Mark Kreimborg remembers when Taylor Mill had gravel roads, cistern water and just one streetlight. Today, he says his parents “wouldn’t recognize the city the way it is right now.”

Few people have witnessed that transformation as closely — or shaped it as directly — as Kreimborg. After growing up in what was once a quiet country community, he spent decades in public office helping guide Taylor Mill’s growth from a rural crossroads into a modern city while remaining committed to the hometown he never wanted to leave.

As a kid, Kreimborg had true country living: Taylor Mill was off a two-lane road coming from Lotonia, he had cistern water, and gravel roads spanned the city for miles. It couldn’t be any better for a kid like him to grow up in; his parents had never worried about him running all day long, as kids do.

“At noontime every day, we had a fire siren that went off, and all the kids went home for lunch, and then at nighttime, you come in for dinner, but then you go out and play, and when the street light came on, we had one street light, everybody would go home for the night,” Kreimborg said.

Kreimborg grew up with his lifelong friend Mark Dudderar; they both live in Taylor Mill to this day. Dudderar moved to Taylor Mill in 1958, when his parents bought a house right in front of Kreimborg’s house. They became friends right off the bat, hanging out all the time and playing sports together. 

“We had the best of everything,” Dudderar said. “We did what kids do. He is great and a super nice guy.”

Kreimborg’s dad served in World War II, travelling all over the world. While stationed in Japan, and when he came back, he told his son something that he took to heart and never forgot.

“He said, ‘Mark, I’m telling you, it’s the best place in the world to live and raise a family,’” Kreimborg said. “That’s why I’ve always wanted to stay here in Taylor Mill.”

Growing up, Kreimborg lived next door to the mayor at the time, Meriam Fisk. When Kreimborg was in his late 30s, with a stable job selling medical equipment and raising a young family, Fisk said to him, “‘I’d like to see you run for city commission.’”

Fisk wanted new blood in the city and wanted Kreimborg to be the next mayor. On that day, Kreimborg thought to himself, “‘Maybe I will.’”

At 32-years-old, Kreimborg joined the city council, and at 36, he put his name on the ballot for mayor, winning the vote and becoming one of the youngest mayors in the area at the time.

His youth brought a difference to the city. His brother-in-law thought he was ready for the moment. 

“I asked him, I said, ‘How do you think I would do?’ Kreimborg said, ‘You’re smart enough, and you have a lot of good common sense, and you can make decisions.’ His brother-in-law said, ‘I think that you would do well at that,’” Kreimborg recalls.

Kreimborg accomplished many things as mayor, including the construction of Pride Parkway, Pride Park, an increase in subdivisions and many more projects. He is proud of all of them, but he believes it wasn’t just him who got them done.

“There were so many. And I’m not patting myself on the back. There are so many things that we’ve done over the years,” Kreimborg said. “We had one person in the office, Mary Lou, one police chief and a completely volunteer fire department.”

Kreimborg served as mayor for 21 years. He watched the city grow and the community come together. Dudderar saw the care and love Kreimborg had for the city. He noticed that Taylor Mill was in his friend’s heart and soul.

Kreimborg then made his way to Covington to serve as Kenton County deputy judge executive for Steve Arlinghaus, who was the judge executive at the time. After his four-year stint, he came back home to Taylor Mill in 2015, jumping right back to being a commissioner. He has served there since.

It has meant a lot to him what he has accomplished over his time in Taylor Mill. He has been an integral part in the growth of the city, even since he was a kid.

“It’s a good feeling. It’s made me part of a legacy that I leave for my children,” Kreimborg said. “To see where the city was when I was a kid, and to see it now.”

Former City Administrator Brian Haney believes Kreimborg has been a major asset to all the staff, including him, because of the wealth of knowledge he brings and his willingness to share it with people in the city.

“Mark is kind of unique, because he is a Taylor Mill grown, always been here, deep-rooted commissioner,” Haney said. “He has more perspective and kind of a deeper relationship to everything the city does than most of us do.”

The two most important things in Kreimborg’s everyday life, he said, are God and his family. His wife, Debbie Kreimborg, died from lung cancer in September of 2023, and she was a huge part of his life, but he keeps her with him every day.

“It’s your family,” Kreimborg said. “My wife Debbie passed away two and a half years ago. And thank God for my children and my grandchildren. That keeps me motivated. And then I come up here and this is a close-knit group up here in the city, too, and that helps.”

“Mark really cares about his family,” Dudderar said. “His family is everything to him and sets a great example for people.”

The legacy Kreimborg has left is already cemented; he has plaques all over the city, but that doesn’t matter to him. He said the legacy he wants to leave behind is honesty.

“I try to help people. If somebody’s got a problem or whatever they need help with, they feel like they can come to me,” Kreimborg said. “I like to be friendly. I just want this to be the best city that it can be.”