Karper wants to see the city maintain what it has

One of the longest-serving members on the Columbia Falls City Council, incumbent Doug Karper is one of five people running for three open seats this fall.

Karper said his main hope is to hold the line and keep the city from falling backward.

"We have a nice community with decent streets and an upgraded sewer system. Our water system is pretty good. We have a nice park system and pedestrian and bike paths that hopefully we can grow and extend every few years," said Karper, who is 59.

"It may not sound that exciting, but I would like to maintain what we have in an exceptionally slow economy."

Karper is in the running for the three open seats with fellow incumbents Julie Plevel and Harvey Reikofski Jr. and challengers Darin Fisher and Sammi Johnson.

Karper grew up in Pennsylvania and graduated from Penn State University with a degree in agronomy.

He met his wife, Colleen, in the 1970s while serving in the U.S. Air Force in Great Falls, where he worked on Minuteman missile silos. They moved to Columbia Falls from Pennsylvania in 1986.

For 21 years, Karper has worked in the School District 6 maintenance department.

A former president of the Columbia Falls Chamber of Commerce, Karper spent 14 years on the Heritage Days Committee and also served on the Columbia Falls City-County Planning Board.

Karper has been on the council for a total of about 12 years. He said he first got involved in city government through the planning board and an economic development committee, and then with the council to make sure his voice was being heard.

"I don't remember what the issue was, but something came up and we presented it to council. It was something I felt strongly about and I thought it was a no-brainer but they decided to say no," Karper said.

"It dawned on me then, that if you're interested in making a difference the one place you need to be is City Council, because your vote counts. If I was going to put in the time and effort, I wanted my voice to count."

Karper served on a committee that helped move Columbia Falls from a mayoral to a city manager form of government and said he supports the knowledge and work of the city's full-time employees.

"We need to take a hard look at things, but you have to trust the people who work for you," Karper said of the council's job to look at the big picture and set up budgetary constraints.

Karper said his main push this election cycle is to keep the city from falling behind.

"In an economy like this, if we're not fiscally responsible we can slide back." he said. "My big push is let's maintain what we have and not go backward."

With the housing market slumped and the aluminum plant still closed, Karper said he foresees a long, slow economic recovery.

"Hopefully we can hang in there and keep the service-type businesses and restaurants and shops we have. It would be nice if we could get some other clean industry in town. Anything we can do to move in that direction would be great, but there's a lot of places vying for that," Karper said.

"My big push is let's not go backward. Let's keep what we have and keep on top of it and keep the taxes where they're at and not have any reduction in services."

Like the other candidates running for Columbia Falls City Council, Karper is not mounting much of an active campaign.

"I'm proud to say I live in Columbia Falls. It's been an honor to serve the citizens here and it would be an honor to keep serving them if they choose to re-elect me," he said.

Doug Karper

Age: 59

Family: Wife, Colleen; two children

Occupation: Has spent the last 21 years working in the maintenance department for School District 6.

Background: Bachelor of Science degree in agronomy from Penn State University. Met his wife, Colleen, who grew up in Columbia Falls, while serving in the Air Force in Great Falls. Former president of the Columbia Falls Chamber of Commerce. Has been on the Columbia Falls City Council for a total of 12 years.

Reporter Tom Lotshaw may be reached at 758-4483 or by email at tlotshaw@dailyinterlake.com.