Carefree Council appoints Mike Braun to Planning and Zoning Commission

The Carefree Town Council unanimously appointed Mike Braun to serve the remaining 17 months of a Planning and Zoning Commission term on a verbal roll-call vote Tuesday night. The council then moved and approved a formal motion to appoint him for the remainder of the term. The three candidates — Jan Neal, Michael (Mike) Braun and Elvira Encenko — each spoke for up to two minutes before the council voted. The mayor explained that the appointment requires a majority of council votes (four) to be confirmed. Nut graf: The appointment fills the seat left vacant when Commissioner Karen Dahlman resigned with 17 months left on her term. The council held public candidate presentations and then cast public votes so residents would know each council member’s choice. During brief remarks to the council, Michael Braun described his six-plus years as a Carefree resident and his background in community banking and financing projects, saying his experience with zoning and financing would be useful to the commission. Jan Neal summarized her experience in real estate, county government and project management and said she would focus on economic development and code enforcement. Elvira Encenko described her decade as a permanent Carefree resident, her teaching and research experience and said she wanted to give back to the community. Council members spoke in support of all three applicants before casting ballots. Councilman Miller said he was making his choice “based on doing the job” and voted for Braun. Councilwoman Sheila Amoroso said Braun’s banking experience and research skills influenced her vote. Councilwoman Colleen Roskurti cited Braun’s prior work on a stakeholders group and his engagement with council and staff. Councilwoman Diane Roth, Lon Johnson and the mayor publicly explained their votes; Roth and Johnson voted for Neal. The tally was five votes for Mike Braun and two for Jan Neal; the motion to appoint Braun then passed unanimously on the formal motion. The council chair encouraged the two candidates not selected to stay involved in town meetings and volunteer activities. Ending: Braun will serve the remainder of the 17-month term and may apply to run for the next full term under the town code when that process begins.