Mary Perry to sit on MLIRD board
Mary Perry was recently appointed to the MLIRD Board of Directors, she will be sworn in Tuesday evening.
MOSES LAKE - Grant County commissioners appointed Mary Perry to fill the vacant seat on the Moses Lake Irrigation and Rehabilitation District's Board of Directors.
Perry was one of three candidates who applied for the position last month. Kris Dexter and Tom Bennett also expressed interest in the seat left vacant by former director Mick Hansen, who resigned from his position in March.
Commissioners held candidate interviews in April and announced their selection during a meeting Monday morning.
This was Perry's second bid for a seat on the board, as she also ran for a director position in December.
Commissioners joined representatives from the state Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Bureau of Reclamation as well as Moses Lake City Council member Bill Ecret and county Planning Director Damien Hooper to conduct the interviews.
Commissioner Richard Stevens said the committee unanimously recommended Perry.
"It was obvious she was the most knowledgeable, and had been to all of the (MLIRD) meetings," he said during Monday's meeting. "She really knew her stuff."
Perry said she is looking forward to settling in to her new role as board director. She will officially be sworn in during the board's regularly scheduled meeting tonight.
Perry will serve the remainder of Hansen's term, which ends in December.
"I was very pleased to hear I was selected," she said in an interview Monday. "I am very passionate about what happens with our lake for a lot of reasons."
In her application, Perry said maintaining a clean lake is vital to the area's tourism industry. The lake provides a venue for water sports, fishing, hunting, bird-watching and other activities for both residents and visitors.
"A clean, healthy, well-managed lake will help attract new businesses, professionals and increase tourism," she said in her application.
Perry also said in her application she wanted to address a few issues the board is facing, including finding a new general manager; finding funding to repair or replace the MLIRD dam and continuing the dredging project.
Staff writer Justin Brimer contributed to this report.