Two compete for 2nd Ward spot

Published 12:00 am Saturday, July 27, 2002

Hard to believe, but an old political warhorse is preparing to race again.

Richard "Dick" Pacholl is returning to Austin politics after a seven-year absence and running for the 2nd Ward seat being vacated by Jeanne Poppe on the Austin City Council. Poppe is running for the House District 27B seat being vacated by State Rep. Rob Leighton, who is not seeking reelection.

Opposing Pacholl is Jeff Kritzer, who is making his debut in Austin politics.

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When the November general elections arrive, the Pacholl-Kritzer race will be a classic veteran versus rookie battle.

Jeff Kritzer

Business and economic development, public safety, watershed and flood control, taxes, housing and ethnic diversity top the list of issues Kritzer expects to be uppermost in voters' minds this fall.

"Definitely I have an interest in the Austin City Council and community service," Kritzer said of his decision to run for office. "I see the issues that come before the council as something I could work to resolve."

Kritzer has done his homework about the job. He has visited with current Austin City Council members, city staff and others. His father is also a former city council member.

Kritzer said Pacholl may be a formidable opponent because of his experience and name recognition.

However, he also said since he moved to Austin five years ago, he has built a reputation and earned name recognition among the business community and elsewhere with his community activities.

Kritzer was raised in Waterville, where his father was a machinist and his mother worked at part-time electrical jobs.

He earned a bachelor's degree in English at Stanford university and his law degree at the University of Minnesota Law School.

He and his wife, Tammy, moved to Austin in 1997. He is a corporate attorney for Hormel Foods Corporation, concentrating in the area of international contracts and trade regulation, labor and employment law, and general contract work for certain subsidiaries.

After moving to Austin, Kritzer also worked for the Alderson, Ondov, Leonard, Sween & Rizzi law firm (now Adams, Rizzi & Sween).

He and his wife, Tammy,

corporate compliance officer at Austin Medical Center, have two children, Alena and Timur, born in Kazakhstan and adopted in February.

Kritzer has a long list of community and volunteer activities to his credit, including the Riverland Community College Foundation, United Way of Mower County, Austin Area Chamber of Commerce and Austin Jaycees.

Kritzer said he believes everyone should want to get involved in their community and that the satisfaction comes from knowing you are working to "make it a better community."

"Knowing that I stepped up is satisfying," he said. "I feel a sense of duty."

Dick Pacholl

For 12 years, Richard "Dick" Pacholl served the Austin City Council as a 2nd Ward member.

Then, he lost the first of two successive bids to return to the council.

Despite the defeats, Pacholl doggedly attending many regular and special meeting of the council members, during his hiatus from public service.

Now, he is back in the political arena as a candidate for a 2nd Ward seat on the council.

"I would like to see the city council get back in touch with proper spending priorities," Pacholl said. "With the economic crisis continuing at the federal and state levels, we must really think through our spending priorities. We can't gamble with the taxpayers' money. There's going to be a rainy day coming soon and we better be ready for it."

Pacholl is a native of Austin. He and his wife, Mary, have five children and eight grandchildren.

He is a retired pressroom printer and composing room employee of the Austin Daily Herald.

He is also a veteran of the U.S. Navy, having served in Japan during the Korean War.

He was first elected in 1982 and served three consecutive four-year terms. He lost in a reelection bid to Poppe and was beaten by Dick Chaffee in 1997, when another 2nd Ward vacancy occurred.

He ruled the city council's street and airport committee as chairman for four years as well as the ordinance committee, where he served as chair for eight years.

Pacholl doesn't mince words on the issues. "I support a combination full-time and part-time fire department," he said. "We need more police on the streets where they can interact with people," he said. "We hear a lot of talk about business development, but nothing ever seems to change. Where are those new businesses? The city and Mower County need to cooperate. They are dependent upon each other," he said.

What voters see is what they will get in Pacholl's case. "I think I'm up to date on all the issues," he said. "I haven't missed many meetings since I've been off the council. I've heard what concerns the public."

Lee Bonorden can be contacted at 434-2232 or by e-mail at :mailto:lee.bonorden@austindailyherald.com