From Staff Reports

In most of Buncombe County, incumbents fared well in the Nov. 6 election.

In Black Mountain, voters granted appointed mayor Carl Bartlett a full term and returned two sitting aldermen.

Meanwhile, incumbent OíNeil Tate retained his seat† on Montreatís Board of Commissioners and two members of Woodfinís Water and Sewer Board, James Latimore and Henry Chandler, won reelection.

However, in Weaverville, incumbent Marcy Nisbeth lost her reelection bid after eight years on Town Council, as Gene Knoefel, Walt Currie and Doug Jackson were the top vote-getters.

Bartlett defeated former Montreat Mayor Andy Andrews and Tim Jennings to retain the position he has held since being appointed mayor by the Board of Aldermen late last year following the death of Mayor Will Kennedy.

Black Mountain Aldermen Mike Sobol and Joan Brown also won reelection.

They will be joined by newcomer Ruth Brandon, who also won a seat in the election.

Brandon, who focused her campaign on addressing issues of growth in Black Mountain, said that her frequent involvement in town meetings, both as a citizen and a former alderman, helped her to connect with voters.

In Montreat, Tate said that development, particularly on steep slopes, is a major priority for him.

A 74-year-old who has lived in Montreat for 18 years, Tate has served on the Board of Commissioners for eight years.

John ìJackî McCaskill also won a seat on the Montreat board. A Republican who works as a consulting engineer, McCaskill said he wants to work toward sustained growth without drastically changing the townís character.

Woodfin voters elected three members to the Water and Sewer Board.

Margie Meares will join Latimore and Chandler on the board.

Meares, who has never held public office, said that growth will be a major issue facing the board.††† †††

The three successful Weaverville candidates were chosen from 12 contenders, making this the largest field of candidates for the town in the past 12 years.

Knoefel said his experiences as a member of the townís Planning and Zoning Board would serve him well on council.

The three will be sworn in at the councilís Nov. 19 meeting.