Rushing resigns

The city of Airway Heights is ready to move forward from the air of controversy that surrounded it this past month.

At its Monday meeting, the City Council voted 4-0 to accept the resignation of Mayor Patrick Rushing. Council members Jack Collins and Steven Lawrence were absent.

During the meeting, City Manager Albert Tripp reported that Rushing submitted his letter of resignation to staff earlier that day. In the letter, Rushing cited his health as the reason for his resignation.

“After 15 years and eight months of continuous service to the city of Airway Heights and having survived three rounds of cancer, I find it difficult to continue due to my declining health issues,” Rushing wrote.

Rushing’s resignation follows a resolution City Council passed at its July 22 meeting. The resolution declares that council has no confidence in Rushing to perform his duties as mayor as a result of public comments he made that were offensive, derogatory and not representing the views of the Airway Heights, its staff and residents. Rushing made comments on his personal Facebook page, comparing President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle to “monkeys” on the weekend of July 10.

Rushing’s comments garnered national attention for Airway Heights and the call for him to resign as mayor, something he refused to do at the time. In additional to council, many residents called for the mayor’s resignation. City staff drafted a letter expressing their lack of confidence in Rushing.

Rushing’s tenure as Airway Heights mayor began in 2009. He has served on the City Council for the past 15 years and was the longest tenured council member prior to resigning. He is challenging incumbent Henry Browne for the Cheney School Board Director District 3 position in the Nov. 3 election.

During public comment, resident Dale Perry said it was unfortunate to hear about Rushing’s resignation under the current circumstances, however it was time for the city to heal from the negative attention it received from the mayor’s actions.

“It’s done with now, let’s move on,” Perry said.

Deputy Mayor Kevin Richey agreed with Perry’s statement.

“We all want this to go away,” Richey said. “When I spoke to Mr. Rushing earlier today, we both agreed that’s what we want.”

Rushing’s resignation is effective Sept. 1 and Richey will handle the duties of mayor in the interim. Council will discuss and review the process with filling the vacant council position.

Tripp explained that council had two options in choosing Rushing’s successor. One was to take applications for the mayor position, review them and select a candidate. Another was for one of the council members to resign from their seat and step into the mayor’s position. Council would then take applications to fill the vacant seat.

“We’re going to spend the next couple of weeks figuring it out,” Richey said. “I hope we have an answer soon.”

Al Stover can be reached at al@cheneyfreepress.com.