Incumbent Larry Keller and Richard McKnight are competing for the seat of Clarke County Supervisor District 2.
All candidates received the same Osceola Sentinel-Tribune profile questionnaire.
The election is scheduled Tuesday, Nov. 8.
Richard McKnight
• Tell me about yourself/background.
My name is Richard McKnight and I am a candidate for the county board of supervisors, District 2.
I was born and raised on a small, family farm north of Osceola and attended the one-room school at Liberty.
I graduated from Clarke Community High School in 1964 and Iowa State University in 1969.
I married my wife, Marcia, in May 1969 and worked for Alcoa Aluminum in Bettendorf from 1969 until 1971. I joined the Air Force in 1971, the day before I was drafted into the Army, and served as a computer operator until 1976.
I graduated from officer candidate school in 1976 and later earned a master’s degree in engineering from the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio in 1981.
After several tours in the U.S., Europe and Korea, my wife, our two sons and I returned to Iowa to build our current home on a part of the old family farm.
After retiring from the military, I was hired to work in the Clarke County Engineer’s office. I obtained my professional engineer’s license in 1992 and was hired by the Board of Supervisors to be the Clarke County engineer.
In 2004, I became the county engineer in Decatur County. While serving as the full-time engineer in Clarke and Decatur counties, I also filled in as the part-time engineer for Madison, Ringgold, Wayne and Lucas counties.
I retired from county engineering in 2012. Since then, I have been a retired farmer and full-time grandpa.
• Why are you running for this position?
I believe that every citizen has the right and responsibility to participate in the governing activities and decisions of their government at the county, state and federal level.
This requires that citizens learn about each of the candidates for political office and vote in the election.
Citizens should share in the discussions and decisions being made by the various governing agencies. We should strive to increase the background and number of people involved in these dialogues and discussions before decisions are made.
Term limits are essential to elected and appointed positions. No one, including myself, should serve on any board or committee for more than two terms.
• What makes you the best candidate for the job?
No one sets out to make illogical, unfair or illegal decisions, but sometimes, bad habits, past practices or unfamiliarity with state laws can get in the way of our decisions to do what is right for those we represent.
Developing county policies and establishing and approving the county budget are the two most important responsibilities for the Board of Supervisors.
I believe my 20-plus years of military leadership training and 20-plus years of training and experience as a county engineer in preparing budgets, buying equipment, hiring and terminating employees, as well as leading and directing work crews gives me a unique insight and real-world experience into the budgeting and operation of the various county departments.
• If elected, what goals do you have planned in relation to the job?
My goal is to represent the citizens of Clarke County, especially District 2, to the best of my ability.
Voters elect people to represent them and make decisions on day-to-day questions based upon their training and experience.
I would like to help our citizens get involved in major items discussed by the board so they may have time to make input before a decision is finalized. Reading board minutes in the paper is little more than a history lesson. Not only are they dated, there is little or no reporting of any discussion, only the results of a vote.
As I review department budgets over the last several years, it is apparent county expenses are going up, especially wages, salaries, insurance and health-care costs.
We need to consider changes in policies to better control these costs before they get completely out of hand. We have always provided no-cost health insurance for our employees. Is it time for employees to begin sharing in those costs?
Other county expenses also need to be addressed. With respect to secondary roads, the shoulders of paved roads at many locations are well below the edge of the pavement. Our rock roads are not being sufficiently maintained.
We are deficient in cleaning silt from roadside ditches, and we are not properly shaping and maintaining shoulders. Several roads are simply too wide and are not properly crowned.
Many road culverts are failing or have already failed and represent a driving hazard. Some dirt roads have not seen a road maintainer in weeks.
Maintaining secondary roads is a primary responsibility of county government in Iowa. They are essential for operating farms, getting children bussed to school and getting rural residents to off-farm jobs.
The board needs to establish a policy for correcting these deficiencies. Failure to do so may be a legal liability for secondary roads, the board and county.
Larry Keller
Tell me about yourself/background.
I was raised in Clarke County and graduated from Clarke Community School District in 1969. I went to work for Clarke Electric in 1971. I worked at Clarke Electric for 38 years. I have a wife, two children and four grandchildren.
I raise cattle, corn and alfalfa on my farm and attend LifePoint Church on Sundays.
Why are you running for this position?
I have been a county supervisor for almost four years. We have started a lot of different projects from the roads department to conservation to mental health. There’s a lot more work to be done in the county. If I’m elected, we need to keep working to improve the county for all our citizens.
What makes you the best candidate for the job?
I’ve been a supervisor for almost four years. I’ve worked with the two other supervisors to make tough decisions. When I worked for Clarke Electric, you had to work with a lot of different individuals.
The training I received there in 38 years, you learned people depended on you to make good decisions and get the job done.
If elected, what goals do you have planned in relation to the position?
I would like to see if we could find a way to have a transfer station to help the citizens with this problem.
I would like to continue to help the citizens of our county.