“We are trying to enforce the fact that your voice does matter, and your vote will be counted,” said Kevin Carter, one of five people who joined to create a political action committee to spearhead the ballot referendum.
The other four residents in the PAC include Daniel White, Joshua King, Leslie Mosley and Steven Zbinden.
“The (idea) of this movement is building a better community with our neighbors,” said Janell Smith, another Huber Heights resident who has been assisting in the collection of signatures for the proposed ballot measure.
“We want to work with Bethel Twp. and to be good neighbors. We don’t want to burn bridges; we want to build bridges, and that’s what we’re doing.”
Those who wish to sign the referendum petition can do so at Otto & Associates or by visiting petition collectors, who will be walking the north area of Ward 2, or in Wards 3 or 4 throughout the day Wednesday.
The petition to approve the annexation was passed in a 6-1 vote, with Councilman Scott Davidson dissenting. Councilwoman Anita Kitchen, who has previously been vocal in her opposition to the annexation, was absent.
Davidson said his lone no vote was motivated by discussions he’d had with residents of Bethel Twp. and Carriage Trails I, which highlighted concerns about an influx of students and the pressure this would put on Bethel Local Schools.
The annexation is the first step in a broader project to expand the Carriage Trails neighborhood, with hundreds of new homes and apartments planned.
Smith and Carter assert there was a conflict of interest within the voting process, stemming from the planned Carriage Trails expansion project.
“There is a very long history between the current developer and our mayor and several members of council,” Carter said, alleging an individual within the development team has donated to the election and re-election campaigns of Mayor Jeff Gore and Councilman Mark Campbell.
Gore countered this accusation Tuesday, claiming the city sought the advice of two legal teams, including that of its own law director Chris Conard, both of which said no such conflict existed.
“Two different law firms gave us a legal opinion that Mark Campbell, nor myself, needed to recuse ourselves from the (annexation) discussion, nor from the vote itself,” Gore said, adding that neither he nor Campbell will receive any personal or financial gain from the petition’s approval.
He also noted that even if he and Campbell recused themselves from the vote, the annexation petition would still have passed in a 5-1 vote.
Gore said he supports the rights of residents to seek a ballot referendum on the issue.
“We support the right of people to act within the confines of the law and the charter. If they’re able to get enough signatures to put it on the ballot, kudos to them,” he said. “We will just make sure before the vote that people are educated on the facts of the annexation and not just the side of those who are (against it).”
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