The City of Merrill Committee of the Whole will meet Tuesday, Oct. 9 to consider candidates for two vacant aldermanic posts. Recommendations from that meeting will be forwarded to the Common Council meeting slated to follow Tuesday night. All candidates for the open council seats have submitted letters of intent to the city.
In District 2, incumbent Pete Lokemoen has resigned. Candidates for the position are Steve Hass and Mike Willman, both of whom previously served 10 years on the Merrill Common Council. Hass, who works at Miller Home Furnishings, served on the Common Council from 2004-2014; and was council president from 2008-2014. Willman, retired from the Wisconsin DNR, served on the Common Council from 1994-2004; and was elected council president in 1998, 2000 and 2002. He currently serves on the Park & Recreation Commission (since 2009) and the City Plan Commission (since 2016).
In District 3, candidates Rick Blake and Eric Ott have applied for the seat vacated by the resignation of incumbent Ryan Schwartzman. Blake, retired from Merrill Area Public Schools, currently chairs the Merrill Transit Commission. Ott, who works for Burgener Contract Carriers, ran against Schwartzman in April 2018, losing by 41 votes.
The Committee of the Whole, made up of all city alderpersons, will conduct interviews of the candidates before making recommendations on the successful candidates and term duration. The new aldermen will be be approved at the beginning of the Common Council meeting, after which they will take the oath of office and their seats on the council.