Austell Mayor Joe Jerkins has chosen Councilman Ollie B. Clemons, Jr. as the new mayor pro tem to serve in his absence in an announcement made this week without giving a reason.
Mayor pro tems in Austell do not have a set term but are changed whenever Jerkins makes the decision to do so without the council’s approval.
Clemons replaces Councilman Scott Thomas as mayor pro tem.
If the future is like the past, Clemons, the city’s first black elected official, may find he will not be called upon.
During his 25 years as mayor and city manager, Jerkins has missed only two of 625 meetings - one pre-agenda meeting and one council meeting around Thanksgiving 1998 when he broke his back, he told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Wednesday.
Jerkins said he fell while working on the construction of his Florida vacation house and was told he nearly missed paralysis.
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