Belleville Mayor Kerreen Conley stepped down from her position of city leadership on Monday and newly elected Mayor Ken Voigt took the gavel. But, it wasn’t done quietly.
Monday’s city council meeting was held in the Cozadd meeting room at the Belleville Area District Library, with cake and awards and family pictures and 34th District Judge Lisa Martin swearing in everybody.
The room was packed with people who came to support the newly elected, the reelected, the new police chief, the outgoing mayor and Councilman Tom Fielder, who was retiring — again — from public service. Mayor Voigt said Fielder had served 50 years and Conley had served 30 years. They know a lot of city history and why this or that was done.
In her farewell address, Conley noted there has been nearly 100% turnover in city administration in the last four years.
But Mayor Voigt has a good memory and he also has been around for a long time since his days as a Belleville police officer and memberships on committees and commissions and city council. He will have to keep the newer council members on track.
Although he has said he didn’t want to be mayor, the deal was made four years ago, Conley said. She said he said if she wanted another four years as mayor, he wouldn’t run against her then. She did and he didn’t run. She said she decided not to run this year after Voigt announced his intention to run.
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