Mendi Goble says she is 'pro-growth'
But her platform for re-election as City Commissioner is light on details
RICHMOND—Every sitting member of the City Commission is running for re-election. We offered to interview all of them so they could make their case for why they deserve to stay in City Hall.
And not one of them responded.
Of course we're disappointed the incumbents at the helm of one of Kentucky's fastest growing cities collectively decided to blow off the news outlet with the most readers countywide.
But we don't think their refusal to share their vision for Richmond's future and why they think they deserve to be in charge of it should mean you don't get the information you need to decide wisely at the polls.
Which is why if Richmond's elected officials won't give you that, we will.
By Wednesday of this week, it was clear we'd have to get a wiggle on if we were going to have this information for you by today, but our team here at The Edge is dedicated to bringing you the best news coverage Madison County has to offer, so we did it, all while continuing to cover our regular beats.
Thank you to my two reporters, Jemi Chew and Aubrey Kimble for moving quickly on this when I asked them to. They both worked equally hard gathering the research on each Commissioner and the Mayor.
We combed through our own coverage, other media reports, and City records to track trends in how these incumbents voted on issues that matter most to Richmond residents at a time when Richmond has been cited in the US Census as the part of the fastest growing micro-regions in the US.
Also, at a time when delays and overruns on construction of a multi-million dollar sports complex has also resulted in serious damage to private property.
And, at a time when questions about how economic development will be achieved as employment at the Blue Grass Army Depot is in flux, and nearly 1,500 contiguous acres of land on Duncannon Lane zoned for industry and with critical infrastructure has sat idle for years.
We asked, did they introduce any ordinances to address these concerns? Did they take an independent stand on anything? What did they spend the most time talking about? What did they ignore?
Then there is the mistrust between City Hall and the City Commission. Although an investigation was conducted into allegations of a hostile work environment, it's not clear whether the reported dysfunction has been addressed and whether it might have anything to do with the City's higher than average turn-over rates.
We are aware that at least two incumbents, Commissioner Mike Brewer and Mayor Robert Blythe, have been in office for 18 and 25 years respectively, indicating Richmond voters apparently like what they see. But then again, maybe Richmond voters don't know what they don't know.
This report shows you what we found.
Next week, we will bring you a profile of incumbent Mayor Robert Blythe.
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The Edge
RICHMOND—Of all the sitting City Commissioners, Mendi Goble has the most depth of experience leading business advocacy organizations. She spent 14 years as the president of the Richmond Chamber of Commerce, was the executive director of the Mt. Sterling/Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce for 10 years, and is a past president of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce Executives. As executive director of Leadership Madison County, Goble also has focused on leadership development countywide.
However, with one exception, we found little evidence that since taking her seat on the Commission in 2023, she has advocated strongly on behalf of Richmond businesses already established in town, or those looking to locate here.
Goble did offer her support for an interlocal agreement to create a regional business park that was on the table for Richmond in late 2024. Ultimately, despite her support, the measure failed.
Growth and development
Goble was one of two commissioners to vote yes on entering into the regional business park deal with the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, Scott County, Madison County, Georgetown, and Berea.
“It’s a good place to be in and it’s a good region to be in,” Goble stated. “We’re located right off I-75, and look at all the quality of life that we all have with great hospitals, great universities, and great parks. These are all the things that people are looking at before they place an industry somewhere."
The agreement would have required the City to commit half a million toward the regional business park in exchange for 8.33% of the revenue generated by the park, which ultimately was sited in Berea. Georgetown also dropped out of the deal.
“I’m very pro-business and pro-growth,” she has said. “But I want to attract businesses that create good jobs and provide a real, long-term benefit to our community.”
Goble has not publicly stated what those businesses should be, nor how the City might leverage assets such as the currently vacant Begley site on Duncannon Lane to help benefit Richmond's economic growth.
Richmond Regional Sports Park
Goble was a yes vote for more than $78,000 in change orders for the Richmond Regional Sports Park that is now more than $7 million over budget and continually behind schedule. Neither she, nor any of the other Commissioners, have asked for any investigation into the delays and overruns.
EKU
Goble was a member of the committee that elected Davide McFaddin, EdD, as president of EKU. She has not made any public comments on recent news that the University has a near $7 million budget shortfall.
911 fee
In 2025, Newby voted to end the City’s participation in a countywide collection of 911 service fees that would have been calculated based on a property’s square footage and zoning.
The move was a reversal of an order the Commission had already unanimously passed to accept the City's portion of the fee. Goble and her fellow Commissioners reversed their decision after Blythe claimed, without evidence, that the County acted in bad faith when negotiating the fees.
'Toxic' culture
After her colleague Commissioner Tammy Cole received an anonymous email accusing City Manager Rob Minerich of creating a hostile work environment, Goble contacted the Kentucky League of Cities, who then recommended that the city investigate the accusations. Goble was one of the commissioners to vote unanimously to launch the investigation into Minerich.
KLC gave the recommendation that the Vaughn Petitt Group out of Louisville be the investigator. After the final results were presented, unlike her colleagues on the Commission, Goble did not publicly comment.
Flock cameras
Goble told another news outlet she is in favor of automatic license plate readers manufactured by Flock Safety when they are "used responsibly" to find criminals.
“As a commissioner, my job is to hold our law enforcement accountable while also making sure they have the tools and resources they need to keep our community safe,” said Goble.
Data centers
Goble has said she does not support data centers. She said data centers are not significant job creators once they’re operational, even though she believes they can have a large impact on land and infrastructure.
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