Shelby County Commission chooses new chairman
The Shelby County Commission voted Monday to elect Van Turner their chairman and Mark Billingsley their vice-chair.
Willie Brooks Jr., the last commission’s vice-chair, was not nominated as this year’s chairperson.
Turner and Billingsley’s election continued a tradition of having opposite parties hold the chair and vice-chair positions. Turner is a Democrat while Billingsley is a Republican.
That was a tradition that Commissioner Reginald Milton, a Democrat, sought to overturn when he was nominated by Brooks for the vice-chair position.
The commission has built a bond that transcends political parties, Milton said during his remarks.
“As 13 commissioners, we’re all committed to the same thing, and that’s service to the citizens of Shelby County,” Milton said.
Milton received support from Brooks and Commissioner Mickell Lowery, but withdrew his nomination to allow for unanimous approval of Billingsley.
“I want to work with each one of you,” Billingsley told the commission. “I want to support Chairman Turner in any way I can.”
Turner is starting his second term on the commission representing District 12, which includes Hickory Hill, Richwood, Southwind, Bennington Place and several unincorporated areas of Southeast Shelby County.
As chairman, Turner said he wants to focus on education, safety and health care.
He said he thinks the tradition of having the chair and vice-chair come from different parties is a good idea.
“Though we’re noted as Democrats and Republicans, we work in the best interest of the entire community,” Turner said. “I do think with this being a new commission and a new body starting a new term, this was probably a good signal to show we’re trying to be unified, trying to work together, we’re hoping to work with our new mayor as well.”
Turner is a partner in the law firm of Hagler, Bruce & Turner, according to his biography on the Shelby County website. He has served on the board of directors of the American Bar Association, the National Bar Association, the Tennessee Bar Association, the Mississippi Bar Association and the Memphis Bar Association.
Billingsley was appointed to the Shelby County Board of Commissioners in 2014 and elected later that year to represent District 4, position 2, which includes the City of Germantown, South Cordova, Southwind and Windyke areas of Shelby County.
He is the vice president of advancement at Christian Brothers University and has previously served as an Alderman and Vice-Mayor for the City of Germantown.
Also in the meeting, Turner announced the creation of a committee that will study life and health insurance benefits for retirees. The previous commission voted to expand retiree eligibility, but the resolution was vetoed by former Mayor Mark Luttrell.