ROGERS -- Roger Surly, who has served on the Rogers Water Utilities Commission since 2012, was appointed Monday to fill a vacancy on the City Council by a 5-1 council vote.
Surly is a finance business partner for Kennametal Inc. in Rogers, an industrial tool manufacturer. He also served on the board of the Northwest Arkansas Conservation Authority, a regional wastewater treatment plant, from 2017 to 2021.
"I'm excited to have a chance to serve the city in a different capacity," Surly said in a phone interview Monday afternoon. Taking an appointed position to fill a vacancy is a rare opportunity to serve before committing to enter an election, he said. Whether or not he runs for reelection will depend on his experience for the next year and a half, he said.
Surly's term will start when he is sworn in at the next regular council meeting on June 13, according to council members.
The dissenting vote came from council member April Legere. The choice was a hard one among qualified candidates but Monday's appointment was a missed opportunity to increase diversity on the city's governing body, she said after the meeting.
The city had both Hispanic and younger applicants. The fastest-growing sector of the population in the city is Hispanic, she said, and the council could use more diversity by age, too.
The five who voted to appoint Surly included Clay Kendall, Barney Hayes, Betsy Reithemeyer, Gary Townzen and Marge Wolf.
Council member Mandy Brashear was absent from Monday's vote. She was on a long-planned vacation and unable to join by video, Mayor Greg Hines said after Monday's meeting.
The special meeting began at 3 p.m. at City Hall and the council went into a 22-minute executive session to discuss the applications. The council's vote came about 3:25 p.m.
Surly will serve in the council's Ward 4, Position 2 seat. Ward 4 covers the southeastern portion of the city. Council members are elected at large, but seats are divided by ward to make sure all sections of the city have representation on the eight-member council. Surly sees his role as representing the interests of the city as a whole, he said.
The vacancy resulted from the May 1 death of Mark Kruger, who first joined the council in 1989.
Under state law, the council can either appoint a new member by majority vote or set a special election. Surly will serve the remainder of the term, which runs through 2024. He may run for the seat in the 2024 election.
The deadline for applications was noon Friday. Eleven others, besides Surly, applied for the seat who met the qualifications of being a U.S. citizen, a registered voter of Benton County and a resident of Ward 4, according to Peter Masonis, a public relations manager for the city. Those 11 included:
Abel Albarran, an attorney with the Joyce Law Firm in Fayetteville.
Aaron Cash, an attorney and partner in the Herrera Law Group of Rogers.
Carmen Cunningham, a senior manager for merchandise solutions for Sam's Club.
Azucena Dentin, founder and chief executive officer of Omni Analytics, a retail consulting business.
Veronica Fasciana, an assistant attorney for the Crouch, Harwell, Fryar and Ferner Law Firm in Springdale.
Jevon Jamieson, director of specialty ethics and compliance in the supply chain for Walmart.
Bryson Jennings, an associate merchant for Walmart.
Richard Labit, a full-time student at the University of Arkansas School of Law. Labit lost his bid for the Ward 4, Position 1 seat in the Nov. 8 election to incumbent Barney Hayes.
Mike Myers, who owns Summit Aviation, the fixed-base operator for the Springdale Municipal Airport. He also is founder, director of operations and a pilot for Executive Aviation Services in Springdale.
Sarah Phillips, a senior manager for threat management for Walmart.
Elizabeth Villar, an accounting associate for Evergreen Business and Accounting in Fayetteville.
Two residents applied for the council seat, but then withdrew their names from consideration, Masonis said. Four others applied but did not live in Ward 4, he said.
Salary for the position is $1,173 per month. Insurance benefits also are available.