Debbie Goettel

Debbie Goettel is Hennepin County Commissioner, representing District 5: Bloomington, Eden Prairie, Richfield. Before joining the county board, she served 10 years as Richfield’s mayor. During that time, she spurred significant redevelopment in the downtown area and south side of the city. Her collaboration with the city council and staff also led to the city’s first comprehensive five-year plan to repave all city streets.

In addition to her brick-and-mortar contributions to the city, Debbie is proud of her human rights initiatives. In 2011, she and the city passed an ordinance for partnership agreements, providing same-sex couples with the same rights as married couples. The success in Richfield paved the way for collaboration with other city mayors to pass similar partnership agreements. Debbie and her mayoral colleagues were proud to support the efforts that led to statewide equality in 2013.

Outside of her service in public office, Debbie has been an active participant in local and regional civics. Her passion for creating a brighter future led to service on the Richfield Foundation board, the Minnesota Environmental Initiatives Task Force, the Richfield 4th of July Committee, the Metropolitan Housing Policy Board, the League of Minnesota Cities, the Urban Land Institute's Regional Council of Mayors, and the Governor’s 2013 Local Government Aid task force.

Debbie has a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Minnesota (Twin Cities) and completed graduate studies on environmental sustainability at Harvard and University of Minnesota. In her professional career, she worked for international companies in the area of Sustainability, Environment, Health, and Safety. Debbie is married with three children and five grandchildren.

Hennepin County Commissioner
2020 Summit Speaker: 
Confirmed speaker at SFCR 2020
Speaker Year: 
2023