Eau Claire (WQOW) - All seats are now occupied again. Tuesday, the Eau Claire City Council filled an opening by appointing a new member.
There was an opening for an at-large seat because Council Member Dana Wachs resigned. There were 9 candidates. Eventually, the list was trimmed to two: Catherine Emmanuelle and Dave Strobel. The final vote was 6-4 in favor of Emmanuelle. She'll fill the remainder of Wachs term, which ends next April.
Emmanuelle has taken a run at this before, in 2010 she ran for an at-large city council seat. That was one of the attributes some council members found appealing. Emmanuelle also told them she would run for office again in the spring. WQOW News 18 asked her why she was persistent about serving on the city council.
She says, "In my life, my 32 young years, I've had a lot of experiences and like everyone I've had my ups and downs. I've had my times where I haven't felt my voice has been heard. I lived under the poverty level for over five years and that was a real awakening to me to see how policy affects our everyday lives. That was certainly a catalyst for me to start thinking about, how can I give back? How can I add a different perspective?"
She's lived in Eau Claire for twelve years and is on the board of directors for Clear Vision Eau Claire, which has a hand in the Confluence Project. Emmanuelle says she looks forward to weighing in on the discussion about the confluence project.
"Right now it is still under heavy consideration and I will be learning a lot more about the fine details of the project but I know that we have one shot at doing this right and if we do it right the first time, we will have a shining jewel for our city and for our city and our state," says Emmanuelle.
She will be sworn in on September 24th.
One city council member said he's been through this several times, but says this was the toughest selection process because all of the candidates were qualified.
