Archive for the “Fort Wayne” Category

Karen Goldner authored the buy local ordinance.  If you take out her campaign expenses where money never exchanged hands (in-kind), 97% of her campaign funds were spent in DC.

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If Sandy Kennedy is doing such a great job, why are posting council minutes 11 weeks behind?

By Jim Sack

Last night’s city council debate was frustrating to watch. It was the 5th District’s effort to hear what the six at-large candidates and the two district candidates had to say. With so many candidates the format could only be characterized as superficial.

First, we should all pay great respect to the candidates who offer themselves up to our scrutiny. Of the gaggle of eight all were men of integrity and capability. All would serve us well. All spoke cogently over the two hours of discussing community issues. None assault any of the others, there was no rancor, no sniping comments, no condescension, no “gotchas” efforts. One could easily predict that they would raise the level of debate and civility.

Read the rest of this entry »

The leaves have yet to fall from the trees, as you can see from this picture.

Fort Wayne leaf collection crews will move into the central portion of the city beginning Friday, several days earlier than scheduled.

The city issued an announcement Thursday that said the work was finished a day ahead of schedule in the northern part of the city.

By the time they come back next week, the majority of the canopy will still be intact.

What about those sewers Mayor Henry?

Remember my post from last Friday?

Fort Wayne City Clerk’s office ignores union bus blocking handicapped spot

I received a call today from someone that called the city clerk’s office today and informed them that a bus belonging to the Fort Wayne Union Label and Services Trades Council was blocking a handicapped parking spot at Headwaters. I was informed of this around 2:00. The clerk’s office allegedly refused to send a parking enforcement officer to ticket the vehicle. The bus is being used by the hippie occupiers.

I called Patty Stahlhut, Parking Enforcement Supervisor at the clerk’s office at 4:02 p.m. and asked why, and she of course, she denied ever receiving the phone call. That was it, sounded like the conversation was over. So, I had to ask, are you going to cite the vehicle or not? In a rather snippy way, she stated, “I’ll send an officer over there now.”

I’ve been checking on the ticket now for four business days. Hmmm…

By Jim Sack

After four weeks of passionate, intimate budget-making last night’s council was a bit like that movie cigarette-after-sex moment where the lovers stick around long enough to offer a few private thoughts before one heads out for dinner, to the Bean Dinner, in this case, Rand Paul was in town, the heart-throb of laissez-faire Republicans, Ran Paul, so a few of the Rs took the last puff, hastily pulled on their clothes and bid polite adieus to the Democrats before hurriedly leaving.

Their last bit of business on the tumultuous 2012 budget was a roll call vote which was requested by Mr. Shoaff. A roll-call vote allows each member to go on the record expressing their feelings concerning the issue at hand. Some members voted, but chose not to expound. Karen Goldner and Marty Bender remained taciturn. Mr. Shoaff expressed his concern with the deep cuts inflicted on the Park Department and the Police Department, valid capital needs, he said, that were slashed from their budgets. Mr. Smith rued the dying tree canopy and called on the mayor to budget from the Legacy Fund to solve the matter sooner than dragging it out over a dozen years. Mr. Didier said he had problems with the budget, as did everyone, as should be expected, but still voted for it. Then Mrs. Brown lashed out about how the budget was, in a phrase, filled with lies and deceit. Her lone ally, Mr. Council President Harper, noted that the budget’s income line was puffed out thanks to a doubled “payment in lieu of taxes” from City Utilities to the general budget, seconding that the revenue side was as every bit as dire as Mrs. Brown had tried over her last year at the table to point out. Mr. Hines told the group that the infrastructure of the city upon which economic development and the welfare of the city are based was and is crumbling and praised the city for doing more with less. Read the rest of this entry »

At a news conference this morning, Tom Henry was bristling with excitement as he garnered support from a so-called republican voter.

“I trust Tom Henry to provide the city services my neighbors and I depend on because he cares about residents,” said Carolyn Devoe, former chairwoman of the Southwest Partnership. “I’ve voted for Republicans before…”

Really? When?

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I guess his copywriter needs to ask Tom’s campaign manager to better screen who they get quotes from.

Not so enthusiastic now, I bet.

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By Jim Sack

Zip for 23. Not one cut passed, not one.

John Shoaff struck out, Liz Brown went down in flames, Tim Pape’s cuts floated bloated belly up.

Last night, the last night of council deliberations on the budget, some 23 cuts were proposed and not one, not one, passed the entire council.

Here is the sound track: 8-1, 8-1, 8-1, 7-2, 7-2, 6-3-1, withdrawn, withdrawn, withdrawn, failed for lack of a second, failed for lack of a second.

Mrs. Brown, in her last days as a member of council, on her last legs as chief inquisitor, served her last night as chair of the finance committee. She had some 19 cuts proposed, but, in her normal polite style, she allowed the other two members who had proposed cuts to go first. Clear the decks. Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sack

Last night Beth Malloy reminded me of the joys of working in public service. It was the turn of the Mayor’s Office at Council to defend their budget and she was sent down from the grandeur of the mayor’s suite to plant the imperial colors. She smiled, she laughed, made puns and enumerated a fairly long list of items that have been implemented and others that are still on the mayor’s plate. She started with a bit of a homily by reminding most at the table the joys of managing a city, of seeking solutions and of helping citizens.

Years ago I worked for Win Moses on the 9th floor. On my first day I made a call to a neighborhood leader, my first call on the job, and said, “Hi, this is Jim Sack from the Mayor’s office.” Absolute silence on the line. Remember the pin-drop commercial? It was sobering and an informative lesson in the power and moreover the responsibility of the job. With her exuberance last night Ms. Malloy reminded me that many of the people in government are there to serve, to solve, to help. For many it is a calling to better their community, to help their neighbors and to leave a lasting legacy to their grandchildren. Read the rest of this entry »

By Jim Sack

Ron Vargo sounded a warning to members of city council last night: you are cutting muscle in your budget process. Tom Smith, councilman from the First, thinks there may be $3 million in fat in the city’s budget. Steve Schaefer called on council to cut their own salary (fat?) and save the taxpayer hundreds of thousands. Elissa McGauley won council support to shave tens of thousands of taxes from a developer’s bottom line in exchange for creating one job. And, Glynn Hines spanked fellow council members Mitch Harper and Liz Brown for their gang assault of Clerk Sandy Kennedy. Variation was the spice of life at council last night.

First, Vargo. He is the vice chair of the Northwest Area Partnership, a collection of neighborhood associations that do much of the work of government: they educate citizens, spread word of public policy, organize public support for projects, provide recommendations on what public projects might rank highest in the hearts of their neighbors. It is grassroots democracy and participation at its best. Vargo’s point was that the ever dwindling services available from city to citizens was frustrating to those who volunteer countless hours to better their neighborhoods. He observed that cuts in funding were causing a deterioration of the local infrastructure which diminishes appeal which leads to out-flight which leads to decay, blight and crime. He said the council in its urge to cut was entering “the realm of unintended consequences.” Polite sights from council, members checked their fingernails for hints of dirt, one member casually examined the ceiling for defects in workmanship. Read the rest of this entry »

This is really getting out of hand. Kennedy supporters must be very, very afraid that Zach may win. This sign was destroyed and tossed behind the Marathon station at Washington and Clay, and Kennedy signs were placed in its place.