ONTARIO — Service-safety director Kris Knapp will be the new mayor of Ontario.
“I’m very humbled,” he said after his appointment Wednesday evening. “As the mayor and I talked at the last council meeting, I hope to carry on a lot of the values that Mayor Hutchinson started.
“Thank you all for selecting me, I’m very honored.”
Knapp texted the good news to his wife and daughters, as well as former mayor Randy Hutchinson.
“I told the committee this should be a seamless transition because I worked with Mayor Hutchinson every day,” Knapp said. “I know what he asked and what his vision was, so I plan to continue that.”
Richland County Republican Party Ontario Central Committee members Jane Zimmerman, Zoi Romanchuk, Susan Hellinger and Kyle Webb interviewed five candidates, one of whom withdrew their application.
Three members voted for Knapp and one voted for Councilman Josh Bradley. The other applicants were Councilman Troy Sapp and former councilman Mark Weidemyre.
Richland County Republican Party Chair Marilyn John thanked the four candidates for submitting applications and going through the interview process.
“It’s not an easy thing to put your name in,” she said. “I remember the first time I took out petitions to run for [Shelby] mayor, and it’s really something to be able to do that.”
Knapp lists business, community development among goals
Knapp, 58, is a retired Ontario High School teacher. He took on the role of city service-safety director in 2022.
“I grew up here, went to school here — my parents came here when GM moved to town so that’s what got us started,” he said.
The new mayor will be sworn in at the city’s next council meeting on Aug. 7. He will serve as mayor through the end of Hutchinson’s term in December 2025.
Knapp said he plans to seek election to the mayoral seat on next year’s ballots.
He listed many tasks already on his to-do list including appointing a new service-safety director, working with Industrial Commercial Properties on the former General Motors site and helping new businesses come to town.
“I really love this community and look forward to stepping into this role,” he said.
“We’ve got a lot of great things coming up, and we’ll carry on from what Mayor Hutchinson started. Just continue to take that vision and build from there.”
