A bit of quirky news for you this morning from Maryland. Seat Pleasant Mayor Eugene Grant was aggressive, abusive, demanding and hostile, according to his city council employees. So, they kicked him out. In other words, Grant is still the mayor, but he’s been evicted from his office space in city hall. He didn’t leave quietly, however. The mayor has since set up a tent outside of city hall, where he will continue to have meetings and perform his daily mayoral duties.
The #MobileMayor being interviewed by @arelisrhdz of the @WashPostMD pic.twitter.com/RRr4qhLuJ5
— Eugene W. Grant (@MayorGrant) August 22, 2014Grant now calls himself the #MobileMayor. He has launched a website and even made t-shirts.
We don’t know exactly how Grant behaved behind those city hall doors or what actions pushed the city council over the edge, but for these employees to take such a drastic measure (they voted him out in a closed door meeting and then held a special session), his behavior must have been pretty egregious. Fox 5’s Tom Fitzgerald interviewed Grant after his eviction and he denied the charges, called the eviction a “miscarriage of justice.”
“Does my voice raise from time to time? Yeah. I have a level of expectation.”
What do the residents of Seat Pleasant think about the scuffle at city hall? They aren’t amused:
“They sound like a bunch of kids.”
“They need to come together. That’s the only way it’s going to work.”
Grant may have a point in that the council did not give him a chance to defend himself before they voted him out of his office space. In any case, the ordeal has made up the mayor’s mind to run for reelection – something he had initially decided against. Their action, he claims, leaves him no choice. Perhaps the city council will have a change of heart and allow Grant back inside. Until then, he'll be taking his office with him.