May 10, 2008 11:24 pm
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Galen Scott
gscott@weatherforddemocrat.com
With 921 votes, Dennis Hooks, 61, was elected Saturday to lead the Weatherford city council as mayor for the next two years.
“I feel good,” Hooks said shortly after the election results were announced. “I’m relaxed. Most of all, I’m glad it’s over.”
Tom McLaughlin, the only other candidate in the nonpartisan race for mayor, lost to Hooks by 510 votes. McLaughlin is a retired septic tank service operator and currently owns a mobile home park.
Though he beat Hooks in the 1998 race for mayor, McLaughlin was unable to convince the citizenry a second time.
“People now in Weatherford don’t seem really interested in what’s going on, or they’re not informed,” McLaughlin said. “I wish Mr. Hooks all the luck in the world. He’s going to need a lot of it because there are so many issues ... the people made their choice, and he got the job and the stress. I’m going to go play golf.”
McLaughlin said he may continue attending city council meetings “Every once in a while, if something is really wrong.”
While campaigning, Hooks expressed satisfaction with the city management’s current direction, though he acknowledged Weatherford is at a fork in the road. He said the city’s biggest challenges are traffic and planning and zoning.
“While we will never have Weatherford the way it was, I feel we can attain economic growth and retain our heritage, making our city “Best in Class,” he wrote in a statement released in April.
With Saturday’s win, the Hooks family bolstered an already substantial position in Weatherford politics. Hooks’ sons and business partners, Kory and Kip, serve on the city’s planning and zoning board and the Weatherford ISD school board respectively.
After winning appointment to the Weatherford Utility board in 1986, Hooks served on the city council from 1992 to 1998.
The city council appointed Hooks mayor in January after Joe Tison resigned from the position. In order to continue serving as mayor, Hooks needed to win in the earliest appropriate election.
Hooks said he is glad the city council appointed him mayor five months ago.
“I never promised I’d do anything, but getting involved and seeing the challenges and opportunities ... we have some challenges and it’s exciting to get the right opportunities to fix them,” Hooks said shortly after Saturday’s results were announced. “Yes, I’m excited. It’s a great city, and place to work and place to do business.”
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