Houston City Council selects mayor, deputy mayor

After a tumultuous few weeks leading up to and following the October 1 election in Houston, the city council got down to the business of electing a Mayor and Deputy Mayor during a special council meeting on October 21.

Councilman Carter Cole was re-elected to Mayor in a 5-2 vote. Councilman David Childs was nominated, but respectfully declined the nomination, citing time issues required to fulfill the role as mayor. He currently works as a middle school teacher and has dedicated his time into that.

“There are things that I would have to take a long time to try to learn to feel like I was not doing a disservice,” Councilman Childs said when declining the nomination, and that he will continue to support Mayor Cole.

“I know there’s been, especially in the election season, a lot of contentiousness, but I still believe in the Mayor’s vision.”

Although he turned down the nomination for Mayor, Councilman Childs was nominated and unanimously voted as the Deputy Mayor for another term, a role he has been serving since July, after the previous Deputy Mayor, Mike Adams resigned.

“I know that this responsibility is nearly equal to that of the Mayor,” he said, adding, “I will not take this lightly.” He told the council that he appreciated their trust in him to be the Deputy Mayor.

Deputy Mayor Childs addressed some of the more heated council interactions as of late, which he said had fallen away from the initial respect and appreciation for each other when he was first elected in 2022, and that there was a falling away from parliamentary procedure but that the council has been working to get back to get back to that.

“I am very much happy with the way things have been going and our mutual respect for each other and following parliamentary procedure. I appreciate the council. I think that we all have the right mindset for the growth of the city.”

Mayor Cole highlighted many of the accomplishments the council has made over the last year, including some road improvements, work on dust control and abatement for a few of the more traveled gravel roads, and a new website for the city.

“What we’re doing is working.”

Unlike Wasilla and Palmer, in which the residents elect the mayor, Houston is a second class city, and the city council is responsible for selecting a Mayor and Deputy Mayor for a one-year term. There are currently 116 second-class cities in Alaska.

Mayor Cole and Deputy Mayor Childs were sworn in to their roles following their elections.

Next up for the city council is a special meeting on Thursday, October 24 to discuss the City's application for the Community Development Block Grant funds to support a Gas Implementation Project.