Meet Karl Rhomberg
Democractic Candidate
Scott County Board of Supervisors

Karl Rhomberg

Davenport resident Karl Rhomberg is running for the position of Scott County Supervisor.  Karl is running for an open seat against three opponents; the top two vote getters will be elected.  Election Day is November 2.

Karl Rhomberg is running for County Supervisor because he cares about people.  He has dedicated his life to service to the public, in government and commerce, both as a previously elected official and a businessman.  His goals are to increase citizen participation in the Scott county government and to make government more accountable to the citizens.

Rhomberg wants to focus attention on more public recreation.  New opportunities can include new and improved parks with ATV trails, bicycle paths, bridle paths for horseback riding, and hiking and nature walks. Plenty of baseball and soccer, too.  He'd also like to revisit the NASCAR race track development that was abandoned a few years ago.

Leadership.  Rhomberg believes that Scott county does not provide the leadership that would bring smaller communities into the mainstream.  He proposes hiring a grant writer funded by the county to assist the smaller towns with finding matching funds for their worthwhile projects – everything from parks to sewers.  The county should be the umbrella organization for the whole county instead of hiding from its responsibility.

Mental Health.  Rhomberg says Scott county spends a great deal of money on mental health and the county nursing home, Pine Knoll.  He believes that it is essential to make sure that conditions for the less fortunate citizens are more than just adequate and that training and equipment are always available to the people caring for those less fortunate.

While on the Davenport, Iowa, City Council, Rhomberg helped lead the movement to maintain the historic Mississippi riverfront access.  "We eventually voted down a $65 million dollar concrete floodwall in favor of flood plain management that accepts the natural behavior of the Mississippi River.  We saved millions, protected nature, and are now the premier location on the Mississippi for people to interact with nature," Rhomberg explains.

In the 1980’s, Rhomberg helped create and fund – through City General Obligation Bonds - a $3.5 million revolving loan fund for first time home buyers.  This opened home ownership opportunities to more than a thousand low- and moderate- income people at a time of record high interest.  He also sponsored and passed a condominium conversion ordinance that limited the conversion of apartments into condos at a time of tight rental conditions.  This protected the ability of low-income people to find adequate rental housing.

But Rhomberg's experience, though impressive, doesn't end there: he also helped to reclaim the historic Adler Theater, to stabilize and preserve John O’Donnell Municipal Baseball Stadium, to remodel the historic City Hall, and to build the Ground Transportation Center, the first River Center and the current Police Station, among many other projects.  He was instrumental in what he likes to call "badgering" the city council to increase funding from less than $125,000 per year for housing rehab assistance during his first term to well over $1,000,000 per year five years later.  Today, much of this function is performed by non profits; but in 1978, none of it existed.
For more information on Karl Rhomberg or to contribute to his campaign, contact campaign manager Alison Hart at 563.323.9733.