Muncie Sanitary District Board Expanded

An aerial photo of the downtown Muncie area. Photo by: IntersectionAn aerial photo of the downtown Muncie area. File photo

By: City of Muncie Communications—

Muncie, IN- The Muncie City Council held a special meeting on June 29th, 2020 for the purpose of voting on Ordinance 4-20. Ordinance 4-20 expands the size of the Muncie Sanitary District Board from three individuals to five. The expansion of the board was designed to “provide better oversight and accountability for the sanitary district.” The Council voted unanimously to approve Ordinance 4-20. 

This ordinance enables the current City Engineer, Brian Stephens-Hotopp room to serve on the current MSD board. Additionally, the Mayor has also appointed Stephen Brand to fill the fifth vacancy. 

Brand is the General Manager for Magana Powertrain Muncie, one of the largest employers in Muncie. Brand is also active in the community, having served on several boards, including: 

Muncie-Delaware County Chamber of Commerce
Ivy Tech Technical Advisory Board
Purdue Polytechnic Technical Advisory Board
Ball State International Business Advisory Board
Muncie Area Career Center Advisory Board
Eastern Indiana Workforce Development Board
Delaware Advancement Corporation
Minnetrista Board of Trustees
Muncie-Delaware County Economic Development Committee
Indiana Automotive Council
Mursix Outside Advisory Board
Muncie-Delaware County Civilian Review Committee 

Along with City Engineer Stephens-Hotopp, Brand has refused to accept pay for his appointment to the MSD Board, a position which is entitled to a stipend. Brand commented “I want to serve on the board, because I want to serve my community.” 

In regards to his choice to appoint Brand to the MSD Board, Mayor Ridenour stated “Stephen Brand is an obvious choice, his involvement and passion for the community is clear, and his expertise in operations will be of great benefit to the City of Muncie.”