Lakeland board opts not to fill vacancies

3 of 4 terms ending

Lakeland’s Board of Commissioners, with three of the four members near the end of their terms, decided they will not make a last-minute appointment to fill a board vacancy.

Lakeland Commissioner Gerrit L. Verschuur resigned the day after city’s election. Under the city’s charter, the existing board could make the appointment.

The board, which met Monday night, had a two-page list of city business matters, but little was discussed except the vacancy.

An attorney for 40 years, commissioner Randy Nicholson said he believes that the charter’s “ultimate intent was for the new board to make that decision and not the old board.”

In addition, Nicholson told the 20 residents who attended the work session that despite rumors of his resignation, he is remaining on the board. He is the lone commissioner after the defeat of Mayor Scott Carmichael and Commissioners Don Barber and Cecil Tompkins.

Tompkins disagreed with Nicholson, saying: “I think we have the perfect legal right to do so (make the appointment). It should have been done before now. It hasn’t been done. I see nothing in the charter that negates that responsibility.”

But Barber sided with Nicholson. “Well, since everybody’s opining, I might as well,” he said, prompting chuckles from the audience. “There is a process. Even though there is opportunity, even though there is authority, it does not meet my personal requirement of whether it is prudent and what I have to live with from my own conscience.”

Carmichael had said he wouldn’t call a special meeting to make an appointment to board. So far, Larry Pardue, Jim Sharpe and Josh Roman have applied for the board vacancy.

Incoming mayor and current County Commissioner Wyatt Bunker and newly elected commissioners Sherri Gallick and Clark Plunk sat on the front row. They will be sworn in at Thursday night’s regular board meeting and take up the matters from Monday’s work session.