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Vice Mayor Fred Catlin appointed to ARB, vacant spot opens on Town Council

by | Dec 13, 2025

Mayor Joe Whited congratulates Fred Catlin on his appointment to the Architectural Review Board at Monday's Town Council meeting. (Photo/Luke Christopher)

In a 3-2 vote, the Washington Town Council appointed Vice Mayor Fred Catlin to the vacant Architectural Review Board (ARB) seat at its Monday meeting. Catlin announced his resignation from the council following the vote. 

The council will now need to fill its vacant position. 

The vacancy was created on the board when Deborah Harris, former chair of the ARB, left the position earlier this year to fill the treasurer position on the council. Mayor Joe Whited announced that three residents submitted letters of interest — Catlin, new town resident Cameron Pforr and resident Gary Jankowski.

Members of the council noted that it is unusual to have three qualified candidates come forward with interest. 

“I think this is the first time in the area’s history that we have three such well-qualified candidates all at the same time, usually we’re begging in the streets. So I have a feeling that there would be ultimately a place for all on some board or another,” councilmember Patrick O’Connell said. 

O’Connell and councilmember Jeanne Goodine voted in favor of Jankowski, and Harris, Drew Beard and Whited voted in favor of Catlin. Councilmember Brad Schneider was not present. 

“I have a deep interest in this community, and have served on the Planning Commission and then on Town Council. And to me, this would be an opportunity to take the skills and the experiences that I’ve had and put them to good use for the town,” Catlin said.

“Thank you for your long service on the council, and I look forward to your … continued service on the ARB,” Whited said after Catlin was voted in.

Author

  • Ireland Hayes

    Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner.
    Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.
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By Ireland Hayes

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Ireland joined Foothills Forum as a full-time reporter in 2023 after graduating from the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in journalism and minor in music. As a student, she gained valuable experience in reporter and editor positions at The Red & Black, an award-winning student newspaper, and contributed to Grady Newsource and the Athens Banner-Herald. She spent three years as an editorial assistant at Georgia Magazine, UGA’s quarterly alumni publication, and interned with The Bitter Southerner. Growing up in a small town in Southeast Georgia, Ireland developed a deep appreciation for rural communities and the unique stories they have to tell. She completed undergraduate research on news deserts, ghost papers and the ways rural communities in Georgia are being forced to adapt to a lack of local news. This research further sparked her interest in a career contributing to the preservation of local and rural news.