After two terms, La Crosse council president won’t run in spring

Four other incumbents will also not run for council.

La Crosse’s city council president just announced he will not run for another term. 

Dick Swantz calls the last year years, “a really great experience,” and feels like he can point to definitive accomplishments, including the creation of the city’s Economic Development Commission.

“If any developer wishes to get assistance from city, they have to go through that body,” Swantz said. “That was not always the case here. In fact, that was never the case here.

He also felt he was able to get the city council to be nicer to each other – at least in public.  

“It’s very gratifying to feel like you’re giving something to a very important element of our society and that’s the condition of our city,” Swantz said.

He also learned a lot in his two terms, including the fact that he can’t win every battle.

Swantz did feel he fell short in a couple areas, like the push for a city administrator and thinking a parking utility board would solve parking issues in the city. 

“Maybe my wading into parking, thinking it was going to be a simple thing to resolve, by creating a parking utility board, turned out to be a real challenge,” Swantz said.

Four other incumbents will also not be on the ballot for city council in the spring.