Brenda Dietrich
Name: Brenda Dietrich
Public Office Sought: Inver Grove Heights Mayor
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 651-387-2867
Website:
Twitter handle:
Facebook page: BrendaDietrichIGHcitycouncil
Candidate Bio
I have been preparing to be your next Mayor by having great leaders around me. Mentors in the community, business owners, Local & State representatives and Chamber of Commerce advocates. I am a local business owner myself of a second generation concrete & masonry Co in Inver Grove Heights. I am a current City Council member finishing my first 4 year term. Prior to that I was the Chairman of the board for River Heights Chamber of Commerce, mentor for students in our Tri-District, Vice President & Secretary of the Southeast Metro Business PAC. I have also completed the Citizens Fire & Police Academy to understand some of the challenges our public safety team face in this fast paced, challenging era.
What would be your top three priorities if elected?
-Continue to work on relationship building with residents, city staff and business partners.
-bring more commerce into our city to increase the tax base
-sustainable practices/funding of Infrastructure and Public Safety
To this end I have had my hand in the hiring of key department heads starting with our New City Administrator, Chief of Police, Finance, Parks & Recreation and Public Works Directors. I worked with our interim Public Works Director to create a Pavement Management Citizens Task Force that enlisted the help of residents who met over the course of a year to identify and make 25 recommendations to City Council on a change in the way we structure and plan for road improvements. I have also met with small & large business owners, real estate developers and commerce advocates to plan what types of business and how we want our city to grow.
How would you characterize the business climate in Inver Grove Heights and what is the role of businesses supporting quality of life issues in the community?
The business climate is sluggish. While some business entities have thrived and expanded (CHS, United Properties, Gertens) others had a hard stop date with the pandemic and have been slow to recover. We have several areas that are in some phase of development or redevelopment and those are the areas I am continuing to focus on getting commerce into. In my opinion successful businesses lend themselves to some aspects of quality of life. Being social and meeting your neighbors at restaurants, grocery stores, senior gatherings is beneficial to mental and emotional well being.
What role do you think the city should have in attracting and retaining jobs, and what steps would you take to solicit new businesses to, and retain existing businesses in, Inver Grove Heights?
The city needs to be welcoming, relevant and stay on top of the needs of its residents. We need to encourage our residents with connections to our business community through working relationships with our various schools in the County, internships, and networking. Asking the business leaders what they need and how we can help.
What policies, if any, would you support to help employers address the labor shortage?
I support business owners being the advocate for what a successful model of business looks like for their company. We need State & Federal policy makers to stay connected to the business community and not over legislate mandates. That can decrease the labor pool and effectiveness of how businesses operate.
Do you support any specific employment-related proposals in Inver Grove Heights (such as minimum wage, sick time, or mandatory scheduling notice)? If so, what steps would you take to understand the impact of an ordinance on the many types of businesses in Inver Grove Heights and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
Employment-related proposals such as these should be discussed at the state level.
Public safety and rising crime rates are of serious concern to the business community and residents. What strategies or policies would you propose to address public safety issues facing your community?
I am a strong proponent for full funding of Public Safety. I have completed the citizens academy in both police and fire and have the utmost respect for their care of our community.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address housing issues facing your community?
I support a balanced approach to a variety of housing and commercial development.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address transportation issues facing your community? Have your strategies or views changed on transportation since we’ve seen shifts in road use, public transportation use, work from home models, etc. due to the pandemic?
As Mayor I would continue to network with other local leaders to discuss what is best for our area of the metro and how it is affected by the larger transportation initiatives with the Twin Cities.
What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
As a policymaker it is my fiduciary responsibility to take care of funding for the fundamental aspects of our city. Infrastructure & Public Safety. The other important areas can then be addressed depending on the needs of the residents.
What will you do to expand Inver Grove Heights’s tax base?
I will continue to support commerce that our residents have been asking for. Restaurants, places to gather for social health and well being, industry and commercial projects.
How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
I have been mentoring students in high school and will continue to forge relationships between business owners and students through internships, conversations with the school Superintendent and our local Chamber of Commerce.
Are there any services currently provided by the city that you believe should be cut back or eliminated? Are there new opportunities to share services with other entities?
These types of decisions would need to be fully vetted by the stakeholders in our community.
What is the role of the Mayor in fostering increased minority- and women-owned businesses in Inver Grove Heights?
The role of the local Mayor is to be an ambassador for our community, to make sure residents fundamental needs are met and that policy decisions are made with involvement from all entities involved.
What further policies can Inver Grove Heights adopt to help the business community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic?
We first need to monitor what the Federal and State Government continue to do and then ask local business what their needs are and how we can work as a community to help them. I do not support mandating where common sense approaches will be effective.
Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?
Most importantly, vote. Please continue to listen and ask questions with all folks in your community. Good ideas can come from anywhere, regardless of political beliefs. Thank you for considering me as your next Inver Grove Heights Mayor.
Public Office Sought: Inver Grove Heights Mayor
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 651-387-2867
Website:
Twitter handle:
Facebook page: BrendaDietrichIGHcitycouncil
Candidate Bio
I have been preparing to be your next Mayor by having great leaders around me. Mentors in the community, business owners, Local & State representatives and Chamber of Commerce advocates. I am a local business owner myself of a second generation concrete & masonry Co in Inver Grove Heights. I am a current City Council member finishing my first 4 year term. Prior to that I was the Chairman of the board for River Heights Chamber of Commerce, mentor for students in our Tri-District, Vice President & Secretary of the Southeast Metro Business PAC. I have also completed the Citizens Fire & Police Academy to understand some of the challenges our public safety team face in this fast paced, challenging era.
What would be your top three priorities if elected?
-Continue to work on relationship building with residents, city staff and business partners.
-bring more commerce into our city to increase the tax base
-sustainable practices/funding of Infrastructure and Public Safety
To this end I have had my hand in the hiring of key department heads starting with our New City Administrator, Chief of Police, Finance, Parks & Recreation and Public Works Directors. I worked with our interim Public Works Director to create a Pavement Management Citizens Task Force that enlisted the help of residents who met over the course of a year to identify and make 25 recommendations to City Council on a change in the way we structure and plan for road improvements. I have also met with small & large business owners, real estate developers and commerce advocates to plan what types of business and how we want our city to grow.
How would you characterize the business climate in Inver Grove Heights and what is the role of businesses supporting quality of life issues in the community?
The business climate is sluggish. While some business entities have thrived and expanded (CHS, United Properties, Gertens) others had a hard stop date with the pandemic and have been slow to recover. We have several areas that are in some phase of development or redevelopment and those are the areas I am continuing to focus on getting commerce into. In my opinion successful businesses lend themselves to some aspects of quality of life. Being social and meeting your neighbors at restaurants, grocery stores, senior gatherings is beneficial to mental and emotional well being.
What role do you think the city should have in attracting and retaining jobs, and what steps would you take to solicit new businesses to, and retain existing businesses in, Inver Grove Heights?
The city needs to be welcoming, relevant and stay on top of the needs of its residents. We need to encourage our residents with connections to our business community through working relationships with our various schools in the County, internships, and networking. Asking the business leaders what they need and how we can help.
What policies, if any, would you support to help employers address the labor shortage?
I support business owners being the advocate for what a successful model of business looks like for their company. We need State & Federal policy makers to stay connected to the business community and not over legislate mandates. That can decrease the labor pool and effectiveness of how businesses operate.
Do you support any specific employment-related proposals in Inver Grove Heights (such as minimum wage, sick time, or mandatory scheduling notice)? If so, what steps would you take to understand the impact of an ordinance on the many types of businesses in Inver Grove Heights and how would you define any exceptions to those policies?
Employment-related proposals such as these should be discussed at the state level.
Public safety and rising crime rates are of serious concern to the business community and residents. What strategies or policies would you propose to address public safety issues facing your community?
I am a strong proponent for full funding of Public Safety. I have completed the citizens academy in both police and fire and have the utmost respect for their care of our community.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address housing issues facing your community?
I support a balanced approach to a variety of housing and commercial development.
What strategies or policies would you propose to address transportation issues facing your community? Have your strategies or views changed on transportation since we’ve seen shifts in road use, public transportation use, work from home models, etc. due to the pandemic?
As Mayor I would continue to network with other local leaders to discuss what is best for our area of the metro and how it is affected by the larger transportation initiatives with the Twin Cities.
What are your priorities for the City’s budget?
As a policymaker it is my fiduciary responsibility to take care of funding for the fundamental aspects of our city. Infrastructure & Public Safety. The other important areas can then be addressed depending on the needs of the residents.
What will you do to expand Inver Grove Heights’s tax base?
I will continue to support commerce that our residents have been asking for. Restaurants, places to gather for social health and well being, industry and commercial projects.
How will you work with K-12 and post-secondary educational institutions and businesses to ensure our region develops and retains an educated workforce?
I have been mentoring students in high school and will continue to forge relationships between business owners and students through internships, conversations with the school Superintendent and our local Chamber of Commerce.
Are there any services currently provided by the city that you believe should be cut back or eliminated? Are there new opportunities to share services with other entities?
These types of decisions would need to be fully vetted by the stakeholders in our community.
What is the role of the Mayor in fostering increased minority- and women-owned businesses in Inver Grove Heights?
The role of the local Mayor is to be an ambassador for our community, to make sure residents fundamental needs are met and that policy decisions are made with involvement from all entities involved.
What further policies can Inver Grove Heights adopt to help the business community recover from the COVID-19 pandemic?
We first need to monitor what the Federal and State Government continue to do and then ask local business what their needs are and how we can work as a community to help them. I do not support mandating where common sense approaches will be effective.
Is there anything else you would like to share with voters not covered above?
Most importantly, vote. Please continue to listen and ask questions with all folks in your community. Good ideas can come from anywhere, regardless of political beliefs. Thank you for considering me as your next Inver Grove Heights Mayor.