By Lee Weyhrich, For The Tribune
PISON — Pinson City Council’s swearing in ceremony began on a suspenseful note with everyone waiting for the guest of honor.
Justice Mike Bolin has sworn in every Pinson City Council since the city was founded, and since long before joining the Alabama Supreme Court. Unfortunately he was also booked to swear in the governments of Fultondale, Centerpoint, Springville and Pinson all within a two hour window and did not make it to Pinson until around 7:30, driven by a police escort.
Left to right: Dawn Tanner, Shannon Galamore, Hoyt Sanders, Robbie Roberts, John Churchwell, Joy McCain (photo by Lee Weyhrich)
Bolin said he signed the incorporation orders, and with the special place Pinson has in his heart he wouldn’t have been late if he had a choice.
“(Mayor Hoyt Sanders) said he’d like for me to come out because he knows one of my favorite jobs was being a probate judge and working with the community when you grew and came together and became a city,” Bolin said. “It’s a lot like being an OBGYN at a hospital when a baby is born; I saw the birth of the city and now y’all got one of the greatest municipal government cities.”
The mayor, one new council member and four returning council members were sworn in at Pinson City Hall. Mayor Hoyt Sanders, Dawn Tanner (place 1), Robbie Roberts (place 3), John Churchwell (place 4) and Joy McCain (place 5), renewed their vows as it were. Freshman councilwoman Shannon Galamore (place 2) was sworn in for the first time.
After the ceremony the council began preparations for the new term.
The largest part of this was the discussion and adoption of the rules of the order of procedure – the basic guidelines by which meetings operate. Two changes were made at the suggestion of Councilman Robbie Roberts. The first change would allow any council member who had voted on a made-and-seconded motion the ability to make a motion to reconsider. In the past, only the winning side of any vote could make such a motion. The second change was a new rule requiring unanimous consent for any amount of money to be spent exceeding $15,000. Both rules were adopted unanimously.
Other business included the reappointment of Shane Black as City Attorney, the reappointment of Marie Turner as City Clerk and Treasurer and the electing of Robbie Roberts as Mayer Pro-Tempore.
The only other change was in regards to accounts. In order to patronize the local banks evenly, accounts are spread between Regions Bank, Wells Fargo and Hometown Bank, Sanders said. Two changes had to be made to the resolution regarding these accounts. One was to put the newly elected Mayor Pro-Tem Roberts an the accounts as a signatory, and the other was to delete a section regarding Wells Fargo. Since the previous Pro-Tem was Dawn Tanner, an employee at Wells Fargo, language had been put in the previous draft to keep out any conflicts of interest.
Regular council meetings are the first and third Thursdays of every month, with work session beginning at 6:30 p.m. and the council meeting following at 7 p.m.
