Morgan County Commissioners have chosen Bill Clark from among four candidates to fill a seat on the commission left empty by the resignation of Ken Reed earlier this month. Reed was elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates in November and is already at work in that new position.
Bill Clark.
Clark worked for Morgan County government for nearly 30 years before leaving his position as EDA director to become the Executive Director of the Region 9 Planning & Development Council, which promotes economic development and infrastructure projects in the region. Clark began working as a Morgan County Planner in 1985, then went on to become the County Administrator and EDA Director.
In his letter to the Morgan County Commission seeking the empty seat, Clark said, “With 28 years in county government (Morgan County) and another eight years at the Regional Council, I feel that I bring a working knowledge of local government and experiences that can be useful to the duties of the commission. I believe I could be a great addition to your current team, providing good historical background when needed, a solid knowledge of project management and grant funding and conservative perspective on many issues.”
Clark mentioned that he has worked for 12 different commissions during his work with Morgan County, giving him a range of styles and approaches to draw from.
Clark will retire from Region 9 at the end of the December. Commission President Joel Tuttle, after the unanimous vote to appoint Clark, said he would arrange to have Clark sworn in on January 4, 2021 — the first meeting of the Morgan County Commission in the new year.
Tuttle and Commissioner Sean Forney came to a consensus about the choice of Clark almost immediately during Wednesday’s commission meeting. They both said they appreciated the four men who expressed interest in filling the seat — Clark, G.W. Easton, Jason Didawick and Wayne Sanderson — and their willingness to serve the county. Clark’s application, the commissioners said, was “outstanding” in its breadth of experience and range of letters of recommendation from current and former elected officials of all political parties.
Clark, a Republican, will serve as a Morgan County Commissioner through December 31, 2022 — the remainder of Reed’s elected term. If he wishes to continue to serve in that role, he will have to run in the 2022 election and be chosen by voters for a full six-year term.
