New Ulm’s newest Public Utilities Director, Brett Fleck stands outside the office building. Fleck is excited for the opportunity to work in New Ulm’s because of the city’s diverse array of utilities. “There are not a lot of places that have water, wastewater, electricity, gas and steam under one organization,” he said. Photo by Clay Schuldt

NEW ULM – Two weeks ago, New Ulm Public Utilities welcomed new Utilities Director Brett Fleck.

Fleck previously worked for municipal water utilities in Peoria, Arizona, before taking on the New Ulm Public Utilities (NUPU) Director position. However, Fleck is no stranger to the community.

“I am originally from here,” Fleck said “I was raised for half my youth out on a farm in Essig. I went to high school here in New Ulm, graduating with the Class of 2005.”

After high school Fleck attended Minnesota State in Mankato, graduating with a degree in economics. His original career plan was to work in federal tax policy.

“Taxes drive a lot of behavior. There are incentives and disincentives. The gains or benefits of productivity are very important,” he said.

However, around the time Fleck graduated, the country was hit by a recession. He ended up converting an internship in Washington, D.C.

Fleck attended graduate school at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona, and received a master’s degree in agricultural and resource economics.

“My grad degree was a lot statistical analysis and modeling with an emphasis on water resources,” Fleck said. He took a job with a nonprofit that was supported by the major water and wastewater treatment utilities in the Phoenix area.

“That was my introduction to municipal utilities and I absolutely fell in love with it,” he said. “I started out from a policy perspective and found myself attracted to the daily operations.”

He made the switch from working in nonprofits to working for a municipal water utility in Peoria, Arizona. His first position was water resource policy administrator. The job involved a lot of regulatory compliance and contract work.

Fleck said it was critical work because Peoria is located in the desert and the water supply is extremely important. Peoria only receives seven-inches of rain a year.

He later became the manager for a couple water treatment plants. The position required him to make sure water moved through Peoria’s system that served 200,000 people.

“It was a very public oriented profession,” Fleck said. “People are interested and have thoughts and opinions about your water supply.”

Last year, Fleck and his wife decided they wanted to be closer to family. Fleck is originally from Essig and his wife’s family is in Michigan.

The plan was to look for a utilities position around the Twin Cities and to Fleck’s surprise, the New Ulm Utilities director position had an opening with the retirement of Kris Manderfeld.

The New Ulm director position was the first position he applied for and he got, which is unusal.

“That never happens,” he said. “The timing worked out.”

Fleck said he felt fortunate to be able to work in New Ulm, not just because its a return to his home community, but because it is a rare opportunity to work in a city with a diverse array of utilities.

“There are not a lot of places that have water, wastewater, electricity, gas and steam under one organization,” Fleck said said. He is also excited to see that New Ulm has its own power plant.

Fleck officially took over the utility director position two weeks ago and is still learning his way around, but said he is excited to work with this staff.

Fleck describe New Ulm as as a utility in transition.

“We have a really excellent, long tenured staff,” he said. “They are very trustworthy and reliable, but many are getting ready to retire.”

In addition there are many utility assets that will need to be replaced within the next few years as they have reached the end of repairable life.

“Some of these assets, if they were in any other city, they would have broken down by now,” Fleck said “But the folks in New Ulm have found a way to get every ounce of value out of it. I think people should be proud of that. I am so impressed with the skill and the expertise, historical knowledge and the dedication of the staff New Ulm has.”

Fleck said there will need to be a lot of work and investment that needs to go into the New Ulm’s utility system to keep it reliable, but he credited his predecessor, Kris Manderfeld for conducting condition assessments of equipment. This has helped public utilities stay on schedule for replacements and helps with the transition process.

Outside of maintaining system reliability, Fleck said there were a lot of changes happening in the world of utilities, including more extreme weather, the risks to cyber security, new regulations for carbon emissions and forever chemicals like PFAS.

“There is no shortage of things to tackle,” Fleck said. “But that’s what makes the job exciting.”

Asked what was the greatest challenge facing public utilities, Fleck said it was the shortage of funds. He said utility costs almost always outpace general inflation.

“It’s a never ending battle of doing more with less,” He said. “Communicating that pressure to rate payers is probably the biggest challenge, but it is something every utility in the country faces.”

Fleck said the best part of working for public utilities is it’s easy to see the value of the work.

“Everything you do impacts everyone around you every single day,” he said. “Public utilities are what makes our modern world run. Whatever challenge we face, the work we put in is extremely meaningful. It is easy to get excited about utilities in a positive way.”