Walden vice mayor resigns

Walden Town Hall was constructed in 1993 and has only had minor repair projects to its exterior. A recently approved project will completely replace the wood siding, and is expected to begin in the next few months.
Walden Town Hall was constructed in 1993 and has only had minor repair projects to its exterior. A recently approved project will completely replace the wood siding, and is expected to begin in the next few months.

After three years of service on the Walden Board of Mayor and Aldermen, Thom Peterson officially resigned from his position as vice mayor last week.

Peterson submitted his resignation letter to the council June 21, citing his imminent move to Hixson as the reason for his decision. Once he takes ownership of a primary residence outside town borders, he will no longer be legally permitted to serve on the governing body.

"It has been my fortunate circumstance to have served on the board," Peterson wrote in his letter to the board. "[You all have] comprised a team with which it has been a pleasure to be associated."

Walden officials said they had long known Peterson was in the process of moving, but the resignation was sudden, as his new home was completed faster than anticipated.

Peterson said his role as a member of the Signal Mountain School System Viability Committee, which he joined in February to represent Walden, will remain the same. He will continue to play an active role in the fact-finding process and provide Walden officials with regular updates, he said.

"The committee is so close to finishing its duties and getting its information that it just didn't make sense to put a new person in the committee at this point in the information-gathering process," Peterson explained in a follow-up interview.

The board members will formally thank Peterson for his service during their Sept. 12 meeting, when both he and Alderman Lee Davis are able to attend.

"It has been a pleasure to work with Dr. Peterson over the past three-plus years," said Mayor Bill Trohanis, praising his colleague for his work with the McCoy property, the SSVC and the rejuvenation of Walden Town Hall. "The insights and perspectives he provides to our board have made Walden a better and more vibrant community. We wish him and his family well in their upcoming move."

After accepting Peterson's resignation during the July 11 board meeting, Walden officials named Davis, who was not present at the meeting, the new vice mayor.

Davis has been a member of the board since 2015, and Trohanis said he was next in line for the position.

Joining the board is Sarah McKenzie, whom Trohanis and Davis appointed as alderwoman during a special public meeting June 22.

McKenzie has lived in Walden for 19 years and has long been an active leader in the community. In 2016, she retired from Regions Bank, where she served as senior vice president. She also served as clerk and senior warden on the vestry at St. Timothy's Episcopal Church from 2013-2016. She hopes her background will provide new insights into issues relating to development, town planning and budgeting.

"I look forward to getting up-to-date on the affairs affecting Walden and hope I can contribute to preserving and improving our town," McKenzie said.

McKenzie will remain in the position until 2018, when Peterson's two-year term would have ended. At that time, if she so chooses, she can run again.

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