Richards board appoints mayor

Richards Board of Aldermen has appointed Mary Jones to fill the unexpired term of Mayor Edgar Higgins, who died unexpectedly about a month after taking office.

The board appointed Jones during its meeting Monday, which would have been the second for Higgins.

Higgins was elected Richards mayor in April and took office in May. He had presided over one board meeting before his death on June 13.

Prior to her appointment, Jones had been a member of the board of aldermen for 10 years. The board appointed Deborah Snowden to take Jones' seat on the town board.

In other business, aldermen approved using the county's road grader to level street gravel and made Dustin Jones' responsible for mowing the park and grounds at the community center.

The board's next meeting is 7 p.m. Aug. 5, at which aldermen are expected to discuss Richards Days -- held the third Saturday in September.