TROY – With more than a year remaining on his term, Troy Board of Alderman David Norman resigned unexpectedly last week to “focus” his energies on family and other community projects.

Mayor Ron Sconce confirmed he received Norman’s resignation Friday, Feb. 28 and hopes to fill it at a special meeting Thursday evening, March 6.

Coupled with Kay Diekemper’s resignation in October of 2024, Troy’s normal six-member board is now down to four, including Rachel Dunard, Steven Jones, Harold Horner and Gary Leifert.

With Leifert declining to seek re-election in the upcoming April election, Troy is guaranteed to have at least three and maybe four new aldermen serving in a month, assuming the board can agree on a replacement for Norman.

That is no guarantee though as Sconce three times nominated a replacement for Diekemper, only to be rebuffed all three times in a 3-2 vote. Norman, along with Horner and Dunard, voted against all the replacements, citing the close proximity of the April election in which a replacement will be chosen.

By contrast, more than a year remains on Norman’s term, his fourth. He cited those seven years of service in his resignation letter.

“I feel that it is time to focus my energy towards my family and other service community projects allowing me to reduce stress and have more focus and attention to those areas,” he wrote. “It has been a pleasure to serve the community over these years.”

Norman is a board member for Habitat for Humanity, is the founding member of the Troy Run Club, and is active in the local Lion’s Club.

Whether the new board member is selected Thursday, just before the election, or in a month, just after it, that individual will be at least one of three new faces.

Four people are seeking Diekemper’s vacant Ward Three seat, including Dennis Detert, who she defeated two years ago, Jodi Johnson, Kim Colbert and Michael Quezada, who lost to Dunard in 2024. Sconce nominated both Colbert and Quezada to fill Diekemper’s remaining term.

Preston Gebhart and Terri Huffman are seeking Leifert’s seat in Ward One while Jones is being challenged by Mitch Bryant for a two-year term in Ward Two.

Both Detert and Dunard were re-elected to the board in April 2024 and have one-year remaining on their term.