Janssen, running for city council in 3rd District, seeks transparency in city hall

Jai Johnson is the incumbent she will be running against in April.

In one La Crosse city council race, a challenger is using her recent experiences on some key committees as proof that the city can do better.  

Barb Janssen is taking on incumbent Jai Johnson in the city’s newly drawn Third District in this April’s elections.

Janssen’s work with the Grandview Emerson Neighborhood Association and Neighborhood Revitalization Commission has proven to her the importance of continuing work on neighborhoods.

“Extremely critical,” she said. “I think we really need to stay focused on that and there’s a lot more that we can do.”

Janssen also is serves on the recently formed Memorial Pool committee and has been very critical, at times, with an apparent lack of transparency in city hall regarding future plans for that pool.  

The more Janssen learns about city hall, the more she’d like to change it and that is what compelled her to run. The past few years serving on those key committees, she has – like so many others who get involved in government – figured out that things can be fixed.

“There needs to be more changes in city hall,” she said. “But, getting people to know each other better would be a great step in the right direction.

“There can be more focus on collaboration and more communication between the residents of the city of La Crosse – as well as the surrounding communities – and we could do a much better job working together.”