The race for Brainerd’s two at-large council seats now has seven candidates with Monday’s filing by Michael Bollinger, an Oak Street resident.
A Brainerd native, Bollinger enlisted in the military and later returned to find many new businesses located in Baxter, Bollinger said he would like to use tax incentives to attract jobs and manufacturing to Brainerd. He said he would also like to set up a plan for street repair and see more snowplowing on weekends.
This is Bollinger’s first bid for elective office. He spent 12 years in the military, serving in the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Air Force Reserve.
Bollinger, 44, works as a heavy equipment operator for the Crow Wing County Highway Department. While in the military he attended a non-commissioned officer preparation class. He plans to join the Civil Air Patrol in a month or so, he said. Bollinger is single and has four brothers and a sister.
Filing earlier for the at-large seat were incumbents Bob Olson and Mary Koep, Chip Borkenhagen, Laura Bisted, Denny Schmidt and David Colvin.
MIKE O’ROURKE, associate editor, may be reached at 855-5860 or mike.orourke@brainerddispatch.com. He may be followed at www.twitter.com/MikeORourkenews.
