Application process re-opened for vacant seat
Robbinsville – After over two hours in closed session, recently-hired town attorney Leo Phillips opened the doors to the mayor’s office at Robbinsville Town Hall, inviting those still lingering in the lobby inside for what promised to be a long-anticipated announcement.
Brian “Taco” Johnson had stepped down from various roles across the county in January, citing a need to address health concerns. Perhaps his most prominent role was as a town aldermen, a seat he first obtained in the 2017 election and then successful re-campaigned for in 2021.
Johnson’s vacancy came amid a heavy period of turnover in the administrative department at the municipality’s headquarters. Since July 2022, Robbinsville has struggled to keep the position of finance officer filled: to date, five have accepted the role (currently, Linda Parton is balancing the books).
In the spring, applications were made available at town hall for anyone interesting in joining the board. Interviews were conducted by remaining aldermen Debbie Beasley and Kenneth Hyde and it seemed by the end of July, a decision was imminent.
But the August board meeting came and went, with no announcement made. Tuesday’s agenda listed the appointment as a closed-session topic, so when executive doors were closed around 2:30 p.m., it seemed like a foregone conclusion.
When the assembly reconvened at 4:42 p.m., Mayor Shaun Adams delivered the bombshell: no actions were taken in closed session. Hyde said the application process would restart and moments later, a motion to adjourn capped the anticlimactic ending.
No reason was stated for the decision to dismiss the applications on-file and hit the reset button.
Other news & notes
Prior to the lengthy closed-session discussion, several key items were addressed by the board:
* Beasley entered a pitch to vote on seeking out an engineer to evaluate the cost of replacing several key areas of Robbinsville’s water-line system, including sections in Snidertown, Fort Hill, Old Sweetwater Road and the main supply line to the Robbinsville Middle/High School campus. Beasley said the idea came on the heels of a discussion with Rep. Chuck Edwards and his office, who suggested identifying problematic locations in the town and seek federal funding for the repairs. Hyde seconded the motion;
* A previously-replaced sewer line around the area of North Main/Dula streets had not been tied into the updated route – a problem that the town has now rectified, but it came with a price: $707, after a property owner had to summon Franklin-based SERVPRO to clean up a basement that was damaged by sewage backup. The board unanimously approved the reimbursement;
* The yearly tradition of the mayor signing a proclamation on behalf of the town – recognizing Constitution Week (Sept. 17-23) – was carried out by Adams. Lynn Deeden and Victoria Baker with the Daughters of the American Revolution were in attendance.