The Morehead City Council is preparing to part ways with one third of its current leadership. City council members Jan Bishop and David Perkins were not re-elected by Morehead voters to the six-person board. They will participate in the final meetings of their terms next week.
Bishop, a Morehead native, worked with Morehead-Rowan County Tourism before serving on city council for about 20 years. She said her main mission for these past decades has been to revitalize the city and make it a prime place for commerce. Bishop reminisced on some highlights, like when she and other council members originally passed ordinances to prohibit smoking in indoor public spaces, making the town more welcoming for all.
“I owned Pasquales for years, and we actually had a smoking ban before the city did. I thought it was a very positive thing to do. It was very early, there were not a lot of places but Lexington at that time that banned smoking in their restaurants and public spaces,” said Bishop.
Bishop added she hopes to see city government continue to push Morehead in a progressive direction.
Perkins, a life-long Rowan County resident, served as Morehead’s mayor from 2007 to 2014, taking a position on the city council both before and afterward. He said he is proud the council is working to elevate the city’s ability to provide fundamental services for its citizens.
“One major thing is for our basic services. We have this new facility for this police department. We’re on the front end of getting this new facility for the fire department,” said Perkins. “Those are basic services a city should provide if at all possible.”
Perkins and Bishop said flood abatement has been another key issue for the council lately, and they hope the current green sinks initiative continues its progress to provide natural flood mitigation.
Perkins and Bishop will be replaced by Darrell Littleton and Michael “Coach” Kash after the next regularly scheduled city council meeting, currently set for Monday, December 9.