Council welcomes new members; Three new members sworn-in
Published 9:16 am Wednesday, January 9, 2019
Three new members of the Austin City Council were sworn in during the council’s regular meeting Monday evening.
Family and friends sat in the audience as council members Rebecca Waller, Jason Baskin and Joyce Poshusta, all of whom were elected last year, were sworn in to represent the First Ward, Second Ward and Third Ward, respectively. Administrative Services Director Tom Dankert administered the oaths.
Councilman Jeff Austin, who previously represented First Ward, was sworn in as the new At-Large member.
Waller was elected to represent the First Ward after Austin, who was the incumbent, filed to run for the At-Large seat. She is a store leader for Kwik Trip and one of the area’s certified training store leaders.
Baskin ran unopposed for the Second Ward seat after incumbent Councilman David Hagen announced his retirement last year. He works in marketing for Hormel Foods, currently chairs the Austin Human Rights Commission and is a member of APEX Austin, Austin ASPIRES, and a volunteer youth soccer coach.
Poshusta was elected to the Third Ward seat to replace retiring incumbent Judy Enright. She currently manages the Twin Towers in Austin.
Austin was elected to the At-Large seat after incumbent Councilwoman Janet Anderson announced she would not seek re-election. Prior to that, Austin held the First Ward seat for 12 years. He is the senior member on the council, an assistant store leader for Kwik Trip, and a member of the Austin Port Authority board, the Park and Recreation board and the City/County Home Ownership Fund.
As the At-Large member, Austin represents the city as a whole and is the acting mayor, a role he fulfilled during Monday’s meeting, in the mayor’s absence.