Jenks mayor resigns

[Townsend]

Was this expected?  I know it's not a huge deal but I was wondering if there's more to the story.


http://www.southcountyleader.com/jenks-mayor-resigns/article_3316c8fe-2d01-11e2-b5a5-001a4bcf887a.html

Jenks mayor, Vic Vreeland, has announced his resignation as mayor and member of the the Jenks City Council, effective Nov. 15.
Vreeland has served as a council member the last 24 years.

Officials say a special election will not be called because fewer than 120 days remain until the next filing period.

The council can, however, opt to appoint someone to the at-large position or leave it vacant until the April municipal elections, officials said.

Vice-mayor Greg Bowman will assume the position as mayor, for the time being. 

[sgrizzle]

Jenks could be dangerous if they got a pro-development guy in there. He seemed to be more of a "development happens" guy.

[Teatownclown]

Jenks could be dangerous if they got a pro-development guy in there. He seemed to be more of a "development happens" guy.

So, he's a true capitalist. Yes, socialism will not werk in Jinx.

[RecycleMichael]

I am a big fan of Vic Vreeland. He was a tireless worker.

The vision that Vic and a few others have had is why Jenks works so well. They got it all, jobs, new housing, big new high end developments and great schools.

Vic will be missed as their leader.

[Conan71]

Maybe he was on Petraeus' email list?

I got a chance to help the Team Tom's guys with their criterium race through downtown Jenks last year.  I got the plum duty of calming down the merchants who felt they had not been properly advised ahead of time and the permit was granted with little/no public input.  Many antique shop owners were not complimentary toward Vreeland.  I think they felt he was too quick to try anything to promote Jenks without thinking ahead of time what impact it would have on them.

IMO, I came away feeling like his style of leadership was under-appreciated, at least by the merchant's association.  There again, I've worked with merchant groups like that before and there's generally three types of shop owners in them:  you have the go-along get-alongs, the type A who likes to dominate every discussion and event and if it doesn't go their way they really throw a smile-fit, and finally the chronic complainer who can never be made happy.

Small town politics is generally pretty thankless.

[Vision 2025]

I have known Vic for 38 years, we graduated in the first 200+ class of Jenks High School in the days of strict dress and hair codes with Monday morning assembly (girls on one side and boys on the other so we could file out for inspection) with Sully and RL in charge of education while Red Rogers and Perry Beaver ruled the football field (Vic and I had Coach Beaver for Driver's Ed and were driving partners).  These were the days of everyone in class portraits (ours still hangs in City Hall) that said much about a community and what they took pride in.  In Jenks much has changed, much has been constant and and some things needs to change but without a doubt Vic will be missed greatly on the Jenks City landscape because he knew that Jenks's strength came from a sense of community that others can't understand, you know "It's a Jenks thing."  

Michael hit it on the head when he said Vic was tireless when working to make Jenks or the region a better place and he is and always was very pro-quality-development.  I thought his letter to the board was very appropriate and his departure from the council should have come as no surprise, as every meeting I attended he told them clearly that he was not running again and was "about done."  

I wish him well in his next venture and I think he needs to put a VW Bug on his business cards and if you know him ask him why!