Eight seek County Commission appointment

Eight community members and leaders are seeking appointment to the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners, as Commissioner Chester Bankston of Ooltewah prepares to step down.

Bankston, a third-term commissioner, will vacate his post at the end of the month, leaving a vacancy on the nine-member board. The remaining members will be tasked with appointing a new member to represent District 9, which includes the Snow Hill, Collegedale and Harrison areas, for the remaining year or so before the 2022 election for the seat.

After two weeks of an open application, the commission has received applications from eight community members to take the seat.

The Times Free Press has been able to determine some information about community affiliations for some of the applicants but cannot identify all of them because the county has not released resumes and application information requested by the newspaper. Here are the applicants:

› Tunyekia Adamson

› Jeff Eversole, market manager, Tennessee Area Walmart Stores

› Rob Healy, former Chattanooga Parks and Recreation Director

› Stephen Highlander, Hamilton

inspired in part by a recent court ruling in Williamson County where the judge said he was “unconvinced” that the school district had the authority to enforce masks.

Other parents have spoken up recently regarding the mask requirement for students. A Hamilton County Schools parent, Larissa Robinson, spoke against masks at the April 15 school board meeting, and another parent, Angie Nunley, is included in the agenda for Thursday’s meeting to speak on the mask requirement.