When James Bialecki decided not to seek a third term as Mayor of Onalaska this spring, he felt that he could have. Onalaska had grown while he was mayor, and he felt things were going well in City Hall. That, he said, is why he decided to step aside.

“I think I could have run again,” Bialecki said. “But it is an elected position. A lot went right for me and it was the right time to step aside.”

Leaving the mayor’s office when things were going his way gave Bialecki the opportunity to leave on his own terms. But it didn’t take long for him to feel that he was ready to get back to work. He said that it was a breath of fresh air at first, but he knew he was not ready to retire. On Wednesday, Bialecki was named Tomah’s new city administrator, and he said that he is ready for and looking forward to a new challenge.

“I am looking forward to everything,” Bialecki said. “I wanted to get back into city government because I enjoy getting involved and a sense of accomplishment. I like to concentrate on a local area, and issues will come up on growth and development, and my position is, ‘been there, done that.’”

Bialecki’s history with Onalaska goes back 23 years. He joined the Onalaska City Council in 1985 while he was working as the administrator for Hillview Health Center in La Crosse. He became the first full-time mayor of Onalaska, serving two terms from 2000 to 2008. Bialecki said that he had given some thought to returning to the health care business and was not sure which direction he would take after leaving the mayor’s office. His passion for city government and community service pushed him to throw his hat in the ring for Tomah’s city administrator position to replace out-going administrator John Rusch.

“I wanted to be selective as to where I would go,” Bialecki said. “I am not a big city person. I have had my eye open to what is happening in Tomah and other places when I (was mayor of) Onalaska. You don’t want to miss a trick.”

Bialecki said that he liked the location of Tomah, as three of his children live in the La Crosse area.

See Bialecki, page 3A

He is also impressed with the Tomah Community. He was one of four finalists announced by mayor Ed Thompson on June 12. He was given unanimous approval from the Tomah City Council on Wednesday, and is looking forward to moving to Tomah.

“I am excited,” Bialecki said. “Tomah is a strong and vibrant community. It is alive, and it has a lot of activity. I have to compliment John Rusch and past mayors. Through them and the public, a lot of these good things happened.”

Bialecki said that he hopes to be moved in and ready to replace Rusch, who will retire July 5, by the middle of July. He wants to work with the public and hopes to bring growth to Tomah like he saw as mayor of Onalaska. With Tomah’s proximity to the Interstate, Bialecki believes there is a lot of opportunity for future growth.

“It is close to the Interstate, and I understand that there are acres available. There are a lot of good things to come,” Bialecki said. “I need to get here and I need to do research and get to know the community and the staff. I didn’t accomplish anything by myself in Onalaska.”

Bialecki served as Onalaska’s City Administrator while mayor, as the city does not have a city administrator position. He said that his approach to the job will be to work with the public as well as other city departments.

“Every time I see vacant areas, my head is always spinning with ideas,” Bialecki said. “But before you take off with them, you go over city ordinances, zoning, layouts, and land use plans. There is a lot to figure out, and then we will see where we want to go from there.”