Bryan Chapman elected new mayor of Mount Pleasant
The Mount Pleasant City Commission elected a new mayor and a vice mayor for 2025 at the Jan. 13 meeting. Commissioners Bryan Chapman and Boomer Wingard will now serve as a mayor and vice mayor, respectively.
The previous mayor, Amy Perschbacher, served in the role for three years, and Mary Alsager was a vice mayor for a year and a half. Alsager said they both enjoyed working in leadership.
“I just wanted to congratulate Mayor Chapman and Vice Mayor Wingard, and wish them luck on the many meetings that they will run,” Perschbacher said. "Hopefully the direction of the city will continue to move forward and will uplift the residents."
The city commission selects a mayor each year, and Wingard said the majority of members was “looking to go in a different direction” than the previous leadership.
“Sometimes it's just time for change, to just get different perspectives and opinions in those roles,” he said.
Both Chapman and Wingard said they are excited to take on the new roles, and said their mutual goal is to improve the transparency in the commission.
“I think the more relational equity we have with people, the more transparency we have, that builds trust,” Chapman said. “My goal is to build trust in our community. ... We're here because we want to serve, and we're going to do it the best we can.”
Chapman said he aims to achieve better community engagement, support the people and serve in the role as best as he can.
“I love this city,” he said. “I was born here. I grew up in Mount Pleasant. … I just have a desire to serve in any way I can.”
Similarly, Wingard said he wants to work with the community and open new ways of communication. He created a Facebook page dedicated to his work at the commission, and set office hours from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on the first Wednesday of every month at the Veteran's Memorial Library.
In other events at the meeting:
- Leading his first meeting as the mayor, Chapman proclaimed Jan. 20 as Peacemaking Recognition Day.
- Commissioners Perschbacher, Elizabeth Busch and Maureen Eke took the oath of office, as they were re-elected for another term last November.
- The city welcomed a new finance director, Lauren Pavlowski, and Mount Pleasant police officer, Andrea Ream.
