Wiggins Appointed To Council, Hopes to Fill Void
August 31, 2016 at 9:35 p.m.
By Dan [email protected]
Wiggins, 67, was chosen by a caucus of precinct committee members over Josh Finch, the only other competitor, during a meeting at the Kosciusko County Courthouse Tuesday night.
The selection was announced by Kosciusko County Republican Party Chairman Mike Ragan after 19 precinct committee members voted in a secret ballot.
Wiggins fills the vacancy created when councilman Brad Tandy resigned in early August after accepting a job out of state. Tandy represented the council’s 3rd District for 22 years.
Wiggins will fill out the remainder of Tandy’s term, which ends Dec. 31, 2018.
Both Wiggins and Finch spoke briefly before votes were cast.
Finch, a 28-year-old Warsaw man, is from Wabash but said he spent many of his summers around Chapman Lake and that helped shape his life.
Finch pledged to keep an open mind and do what is best for the county. He also said he planned to remain eager and continue to learn about the job.
“If elected to serve, I will work diligently to make this something I can be a part of for many years to come and not just a single term,” Finch said.
In his remarks, Wiggins reminded fellow Republicans about his nearly 30 years of work in city government. Wiggins served as a city councilman for more than a dozen years and then served as mayor from 1997 to 2011.
In addition to the loss of Tandy, council’s longest serving councilman, Larry Teghtmeyer is set to retire at the end of the year. Combined, those two council members have more than 50 years of county government experience.
Wiggins said he thinks his involvement could help overcome some of the loss of “institutional knowledge.”
“I feel I have the background and experience to fill this void,” he said.
While serving as mayor, Wiggins and his police chief worked with county officials in the merging of city and county dispatch centers and often attended county commissioner meetings during that period.
Merging the dispatch centers was made easier, Wiggins said, by good relationships with county officials including longtime friend Ron Robinson, the current county administrator.
“I think we have one of the finest dispatch centers in the country. I think we’re looked at as a model and I’m very proud of that,” he said.
After stepping down as mayor, Wiggins served as an ambassador for the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns, working with government leaders in northern Indiana primarily on budget issues, which he considers to be his “forte.”
With the arrival of Wiggins, council will now have two longtime former city leaders among its seven members.
Jon Garber, the former superintendent of Warsaw Parks and Recreation, joined the council in 2012 after being appointed by a Republican caucus to fill a vacancy.
Tuesday’s action came 19 days after Tandy announced his resignation. Ragan said from the outset that they wanted to fill it quickly because council is in the midst of finalizing its 2017 budget.
Wiggins has already attended several county meetings.
Similarly, Wiggins was appointed as mayor by a Republican caucus after longtime mayor Jeff Plank resigned mid-term.
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Wiggins, 67, was chosen by a caucus of precinct committee members over Josh Finch, the only other competitor, during a meeting at the Kosciusko County Courthouse Tuesday night.
The selection was announced by Kosciusko County Republican Party Chairman Mike Ragan after 19 precinct committee members voted in a secret ballot.
Wiggins fills the vacancy created when councilman Brad Tandy resigned in early August after accepting a job out of state. Tandy represented the council’s 3rd District for 22 years.
Wiggins will fill out the remainder of Tandy’s term, which ends Dec. 31, 2018.
Both Wiggins and Finch spoke briefly before votes were cast.
Finch, a 28-year-old Warsaw man, is from Wabash but said he spent many of his summers around Chapman Lake and that helped shape his life.
Finch pledged to keep an open mind and do what is best for the county. He also said he planned to remain eager and continue to learn about the job.
“If elected to serve, I will work diligently to make this something I can be a part of for many years to come and not just a single term,” Finch said.
In his remarks, Wiggins reminded fellow Republicans about his nearly 30 years of work in city government. Wiggins served as a city councilman for more than a dozen years and then served as mayor from 1997 to 2011.
In addition to the loss of Tandy, council’s longest serving councilman, Larry Teghtmeyer is set to retire at the end of the year. Combined, those two council members have more than 50 years of county government experience.
Wiggins said he thinks his involvement could help overcome some of the loss of “institutional knowledge.”
“I feel I have the background and experience to fill this void,” he said.
While serving as mayor, Wiggins and his police chief worked with county officials in the merging of city and county dispatch centers and often attended county commissioner meetings during that period.
Merging the dispatch centers was made easier, Wiggins said, by good relationships with county officials including longtime friend Ron Robinson, the current county administrator.
“I think we have one of the finest dispatch centers in the country. I think we’re looked at as a model and I’m very proud of that,” he said.
After stepping down as mayor, Wiggins served as an ambassador for the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns, working with government leaders in northern Indiana primarily on budget issues, which he considers to be his “forte.”
With the arrival of Wiggins, council will now have two longtime former city leaders among its seven members.
Jon Garber, the former superintendent of Warsaw Parks and Recreation, joined the council in 2012 after being appointed by a Republican caucus to fill a vacancy.
Tuesday’s action came 19 days after Tandy announced his resignation. Ragan said from the outset that they wanted to fill it quickly because council is in the midst of finalizing its 2017 budget.
Wiggins has already attended several county meetings.
Similarly, Wiggins was appointed as mayor by a Republican caucus after longtime mayor Jeff Plank resigned mid-term.
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