By Lori Carlson

Editor

Randy Langhorst is proud of his hometown and says he wants to contribute to its future.

The 52-year-old self-employed contractor, who’s Randy Langhorst has his sights set
on a three-year term on the Prior
Lake City Council. (Photo by Lori
Carlson)building a house on Sunset Trail, recalls his boyhood as the son of hardware store owner and former School Board member Wallace Langhorst.

“He was a well-respected man,” he said of his dad.

Langhorst grew up in a house where Viking Liquor currently stands.

“We grazed horses right about where the Farmer’s Market is now, by Pleasant Street and Highway 13,” he said. “I remember the sign that said, ‘Prior Lake, a village with a future, population 600.’”

Langhorst graduated from Prior Lake High School in 1973 and went into the Marine Corps, a period of which he remains proud. He was given a medical discharge due to an injury three years into his service.

“I’m still real passionate about my military service,” he said.

Langhorst included the Marine Corps emblem on his campaign signs, which he said was an oversight.

“I got a call from the Pentagon,” he said. “They said I was in violation of the Marine Corps rules regarding the Eagle Globe and Anchor.”

Langhorst said he didn’t know he had to get a permit to use the emblem; he was waiting this week for word on whether his request to use it on signs would be expedited by the Corps.

“Otherwise, I’m going to have to go around and cover up that emblem on all of the signs – there are about 120 of them out there,” he said.

Langhorst attended the University of Minnesota for a couple of years before moving to Florida briefly and studying at St. Petersburg Junior College. When he returned to Minnesota in the early 1980s, he was inspired to become a construction contractor when a rash of tornadoes destroyed homes in the area, including his own.

“I’ve been doing roofing and remodeling ever since,” he said. “I’ve roofed an awful lot of houses in this town.”

Langhorst, who is divorced, has four children: a 26-year-old son who lives in Prior Lake; a 20-year-old daughter in Florida; a 17-year-old son who attends Prior Lake High School; and a 6-year-old adopted son who attends Five Hawks Elementary School.

He has taught faith-formation classes at the Church of St. Michael and coached baseball and basketball for Prior Lake Athletics for Youth. He’s also an avid scuba diver and has participated in the “Dive the Lake” cleanup the last two years.

He decided to run for City Council, he said, because he believes the voices of some residents aren’t getting heard.

“I just don’t think all of the voters are being represented, especially the working man – the blue-collar workers – and the elderly,” he said. “Not everyone in Prior Lake lives on the lake and is making six figures. I believe everyone should be represented.”

Langhorst believes he can best represent blue-collar employees and senior citizens on fixed incomes. “I’m compassionate towards that sector of people,” he said. “They need more bang for their buck.”

Langhorst said he thinks the city should use the knowledge of its staff more and consultants less.

“To hire a consultant to tell us what kind of facades we need on downtown buildings doesn’t make sense to me,” he said.

If elected, he said he would focus on making sure the city practices “fiscal responsibility.

“I think we need to be really cautious on where our taxes are going,” he said. “We need a Chevy or Ford budget rather than a Mercedes budget. We should not be having tax raises – we’d better tighten the belt on spending.”

Langhorst also wants to protect the city against the loss of trees as a result of development.

“There have been some developments we’ve had that have ruined the land. We can’t as a community let developers come in and give them every concession,” he said.

He’d also like to see the city provide more activities for youth. “There’s not a whole lot for young people to do in this town,” he said.

Langhorst said he’s an honest person who would speak his mind as a council member. “I’m not afraid to say what I think,” he said.

 Lori Carlson can be reached at (952) 345-6378 or editor@plamerican.com.