LEXINGTON — Lexington is looking for a new village council member. Councilman Adam Gongwer submitted his resignation Monday.
Gongwer recently accepted the position of safety service director for the city of Ontario and will move out of the village this week.
Gongwer said Ontario officials gave him six months to find a residence in the city as a condition of his employment. Gongwer previously told Richland Source he hoped to provide one to two months’ notice before resigning.
Life had other plans.
“I’m leaving a lot sooner than I thought,” Gongwer said on Monday. “I had thought I would have a few more months, maybe through November. But the housing market is so hot right now, things are moving more quickly than I realized.”
“It’s with a reluctant heart that I resign, but it’s with an excitement about what my future might bring.”
Gongwer has been a lifelong resident of Lexington, but his resume includes several positions with the city of Ontario.
He’s previously worked as a police officer, school resource officer and zoning inspector for the city.
He has sat on Lexington Village Council several times. He was appointed for the first time in 1996, when he was just 24 years old.
He was elected council president earlier this year after Bob Jarvis took on the role of mayor.
“We’re going to miss him, but we wish him well,” Jarvis said. “He’s going to do a great job for the City of Ontario.”
Gongwer said his favorite part of being a Lexington Village Council member was the problem-solving it entailed.
“My favorite part is resolving issues for the citizens and finding solutions that benefit both the citizen or the business owner and hopefully doing so without spending much of the taxpayer’s money,” Gongwer said.
Council must appoint replacement in thirty days
Gongwer’s former colleagues on council have 30 days from the date of the vacancy to appoint a successor, Jarvis said.
The appointee would fill the remainder of Gongwer’s term, which runs through Dec. 31, 2025.
“My advice (for my successor) would be to learn as much as possible from the other experienced council people on how they successfully serve the residents of the village,” he said.
Lexington village council cancelled its Monday meeting due to lack of a quorum, so council will meet on Oct. 14 to elect a new council president.
“That’s the person that kind of runs the search, looks at the resumes and gets interviews set up,” Jarvis said.
Interested candidates can submit resumes in-person at village hall or by emailing rjarvis@lexingtonohio.us.
“We knew this was coming, so we’ve actually advertised to take applications,” Jarvis said. “We’ve gotten a couple, I think we’re expecting more.”
