Acting top official in Falmouth: Mayor initially delayed resignation because of floods
The acting top official in Falmouth said Wednesday the city’s former mayor delayed his resignation because of flooding that led to an emergency evacuation order last week.
Former Mayor Luke Price raised eyebrows Monday when he resigned unexpectedly just days after much of Pendleton County was hit by flooding. Price said he had accepted a job that would affect his mayoral duties.
Many residents on social media questioned the timing of the resignation, as the city, about 50 miles north of Lexington, must clean up from the seventh-highest Licking River crest on record.
And to add to the confusion, Falmouth Fire Chief John Lucas resigned this week, too.
But Police Chief Marty Hart, whom Price designated before his resignation to take over executive authority, said in an interview Wednesday that Price’s resignation was planned before last week’s storms arrived, and he delayed it for a few days to help coordinate evacuations and flood planning. Once the water started to recede, Hart said, Price went through with his resignation plan.
“He was able to put everything on hold so that he wouldn’t leave the city without a mayor during a time of natural disaster,” Hart said.
But the resignation plans were apparently not known to some city leaders. Falmouth City Councilman Anthony Cox posted on Facebook Tuesday afternoon that the council did not know until Tuesday morning that Price or Lucas planned to resign.
“Please be assured I am working diligently to best navigate these uncertain times and will keep you, the community and citizens, informed along the way,” Cox wrote.
Cox did not respond Wednesday to a request for more information about the resignations.
The fire chief’s resignation, Hart said, was related to a health issue in his family. He remains on the staff, just not in the leadership position.
“He still responds and if we need him, he’ll still be there to fight a fire or rescue or something,” Hart said. “He just didn’t have time for the administrative side of the chief’s office.”
Assistant Chief Dave Klaber is running the department in the meantime, according to Hart. The city council has called a special meeting for Monday night, where they could name Klaber the interim chief.
For the mayoral position, Kentucky state statute gives mayors the power to delegate executive authorities, but it also requires the city council to hire an interim mayor within 30 days of the power being delegated.
Hart doesn’t qualify as a potential interim mayor because he doesn’t live within city limits. The search for an interim mayor is ongoing, Hart said.
“Even though the optics may look like we’re falling apart and everybody is jumping ship, that is not the case,” Hart said. “City council, the department heads, myself, the city clerk, we’re all united and we’re all on the same page. There’s not going to be any lapse in the continuation of government operations.”
Hart said things have gone well as he and others in the city figure out their new roles without a mayor. He said his duties more closely resemble a city manager than a mayor.
“I’m not worried about a title, I tell people I’m still just the police chief,” Hart said. “We’re just all working together as one big team and we’ll be done with this before we know it.”
Flooding in Falmouth did not wind up as bad as expected. Floodwaters stopped about a short of what was expected, and the majority of the city remained dry.
Hart said all streets and roads are open as of Wednesday, and officials are working to help homeowners who had flooded basements. Several people have donated cleaning supplies for victims.
“Our recovery efforts haven’t been what we thought they would be — they’ve been less, so that’s all been a blessing,” Hart said.
