June 19 – VINEMONT – The City of South Vinemont nominated its second new council member in seven days during a called meeting Tuesday, June 18.
Shortly after sworn in Ross Campbell as replacement for Council Seat 3 – created by the resignation of former Councilwoman Charolette Cosper in April – Mayor Radginal Dodson announced the resignation of Sonya Copeland last week, June 11.
Copeland tendered her resignation in a pre-dated letter according to City Clerk Kayesea Sasser, but provided no further details. When contacted by The Times after the announcement, Copeland invoked a quote from rapper Kevin Gates to explain her decision to resign from her seat on the council.
“Kevin Gates said it best. ‘Go where you are celebrated and not tolerated.'”
The council had a small, pre-existing group of candidates, who previously vied to fill Cosper’s vacancy, to discuss Tuesday, but moved quickly on the matter with a unanimous appointment of Grady Malone.
Malone had previously received support from Councilman Chris Thompson, who believed his workplace connections as a building inspector with the city of Madison, Alabama, would be an asset to the city’s growth ambitions. However, Thompson’s attempt to nominate Malone earlier this month was rejected by council members Bonnie Good and Nina Justice.
After the failed nomination attempt, Malone told Sasser he did not want his application held for future consideration. On Monday, Malone told The Times that he quickly reconsidered his position after being approached by Sasser and Thompson.
“I didn’t know anything about the circumstances at the time. After I calmed down a bit, I realized this was something I still wanted to do,” said Malone. “Passion and anger go hand in hand; sometimes passion gets the best of you.”
As for his future on the city council, Malone said he hopes to look for opportunities to recruit both businesses and residents to the city.
“We have a huge city just south of us and we’ve been sitting here for 20 to 30 years watching the grass grow while our population continues to decline,” Malone said. “We need to increase our revenue and bring in attractions so we can generate some of the revenue from all the tours and events that the City of Cullman is currently generating.”
One aspect of Malone’s plan to achieve these goals, he said, will be to address the city’s most visible facade as motorists commute along AL Hwy. 31.
‘The city needs to be cleaned up. There are dilapidated buildings and unsavory sights along Hwy. 31 that you can see,” said Malone.
Another previously unconsidered candidate, resident Shirley Arnett, threw her hat into the ring Monday evening.
Arnett has become a fixture at town hall meetings and said she has only missed two since being elected to the currently open position in 2012. She held the position until 2020, when her attempt to unseat Dodson for the mayor’s position was unsuccessful.
Arnett said she felt her previous experience gave her a unique advantage when it came to understanding the ins and outs of Vinemont municipal procedures.
“I am involved [in the town] since early 2000. I helped campaign for [former Mayor] Melba Patton twice and she won. Since 2012, I have missed two meetings in all that time. I have always been loyal here and have done a lot for this city,” Arnett said.
Arnett also currently serves as vice chairman of Wellstone’s board of directors, representing Vinemont.
None of the council members made a motion for Arnett’s appointment.
Malone is expected to be sworn in at the city’s next regular meeting on Tuesday, July 8, at 6 p.m.
