To the Editor:

The high school student and recent resident who is campaigning for the 3rd ward city commission seat currently held by City Commissioner and Mayor Lee has told you that his political mentor is Past Piqua Mayor and current City Commissioner Kazy Hinds, under whose leadership we have seen many disservices to the City of Piqua, including her genuflection before the un-elected elitists’ focus on the downtown at the detriment to the demise of the Piqua Municipal Swimming Pool and the deterioration of the Hance Pavilion.

Under Hinds’ administration, we saw the largest increase in the residents’ utility bills, which have been devastating to Piqua families and elderly.

The current uninformed candidate states that he admires Hinds, who spent part of 2016 busy voting for resolutions in Piqua’s participation in the real estate market in 2016, resulting in the city’s ownership of buildings with the city paying another $200,000 for asbestos cleanup of newly acquired property. (Source: Minutes Piqua City Commission, Dec. 6, 2016, p.2; piquaoh.org)

The current candidate supports Past Mayor and current City Commissioner Hinds, who was busy in 2016 trying to alleviate all of the controversy she had caused because of her administration by trying to change the way residents could speak out at public city commission meetings. Her administration’s idea was to let the public speak before a meeting began and off local access television coverage. The proposal stated that no one was allowed to speak during a meeting or afterwards. In this manner, the public could not discuss what was being currently presented during a meeting. The public was outraged. (Source: During the Piqua City Commission Meeting of Oct. 6, 2016, Mayor Hinds voted for the approval of limiting the public voice of citizens during city commission meetings with resolution (Ord. No. 2-16). (Source: Piqua City Commission Meeting Minutes, Oct. 6, 2016)

The current City Commissioner and Mayor Lee and City Commissioners Grissom and Fogt have hired a city manager who is diligent about stopping the spending and debt by the city. The long time financial director has resigned and more accountability and transparency is finally being conducted by the city after being influenced and controlled for so long by forces who are not elected to anything. Many don’t live here. Do you really want people who don’t pay city taxes become responsible for the handling of millions of dollars of your public funds?

— Terry D. Wright

Piqua