Entering into her final year of her six-year term, Diane Hinkle was selected as the Tucker County Commission President. Each year the County Commission meets on the second day of the new year to select a new president. The position typically rotates through the different commissioners, so, for Hinkle, it did not come as a surprise to be selected.
Having left her position with the Tucker Community Foundation and solely focused on her work with the County Commission, she said, “I have more flexibility, so I am happy to do it. It’s nice to share the workload, and I totally expect to work closely with Lowell and Patrick in every regard, and I appreciate their support.”
As Commission President, Hinkle hopes to increase community engagement through county roundtable meetings. She also wants to encourage higher attendance at Commission meetings.
“We will continue to support infrastructure projects, because jobs are important to this community, but in order to bring in jobs we need to provide the infrastructure,” Hinkle said. She also plans to keep a “firm pulse on how things are going in the Leadmine community as far as stream bank erosion.”
Hinkle commented that housing is an issue that she intends to address while commission president.
“I look forward to the year ahead, and I hope that I am given the opportunity to continue working on the county boards that I am a part of,” Hinkle said. Hinkle filed to run for another six-year term as a county commissioner.
At the January 2 meeting, Lowell Moore’s work as commission president was recognized. “There’s nobody that works harder in this county or works for the betterment of the county more than Commissioner Moore,” Hinkle said. Moore’s accomplishments throughout his three year tenure as president include construction of the Courthouse Annex Building as well as payment of the construction costs, a veteran’s clinic project, EMS ordinance enacted, updated wrecker ordinances, an unchanged levy rate since 2014, and completion of the dike project in Parsons.