Beech Tree News Network

The 2020 election will be an important one nationally, as we vote for President of the United States. But locally, for those voting in the Morgantown city limits, another important election will take place, that of the Morgantown City Council. All six council members have filed to run for reelection. Uncommonly, no race will be contested, with no one running against them. 

This hasn’t happened in recent memory. So, Beech Tree News posed the following questions to the Morgantown City Council and Mayor Billy Phelps: Do you feel like it reflects positively on the job the council and city have done over the past two years, and do you think the Covid-19 pandemic in any way influenced the lack of candidate filings for council? 

It seems nearly everything in our lives now is affected by Covid 19. For some on the council, the fact that they were uncontested, is at least somewhat, a result of the spread of this global pandemic. 

“At the time of filing things were frantic and very uncommon circumstances to say the least.” Councilmember Sterling White said. But he doesn’t just think it was logistics that stopped folks from running. “I’d like to also think it’s somewhat a vote of public confidence in our current group. Maybe it’s an acknowledgement of how we’re able to put differences aside and work for the good of the people. I’d like to see more of that on a national level.” 

Mayor Phelps shares similar sentiments.

“I believe the pamandic also played a role in what people were thinking - ‘the world has gone crazy but Morgantown is working - let's let our leaders continue to work’.” He continued, “I...believe that in today's society, leadership is more important than ever, you cannot just sit back and watch things happen-go to meetings with no designed purpose. You have to see the future and engage - start planning now on your path to a successful city.  I believe the city council and mayor's office all work together to fulfill that obligation.”

With strong leadership more important than ever, council members also feel they have gained the trust and respect of their community. 

"I believe that the current council has been doing a good job. We've been fiscally responsible while at the same time have improved our infrastructure. I believe the people see that and are happy about the progress we as a city have made....” Councilmember Jason Gaskey said. 

“For the last two years, I have had the pleasure of working with five other council members,” said Councilmember Dionne Merritt.  “We are very diverse, and we all have different opinions and ideas but ultimately we come together for the betterment of Morgantown. In my opinion, the city is thriving and to quote my Grandma Exie Hawes, ‘It’s not what you make, it's what you save,’ and the city has (done)  just that. We have more money than ever before, however, we have big projects like never before.  I hope that the citizens of Morgantown think that we are doing a great job.” 

Regardless of the reason for the uncontested race, Council member Dustin Embry says he is “...looking forward to being able to serve my city again for the next term. I’m excited about the work we’ve done as a team and I’m looking forward to the future for our city!”

Councilmember Russell Givens said he was “definitely surprised than no other candidates filled to run, especially considering some of the controversy about the restaurant tax.” But, he reasons, “I think the fact that nobody filed to run says the people are happy with how things are going in the city and how the city's comprehensive plan is providing direction for our community.” Givens continues, “when I first ran for city council, Gary Southerland said the city needs a plan that people can see and get behind.  He wanted people to see where the city was going and how those plans were going to be implemented.  That's important."  

The city’s Comprehensive Plan can be found here. 

Councilmember Sharon Johnson thanks “...the citizens of Morgantown for the vote of confidence.” Johnson says of her next term, “I plan to continue to work with the other council members to move Morgantown forward.”

Mayor Phelps concludes, “I think that the community sees that we have a group of people that are all working together to make Morgantown a better place to live.  It's refreshing to see people work together toward a goal and not taking it personally when others disagree. There can be disagreements on the path to get to a specific item but all the council members are  on the same page as to what the goal is.”