Two newcomers seek common council seats
By Kris Leonhardt
Editor
MARSHFIELD — In the upcoming April 4 city election, new candidates are vying for a spot on the Marshfield Common Council in Districts 2 and 4.
In District 4, newcomer Ken Bargender will challenge current alderman Gordon Earll for his seat, and Nick Poeschel is seeking to replace alderperson Alanna Feddick, who is not running for re-election, in District 2.
Also on the ballot, who like Poeschel are running unopposed, are District 6 Alderman Tom Witzel, District 8 Alderman Rebecca Spiros, and District 10 Alderman Peter Hendler.
Ken Bargender
Bargender is a 27-year resident of Marshfield and is the owner of KLB Enterprises.
Why are you running for a seat on the city council?
“I feel the voters should have more than one choice when going to the polls. I have 30-plus years of board and business experience in Marshfield. I have a common-sense approach in my decision making. I will be an advocate to the taxpayers and citizens of the city of Marshfield.”
How would you prioritize upcoming city projects?
“Roads first because everyone needs and uses them. The Wenzel Plaza is mostly funded by private funds and complements the historic downtown area.
“I believe the $890,000 in funds available should be sufficient to meet the needs of the renovating of the old library. The taxpayers should not have to pay another million dollars.
“The aquatic center is still just a vision, and funding is yet to be determined.”
Gordon Earll
Earll is an eight-year member of the Marshfield Common Council and currently serves as council president.
Why continue representing District 4 on city council?
“There are a number of things on the council that I am involved in at this point that I would like to see through to the end. One is the community center. I want to see that completed. We are currently talking about that on the council, and we’re expected to begin this summer.
“I’ve also been involved in the STEM building at the university, quite heavily in fact, and that will be done for class to begin in the fall. I’ve also been involved quite heavily with the (Marshfield Area) Pet Shelter, and they are currently in a temporary location at the airport terminal, and they are hoping to build a permanent facility for themselves in the industrial park. … I expect all of these to be done in the next two-year time frame.”
On why the street referendum failed:
“I think it failed for a number of reasons. One is that while the people in the community could see the need for the streets (to be repaired), they weren’t willing to spend the money because it was going to be a direct thing as far as paying for it. The property owners, they were going to be the ones that were going to have to cough up the money. They weren’t willing to do that. We were beaten really soundly on that one.
“I was for it because I saw and I know the need for streets in the city. That is our No. 1 complaint. We saw this as a way to do something about it.”
How would you prioritize upcoming city projects?
“I would rate roads as the No. 1 issue in the community. No. 2 would be the community center, and No. 3 would be the aquatic center.
“We just started the aquatic center discussion this year. The existing pool is 80 years old, and something needs to be done. … I kind of view this as a five-, six-, seven-year down the road program unless something happens to the existing pool in the meantime.”
Nick Poeschel
Poeschel is a 28-year resident of Marshfield and is a recently retired member of the Marshfield Police Department.
What prompted your interest in a seat on the common council?
“I’ve always been interested in politics and government and things like that. During the last couple of weeks of my employment, I had a couple of people approach me and say, ‘You know, there is going to be an opening on the city council, and we would like you to consider running for that. We think you would be a good person to fill that position.’
“Even though I hadn’t really intended to jump right into something after retiring, because of the nomination process and things like that, I had to make a decision rather quickly.”
On why the street referendum failed:
“One of the reasons I think it failed that I have heard from people is that there wasn’t a lot of specifics about which streets were going to be repaired, where the money was going to go.
“I think that during that time was when they were doing that project on Second Street, and I think that some of the people looked at that project and said, ‘Well, are they going to just go around and tear up perfectly good streets to beautify them, or are they going to actually repair the streets in my neighborhood that haven’t been repaired?’”
How would you prioritize upcoming city projects?
“Obviously, I think that the roads have to come first. Some of the streets in the city are in rough shape. For instance, Wood Avenue in my neighborhood is going to be worked on this year. It’s been a route that they use for hauling snow to the back of the cemetery all winter. Over the years it has degraded quite a bit, … but there are other roads in the city that also have potholes and need to be upgraded as well.
“I think that we have to prioritize that as a necessity rather than a recreational type priority.
“Then I think that the community center would fall second. We are already into that project. We should finish that project before we jump into another project.
“The pool, which the pool gets a lot of use in the summertime, … but at this point the pool is just in the beginning stages of planning, so I would put that as our third, and let the other projects get done before we get into starting a new one.”
(Editor’s note: This story quotes Earll and Poeschel from their interviews with Marshfield Community Television. Bargender declined MCTV’s interview request but provided written responses.)
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