Jamestown, N.Y., native Kristofor Sellstrom has been named the next General Manager by the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities to succeed current General Manager David Leathers, who will retire in January 2026.
Sellstrom, a New York-licensed professional engineer, has dedicated nearly fourteen years to the BPU in progressively senior leadership roles, having most recently served as Deputy General Manager – Electric. Sellstrom began his BPU career in 2011 as a Junior Engineer, progressing to Electrical Engineer in 2014.
In 2018, Sellstrom was promoted to Senior Electrical Engineer and Energy and Gas Resources Manager, and earned his Professional Engineer license in New York State. He worked as the Electric Division’s Transmission and Distribution Manager before his June, 2024, promotion to Deputy General Manager – Electric.
Nationally, Sellstrom was the Chair of the Customer Connections Energy Innovation Planning Committee for the American Public Power Association (APPA) and served as a member of the APPA Smart Energy Providers Committee. In 2024, he appeared as one of three speakers in an APPA webinar regarding “Public Power Lessons Learned from the Department of Energy Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnership Program.”
In announcing the selection of the new General Manager, BPU Chair Gregory Anderson stated, “On behalf of the Board, we are pleased to announce that after an extensive search and interview process that included both internal and external candidates, Kristofor has been selected to follow Dave Leathers as BPU General Manager upon Dave’s retirement in January, 2026. We have complete confidence in Kristofor’s ability to lead this utility into the future. Having already served as Deputy GM, we feel that he has a unique set of skills and experiences that will serve him well. We look forward to working with him and his staff.”
“I am honored to be entrusted with this responsibility and look forward to working closely with the Board, employees and the community to build upon the BPU’s long history of service and innovation,” said Sellstrom. “Together, we will continue positioning Jamestown as a leader among municipal utilities across New York State and the country," he said.
“I want to pay tribute to David L. Leathers who precedes me in this position,” continued Sellstrom. “Dave’s leadership has guided the Jamestown BPU through significant growth and modernization. He has served as a true mentor to me in my time at the utility, for which I am deeply grateful."
