Carver Mayor Courtney Johnson: Growth, Local News, and Getting Involved

Carver’s mayor shows up to everything. Touch a Truck, Steamboat Days, Santa’s fire truck ride to City Hall, and nearly every ribbon cutting in town. So, when Courtney Johnson walked out of my open house in Carver and the two neighbors walking in had no idea who she was, I knew what we needed to talk about.

Courtney is back on the podcast as she runs for her fourth term as Mayor of Carver, Minnesota, and her first without an opponent. Carver has about 7,500 residents today, and the Met Council projects it will grow to nearly 19,000 by 2050, the fastest growth rate in the region. We talk about what it means when a community changing this quickly is this quiet about its local government.

Courtney explains how the mayor’s role actually works in Carver. She’s one vote out of five, and the council’s job is policy, not deciding where stop signs go. She also shares what she’s hearing from cities across Minnesota in her new role as President of the League of Minnesota Cities, including data centers, budget pressures, and rising incivility toward local officials.

We get into what Carver lost when the Chaska Herald closed and how the city reaches people now: livestreamed council meetings, a monthly newsletter, the new Carver app, mayor’s office hours, and even chili dinners at her kitchen table. She’s candid about it, too. She gets maybe half a dozen phone calls a year.

We also talk about the upcoming Public Services facility listening sessions, how new neighbors in the Enclave and Summerfield can get connected, and something I wish more homebuyers would do: stop by City Hall before you buy and ask what’s planned for the field behind the house. And yes, we answer the Trader Joe’s question.

Courtney’s one wish for every Carver resident this year is simple: read the city newsletter.

0:00 Welcome and the open house story
1:33 Being recognized (and not recognized) around town
3:17 Carver’s growth: 7,500 people today, nearly 19,000 by 2050
5:45 Leading the League of Minnesota Cities
8:36 How the mayor and council actually work in Carver
11:25 Life after the Chaska Herald
13:50 How Carver keeps residents informed now
16:13 Community Facebook groups and misinformation
17:56 Young families and quiet engagement
20:25 Listening sessions on the Public Services facility
24:03 Running unopposed for the first time
25:59 Welcoming new neighbors in the Enclave and Summerfield
28:19 What homebuyers should ask City Hall before they buy
32:19 The Trader Joe’s question
33:29 One thing every resident can do

Visit: https://cityofcarver.com/Archive.aspx?AMID=39