Chris Ahart Named Board Chair and Don Knox Appointed to the GPMTD Board of Trustees

Members of the Greater Peoria Mass Transit District (GPMTD) Board of Trustees selected Chris Ahart as the new Board Chair at the May 2, 2022 board meeting.  This will be Ahart’s first term as Board Chair.  He most recently served as Vice Chair for one term, and he has also served as Chair of the Program Development Committee.  Ahart represents the Village of Peoria Heights, and he was appointed to the GPMTD Board of Trustees by Mayor Michael Phelan on February 2, 2022.

Ahart succeeds Dr. Maxine Wortham as Board Chair, who most recently served as Board Chair and is retiring from the board. Dr. Wortham represented the City of Peoria, and she was appointed to the GPMTD Board of Trustees by Mayor Jim Ardis on February 7, 2006.  She served on the board for 16 years.

Ahart is a graduate of Eureka College, and he currently serves as the Deputy Chief of Police for the Peoria Heights Police Department.  He has been employed at the department since 1999 and he has worked his way up from patrol to detective to his current position during his tenure.

Ahart is involved in the Peoria Heights community, previously serving on the Cops for Kids Board and Peoria Heights Leadership Academy Board.  He has served on the Peoria Heights CUSD #325 School Board since 2011.  Ahart has been a resident of Peoria Heights for more than 20 years.

Don Knox attended his first board meeting on May 2, 2022 since being appointed to the Greater Peoria Mass Transit District Board of Trustees at the Peoria City Council meeting on April 26, 2022.  Knox is representing the City of Peoria and he was appointed by Mayor Rita Ali.  He is serving as Trustee and the Chair of the Program Development Committee.

Knox has had a career in security management for more than 25 years.  He is a graduate of Illinois State University with bachelor’s degrees in Criminal Justice and Applied Computer Science.  Knox also completed the Boston University Questrom School of Business mini-MBA program and the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management Executive Certificate on understanding security as a business asset.  In addition, he has earned his Certified Protection Professional (CPP) designation signifying board certification in security management as well as Certified Identity Theft Risk Management Specialist (CITRMS).

Knox is a member of ASIS International, and he has served as a Council Vice President and past Chair of Crisis Management and Business Continuity Council.  He is also past president of the International Organization of Black Security Executives (IOBSE).

Knox is involved with the Alpha Phi Alpha Faternity, Inc. and the Boy Scouts of America, and he is a member of the St. Paul Baptist Church.  Knox, a long-time resident of Peoria, lives in Peoria with his wife Shalonda, and he has one daughter and one son (deceased).

In addition to the selection of Chris Ahart as Board Chair, the GPMTD Board of Trustees made the following appointment of officers at the meeting on May 2, 2022:

• Patti Sterling Polk, Vice Chair (Representing Peoria; Appointed May 1, 2021)
• Jeff Hoerr, Treasurer (Representing Peoria; Appointed May 1, 2021)
• Sharon McBride, Secretary (Representing West Peoria; Appointed May 5, 1997)
• Don Knox, Trustee (Representing Peoria; Appointed May 1, 2022)

The GPMTD provided over 1.7 million passenger trips on fixed route CityLink service in Fiscal Year 2021, and it also offers demand response service operated as CityLift and rural transportation service operated as CountyLink.