FeedsNew councilman named to fill vacancy
Belleville officials Monday night appointed Walter Mears to fill the unexpired city council term of William Creamean who resigned on July 5.
Mears will serve on the council until Nov. 19, 2007. Having lived most of his life in the Belleville area, he said he has an interest in serving the local community and the development in the city.
“My heart’s in Belleville,” said Mears. “I feel my demographic is under represented here, too, and I’d like to help with that.
“I’m an analytical person and I think with a smaller town you have to be extremely cautious about the bottom line,” he added.
“There’s always room for improvement and growth and part of that is communication.”
Mears was chosen after a series of interviews that took place during a special city council meeting Monday night. Each applicant was asked the same questions: How do they feel about the relationship with other communities and the downtown development authority? What are their top priorities for city council? And, where do they want the city to be in the future? The other candidates included: Tracee Harris-Kloian, a long-time resident, Marian J. Lloyd-Caldwell, a three-year resident and Richard Smith, a former council member and business owner in the city for more than 40 years.
Councilman George Ched-raue recommended Mears because, “He’s straightforward, easy to understand and has put a lot of work into his position on the parks and recreation commission,” he said.
“I was very impressed with his (Mears) work on the parks and recreation commission and if he has that kind of mindset than I only wonder what he has for the city council,” said Chedraue.
Mears, 28, is a health navigator and data analyst for the University of Michigan Medical School. He is also a member of the parks and recreation commission and the treasurer of the Belle Villa Townhomes board of directors. His top priorities for the city, he said, are public safety and administration, as well as the budget.
“I’d like to see Belleville maintain the small town feel, but create a supportive structure for businesses and citizens,” said Mears.
Council member Lori Hecksel said she would like to see someone who is a free thinker, who wouldn’t follow along with the crowd, as well as someone with budgetary and fiduciary skills.
“Councilman Creamean was very detail oriented and Mears also has that structured process, like he said, he’s very analytical,” she said. “He also has grant writing and proposal experience.”
“There’s some benefit in diversity of areas around the city being represented,” said Mayor Tom Fielder. “I also value and encourage a newness to council, along with someone who’s newer to the community to get a fresh perspective.”
“I like his ability to work with budgets and data management. I also like his priorities. They’re all a good fit,” said Mayor Pro-tem William Emerson. “I also want to encourage any of the three candidates who were not chosen to apply for other city boards.”
