PATA History Pages

RECALL of Misters: Postage, Fox, Wright, Parker, and Maxey

The charges

"voted to delegate legislative authority over to the Pickerington City Manager on matters of grave consequences to the city and Pickerington School District."

"allowed the city manager and the city law director to fight the city of Pickerington voters when they attempted to place issues on the ballot."

They also denied ever allowing the city manager and city law director to fight voters when they attempted to place the issue on the ballot. In the news release, the five said only the city auditor/finance director and the law director are responsible for verifying that petitions to place initiatives on the ballot meet the legal requirements.

"The recall petitions being brought before this community have accused us of improper and unlawful behavior," said the five in the news release. "At no time have we ever broken our oath of office or the law. Freedom of speech is subject to laws of accuracy and truthfulness. On the accusations before you, we are not guilty."

Another one of the sponsors of the recall, Pickerington resident Gary Johnson, said that he supported a slower growth of residential development in Pickerington.

"The Pickerington City Council continues to fight any slowdown in residential growth despite the strong message that the community sent last November," Johnson said. "Last November, just about 75 percent of the citizens of Pickerington voted for three initiatives specifically designed to slow growth in our community over Mr. Fox and the council's objections."

Johnson pointed to the number of building permits, the number of approvals of final plats for high-density homes in the city, and citizen efforts to oppose rezoning attempts in the city back in 2000, as reasons for the recall.

"This is not a difference of opinion, it's clear obstruction of the wishes of those our council was elected to represent," Johnson said. "They will not take any meaningful action to control growth ... they'll try to 'sell' you another solution that allows residential growth, and the profits that growth brings to their benefactors, to continue unchecked."

Postage and the four councilmen, in their response to the recall, said they try to educate themselves about the issues facing the community and vote accordingly.

"Our duty is help make our community a successful and healthy place to live. Our greatest responsibility is to try to represent all citizens in the city of Pickerington," they wrote. "The task before us is to consider what is best for the community as a whole when we exercise our vote. We do not take this responsibility lightly."

Originally published Wednesday, April 2, 2003





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The comments

"I think these people are the biggest part of the problem in our community," Rookstool said.

Another one of the sponsors of the recall, Pickerington resident Gary Johnson, said that he supported a slower growth of residential development in Pickerington.
"The Pickerington City Council continues to fight any slowdown in residential growth despite the strong message that the community sent last November," Johnson said. "Last November, just about 75 percent of the citizens of Pickerington voted for three initiatives specifically designed to slow growth in our community over Mr. Fox and the council's objections."

Johnson pointed to the number of building permits, the number of approvals of final plats for high-density homes in the city, and citizen efforts to oppose rezoning attempts in the city back in 2000, as reasons for the recall.

"This is not a difference of opinion, it's clear obstruction of the wishes of those our council was elected to represent," Johnson said. "They will not take any meaningful action to control growth ... they'll try to 'sell' you another solution that allows residential growth, and the profits that growth brings to their benefactors, to continue unchecked."

The response

The five said they have never voted to delegate authority over to the Pickerington city manager "on matters of grave consequences to the city and Pickerington School District."

They also denied ever allowing the city manager and city law director to fight voters when they attempted to place the issue on the ballot. In the news release, the five said only the city auditor/finance director and the law director are responsible for verifying that petitions to place initiatives on the ballot meet the legal requirements.

"The task before us is to consider what is best for the community as a whole when we exercise our vote."

Links

Pickerington officials claim no wrongdoing
Recall petitions filed to remove mayor and four councilmen
Residents file recall petitions