Berlin appoints Tony Duke to fill council vacancy
Oct. 19—BERLIN — The open council seat at Berlin left vacant by the death of former council member Bruce Bentley has been filled. At its regular meeting Monday, the Berlin town council appointed longtime resident Tony Duke to fill the Place 3 seat formerly occupied by his late predecessor.
Bentley, 55, was one of two traffic fatalities in a Sept. 3 accident on U.S. Highway 278 east of Cullman. Duke said Monday he was honored to fill the vacant council seat, which council member Don Bates and others on the council had recruited him to fill in the wake of Bentley's passing.
The council was not unanimous in its decision to appoint Duke, with council member Keith Hardman casting the lone vote against Duke's appointment in a roll-call vote. During the same meeting, Hardman had previously motioned to nominate Berlin resident Johnny Cordar to fill the vacancy, but that motion was not seconded by anyone else on the council.
Duke declined to be sworn in on Monday, saying he would begin fulfilling his new duties at the council's next regular meeting instead. Duke marks the second new Berlin council appointment in a month; the council appointed James Sanford to its Place 2 seat at its Sept. 20 meeting to fill the vacancy left by former council member Jimbo Quick, who resigned due to a move that placed his residency outside the town's corporate limits.
The council also named current council member Donald Gunter as its new mayor Pro Tempore on Monday, with Gunter himself abstaining from an otherwise-unanimous roll-call vote. Quick had previously served as the town's mayor Pro Tempore.
