Local attorney to run for City Council

Talk about it

More...

• PDF: Mitchell wards street map

A local attorney says he intends to pursue a seat on the Mitchell City Council.

Phil Carlson, 31, said he will circulate petitions after March 1, the earliest day to begin circulating petitions and file nominating petitions for the office. He’s already received campaign contributions from residents, Carlson said.

Carlson, a self-described “conservative,” said he has always had an interest in pursing a political office. It was the announcement by current Ward 3 council member Scott Houwman that he would not seek re-election that solidified Carlson’s decision. Ward 3 is the northwestern quadrant of the city, north of Fourth Avenue and east of Main Street.

Houwman said last month that he would not pursue re-election. His term expires in June. Fellow Ward 3 council member Marty Barington is not up for re-election.

“I feel like this is the right time for me to run,” Carlson said.

He was also prompted by recent council happenings, he said.

“I’ve seen some things in the City Council over the past couple of years that have concerned me,” Carlson said. “There have been decisions that I have not agreed with.”

While Carlson would not expand upon that statement, he did say he is a supporter of the idea of adding a city manager.

“I think it’s a good way to try to get somebody who’s an expert in managing and running the (city) more like a business,” Carlson said. “I think it’s a good way to trim the fat out of the budget.”

Carlson is an attorney with Tinan, Smith and Bucher in Mitchell. While he primarily handles criminal defense cases, Carlson said he’s also handled family law, personal injury, property and estate cases.

It’s that variety of cases he believes will make him an excellent council member.

“It provides a really good background to see a lot of different issues and see both sides of an issue,” Carlson said. “When I look at something, I try not to come into any issue with my mind already made up.”

An admitted “Army brat and preacher’s kid,” Carlson lived throughout the country and Germany before spending his high school years in Midland. After graduating high school in 1998, he obtained an undergraduate history degree from Northern State University in 2002. He spent some time with his wife in Rapid City before attending law school at the University of South Dakota and graduating in 2008.

He is a board member of the Mitchell Exchange Club, a member of the First Assembly of God Church and the vice chairman of the Davison County Republican Party.

The city and school election is set for June 7 at Gertie Belle Rogers Elementary School, 1301 N. Kimball St. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day.

The deadline to file for the office is 5 p.m. March 29.

Ward 2 Councilman Dan Allen has said he will seek re-election. Ward 4 Councilwoman Geri Beck said she will not seek a second term, and Greg McCurry has announced a bid for her seat. Ward 1 Councilman Doug Backlund has yet to reveal his plans publicly. Remaining council members Mel Olson, Travis Carpenter, Jeff Smith and Marty Barington, as well as Mayor Lou Sebert, all have terms that do not end this year.

Tags: city council, news, local, election, updates