Minot’s park board candidates enjoy taking advantage of the facilities the park district has developed over the years and want to see them maintained. In verbal and written responses to queries from The Minot Daily News, they also cite ways to enhance offerings to improve the community’s quality of life further.

Running to retain their positions are incumbents Charles Emery, Perry Olson and Mike Schmitt. Emery is seeking his third four-year term, and Olson and Schmitt are seeking second terms.

Justin Hammer and Logan Longtin are hoping to gain one of the three open seats.

“I am running for Park Board as I am at the point in my life that I have the time to dedicate to the board and have a vested interest in what the Park District has to offer the community,” Hammer said. “I am a frequent user of the facilities and parks and want to be part of the process.”

His family spends a lot of time at hockey games and enjoying the walking paths in west Minot. They frequent Roosevelt Park Zoo, and Hammer said he enjoys riding the bike paths and looks forward to expanding the trails as the flood protection project continues toward completion.

Over the next four years, he believes the park district needs to continually increase the community’s quality of life through parks and recreation services, as well as in focusing on areas where it can facilitate and be part of economic development.

“I want to see more user group partnerships be developed as well as all the current user group partnerships grown, and help these groups grow. While all of these are important, it is also very imperative that the budget be maintained and property tax levels be maintained and not increased,” he added. “I am a business owner in the community and know the importance of keeping a balanced budget but also know the importance of facility maintenance and upkeep that needs to be completed on an ongoing basis. I also see the economic impact the park district has on the community and want to see that impact increased year over year.”

Longtin said he and his girlfriend often make use of the walking paths in the parks, Woodland Trails, Bark Park Trail and the greenway. He also enjoys visiting Roosevelt Park Zoo and pool and the Bark Park and has attended events at the Municipal Auditorium as well as hockey games at Maysa Arena.

“I care a lot about the health of our community’s parks and recreation facilities because of how important they are in making a community a fun and interesting place to live. I want to make sure that our parks meet the needs of all Minot residents. I believe that I have a unique perspective to bring to the board, and I’m willing to work collaboratively with anyone to advance what’s best for the park district and the community of Minot as a whole,” Longtin said.

“I’ve been telling residents that some things I’d like to see done if I make it onto the park board include installing public Wi-Fi in our city parks, expanding Minot’s bike path system to make Minot more pedestrian friendly, developing the greenway and keeping our parks and trails clean and well-maintained,” he added. “I think we need to look at the best ways the park district can enhance the quality of life in Minot by supporting the development of our public spaces, as well as developing community spaces that could be used by residents even in the middle of winter.”

Emery noted a lot of projects have been completed over the past few years with very little increase to the park district’s portion of the property tax. He said he would like to continue to be involved in projects that are under way as well as continue to contribute to ensuring fiscal responsibility and listening to and following up on citizens’ concerns.

He said his priorities for the next four years would be to maintain the existing facilities.

“We also need to continue to listen to the wants and desires of the citizens of Minot and develop projects to continue to enhance the quality of life in Minot. In our five-year plan we have a number of projects we want to complete,” he said.

Among them he lists utilization of the old landfill at Maysa Arena for biking, running and frisbee golf; completing the Outdoor Recreation Area on the west side of town; completing the leopard exhibit at the zoo; completing the Magic City Discovery Center and furthering that partnership; and remodeling and additions to the Maysa Arena Complex and the Municipal Auditorium.

Emery had been general manager of the Maysa Arena for 14 years. During his time with the park district, he shared weekend supervisory duties during the summer over park facilities, which enabled him to get acquainted with all the district’s facilities and parks.

“Having served on the board for eight years, I have also been active in visiting all facilities and parks,” he said. He and his family attend hockey games and ice productions at Maysa and have used the arena for family and event functions. They golf, walk the trails and enjoy going to Oak Park, the zoo and baseball and soccer games to watch family members play.

Schmitt said he ran for the park board four years ago because of his desire to ensure and better the quality of life in Minot. He said his four years on the board have given him a good understanding of the district’s funding and operations. He also has communicated with residents to find out what they want.

“We can’t expect them to pay for everything,” he said of taxpayers, “but if we want things in this community, we also need to look at how we can get it done, too.”

One of his priorities is the development of the Superfund site behind Maysa Arena. He said sees other Superfund sites around the country developed into recreation areas and has long thought Minot’s site had the same potential. The 2011 flood and the government regulations in working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have resulted in delays in development, but Schmitt said progress is being made.

“I just want to see that finally completed,” he said. “We have a great area up there.”

His other priority is to see a fieldhouse built at the Maysa location.

When one of Maysa’s ice rinks went down and turf was installed temporarily a couple of years ago, it was the busiest site in the park district, Schmitt said. A fieldhouse with turf could be used by sports programs such as soccer, baseball or softball, but it also can be used by walkers or families looking to enjoy a green space in the middle of winter, Schmitt said. He listed his top priority as finding a way to get the fieldhouse funded and constructed.

Schmitt said his family has been a big user of Maysa through involvement in hockey. However, they use nearly every park and recreation facility, from the pickle ball courts to the Woodland walking trails and zoo.

Olson also uses many of the park district’s attractions with his family. They enjoy seeing the improvements at the zoo and are big baseball fans, as well as taking in Tauros hockey and youth skating events.

“Of course, walking paths and area parks are always a great stop as well for us. We love the offerings the Minot Park District has and it has been fun and fulfilling the last four years to be a small part of that on the Board of Commissioners,” Olson said.

He called the merger of the park district and the city recreation department a massive success.

“The teams have gelled together well and we continue to offer more for the taxpayers of Minot, along with those who visit our facilities. It was a common sense move that was decades overdue, and I am glad to have spearheaded it. More recently, the decision of the board to buck the national trend of closing down outdoor parks and other facilities/programs during COVID has proven to be correct. During a time when even some parks in ND were closing, we stayed open – and the taxpayers responded by using the facilities and programs, many times in record fashion,” he said. “With a goal of holding down taxes, we will continue to offer more for the community.”

Among his priorities for the district is to become more welcoming to user groups through enhanced communication and ensuring the district does everything in its power to help programs blossom. He said he wants the district to push forward on its five-year development plan and enhance programs and the facilities needed to offer those programs.

“All this while keeping in mind the burden on Minot residents through property taxes. We need to always do what we can to keep that as low as possible. We’ve done this the last four years, and I am a supporter of keeping that trend going,” Olson said.

Minot’s city election is June 14. Early voting begins next Monday in the Ward County Administration Building.