BELLVILLE — David Taylor was the fiscal officer of Jefferson Township for 10 years. Now he’s back as the township board’s newest trustee.

Taylor was sworn in during a regular meeting of the township trustees on Dec. 28. He took the spot after the death of former trustee Frederic “Fritz” Ackerman.

“When Fritz passed away, I told them I’d do anything I could to help and that’s how it all ended up,” Taylor said.

Board chair Mark Gatton said Taylor is a “perfect fit” for the role due to his experience with the board and background in finance and teaching.

“We had some executive sessions and Mr. (Bob) McConkie and I agreed that he’s going to be the best fit for the township. We knew he could hit the floor running,” he said. 

Taylor, 65, is a retired accounting professor from North Central State College, as well as a certified public accountant and the owner of David Taylor CPA Inc. in Bellville. Taylor has been a resident of the township since 1983 and both of his children attended Clear Fork schools.

Taylor was appointed fiscal officer for the Jefferson Township board of trustees in 2007 and held the position for 10 years.

“I enjoyed it when I was fiscal officer. It was a lot of fun,” he said. 

Taylor will serve out the rest of Ackerman’s term, which expires Dec. 31, 2023. He said he will “most likely” run to retain the seat. 

In the meantime, Taylor said he’s looking forward to rejoining longtime trustees Mark Gatton and Bob McConkie in running the township. 

“We all have experience. It’s a very good team,” he said. 

As trustee, Taylor will have a say in managing the township’s finances, roads and fire departments.

“I look forward to managing the finances of the township and making sure that the money is well spent,” he said. “We have some of the better roads in the county and our fire department is second to none.”

Gatton said there were three other residents — Rick Weimhoff, Donald Traxler, Michael Cecil — who expressed interest and that all of them were considered for the role.

“I was encouraged by it to tell you the truth. It’s good that people are aware of what’s going on in the local government,” he said. “I appreciated them stepping up and being willing to help us out.”

Gatton said that he called each applicant to thank them and encouraged them to consider running for trustee in the future. Both his and McConkie’s seats will be up for re-election this year.