HUDSON, Ohio — Hudson Mayor Craig Shubert has submitted his resignation less than a week after raising concern at a city council meeting that ice fishing could ultimately lead to prostitution.
The city of Hudson said Shubert submitted his resignation to Clerk of Council Aparna Wheeler on Monday morning.
“City Council appreciates the time and dedication that Mayor Shubert has put in to serving the citizens of Hudson,” said Hudson Council President Chris Foster in a statement. “We respect his decision and wish him the best in the future.”
Shubert also offered the following statement:
When I entered the race for mayor in 2019, my objective was to bring about change. To shake-up city council and our city administration, to return Hudson to its core conservative values, and to focus on the needs of our community; not the wants of a few. Residents repeatedly said city leadership had been focusing on amenities and luxuries while our streets and infrastructure crumbled. Concerns over the Phase II development project and questionable spending of $30 million in prior years were equally shared by the voters who elected me.
City Council workshops are a time for discussing important matters, the sharing of ideas and concerns, as well as one’s knowledge and experience prior to crafting legislation to establish new laws and policies. My comments at Tuesday’s workshop were made out of concern for our community; what could become of unintended consequences of new legislation, based on my prior television news reporting experience. My attempt to inject a bit of dry humor to make a point about this, in the midst of a cold, snowy February, was grossly misunderstood.
Some in our community saw this as an opportunity to engage in the politics of personal destruction by means of character assassination, blaming me for the negative international press they helped to promote.
Since the passing of my wife, First Lady Sherri Moyer, I have given considerable thought to the next stage of my life. Retirement is on the near horizon. With the recent changes on city council, where six of seven seats have turned over, City Hall is entering a new era. My role as a change agent is complete. Hudson has a stronger financial and economic base than ever before, and major road improvements are being completed. I have, therefore, decided to step down as mayor to allow for new leadership, a clean slate, and a path forward.
His comments on the ice fishing and prostitution connection from last Tuesday's city council meeting quickly took social media by storm.
"If you open this up to ice fishing, which while on the surface, it sounds good, then what happens next year? Does somebody come back and say, 'I want an ice shanty in Hudson Springs Park for X amount of time?'" Shubert had said. "And if you then allow ice fishing with shanties, then that leads to another problem: prostitution. And now you have the police chief of the police department involved. Just some data points to consider."
Hudson City Council will now work to appoint a replacement for the mayor's office. That person will serve until the general election this November when the mayor's office is up for a vote.
MORE COVERAGE:
- RELATED: Hudson restaurant opens shanty, adds new drinks after mayor says ice fishing could lead to prostitution
- RELATED: Ice fishing now allowed in Hudson despite mayor's controversial 'prostitution' comments
- RELATED: Hudson spokesperson says city won't respond to mayor's comments about ice fishing and prostitution; says mayor is 'largely ceremonial'
- RELATED: Social media reacts to Hudson mayor saying ice fishing could lead to prostitution