Republicans have chosen a Seymour native with a background in business and accounting to fill a vacant at-large seat on the city council.
Darrin R. Boas, 45, will be sworn into office Monday night before taking part in his first meeting.
He replaces Republican Jennifer Siefker, who resigned in October to move to Washington state.
Republican precinct committee members conducted a caucus Thursday at the Jackson County Courthouse in Brownstown and selected Boas in a 5-3 vote.
The only other applicant was Kendra Zumhingst. Both Zumhingst and Boas have filed to run for one of the two at-large council seats in this year’s election.
Melissa Zabel Acton, Jackson County Republican chairwoman, said Boas is a good choice to fill the vacancy.
“He’s vested in this community,” she said.
Boas spent 12 years working for Kroger Co. in Indianapolis and the New Castle area and is now the branch manager of AVI Food Systems, where he has contact with industrial customers in Seymour and surrounding areas.
He said the city needs to do more to help businesses attract and keep good workers who also want to live and raise families in Seymour.
“I’m at a point where I want to get involved in the operations of the city, and I think we need to take some new approaches and get more people relocating to Seymour to help the factories out,” Boas said.
He said the city is on the right track with developing more amenities, such as people trails, revitalizing downtown and trying to attract more retail businesses, all of which are projects he said he’s excited to learn more about and be more involved.
By providing tax abatements to companies, the city is doing the right thing to help increase industrial capacity, but it’s not helping those companies fill the jobs they are adding, he said.
“There needs to be some kind of financial incentive for people, too, who are thinking about relocating here,” he said. “Especially college students who are willing to move back here to live and work.”
Boas was born and raised in Seymour and graduated from Indiana University with a degree in accounting. He has served as chairman of the buildings and grounds committee for St. Ambrose Catholic Church and School for the past six years.
He is married to Shawna Kaffenberger Boas, and they have two children, Brandon, a student at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus, and Morgan, a student at Seymour High School.
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Name: Darrin R. Boas
Age: 45
Home: Seymour
Title: Newly appointed member of Seymour City Council
Political party affiliation: Republican
Career: Branch manager of AVI Food Systems; spent 12 years working for Kroger Co. in Indianapolis and New Castle.
Education: Graduate of Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business with a degree in accounting
Family: Wife, Shawna; and children, Brandon and Morgan
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