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McDONALD -- Village council has named former mayor Glen "Marty" Puckett to fill an open seat on council.
Council met for less than five minutes at a special meeting Monday where they voted 5-0 naming Puckett to the seat. Former councilman Don Smith stepped down as he and his family are moving to Florida.
Council President Sean Schmidt said council selected Puckett for his experience and knowledge of the village because he served on council before being elected mayor.
"His experience serving the village in the past and his availability to serve on council is what we need at this time," Schmidt said.
Puckett served the village as mayor for seven years and took over for former mayor Glenn Holmes, who took a state position. Before becoming mayor, he was a member of council for six years. He was appointed to council to replace Peter Sudol.
Puckett said he was especially proud of certain projects that were done when he was mayor, such as remodeling council chambers at the 1922 municipal building where council meetings and mayor's court take place. Puckett did not run for reelection and the current mayor is Ray Lewis.
Puckett works as a supervisor for a construction company.
Puckett will serve through December 2027 to fill the remainder of Smith's term and if he wants to serve another term, he will need to run in the November 2027 election.
Puckett will be sworn in at the Aug. 19 meeting.
Schmidt said there were eight applicants for the council seat.
"We appreciate the interest from the residents who wanted to serve the village as a member of council. We were thrilled to have eight applicants," he said.
Schmidt said members of council were impressed by the applicants.
Others who sought the seat included former mayor James Border, former fire chief Nicholas Kish, and residents Dylan Bigelow, James Billock, Brian Flanigan, Odell Houston and Rick Teter.
Smith was a 27-year resident of the village who served as chairman of the finance and capital improvement committee and levy committee.
In other action Monday, council gave final reading for placing a 4.5-mill safety services levy on the November ballot. The levy, if passed, will generate $310,000 annually to benefit the police and fire departments.
Officials have said with the cost of equipment for the fire and police departments increasing in recent years, the new levy funds will help cover that as well as day-to-day operating costs and wages.