Who will be the fifth Bishop council member?
If anyone wishes to use this blog to announce their candidacy, by all means please do so. Here is Merritt's story on the council vacancy and special election moving across the street. Why they can't do it in the same place is beyond me.
Council election planned
Bishop
By Merritt Melancon | juliana.melancon@onlineathens.com | Story updated at 12:32 AM on Wednesday, September 20, 2006
The city council of the tiny Oconee County town of Bishop has decided to fill its long-vacant fifth council seat after the town's attorney advised that it probably is the right thing to do.
The City of Bishop will hold a special election to fill Post 1 of the Bishop City Council on Nov. 7 at the Bishop City Hall across from the Bishop Community Center on U.S. Highway 441.
Candidates who wish to be on the ballot can pay a $5 qualifying fee and register at the Oconee County Board of Elections Office from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday and Tuesday and from 8 a.m. until noon Wednesday.
The city council has been without a charter-mandated fifth council member since Post 1 Councilwoman Courtney Gale moved outside of the city limits and vacated her seat in spring 2005, just after she ran unopposed that previous fall.
Since then, the town has run smoothly with only four council members and Mayor Johnny Pritchett.
Business has gone so smoothly, in fact, council members considered leaving the seat empty until the entire council is up for re-election in November 2008.
The expense of a special election is one factor, since it will cost the town $1,000 of its $40,000 budget, according to Pritchett.
But the council's attorney advised the group last week either to hold a special election or amend the city's charter to provide for a four-member council, said Councilwoman Nedra Johnson.
"Since the election in November was coming up, we figured we could take advantage of that to get some of the residents out to the polls," Johnson said. "We had talked about changing the charter to have a four-member council, but I thought if we were going to amend the charter it should be over something larger than this."
While the general Nov. 7 election will be held at the Bishop Community Center using touch-screen voting machines, the town's special election will be held across the street in the Bishop Town Hall using paper ballots.
Published in the Athens Banner-Herald on 092006
Council election planned
Bishop
By Merritt Melancon | juliana.melancon@onlineathens.com | Story updated at 12:32 AM on Wednesday, September 20, 2006
The city council of the tiny Oconee County town of Bishop has decided to fill its long-vacant fifth council seat after the town's attorney advised that it probably is the right thing to do.
The City of Bishop will hold a special election to fill Post 1 of the Bishop City Council on Nov. 7 at the Bishop City Hall across from the Bishop Community Center on U.S. Highway 441.
Candidates who wish to be on the ballot can pay a $5 qualifying fee and register at the Oconee County Board of Elections Office from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday and Tuesday and from 8 a.m. until noon Wednesday.
The city council has been without a charter-mandated fifth council member since Post 1 Councilwoman Courtney Gale moved outside of the city limits and vacated her seat in spring 2005, just after she ran unopposed that previous fall.
Since then, the town has run smoothly with only four council members and Mayor Johnny Pritchett.
Business has gone so smoothly, in fact, council members considered leaving the seat empty until the entire council is up for re-election in November 2008.
The expense of a special election is one factor, since it will cost the town $1,000 of its $40,000 budget, according to Pritchett.
But the council's attorney advised the group last week either to hold a special election or amend the city's charter to provide for a four-member council, said Councilwoman Nedra Johnson.
"Since the election in November was coming up, we figured we could take advantage of that to get some of the residents out to the polls," Johnson said. "We had talked about changing the charter to have a four-member council, but I thought if we were going to amend the charter it should be over something larger than this."
While the general Nov. 7 election will be held at the Bishop Community Center using touch-screen voting machines, the town's special election will be held across the street in the Bishop Town Hall using paper ballots.
Published in the Athens Banner-Herald on 092006
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