs to focus on that as well as the (downtown) areas they are in. They're trying to keep it to the other side it seems to me. And I think it's because they want to keep that small-town feel.  I think there's some development things we could do out there (along Highway 15).

A third St. Augusta City Council candidate moved to town in 2018 so he and his wife could be closer to their grandchildren. Lee Meier moved from Crookston where he was in housing and economic development for 32 years and a tennis coach for two decades. Meier says he knows he is relatively new to town but really wanted to get involved in the community...

What can I do that I know? For the last 25-30 years, I was working with economic development and housing development. So, how can I bring my skills here and see some business growth and see some needs being taken care of?

Meier would also like to help develop more recreational opportunities in town and write grants to improve the internet speed in parts of the community...

The speed isn't what some of the businesses need. So how can I help maybe develop that program? Maybe I can help find some grants. I was working with grants and various things up north so there might be some possibilities to help the city.

Candidate Nick Muller declined an invitation to do an interview for this story.

St. Augusta Mayor Mike Zenzen is also on the ballot but is running unopposed in the mayoral race.