As the filing deadline for the upcoming city and school elections passed Thursday at 5 p.m., two city council races will be competitive come November.

Along with incumbent Gabe Isom, who successfully filed his paperwork to run for re-election, Mark Mitchell has also thrown his hat into that race. At-large incumbent Gary Thompson filed the necessary paperwork to seek a second term in office, and he will face Leopoldo “Sunny” Reyes, the owner of Brothers Garage, who was initially interested in seeking appointment to the Third Ward vacancy before withdrawing from consideration.

Isom, the director of global sales for power and OEM industries at Emerson, said he is excited to build on the positive momentum that has accumulated in the last four years and continue to steer Marshalltown in a positive direction for the future.

“I’m excited to put my name in for Second Ward council member one more time. I’ve learned a lot, and as a council we’ve accomplished more than I ever could’ve imagined. To be a part of the recovery post tornado and derecho, downtown redevelopment, creation of new housing in every corner of the community, expansion of our industrial park, and partnership with the likes of Art & Culture Alliance or 13th District is exciting,” Isom said. “The momentum we’ve created in my time on council is the very reason I want to run again. I look forward to continuing to define who we are as a community, driving pride and engagement at a higher level than we’ve seen prior. In raising my family here, working here, and volunteering for events like the Harvest Market, I’m thrilled and proud to call Marshalltown home. We are not done yet, and I hope others see the progress we’ve made and continue to drive. I look forward to hearing from constituents on how we continue to evolve while embracing our history. Marshalltown Proud!”

Mitchell, who graduated from MHS and spent most of his professional career with Swift (now JBS) and Lennox, said he has seen Marshalltown “at the peak of its glory” but worried that it has become a less desirable place to live and work in recent years.

“I’ve talked to a lot of people, and the consensus is we need to be more careful on what we spend our money for and let people know what the options are before we just have a vote — just to be up front so they don’t think that there’s something going on. Even if there isn’t something going, it makes it appear that they’re trying to push stuff through and hide stuff,” Mitchell said. “There’s stuff that we need in this town and there’s stuff that would be really nice to have.”

Mitchell also stressed the importance of thinking about “the small person” who is struggling to get by, and he pledged to hold multiple meet and greets and walk the ward to familiarize himself with his constituents.

“That way, it makes me more accountable to them when I’m sitting up there making decisions,” he said.

Thompson, an Army veteran and longtime Lennox employee who also founded the UPS Store in Marshalltown, would like to focus on “small improvements” that don’t require major financial investments if re-elected to serve another term.

“I want to concentrate on the little things. I think we can accomplish a lot just with nuisance enforcement and that arena. We don’t need to spend a lot of money,” he said. “There’s new energy coming with Greg (Nichols) joining the council and a new city administrator. I think there needs to be a little consistency… I think there’s a lot we can do if we just put our minds behind it and our efforts and get the community behind some low-cost initiatives to clean up the town and reinstall pride in town.”

In discussing his decision to run, Reyes, a 2007 MHS graduate, pointed to the deep roots he has planted in the community since he moved here in 1997, starting a successful small business in 2014 and raising three daughters with his longtime girlfriend Genesis.

“I’ve lived here long enough where I remember what it used to be and what it is now,” he said. “This town has given me so much… I just feel like I’m not going anywhere, and I feel like maybe it’s time for me to give something back.”

If elected, Reyes would be the lone Hispanic councilor in a city where about 35 percent of the population identifies as Hispanic/Latino, but he said he doesn’t look at Hispanic and white people’s interests as “different” and would seek to bring all residents of Marshalltown to the table.

“The next generation, kids like me that have been here a long time or grown up (here), I think people like that need direction, and it doesn’t matter if they’re Hispanic or not. They just need somebody to look at and say ‘If he can do it, I can do it,'” Reyes said. “If we can make this town better together, a step in the right direction… I’m not bringing anything to the table besides myself. I’m not out there to say ‘I’m gonna lower taxes’ or ‘I’m gonna get this street fixed. I’m gonna go and sit down, and I’m gonna listen. I’m just gonna sit and listen and learn how to play the game, and once I have a voice for myself and I know how to play the game a little better in, let’s say a year or so, then I’ll start adding my input on different things.”

Fourth Ward incumbent Al Hoop, who is the longest tenured current city councilor with 16 consecutive years of service, will run unopposed for his seat.

School board

On the Marshalltown Community School Board side, Board President Sean Heitmann and Vice President Sara Faltys have both filed to run for re-election. Two newcomers, Elizabeth Wise and Maria Morales, filed to fill the vacancies created by the impending departures of Bonnie Lowry and Jan McGinnis, both of whom opted not to seek re-election.

Wise, 43, owns the Center Street Dairy Queen with her husband David, and they are parents to four MCSD students. This is the first time she has run for public office.

“I am happy with the school district in general, and I want to help,” Wise said. “I have a lot of kids in the district. I want to be involved, and I have a vested interest in the education of the school district.”

Morales, 34, works at Iowa Workforce Development as a business engagement consultant. She has always been passionate about supporting youth, teachers, families and the community.

“As a Marshalltown High School graduate, I want to continue serving our community, and be a positive role model to the community – especially our youth,” Morales said.

Heitmann has served on the board for eight years, and still finds enjoyment in it. He said a lot of things were accomplished during those eight years, and there are additional projects he would like to see completed.

“The stadium was just finished, and there are ongoing projects at the high school — CTE, shop, FFA,” Heitmann said. “The next big project is Miller Middle School. I would like to see something get done with that, and I want to be on the board when it happens.”

Faltys submitted her petition for candidacy because she felt her previous four years were not enough. Becoming familiar with the details of the school district takes about three years, she said. With a son as a Marshalltown High School student, Faltys said she wants to stay on the board longer.

“Stopping after four years felt like I was not doing right by the community,” Faltys said. “There are also big projects underway. Updating the CTE wing at the high school is huge, and I want to see that through. A little further down the road is the Miller Middle School renovation. I would like to be around for part of that. That is a big one.”