MARBLE HILL VOTERS MAKE CITY COLLECTOR AN APPOINTED POSITION

MARBLE HILL -- Voters in Marble Hill Tuesday made the city collector an appointed position.

The vote was 42-25 in favor of the proposition.

City officials backed the change, arguing that the city needed an appointed rather than elected city collector.

City Administrator Rick Jones said the city needs a collector with accounting and computer skills.

City officials argued that computer and billing skills are essential for an effective collector.

The elected city collector, Brenda Hughes, quit this fall to move to Georgia. The Board of Aldermen appointed Carla Watt to fill the vacancy after their first candidate for the job had to leave for family health reasons.

Watt has accounting and computer experience, Jones said. But she wouldn't have been able to run for a full term in April because she doesn't live in Marble Hill. An elected city collector must live in the city.

Watt's future as city collector rested on the outcome of Tuesday's vote. "It makes me very happy," she said Tuesday night.

The city administrator said the proposal makes sense. "We are handling city taxpayer dollars," he said.