“I am honored to have been chosen as Ridgefield’s city manager from a pool of very talented candidates and after a rigorous process,” Stuart said in a press release. “I truly appreciate the support and confidence of the Ridgefield City Council. This is a great opportunity and I look forward to working with citizens, businesses, employees, and the council to achieve the city’s goals.”
Ridgefield Mayor Ron Onslow thanked the citizens and staff who participated in the hiring process and provided valuable insights to the Council.
“Our interview process and background checks confirmed that Steve will be a great fit for our organization, City Council and community,” he said. “He is very familiar with Ridgefield and will hit the ground running.”
The seat Stuart leaves behind at the county must be filled by mid June. Clark County commissioners Tom Mielke and David Madore, both Republicans, will choose from one of three candidates provided by the Democratic Party to fill the vacancy.
“I think that we’ll look for someone that’s well-versed, not radical right, not radical left… someone with the county’s best interests at heart,” Mielke said during an interview with the Vancouver Business Journal for Clark-Vancouver Television (CVTV). “You probably want them to be somewhat articulate, someone knowledgeable as to how it works…”
Mielke said that the next commissioner will likely come from the 49th District (West Vancouver to I-205) since he (Mielke) is from the north end of the county and Commissioner Madore is from the east end.