HUBBARD — New city Safety Director Shawn Rentz began his tenure May 1 and attended his first council meeting on Monday.

Rentz took over for former Safety Director Bill Bancroft. Council President Bill Williams thanked Rentz for serving the community as safety director during the council meeting.

Rentz expressed gratitude for the opportunity.

“It’s a great position, and I’m really honored that I was chosen for it and I’m really looking forward to doing my part and making sure everything runs smoothly,” Rentz said. “I’m quite humbled by the position and the fact the mayor took me on.”

Rentz said he hadn’t planned on being the safety director prior to the position’s opening.

“With a background in law enforcement and a background in some other aspects, I guess I just got lured into it,” he said. “I applied for the position. I sent a resume to him (Mayor Ben Kyle) and set up an appointment to talk to him and he interviewed me.”

Mayor Ben Kyle said he chose Rentz because of his background in law enforcement.

“He (Rentz) had a great depth of knowledge in police operations and city safety and a willingness to want to serve his community,” Kyle said. “He definitely has a passion for law enforcement, and that’s something we look for in these positions.”

He also said Rentz qualified for the position since he lives in the city of Hubbard.

Rentz said he retired from law enforcement in June.

“I started out in Kinsman where I was a patrolman then I made the rank of sergeant,” he said.

He said he also worked at the Bazetta Police Department part time since the Kinsman Police Department was a part-time department.

Rentz said he quit working in Kinsman and became a full-time patrolman in Bazetta when the position became available. He later served as a detective at Bazetta’s department.

Rentz said he left Bazetta after being hired as police chief in Kinsman.

“I retired from the position of chief,” he said. “Being the chief gave me a little insight into the administrative (aspect).”

He said he also spent eight years in the military.

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