NSBNews.net, also known as VolusiaNews.net, provides Volusia County with 24 / 7 Internet newspaper coverage, 100% free with breaking news, news of record and investigative reports from New Smyrna Beach, Florida, for a 21st-century digital world.
Courtesy photo / Mayor Darla Lauer, in a running battle with embattled Police Chief Diane Young, an admitted cocaine user whom the mayor didn't want on the force to begin with, stepped down Wednesday as the city's first publicly-elected mayor. OAK HILL -- In this small riverfront city beset by corruption in the police force and recent revelations that its clerk/administrator was convicted of DUI before taking the job, Mayor Darla Lauer abruptly resigned today.
Lauer sent her resignation in an e-mail to the city of Oak Hill stating: "Please accept this letter as formal notification that I am leaving my position as Mayor effective immediately. My husband and I are taking positions in Anchorage Alaska for an unknown time frame. Thank you for the opportunities you have provided me during my time with the city. I hope that the City of Oak Hill continues to strive forward. My time with the city has been truly educational and rewarding. If I can be of any assistance during this transition, please let me know. Sincerely, Darla A. Lauer"
Besides the city's e-mail address, Lauer sent her resignation to Vice Mayor and Commissioner Mary Lee Cook who she addressed as "Mayor Cook," as well as to Commissioners Linda Hyatt, Kathy Bittle and Ron Engle.
The mayor also copied NSBNews.net on her e-mail resignation because she wanted the public to know of the news more immediately.
Lauer was midway through her first term as Oak Hill's first publicly-elected mayor when she defeated incumbent Michael Thompson in the 2008 elections. Prior to that vote, the mayor had been selected among the five publicly-elected commissioners.