Bill Koopman

There will be a race for a second seat on the Plymouth County Board of Supervisors.

Bill Koopman of rural Le Mars filed papers today (Tuesday) to run for the District 5 seat on the board as a Democrat.

His decision creates a race for the seat -- earlier this month Jim Henrich of Akron announced his plans to run for re-election.

"I always like to have a choice when I go to the polls," Koopman said. "It's nice to give people a choice when they vote. And I think I'll bring fresh perspective."

The other race for a supervisor seat is for the District 2 position. Two rural Le Mars Republicans, Mark Loutsch and John Schneider, currently serving on the county board, will face off in the June primary.

The decision between Koopman and Henrich won't be decided until the November general election.

Koopman, who was born and raised in Plymouth County, now owns Koopman Accounting in Le Mars and farms near his home southwest of Le Mars. He said his experience in accounting and also with living near development (his land is close to the Wells' Dairy Corporate Center) shape his "fresh perspective" on county issues.

"I felt it was time to get someone in there who had first-hand experience with what can happen in those areas and how that affects people personally," he said. "With the changes in the tax situation, I've been seeing how people's income has been reduced. And living where I do, it's easier to see how development is going to affect people already living there."

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Finances and business growth, he said, will be running themes for the county in the years ahead.

"One main challenge will be trying to control spending so we don't have a constant increase of taxes," he said. "And we need to do what we can to get more businesses in here, provide a friendly environment to get some businesses to come."

Koopman has independently run his business since 1990. He started in 1979 under Ina Smith, then later spent some years under Sue Betsworth before beginning on his own.

He has served on the county zoning board for the past 15 years. The board hears zoning requests from residents and businesses in the county and makes recommendations on zoning questions.

"I enjoy working with the group, being involved in the community and listening to issues," he said.

The supervisor for District 5 represents county residents in the area north of Merrill and west of Le Mars, reaching in to a total of six townships.

Candidates have until March 26 to file papers with the county auditor to run for election.