COURTLAND – This election year, the town of Courtland has three offices up for election; the mayor position and two council member positions.

Current Mayor Al Poehler has refiled for the mayor position. Justin Kraus’ and Ralph Bents’ council seasts are open. Kraus has refiled with Gregory Juberien and Nathan Marti filing for a council member position.

Mayor Al Poehler has refiled for the mayor position as part of the Courtland City Council. He has served the city since 1998. He started with the Planning Commission from 1998-2000, served as a council member from 2000 to 2010, and is the city mayor and has been since January 2011.

“I decided to refile for mayor as I feel we have some unfinished business yet within the city. We have been working on different projects. We have had the water tower, getting Highway 14 open, and every year there is something to complete. I am also working with the Joint Powers Board with the rural fire department, and I would like to see that through,” said Mayor Poehler.

“I just want to see Courtland growing. I little bit of growth is good. I like the budgeting part of it. I like being a member of the community and seeing it move forward.”

“The most important issue is keeping the costs/budget under control. We try every year to not tax high and keep spending low. We want to keep people in the community so we want it so that they can afford to live in Courtland,” he added.

As mayor, Poehler serves on the Planning Commission. He is also on Relief Board for the Courtland Fire Department, and the Highway 14 Partnership.

Poehler grew up on a farm about three miles from Courtland. He has lived, with his family, in Courtland since 1994. He is self-employed as Al Poehler Construction. He is a residential home builder and a developer in Courtland and New Ulm.

Justin Kraus has refiled for a member of the council. He has been on the council since 2021 after Tom Foley moved from Courtland. There was a special election and Krause was officially elected to the board in 2022.

Kraus has lived in Courtland for the last eight years. He has lived in small towns his whole life.

He worked maintenance for the city of Hanska for four years while in high school and in college. He has worked for MnDOT for the last 14 years as a lead for survey crews, so he has a lot of knowledge about highways and government.

“Courtland is a small town and a growing town. I would like to keep that going. I want to keep it safe for young families as I have a young family too. We are working on park improvements, and I want to continue those kinds of improvements,” said Kraus.

“I think the future development of Courtland is very important. We have people making inquiries about our city. We need to do the best we can to serve everyone in the city,” he added.

Krause serves on the Street Committee and the Relief Board for the Courtland Fire Department.

Nathan Marti is a new candidate for the Courtland City Council. This will be his first time running for a position on the council. It is a position he has wanted for a few years and feels his availability is better now to serve the city.

“I feel with the bypass of highway 14 that land around Courtland will be looked at for development and I would like to have input for how our city will look,” said Marti.

“One idea that I think it would be nice if we could figure out how to get a sidewalk along the county road that people could use to walk or bike up and down the hill in Courtland. I just would like to help with future development of Courtland,” he said.

Marti grew up on a dairy farm near Sleepy Eye. He and his family have lived in Courtland for about 15 years.

He is a large animal veterinarian at New Ulm Regional Veterinary Center. He has worked there for about 16 years. His wife is a veterinarian in Mankato. His son and daughter attend New Ulm Public School.

Gregory Juberien has filed for a seat on the city council. This is his first time filing for a position on the council.

Juberien moved to Courtland about six years ago when he and his wife decided to downsize and move after their three kids were all grown and moved out of the house. Juberien is very familiar with Courtland and the surrounding area as he grew up on a farm in the Nicollet/St. Peter/Mankato area. He graduated from Nicollet High School.

He is the store manager of the CVS in Mankato. He has held that position for the last 10 years. He is also the current president of the Courtland Lions Club.

“I am interested in being involved in the community. That interest started early as my Dad used to play baseball in Courtland,” said Juberien.

“I am interested in helping with the issues from the new Highway 14. We need to move ahead with growth. I am interested in helping to plan so we can move forward. We need to balance our community’s needs. Some people do not want to see Courtland grow too much, but controlled growth is good,” he said.