MANKATO — Blue Earth County Commissioner Mark Piepho says his 16 years on the board have been a listening and learning experience and he’s proud of the board’s accomplishments and wants to continue seeing projects move ahead.
“I still feel there are things I want to help accomplish. I enjoy serving the residents of my district and the whole county,” he said.
“We’re in the people delivery service more than cities or anyone else. We have human services, mental health programs, infrastructure, economic development, particularly in the rural areas.”
Piepho was first elected in 2008 after beating Commissioner Katy Wortel.
Four years ago, Piepho, of Skyline, defeated challenger Ross Arneson, of Mankato, in District 3 by a 63% to 36% margin. Arneson has again filed for the seat. (A profile on Arneson was previously published in The Free Press and can be found at mankatofreepress.com.)
The only other seat up this year is held by Vance Stuehrenberg, who has no challenger.
Piepho said the Rapidan Dam, which was breached by high rapid flows on the Blue Earth River this spring, has long been an issue the board has had to deal with. The board has decided to remove the dam and to replace a nearby bridge, which became unsafe after the waters undercut its piers.
“I think we did what we could do with the dam over the years. Mother Nature has power. We’ll hopefully never see (what we saw in June) again in our lifetimes.”
In 2021 ice damaged the powerhouse and it hadn’t generated any electricity since.
“We kept putting money into (the dam) and it wasn’t working. It cost a lot of money and it wasn’t generating electricity.”
Piepho said the county will get federal and state funding to help remove the dam and replace the bridge.
“FEMA and the Army Corps (of Engineers) have been good, but it’s going to take time.” He said he thinks that years ahead the river in the area of the dam will be rebuilt to something that will provide good recreation.
Piepho said keeping up with bridge maintenance across the county is a big challenge. The county has more river miles than any other county in the state and has some 200 bridges.
“They can be expensive to keep up and build. That’s why we chose to do a half-percent local sales tax a few years back for roads and bridges. That’s helped a lot.”
Piepho said some strides have been made in developing affordable housing in Mankato and the county continues to look for ways to help in rural areas, including assistance with renovating homes.
He said keeping taxes as low as possible while maintaining essential services is his goal.
“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and are essential to the economic vitality of our community.”
He believes the county will site a new county shop south of Mankato, although it is the focus of a lawsuit by a couple living next to the site.
“The shop we have is too small and landlocked.”
Piepho, who served in the Minnesota House and Senate in the 1980s, said he likes being on the County Board.
“It’s more satisfying being on the board than in the Legislature. You can help get things done here and have more impact as a board members compared to one vote in the Legislature.”