Monday night marked the beginning of new four-year terms for three members of the West Jefferson Board of Aldermen and the end of service for another when the board met in regular session on Monday, Dec. 7. Alderman Jerry McMillan sat in his seat as the meeting began and made the first motion of the evening to approve the minutes from the Boards' Nov. 2 meeting.

That motion would be McMillan's last, however, as the second agenda item was to allow him to make outgoing comments.

"I thank the citizens of West Jefferson for supporting me over the past four years," said McMillan. "It's been an honor and ... a privilege of mine to serve in the place I grew up, a place I love, a place I only want the best for."

He added that he has "seen a lot of improvement" over the past four years and thinks the town is "heading in the right direction."

The meeting then moved into the organizational portion for the swearing in of three Board members: Stephen Shoemaker and Calvin Green, who were both re-elected to the board, and new member Lester Mullis. Ashe County Clerk of Court Pam Barlow was on hand to administer the oaths of office.

The ceremony was followed by a time for comments from the Board and West Jefferson Mayor Dale Hudler, and each man seated at the front of West Jefferson Town Hall took a moment to wish McMillan well and welcome Mullis to the Board.

"Welcome to the fire," said Alderman Tom Hartman to Mullis. Mullis added that McMillan "left really big shoes to fill."

The final item during the organizational part of the meeting was to elect a Mayor Pro-Tempore to serve as mayor in the case of the current mayor's absence. Shoemaker nominated Alderman Brett Summey for the position and said he couldn't "think of a better person who could serve us better." The motion passed unanimously.

In other business, the Board was presented with the information from the audit of the ABC store. According to Jak Reeves, who presented the information, the store had total sales of $1.36 million for it's first 12-month business cycle that ended on June 30, 2008. $1.28 million was in retail sales at the store while the rest was from mixed beverage accounts (local restaurants or businesses that serve liquor drinks).

Reeves said that the store's profit ratio was "one of the top 20 in the state" and added that while the number of customers has increased, the average price of items purchased has decreased. He also said that sales are good during the summer months and leaf season but were lower from January to March.

Chief Brian Grogan gave the West Jefferson Police Department's report for November 2009. He said they received 193 calls, of which 25 were related to automobile accidents; eight criminal investigative reports were filed; 24 citations were issued for a total of 38 charges including larceny and four driving while intoxicated citations; 10 people were arrested and two warrants were taken for drug charges. He noted that attendance increased at the most recent Neighborhood Watch meeting and he plans to hold the next meeting in January.

To find out more, contact the Town of West Jefferson at (336) 246-3551.