West Point is set to eliminate the official appointment of three city officers: the city clerk, engineer and town doctor.

The West Point City Council has made the appointments every year with the naming of other official officers, such as the city attorney, municipal court judge and other jobs. Those appointments are set to be made Monday night.

City Manager Ed Moon said it wasn’t necessary for the council to vote on those three particular jobs.

The city clerk is hired through the city’s normal hiring processes, Moon said, and although council votes on the appointment, renewing it every year is unnecessary.

The city engineer title is a false one, because the city uses several engineers, depending on the project and the cost – there is no one official engineer.

Appointing a town doctor is an antiquated holdover from the city’s charter.

“Employees use their own doctor (if injured on the job),” Moon said.

The city does need the use of a doctor to conduct employee physicals for the police and fire department, along with drug screens, but Moon said the city would use whoever offered the best price for the service, not a doctor appointed annually.

Interim City Attorney Jeff Todd said the city won’t have to go through the normally arduous process of approaching the state legislature to change its charter to stop appointing the three positions. The council can have two readings of an ordinance and get it done without the state involvement.

Council also will vote Monday on closing a section of Avenue D, the stretch of street between the two main buildings at the former West Point High School on U.S. 29.

The road already had been closed for renovations to the building, which is operated by West Point Parks and Recreation. Moon said keeping the street closed would allow the city to create about 40 more parking spots at the recreation complex as well as improve safety.

“That’s always been a dangerous way to get on 29,” Councilman Joe Downs said.