As his first term as the 2nd Ward Albert Lea city councilor comes to a close, Larry Baker is seeking re-election for the seat. He is unopposed in the race.

Baker, 53, has lived in Albert Lea all of his life except for one year in Faribault in the late 1970s.

He is a self-employed contractor and carpenter and also does part-time maintenance at the two Korner Mart convenience stores in Albert Lea.

Since being seated on the City Council in January of 2007, he has participated on the Albert Lea Planning Commission, the Heritage Preservation Commission and the city’s Board of Appeals. He has also been involved with the Downtown Association and Destination Albert Lea.

After the period for filing closed in June, Baker told the Tribune he decided to seek re-election because of several reasons, one of which is that he has enjoyed meeting people in the 2nd Ward and in the community.

Goals

An advocate of downtown Albert Lea, Baker said he supports the advancement of the downtown, noting that when he was younger, this was the place where people would get together, do business and visit.

He recalled sitting out the windows of the former Rivoli Theater and watching the people down below.

“I think it is important to work toward that,” Baker said.

He noted he hopes Albert Lea Medical Center will move some of its offices to the Freeborn National Bank and Jacobson Apartments buildings because having this business anchor will propel the downtown to another level, he said. He also talked about the city’s plans for a streetscape proposal that the city staff are trying to get fe