RDFC Commentary: “Sewer Smells and Sudden Timing”

In the plainspoken, common-sense style of Kimberly citizens who are paying attention.

Folks, gather ‘round. I’d like to tell you a little story about sewer systems, storm shelters, and something that smells… well, just a little off. And I ain’t talking about the sewer.

Yesterday, the local chamber of commerce announced that approximately 40 days before the ELECTION in Kimberly, Alabama, the city now has a Letter of Intent with a provider for sewer service. Applause all around. Big news. Fancy emojis. Flags waving.

Now, don’t get me wrong—sewer is good. Every functioning town needs a place for the unmentionables to go. But here’s where things get interesting.

Let’s rewind the tape to March 8th. That’s when a man named Robert Mashburn for Mayor entered the mayoral race. First guy in the gate. Launched a platform. Posted about infrastructure. Sewer needs. Storm shelter locations. You name it—he was talking about it. He even did the unthinkable in local politics: he made a plan.

Then something odd happened. Right after Mashburn’s posts about the city’s storm shelters on a high threat weather day, folks started asking questions. Seems nobody could find any information from the city on that. We at the RDFC pointed it out openly on Facebook. Just cold hard facts. Then—boom—like magic, a city post goes up, and storm shelter info suddenly appears on the city’s calendar like it had always been there. Except it hadn’t. We at the RDFC then called out the shell game and deception that was being attempted. And then, quicker than you can say "Ctrl + Z", the post vanished.

No one ever fessed up to who was playing the Facebook shuffle, but it sure looked like someone got caught decorating the tree after Christmas and pretending it’d been up the whole time.

Fast forward again—Mashburn posts again in May about sewer needs. And now here we are in July, with the city suddenly holding up a shiny Letter of Intent like it’s a golden ticket from Willy Wonka’s infrastructure department.

Let’s break it down. Mayor Ellerbrock’s been at the helm for 13 years. Councilwoman Cowart and Councilman Dixon have logged several years themselves. These aren’t rookies. Combined, they’ve had over 15 years to move the needle on sewer infrastructure. But for some reason… that needle finally twitched only after someone new with ideas, initiative, and a few social media followers stepped up and said, “Hey, here’s a better way.” And now—with the election just 40 days away—suddenly there's progress? Suddenly, we’re supposed to believe this is all just great timing? Oh, and right on cue, they’re already out there telling folks who to vote for—like the last decade of missed opportunities just vanished into thin air. That fishy smell isn't the Black Warrior River.

And not for nothing—but there are five council members in Kimberly. So why only three names in the spotlight? Mayor Ellerbrock, Mayor Pro Tem Tanya Cowart, and Councilman Dixon—the same three who always seem to be front and center—are suddenly the faces of progress. Funny enough, Dixon just so happens to be the anointed one, the one THEY'VE picked to be your next mayor. That’s not speculation—that’s public record. So how do the other 3 council members feel about being left out of this big celebratory announcement? No name-drop. No credit. Just forgotten like last week’s leftovers. Could it be that this isn’t about teamwork at all? Could it be… politics as usual? The kind where the press release gets written after the next move’s already decided?

Look, we are not saying it’s political theater. We are just saying the script feels like it was written after the reviews came out. And as the old saying goes, “If it smells fishy, it’s either low tide… or high suspicion.”

So congratulations on the sewer update, truly. But let’s not pretend the timing doesn’t raise some eyebrows. Because if it took 15 years and one challenger to start flushing out progress, maybe what we need isn't more applause—but more accountability.

Stay curious, neighbors.

— The Real Doss Ferry Chronicle

(Probably not invited to the ribbon cutting, but still watching.) P.S. – As far as we can tell, the City of Kimberly itself—you know, the folks actually in charge—hasn’t made any formal announcement about this Letter of Intent on their own website or social media pages. Par for the course, honestly. It seems the biggest news about our city always comes from somewhere other than the city. Strange, huh?