Who’s In Charge? This Colorado Town’s Entire City Council Just Resigned

A Colorado town suddenly has nobody on the city council - except for the mayor.

All Six City Council Members Resign

In a surprising turn of events, all six city council members for the town of Florence resigned within hours of each other. That means the only elected official remaining is the town's mayor.

Why Did the Entire City Council of Florence Resign?

According to the Canon City Daily Record, the situation in Florence is complicated. There have been lawsuits, firings, hirings, allegations of non-compliance with open meeting laws, and last year's termination of the city manager following allegations of unwanted sexual advances toward city staff members and the process of replacing him.

Without giving specifics, a resignation letter from one of the city council members cited the mass resignation and the "lack of a plan to remove the cancer that is destroying our town." Obviously, other city council members had similar feelings of frustration with the way things were going with local government processes.

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Where Is Florence Colorado?

Florence is a small town of just under 4,000 about 40 miles south of Colorado Springs. The town is most famous for hosting the Federal Correctional Complex, including the only federal supermax prison in the United States.

The Mayor Rides Alone

Obviously, the town of Florence has been going through some tough times and will face additional challenges in filling six positions on the city council while continuing to conduct the town's business. For now, the mayor will be in charge of running the Florence ship- without the guidance of a city council. Right now he's got all the power, and there's no question about who is in charge.