Mayor remains optimistic despite tough year

A difficult pandemic year did not spare the city of Cromwell. As mayor Sharon Zelazny said, “When it came to challenges and achievements, the challenges definitely won out.”

Zelazny said the city council and staff made the Covid-19 pandemic the top priority. Every employee had to adopt their job description to include pandemic preparedness and adapt their responsibilities accordingly, she said. “Our municipal liquor store required everyone’s help to keep up with the necessary changes. I felt it really showed what great employees the city has,” Zelazny said. “We worried, too, whether we were doing enough to keep our constituents, staff and customers safe.”

She spent many hours reading and in meetings about the pandemic.

Everything else seemed to slow down, she said. “When we ordered something, it took a long time to receive it. When we called to talk to someone, we had to leave a message and wait for a call back because people were working from home.”

There were other challenges. A lightning strike at a pumping station and City Hall did damage, and it took a long time to get things back up and running. The heating system failed at City Hall, and a new system was delayed by pandemic demands.

“City Hall was frequently closed, and our constituents had to find new ways to pay their water and sewer bills. Their patience with the city was commendable,” Zelazny said.

“In many ways, I feel like we took the year off when it comes to bringing projects to completion,” she said. One achievement has been working with Carlton County economic development staff to secure a buyer for the hardware store building for a new business locating there.

Zelazny said she is optimistic and looking forward. The city is working on grants, projects, and businesses that will change the face of Cromwell going forward, she said.

Cromwell’s businesses, including the city-run liquor store, serve a broad area of area residents. The two largest enterprises, the Cromwell-Wright School and the Villa Vista assisted living complex, are well-run centers of activity, she said, serving households in the northwestern corner of Carlton County.