BROOKINGS In his 12 years on the Brookings County Commission, Ryan Krogman witnessed or had a role a lot of things better roads and bridges, an improved detention center, the COVID-19 pandemic, and booming economic growth. Now, however, hes grappling with another new experience: retirement.
His last commission meeting was Dec. 30. Two new commissioners were sworn in on Jan. 7 Doug Post and Dave Miller to fill positions previously held by Krogman and Mike Bartley.
December was difficult at times for Krogman, 53, as his term neared its end; after all, for a lot of people retirement is a huge change. There can be feelings of trepidation that are equally at home alongside feelings of anticipation and joy. For Krogman, it was also a time to reminisce.
Well, you miss the people that you work with every day, and thats some awesome people, Krogman said, choking up while talking with the Brookings Register. You miss the employees of the commission, of the county.
In the end, you just hopefully youve done your job. Its kind of clich, but you hope you left his voice trailed off during the December interview. This next meetings going to be tough.
Odds are, more than a few people in a county of 36,000-plus residents would say Krogman, who graduated from Brookings High School in 1990 and South Dakota State University in 1994, did just fine during his years on the commission. There are things he highlighted as well.
Being able to grow and achieve some projects like 34th Avenue that was good, Krogman said of that avenues gravel-to-pavement change some six years ago just east of Interstate 29. Weve been able to balance the budget and keep expenses down as much as we could. Weve also had really fantastic growth in the county over the last 10 years. Thats not directly from me, but I think thats helped keep our mill levy consistent and also allowed us to receive extra funds because of the growth that weve had, which allowed us to keep up our roads, keep up our bridges. Im really proud of that.
Krogman said Brookings County is in a far better economic position than more rural counties because continual economic development means taxes are more evenly distributed.
The more homes that are built, the more businesses and commercial buildings that are built, the more that spreads those tax burdens, he said.
Krogman pointed to other successes, including expanding the Brookings County Detention Center something that had its fair share of ups and downs since 2016, including legal woes, before it finally bore fruit in late 2021 with Phase I construction wrapping up.
It was a really good project, he said.
Then theres the Brookings County Outdoor Adventure Center. It started out as a private business, but in June 2017 the county took it over.
Thats a nice facility I just hope that keeps on moving and growing and getting good use for it. Its a great home for 4-H and now Game, Fish and Parks is leasing some space out there, Krogman said. I think theres just a lot of opportunity out there for that, too.
All that said, he does have one regret, and it centers on the construction of a new main facility for the county highway department. Its been in the works for years, but unexpected developments, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath, threw a wrench into that.
Expectations
Naturally, expectations while serving on a board or in an office vary depending on perspective some voters want politicians to rock the boat while others, well, less so.
One of those things, I think with the government, is that sometimes you dont have to be doing something all of the time, Krogman said. Sometimes the status quo is OK. Sometimes just carrying out the business and keeping your budget and keeping your costs down, providing service to the taxpayers is just fine.
He continued, You shouldnt feel like youre not doing anything if theres not something special that needs to be done. Youre doing your job, and if youre doing a good job, people shouldnt be upset they didnt accomplish something.
Krogman said his priorities were being fiscally responsible, offering great services to county residents, providing solid roads and bridges and safeguarding the county.
If youre not getting a ton of complaints, you might be doing a good job, he said.
Still, some grumbling is inevitable especially regarding property taxes, even with the countys attempts to keep increases reasonable.
Complaints can vary (but) most people were concerned with higher property taxes, Krogman said. That has become (more visible) as property values have continued to go up over the past three years, the property taxes have followed.
Alongside gripes, though, come compliments, especially in regard to the countys success at balancing its books and the quality of its roads and bridges.
When people travel to other counties, they notice the difference, Krogman said.
Public service
Krogman said people aspiring to politics would be wise to start with a smaller board or committee just as he did, serving for 10 years on the Brookings Park & Recreation Advisory Board. He started right after his 1994 graduation from South Dakota State University, and that decade included time as its chairperson.
If youre going to be there, dont be afraid to be the president or chairperson of that committee, he recommended. Get involved in it, learn how to run it, learn how to run a good meeting, talk to people, represent people, speak to people.
Doing so, he said, familiarizes would-be political leaders with the demands of public service.
This is just a step thats a good, local option for somebody that is interested in politics to get started in being a commissioner, being interviewed by the paper, and being at events and getting comfortable with that, Krogman noted. I think a lot of people dont feel comfortable doing that, and so they dont run.
When that happens, its societys loss.
I think theres a lot of really good people that would make really good county commissioners that may feel uncomfortable doing what we do in the public and talking to people, he said. My advice would be sign up for a smaller board, sign up for something thats maybe not as public that you can learn how to run a meeting.
Besides the Park & Recreation Advisory Board, Krogman also spent 12 years on the board of directors for the Brookings Economic Development Corp. He served as chairperson for part of his tenure there as well.
That kind of trained me, I guess, or seasoned me to be able take on a bigger role in the (Brookings) County Commission and be able to contribute, he said. If youre going to be there, you (have to) contribute. You cant just sit there and just show up, vote, not discuss, not lead. It trains you to contribute when you get there, and thats what youre being elected for is to contribute and lead.
Whats next
Now that his time on the county commission has ended, Krogman will focus on family which includes four sons, a daughter and a grandson and continuing to run the family business, Century 21 Krogman & Company Real Estate, with his brother Matt Krogman. Itll allow him to relax, too, in a way thats nigh impossible when serving in an elected position.
At times, theres a vocal minority that can unrelenting, Krogman said of his constituents and what he wont miss. I think thats what some people dont like about the politics is the people that can get verbally after you for something they dont like, that might personally affect them.
He continued, You have to make a tough decision. Youre representing not just one person or one group; youre representing the whole county, and to make that decision is nerve-wracking. And so I wont miss that, because some of those decisions, you know, its kind of a youre going to make somebody happy and youre going to make somebody upset. You wish you could make decisions that make everybody happy, but thats just not realistic at times.
In the end, though, the positives far outweigh the negatives, with Krogman really enjoying his work with the county over the last 12 years, describing it as very rewarding.
I feel like my goal was to leave the county better than when I found it, he said. I feel comfortable saying I think Ive done that.
He said past members of the county commission played a huge role in not only doing their own good work, but also in helping him ease into the job of commissioner.
The previous commissioners were fabulous. I appreciated working with all of them they taught me a lot, Krogman said. Especially the ones when I first got on there. Those commissioners were very good to me. Hopefully, I was able to pass some of those lessons on to the commissioners that I served with and, hopefully, future commissioners.
He has no plans to seek public office again at least for the foreseeable future.
I think Ill take a break and see, Krogman said, adding that his family and business have been incredibly helpful and accommodating during his time on the county commission.
Contact Mondell Keck at [email protected].
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