Adrian City Council is down a member and will have to fill a vacancy left by the resignation of Ed Brown. He handed into Mayor Wynola Smith a letter outlining his intention to no longer participate in council on August 27, and he confirmed the news to The Chronicle on Thursday, September 2.
Brown qualified for city council and entered unopposed almost two years ago. During a phone interview last week, he stated he was apprehensive about his decision to get involved in politics because he wasn’t entirely knowledgeable about how city government works, but he decided to give it a try, anyway, based on the encouragement he received from family, friends, and citizens. Since then, he says he has felt increasingly wary about the job he’s been able to do because of that. He also cited a dissatisfaction with a situation between the town and its former clerk, Stephanie Jean.
“When I first got started in this stuff, I told the people I wasn’t very city government-smart. I didn’t know a whole lot about city government,” Brown commented. “Everybody told me I’d learn, so I decided to run. I guess I have learned a little bit, but I don’t feel right about taking the citizens’ money and not doing the job I was supposed to do to start with. Then, there’s things that have gone on that I wasn’t sure about and I didn’t know exactly how to approach it. With that in mind, I decided the best thing for me to do is get out.”
Brown continued, saying his hopes to contribute in a city leadership role in the future aren’t lost entirely.
“If I educate myself and know how to handle things, I might get back into it if [the citizens] give me a shot. If not, I understand.”
The Chronicle, for clarity, asked Brown directly if his resignation is in any way related to the lawsuit filed in early August by Jean. In that suit, the mayor and city council—to include Smith, Brown, Jesse Yawn, Julie Griffin, Michelle Leirer-Love, and Suzanne Hutchinson—are accused of slandering, wrongfully terminating, discriminating against, and otherwise subjecting the former clerk to a hostile work environment. In response, Brown insisted his resigning had “nothing to do with the suit.”
He began mulling over the decision to resign from council sometime near the beginning of the controversy surrounding Jean’s employment status, which appear to have started around November 2020, according to minutes from various meetings.
Looking back, Brown is somewhat disappointed in his time on council but contends better days are possible for the city and its constituents. He also wants to see citizens become more actively involved in the goings-on of their city, including attending meetings.
“I myself feel like I fell short because of lack of experience and what have you, but I believe with the right people in office, the governing body could probably do good for the people of Adrian. We have a few citizens here who attend meetings regularly, but there could always be more involvement. Everybody’s got an opinion, and it’s important you make sure your opinion is heard. That’s what makes a difference in small towns like Adrian.”