Brandywine school board vice president Jim Curran has announced he will run for Berrien County commissioner.

The Niles Township resident will be running for what will be District 11 come next year after redistricting takes place.

Currently,  it is John LaMore’s District 12, covering most of Niles Township and part of the city.

LaMore has indicated he will not be running for re-election.

Curran filed paperwork with the county last week.

Curran, who was born and raised in Niles, said he decided to run at the urging of some township residents.

“I hadn’t thought of it prior to that,” he said.

He talked with LaMore, a longtime friend, about the job and decided it would be a “good fit.”

“I’ve been on the school board for quite a while. It’s time to move on. The next step would be county commissioner,” Curran said.

A member of the school board since 1994, Curran said he is prepared to help at the county level.

“I’ve been dealing with budgets with the schools for years. I’m proud that we haven’t had the problems that some districts have,” he said.

Curran, a former Michigan State Police trooper and detective, said he is conservative when it comes to budgeting, which has helped keep Brandywine’s fund balance at solid levels.

“I like to keep a couple bucks in the bank for a rainy day,” he said.

Curran said he plans to “shadow” LaMore at some point to find out more about what it takes to be a county commissioner.