What has Mike Brewer accomplished in nearly 20 years?
The incumbent City Commissioner wants your vote but won't say why
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?
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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Whitney McKnight,
Founder and Publisher,
The Edge
RICHMOND—City Commissioner Mike Brewer wants Richmond residents to vote him back in office for another two years, which would bring his total time in office to 20 years.
What does Brewer think are his key accomplishments after nine terms in office? We don't know what he thinks they are. In an interview with another news outlet, Brewer did not list any. The Edge also could not find any recent evidence that Brewer is advocating for any particular project or long-term goal on behalf of the City.
What we did find evidence of is that Brewer has spent a lot of time upset that his colleagues in City Hall won't admit he is more popular than they are.
According to a Facebook post Brewer made on Monday, Oct. 26, he's been upset since January of 2025 that his colleagues didn't appoint him mayor pro tem.
The pro tem is the second string mayor for times when the actual mayor is either incapacitated, dead, or unable to carry out mayoral duties for another reason such as being out of town.
Although he did not cite his source, Brewer accused a fellow Commissioner for her skullduggery: "bypassing me was Mendi Goble's idea, intended as retaliation for my keeping you informed about the proposal to send taxpayer funds to Georgetown for a regional industrial park. This was political vengeance by Mendi Goble and Tammy Cole."
"Despite my receiving the highest number of votes in the 2024 general election, Commissioners Goble and Cole refused to name me Mayor Pro Tem, a distinction warranted by tradition and the choice of the voters," Brewer said in the post.
After six paragraphs spent complaining he was not put ahead of the other Commissioners, and observing that Mayor Robert Blythe doesn't understand nor follow proper municipal procedure, Brewer stated he is committed to putting "Richmond first".
Growth and development
Brewer has said publicly that he wants to focus on “responsible growth and development” that will improve the "quality of life" for residents. While he hasn't defined "responsible", Brewer's voting record indicates he has supported all major zone changes. Some of these include:
— Brewer supported the City's 2021 purchase and rezoning of 280 acres on Goggins Lane and Tates Creek Road to build a $60 million regional sports complex that missed its opening deadline, is now $7 million over budget, and has been cited as the cause of extensive property damage to a neighboring subdivision.
He described his support for the park as a way to counter there not being enough “things to do" in Richmond.
At a recent City Commission meeting, he asked City Manager Rob Minerich for a status update on the homes that have been damaged, but has not personally reached out to the home owners as of this report.
Neither he, nor any of the other Commissioners, have asked for any investigation into the delays and overruns at the sports complex.
— Brewer voted yes on the 2021 annexation and rezoning of 422 agricultural acres at Goggins Lane and Barnes Mill Road for The Farms shopping center where a Publix is being built across from a sports complex, which is also currently under construction. Brewer supported the project, despite vocal public opposition due to traffic concerns. The vote was split on The Farms, with Commissioner Jim Newby and Mayor Robert Blythe dissenting.
Traffic has continued to be an issue at Exit 87 and Barnes Mill Road.
—In late 2024, Brewer voted against joining with Berea and Madison County in an interlocal agreement for a regional business park, stating concerns that doing so would undermine Richmond's ability to attract industry on its own.
— Brewer voted for the dissolution of the Richmond Investment Development Corp. on the basis of it being a waste of resources, but voiced his support for the economic development function and the work of RIDC members who now have been folded into the City's budget at the Department of Economic Development.
Flock cameras
Brewer has not publicly commented on his stance on Flock Safety cameras.
Data centers
Brewer has not publicly commented on his stance on data centers.
911 fee
In 2025, Brewer voted to end the City's participation in an interlocal agreement across the three local jurisdictions (Richmond, Berea, Madison County) to jointly collect 911 service fees through the county property tax roll.
The fee was to cover Richmond's portion of the cost of emergency communication services once federal disaster preparedness funds ran out thanks to the completion of the chemical weapons decommissioning project at the Army Depot.
The move was a reversal of an order the Commission had already unanimously passed to accept the City's portion of the fee. Brewer and his fellow Commissioners reversed their decision after Blythe claimed, without evidence, that the County acted in bad faith when negotiating the fees.
After dropping out of the deal, Brewer supported the City paying $2.4 million from its general fund to cover the City's portion of area 911 services.
'Toxic' culture
In March 2024, after an anonymous email claimed Minerich routinely created a hostile work environment for women in City Hall, Brewer voted to launch an investigation into the conduct of City Manager Rob Minerich.
The investigation's findings were mixed. Newby questioned whether there were enough employees sampled for the report and if there were enough women in the sample pool.
Brewer said he'd voted in favor of the investigation because he knew "the truth would come out".
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