Mark Reed Is Appointed To Taylor Town Council

By Naomi Hatch
   After several votes, Mark Reed was selected to fill a vacancy on the Taylor Town Council created by the resignation of Mayor John Cole, which was effective Oct. 15.
   Previously when a member of the council resigned, the replacement was the person who ran for council and received the most votes of those not elected, but there are no state statutes or town codes that are specific to filling a council vacancy.
   Town Attorney Sterling Solomon said that it was up to the council members to decide how they would fill the vacancy left by the resignation of Cole.
   “There’s no particular procedure required,” said Town Manager Eric Duthie. “The only requirement is that it be done in the open, not in executive session.”
   At the Oct. 14 council meeting, the council members agreed to accept letters of interest and each coun-cil member would review those prior to making a decision at the Oct. 28 meeting.
   The first order of business was to accept the letter of resignation from Cole, which they did in a motion that passed unanimously.
   “I think John did a great job serving as mayor,” said Vice Mayor Debbie Tuckfield. “I think he got a term that wasn’t an easy one to fill. He represented us with pride and dignity.”
   Councilman Jordy Fuentes also expressed gratitude to Cole, noting “He did things behind the scenes that a lot of people didn’t see.”
   Councilwoman Jane Lee said Cole did a very good job and represented Taylor well.
   “He was a good example to us,” said Councilman Robin Palmer.
   Councilman Jay Whipple said, “John spent a lot of time behind the scenes that nobody saw. There’s a lot more to being mayor than a lot of people realize.”
   “He’s a very respectable guy. He’ll be missed,” said Councilman Jared Hatch.
   Fuentes said he would like to ask questions of those who had submitted letters of interest. It was de-cided that each candidate would make a brief statement.
   Jim Gibson said he was the only present candidate who ran the last election, and he had four years of service on the council. “I had a desire to serve and still have that desire,” said Gibson.
   David Hamblin commended the council for allowing letters of interest and said, “I enjoy living here, consider it an honor to be in the community and would be honored to serve.”
   Shawn Palmer, a native, said, “I really respect my dad. You know Leon Palmer from the great work he was able to accomplish here,” referring to his father’s service as town manager. Palmer has a business background and stated, “I like to look at things from a standpoint of things that are worth having, things that are worth organization.” He said he would like to run the town as a business and felt that the customer, the citizens of Taylor, should be taken care of.
   Fuentes mentioned Palmer’s dealing with the rodeo and asked what other areas of interest in the town he had. Palmer said, “To keep the town alive,” noting, “If you’re not growing, you’re dying.”
   Mark Reed said he felt he was no better qualified than the other men, stating, “I don’t have experience in this, but I can learn. More than anything else I’m just willing to be of service if I’m needed.”
   A letter of interest was also submitted by John Scott, but he was not present.
   Nominations were then opened, with Robin Palmer nominating Gibson because of his previous experi-ence on the council. Lee seconded the motion.
   Whipple nominated Shawn Palmer and Tuckfield seconded the motion.
   Hatch nominated Hamblin, with Fuentes seconding the motion. The nomination failed.
   Palmer and Lee voted in favor of Gibson, with Whipple, Tuckfield, Fuentes and Hatch opposing.
   Tuckfield, Whipple and Fuentes voted in favor of Shawn Palmer, with Lee, Hatch and Palmer opposing.
   The nominations failed due to the tied vote.
   Hatch was the only vote for Hamblin, so his nomination failed.
   Solomon explained that in order to entertain a re-nomination of any of these candidates, the nomination must be made by a council member who opposed him in the previous vote.
   Fuentes nominated Reed and Hatch nominated Palmer. Both nominations failed for procedural reasons with a 3-3 vote.
   Solomon then explained that Palmer could not be considered due to two failed nominations.
   Tuckfield nominated Reed for reconsideration and that nomination passed in a 5-1 vote with Whipple opposing.
   Justice of the Peace Fred Peterson then swore in Reed as a member of the council.
   The vote for mayor was done with one nomination made by Whipple, who nominated Tuckfield to complete the term of mayor. The vote was called for by Town Clerk Kelly Jones and passed unanimously.
   Jones opened the floor for nominations of vice mayor, and Fuentes was nominated and approved unanimously.