MANSFIELD, Ohio – Two Mansfield officials took their oaths of office Monday on the eve of their second consecutive terms.
The terms for Mansfield Mayor Tim Theaker and Law Director John Spon officially begin Tuesday.
The ceremony for Theaker began at 10 a.m. in Mansfield City Council Chambers with Ohio State Rep. Mark Romanchuk administering the oath. Theaker’s wife, Ann, stood with him as he was sworn in.
“I can’t thank the City of Mansfield and the voters of Mansfield enough – and all those individuals who also worked on my campaign,” the mayor said. “There was a lot of work that we did in the last four years.
“Four years ago, the city was a mess, and we really worked hard in the last four years to really improve the city – helping out with bringing unemployment down and bringing jobs to the community – now what we have to continue to do is just not stop now.”
Theaker defeated Democratic challenger Ron Abrams during the Nov. 3 general election with 5,442 votes to Abrams’ 4,488, a 54- to 46-percent margin. Write-in candidates for mayor counted 60 votes.
Law director Spon was sworn in at 11:30 a.m. in Mansfield Municipal Court judge Jerry Ault’s courtroom.
His brother, Richland County Juvenile Court Judge Ron Spon, administered the oath. Law Director Spon was joined by his wife, Dusty.
“First of all, I’m very grateful and humbled by being re-elected,” the law director said. “My goal was to do the greatest good for the greatest number of people in our city, and my commitment was to the tax payers, the property owners, and the families of our community – to whom I owe my utmost duty.”
Spon tallied 5,342 votes to Dave Remy’s 4,401 during the Nov. 3 general election.
In the next four years, Theaker said he wants to continue razing blighted structures and work with businesses – all with the goal of making “this city the best city in the state of Ohio.”
“It took us about three or three-and-a-half years to get everything into place: to get out of fiscal emergency, to get out of debt, to start improving Mansfield, to get a levy passed so we could start tearing down blighted structures – we’ve got that, and it’s taken a long time to do that,” he said. “But we have turned the city around, and like I said earlier, now we need to put the pedal to the metal and move forward.”
There are “a lot of” citywide projects currently working toward improvement, he added, including $120 million project to improve United States Route 30, for which the Ohio Department of Transportation is paying.
“We’re also going to have an open house Jan. 15 to show off [Mansfield Lahm Regional Airport’s] renovated terminal building,” Theaker said.
Romanchuk said he is pleased with the mayor’s re-election and looks forward to the next four years.
By law, Spon is eligible to run for a third term – something he said “absolutely” plans to do.
“I look forward to the four years we now have coming, and I look forward to another four years because, frankly, I enjoy serving the people and the citizens of our community,” he said, adding that he has plenty of time to retire and rest.
“But when my time comes – not until then,” he said.
