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New City Council sworn in |
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Saturday, 14 March 2009 |
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By Mike Bodine
Register Staff
3-12-2009 Monday marked a special occasion for the City of Bishop, as it welcomed and swore in new members of the City Council and named a new mayor and mayor pro tem.
This beginning also signaled the end for other council members. Frank Crom retired after more than 40 years of public service and Martin “Smiley” Connolly, who did not win his bid for re-election on March 3, officially vacated the seat he’s held for the past 17 years. Monday’s meeting was first a lesson on governmental procedure for newly elected council members David Stottlemyre and Laura Smith. For incumbents Susan Cullen and Treasurer Bob Kimball, it was business as usual. First, the election results were certified and declared by the council, after which the officials were sworn in under the direction of City Administrator Rick Pucci. The new members then took seats at the dais with another chair left empty in the mayoral place. The selection of a mayor and mayor pro tem is done by the council itself. A council member first selects a candidate for a mayoral position, the council then approves the selection and the council votes on that selection.
Council member Bruce Dishion nominated Susan Cullen for mayor and she was voted in unanimously. Dishion then nominated Jeff Griffiths for mayor pro tem, who was also elected unanimously.
 City Administrator Rick Pucci swears in the victors of the March 3 municipal election: (l-r) Treasurer Robert Kimball, new City Council members Laura Smith and David Stottlemyre and returning council member Susan Cullen. Cullen was later elected mayor by the council. Photo by Mike Bodine
Along with being members of the City Council, these officials were also given appointments to various committees and agencies. Some of the assignments for the new council members included Smith and Stottlemyre being on the Bishop Airport Task Force and the Indian Gaming Local Community Benefit Committee. Cullen will become the Desert Mountain Division of the League of California Cities voting delegate as well as a member of the Collaborative Planning Committee. Other council members were also shuffled to fill vacancies left by Crom and Connolly.
Following the ceremonies and appointments, the council members, new and veteran, praised both Crom and Connolly for their decades of service and friendship.
The new members attended a “retreat” on Tuesday to bring the new City Council up to speed on the city’s budget and government protocol.
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 25 April 2009 )
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