By Heather Graves
Correspondent
BELLEVUE – For the second time this year, the Village of Bellevue has hired a new Department of Public Works (DPW) director.
Village Administrator Diane Wessel said Andy Rowell has accepted the position.
Rowell was a finalist from the initial search conducted earlier this year.
The village has been working to fill the DPW director position since May when former director David Betts left the village for an unknown reason.
“Mr. Rowell was a top candidate from the initial recruitment process,” Wessel said. “The initial process resulted in Steve Brueggemann accepting the position, starting Sept. 16 and resigning abruptly Oct. 9 to accept another position.”
Rowell will start with the village Nov. 25.
He currently serves as highway engineer for Outagamie County where he is responsible for budget management, capital planning, policy and procedure development, engineering services, traffic analysis, asset management, regulation compliance, project management and personnel management.
Rowell earned his degree in civil engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and his master’s in business administration from Cardinal Stritch University. He attended Oconto Falls High School.
Wessel said Rowell is a licensed engineer and a certified bridge inspector.
She said the DPW director position has a great deal of responsibility, including overseeing transportation, sanitary sewer, water and storm water infrastructure as well as the village vehicle fleet.
“This position is especially important in the coming years because much of our transportation and utility infrastructure has reached its life expectancy and therefore, we have many major reconstruction projects of existing infrastructure as well as new infrastructure to serve incoming development,” Wessel said. “The director manages a combined operating budget of over $9 million and a capital improvement planning five-year budget of over $20 million.”