The Peoria City Council is set to appoint a new member next week. The Council will vote to appoint Sid Paul Ruckriegel to the At-Large seat vacated by Chuck Weaver. Ruckriegel would join the council before it votes on next year’s budget. To that end, he says one priority is to incorporate thoughts from residents into the spending plan:
“To make sure that we take that input that has been gathered over the past year from the citizens about what they see, and make sure that we reflect that in the budget.”
The main question facing the council is how to best pay for annual road maintenance. Ruckriegel owns a multi-state restaurant and real estate holding company.
He’s also the Peoria Riverfront Museum Board President and is a Peoria Public Library Trustee and serves on the Historic Preservation Commission. Ruckriegel says the appointment is also an extension of his public service:
‘From being able to serve on different commissions and different boards, and so with that it really is a natural progression of that.”
Ruckriegel says he plans to step down from his library and historic commission posts to take the council seat. The City Council will officially vote on the appointment next Tuesday.