SHAWANO, WI- For the third time in less than a year, the City of Shawano has a new Mayor. Bruce Milavitz earned enough votes to win Tuesday night’s election 688 to 278 over Jeanne Cronce.
The election was almost like an unopposed election with Cronce deciding to withdraw from the race prior to the election. Due to the timing of that decision, she remained on the ballot. Cronce withdrew from the race to spend more time with her husband after he suffered injuries from a snowmobile crash.
“It is really sad that things get in the way and I appreciate everything that Jeanne has done for the city,” Milavitz said. “My thoughts and prayers are with her and her family.”
Milavitz stressed that he was never really running against Cronce, but rather running for the city. He said even if Cronce was still in the race, he saw both as candidates who wanted to do what was best for the City of Shawano.
With the win on Tuesday, Milivitz says he is ready to begin the transition process.
“I am really excited to take my vision that I have gotten from a lot of community members and just be that cheerleader for our community.”
Part of his hope is to keep up the pace with showcasing what Shawano is all about.
“I hope to get other communities to look at our community and get business owners to look at what we have to offer.”
Milavitz takes over in the middle of a process to bring in a new plaza to the downtown area, which he is excited to part of. He says he has hope to build up the use in the airport.
“We have a great tourism situation and it is so underutilized right now, there is lots of potential there.”
Milavitz will take over the role for one year as he fills the remainder of former Mayor Ed Whealon’s term. At that point, Milavitz would need to run again.
In the meantime, he says he will continue to work on his promises.
“I want to be that voice for the council and I want to go to bat for them,” he said. “I want to be that person with an open door that people can come to.”
Milavitz said he really hopes to be Shawano’s biggest cheerleader.
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