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Council interviews candidates for BTEC; Raquel Luna and Ramiro Ivanice recommended for appointment
Summary
City council conducted interviews for multiple vacancies on the Business, Technology and Economic Commission (BTEC) and signaled support to appoint Raquel Luna (Ward 3) and Ramiro Ivanice (Ward 2) at a subsequent meeting. Councilors discussed priorities for representation by ward and candidate backgrounds.
Thornton City Council held interviews with candidates for openings on the Business, Technology and Economic Commission (BTEC) and indicated support to appoint two candidates next week: Raquel Luna for Ward 3 and Ramiro Ivanice for Ward 2.
Councilors interviewed several candidates during a multi-hour session, hearing from business owners and community members about their experience and goals for BTEC. Candidates described experience with local business support programs, outreach to underrepresented owners and a desire to help streamline permitting and city services for small businesses.
Council members said they gave weight to Ward residency and business presence when selecting nominees for the two open seats. During discussion, several councilors noted both Luna’s deep community presence and event participation and Ivanice’s local ties and business-sector experience as reasons to prioritize them for the open ward seats. Councilors also discussed other strong applicants and encouraged them to remain engaged with city programs even if not selected for appointment.
City staff said the council will make the formal appointments at a future meeting; the interviews themselves were part of the council’s selection process and not the formal appointment action. The council also discussed adjusting its interview procedures in future recruitment rounds, suggesting staff convene a pre-interview meeting to narrow candidate lists when vacancies are limited to a single ward.
The interviews, and council discussion about ward representation and candidate qualifications, reflected council interest in balancing resident representation with business experience on BTEC. Council members asked staff to follow up with candidates who were not selected to encourage engagement with city business support programs.
A next step listed by staff is a formal appointment at an upcoming council meeting and routine onboarding with the economic development team for the new commissioners.
