Mayor given one year to remove cabin

After a closed-door session, Westminster City Council voted last night to give Mayor Brian Ramey one year to remove his Chauga River cabin from city property.  The issue has lingered for more than a year, before Ramey ran and won the office of mayor.  Last night’s City Hall meeting began with a private session involving Ramey and the council and continued when Ramey left the meeting room.  But the mayor was back in his seat once the council emerged from the executive session and passed a motion by Bill Brockington that gives the mayor until September 28, 2017 to remove his property from the location off the Elizabeth Cox Road.  During the interim, Ramey may continue to use the property. Failing to meet the one-year deadline, the city will dispose any remaining Ramey property “as the city sees fit.”  The mayor is expected to release a statement in reaction to the council’s vote.