Staff photo / J.T. Whitehouse Poland Village Council President Michael Thompson welcomes Laurie LaPlante as the person selected to fill out the seat of Michael Zembower, who stepped down last month after moving to Poland Township.

POLAND — Village Council on Tuesday filled the vacant seat left by Michael Zembower when he announced last month he was moving to Poland Township.

At the meeting, five candidates put their names in for the vacancy and each was given up to five minutes to address council on why they were a good fit. The five candidates were Laurie LaPlante, Ryan McQuillan, Jeremy Demarco, Kelsey Moreton and Becky Rudzik.

After the five short speeches, Council President Michael Thompson began the session by explaining how it would work. He said the votes were to be cast openly, before those in attendance.

The first round of votes was taken and any candidate not receiving a vote — both McQuillan and Moreton — was eliminated. The second round had any candidate receiving just one vote eliminated, which was DeMarco. That left LaPlante and Rudzik for the final vote.

In the final round, LaPlante received three votes and Rudzik received two votes. At that point, Mayor Tim Sicafuse announced LaPlante would fill the empty seat.

“You’ll be sworn in at our April 1 meeting,” Sicafuse said.

Thompson made a special note during the meeting on running for the seat. He said the seat expires Dec. 31. If LaPlante wants to continue serving, she would have to put her name on the ballot by May.

“You’ll have to register as an independent at that time,” Thompson said. “Also, when you vote, you need to vote as an independent. If you vote as a member of a party, you’ll be disqualified from the election. This step is very important.”

LaPlante said she understood the process.

LaPlante let council members know of her education and what she did while serving in the military. She did not grow up in the area, but actually relocated to Poland Village in 2004 from Utah. She had earned a BS in civil engineering from the University of Wyoming and later earned a master’s in environmental engineering from the University of Utah.

LaPlante served 10 years in the U.S. Navy as a Naval Nuclear Power School instructor in Orlando, Florida. She later was with the Civil Engineer Corps in San Diego.

LaPlante served as senior licensed professional engineer at Kleinfelder, Inc. in Salt Lake City. In that position, she managed military cleanup projects in Utah, Nevada and California, working with budgets up to $10 million.

“My attention to detail and background in engineering make me uniquely qualified to understand and analyze complex problems,” she said during her pitch to council members. “I also have excellent communication and collaboration skills.”

LaPlante also is very aware of the village and its operations. When she first moved to Poland, she immediately joined the Poland Junior Women’s League and has been an active member for 18 years, chairing the committee for the lighting of the green and serving as secretary, vice president and president.

In the village, she regularly attended council meetings and Poland Forest Board meetings. In 2020, she was tapped to be a member of the Bridge Oversight Committee during the design and construction of the Mauthe Bridge. She continues to be active in the Friends of Poland Forest and serves on the Architectural Review Board.

“In closing, I want you to know I care deeply about the village, the Poland Forest, and the people who live here,” LaPlante said. “We have made this village our home for the past 20 years and I am excited about the possibility of joining council to give back to the community that has been a big part of my life. I am confident I have the skills and experience needed to hold this position and to be an asset to the council and community.”