Courtesy Photo Outgoing Alpena Township Supervisor Nathan Skibbe works at his desk on Tuesday. Today is his last day working for the township before new supervisor Abbi Kaszubowski takes the reins.

ALPENA — For the last eight years, Alpena Township Supervisor Nathan Skibbe often came into his office early and left late to help the township prosper.

He said he believes the township is set up for continued success under the watchful eye of the Alpena Township Board of Trustees.

Today is Skibbe’s final day working for the township, and new supervisor Abbi Kaszubowski will take her oath of office today at noon.

Kaszubowski defeated Skibbe during the August primary election and ran unopposed in the November election to earn the leadership role in the township.

She did not return messages seeking comment about Skibbe’s departure or her swearing in.

As he moves on to a new job locally, Skibbe said he believes he left the township in better shape than it was before he was elected in 2016. He said there were a lot of ups and downs over the last eight years, but, overall, he is proud of what he accomplished.

“It was a whirlwind, and, as with any organization, you’re going to have successes and failures, but I don’t believe our principal failures were overwhelmingly self-created,” he said. “We have come a long way in eight years. Progress was made in incremental steps that you don’t really notice while you’re living and breathing, but the municipality has made a lot of progress. I can safely say I fulfilled my mission and goal of leaving the township in a better spot than when it was handed over to me.”

After being elected, Skibbe said he was motivated to make changes in the township to make it more financially stable, jumpstart economic development, improve infrastructure, and do all of that without raising taxes without voter approval.

He said those goals were met.

Skibbe, along with his fellow board members, balanced budgets while increasing savings — which were dangerously low when he started — to nearly $4 million.

Skibbe played a vital role while working with local economic development officials to attract new businesses such as the Marshalls department store, Aldi grocery store, Ollie’s Bargain Outlet, a new Hampton Inn and Suites, Starbucks, and others.

Those new businesses provide residents with more job opportunities and bolsters the township’s tax roll and local economy, Skibbe said.

Skibbe also led an effort to privatize the township’s water department by contracting with F&V Operations and Resource Management in 2020 and privatizing the equalization department. Those moves saved the township money over the last handful of years, cleaned up the assessment files, and improved water and sewer operations, Skibbe said.

Under Skibbe’s leadership, township officials crafted a capital improvement plan which prioritizes needed projects for budgeting and planning purposes. He also helped to bolster the county’s cybersecurity and technology to protect people’s personal information.

Township Trustee Norm Poli said Skibbe was passionate about his work and devoted himself entirely to making the township better for its residents. He said Skibbe gave everything he had from day one and believes the supervisor did a lot of good things during his two terms.

“That young man did more for the township in eight years than others before him, and he poured his heart into his work,” Poli said. “He went above and beyond and gave of himself for the township’s people. He worked hard every day and had a tremendous drive. The young man has a good head on his shoulders and I think he will do well in whatever is next for him.”

There are some things Skibbe will not be able to see through to the end after voters cut short his time as supervisor.

He said there are several economic development projects ongoing behind the scenes that will need attention and a decade-old court dispute with Alpena over how much the township should pay the city for water and sewer services needs to be resolved.

Skibbe said he has complete faith in the trustees to work with Kaszubowski to complete those tasks and continue moving the township in the right directions.

Skibbe said he was blessed with a staff that supported him and worked beside him to make many of his ideas realities. He said everyone didn’t agree on everything, but from that, the best ideas and solutions to problems were formed and implemented.

Township Clerk Michele Palevich said she will miss working with Skibbe and praised him as a leader, motivator, and friend.

“He’s definitely a good leader, and I think we worked well together,” Palevich said. “Even though we didn’t always agree, we always had respect for one another. He always challenged me to think about things in a different way or think outside the box, and I’m going to miss him.”

Skibbe said he is at peace with the election results and is excited for the next chapter in his life. He said his love for his hometown will never waver and he will always be a cheerleader and supporter of the township.

Asked what advice he would give Kaszubowski as she steps into her new role with the township, the outgoing supervisor said she needs to be respectful to people because she will likely need to work with many of them down the road.

“Don’t burn bridges, because, when you burn them, it takes twice as long to remake them,” Skibbe said. “Until you know which direction you need to go, you don’t know what bridges you actually need.”

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on X @ss_alpenanews.com.