Commissioner Senjem shares remarks in first meeting as Chair of the Olmsted County Board of Commissioners
Commissioner Dave Senjem shared the following remarks during the Olmsted County Board of Commissioners meeting on January 6, 2026. It was his first meeting as chair of the board.
Thank you so much. I have to say, I never expected that during my life I would stand in front of the Olmsted County Board as chair. Before I make my comments, I want to first thank Commissioner Mark Thein for the outstanding job he did last year as board chair. You did an outstanding job, Mark. Your passion, your compassion, your dedication, your commitment to this county, to the people, and to county staff showed through and we all saw it and appreciated it. We were all privileged to be part of your leadership last year, so on behalf of myself and everyone else, thank you so much for what you gave to our county.
So now, good morning. Fellow county board members, Olmsted County staff, and the Olmsted County citizens that are here today and maybe otherwise watching virtually, thank you for this high honor and this equally high responsibility that I have been given to serve as Olmsted County Board chair. It's a responsibility I take seriously and certainly pledge to do all I can to earn your trust and confidence this year.
I understand I've been given one precious year to sit in that center chair … to hold the gavel and facilitate the meetings of this group … which I frankly believe is probably the strongest county board in America. And I say that in all sincerity. And likewise, our county board has been gifted with outstanding staff. We know that. Again, I would say it's collectively the finest group of staff that maybe exist anywhere in this country. Certainly, as we think about what we are about, we know our citizens expect the best out of us. And we’re going to give our best in all that we do. I know that as well.
So, what will 2026 be all about? It will be about a lot. First and foremost, it will be about continuing with the strategic priorities our county has adopted. They are: community safety and well-being, responsible growth and development, community trust and engagement, environmental sustainability, and maintaining an effective and engaged workforce.
Clearly, community safety and well-being are critical. Safety is really the central and number one expectation of any government. We all want to live in a safe community, and citizens expect government to provide that safety to some great degree. Your county board knows this will continue to work with our Olmsted County Sheriff’s Office (and Sheriff Torgerson … congratulations on a wonderful career. We certainly respect all you have done, and we'll miss you profoundly around the Government Center as next year arrives), other law enforcement agencies, our County Attorney’s Office, probation department, and our social services departments. And when you’re talking about safety, you’re talking about citizen involvement as well. It's so necessary.
How our county grows is extremely important. We talked about this topic this morning with respect to our land use plan. Fifty years ago, in 1975, Olmsted County had 88,000 people. Today, we have 166,000 people. So, in 50 years, we have increased our population by 90%. Can we expect that to happen in the next 50 years? I think so. We will anticipate where our county is going and where this county is growing and over the next 50 years, I think there is an important burden on all of us in terms of how we act and react to this. And this responsibility is not only extremely important for this county board, but for boards in the future. The growth of our county, and, frankly, how it governs itself going into the future is extremely important.
As it relates to community trust and engagement, Olmsted County has a long history of being a trusted government. We know that. Our citizens know that. They trust us. We hear this every day in coffee shops and places around our community. We're respected and that’s terribly important. But trust is just an eye blink away in terms of how citizens perceive their government. So, our county regularly conducts citizen surveys. We have a group called M.O.V.E. which is Mobilizing Olmsted Voices for Equity, for regularly taking the pulse of our county on important issues. Our surveys as well as M.O.V.E. are going to bring us increasingly more input into what we ought to be thinking about and acting on with respect to our community and that’s certainly very important.
As we think about environmental sustainability, another one of our other priorities, a lot has happened here. We all know and understand that Mother Earth is fragile and has its limits. Each generation and accordingly, each Olmsted County board that serves now and forevermore, needs to think about leaving this place a little bit better than we found it. Olmsted County’s been doing that through the years. We have an outstanding waste-to-energy system, an outstanding solid waste collection system. We have a materials recovery facility in the works that's going to be constructed and operated in a fashion that's going to make vast improvements in our ability to implement recycling and reuse and will significantly reduce related carbon emissions. And just thinking about what we have done in the last couple of years with respect to installing 12 solar arrays, 5 geothermal systems, a whole host of EV chargers at county facilities is testament to the fact that this board is respecting environmental sustainability and making it a priority. As we think about going forward, we are all excited in welcoming our new environmental sustainability coordinator who will further amplify our sustainability initiatives.
Lastly, Olmsted County depends largely on its delivery system. I think we know we have one of the most outstanding service delivery systems that one can imagine. As we think about our 1,360 employees, all we can say is thank you for the dedicated service you provide our citizens every day of the year. I want to thank profusely our county administrator, Travis Gransee, for the leadership he provides in terms of attitude and how he infectiously leads our staff in a fashion that each and every day produces wonderful results. The attitude and compassion our staff have for the work they do in serving the citizens of this county is remarkable.
We know this year ahead is going to be challenging. I believe we can expect cost shifts looking at the state budgets going forward. We must look at them in terms of how they may affect our taxpayers. We may well find ourselves being more deliberate about the services we are able to provide and those we may need to discontinue. And I believe 2006 is going to involve re-examining what the county can do and stressing those things that are important to our county and its people. We are also going to see construction of our new exhibition center at Graham Park. That's going to be exciting and a great amenity for our community. This year will be ensuring we’re putting the management structure in place for the Graham Park exhibition center and ensuring that come 2027, we have an exciting new facility that's full of attractions and that is well received with our community. It behooves all of us to think about that in 2026, to make sure all that happens.
Our Materials Recovery Facility is going to come to life this coming year, and more discussion will be occurring about Energy Park. Each of these are major initiatives in every respect. Each of these initiatives will take a lot of county board guidance and direction. We’re here to help along the way to help ensure they're successful.
I will conclude by saying the future looks great for Olmsted County. This board first met in 1855 in Oronoco along the river. It was then that they decided they were going to become Olmsted County. At that point, Minnesota was still a territory. A person named James George, who later became a colonel in the Civil War, was the first county board chair. And so here we are, 170 years later, looking at where we are and where we're going, and clearly, I think those of us that are familiar with the last few years of this board's work understand we have exhibited outstanding leadership and progress for our community. Yes, we've had lively discussions, and we have had differences. But always I would say, I believe the right decisions occurred, and our county has been well served. And I would expect that to continue. As we have worked, we have gotten to know each other even more as individuals and I'm convinced I've had the opportunity now to work with some of the best elected officials I've ever had an opportunity to work with. And I say that very sincerely. You're great people. I look forward to the coming year.
So, let’s move forward, walking tall and proud, committed to making Olmsted County the best place possible to live, work, and raise a family. Thank you again for this great honor. I never thought I'd be in the center chair. I never thought I'd even be at the county board. But here I am. We're going to make the best of it and we’re going to have a great year. Thank you so much.