For some, Monday night’s acceptance of a formal resignation by Brandenburg Mayor Bryan Claycomb after his first year in the position and the appointment of a replacement by the city council may have come as a surprise. Still, it was no surprise to those who have been following such things. Nothing nefarious occurred nor was there any controversy that led to Mayor Claycomb’s resignation. As unbelievable as that may seem in today’s political climate, this was just a simple story of a man who loves his family with all his heart deciding the time has come that the current needs of his family require him to set aside his public servant’s heart.
If that sounds too odd or editorialized to say about a politician in today’s world, in this case, it is not. The meeting opened with the Meade County Fire District Chief Chris Crawford proclaiming the Mayor as Fire Chief Emeritus. This title was bestowed upon Claycomb as an honor for the years he served as Fire Chief for the fire district from 1976 to 1993. This was just one of the many ways that he has served Meade County, along with sitting on many boards and as a city councilman for years. Despite his love for the people of this community, anyone who has ever had the pleasure of speaking with Mayor Claycomb knows that his true devotion is to God and family, especially his beloved wife, Martha.
This may have been the most unique of years regarding the fact that all three incorporated cities in Meade County have had to replace their mayors for a variety of reasons, but in Brandenburg, it is simply a case of Mayor Claycomb’s immediate family needs outweighing those of his city.
As a result, the council accepted his formal resignation, effective December 31. They then proceeded to nominate candidates to replace Claycomb on January 1, per state law. The Kentucky Revised Statutes dealing with the replacement of an elected official have come into play quite a bit in recent years.
Just a few years ago, Judge/Executive Gerry Lynn passed away while serving, which led to the Governor appointing Judge/Executive Leslie Stith to serve out the rest of the term.
At the beginning of this year, Muldraugh was the first to experience a resignation when Mayor-Elect Anthony Lee resigned due to a conflict that would cause him to lose his pension if he took the position due to working for the city prior to his election.
In regard to city mayors, the KRS states that the city council shall select a replacement to serve until the next election. In this case, Lee retired from the city, ran again this fall, and won the election again.
Ekron has also experienced a change of leadership recently on more controversial terms. The council there has also chosen a replacement until the next election.
After accepting Mayor Claycomb’s resignation, Councilman Bill Basham nominated former Brandenburg Mayor and current Meade County Fair Board Chairman and Meade County/Brandenburg Industrial Development Authority Chairman David Pace to serve out the remainder of Mayor Claycomb’s term. Councilman Bradley Johnston nominated fellow Councilman Bruce Fackler for the position.
With those being the only two nominations, the council voted to go into closed session to discuss the matter. Upon returning from the closed session, the council voted by secret ballots and chose Pace to be the next mayor of Brandenburg by a vote of 4 to 1.
In other business, the council approved Newcomb Oil building a sewer line and tying it into the city’s system on their property at the corner of Nelson Lane and the ByPass, across the road from West Body Shop and HWY 933. This property had been recently annexed into the city limits by request. The company plans to start construction on a new Five Star gas station there, early in 2024.
—Second reading of zoning change at St. John’s Catholic Church to allow the convent to be converted to apartments.
— Lee Klocklow resigned as City Planning and Zoning Administrator and Bethany Carr, the current Assistant City P&Z Administrator was chosen to take his place.
— The Mayor announced he had signed grant paperwork for a water erosion mitigation study of possibly $100,000 to assess what is needed to address the river bank erosion at Riverfront Park. He also stated that by meeting the Army Corps of Engineers specifications the project could cost somewhere in the ballpark of $450,000.
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