City Council

City Council serves as the policy-making body for the City. Its members are elected to represent the community and concentrate on policy issues that are responsive to citizen needs. Council takes a leadership role in interpreting the wishes of the community and providing for its general welfare through programs, services, and activities.

City Council is composed of the mayor and six council members elected at large. The mayor is the presiding officer of the City Council and is recognized as the head of city government for all ceremonial purposes. The vice mayor of Council presides over Council meetings in the absence of the mayor. City Council has the power to appoint the city manager, adopt the budget, authorize the issuance of bonds, and appoint members of all boards and commissions.

The mayor and each Council member will hold office for a period of four years until his or her successor is qualified and elected. No person shall be deemed elected to an office unless that person receives a majority of all the votes cast for such office.

Qualifications

The Mayor and each Council member must be a citizen of the United States, qualified voter of the State of Ohio and have resided for at least one year within the corporate limits of the City of Powell.

2024-2025 City Council

Mayor Tom Counts

Tom has served on City Council since 2006, and served as Mayor in 2008-2009.

In addition, he is chairman of the Finance committee. Before serving on City Council, Tom served on the Board of Zoning Appeals for five years and then on the Planning and Zoning Commission for five years. Tom is married to Carolyn Eselgroth and has two daughters, Abby and Rachel. Tom and his family have been Powell residents since 1995. Tom is a lawyer and is employed as real estate counsel to the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio.

Term Expires 12/31/25

Contact: Councilman Tom Counts

Vice Mayor Heather Karr

Heather graduated from The Ohio State University with a bachelor’s degree and then went on to earn a law degree from Capital University’s Law School. She started her career working for the City of Columbus in the attorney’s office where she worked directly with law enforcement officers to provide legal advice regarding police matters and review use of force investigations. In 2005 Heather began working with The Justice League of Ohio as the Victims’ Rights Compliance Director and then went on to work as a staff attorney in the Fifth District Court of Appeals.

In 2014 Heather decided to apply her passion for service in a different environment: the classroom. She became a substitute teacher working in a special learning center focusing on children with autism. She currently serves as a teaching assistant for the Olentangy Local School District Preschool Program where she works with special needs preschool children ages 3-6. In 2017 Heather was appointed to serve as the City of Powell’s representative for the Delaware General Health District and as a member of the Ohio Association of Boards of Health. Heather and her husband, David, and children Hannah and Nate, have lived in The Chase subdivision in Powell since 2002.

Term Expires 12/31/27

Contact: Councilwoman Heather Karr

Councilman Ferzan Ahmed

Ferzan has been serving on the City of Powell’s Planning and Zoning Commission since January 2022 and was selected and sworn into City Council service in October 2022. A Powell resident since 2008, Ferzan is a licensed Professional Engineer (PE) with three decades of experience in the transportation infrastructure industry. He currently serves as Executive Director of the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission. In previous roles, Ferzan has served as the Delaware County Administrator, the Deputy Director of ODOT (Ohio Department of Transportation) District Six, and as the head of the Ohio practice for a global engineering firm. Ferzan is married to Cathy, and they have a daughter, two sons, and two grandchildren.

Term Expires 12/31/27

Contact: Councilman Ferzan Ahmed

Councilman Leif Carlson

Councilman Leif Carlson has been a Powell resident since 2008 (Olentangy Ridge.) He is married to Laurah and they have a son Gunnar. He owns Technology Sales & Asset Recovery LLC, a reseller of new and used IT equipment since 2015. Leif is a graduate of Walsh University. Fun Fact: In the summer you will find him at the Powell Pool coaching the Tangy Tornado dive team.

Term Expires 12/31/27

Contact: Councilman Leif Carlson

Councilwoman Christina Drummond

Councilwoman Christina Drummond was elected to serve on Powell City Council in the fall of 2021. She serves as the executive director of a global data exchange and is experienced in strategic planning, partnership and grant development, evidence-based decision making and data governance policy. Christina has lived in Powell since 2015 and is involved in the Tyler Run Elementary School PTO, chairing the STEAM Festival and Talent Show. She previously served as a trustee on the Grandshire Homeowner Association Board and on the Powell Citizens Financial Review Task Force. She is the current appointee on the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC) Regional Data Advisory Committee, where she will chair the Local Community Resources working group in 2022.

Term Expires 12/31/25

Contact: Councilwoman Christina Drummond

Councilman Tyler Herrmann

Tyler was elected to Powell City Council in the fall of 2023. Prior to his election to Council, Tyler served as a member of the city’s Board of Zoning Appeals. A graduate of Wright State University and the University of Cincinnati College of Law, Tyler is an attorney and has held a variety of public service positions with both the state and federal governments. In addition to his full-time career, Tyler has been a military reservist for nearly two decades serving initially as an enlisted member of the U.S. Air Force and now as a captain in the  U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps. Tyler lives in the Reserve at Scioto Glenn neighborhood with his wife, Rachel, and their two children.

Term Expires 12/31/27

Contact: Councilman Tyler Herrmann

 

Councilman David Lester

David works as an insurance buyer for Hosket Ulen Insurance Solutions, and is dedicated to being an active member of the communities where he works and lives. In addition to his public service on the Planning and Zoning and Development committees, David is a member of the Rotary Club of Olentangy and the Neighborhood Bridges Steering Committee.

He resides in the Kinsale neighborhood in Powell with his wife and two daughters.

Term Expires 12/31/25

Contact: Councilman David Lester

City meetings are open to the public.

City Council  First and third Tuesdays, 7:30 p.m.
Council Committees
Development Committee  First Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.
Finance Committee  Second Tuesday, 7 p.m.
Operations Committee  Third Tuesday, 6:30 p.m.
Planning and Zoning Commission  Second and fourth (if needed) Wednesdays, 7 p.m.
Historic District Advisory Commission  First (if needed) and third Thursdays, 6 p.m.

All meetings are held at the Village Green, located at 47 Hall Street.

CONTACT INFO

Elaine McCloskey
Clerk of Council
614.885.5380 ext. 1002

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