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Solon swears in mayor and council members, confirms leadership team and department heads
Summary
At its organizational meeting, the Solon City Council swore in Mayor Edward H. Krause and newly seated council members and confirmed mayoral appointments to vice mayor, committee chairs and department directors. The council also reappointed administrative clerks and a planning representative.
Edward H. Krause was sworn in as mayor at the Solon City Council meeting, repeating the oath administered by Judge Bell and concluding, "So help me God." The council then administered oaths to newly seated council members, including Robert P. Schimetz, Robert N. Pilunas and Michael S. Khan.
After the swearing-in, Mayor Krause announced his organizational appointments. Nancy Meany was named vice mayor and Mackie Bentley was named alternate vice mayor. Committee assignments included Councilman Pilunas as chair of Finance with Councilmen Lobscher and Khan as members; Zellwein as chair of Safety with Councilmen Khan and Palunas as members; and Schimetz as chair of Economic Development with Vice Mayor Meany and Zellwein serving on that committee. The mayor also designated Vice Mayor Meany as the city’s representative to the Solon Senior Center.
Council voted to confirm the mayor’s slate. Councilman Pilunas moved to confirm the appointments, a motion that was seconded and approved by roll call.
The council approved a set of council appointments and reappointments: Maggie Bentley was appointed to the Planning Commission, Donna LaTerna was reappointed as Clerk of Council, and Shelby England was reappointed as Assistant Clerk of Council. A motion to approve those appointments passed by roll call.
Mayor Krause then nominated department directors for the coming term. The slate announced by the mayor included: Samika Burton (director of human resources), John Bush (director of engineering), Bill Dursik (public works commissioner), Jill Frankel (director of senior services), Jim Gibbs (director of information technology), Mark Hawley (service director), Mike Iona (director of planning and community development), Rich Parker (recreation director), Courtney Perkins (chief of police), Paul Solanix (chair, water reclamation), Tracy Sullivan (director of community and cultural enrichment), Tindita Tillman (director of finance), and Sean Toth (fire chief). The council approved the director appointments by roll call.
Procedural business included approval of the council minutes for Nov. 17, 2025 (a motion carried with one member recorded as abstaining) and announcements of upcoming budget hearings and a rescheduled Safety & Public Properties meeting. The mayor and council closed the meeting with brief remarks of thanks to staff, judges present for the swearing-in and those who organized recent community events such as WinterFest.
The meeting adjourned after a roll-call motion to end the session.
