Six county board contests highlight spring slate

Regardless of the results of next Tuesday’s election, there will be significant change on the Trempealeau County Board of Supervisors. Next week, however, voters could determine if it will be nearly a quarter of the board that turns over or almost half of it. 

Four county supervisors opted not to seek reelection as Stacey Klein, District 2; Richard Sacia, District 3; Kellen Nelson, District 14; and Jeanne Nutter, District 16, filed declarations of noncandidacy. Four other incumbents, Bridgette Turner, District 1; Kevin Adams, District 7; Dick Miller, District 8; and Ronald Johnson, District 17; have opponents in Tuesday’s election. There will also be contests to replace Sacia and Nutter. 

Andy Parish, District 2, and John Skoug, District 14, are running unopposed to replace Klein and Nelson. 

The Times sent questionnaires to all of the candidates in the contested races. None of the candidates in District 7 or District 17 responded. Scott Leonard is challenging incumbent Adams in District 7 and Carla Short is opposes Johnson in District 17. 

District 1

Bridgette Turner has been a member of the county board since 2021 and said she is proud to be one of the “very few” women to have served on the Executive/Finance Committee.

Turner has lived in the village of Trempealeau for 12 years, after serving as a respiratory therapist for 30 years, working mostly in Milwaukee’s inner-city. 

In her time on the county board, Turner said she has been thorough in her preparation for meetings and listens to the ideas of fellow supervisors while promoting the concerns of residents in her district. 

“I have worked hard to be seen as a leader amongst my peers,” Turner wrote.

If reelected, Turner said she will continue to be “a good steward of our tax dollars while maintaining support for public safety, the judicial system, and our library system.” She said she believes the county needs to do more work to address childcare needs and affordable housing. 

“I believe it is short-sighted to have a specific agenda,” Turner wrote. “We must be able to work as a team for the residents in our special county.”

Her opponent, Sara Olson, did not respond to the questionnaire sent by the Times. 

District 3

Both of the candidates for District 3 have experience being elected to other boards.

Cynda Solberg spent eight years on the Dane County board before moving back to Trempealeau County, where she was raised. Ryker Todd has been a member of the Galesville city council, but is not seeking reelection for that seat — instead, the current District 3 representative on the county board, Richard Sacia, has filed to run for the spot Todd will vacate. 

Solberg grew up in rural Ettrick before moving to Madison. She returned to the county when she and her husband purchased a house in Galesville in 2021. 

Solberg worked for the State of Wisconsin for 33 years. She said she had a few different titles, but all involved fiscal duties, including being the Purchasing Director for the Department of Corrections for eight years. She retired last October. 

Solberg said she would like to help the county review its budgeting and fiscal policies and procedures. 

“It seems like this is an area where there could be some room for improvement,” Solberg said. “I am a strong believer in accountability and doing everything we can to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars.” 

Solberg said she has experience and knowledge to offer the county. She said she learned a lot from serving on the Dane County board. Now that she is retired, she thinks she has the time to devote to the position. “I care deeply about my home county,” she said. 

Solberg is the music director and treasurer for French Creek Lutheran Church. She is also a member of multiple musical groups and volunteers for community events. 

Todd is a manager at his family’s business, Toad’s Cove convenience store in Centerville. He is a graduate of Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau High School and has lived in the county for 24 years, growing up in Arcadia and residing in Galesville for a decade. 

In addition to serving on the Galesville city council, Todd has been on the Galesville Fire Department for 10 years. He is also a member of a local car club. He said staying involved in the community is very important to him. 

Todd said he wants more transparency on the county board and more opportunities for community input.

“My goal is to make sure everybody knows what is going on in Trempealeau County, where their money is being spent, why we keep going further into debt and raising taxes,” Todd said. 

He said he wants the board to take more time to discuss issues. 

“I want more time and thought going into the decisions that are made, with more input from the community, and more budget-friendly decisions in mind,” Todd said. 

District 8

Incumbent Richard Miller has served on the board for 20 years in two separate stints, including time as the chair.

The University of Northern Iowa graduate and veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps moved to Blair in 1978. Miller completed his BA and MA at Northern Iowa and worked as a juvenile probation officer for nine years before moving to Blair. He and his wife, Shirley, owned and operated hardware stores in Blair and Whitehall from 1978 until his retirement in 2010. 

Miller said that, if elected to another term, he will continue to support county highway improvements, technology updates, and the management team’s effort to “continue improving services to the citizens of Trempealeau County.” Miller also said he would like to see staggered terms so not every board member is up for reelection every two years. 

“Staggered terms will provide better continuity, stability, and improved long range planning,” Miller wrote. 

The incumbent said he believes variety on the board is good.

“Good county government benefits from having members with a variety of experiences, ages, genders, and educational backgrounds,” Miller wrote. “Counties are engaged in providing its citizens with a wide range of services. Board members need to be prepared to address a variety of issues that come before them.”

Miller has also been involved in the Blair Food Pantry, Blair Lutheran Church, and both the Blair and Whitehall Chambers of Commerce.

Paul Syverson also is no stranger to county government, having worked for the county for 45 and a half years, including 36 as the Trempealeau County Clerk. Among his duties as the clerk was being in charge of all county finances as the Chief Financial Officer. 

“I feel we have to look at the budget and tax mill rate so that our county taxpayers don’t always feel ‘hit’ when they receive their property tax bill,” Syverson wrote.

Syverson said he knows the inner workings of the county and thinks his expertise would be a great fit. 

“I feel Trempealeau County has done so much for me that I want to give back,” Syverson wrote.

He said one of his top priorities will be to improve the morale of county employees, which he said he has seen “really dropping.”

“Trempealeau County has been known as a good place to work and I want that distinction back,” Syverson said. 

Syverson is a graduate of UW-La Crosse with a degree in business administration with an emphasis in accounting. He also holds certificates from UW-Green Bay in professional development, principles of management essentials and is a Master County Clerk. 

He has been a member of the Blair city council for 34 years. He has also been involved with church groups, Trempealeau County Unit of the American Cancer Society, the Cheese Festival Committee, and is a member of the Stouthearted Men singing group.

District 16

Two lifelong county residents are hoping to make a positive impact on the county board. 

Anthony Monson and Kristen Husby are both vying for the chance to replace longtime board member Jeanne Nutter. 

Both candidates are graduates of Eleva-Strum High School, but offer different work experiences. 

Husby has been retired for three years after working at Tri-County Communications Cooperative for 29 years. In addition to her work experience, she said she has held positions on committees and advisory councils on the state and national levels within the industry. She completed the business and leadership program at Chippewa Valley Technical College and has certificates of completion in communication, leadership and management, marketing, and HR management.

She served on the Eleva-Strum school board, public education foundation, community support network, and Lions Club. She has also served as president of her church and is a recipient of the Ashley for the Arts Humanitarian award. 

Husby said she wants to make a positive impact for county residents. 

“I have a passion for public service and for making decisions that can positively affect the great people of Trempealeau County; to include education, infrastructure, agriculture, social services, and public safety,” Husby said. 

She said her goal is to provide leadership and pursue innovative, cost-effective initiatives. She said she wants to be on “a board that works on roadway infrastructure, economic development, tourism, human services, and environmental issues, making Trempealeau County the place people want to live, work, play and visit.”

Monson has been self-employed for 40 years, working as a dairy, beef and crop farmer. He said he took over his family farm and expanded it. 

He also serves the county in one capacity as a member of the Land Management Committee. He is the town association representative on that committee as he is also the Town of Unity Chairman. He also served as a Unity supervisor before being elected chair.  

Monson said he has experience coaching youth sports, has served as his church council treasurer, and as a milk co-op board director.

He said his father was involved in local government for four decades. That taught him that people need to be involved in local government if they want to protect and achieve certain goals in business. 

“Local voices set local policy. With no voices, state or federal people will set the policy,” Monson said. “On the horizon is possible large-scale solar, data centers, water rights and taxes. If we like the view out our windows and want to keep it, now is the time for us to speak up.”

He said protecting rural rights is important and that he also wants to be fiscally responsible. 

“(My goal is to) work for the people and protect the rural assets we enjoy,” Monson said. “Government is not an individual view, but a group view.”