Grandview Heights mayor names new building official; council moves to confirm civil service commissioner nominee

Mayor Kearns announced that Michael Hulsey will start June 30 as director of the City of Grandview Heights Building and Zoning Department after a multi-jurisdictional search.

The appointment was presented during the council's special meeting June 23 as Mayor Kearns described Hulsey's background, saying he comes from Hilliard where he served as a building director and is a registered architect. Mayor Kearns said Hulsey has attended planning commission and BZA meetings to begin onboarding.

The mayor also introduced a nomination to fill a vacancy on the civil service commission following the resignation of Amy Ida, which the mayor described as prompted by family and workload considerations. The mayor named Eric Farmer (recorded in the meeting transcript) as the nominee and asked the council for confirmation.

A motion to confirm the civil service nominee was made during the meeting. The transcript records a motion and a subsequent exchange but does not include a formal roll-call vote or a completed, recorded outcome for that confirmation within the provided excerpt.

The mayor described the civil service role as related to fair, merit-based hiring practices; he noted the nominee has experience in government service and environmental law dating to 2008. Council members offered brief congratulatory remarks after the motion was made.

No other formal council action on the building and zoning appointment is recorded in the provided transcript excerpt; the mayor said Hulsey will begin June 30 and that an earlier swearing-in at City Hall had already occurred for a separate personnel matter.

Local context: the civil service commission oversees merit-based hiring processes for city personnel; the mayor noted the nominee's legal experience as a qualification.

Questions or further formal votes on either appointment were not recorded in the transcript excerpt provided.