Ron Gabrielsen knows what he has to do.

Thursday, August 02, 2001

Ron Gabrielsen knows what he has to do.

After a brief period of adjustment to his new job, Freeborn County’s new administrator will get down to business. His plate is full of long-debated but unresolved issues like a courthouse solution and a plan to clean up the watershed.

At the least, Gabrielsen will bring a fresh perspective to these projects, and perhaps that’s what the county needs to finally find solutions.

With his experience with land conservation and shoreline development, he has some experience relevant to the watershed project. But his biggest challenge, and the one the new board and administrator must finally resolve, is the courthouse. Some incremental progress has been made in the last few months, as commissioners have slowly hashed out their needs and desires for a new complex. But we’ve been through all this before. The needs, by now, should be clear. Once Gabrielsen gets accustomed to his new county and is up to date on the courthouse, he will be a crucial figure in guiding the board toward a decision and helping develop options. In this time-worn debate, a fresh pair of eyes and ears will be valuable.

Gabrielsen’s observations and ideas should be taken seriously by all the board members; though he hasn’t been here through all the ups and downs, he will provide the rare perspective of an educated outsider. Sometimes a person in that position can point out the obvious under everyone’s nose.

We have faith that Gabrielsen will be a great administrator and that he will be up to the challenge of moving the county past the courthouse debate.