Prairie Village council dismisses ethics complaints against mayor and 5 council members

The complaints were filed nearly two months ago by resident Mike Sullinger, who has been a frequent critic of the council amid the ongoing debate over affordable housing and zoning changes. Sullinger claimed that the mayor and half the council had conflicts of interest, but members unanimously voted to dismiss the complaints.
Members of the Prairie Village City Council on Monday unanimously dismissed a series of ethics complaints filed against the mayor and five councilmembers.

The complaints were filed nearly two months ago by resident Mike Sullinger, who has been a frequent critic of the council both in person and on social media as the debate about the city’s controversial housing policy raged in the lead up to this fall’s city council elections.

At the same time, the council on Monday decided to table a separate discussion about updating the city’s code of ethics, which hasn’t been revised since 2008.

Councilmembers said they had heard from multiple residents who thought it would be more proper for four newly elected councilmembers to be seated before the body took up changes to the code of ethics, including a provision that would make it easier to dismiss “frivolous” complaints in the future.