Libertyville appoints mayor, two councilors

LIBERTYVILLE ? The Libertyville City Council will welcome two new members and a new mayor when it meets Tuesday.

Rod Nelson, who had been the mayor pro tempore, was appointed to be the council?s new mayor at the Feb. 12 meeting. Nelson will assume the role vacated by outgoing mayor Darryl Davison, who resigned at the January meeting because he had to relocate for a job.

The two new councilors are Carrie Fleig and Randy Melcher.

Nelson joined the council six years ago and has been acting as mayor pro tempore almost the entire time. He said he joined the council because he feels every person in a small town has to contribute something to the town to make it work.

?I want to keep Libertyville viable,? he said. ?I want to keep the school here and keep our businesses strong. Obviously, we?d love to keep the post office, too.?

Nelson said the council has spoken with the postmaster general about keeping the town?s post office open. So far, the council?s efforts have been successful.

Nelson?s time on the council has been enjoyable, with only a few minor bumps along the way.

?For the most part, the town is supportive of its local government,? he said. ?Everybody on the council strives to make the town better, and the citizens recognize that and appreciate the effort of the guys put here. These guys get paid very little to do this, and they put in many extra hours beside the council meetings.?

Nelson has lived in Libertyville for the past 20 years. Before that, he lived in Stockport and Fairfield.

This is not Nelson?s first time on the council. He was a councilor from 1995-1996 but had to give up the position because of a change to his work schedule which prevented him from attending the meetings. Nelson now owns two businesses in Fairfield, Live Wire Electric and Straight Up Doors.

Fleig is a relative newcomer to Libertyville, having lived here since 2010. She moved to town to run the Dew Drop Inn.

Fleig was born and raised in Olympia, Wash. Her husband, Roger, is from the Libertyville area and the two of them decided to move here to be closer to Roger?s parents.

The most noticeable difference Fleig found when she moved to Iowa was the trees.

?There are no fir trees here,? she said. ?I had to get used to seeing farm equipment on the highway instead of logging trucks.?

The weather is another difference that stands out. Fleig said Iowa has four very distinct seasons. That is not true of the Puget Sound area where she grew up.

?It?s hard to tell the seasons apart there,? she said. ?It?s pretty much wet and gray all the time. That?s what keeps it green.?

Fleig said she was interested in joining the council because she wanted something to do and because there were issues that interested her, particularly the post office. She said it?s hard to use the post office when it?s only open for such a short time during the day, which she said was 45 minutes.

She also is interested in trying to convince the postal service to deliver the town?s mail earlier in the day. She said she can?t get her mail until 11:30 a.m.

Melcher has lived either in or near Libertyville his entire life. His wife Pam said he grew up in Libertyville. He and his wife lived in Packwood for eight years before moving back to Libertyville in 1993, where they have stayed ever since. Both of them are also graduates of Fairfield High School.

Melcher runs RPM Auto Repair in Fairfield, where he works with his 26-year-old son Adam.

Pam Melcher said her husband joined the council because he wanted to ?bring some positive things to the council to help our little town.?

Two vacancies on the council were created when Davison and Tim Messer resigned. Their replacements, Fleig and Melcher, will join Tom Atwood, Wes Davis and Alan Love on the five-member council.