Lehner, 71, will take over as mayor on Jan. 1, with priorities that include COVID-related mental health issues and the impact of the growing work-from-home trend the coronavirus ushered in.
After running unopposed, Lehner will be among four new members on the panel of seven, a first for Kettering in a general election this century, Montgomery County records show.
The other council members — Lisa Duvall, Jyl Hall and Bob Scott — were elected to public office for the first time. Duvall and Scott have already filled vacant seats in Districts 1 and 2, respectively. Hall is set to take office next month.
“There’s always a learning curve. And there’s also a certain period of time it takes people to meld together and work well together,” Lehner said.
“So I’m going to be working very purposefully to speed up that process to get all seven of us working in the same direction … That one’s on me, I think, because it is a new council,” she added.
It will be “somewhat of a challenge. But from what I’ve seen so far, they’re very different,” Lehner said.
“They’re unique individuals,” she added. “All of them are bringing real enthusiasm and love for the city with them.”
Lehner and Patterson were both first elected to at-large council seats in 1997 and “we’ve been good friends ever since,” she said.
Patterson said they have “talked for months” about the job.
“Peggy will do a great job and I’m happy to have her there and carrying it forward with them rest of team,” he said.
Kettering’s longest serving mayor’s best advice has been to “listen to the people,” Lehner said.
“Don has really bent over backward to hear from people,” and he has, “been open at all times to what they have to say,” she added.
Kettering has had “some remarkable achievements under him. And I hope to be able to emulate both his relationship with the community and some of the dynamic growth that we have seen under him as mayor,” Lehner said.
The city recently committed $1 million in federal COVID relief funds to first-time homebuyer and home improvement programs it announced jointly with Day Air Credit Union.
The partnership is “exactly the type of program that we need to be looking at,” and Montgomery County’s most populated suburb must explore housing issues that address the work-from-home growth beyond the impact it has on business and income tax revenues, Lehner said.
“We’ve got an abundance of three-bedroom homes that don’t have that extra room that people need for a home office,” she said. “What other amenities do we need to provide to keep people interested in living in Kettering? Those are some of the issues I’ve been paying close attention to over the last several months.”
Others include mental health issues brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, “primarily for our youth, but (I am) increasingly concerned about it with adults, too,” Lehner said.
Programs impacted by COVID, such as ones involving senior services and volunteers, are also high on the list, she said.
“My priorities — I won’t say I have the solutions for them — but there are areas I have the greatest concerns for,” Lehner said. “And want to really listen to the residents and city staff as to how they’re addressing them.”
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