News

 

Email From Current City Council Member, Jason Etten:

 

Dear Friends and Supporters,

​

In the City of Roseville election this Fall I am supporting Dan Roe to be re-elected Mayor, Wayne Groff to be re-elected as a City Councilmember and Robin Schroeder to be newly elected as a City Councilmember.  The people I am endorsing have shown a breadth of knowledge, leadership and community involvement over time that makes them stand above. Please read below for some specific reasons for my support for each candidate and other thoughts on the election this fall. 

 

Dan Roe, Re-election to Mayor - website

Dan is a demonstrated leader in our community.  He has led on everything from making key investments in our Parks and Recreation system to helping lead our Imagine Roseville community conversations on race and policing after Philando Castile was killed in Falcon Heights.  He has supported adding affordable housing, expanding sidewalks and trails, adding solar and geothermal energy sources to the city campus, restoring natural spaces in our parks, moving to a full time fire department, changing police training and policies, strengthening the area of Rice and Larpenteur, improving how we engage and work with our community, and on the list can go.  Dan’s hard work, level-headed decision making, deep knowledge of city code/laws, historical understanding of issues and events in the city, and ability to work well with Councilmembers, City staff and Roseville Citizens make him the leader Roseville needs.  

 

Wayne Groff, Re-election to City Council - website

Wayne and I have worked together for four years on the City Council and for several years before that when he was a commission member.  I have always enjoyed working with him and find him to be even-keeled and an excellent member of the Council.  This positive way of working extends to his work with the entire Council and with our city staff.  He has helped further diversity and equity, affordable housing, police policy changes and fine arts as a few examples of things I really appreciate in his leadership and partnership.  He is a very involved community member.  Wayne’s positive relationship with so many people across Roseville helps keep the Council connected to the community and moving in a positive direction.  

 

Robin Schroeder, election to City Council

Robin is seeking her first term on the Council but she is not new to Roseville or our City government.  Her life-long residency in Roseville, ownership of Schroeder Milk Company on Rice St., and, importantly, five years of service as chair of our Finance Commission make her a knowledgeable, invested and tested leader for Roseville. Her role on the Finance Commission helped her learn about every city department and will allow her to hit the road running on day one as an effective Council Member.  Robin is a smart, pragmatic and community-focused leader.  She does her homework and comes into situations well prepared while also being willing to ask more questions and keep learning.  I appreciate her support of our parks, service on the Lake McCarrons Lake Association to improve the environment and water quality, support of new ways of community policing, and strong understanding of the City’s budget. 

 

If you want to see the candidates in the League of Women Voters Forum from September here is the link.  This forum allows you to see candidates as they discuss their thoughts on various questions asked by the LWV moderator.  

 

Here are a few additional thoughts for this election:  

This evening I received pictures of an attack mailer sent out by a former mayor of Roseville against Julie Strahan.  Apparently the mailer was received in some mailboxes yesterday.  This mailer is dark and terrible and should not have happened.  These third-party mailers do not bring anything good to Roseville.

People have asked me about party endorsements some candidates have received.  You may remember that I chose to not go through the city party endorsement process in my previous campaigns.  The endorsement process can be very important at the State and Federal levels but does not fit city politics.  A major reason for this is because the vast majority of the work done by cities such as parks and recreation, plowing roads, water and sewer service, emergency services, and lot size rules do not fit into partisan lines.  Our city is best served by people working together beyond party lines to accomplish the important work carried out every day by a city.  It is important that voters look for candidates who show strong connections to Roseville, are passionate about city-level issues, and understand what a city like Roseville does and can do legally.  This is how we will elect our strongest leaders and make the most progress as a city.

 

My final thought on the election is for the mayoral race.  I have already articulated my strong support for Mayor Dan Roe.  It is important to remember that his challenger, Julie Strahan is a current Council member who continues on the Council if not elected mayor.  Council members have the same vote as the mayor and the same ability to move forward ideas. If you feel Roseville has been generally going in the right direction (like more than 90% of residents in our last several community surveys) but like some of Julie Strahan’s ideas, I encourage you to vote for Dan Roe for Mayor knowing that Julie Strahan will continue to serve on the Council.  If she is elected mayor, that will create an open seat on the Council for a special election.  This means another new person will be added to the Council with no experience and the city will lose all of the positives of Mayor Roe.  Roseville residents would not be best served by these changes.

 

Jason Etten

​

Roseville City Council
2054 Cohansey Blvd
Roseville, MN 55113
612-508-5915

jasonetten.com

www.facebook.com/JasonEttenForRosevilleCityCouncil