Saturday, January 1, 2011 begins the New Year…and will also begin the terms of two elected officials in New Rochelle: Susan I. Kettner, newly-elected City Court Judge, and Jared R. Rice, newly-elected City Councilman in the 3rd Council District. Both Kettner and Rice will be sworn into office at a public ceremony to be held in the Council Chambers of the New Rochelle City Hall, 515 North Avenue, to begin at 1 p.m. on New Year’s Day (1-1-11 at 1 p.m.).
Kettner is the first woman to be elected citywide as a City Court Judge; she joins Judge Gail Rice and Associate Judge Anthony Carbone on the bench in the New Rochelle Court. She succeeds retired Judge Preston “Sandy” Scher, who left the post at the mandatory retirement age of 70 after 15 years of service. Kettner, the former Chair of the City’s Zoning Board of Appeals, and the first woman to be selected President of the New Rochelle Bar Association, has practiced law in New Rochelle for over 20 years, with her family firm, Kettner & Kettner, founded by her grandfather in 1920 and led by her father for 18 years.
Rice is the son of Judge Gail Rice and Roger Rice, Esq., and was elected in November to serve out the unexpired term of Councilman James Stowe, who passed away last summer. His widow, Roxie Stowe, is serving in the council seat by appointment through December 31, 2010; Rice will serve throughout 2011. In November 2011, all six Council seats, and the office of Mayor, will be up for election to four year terms. Councilman-elect Rice currently practices law in downtown New Rochelle.
The ceremony, expected to last about an hour, will include comments by elected officials including Mayor Noam Bramson and Westchester County Clerk Tim Idoni. Other aspects of the ceremony will include the presentation of flags by New Rochelle Boy Scout Troop 15, readings and passages by local clergy members and other prominent individuals and a musical selection by Albert Leonard Middle School Students.
The ceremony will be followed by a light reception with refreshments in the City Hall Rotunda. All are welcome to attend.
For more information, contact 632-7700