Monday night’s Centralia City Council meeting was the last for departing member Jeff Castellari and the first for newly elected Marion “Bunny” Garrett. Garrett was elected in the April consolidated election along with incumbent council member Rob Jackson. Both members were sworn in during the council meeting.
Rob Jackson is sworn in to the city council at Monday night’s meeting for another four-year term. Photo by Austin Williams.
Bunny Garrett is sworn in to join the Centralia City Council. Photo by Austin Williams.
After taking the oath in front of an audience that filled every seat in the room, Bunny Garrett said she was glad to be a part of the team. Garrett said her focus in the near future is on getting settled into her new position.
“(My goal is) to get acclimated as to what I’m supposed to do, and to work with the group that’s already sitting down to help me transition into what’s really going on and what I need to be aware of.”
Garrett has been involved in local politics for years, regularly attending city council meetings before she received the support and encouragement to run her own campaign.
In his report at the end of the meeting, Mayor Bryan Kuder thanked Jeff Castellari, welcomed Bunny Garrett, and said the Centralia City Council thrives on the ability of its members to work together through disagreements.
“Although (Castellari and I) were friends, we did have differences of opinion on different issues, but we worked through them,” Kuder said. “That is the stability of a good council member, to have differences of opinion, differences of what you believe is right or wrong, and you work through them as a council.”
Rob Jackson said he has had a great experience on the council so far and looks to continue making progress over the next four years.
A large audience was in attendance for Bunny Garrett’s first meeting as a member of the city council. Photo by Austin Williams.
