Ward 2 Councilman Jim Connole will be staying on Westlake City Council, but leaving Planning Commission in February.

Connole had announced in November that he would be giving up his seat due to demands in his personal and professional life.

But he said Friday that he changed his mind in large part because his load will be lessened by leaving the Planning Commission post. Also, he said, many asked him to remain on council.

“It all panned out over the last six to eight weeks where my concerns were alleviated,” he said. “It was very humbling that a lot of people asked me to stay and my colleagues asked me to stay.”

Planning Commission often meets twice a month, and Connole said much preparation work is required.

“My concern was that I couldn’t keep the level of service I wanted. I didn’t want to short-change anyone,” he said. “But looking at travel and work and this, it looks like we can make it work out.”

Eleven Westlake residents applied for Connole’s seat after he announced his intentions to leave, but because he did not submit an official letter of resignation, the Ward 2 seat was never formally vacated.

Connole said five of the applicants told him they were glad he decided to stay. He plans to reach out to all applicants with a note or phone call in the coming weeks.

“We got a good group of people that want to help the city in other ways,” he said. “Most of them already understood my situation and they were relieved. I hope no one thinks we wasted their time. For those who were still interested, I’m sorry for the inconvenience.”