Board fills vacancies, delays committee appointments
The Farragut Board of Mayor and Aldermen filled several committee vacancies Thursday, Oct. 22, but decided to postpone appointments to the Comprehensive Land Use Plan steering committee.
During a workshop before the board's regular meeting, Town administrator David Smoak said several committees needed additional members, including representatives from the board.
“There are several [committees] we need representation on,” Smoak said. “We sent out applications online on which people could apply, and we received several for the board’s consideration this evening.
“Also, given the fact that we have three new board members, we have several committees that also need board representation on those committees as well,” he said.
However, Vice Mayor Greg Wiberley said he had not had an opportunity to interview the applicants.
“Is this an appropriate time to [decide on the vacancies]?” Wiberley asked. “Or, is this the standard procedure?”
“This is our standard procedure,” Smoak answered. “All the resumes and applications are attached to the report here. It’s really your call.
“The main ones we’re trying to report on are the [CLUP] steering committee and the [Visual Resources Review Board], on which we’re short for a quorum,” he added.
Wiberley said he wanted to wait until the board held a workshop on the land-use planning process before appointing steering committee members.
“With the steering committee, you recall back in September, I asked for a workshop so the Town could provide guidance on the old land-use plan process, and I think that really includes the steering committee,” Wiberley said. “So, on that particular committee, I would like to defer that committee until that workshop.”
Alderman Joey Ruffalo recalled the board had planned to have the committee in place before the next workshop.
“We seem to be skipping a step,” Wiberley said.
Ruffalo expressed concern about the number of applicants for the steering committee. The town received 10 applications for five citizen positions.
Applicants were Budhu Bhaduri, Jim Bolon, George Ellis, Susan Finzer-Moor, Dian Hall, Reed Honken, Don Mann, Trevor McQueen, Kimberlie Parks and Stacey Walters.
Ruffalo suggested postponing appointments to allow more residents to apply.
“There are not too many choices,” Wiberley agreed, adding, “I don’t know these people. I’d rather talk to them.”
Smoak said a workshop on the Comprehensive Land Use Plan process is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 12.
Ruffalo asked whether the town could reopen applications until that meeting, allowing the board to better define the committee's responsibilities before making appointments.
“Sure,” Smoak answered. “We’ve had this open for about a month now. We advertised on social media and newspapers as well. We can certainly do another round.”
During its regular meeting, the board approved the following committee appointments:
• Arts & Beautification Committee: Matthew Ladd as a citizen member and Ruffalo as the board representative.
• Tourism and Visitor Advisory Board: Kimberlie Parks as an at-large citizen member.
• Education Relations Committee: Lorna Keeton as an ex-officio member representing Concord Christian School.
• Museum Advisory Board: Ruffalo as the board representative.
• Stormwater Committee: Wiberley as the board representative.
• Visual Resources Review Board: Alderman Larry Segrest as the board representative and Stacey Walters as a citizen member.
Other board committee assignments include Alderman Drew Burnette on the Education Relations Committee and Parks & Athletics Council; Wiberley on the Municipal Planning Commission; and Ruffalo on the Tourism Advisory Committee.
In other business, the board approved the hiring of Karla Magnuson as Town recorder.
The Town recorder maintains records of official proceedings, ordinances, resolutions and other municipal documents.
“After an extensive search process, Karla Magnuson possesses the qualifications and experience as outlined in the Farragut Municipal Code to fulfill the responsibilities of town recorder,” Smoak said.
The position became vacant Oct. 2, and Smoak had been handling the duties until a replacement was found.
