Lisa Borgen

I am a lifelong resident of Moorhead and have been active is supporting growth and opportunity for Moorhead for many years. I am a current member of the Downtown Moorhead, Inc. Board, was part of the 56560 Committee for a sales tax to fund the new Library & Community Center, have been on the Eventide Board, the United Way Board, YMCA Board, FM Area Foundation Board and the Moorhead Legacy Foundation Board. I have experience with governance and have business experience for the past 10 years with American Crystal Sugar Company. I was also the Clay County Attorney for nearly 8 years and a District Court Judge for nearly 8 years - I have experience in legal matters, advising the County Board, and with the criminal justice system. I have relationships with in the City and the County, which will also be beneficial as a City Council Member.

• Continued economic growth and development in Downtown and throughout the city with small businesses and housing of all kinds.

• Public Safety - we need to fully staff our Police and Fire Departments with qualified candidates. We need the Law Enforcement Skills program offered in Alexandria to be offered in Moorhead. We need to work with M-State and the statewide higher education system to add this educational component to the Law Enforcement curriculum already offered in Moorhead.

• Continue to build on the advancements in infrastructure, underpass on 11th Street, new public pool and redevelopment of the Romkey Park area, and capitalize on the Downtown Moorhead Plan and the 9 blocks of redevelopment around the new Library.

Our police and fire departments need to be fully staffed to ensure the safety and well-being of our community. We must offer the required training in Moorhead to keep qualified candidates who attend M-State in Moorhead. We need to benchmark salary and benefits of these crucial positions to ensure we are competitive in the hiring process. We need to "stay the course" on the Downtown Moorhead Plan to ensure we realize the development that is planned.

Workforce has been a challenge for the past 6 years or more - we are fortunate to have had growth in population, but we continue to struggle filling some positions. The new career academy in Moorhead is a wonderful tool to introduce students to many different skills and trades as an alternative to a 4 year college. We need to continue to offer affordable housing, daycare and other supports to families with children so the parents are able to join the workforce.

The role of the City Council is to support housing programs and initiatives that have proven successes in enticing people to move to Moorhead, build in Moorhead, or stay in Moorhead. We have to do more to offer a variety of housing options for the diverse ages of population. Any tax incentives or credits that are proven to be successful in growing the housing market needs should be supported. We need to have more retirement type units in Moorhead - condos, townhomes, with no maintenance (HOAs) so the people who retire do not feel they have to move to Fargo because there are no options in Moorhead. The new apartments south of I-94 are a great addition to the city and will help keep students and families in Moorhead. Continuing to have a mix of housing options in neighborhoods is also beneficial to growing the city for the long term.