Logansport has no urgency in addressing its major problems.

Last year, Mayor Martin claimed he was "overwhelmed" by the number of immigrants coming into the community and needed state help. Then Gov. Eric Holcomb said he didn't have a crisis, and didn't help with a problem more contrived by Martin than truth permits.

But the real problem in Logansport and Cass County that Martin doesn't talk about or have a plan to solve is the unemployment rate. The latest figures from the state of Indiana show that during July, when the unemployment rate is typically at its lowest point of the year because of seasonal employment, Cass County was tied for the seventh-highest rate with Miami, Howard and Fayette counties. That's ABOVE the state average. In contrast, during the previous administration, Logansport and Cass County had unemployment rates BELOW the state and national averages for the majority of months.

No plan for empty downtown storefronts. No plan for any new business coming to the industrial park. He currently is tied with the worst mayors in Logansport history with zero new businesses in the industrial park during his tenure, now closing in on six years. No plan for reversing the numbers and adding higher-paying jobs. Meanwhile, Martin is frequently gone from his job because he has other priorities.

This is a stark reminder why we are asking Logansport residents to join us in signing and sharing a petition demanding his resignation and his replacement for now with a professional, certified, independent city manager who can run Logansport like a business. Many other successful cities have done this including Fishers and Munster. Republican State Sen. Tom Weatherwax passed legislation to this effect in the 1990s allowing cities Logansport's size to have a city manager when mayors aren't getting the job done. Ours is not getting the job done.

Please join more than 31 dozen others in signing and sharing this petition. Thank you for caring for the future of our community.