The Martin Chronicles publisher and reporters are hearing the buzz in every public place. A rapidly growing majority of Villa Hills residents now understand that the embarrassing fiasco in their City government is far more than "infighting", "politics" or what remains the lamest of all explanations, "trying to undo the results of the last election".
Residents are disgusted with Councilman Jim Noll. Most people are shocked that he would go before the media to make ridiculous comments about the case without having read Special Counsel's lengthy report. Most also think it is a disgrace that it was obvious that his real motive was to campaign for State Senate. What a joke. A growing number understand that Noll couldn't care less about the City he took an oath to serve. Noll is amost always ill-prepared (re: the "witness" who gave bogus information on Noll's ridiculous time clock idea) and worse yet, doing a tremendous disservice to the City with his behavior.
The Martin Chronicles applauds Council members Bruns, Kilburn, Ringo, Pope (yes, we know we have been deservedly hard on him. He is generally slavishly devoted to Martin. But everything has its' limit. He is handling this very serious issue with the gravity it deserves) and Sogar for their restraint following Special Counsel's presentation. No self-serving comments. No rush to judgment.
People are also waking up to the fact that Mayor Mike Martin is far more than inept. As Special Counsel presented and the media reported, there are numerous examples of illegal activity and misconduct. More than enough evidence has been made public to move forward with a removal hearing in the near future. Furthemore, all the evidence of Martin's unlicensed electrical, plumbing and commercial work and his lies about the destruction of City records should be turned over to the proper authorities as soon as possible.
Residents are also shocked that Martin would say he hasn't made any mistakes. A budget disaster. A serious lawsuit. A recent lambasting by a judge for the destruction of City records. Martin is either totally disconnected from reality or he is admitting his guilt.
The whole issue of $47.50 per hour, crony-hire, no-errors & ommission insurance, uncontracted-contract clerk/bookkeeper Cordelia Schaber needs to be revisited as well. Schaber claims she didn't receive the interrogatories Special Counsel sent her. So what? Send them again. Have them hand delivered. The fact that she is being paid that amount of money for such abysmal performance is a disgrace, and bold-faced cronyism. There was an audible gasp from the crowd when people learned how much of their money Martin is wasting on her.
Yes, people are frustrated. They aren't sure what to do. Well, there are several things people can do. They can go to the council meetings. They can email and call the mayor and council members to express their views. They can email VillaHills50@gmail.com to order a "Mayor Martin Please Resign Now" yard sign. These signs are popping up all over town. Our sources tell us that the group behind the sign effort have to order more.
The Martin Chronicles says here is what you shouldn't do. You shouldn't sit back and let others do the heavy lifting. Everyone who knows Villa Hills can do so much better needs to do their part. Now is not the time for hand-wringing and wishing everyone would just get along.
It's far too late for that.
