Council Votes To Back Gray's Bid To Oust Fire Chief

By WUKY Staff

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Lexington Urban County Council is backing Mayor Jim Gray's effort to dismiss fire Chief Robert Hendricks.

At their regular meeting Thursday night, Council members had originally planned to vote on a "no confidence" resolution, but Councilman Ed Lane introduced a change
"supporting the mayor and administration in moving forward with the process to correct the management issues in the Division of Fire and Emergency Services."

The council's vote was unanimous, with council member Julian Beard absent. Chief Hendricks has been criticized by the mayor for repeatedly letting firefighter overtime exceed its budget.

Hendricks was asked to resign on Monday but has yet to respond. Public Safety Commissioner Clay Mason is overseeing day-to-day operations until an interim fire chief is named.