Ms. O’Neill is currently the Marietta City Councilperson for the Fourth Ward. Having attended many council meetings this past year, as well as the recent ‘Meet the Candidates’ forum this past week, I have been impressed with Erin’s service, breadth of understanding of the city’s needs, and her commitment to Marietta. Not only has she been busy serving our citizens, in tandem, she has earned a masters degree in marketing/communication and is gainfully employed. Currently, she serves as the Grants Administrator at Washington State College of Ohio, where she secures funding for workforce training, healthcare equipment, and community development.

Her leadership and legislative work have been equally impressive. Most recently, she led the city council’s efforts to oppose new Class ll Wastewater Injection Wells by authoring and co-sponsoring legislation calling for stronger environmental review and citizen input. She worked closely with community advocates, scientists, and legal experts to submit formal objections to ODNR, to protect Marietta’s aquifers, which are the city’s sole source of drinking water. Erin has advocated for transparency in state and corporate dealings affecting local environmental safety and public health. Consistently, she has emphasized that protecting water and air quality is not a partisan issue but rather an essential component for public safety and economic stability.

There are other city needs and services that she has championed as well. As Chair of the Employee Relations Committee, she led reviews of hiring and retention practices, department needs and staff compensation structure. She supported measures to improve communication and morale among city employees, including first responders and public work crews. She promoted fair and consistent evaluation standards for city staff while advocating for professional development. Supporting long-term infrastructure investments for street, water, and storm systems, ensuring that upgrades align with fiscal responsibility and sustainability, have been important to her. Ms. O’Neill has advocated for city planning that balances preservation of Marietta’s historic character with smart growth and modern accessibility. She has encouraged collaboration between city government and external partners to leverage state and federal grants for infrastructure needs. As well, being an active board member of the Marietta-Washington County Homeless Outreach Team, has been an integral part of who she is.

Erin has been involved in helping to connect unsheltered residents with services and housing pathways. Her belief in promoting housing policies rooted in dignity and safety, with both residents and businesses being heard in solutions, has been an essential component of her platform. Also, she has worked to improve communication between the city, local nonprofits, and law enforcement, to allow coordinated responses to homelessness.

Economic growth is important to her as well. She realizes that we need to expand job and training opportunities through local initiatives like The Mid-Ohio Valley Entertainment Commission (which she co-founded), workforce programs, and partnerships with education. And if that were not enough, to round off her full body of work, she advocates for economic diversification that includes small businesses, tourism and creative enterprises in general.

Ms. O’Neill’s dedication to the city is profound. She chooses to lead with transparency, integrity, accountability, factual decision- making and collaborative, not partisan or special interest motives.

Erin represents all voices-working families, students, seniors, and those often excluded from policy discussions. She deserves and has earned the right to continue representing the Fourth Ward and the citizens of our city.

She shows up, does the work and accomplishes the tasks at hand. She is Erin O’Neill and she is definitely the real deal.