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LANETT — The Lanett City Council and the Lanett City Board of Educations each met at city hall during the 6 o’clock hour Monday for swearing-in ceremonies. At 6 p.m., Mayor Kyle McCoy and four returning council members were sworn in. Tony Malone, Jamie Heard, Charles Looser and Angelia Thomas were sworn in to new four-year terms along with the mayor. The mayor’s brother, County Attorney Skip McCoy, swore them in.

At 6:30 p.m., the new city board of education was sworn in. Four incumbents receiving new terms include Board Chair Gwen Harris-Brooks, Katie Walton, Tony Edmondson, Gail Holley and David Gagnon.

County Attorney McCoy, a Lanett High alumnus, said that as “an old Panther” he really liked the job being done by fellow alumnus Superintendent Jennifer Boyd and the school board in running a first-class, small city school system. Board Member Gail Holley and McCoy were in the same graduating class at Lanett High.

McCoy said it was an honor for him to swear City Attorney Stanley Gray into a new term.

“He has been a friend of mine for over 30 years,” he said. “His dad (Fred Gray) was a famed lawyer during the Civil Rights era.”

Also sworn in to new terms were Police Chief Johnny Wood, who’s been with LPD for 23 years and the past two as chief; Johnny Allen as the chief of Lanett Fire & EMS (been with the city since 2006), and City Clerk Treasurer Deborah Gilbert.

Tony Chandler was sworn in as the city’s new superintendent of utilities. He was previously the planning and development director.

In swearing in Tifton Dobbs to the District 5 seat, Skip McCoy told him he had some very big shoes to fill.

“Shirley Motley (who formerly represented the district) was a rock for our city,” he said.

“She was a kind-hearted person who always looked out for the little guy and seeing that they were looked after.”

During his campaign for the council seat, Dobbs said that Mrs. Motley had always looked out for him and other officers with the LPD and that he’d always remember that.

Following the swearing-in ceremony, Mayor McCoy said that he was looking forward to working with the new council.

He thanked them on playing a big part on the progress the city had made the past four years, notably with the streetscape project, the airport expansion and the cleanup of the Lanett Mill site.

The next regular council meeting will take place at 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 16. The meeting will be preceded by a 5:30 p.m. public hearing. At the hearing, AMEA President Fred Clark will talk to the council about a new automated metering system that should be a huge benefit to the city’s utility customers.

Boyd thanked the mayor and council for the support they had always extended to the city school board.

“Thank you for inviting us here tonight and thank you for the trust you have always shown in us,” she said.