Gary Van Eyll will seek a fourth term as mayor of Chaska. He announced his bid for re-election last week. He will face Chaska City Councilor Jay Rohe, who announced his candidacy in April.

Van Eyll, 57, said he hope his re-election would “keep stability” in the city. He has served as mayor of Chaska for the last six years. Prior to that, he spent four years on the council and was a member of the Chaska Fire Department for 20 years, including several years as Fire Chief.

Van Eyll said he enjoys being a cheerleader for the community. “There are so many exciting things going on in Chaska,” he said.

In his last term, he saw new Highway 212 open, approved projects to bring an emergency room and a college campus to town and accepted Money Magazine’s ranking of Chaska as the eighth-best small town in America. “The recognition from Money Magazine just supports what we’ve done over the last 20 years,” he said.

Van Eyll said, if re-elected, he would be focused on improving the community’s infrastructure, continuing the street-replacement program and following through on the emergency room, college and bioscience zone projects.

He also hopes to see a resolution on a location for a new Highway 41 Minnesota River crossing, increased traffic management on Chestnut Street downtown and more overall jobs created in Chaska. “If we have the jobs, they’ll come,” he said, of potential new residents.

Van Eyll lives at 336 Highwood Drive Circle. He and his family have lived in Chaska since 1974. He is married to Barbara and has three grown children – James Van Eyll, Kerrie Thompson and Amanda Bauman.