Black Mountain government landscape changes overnight
Resignation of mayor sets off series of appointments months before election
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
August 13, 2020
Former Black Mountain mayor, Don Collins, resigned abruptly from his position on Aug. 10. Fred McCormick
Don Collins was brief when he addressed the public in the final moments of the Aug. 10 Black Mountain Board of Aldermen regular monthly meeting. He began by proudly recounting goals reached by the town during his time as alderman and mayor, but by the conclusion of his announcement, the landscape of town government shifted dramatically.
The chain of events that unfolded rapidly in the final 15 minutes of the meeting would result in the resignation of Collins and the appointments of a new mayor and alderman on the heels of a contentious 4-1 vote.
Collins, who was elected mayor in 2017, resigned abruptly from his post before passing the gavel to Mayor Pro Tem Maggie Tuttle as he exited the boardroom. Tuttle continued the meeting and quickly nominated Alderman Larry Harris to fill the final two years of the term left vacant by Collins.
The motion was met with opposition from Ryan Stone, the lone alderman to vote against the motion to appoint Harris as mayor. Stone walked out of the meeting after casting the dissenting vote.
Harris was sworn into office minutes later, and the board acted quickly to fill his vacant seat. Jennifer Willet nominated Archie Pertiller, Jr. — a candidate in the alderman race — to fill the post. Her motion passed 4-0, with audible votes by Tuttle, Willet and Tim Raines, while Stone’s early departure from a meeting in session defaulted to an affirmative vote being recorded on his behalf.
The sudden shift of the make-up of town government comes less than three months before the Nov. 3 election that will determine three seats on the board.
“I’ve done everything I promised I’d do”
Collins, whose term as mayor runs through 2022, offered little reason for his resignation during the meeting, focusing instead on the promises he made when campaigning for alderman in 2011 and mayor in 2017.
“I ran for the board on three things I said I would accomplish,” he said. “One, was to restore civility to this board because the lack of civility on the board at that time was not something this town should be proud of. That has completely turned around.
“I also promised to decrease the town’s debt and increase the fund balance,” he continued. “Our Town finances, between the capital reserve, general fund and unassigned fund balance, increased by $1,592,000. Our debt is down, even after purchasing a new public works building for $2 million.”
Collins pointed to his work during his time as alderman on the Town Square Steering Committee, which raised $700,000 in donations to pay for the development of the project. He touted the town’s ability to maintain a revenue neutral property tax rate throughout his tenure while strengthening the local water infrastructure. Additionally, Collins praised the town’s work to secure grant funding for Phase II of the development of the Riverwalk Greenway and its work with the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners to secure funding for community projects.
“I’ve done everything I promised I’d do,” Collins said. “I’m proud of where we are as a town and what we’ve done. All the credit goes to the board for what we’ve done together. It’s been an honor and privilege to serve you these past nine years, and with that I give my retirement and resignation to this board, effective immediately.”
While the announcement of his resignation was abrupt, the decision to retire from local government has been something Collins has been considering for some time, he said in an interview following Monday’s meeting.
“I’ve been thinking about how much time has slipped through my hands these last few years,” he said. “I’m not getting any younger and I want to spend more time with my wife and family. I used to go hunting in Colorado every year and I’ve only been twice in the last nine years. I look forward to getting back to hunting and fishing with my buddies.”
Collins praised the work of Josh Harrold, crediting his confidence in the town manager as one of many factors that led to his decision.
“Josh has done a fantastic job for this town,” Collins said. “We have great staff and dedicated department heads, and I know, without a doubt, that Josh will continue to manage this town in a fair and ethical way.”
He remains emphatic in his support for the board of aldermen.
“The majority of the people on the board have been elected by the people of this town,” he said. “It is their job to represent the people who elected them. Some people may not be happy that the board has had to appoint people in recent years, but it’s their job to fill seats when they are open, according to the town charter.”
Although he wrestled with the idea of stepping down from his position, according to Collins, he is at ease with the decision.
“I gave 110% during my time as mayor,” he said. “I made it a priority to spend time at town hall and to be involved and get to know our town staff. Serving as mayor was never a hobby for me.”
Incumbent alderman candidate is now mayor
Larry Harris was appointed mayor of Black Mountain with a 4-1 vote by the board of aldermen, Aug. 10, after the resignation of previous mayor Don Collins. Courtesy photo
Harris served one term as alderman beginning in 1987 and returned to the office in 2013 when he was appointed to fill the seat left vacant when Mike Sobol was elected mayor. Harris retained the seat when he was elected in 2015 and was one of nine candidates in the running for the Nov. 3 election that will decide three seats on the Black Mountain Board of Aldermen. He will now hold the office of mayor until at least the 2022 election.
While he was “honored” to be appointed mayor, he was not surprised by Collins’ decision to step down.
“Don signaled more than a year ago that he was ready to retire,” Harris said. “My initial reaction was that I wished he would reconsider because I feel he has been an effective mayor during his time in office and developed a good chemistry with the board. He delayed that decision because of the pandemic, but ultimately he thought I was capable of fulfilling the responsibilities of mayor during this time.”
Prior to his resignation, Collins asked Harris if he would be willing to serve as mayor if appointed by the board. Article II, Section 4 of the Black Mountain Town Charter dictates that vacancies within the offices of mayor and aldermen be filled for the remainder of the term by the board.
The board’s quick action in naming a replacement for Collins is a reflection of the former mayor’s ability to garner support among aldermen, according to Harris.
“I think it came from the fact that Don had spoken to individual board members and built support, which is what a politician does,” Harris said. “He was the mayor and he had a board. He should speak to each member if he has an idea, and if they agree, they support him.
“That is something you have to do individually, because there are public meeting statutes, but that is the mayor’s role anywhere,” he continued. “The mayor can speak to one alderman and that does not constitute a quorum, but he cannot speak to more than one alderman outside of a public meeting.”
Developing productive, professional relationships with fellow board members is an important aspect of the position, according to Harris.
“That’s how you do the job,” he said. “There are times where the mayor can approach board members with an idea and three of them will disagree, and those situations result in the board moving in another direction. It’s how the process works.”
Appointing new members to fill elected offices is part of the board’s job, Harris explained.
“The need to replace board members, just within the history of current members on the board, goes back to 2013, when Ryan (Stone) was appointed to fill Tim Rayburn’s seat,” he said. “I was appointed to take Mike Sobol’s seat when he became mayor. Tim Raines was appointed to fill Jeremie Konegni’s seat when he resigned and Carlos Showers was appointed to fill the seat left open by Don when he was elected mayor. Jennifer Willet was appointed by the board to fill Carlos’ seat when he passed away. The members of the board are elected, and they listen to their various constituents and make their decisions accordingly.”
“It’s every citizen’s town”
Stone, however, was steadfast in his desire to wait until the September meeting to fill the vacancies, he said in an Aug. 11 interview.
“One of the consistent criticisms of this board has been the number of appointed officials and a lack of public input on matters,” said Stone, who was elected in 2013 and re-elected to his seat in 2017. “While I may disagree with a candidate who is selected, I think a time period to have public input is important for any representative body. Just looking at our board now, we have three fully appointed members who have yet to go before the voters and a mayor who has now been appointed.”
The process of appointing people to fill vacancies can be interpreted as representative of the board, while not necessarily representative of the people, he continued.
“When Don resigned, as he listed his accomplishments, he talked about the restoration of civility on the board,” said Stone, who added that he was unaware that Collins would be resigning during the meeting. “That restoration, in my view, has come at the cost of transparency. I think the board has operated in a way that doesn't draw out public comment. They value efficiency, and I value hearing as many voices as possible.”
He acknowledged that he left the meeting due to his frustration with the process.
“Part of it is that we have an outdated town charter, and I hope we can address that after the November election,” Stone said. “I’d like to add conditions that give people more of a voice. It’s every citizen’s town, and just because I sit up there in that seat doesn’t mean it’s my seat. I’m just a steward for the people of the town.”
Pertiller now holds seat contested in election
Pertiller was one of the candidates vying for the seat formerly occupied by Harris in the upcoming election, and will now campaign as an incumbent. Willet, who will attempt to retain her current office in November, spoke highly of Pertiller when nominating him for alderman.
“Mr. Pertiller is a lifelong resident of Black Mountain who has served on many boards, including the Swannanoa Valley Montessori School, the Black Mountain Zoning Board of Adjustment and the State Employees Credit Union Advisory Board, where I collaborated with him for several years,” Willet said. “He is community- and civic-minded and has a willingness to build lasting relationships between the community and the board. I can’t say enough good things about Mr. Pertiller, he strives for transparency and I think he would be an asset to this board.”
With limited discussion by the board, aldermen voted to appoint Pertiller to the seat, which is among those that will be featured on the ballot this fall.
Pertiller retired from the state after 29 years and is the CEO and co-owner of a company that develops curriculum for organizations that provide mental health services.
Town moves forward as election approaches
Harris has served for seven years on the Land of Sky Regional Council and serves on the Buncombe County Audit Committee, the French Broad Metropolitan Planning Organization and the board of directors at Mission Hospital, among other organizations. He plans to encourage open dialogue among board members while conducting meetings as mayor.
“I believe that my experience on other boards will help me to draw out input from members of this board,” he said. “I believe that will strengthen their experience and help inform the public. It can be a challenge to inform the public, and that’s because government can be complicated. It requires work to get as much information as you can out and in front of the public.”
He anticipates that his experience as alderman, and service on numerous boards, will ease his transition into the mayor’s seat, allowing the board to continue its focus on conducting town business.
“We have a comprehensive plan that we’ve been working on in the midst of a pandemic, and we need to work through that the best we can in this challenging time,” Harris said. “Given where we are, we can’t wait for the pandemic to be over with. We will continue to work on walkability, the greenway and solid financial management, as well as anything else that comes before the board in the future.”