MAGGIE VALLEY — By the end of its Monday meeting, the Maggie Valley Board of Aldermen might very well have a newly minted member, but at this point, who that will be is anybody's guess.

The board is currently in the midst of an appointment process in the wake of longtime alderman Phil Aldridge's departure last month. Appointments to the board are nothing new (with recent appointees including former alderman Danya Vanhook and current alderman Mike Matthews), but just about everyone can agree that the process has been extremely sticky this go-round. With seven applicants, an unprecedented number, questions of fairness and backdoor dealings have been floating in the air — and spilling into public meetings.

At the board's Monday meeting, where five of the applicants showed up for interviews, ...