TOWER- Sen. Grant Hauschild was endorsed by mayors from across his district during events held in Tower and Rice Lake on Sept. 22. Hauschild is running for reelection for the area’s District 3 senate seat. Babbitt Mayor Andrea Zupancich is once again challenging him.
“I served on a city council before becoming a State Senator, so I know how much local leaders are asked to do with limited resources,” Hauschild said. “They know which road needs work, where an ambulance service is struggling, and what a big project could mean for local property taxes. My job is to listen, work across party lines, and help them deliver.”
 Those partnerships have helped secure funding for water and utility projects in International Falls, Cook, Rice Lake, Ely, and Grand Marais, Hwy. 61 improvements in Two Harbors, support for rural ambulance services, and investments in schools and community facilities across the district. Hauschild also worked to help keep the Boundary Waters Care Center open in Ely. He brought state bonding dollars to Cook for the first time in the city’s history, and saved Coast Guard services on the North Shore after the federal government pulled out.
 “We have different political views and different local priorities, but we all want our communities to succeed,” Hauschild said. “That’s why I’ll keep working with mayors in every corner of this district and putting the Northland first.”
After meeting with mayors from the southern part of St. Louis County, he traveled to Tower to meet with mayors from International Falls, Cook, and Ely. Tower Mayor Dave Setterberg was unable to attend due to a city commitment that couldn’t be rescheduled, but he sent a message of support.
Hauschild spent an hour discussing local issues with International Falls Mayor Drake Dill, Cook Mayor Dan Manick, and Ely Mayor Heidi Omerza, while sipping coffee and eating pumpkin bars provided by Sulu’s.
The discussion ranged from state aids, housing, health care, and the challenges faced by small town mayors. Hauschild said he is most proud of helping shepherd bonding bills (and bonding dollars) to the area during three of the last four years.
Manick expressed gratitude for Cook’s first-ever bonding dollars.
“Our need was great,” he said.
Local government aid, or LGA, was also a hot topic. “We don’t get taconite tax dollars,” said Dill. “But we are in the top five recipients for LGA.”
Dill talked about the challenges facing their ambulance departments, which has one of the largest service areas in the state. While they have moved to a paramedic-based (ALS) service, it is hard to fund with their call volume, and the fact that almost all the calls are reimbursed through Medicare or Medicaid, which do not pay full price.
“We have to pay for it,” he said.
Hauschild said they are looking at legislation to create some special funding for areas that create regional taxing districts for fire or ambulance services, which would be in addition to the current LGA payments.
Omerza talked about the challenges of finding monies for housing development, a huge need in rural communities. Both Manick and Dill talked about lack of staff and resources in their city governments, and both said they wished they had staff like Ely’s Clerk-Treasurer Harold Langowski, who has been instrumental in guiding city projects.
She also thanked Hauschild for his work to support Ely in many ways.
“Grant is consistently present in Ely and has made our community a real priority. He helped save the Boundary Waters Care Center, secured gap funding for our school renovation, and delivered state support for critical water infrastructure.”
Dill also talked about the challenges facing rural hospitals, a challenge also shared by Cook and Ely.
“We are one of Minnesota’s largest counties,” Dill said. “But we have a falling population.” With only about 18 births a year, the hospital, like Cook and Ely, no longer offers care for pregnancy, which means families have to travel to Virginia, Hibbing, or Duluth.
“My homeowners insurance policy wants to know how close my house is to a hydrant,” Manick said. “Why not lower health insurance costs based on how close you are to a hospital?”
Hauschild talked about the importance of working on issues as a region and working across the aisle to solve issues.
“You are fighting for small communities,” said Manick.
Dill noted that he was a Republican and had voted for Andrea Zupancich four years ago. But now he said he was changing his vote.
“Grant wants to deliver results for our community,” Dill said. “He helped secure bonding funds for our water project to ease the burden on residents’ utility bills and brought needed support to the International Falls ambulance service.”
“People need to get to know Grant,” he added.
Manick said he didn’t mind if people get mad at him for supporting Grant. “I make $150 a month as mayor,” he quipped.
“Grant worked alongside our community to secure the first state bonding investment in Cook’s history. When devastating flooding hit, he also helped bring state assistance to affected businesses, proving that he shows up when northern Minnesota communities need him most.”
Tower Mayor Dave Setterberg was unable to attend the gathering, due to another city commitment, but he did send his support.
“Senator Hauschild has been highly engaged with the city of Tower and understands that our rural communities need strong partners and effective representation at the State Capitol,” Setterberg said. “In particular, he has worked across party lines to secure funding for critical infrastructure and help address a significant deficit facing our ambulance service. I want to express my appreciation for Senator Hauschild’s engagement, commitment, and focus on delivering results that make a meaningful difference for our entire community.”
Other mayors lending their support included: Chad Ward (Proctor), Tracy Benson (Grand Marais), Roger Reinert (Duluth), Jayme Heim (Rice Lake), Wayne Boucher (Hermantown), Lew Connor (as a private citizen-Two Harbors), Amy Phifer (Bigfork), Brennan Scott (Hoyt Lakes), and Dennis Wagner (Ranier).