Politics & Government
Robert Settles Is Sole Candidate In Millville, Ohio, Mayoral Race
'Mayor Bob' will have to fill the Village Council after he is elected.
BY BONNIE MEIBERS
Miami University journalism student
Robert Settles has been mayor of tiny Millville, Ohio, since 2000 — and it doesn’t look like that is going to change any time soon.
The long-time Millville resident is the only person running for the seat on Nov. 7.
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Settles first came to Millville in 1976. The Ross High School graduate said he has lived “99 percent” of his life in Butler County.
He has worked on the fire department and as the street commissioner in more than 40 years as a resident. He retired from the water treatment plant in September of last year.
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“I worked hard all my life,” Settles said. “My wife and kids never went hungry.”
Settles has two children, six grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Millville Village Council
The race for Millville Village Council is equally uncompetitive this year -- with zero candidates running for the six open seats.
No one is running for Millville Village Council because of a mix-up with petitions to run, Settles said. Some candidates did not have the required signatures on their petitions.
“Well, they’ll have to swear me in, and then I’ll hire the Village Council,” Settles said.
Issues facing voters
Millville just wrapped up some construction projects in town. Several roads were re-paved -- including portions of U.S. Hwy. 27 that winds through town -- and Settles said he is looking to take care of a few more.
A couple projects in particular include repainting the inside of the Millville Village Administration building and fixing a drain on Ross-Hanover Road.
As the opioid epidemic has scoured the United States, once place it seems to have missed is Millville, according to Settles. “We don’t have the problem that a lot of other places around here have,” he said.
The village of approximately 725 people has one problem house. Settles said after he went to the house and talked to the people who live there, the problem has died down.
“I run a pretty tight ship around here,” he said.
Top photo: The village of Millville sits between bigger and busier cities like Oxford and Hamilton. -- Photo by Patricia Gallagher Newberry