MORGANTOWN — Morgantown City Councilor-elect Patrick Hathaway will not represent the city’s 1st Ward when the new council convenes in July.
Hathaway said Thursday that his wife accepted a position in Illinois that requires the couple to relocate.
He said the job offer came days before the city’s April 27 election. By that point, it was far too late to remove his name from the ballot.
“It’s incredibly unfortunate timing. I was really looking forward to serving on council, but I also can’t in good conscious tell my wife, ‘No, you can’t take that job that’s paying you more money so I can be on city council for two years and get $10,000.’ ” Hathaway said.
Hathaway serves as the president of BOPARC and the 1st Ward Neighborhood Association and was unopposed in the 1st Ward on the city ballot. He received 900 votes. Write-in challenger Seth Collins received 369.
“I appreciate everyone who did come out and vote for me and I’m very apologetic and very sorry that I’m not going to be able to fill the role,” Hathaway said. “Again, I was very much looking forward to serving and seeing what improvements we could make to city infrastructure, sidewalks, parks and things like that, and hopefully council will continue to prioritize those things into the future.”
Hathaway’s departure means the selection of a new councilor will be among the first items taken up by the new council.
Morgantown Communications Director Andrew Stacy said the process will mirror that undertaken in March, when the current council appointed Deb Bergen to fill the 3rd Ward vacancy created when Zack Cruze resigned his seat to accept employment in California.
“Mr. Hathaway was elected but will not meet the qualifications for office at the beginning of the term on July 1, making his seat vacant. City Council will have 30 days from that date to fill the vacancy, or a special election would be held to fill it,” Stacy said.
In the case of the 3rd Ward opening, the city accepted applications for the vacancy before holding interviews and voting Bergen into the seat during a March 23 special meeting.
As for Hathaway, he said both he and his wife have family in Morgantown and they intend to stay as close to the community as possible.
“I don’t want people to think I’m abandoning and don’t care anymore. That’s certainly not the case. I was born here. I’ve lived here my entire life, so I’m very much connected to the community,” he said.
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