ST. GEORGE — Washington City swore in its first new mayor in 12 years Monday as former City Councilman Kress Staheli took the oath of office along with council newcomers Kimberly Casperson and Bret Henderson.
“It was an exciting experience,” Staheli told St. George News Tuesday. “I just feel a sense of urgency and enthusiasm and a desire to get to work for the residents of Washington City.”
Before being elected as the new mayor, Staheli served on the Washington City Council on two separate occasions, and on the city’s Planning Commission before that. He defeated incumbent Mayor Ken Neilson last November and says he’s looking forward to serving in his new role.
“I feel like the role of the mayor, where it’s not a voting position unless there’s a tie (vote), is certainly much more a position of influence and leadership,” Staheli said. “So I feel like one of the things that I can do is, is provide that influence and that support to the council and that support to the staff, and that we can set a culture that really sets us up to move forward.”
There are many things on the plate for the new mayor and City Council, Staheli said. Among the primary and interconnected concerns are water and growth. It is an area Staheli said he is looking forward to working with over cities and the county on as they collaborate together on the ongoing issues.
Growth-wise, Washington City has been one of the fasting growing communities in the state. In addition to water, this has led to concerns over how Washington Fields is developed, as well as what commercial enterprises may be recruited to the city in order to bolster local sales tax revenue.
An area Staheli has said he has interests in is Washington City’s downtown area, particularly around the Main Street and Telegraph Street intersection. He has previously stated he wants to see the city’s downtown become a community gathering place.
As for the two new City Council members, Staheli said he’s looking forward to working with them.
“I’m really excited to support and look forward to working with both council members Henderson and Casperson,” he said. “I think they’re going to be fantastic additions to the council.”
Henderson said he’s gotten to meet many new people since being elected to the City Council. Many of the news faces work for the city, which he said has impressed him.
“We’ve got a good staff, good quality employees,” he said. “I’m excited to work with these guys.”
He’s also excited to get to work in general and learn what he needed to learn along the way, Henderson said. He also said he hopes to be an example of service to the council and city employees.
“I’ve always had an attitude of service in my life and I hope to bring that to the City Council,” he said. “And I hope some of that will rub off on our employees and staff at the city. I’m hoping to just continue that.”
Casperson also said she is grateful for the opportunity to serve the people of Washington City.
“It is an honor to serve the great people in Washington City and to take an oath to support, obey and defend the Constitution,” she said. “I will work hard to represent and serve our community and defend and support the Constitution. I want to make sure residents’ voices are heard and respected. This is a government for the people, by the people, of the people.”
The new mayor and City Council held a special council meeting following taking the oath of office. During the meeting, the council changed the time of the regular City Council meetings held on the second and fourth Wednesday of the month from 6 p.m. to 4 p.m. The council also moved its work meeting from before the regular meeting to the first and third Wednesday of the month, also at 4 p.m.
Some of the reasons this was done are to provide city staff and council members more time to prepare and review certain agenda items while also reducing some of the overall workload to be addressed in one night, Staheli said.
This was also done as the city has the ability to stream its meetings online over YouTube for residents unable to attend in person. Residents also have the ability to issue comments on agenda items online as well, he said.
City department heads also introduced themselves to the new council members and gave them a short overview of what their departments did within the city.
Currently, there are only four people on the Washington City Council due to Staheli trading his council seat for the mayor’s seat. This has left a vacancy on the council that city officials hope to fill by Jan. 18.
Details on requirements on how to apply for the position can be found here.
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