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Lee: Maintain quality of life
County Dist. 3
Published 12:00 p.m., October 31, 2008
Tom Lee
Tom Lee, a candidate for county board District 3, wants to help Otter Tail County maintain its quality of life, strong economic development and preservation of the county’s historic and natural resources.
Lee, a Humana Health Care sales representative, seeks to represent the district which includes southwestern Otter Tail County, a portion of southeast Fergus Falls and the towns of Battle Lake, Dalton, Rothsay and Underwood.
“Otter Tail County is a terrific place to live,” he said. “We can have it all.”
Lee is a Pelican Rapids High School graduate who holds a Bachelor of Science degree from NDSU in Fargo. He was a commissioned officer in the Navy, graduated from Surface Warfare Officers Schools and served aboard a destroyer as an engineering officer.
He is the son of the late Malcolm Lee, the first Otter Tail County Land and Resource administrator who later served on the county commission. Lee and his wife, Kay, assistant director of nursing at the Minnesota Veterans Home in Fergus Falls, have two children.
He is chairman of the board of trustees for Lake Region Electric Cooperative Operation Roundup, serves on the board as a director for the Fergus Falls Rifle and Pistol Club, is a junior rifle coach and firearms safety instructor, a member of the Oscar Township Zoning Commission, is past president of West Central Chapter, National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors and was active in the Boy Scout program.
Lee, saying he’d do his best as a county commissioner, added, “I’m just smart enough to know that I don’t have all the answers.”
He says the lakes in Otter Tail County are the envy of the world.
“We’ve done a very good job of keeping them (the lakes) clean,” he said. “Lake Lizzie, for example, where I spent much of my youth, is much cleaner than it was 30 to 40 years ago. With more and more people utilizing our lakes the pressure on them will increase.”
He said that some cluster developments are inevitable.
“Otter Tail County has a very strong Shoreland Management Ordinance which tries to balance the rights of landowners with the need to protect our natural resources,” Lee said. “I will work to make certain it’s administered on a fair and even basis.”
Lee said that tourism is extremely important to Otter Tail County, and that resorts are an important part of the tourism industry.
“We must actively promote tourism and keep property taxes low so that resorts can continue to operate,” he said. “When elected, I’ll work to ensure that future generations have the same opportunity that my family and I have had.”
He touched on the subject of zoning and noted that the State of Minnesota requires zoning within 1,000 feet of lakes and within 300 feet of rivers, but that outside that area zoning is not required.
“Counties and townships may implement zoning. I’m opposed to county-wide zoning,” Lee said. “Having served on the Oscar Township Zoning Commission, I know how contentious this issue can be. I didn’t support the junkyard ordnance. Feedlots are already heavily regulated and I’ve not decided whether a county feedlot officer position is necessary.”
As for the county budget, he said it’s probably the area that will be the most challenging over the next several years.
“No matter who wins the national elections, there will be enormous pressures from Washington and St. Paul that will continue to unfairly shift burdens to counties for them to resolve,” Lee said. “The weak real estate market should mean lower property valuations and that could lead to lower tax revenue. All areas of county spending must be examined.”
He said that schools, towns, townships, counties, and the state and federal government are all vying for dollars. Otter Tail County families work very hard for the money they pay in taxes, he said, and commissioners must be frugal with every dollar spent.
Lee said a well-educated workforce means more high paying jobs. Access to top quality healthcare is also vital.
“We really can have it all in Otter Tail County,” he said.
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