Ankeny Council Members Postpone Mayor Candidate Discussion

Ankeny residents will have to wait until next week to find out what the city council members think about the eight applicants for mayor.

During Monday's city council meeting, members decided to hold off on discussing the candidates, saying they needed more time to review the applications.

“I need a little bit more time here,” said Councilman Jim McKenna. “We’ve got some good candidates, but I have to admit, I didn’t know hardly any of them.”

The council decided at a special planning meeting last week they would utilize time during last night's meeting to discuss the qualifications of those who want to take over as Ankeny's next mayor.

Eight people submitted applications to be the next Ankeny mayor, according to the Des Moines Register. Applicants were Andrew Boscaljon, Dennis Ellars, Peter L. Hong, Gary Lorenz, Chuck Scott, Michael D. Sibert, James Stordahl and Jeff Wright, the article said.

Council members seemed to be in agreement about needing more time. McKenna echoed the sentiments of other council members when he stressed that it was important for the council “to do their due diligence” in selecting the next mayor of Ankeny.

Part of the problem appeared to be the overwhelming number of candidates that submitted an application. Ankeny City Manager Jim Spradling said the response from citizens was a good indicator of how important Ankeny residents consider the mayoral job.

“I wouldn’t have guessed we’d have eight candidates,” Spradling said. “It’s indicative of the kind of citizens we have here in Ankeny – they want to get involved.”

Councilman Dave Kissinger said that he wanted to make sure Ankeny’s citizens were kept in the loop as well, asking city staff to make sure information about each candidate is available to the public.

The chosen applicant will fill the seat of departing mayor Steven Van Oort, who will officially resign his position on Friday. Van Oort recently was elected to 3rd District seat on the Polk County Board of Supervisors.

The appointee will serve the remainder of the term which ends Dec. 31, 2013. Kissinger, who also serves as mayor pro tem, will take over the duties of the mayor’s office until council members can select a replacement.

If the council formally decides to appoints a replacement on Dec. 10, Ankeny residents can still petition the council for a special election. 289 signatures are required for the petition.

Spradling said that while he’s heard rumors of a petition, he hasn’t seen anything concrete yet.

To hold a special election, petitions must be filed with the city clerk within 14 days after the appointment is made. Even if a petition is filed, the earliest the city could hold a special election would be March of next year. Until that time whomever is appointed by the city council will fulfill the duties of the mayor’s office.

Holding a special election would cost the city of Ankeny between $10,000 and $15,000 roughly, Spradling said.

No matter who gets the nod to become the next mayor of Ankeny council members stressed that it was important the incoming mayor became quickly acclimated in Ankeny.

“We need someone to hit the ground running,” said Councilman Mark Holm.