JOHN DAY — The John Day City Council is back to its full contingent of seven members.

The council at its meeting Feb. 11 appointed Vernon Pifer to fill the vacant seat following the resignation of Dave Holland.

Holland secured a spot on the council in the November general election as one of the three top vote-getters in a six candidate race. He then resigned from the council prior to that Feb. 11 meeting where he was set to swear his oath of office and serve another four-year term.

Holland cited an environment that was not conducive to effective governance as the reason for his departure from the council.

Pifer was one of six candidates who ran in the November general election along with Holland. He did not secure enough votes to ascend onto the council in the general election but was the only applicant for the seat Holland vacated.

“I was really surprised,” Pifer said. “I expected a lot more.”

Pifer echoed comments he made during the November general election, saying he saw the city was in need of help and threw his name into the fray. He said serving on the council was not for himself but “for the people of John Day.”

Pifer highlighted John Day’s yearslong effort to build a new wastewater treatment plant to replace the aging facility serving the residents of John Day and Canyon City as the most pressing and important issue the city faces.

Pifer thanked the members of the council who had enough faith in his ability to serve, adding he hopes he doesn’t let anybody down.

“I thank them for their confidence in me,” he said. “I hope that I can live up to it.”