Covington Board of Commissioners Member Nolan Nicaise, who was serving his first term on the elected body, resigned from his position effective 6 p.m. Tuesday night.
Mayor Joe Meyer made the announcement to a packed room of city residents at Tuesday night’s city legislative meeting.
Nicaise himself was not present at the meeting. He emailed a comment to LINK nky late Tuesday, which reads, in part:
“I have decided to resign from my office on the Board of Commissioners of Covington, Kentucky,” he said in the statement. “I ran for the Board of Commissioners with a mission of improving the environment, public health, and safety of Covington and its residents.”
Nicaise thanked those who supported his election, those who brought critical issues to his attention, and those who showed up at meetings to partake in the democratic process.
“Throughout this experience, I have come to the unfortunate realization that, while I hoped the Commission would be an office from which I could effect positive change, I may better achieve the mission for improved environment, public health, and safety for Covingtonians from a role outside of the Commission, as a private citizen,” Nicaise said.
The city will now need to fill his vacant seat. Per the Kentucky Constitution, the board of commissioners has 30 days to appoint a replacement or the job of appointing a new member will fall to the governor. Discussion among the commission members suggested that the city would likely fill the position before the 30-day mark on Sept. 7.
Nicaise’s replacement will serve out the remainder of his term, which will end Dec. 31, 2024. The Kentucky Constitution prevents a special election or other ballot measure for selecting a new commissioner from taking place.
“I want to thank Commissioner Nicaise for his service to our city,” Covington Commission Member Ron Washington said.
Toward the end of the meeting, the commission set about establishing timetables for choosing a replacement. After some exchange, the board settled on a 10-day recruiting period from the night of the meeting, or Aug. 18.
City residents interested in submitting their names for consideration have until that date to submit their qualifications and a statement describing their intent for their time on the commission. The existing board members will then confer and announce their decision at a commission meeting before the Sept. 7 deadline. The board did not firmly establish a date when the appointee would be announced during their discussion.
“We want [applicants] to tell us, why do you want this position, and what do you hope to accomplish?” Meyer said.
Covington residents who wish to put their names in the running for the position should submit their resumes along with a brief statement of intent to the city via erin.callery@covingtonky.gov by Friday, Aug. 18.
The next Covington Board of Commissioners meeting will take place on Tuesday, Aug. 15 at 6 p.m. at Covington City Hall on Pike Street.
Read the full application instructions on the City of Covington’s website.