Mark Shoemaker
Occupation: Retired Pottawattamie County Conservation Director
Email: m.shoe1969@gmail.com
Mark retired as Executive Director of Pottawattamie County Conservation in August 2024, concluding a distinguished 31-year career of leadership and public service. Throughout his tenure, he worked to strengthen natural resources, expand recreational opportunities, and build partnerships across the county.
Rooted in the community he helped shape; Mark remains committed to public service and transparent local government. He is running for County Supervisor because he believes county government should work for the people...openly, responsibly, and with a clear focus on the needs of every community.
Mark resides in Carson Iowa with a blended family from a previous and current marriage. After a brief pause to enjoy retirement, he served as interim executive director for Golden Hills RC&D in Oakland, serves on the Carson Park Board, and has recently been asked to serve on the board of directors for the Iowa Tourism and Industry Partners (ITIP). Retirement is great but after 30+ years serving the people of Pottawattamie, Mark wants to continue to ensure that his home provides quality of life opportunities, is a place families want to live, and is attractive to new businesses and industry.
Rising property tax across the county is and will be an issue facing residents and community leaders. Compounded by rising assessments and actions of the state legislators, the people of this county are feeling the impact. There is no magic bullet to help curb this burden on the taxpayers. Our leadership needs to start looking at how dollars are spent, strive to be more efficient and still support the hard-working employees trying to serve the communities. I've been told by a candidate that budgets are bare bones, and any cut would mean reducing services and/or eliminating personnel. Hard decisions need to be made, and those decisions should be happening now, not blaming state legislatures but by being proactive. Look for more ways county tax dollars can be invested, looks for ways to supplement county tax dollars, continue to share resources within the county/communities, build partnerships across the state and in the region that can benefit all, and if needed look at services provided to the people. I worked in county government for over three decades and have created and balanced budgets successfully keeping operating and maintenance costs "bare bones" and still providing high-quality services to the people. Pottawattamie's population growth has been stagnant with estimates of a decline the next three years. Since 2009 population has fluctuated around 93k and projected estimates indicate a drop below 92K. Leadership needs to focus on attracting new business and industry that create jobs. To support new business, we need adequate housing across the county not just in Council Bluffs. To attract new business and families we need to provide quality of life amenities and resources that people expect. |
What should be done to strengthen business climate, grow the workforce, and encourage economic and population growth?
The economic prosperity of Pottawattamie County isn't a simple answer but a combination of several factors working together to help grow business, increase population, provide housing and offer quality of life opportunities. Leaders and communities must work together with Council Bluffs Chamber of Commerce, Advance SW Iowa, IowaWORKS, Private and Community Foundations, Iowa Western Community College Small Business and many other organizations to help grow Pottawattamie County. We must continue to identify new businesses and enhance existing business that create jobs, focus of housing projects across the county that satisfy workforce growth and attract families, treat the Omaha labor force as an asset not competition, pursue population growth through quality-of-life opportunities, and the economic strategy for Council Bluffs is not necessarily a strategy that will work in rural Pottawattamie County.
With state legislators enacting property tax changes in 2026, local governments need to plan for long-term revenue constraints rather than assume property growth will solve future budget challenges. An increase in property assessments should not automatically be viewed as money available to spend. Local governments should first examine existing budgets, identify opportunities to improve efficiency, and make greater use of shared services, equipment, facilities, and other resources where practical. Local governments already develop capital improvement plans but given the long-term nature and cost of infrastructure needs, developing 10-to-20-year capital plans may provide taxpayers and policymakers with a better picture of future obligations. Long-term planning can help identify priorities, anticipate major expenses, and avoid unnecessary financial surprises. Before a county, city, or school district increases property tax collections, taxpayers should receive a simple, understandable explanation of why the additional revenue is needed, what it will fund, and how the decision affects individual property owners. Pottawattamie County already has a public hearing process through which budgets and tax impacts are communicated. That process could be made more transparent and easier for the average taxpayer to understand by clearly showing the proposed change in collections, the major reasons for the change, the expected impact on a typical property, and how the additional revenue will be used. The goal should be straightforward: Pottawattamie County needs affordable property taxes while maintaining functioning roads, effective public safety, quality schools, reliable utilities, and infrastructure capable of supporting responsible growth. Fiscal discipline and infrastructure investment do not have to be competing goals. Long-term planning, greater efficiency, shared resources, and clearer communication with taxpayers can help local government address both. |
What would you like voters to know about you, beyond your positions on the issues?
From one of my earlier posts this year on Facebook that still holds true today...I’m not a politician just a guy who took a chance and came to Pottawattamie County in 1992 for an internship. That chance turned into a 32-year career in Conservation, raising a family in Council Bluffs, buried my wife in Garner Twp and met an amazing woman blending our two families. I’ve given 32 years to Pottawattamie County, but it’s clearly given so much back!! I love this county and the people who live here and that’s why I am running for County Supervisor. Life is too short to sit on the sideline and watch as everything unfolds. I want to make a difference, I want to be involved, I want to hear the people of this county and make what we all have better.