Three Councilman Take the Oath of Office in Royston Tuesday

In Royston, three incoming city councilmen have been sworn in.

Newly elected councilmen Fletcher Hodges and Tony McCollum took the oath of office before Mayor Keith Turman Tuesday along with returning Councilman Jason Phillips at Royston City Hall.

There were three City Council seats open in the November 7 Municipal election.

For Post 2 Incumbent Jason Phillips won his seat for another term over challenger Wesley Fricks.

For Post 4 Fletcher Hodges won the seat over Incumbent Lee Strickland and Tony McCollum won the Post 6 seat from Incumbent Wayne Braswell.

Afterward, Councilman Fletcher Hodges said he’d like to see Royston citizens take a more active role in City government.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity and I think in every council meeting we should run out of seating. We should have people standing in the hallway outside to be here, to listen and participate in public discourse,” he said.

Councilman Tony McCollum said he never thought he would have the opportunity to serve the citizens of Royston.

“I’d just like to say it’s an honor to be here. I never thought during the Centennial riding my bicycle through Royston, that I’d be standing here among friends and family. And I really do appreciate it and I thank everyone for coming,” he said.

Royston Mayor Keith Turman told those attending he’s looking forward to working with the new City Councilmen and the new ideas they will bring.

“I’m looking forward to you guys bringing new ideas. We’ve got projects that we started and we’re going to try and finish those. And we’re going to be optimistic about the great City of Royston because I know there’s opportunity. I know there’s going to be some great things when we all work together for the common good of this City,” he said. “As I said before it’s going to take every one of us. We’re going to have some ideas that sometimes that we don’t always agree on. But at the end of the day, we have to make decisions that are best for the citizens.”

The Royston City Council will hold its first meeting in 2024 next Tuesday, January 9 at Royston City Hall.