City council candidate wants to hear from the people

Local News

September 17, 2009

By ANDY GOODELL

OSKALOOSA — He says he’ll listen.

Jerry Ryken, 61, is running for a 1st Ward representative seat on the Oskaloosa City Council. Ryken said the people of Oskaloosa inspired him to run.

“I heard a lot of people complaining,” he said. “I told them, ‘maybe someone needs to listen.’”

Paying close attention to the views of Oskaloosa residents is key, said Ryken.

“To represent the people, you have to represent them all,” explained Ryken. “If you’re not listening, you’re not representing the people of your ward.”

A self-described “family man,” Ryken is retired after working for 15 years at Clow Valve and 3 1/2 years at Vermeer Manufacturing. He also served in the U.S. Army for 20 years.

“I served four tours in Europe and one tour in Viet Nam,” said Ryken in an e-mail to the Herald. “For my service I received numerous medals.”

Ryken was born and raised in Mahaska County. Just before beginning his military career, Ryken graduated from Oskaloosa High School in 1966.

As other candidates for city council seats have mentioned, fixing Oskaloosa’s streets is a top priority for Ryken.

Aside from that, Ryken said he wants to fill the vacant lots he sees in Oskaloosa with businesses. However, Ryken added that he want’s to see Oskaloosa grow responsibly.

“I’d like to make the city grow, but not faster than we can handle so we get ahead of ourselves,” said Ryken.

Ryken said he has “limited resources” to run his campaign for 1st Ward representative. His solution — give him a call. If you would like to hear his views on a specific issue, call Ryken at (641) 569-3167.

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Herald City Editor Andy Goodell can be reached at news2@oskyherald.com