Double whammy for Westminster meeting

To put to rest the continuous squabble over the mayor’s cabin, the Westminster City Council proceeded with its March meeting last night, even though a power outage left the meeting room without lights. That problem was solved when a member of the county’s Emergency Service set up portable lighting which gave an almost candlelight glow to the meeting. Addressing the virus pandemic, public seating was limited to 10 chairs only. Applause rang out in the meeting room after a vote that directs Mayor Brian Ramey to remove his personal cabin from city-owned property that borders the Chauga River. The agreement reached requires the cabin to be removed at the mayor’s expense in 45 days. Once again, discussion got heated and there was argument between Ramey and Rusty Cater, the mayor pro-tem. At one point, Cater moved but later withdrew a motion to revert to a 2016 position taken by then city attorney Derek Enderlin that failure to remove the cabin in a year’s time would mean the cabin would then become the property of the city. The consensus last night seemed to be that the city fathers are weary of talking about the cabin and it’s an issue they want to put behind them.