Fourth Ward Albert Lea City Councilor Reid Olson likes the direction the city is headed.

For that simple reason, Olson, 40, said he wants to continue on the council and help move Albert Lea in a positive direction.

He seeks a third term in his second unopposed race in the Nov. 4 general election.

With eight years of service on the Albert Lea City Council, Olson said he has particularly enjoyed working as the council representative to the Parks and Recreation Department and seeing youth programs expand.

He has an interest in youth programs as the father of three children: Alex, 10, Michael, 8, and Maggie, 6.

He said even his hobbies involve “following the kids around,” whether it’s to sporting events such as baseball, wrestling or soccer or to other activities. He has also volunteered as a Knights baseball coach and has been a part of the tee-ball and coach-pitch programs in town.

Olson lives at 1110 E. Richway Drive with his children and wife, Sarah, and works at Home Solutions as a siding foreman.

Reflecting on his last term in office, he said he is pleased at the way city leaders have handled the budget, even when facing cuts in state funding. He noted city officials have tried to streamline and make changes to be more efficient while at the same time keeping the highest amount of services as possible.

Olson said he considered the renovations downtown to be a success, though there were a few things he think could have turned out better.

Looking ahead, he said he thinks the biggest issues facing his ward and the city will be the possibility of a adding a community recreation center and the possibility of a new fire station. He noted he thinks the Blazing Star Landing would be a good location for the rec center.

Regarding the petition to expand the Albert Lea Public Library’s hours into Friday, he said he leans toward having it open the extra day and has heard more people ask for it to be open than who have said they want it to stay the same.

Olson has lived in Albert Lea his whole life.

He was first elected to the council in 2006 at the age of 32.