GALION — Galion’s city council members appointed William Comerford to fill Sarah Capretta’s vacant seat Tuesday night during a special meeting.
Comerford was a recent candidate for City Treasurer. He lost in the general election to Rodney Sparks by 301 votes and is currently working as a manager in Marion’s Rite-Aid. He said he will remain as manager at the store during his tenure as a council member. He is expected to be sworn in during Tuesday, April 12’s city council meeting.
Comerford is ready to get down to business, stating that getting out of fiscal emergency is priority number one.
“I’d like to make the decisions necessary to be relieved of fiscal emergency, that’s my No. 1 priority,” he said. “We need to prove to the state that we can function independently from them.”
In addition to approving Comerford, council voted on a staffing ordinance that included the addition of a deputy auditor. The bill did not pass with council members Susan Bean, Mark Triplett, Mike Hedges and Gail Baldinger casting dissenting votes. Council members Shirley Clark and Thomas Fellner voted in favor of the bill.
Including Comerford, there were four individuals who applied for Galion’s first ward seat.
Kenneth Bodkins Sr. submitted his application March 18, just seven days after Capretta resigned. In his letter he pointed to his devotion to the Galion community, having been born and raised in the city. He also included his 50 years of experience in the business sector.
Bodkins also served on the Galion Planning and Zoning Commission for three years and as a city council member for one year and-a-half.
“My roots and life are in this town. My home and businesses are all in this town,” he wrote.
Previous treasurer Paula Durbin was among the applicants. She currently works as a Legal Assistant at Wade Law Office LLC in Galion. She served as treasurer from June 2013 until December 2015 when she lost her bid for council member at-large in November.
Crestline native James Wetzel applied for the first ward seat as well. According to his resume, Wetzel served on the Crestline Police Department from 1984 to 1996 and has worked several real estate related jobs since.
