New Hoover City Council chooses Gene Smith as president on 4-3 split vote
The newly elected Hoover City Council chose longtime Councilman Gene Smith as the new City Council president tonight, but it was a 4-3 split vote.
John Lyda, who is returning for a second four-year term on the council, nominated Smith for the president’s job, but new Councilman and former Hoover school board President Derrick Murphy also was nominated by Councilman Casey Middlebrooks.
Smith received four “yes” votes from Lyda, returning Councilman John Greene, new Councilman Mike Shaw and Smith, while Middlebrooks, new Councilman Curt Posey and Murphy voted “no” on Smith.
Because there were four votes for Smith, no vote was taken on Murphy’s nomination.
Lyda said after the meeting that he nominated Smith for the president’s job because of the depth of his experience and institutional knowledge.
“There’s no one on the Hoover council today that has more of those two traits than Gene,” Lyda said.
Smith has served there four-year terms on the council and also served on the Hoover Planning and Zoning Commission and spent 16 years working for the Hoover Fire Department.
Posey, even though he didn’t vote for Smith, said he believes Smith will bring a lot of wisdom and discernment to the role.
The council unanimously chose Greene as president pro tempore and Shaw as the council’s representative on the Planning and Zoning Commission.
The new City Council had numerous other appointments to make in its organizational session tonight:
- Margie Handley was chosen to continue as city clerk.
- Hoover Finance Director Robert Yeager was chosen to continue as city treasurer.
- Phillip Corley Jr. of the Wallace, Jordan, Ratliff & Brandt law firm was chosen to replace Charlie Waldrep of the Waldrep, Stewart & Kendrick law firm as city attorney.
- Waldrep was chosen to continue as city prosecutor with a $75,000 annual salary, and Nic Waddell and Brandon Prince were selected as alternate prosecutors in Waldrep’s absensce.
- The Barfield, Murphy, Shank & Smith accounting firm was chosen as the city’s auditing firm.
- Brad Bishop was chosen to continue as municipal judge for two years with an $80,000 annual salary.
- Hoover Court Director Susan Fuqua and Robin Griffin, Marsha Headley, Terica Henderson, Tiffaney Brewer, Anna McRae, Umang Patel, Darinda Poe, Jason Simpson and Leandra Burks were chosen as magistrates for the city.
- Regions Bank, Wells Fargo Bank and First National Bankers Bank were chosen to continue as depositories for the city.