Fairhope entered the new year hoping there would be change and cooperation among the City Council and the Mayor. The City Council has wasted an entire year trying to obstruct the newly elected Mayor and her administration. They are now faced with the city council president being sued for preventing free speech.
SEE YA IN COURT JACK PRESS RELEASE:FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FOR MORE INFORMATION December 29, 2017 CONTACT: Francis P. Ripp Local Political Activist, Consumer Advocate, and Blogger Files Federal Lawsuit Against Jack Burrell Noted public figure and government watchdog, Francis Paul Ripp, publisher of the Ripp Report and Baldwin County Legal Eagle, a resident of Fairhope, Alabama, has filed a lawsuit in federal court, insisting that City Council President Jack Burrell denied him of his right to free speech during the city council meeting held on August 28, 2017.
The Fairhope City Council is using the Baldwin County Political Dictionary’s definition for "Fairness". First, the council implements a hiring freeze to punish the mayor for firing two employees. Then they side with the developer and reject overwhelming objections from the public. This was done to be “Fair” and because of “the threat of a lawsuit.” Now the Council has moved to remove the Director of Economic and Community Development, Sherry-Lea Bloodworth-Botop, by reducing funds in the budget, thus killing the director’s job.
Dear Fairhope City Council:
Recently several articles have been written in reference to Councilman Kevin Boone and the business connections he has through several LLC to individuals and engineering company Preble-Rish that are conflicts of interest. Mr. Boone has had these connections through the LLC’s for many years and has never acknowledged them or recuse himself from voting on any issues that came before him as a councilman or during his participation with planning and zoning.
Well folks if you were watching football this last Monday night and have no idea what is going on with the Fairhope City Council, that same night, let me fill you in because a couple of councilmen were hoping you were distracted.
I must preface this commentary by first repeating something that inspired The Ripp Report many years ago. The realization that Baldwin County was extremely corrupt and that of the 14 municipalities of Baldwin County, Fairhope was the center of the corruption and majority of corrupt “connected,” players.
Fairhope celebrated the election of the first woman Mayor of Fairhope with a fantastic swearing in ceremony. Hundreds attended and the atmosphere was positive. Mayor Wilson addressed the attendees and promised to represent them to the best of her abilities. She was humble and appreciated the trust the citizens had in her ability.
Mayor Kant did not attend the ceremony. Also, he never cooperated with the transition of power or city information nor did he attend any pre-inauguration functions.
