Back when Jeff Smell was a student at Bridgeport High School, he probably was not thinking too much about if would leave a positive mark on the city he called home. That is not unusual. When you are still in your teens and graduating from high school, more pressing thoughts from college and hanging out with your friends are on your mind.

 

Flash forward 32 years later, and Jeff Smell admitted he had been thinking if he had made a positive mark on the city. For those who know one of Smell’s key roles, it is likely no surprise.

 

On Monday, June 26, the 1991 Bridgeport High School graduate sat in on his last meeting as a member of Bridgeport City Council. As of 12:01 a.m. this morning, Saturday, July 1, his eight-year run came to an end.

 

For a quick refresher, Smell’s time on the city’s governing body began eight years ago. It did not happen by accident.

 

“I was involved for a few years prior to running for Council with the Bridgeport Development Authority, which got me into a government role and let me see how things work,” said Smell who, outside of college and a few years away with his wife, is a lifelong city resident. “I had a background in financing and working with bonds for municipalities and that gave me the interest to get involved and take the next step.”

 

That step came exactly years ago on July 1, 2015. It was on that day the first of his two terms on Council began.

 

The time, he said, has sped by. And during that time, he has maintained a few other roles as well.

 

He operates Country Roads Leasing, LLC, as his primary job. But it is his other job beyond that and City Council he takes the most pride in.

 

He, along with his wife Cyndy, are the proud parents of three children. Actually, the three children – two girls and a boy – are triplets.

 

For anyone who has a child or children, it is a full-time responsibility along with the standard adult responsibilities. For triplets who are involved in everything, it is an added layer of commitment that Smell does not regret for a second.

 

Still, it makes the fact Smell has found time to be a member of Council for eight years even more impressive. Long before his children, who are going to be juniors this year, were relatively self-sufficient, my friend Drew Pomeroy told me a story about a bad morning he was having on his own family front.

 

Pomeroy told me he was thinking how difficult the morning had been as he did the morning drop off at the schools. He then saw Smell, he said, with three kids and trying to get them going in the same direction and as he said so eloquently that Smell was “looking like he hadn’t slept in a month,” and followed by saying “I figured I shouldn’t complain.”

 

While I have told that story to Smell before, and he is certain it took place as described, he said the juggling act has not been that bad.

 

“Our calendar looks like a bomb went off on it, and I think that’s going to be the case regardless of me no longer being on Council,” he said. “If you have triplets in high school and their driving or working or being involved with stuff, you’re going to be busy no matter what you’re doing.

 

“The thing most people may be surprised with is that being on Council was not too big of an interference with doing things with the kids,” he continued. “It created delays because if they were doing something, whatever you were doing moved to the backburner and they went to the front burner. The goal was to never let anything distract from taking care of my family and the community I was serving.”

 

The goal to help, whether family or constituent, is part of his part of his schooling. Those closest to Smell likely remember he was not always about finance and numbers. Part of his educational background involved being an athletic trainer.

 

“You learn to help people as a trainer and always pay attention,” he said. “I think that served me well as a Council person and even in my new job where I help people finance a vehicle or a municipality finance a project. When you are on Council you are helping people and doing projects; a lot of projects.”

 

When it comes to projects during Smell’s eight years, there are plenty. There is one, however, that is bigger than the rest. The project in question, in 2015 when he started, had not even seen ground broken.

 

“I’m pretty sure when I started we were in the early talks regarding financing for the (Citynet Center),” said Smell. “I know I wasn’t alone on that Council in wanting to do all we could to push for it and make it happen.”

 

It has happened to the tune of more than $50 million dollars with a budget bigger than a lot of cities across West Virginia. It has provided a recreation source for the community as well as a destination spot that brings thousands of people from beyond Bridgeport and West Virginia into the community where they spend the night and, more importantly to the city’s economic health, spend their money at local businesses.

 

“It’s been overwhelming looking at it knowing I was a small part of helping with the largest capital project the city has ever done,” said “The best thing about it is that it is a community center and an economic impact center that will expand, morph, and grow with lots of changes around it. The cornerstone will be the original complex and it will serve generation after generation in this city.”

 

While Smell feels good about the Citynet Center and the entire complex at The Bridge, he said he believes the city has not taken a step backward doing his tenure.

 

“Obviously, I’m only one of seven making decisions and credit or blame is spread out, but I believe the city has been successful. I know the seven before us and the seven before them has been successful for a lot of reasons,” Smell said. “You add some of those residents along with an incredible city staff and department heads, those serving on boards, and you see a theme of success that those involved use to guide them.

 

“Perhaps the best thing I was able to do was continue the trend of trying to avoid financing things; pay as you go. Past Councils and this one has paid as we’ve went along by putting money back for purchases,” he continued. “When you don’t have large financial obligations, it opens up the door for opportunities for the community. I hope those things add up to leaving it a better place. Others will judge that.”

 

Of course, when pressed, Smell would not say for sure if things were better now than when he arrived. So, I will answer it for him as one of the judges he mentioned.

 

The city’s budget has grown for eight straight years. New projects, no new debt, and development in the tens of millions of dollars annually is proof that during Smell’s time there were not only no steps taken backward, but plenty of steps forward.

 

It is time for Jeff Smell to wipe a few spots off the calendar, juggle less things, no longer review agendas and meeting minutes, and enjoy even more time with his family. He did exactly what he was supposed to do, and I will answer that question.

 

You have left the city you call home and represented better off when you finished than when you started. Enjoy your time away from elected office.

 

You have earned it.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo shows Jeff Smell after his last official City Counicl meeting Monday, June 26. Second photo shows Smell making a point at a previous meeting. In the third photo, he and his wife Cyndy, are shown with their three children (Photo courtesy of Jeff Smell). Bottom photo, by Ben Queen Photography, shows Smell, middle, with City Recorder Dr. Harry M. "Hank" Murray, left, and Fire Chief Phil Hart at the groundbreaking for the Citynet Center.