By Joe Bachman

The April elections saw Joe Zurfluh beat out Lee Thao for District 1 Alderperson, and with his first common council meeting on the horizon, Zurfluh is looking forward to serving his community.

Joe Zurfluh is a lifelong resident of Wood County and lived in Port Edwards before joining the army. Upon his return he moved to Wisconsin Rapids. Zurfluh has been a Sheriff’s deputy for over 11 years now, and is currently a part of the investigation division.

“I want to get involved more in the community and address the concerns people in my district might have, and I’ve already done a little of that.” said Zurfluh, when asked what he looks forward to the most in his coming time in office.

Zurfluh looks forward to jumping into the issues facing Wisconsin Rapids, including the aquatics center, YMCA summer camp and riverfront project — all hot topics as of late in the local community. Zurfluh also emphasized the importance of staying available to all members of the community.

“I like to remain available and approachable,” said Zurfluh. “I always return calls, I’ll always get in touch with people and stop by and talk to them in person.”

Zurfluh looks to bring something different to the table to compliment other members of the council, as well.

“I have a lot of experience in public service, especially public safety,” said Zurfluh. “With that, I believe I bring an interesting perspective.”

The next common council meeting is slated for May 17.