Twelve vie for board seats

By GINA KINSLOW
Glasgow Daily Times

CAVE CITY October 31, 2008 11:22 am

— Cave City residents have many choices they can make come election day.
With 12 people looking to fill the six seats on the Cave City City Council, voters could elect an entirely new city council; they could also choose to keep the current council members in office for another two years or vote to keep only a portion of the current council in place.
Incumbents seeking re-election are: Dwayne Hatcher, Carol Ford, Todd Esters, Mike Houchens, Leon Adwell and Donnie Davidson.
There are many things voters should take into consideration when making their decisions at the polls, such as whether council members attend meetings and whether or not they exhibit appropriate behavior.
According to city records, during the 2007-08 calendar year, Ford missed two meetings in 2007 and one in 2008. Houchens missed two in 2007 and one in 2008, and Esters missed one in 2007 and three in 2008.
One council member is currently involved in a civil lawsuit.
Also during the 2007-08 calendar year, two council members — Davidson and Esters — walked out of the March 2008 meeting moments after it started. Mayor Bob Hunt had informed the council that it would be following Robert’s Rules of Orders in conducting business, a change from how meetings had been conducted for 18 months prior.
In an e-mail to the Glasgow Daily Times, Esters explained his abrupt departure from the council meeting by saying he was not going to live under a dictatorship.
Esters has filed suit against some members of the Cave City Volunteer Fire Department and one citizen, seeking compensation for damage to his personal vehicles he alleges the individuals caused in October and November 2007.
Houchens began his career as a city council member in 1994, serving until May 2005, when he resigned. He was re-elected in January 2007.
Donnie Davidson was elected to the council in January 1994.
There are two people seeking election who have previously served on the council — Buddy Wilshire and Larry Davidson.
Wilshire served one two-year term from 2004-2006, while Larry Davidson served from January 1994 to January 2005. Larry Davidson was appointed to fill a vacancy on the council following the resignation of Melissa Williams, who was appointed to fill a seat left by the resignation of Hack Borden in spring 2007. Williams resigned from the post before attending a council meeting. Larry Davidson then resigned in late October 2007.
Others seeking election to the council are: Gary Hogan, Denny Doyle, Chris Adwell and Lonnie Meredith.