Council goes behind closed doors to decide
Jim Polewchak chosen to serve until election on May 12 on 4-2 vote

Several hours and two closed sessions later, the Port Aransas City Council on Thursday, Feb. 8, appointed James L. Polewchak Jr., 36, a Port Aransas resident for two years, to the unexpired term of Place 3 City Councilman Jerry Watson.

Watson died on Jan. 9 of a stroke suffered after complications from an earlier surgery.

The council went into closed session immediately after convening at 5 p.m. More than two hours later, the council returned to open session, during which Councilmember Beverly Charles nominated Charles Bujan. The motion died for lack of a second.

Councilmember Rick Pratt moved to nominate Polewchak, which got a second from Councilmember Bubba Jensen. The motion failed, with Mayor Claude Brown, Councilmembers Keith McMullin, Mike Hall and Charles casting dissenting votes.

The council went back into closed session for another hour and half.

When they reconvened in open session, Charles nominated Polewchak, and Pratt gave the motion a second to bring it to a vote. The nomination was approved, with Brown and McMillan casting "no" votes.

Brown gaveled the council into closed session under a section of the Texas Open Meetings Law that allows, but does not require, a governmental body to go into closed session for these purposes. Section 551.074 provides for closing the doors to the public to deliberate the "appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline or dismissal of a public officer or employee. . ."

The definition of a public official includes a "member of the governing body or another officer, whether elected, appointed, paid, or unpaid . . .".

In his application, Polewchak said he has attended city council meetings on a regular basis for two years and believes he can "help make educated, responsible decisions for the community of Port Aransas."

Polewchak, an industrial salesman and pilot, said he was ineligible for consideration for the airport board because he runs a sightseeing operation here, and was ineligible for the Planning and Zoning commission because of land ownership and residential requirements.

He told council members after the meeting during which it was decided to appoint someone to fill the remainder of Watson's term that he would not seek election to the council.

Others who applied were:

+ Eleece Calvert, 60-plus, a Port Aransas resident for 12 years

+ William H.H. "Bill" Smith III, 60, a Port Aransas resident for 30 years and a former member of the city council

+ Charles R. Bujan, 63, a Port Aransas resident for 12 years who ran for city council last May

+ John B. Parker, 63, a Port Aransas resident for 14 months

+ Glenn Martin, 58, a Port Aransas resident for 35 years and a former mayor of Port Aransas.