Meet Our Mayor Derek Tomesh, Chelsea Bartlett

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Meet Our MayorDerek Tomesh, Chelsea Bartlett
Cilka Jansova
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On a chilly December, 2006, afternoon, we headed
up the steps to the Rice Lake City Hall to meet
our mayor.
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With us was Mr. Larry Zeman, Rice Lake High
School Principal.
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City Hall was decorated for the Christmas holiday
season.
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We stopped to pose by the tree in the lobby. The
decorations on the tree were hand made by
community members and organizations and donated
for use on this tree each year. There are even
ornaments donated by from our Sister City in
Zamberk, Czech Republic.
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Mayor Larry Jarvela greeted us . . .
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and we headed down the hall to the his office.
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The mayor stopped to show us the RLIFA (Rice Lake
International Friendship Association) display.
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The display features interesting information and
gifts from both of our sister citiesZamberk,
Czech Republic, and Miharu, Japan.
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We sat in the mayors office and asked him
questions. Mr. Jarvela told us that he decided to
run for mayor because he was bored after retiring
from his job. He complained to his friends
about Rice Lakes city government, and his
friends suggested that he run for mayor so that
he could help change the city for the better. He
won the election, and he has been mayor for
almost six years (three terms). It is a
part-time position.
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To be the mayor, Mr. Jarvela

• applied to run for the office of mayor,
• prepared a plan for what he would do if he were
  elected,
• participated in a debate with the other
  candidate,
• campaigned for the office, and
• won the election!

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The mayor described how city government is
organized. There are elected officials and city
departments.
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Rice Lake City Government

• Elected Officials
• Mayor, elected for a two-year term
• Eight Council Members elected to represent areas
  within the city
• These people form the Common Council, which meets
  twice each month.
• The mayor presides at Council meetings, attends
  committee meetings, ensures that rules and
  regulations are followed by the City, helps
  resolve problems, and participates in public
  relations events involving the City.
• The Councils main role is to establish policy.
  It also assures that rules and regulations of the
  City are followed and hires employees to
  administer the City Departments.

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Mayor Larry Jarvela showed us the Council
Chambers, where City Council meetings are held.
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Rice Lake City Government

• City Departments
• Administration
• Community Development
• Fire
• Polic
• Public Library
• Regional Airport
• Streets
• City Cab
• These departments conduct the official business
  of the city. The mayor relies on the heads of
  each of these departments to keep the city
  running smoothly.

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Most of the business of the mayor is conducted
from his office. Mayor Jarvela relies heavily on
Curt Snyder and Kathy Morse in his work as mayor.
Both of these people have offices in the City
Hall.
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Curt Snyder, the City Administrator, oversees all
departments.
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Kathy Morse, the City Clerk, manages the
administrative functions of the city.
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Cilka, one of our exchange students from the
Czech Republic, shared information about her
school and city with Mayor Jarvela and the rest
of the group.
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• We then asked the mayor what his two greatest
  challenges were. He answered
• Being financially responsible with taxpayer
  money
• Trying to please everyone who lives in Rice
  Lake

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Mayor Jarvela is very pleased that during his
terms as mayor, the tax rate was brought down,
which saves our city residents money. He
believes he has been successful in helping the
chairpersons of each city department to
understand that they need to run the city like a
business, with the citizens of Rice Lake as their
customers.
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Mr. Jarvela is proud of our democratic system of
government and the structured process by which
decisions are made that affect residents of Rice
Lake.
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Mr. Jarvela enjoys our Sister City relationships
and wants to continue this exchange of ideas and
people in the future.