City Council interviewing utilities board applicants

Springfield City Council is close to deciding who will serve on the city's Board of Public Utilities.

Five seats are opening on the board. Two of those seats, currently held by Virginia Fry and Phillip Wannenmacher, will be filled due to term limits. Of the remaining three board members up for re-election, Mike Rankin chose not to apply for another term, while Lisa Crump and Tom Rankin applied for reappointment.

Council members met Monday night as the Committee of the Whole, interviewing 10 of 12 total candidates for the five spots, according to city spokeswoman Louise Whall. The remaining two candidates will be interviewed during the council's Tuesday luncheon, at which time the Committee of the Whole will make its recommendations to the council.

Council is expected to approve those recommendations at its Dec. 14 meeting.

New to the appointment process this year was a written application, Whall said, including a cover letter and candidate's vision for the future of the utility. Council took those applications in November.

Three of the open board spots are for city residents, while the remaining two are for people living in the county but outside the Springfield city limits. According to the city charter, applicants for city positions must have lived in Springfield for at least two years, and county applicants must live in Greene County, have subscribed to at least one utility service for at least two years and must maintain that service during their board terms.[[In-content Ad]]