SHILOH – Newly elected Shiloh Mayor Paul Currier is ready to inspire change in the northern Richland County village.
In November 2023, Currier received 67.42 percent of the votes to defeat Marilyn Hall 120 to 58.
Tuesday, Currier oversaw his first Shiloh Village Council meeting since his term became effective Jan. 1.
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New councilmembers, community attendance on the rise
Several community members were in attendance at the Shiloh Village Municipal Building, something the mayor said he hopes to see continue.
“To see the interest from the people out there, you know, they put a lot of stock in the three of us up here on the big pedestal and the new councilmembers,” Currier said.
The meeting also ushered in two new councilmembers, Ryan Click and Brent Wagers, who began their first terms on Shiloh Village Council since election in November.
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Wagers led with 33 percent of the vote, followed by Click with 32 percent of the vote.
The pair replaced former council members Kalynn Means and Abby Hill, who both received 17 percent of votes cast in November.
During the meeting, Click, after a tie vote, was chosen by Currier to serve as council president and Wagers was chosen to represent village council on the fire board.
Currier said he’s witnessed growth in resident attendance at council meetings since June of last year and hopes to see that level of engagement continue to increase.
“Since June, the meetings have gotten bigger and bigger and bigger,” he said.
“The meeting ran too long tonight, but I knew that was going to happen and maybe the next one (council meeting) will too,” he joked. “But we’ll get stuff patched out.”
Currier says water project will be ‘enormous’
Adjusting to his first term as mayor will be a slow process, but Currier said he’s doing everything he can to bring himself up-to-speed on the village’s $1.7 million water project.
The three-phase project includes installing water meters for all village customers; fire hydrant and valve replacement; dismantling the old water tower; and replacing the Main Street water line.
Currier said working closely with village administrator Bryan Verburg will be critical as the project continues to develop.
“This water project is going to be enormous,” he said. “That’s why I want Bryan (Verburg) to be the zoning inspector also.
“I need all the help I can get from his expertise, along with mine.”
In November 2023, Richland County commissioners voted to accept the low bids for the project.
Dirt Dawg Excavating from Ashland was awarded the bid for the majority of the work at $1,696,939. Iseler Demolition Inc. from Port Hope, Mich., had the lowest bid for the water tower demolition at $70,700.
Currier said he’s hopeful the project will help move the village in a direction to address increasing water rates, at a future time.
“I feel good about what we’re doing,” he said.
“If we can stick with this, I want to meet with the commissioners again on a one-on-one basis and I want to meet with the village solicitor, to make sure that things are being told properly to him.”