Council Member Holly Jackson Stepping Down After Taking Job With SWIPCO

In a surprise announcement made at Friday night’s special meeting, Holly Jackson  said she will not be able to complete the remaining two years of her at-large term on the city council because of a new job she will be starting on Jan. 22.

“I just accepted a position for a new job to take my career somewhere else. I will still be local, but with that position, I was literally just informed that I cannot carry an elected position,” Jackson told fellow council members. “It’s truly been an honor and a privilege. It’s an exciting opportunity but very bittersweet.”

In an interview after the meeting, Jackson, who currently serves as the Zoning Administrator for the Mills County Planning and Zoning Department, said her new position will be with the Southwest Iowa Planning Council (SWIPCO).

“It’s basically going to be working with the jurisdictions to train them on how to pass  and how to enforce ordinances, she said. “I’ll be able to write ordinances.”

Jackson said she’s proud of the growth the city has made during her six years on the city council.

“I am grateful to have had the opportunity to be part of such an amazing council,” she said. “Being an elected official was not something I took lightly and I am grateful to all those that voted for me.  We were forced to make some difficult decisions along the way.

“I strived to do as much research and seek out community opinions as often as possible. There were some obvious accomplishments based on decisions that we made, but there were several that were not as obvious, meetings where we met and appointed department heads or appointed committee members that volunteer their time and knowledge to assist the council.  We can’t be experts at everything and depend on those that step up to help behind the scenes to make our community one of the best. It is an honor to have been a small piece of that.”

Jackson mentioned the city’s acquisition of a new fire truck, improved relationships with Mills County, the Mills County Chamber of Commerce and surrounding jurisdictions, progress on the Mills County Trails system, the Downtown Revitalization program and both road and recreational improvements as some of the city’s accomplishments during her tenure on the council.

Jackson’s final meeting as a city council member will be Jan. 9. The city will likely appoint a replacement to serve the remainder of her term, which runs through 2025.