Durbin Town Council approved the resignation of councilmember Danielle Findley at its regular meeting March 11. The move will allow Findley to take the position of recorder.
Council held a special meeting February 20 to accept the resignation of recorder John Osborne. The position was posted and Findley was the only person who expressed an interest in serving.
Findley’s move to recorder has left an open seat on the council.
In updates:
• Jason Bauserman asked council to grant him permission to look at ledger books from the town’s old jail. Bauserman is working with the Pocahontas County Historical Landmarks Commission on a possible project to restore the historic building.
Since he first mentioned the project at the February meeting, Bauserman said he has gathered stories from Durbin residents who remember the jail.
“When I talked to Joyce Varner, she said, ‘well, the jail used to be beside my house here on the lower side. It was a wooden jail,’” Bauserman explained. “She said it was torn down around 1938 because I think that was about the time her house got built there on the hill.”
Bauserman also collected information from June Colaw who recalled a story about a former inmate of the wooden jail who broke off some of the siding boards to escape. After his successful escape, the inmate set the siding board on fire and burned down the jail. That is when the town built the cinderblock jail that remains today.
Council approved Bauserman’s request to research the ledger books.
• Council approved the second reading of town ordinances for housing and building regulations, and stopping and standing.
• Durbin Community Library representative Judy Fuller asked council to apply for $10,000 to benefit the library when the budget is prepared. She also suggested council request $10,000 for building maintenance of the town hall.
Suzanne Stewart may be contacted at sastewart@pocahontastimes.com
