The Madison Common Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to appoint Tim Gruber as the interim District 11 alder, after Chris Schmidt resigned from the position in early January.
Gruber is no stranger to Madison. He graduated from Madison West High School before earning both a bachelor’s in music education and a master’s in music performance from UW-Madison. He served for two terms as District 11 alder from 2005 to 2009, according to his resume.
In a cover letter to the council, he said he considers the placement of community gardens in Rennebohm Park an important issue and wants to focus on rebuilding the Sunset Village neighborhood streets.
Schmidt, who Gruber is replacing, was first elected to Common Council in 2009 and served as council president during 2013 and 2014. He said in a January statement that serving as an alder was very important to him, but his livelihood must come first.
“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve as District 11 Alder for nearly seven years,” Schmidt said in the statement. “Circumstances in my professional life have changed since I filed for re-election last fall, and my career in satellite meteorology requires my full attention.”
Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said he enjoyed serving on the council with Schmidt.
“Chris will be sorely missed. He really was an excellent alder,” Verveer said. “I’ve seen colleagues come and go because I’ve served on the council for 20 years and Chris really was one of the best of the best.”
Gruber will serve as District 11 alder until the April 4, 2017, election, in which he said he does not intend to run.
“I felt like I could be effective because of my experience,” Gruber said. “It’s an honor to be here. And I am happy to serve with this great group.”
