Several civic club sources have reported to The Martin Chronicles that the most recent edition of the Voice of Villa Hills has elicited a disappointing-but in many ways expected-reaction from the resigning chairman of the Villa Hills Ethics Board.
What was it in the Voice that caused the resigning chairman's heartburn? Specifically, the Villa Hills Code Enforcement Board (CEB) minutes.
The CEB minutes reflect the board's continued frustration over the inability-or unwillingness-of Mayor Martin and the interim city clerk to provide the records necessary for the board to do their job. They also reflect the board's disappointment that the city attorney seems disinterested in working with them to secure the records from Martin and the interim city clerk.
A reasonable person could certainly wonder if Mayor Martin's ill will towards the Zoning Administrator who assists the board in their work driving the stonewalling?
That same reasonable person could wonder if the interim city clerk has become a willing participant in what may be stall tactics by the mayor. If so, she is doing so at great personal legal risk. If she is indeed willingly involved, she may even want to consider securing legal representation-because she will need it.
And, the aforementioned reasonable person could also speculate whether the city attorney realizes that the stonewalling will eventually lead to a legal conflagration that will generate mountains of profitable billable hours. The minutes reflect that the CEB chairman plans to take his concerns to the Attorney General as a next resort after all.
Given the already-reported fact that the previous city clerk gave a sworn statement to special counsel that she handed over all the city records intact and in proper order to Mayor Martin and the now-interim city clerk, The Martin Chronicles believes that the records the CEB is requesting exist and should be made available.
Back to the resigning chairman of the Ethics Board. Why did he make such a fuss at the civic club that the minutes were published in the Voice of Villa Hills? Is it that erosion of confidence in city government claptrap again? Is it that mob mentality stuff? Is the chairman now including the Voice on his enemies list of news outlets to which no bad news about city government's behavior should be "leaked"?
Our "reasonable person" must certainly wonder why the resigning Ethics Board chairman isn't more concerned about the game of brinksmanship Mayor Martin, and perhaps the interim city clerk and city attorney, may be playing with the city's Code Enforcement Board.
Instead, the resigning chairman continues to insist on shooting the messengers. Given that, he certainly made the correct decision to resign.
