Reynolds discusses vision as La Crosse’s mayor

It might not be a global pandemic next time — it probably won’t be.

But there always seems to be something to deal with — Bliss Road collapsing, flood damage throughout the city, hundreds of people protesting, asking for change.

We have two finalists for mayor of La Crosse in Mitch Reynolds and Vicki Markussen for the April 6 election.

Reynolds discussed Tuesday on La Crosse Talk PM how the job as mayor will always about a balancing act — just not one at Myrick Park’s Monkey Island.

“The next mayor will have to understand how to pivot and be agile enough to strategically balance the current needs of the city versus what needs to happen in the future of the city,” Reynolds said. “And that’s really what we’re voting for.

“We’re not voting for, ‘Hey, I’m going to fix your roads,’ or, “I’m going to lower your taxes,’ or ‘I’m going to open up the zoo,’ which, by the way, I’m not going to do.”

Without getting too into the weeds, Reynolds talked how the city plans, years out, projects throughout La Crosse and, with a pandemic, a lot of that stuff might have to be looked at and re-prioritized.

“We can’t have any concept of the next crisis that’s going to hit,” he said. “But what the next mayor needs to do is be able to pivot, be able to moderate differences, be able to come to an agreement with regional partners and to find a middle way forward to make sure that we’re setting a path forward for the city of La Crosse that makes sense for everyone.

“And really brings us to a point where we have a — gosh — an equitable and prosperous city for everyone.”

So, Reynolds doesn’t see the job as mayor simply telling people how they’ll fix all the roads or lower all the taxes, but that it’s more about being able to adjust when the unexpected happens, re-prioritize and listen to the people being affected.

“When the mayor goes into office, the mayor may have plans that he or she or they want to incorporate right away,” Reynolds said. “But, that mayor also has to understand that those plans may have to change at any given time. And, there’s no other better way to see that than what we’ve experienced in the last year — that we cannot really understand what is coming around the corner.”

In taking some calls on the show about specific issues people had, Reynolds pretty much said, ‘Bring it.’ He wants to hear those issues, the problems and your answers if you have them.

“I’m open to suggestions,” he said. “I’m willing to listen to everyone who’s willing to have input on our operations budgeting in the city of La Crosse.”

Get a hold of Reynolds by clicking here. Markussen will be taking calls, texts and discussing her ideas if she’s elected mayor Wednesday evening on La Crosse Talk PM .