ABOVE: Matt Skaret, the new city administrator of Fairmont.

FAIRMONT– Fairmont’s new city administrator, Matt Skaret, started his role this week. Skaret brings with him many years of experience in city government and was most recently the city administrator in Jackson.

Originally from Bismark, N.D., Skaret attended the University of Minnesota-Morris where he graduated from with a degree in political science.

“I always had an interest in politics, public service and government,” Skaret explained.

Right out of college, Skaret moved to Washington, D.C. where he began working for a few different Minnesota congressmen.

“I arrived on September 17th (2001), six days after 9/11. I experienced some of the aftermath there,” Skaret said.

He spent about three years in D.C. and then became tired of the “rat race” and national political scene so returned to the midwest and enrolled at the University of South Dakota-Vermillion, where he obtained a Master’s degree in public administration.

“And then I dove head first into the field of city management,” Skaret said.

His first job was as city manager of Madison, Minn., which is a small town of about 1,600 though it’s a full-service city. Skaret remained there for about three years before he moved onto his next job in Milford, Iowa, where he worked as city administrator for about four and a half years.

“Then I moved back to Minnesota and landed in Springfield where I was city manager/EDA director,” Skaret said.

He also kept that job about four years before he moved on to take the city administrator job in Jackson, where he remained for six years, up until his resignation late last year. Skaret said he had been familiar with Fairmont prior to applying and interviewing for the position here.

“A lot of people in Jackson come to Fairmont for shopping, eating out, entertainment and to go to the various parks,” Skaret said.

He was interested in the position in Fairmont as it is a step up career-wise as it’s a bigger city than Jackson. He’s also had a long interest in the community and believes it has a lot to offer– as well as a lot of potential.

“You have a lot here with the lakes and some nice retail and industries. It has a lot going for it,” he said of the community.

While he’s still living in Jackson and making the 33 mile commute daily, Skaret does plan to relocate and buy a house in Fairmont.

Just a week into his role, Skaret is learning the staff and familiarizing himself with some of the projects in the works as well as the general operations of the city.

“The staff has been immensely helpful my first few days into the job,” Skaret said. “Jeff O’Neill has done a wonderful job in the interim by providing a nice foundation for whoever the next city administrator was going to be,” Skaret said of Fairmont’s interim city administrator.

He plans to continue to get his footings in the coming weeks but is eager to learn and help move the city forward in a positive direction.

“I’m looking forward to getting out more and meeting the people of Fairmont and getting around to the civic organizations and meeting the different stakeholders and businesses in the community,” Skaret said.