The Sharpsburg Town Council has decided against appointing a new council member to fulfill the term of Matthew Barnhart, who resigned Jan. 1.
Two residents applied for the seat, but the council chose to let voters select someone in the town election, which will be held on Nov. 20, Sharpsburg Mayor Hal Spielman said Monday night.
“That was their decision,” Spielman said by telephone after the council’s meeting.
Barnhart was serving his first term on the five-person council, but stepped down, citing increased obligations as a career firefighter in Fairfax County, Va.
Sharpsburg residents Clarence Edward “Ed” Beeler, 52, of South Mechanic Street, and Stephanie Taylor, 59, of West Main Street, applied for the seat.
The council currently consists of Darryl Benner, Cathy Hull, Jennifer Silbert and Brandon Smith.
The seats up for election are Spielman’s, Barnhart’s and Silbert’s, according to Anna Louise Jamison, chairwoman of the town election board.
— C.J. Lovelace
