King to serve as president, Close as vice president of Upper Arlington City Council
Veteran members Brendan King and Brian Close will serve as president and vice president, respectively, of Upper Arlington City Council this year.
King, who has served on council since 2016, and Close, a member since 2018, were chosen unanimously by fellow council members Jan. 10.
It will be the second consecutive year King will preside over council as president. He also served as vice president in 2020.
"I am honored to have been chosen and elected by my peers on City Council to serve as the president," King said. "It's something I take seriously and will continue to take seriously, and I look forward to working together to move the city forward."
Close's selection marks the first time he will take a leadership role on council.
"I am proud of all the work city council has accomplished over the last four years, and I look forward to building on this momentum with our new councilmembers," Close said.
As for priorities for the coming year, both said the construction of the city's first community center will be high on their lists.
Construction is expected to begin this year on the $55 million project, and it's projected to open in 2024.
King and Close said they'll both work to engage residents in the various stages of the project this year, as well as oversee its progress.
Beyond the community center, King said his top priority this year will be to "continue to build trust through community engagement."
"Council has done a good job the last four years of building the trust of residents," he said. "That's something I take seriously and will continue to work on."
King added that council will set its agenda for the year during a retreat, which is expected to be held in early March.
"I am looking forward to the retreat as an opportunity to hear from the new council members and revisit the priorities of the past couple of years," he said. "Those events are an exciting time for building vision for the group."
Close said he'll also work to take input from fellow council members to determine what the city's top needs are this year, as well as to garner new ideas for enhancing city services.
"A majority of our council members recently went through the election cycle and each comes with a unique perspective as to the community’s needs and desires that will be prioritized in early March at our council retreat," he said.
nellis@thisweeknews.com
@ThisWeekNate
This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: King to serve as president, Close as vice president of Upper Arlington City Council
