Heather Gergen
for Pewaukee Village Board
MEET HEATHER
Proven Leadership Delivering Results for Our Community
Our family has lived in the Village of Pewaukee for 20 years. It is the place where we raised our two children. So, the longevity of the Village is essential to me. The community has made so much progress during the time that we’ve lived here. As a former member of the Village Board for nine years, I’m proud to say that I’ve been a part of that progress as it unfolded. During that time, I have served on the Joint Library Board, Joint Park & Recreation Board, Fire Contract Committee and Historic Preservation Commission.
The Village has experienced tremendous growth and redevelopment over the years. Here's just some of the progress that I was a part of while on the board.
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Purchase and development of Laimon Lakeside Park
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Koepp Park and Penny's bridge
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Old St. Mary's project and development of The Glen at Pewaukee Lake
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Development of condos across from the beach
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Pewaukee Chiropractic & Wellness/Loft on the Lake development
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New Village website
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School Resource Officers and Pirate Pass dedication
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WCTC relationship
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New DPW equipment and facility
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Kwik Trip and Chick-Fil-A area development
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Creation of Historic Preservation Commission
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Creation of Sex Offender Residency Board of Appeals
How was I called to serve in the community?
Several years ago, I organized our neighborhood block party and was recruited by one of our police officers to be the block captain for our neighborhood watch. When one of the village trustees won his election to become board president his seat became available on the village board. My neighbors encouraged me to apply for the position. Once I learned that it was a non-partisan position, I felt more comfortable with the idea.
The board opened the position up for people to apply for the position rather than hold an election. I applied for the seat and was selected by the board. It was a great way for me to be introduced to being an elected official. I probably would not have taken the chance if I had to go through the whole intimidating election process. After I had been on the board for about six months, I ran for election and won.
I ran for election in subsequent years and won in 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2020. In that time, I’ve served on several boards as a trustee including the Pewaukee Library Board and Joint Parks and Recreation Board. Now despite being out of office, I am helping with negotiating the joint library board contract and am a member of the Historic Preservation Committee.
With each new trustee, there is a learning curve as to how government works. Going into the office almost everyone thinks they will make huge changes until they find out the background on different issues, the legalities and the reality of the issues. I’m an idea person, so I think part of why I enjoyed my time is that I was able to come up with creative new solutions that got to the root of problems within the confines of the law. That is not an easy task.