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“My main goal is to try to keep people in Clark County,” McGlothin said.
McGlothin defeated incumbent Clark County Commissioner David Herier in the November election. He’s previously been a member of the New Carlisle City Council for 14 years and served as mayor for four years. The jump from the New Carlisle City Council to a Clark County Commission is significant, McGlothin said.
“It is much bigger budget,” he said.
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A bigger budget means more responsibility, McGlothin said, and he hopes to promote education and building a workforce that will live in Clark County for many years to come.
“We need to keep our kids here,” McGlothin said. “And if they go away for college we need to get them to come back after graduation.”
He said the way to make sure that happens is by making sure they have jobs available here. His time in office will be focused on promoting trade schools and working with employers.
“We need jobs, that’s exactly how you keep the population in the county,” he said.
Flax Wilt said she’s excited about settling into the new position and looks forward to bringing all county agencies together to ensure everyone is on the same page about the county’s goals.
“It’s important that we get some strategic planning on its way in the first quarter,” she said.
During that process, the county will address challenges and priorities for this year, Flax Wilt said, and job growth will likely be among the highest of those.
“I have no doubt that jobs and work force development will be among the top priorities,” she said. “How we do it, we need to invest our time and resources for a strategic approach.”
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Flax Wilt defeated former County Commissioner Roger Tackett in November. She’s a public relations professional who has worked for the Ohio Department of Agriculture and then opened her own firm in 2008.
Another goal she has is to set up a better way for the county government to communicate with the public. She wants to start a public information program.
“We need to be able to communicate consistently and clearly to the community,” Flax Wilt said.
Previously the commission relied on longtime County Commissioner John Detrick to be a de facto public information officer, she said. Since he’s no longer on the commission after retiring, she said it’s a good opportunity to create an organized program.
“Sometimes we get into the rut of thinking, ‘Oh well, we are just a smaller community,’” she said. “We need to make sure we are putting the information out there to make sure we are doing what our residents want us to do.”
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