Seneker: 'Filing Complaint was the Right Thing to Do'

It was not surprising to see the findings of my ethics complaint against Mayor Lambert. However it is incredibly disappointing that Mayor Lambert decided to demean citizens who dare question him. There was nothing “petty” about my complaint and “politics” was NEVER an issue, yet the Mayor could not help but get up in front of the television cameras and criticize a taxpayer.

Mr. Greer’s findings were not exhaustive. It is clear from his report that he failed to see the big picture of the relationship between Mayor Lambert and the Exit 1 Developers that goes back years and is much more beneficial for the Exit 1 Developers than the citizens of East Ridge. If Mr Greer had talked to me, as he did the Mayor and City Manager Scott Miller, he would have heard that view.

Mr Greer says the urgency of the called meeting in June 2017 was due to City Manager Miller’s concerns about the timing “of a commercial enterprise at the Exit 1 interchange.” Yet Greer then states that “the June 2 special called meeting was only six (6) days earlier than the regular meeting that would have occurred on June 8.” He goes on to state “in fact, once TDOT approved the Project, the bids were not let out until July 2017, and it was on August 1, 2017, when bids were received and opened publicly.” So was the called meeting when citizens were generally unable to attend actually urgent, or could the vote have waited until citizens were able to attend?

It is interesting that Greer never names the developers. Yes, the Exit 1 Developers, the same ones who wrote Mayor Lambert checks 12 days later and who are getting rich while taxpayers bear the risk and the debt. East Ridge taxpayers are paying for ALL of the road work & beautification at Camp Jordan entrance & Camp Jordan Parkway for the development in addition to the costs of the interchange except for the small contribution by TDOT & Hamilton County.

And the explanation of the mysterious Lambert fundraiser is full of holes. In his report Mr Greer stated he saw a copy of an invitation to a fundraiser. However there’s no mention of any campaign reports on the costs of paper, printing, or postage for mailing… a fundraiser where Mayor Lambert received only five contributions. Mr Greer said “what motivated the three principals of this developer to make $1000 contributions each to Mayor Lambert would be sheer speculation.”

As easy as it was for regular citizens to connect Mayor Lambert’s actions on Exit 1 Development to the political donations, it is just as easy to ‘see’ this invisible fundraiser and believe it is a creation of Mayor Lambert.

And why does Mayor Lambert have to have an attorney answer questions for him?

I never expected the City would hold the Mayor accountable. But I filed the complaint because I believed it was the right thing to do. All City officials should know citizens are watching and willing to question or speak out when necessary.

_ Laura Seneker

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