Curious endeavors

Nancy Antisdel, a fairly new resident of Greenfield but a longtime resident of Adair County, says she began to be interested in city government because she simply didn't know a lot about it. Now she's her town's newest councilwoman-elect.

Antisdel takes the seat of longtime councilman Kevin Hall, who is retiring from the council. Other current council members are Brian Eisbach, Brian Fox, Rick Schaecher and Suzanne Wagner. The council meets on the first Monday and third Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall.

Antisdel, who is employed by the Adair Soil and Water Conservation District, was raised north of Adair and her late husband, Bill, who passed away 4 1/2 years ago, worked for over three decades at Nichols Farms in western Adair County, north of Bridgewater.

"I had never been a town girl," Antisdel said. "I take pride in my town and want to be more involved. I don't want to be one of those people who who complains about things and never does anything about it. I don't have an agenda. I just want to do what's right for our town."

Antisdel says she likes the small town atmosphere Greenfield offers but after attending a few council meetings she said she wasn't previously aware of the business that transpires to run a city. The biggest projects the council has undertaken recently include the replacement of manholes and the building of a new wastewater treatment plant.

"I've been to two meetings and I'm amazed at all that goes into running a town. I'm excited for the new things I'll learn and for the challenges, because I'm sure there'll be challenges. I've had a lot of people tell me they're not sure why I want to do this,," Antisdel said. "For me, I think everyone should try it."

One issue Antisdel recently received clarity on in a meeting was Greenfield's snow ordinance, which states it is illegal to park on streets from Nov. 1 to April 1 from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m., whether there is snow on the ground or not.

"I never understood why they started it so early and why they're so strict about it, but they explained it at the meeting the other night, then it made more sense," Antisdel said. "[With Greenfield's way of doing it], there's no gray areas. It's black or white, and I thought that was kind of interesting. They said it's easier that way."