One Chandler Council member departs, another arrives

By Jason W. Brooks
Mail | X: @JasonWBrooks2

An emotional farewell ceremony, the swearing in of three council members and a short meeting were all accomplished in slightly more than an hour Jan. 9 at Chandler City Hall.

Newly elected council member Jennifer Hawkins, along with incumbents who’ll start their second and final terms, Christine Ellis and O.D. Harris, each took their oath of office in ceremonies that included their families and friends.

Those were preceded by a reception at city’s nearby art gallery and a farewell ceremony for a term-limited council member.

Mark Stewart was recognized for his eight years on council that ended in December.

Stewart, reflecting on how things went for him after he was first elected to council in 2016, pointed out that some elected officials find out how bad things are once they take office. That wasn’t the case for him.

“You get this impression that you’re going to fix things,” Stewart said. “What I quickly realized about Chandler was that it wasn’t broken. There’s nothing to shake your fist at and go fix. That’s because of the hard-working staff and volunteers in town. And I’ve realized we get community input on just about everything we do. That’s why this works.”

City Manager Josh Wright, who left Wickenburg to join Chandler’s team close to the start of Stewart’s first term, said Stewart had tons of energy and passion for the city.

“We had to have a chat, because he tried to go fix a sidewalk himself,” Wright said. “We had to tell him ‘We’ve got people who do that for a living.’”

Stewart thanked Wright, all six of his co-council members and others for their patience, help and collaboration over his two four-year terms — especially Ellis.

She had artist Rosh Amros Couleur recreate a Stewart family photo as a new painting in Ellis’ and Couleur’s native Haiti; the painting arrived in Chandler the morning of Jan. 10, the day of Stewart’s farewell meeting.

“There are (almost) no flights out of Haiti,” Ellis said of the logistics.

Mark Stewart holds a painting of him and his family that fellow Chandler City Council member Christine Ellis had created for him in her native Haiti. It was one of many gifts council members bestowed upon the term-limited Stewart at his emotional farewell ceremony Jan. 9. Newly elected Jennifer Hawkins was sworn in Jan. 9 to take Stewart’s place on council.

Independent Newsmedia/Jason W. Brooks

Stewart said his successor on council, Hawkins, will do “a remarkable job."

Hawkins, after being sworn in by Chandler Presiding Judge Alicia Skupin with her husband, Wes, at her side and their family nearby, thanked her family, Ellis, friends and many others for helping her campaign for council.

“I also must thank a mentor and a huge supporter of my campaign, Rene Lopez, for all his help,” Hawkins said, pointing toward the former Chandler Council member, who was mounting successful GOP nomination and general-election runs for the Arizona Corporation Commission this past year.

Council member Matt Orlando pointed out that Hawkins’ addition puts three women on council at once for the first time in Chandler’s 113-year history.

Ellis, Council member Jane Poston and Hawkins are the 13th, 14th and 15th women to serve on Chandler’s council.

“I thought we had 16, but I called (former) Mayor (Jim) Patterson, and he said, ‘Nope, that person’s a guy,’” Orlando said.

Hawkins said she looks forward to keeping things going in a positive direction.

“I know I can learn a lot,” Hawkins said. “I look forward to building on our successes.”

After the oaths of office, the new Council, including Hawkins, voted unanimously to have Ellis be the vice mayor for 2025.

The regular meeting had only two action items on its agenda. The new council voted unanimously to approve an industrial zoning plan for a west Chandler property and final adoption of the city’s Right of Way Temporary Use Management Program.

Ellis’ and Harris’ comments from their Jan. 9 swearing-in ceremonies will be highlighted in a separate Chandler Independent story.

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Jason W. Brooks
News Editor | Chandler Independent

Jason W. Brooks joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in July 2021 as an associate editor. After a year covering Buckeye, he has covered Chandler since the fall of 2022, in addition to assisting the Daily Independent throughout his time at INI.

Education: University of New Mexico, bachelor of arts in journalism and mass communication, print emphasis, English minor.

Random Fact: He and his siblings witnessed a Space Shuttle launch and landing in the same year in person, on opposite coasts.

Hobbies: Karaoke, bicycling and American Sign Language.

Community: He supports animal shelters.