The Zeeland Board of Public Works (BPW) General Manager, Andrew Boatright, will retire this September, closing out a 43-year career dedicated to public power. Boatright has led the BPW since 2019, and the community is invited to celebrate his career on September 18 from 3:00-5:00 pm at the BPW.
Boatright began his public power career in 1983 with the City of Rensselaer in northwest Indiana. Since then, his career has included leadership roles with Richmond Power & Light in Indiana, the City of Westerville, Ohio, and Independence Power & Light in Missouri before he joined Zeeland BPW as General Manager.
During Boatright’s tenure, Zeeland BPW strengthened its leadership team, invested in system reliability and infrastructure modernization, and advanced long-term planning for the community’s future electric power needs. The utility maintained highly competitive rates while earning national recognition for reliability, safety, operational excellence and customer satisfaction.
Boatright placed particular emphasis on leadership development, coaching and succession planning. Through leadership training, regular one-on-one engagement and a focus on accountability, trust and continuous improvement, BPW worked to build a stronger leadership bench and prepare the organization for future transitions.
He also helped position BPW for a rapidly changing electric industry by advancing an Integrated Resource Plan and stakeholder-engagement process focused on generation, capacity, reliability, affordability, regulatory requirements and replacement of aging generating assets. Those efforts included engagement with the BPW Board, Zeeland City Council, customers and the Michigan Public Power Agency.
Boatright also emphasized the community-centered nature of public power through initiatives including the Community Grant Program, Holiday Power Dollars, Zeeland Citizen’s Academy, Business & Industry Breakfast and Public Power Open House.
“What I’ve always loved about public power is that it’s not about shareholders, it’s about ‘community’,” Boatright said. “Every decision we make comes back to the people who live here, and getting to serve the Zeeland community for the last seven years has been an incredible honor.”
Boatright’s influence has extended well beyond Zeeland. He recently served as Board Chair of the Michigan Public Power Agency (MPPA) and has held leadership roles on multiple boards and committees of the American Public Power Association (APPA), including serving as APPA’s board chair in 2016.
The public is invited to join in celebrating Boatright’s career and legacy of public service at a retirement open house on September 18 from 3:00-5:00 pm at the Zeeland Board of Public Works Administrative Office & Customer Service Center (350 W Washington Ave, Zeeland, MI).
