Kanosh mayor says resignation tendered, attorney advises council delay on replacement until after election

The mayor of Kanosh told the Town Council they have tendered their resignation and said the town attorney recommended waiting until the next council to choose a replacement, citing election-related timing and contingencies tied to the mayor's pending house sale.

The mayor told the council that "the attorney did call me in a panic" and "that was his recommendation is that we wait till next counsel." They said the timing matters because of 30-day or 60-day contingencies on the house sale and because "before the November council happens, there will be an election and you will know who your mayor will be." The mayor also said they hoped to attend the next meeting but could not confirm.

Council members discussed short-term coverage and the mayor pro tem selection. The mayor recommended the council avoid appointing Council Member Neil to mayor pro tem because the attorney felt it could give the appearance of a conflict given Neil's involvement in the election, saying, "I do think it probably shouldn't be Neil because Neil is involved in the election." The mayor suggested the remaining council members could vote among themselves to pick someone to serve in the interim.

The mayor raised personnel and administrative continuity as a concern, praising staff efforts on audits and routine operations. In discussing town operations the mayor said: "without the work that Denny Ann and Cindy are doing, we we could be in so much hot water" and noted audits had been frequent: "it was like a weekly thing they were coming out. She's like, enough already." The mayor linked some audits to "discrepancies and things that happened in the last election as far as the governor and, whether certain people should have been on the ballot or weren't and how things were documented."

On pending appointments, the mayor said two people who have agreed to fill openings on the Planning and Zoning Commission'14Dale Kelch and Melanie Lang''14would likely be forwarded to the next mayor for final appointment. The mayor noted the typical Planning and Zoning term is four years and usually begins in March, and that while replacements are ready, the mayor felt it would be "a dirty thing to do something and then leave town," so the names would be passed along.

Council members offered public praise for the mayor's service. One council member said, "you've done a great job as mayor," and another recalled a recent exchange in which the mayor thanked a resident for speaking at a meeting. No formal motion to accept the resignation or to appoint an interim was recorded during the discussion.

The council closed the meeting with the mayor noting there was "no more business to come forth" and that there would be "no action to be taken from the closed session." The mayor and council did not record a formal decision on the resignation or interim appointment during the session; the mayor reiterated the plan to wait for the post-election council to make any final replacement decisions.

What happens next will depend on the outcome of the upcoming election and on whether the mayor's house sale and related contingencies conclude before the next council. Council members indicated they would pass recommended planning-and-zoning nominees to the incoming mayor for final action.