By Al Dozier
Irmo residents Tuesday elected Gabriel Penfield as the town’s new town council member.
Penfield defeated George Frazier for the at-large seat that was left vacant after Mayor Bill Danielson unseated incumbent Barry Walker last November.
Penfield confirmed the latest numbers reported by Lexington County and Richland County voter registration offices gave him 542 votes, well beyond Frazier’s 148 votes. Those numbers are not yet official. A final count has yet to be certified.
This was Penfield’s second run for Irmo Town Council after losing out on securing one of the two seats last fall by a thin margin. He was defeated by Phyllis Coleman by 25 votes.
In an interview with The Irmo News Wednesday, Penfield said one of his major concerns is about roads in the Irmo area that need maintenance. He said he planned on attending an Irmo Council meeting scheduled for Friday on a road maintenance agreement with Lexington County.
Penfield also said he does not want to see any “contentious” behavior on council meetings that has been evident in the past.
He said he wants people to speak favorably when they say “Why do I live in Irmo?”
There have been some concerns about crime in the Harbison area. He said the town should make sure that the police department has adequate resources to maintain a strong presence in the Irmo community.
Penfield has spent several years in the financial services field. He founded Relational Wealth Management in 2018.
He also touts his entrepreneurial skills, having founded the Tribal Coffee Co., and co-founded Poore House Furnishings, Parking Lot King, and Maverick’s Cigars,
