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Legislation Item 5

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Bill Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 10 2010 at 10:56am
I'm not familiar with this Pendleton Arts Center.  Can someone elaborate?  Why is this needed when we have MAC?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Bobbie Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 10 2010 at 11:26am

You do not have to have a sell price listed in the county site. Do not take for granted that they did not pay.  If you noticed - foreclosed homes do not list a sell price.  But if the city owns it - they have some dealing in the renovation.  They are very good at moving money around.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 10 2010 at 11:50am
swohio75
It is my understanding that the spending of the Downtown Fund does not need the approval of City Council. This is also the case with the $5,000 grants/gifts for the front facades of the building in the downtown and the business loans...none of these tranactions went before City Council. I believe these were approved by Mr. Kohlers office before so maybe now it's Mr. Adkins office. 
Either way I reeeeally don't understand how Middletown will support a large art center with a "Family Dollar" population?
No business man in his right mind would do this deal soooo the City must be footing the bill.  


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote swohio75 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 10 2010 at 7:23pm
Originally posted by Vivian Moon Vivian Moon wrote:

<FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=3>swohio75
It is my understanding that the spending of the Downtown Fund does not need the approval of City Council. 

If it involves the awarding of contracts or the purchase of real estate, it sure does.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote wasteful Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 11 2010 at 10:23am
Is this the same city that just 3-4 weeks ago used the "Bankruptcy" word, if the Public Safety levy isn't passed in 2012.  We need an Art center like a hole in the head at this time.  Most likely we will get the this is all grant/stimulus funds etc., as usual.
 
If this is true the cities priorities are definitely misplaced. 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Sports Mom Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 11 2010 at 3:00pm
SW, If HUD funds are being used (ie facade grant, etc.) they would still receive bids and approve contracts but this would not have to be approved by Council.  Council approved the activities in the plan submitted to HUD so the Community Revitilation dept. gets bids and awards contracts without council
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mike_Presta Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 11 2010 at 7:34pm
Originally posted by swohio75 swohio75 wrote:

If it involves the awarding of contracts or the purchase of real estate, it sure does.
swo:
Not exactly true!!!
I'm a bit under the weather, so I'm not going to look up the exact statute, but I assure you that the City Manager has the authority to authorize many types of expenditures under a certain amount.  (I can't recall if it is either $15K or $10K.) 
 
It is rather simple to get around such limits, if one really wants to do so. For example:
  • $9.9K worth of paint and tile from vendor A.
  • $9.9K worth of lumber or countertops form vendor B.
  • $9.9K worth of lighting fixtures form vendor C.
  • $9.9K worth of conduit and wire on a separate order from Vendor C.
  • $9.9K worth of labor for painting from contrator Z.
  • $9.9K worth of labor for tile instalation from contrator Y.
  • $9.9K worth of labor for additional tile work from contrator Y.
  • $9.9K worth of labor for carpentry from contrator X.
  • $9.9K worth of labor for electrical work from contrator W.
It's not too difficult to end up with 20 or 30 times your DoA ("Delegation of Authority"--the term used in the private sector for the amount an individual is allowed to execute in one contract or purchase order on behalf of the company, usually substantially higher than in the public sector.)
 
Of course, I am NOT suggesting our very OPEN and HONEST city officials would ever utilize such measures here in Middletown.  Then again, I don't recall there every having been a public vote by council on the improvements (either labor or material) to the parking lot across from the Bi-Centennial Commons.
 
Also, as others have pointed out, many items authorized by council are very general!!!  The actual expenditures are then controlled completely by members of staff.  For example, consider CDBG funds.  Council might authorize $500,000 in CDBG money for "beautification" in a low-income area along S. Main.  Members of staff could then OK applications for these funds from anyone in that area.  They might even OK applications for $60K to $80K from owners of very large homes in the S. Main Historic District that just happen to fall within the same boundaries and are owned by, say, City Department Directors or bank vice-presidents.  Of course I am not suggesting that this happened.  I'm just saying that it could happen and it illustrates the way money could be spent without a specific, public vote by council.  Then again, does anyone remember any votes of the SPECIFIC individual applications for CBDG money?
 
Perhaps Russ Corolus could provide information on some of this.
“Mulligan said he ... doesn’t believe they necessarily make the return on investment necessary to keep funding them.” …The Middletown Journal, January 30, 2012
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 6:07am
Ahhh Mike
You always make my day a little brighter...
Remember last year when Mr. Adkins came before council and declared all of Middletown a SLUM with the 54% rule so CDBG money could be used in any area of the City….this was a blank check.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Pacman Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 8:11am

§ 209.06 AUTHORITY OF THE CITY MANAGER; PURCHASES.

(a) Signatures on contracts, etc. The City Manager or, in his or her absence or disability, the person designated by him or her to act as City Manager, is hereby named and designated as the proper officer of the City to sign contracts on behalf of the City, to affix the corporate name of the City to all bonds or other evidence of indebtedness of the City and to affix the Seal of the City to all papers requiring such Seal. Said documents shall be first approved as to form and correctness by the Law Director.

(b) Authorization of City Manager. The City Manager may authorize the Assistant City Manager or any department director to sign contracts on behalf of the City when the monetary obligations to the City do not exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000.00), provided that funds for such contracts have been properly appropriated. Said Contracts shall be first approved as to 2008 S-2 34

City Contracts § 209.06 form and correctness by the Law Director. The City Manager shall grant the within described authority to the Public Works Director in writing and for no longer than a one-year period.

(c) Southwest Ohio Purchasers for Government Association.

(1) The City Manager, through the City Purchasing Agent, is hereby authorized to join the Southwest Ohio Purchasers for Government Association, the charter and bylaws of which Association are attached to original Ord. O87-21, passed February 3, 1987.

(2) The City Manager, through the City Purchasing Agent, is hereby authorized to make purchases, for the City, of commodities or items costing less than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00), through such Association, provided that funds for such purchases have been properly appropriated.

(3) The City Manager, through the City Purchasing Agent, is hereby authorized to make purchases, for the City, of commodities or items costing twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) or more, through such Association, provided that:

A. The competitive bidding procedures of the Association have been used in such purchases;

B. Funds for such purchases have been properly appropriated; and

C. The City Council approves the final purchase price of each such purchase on its consent agenda or by separate motion.

(d) State programs.

(1) The City Manager, through the City Purchasing Agent, is hereby authorized to make purchases, for the City, of goods or commodities costing less than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) through program of the Ohio Department of Administration Services (ODAS) and the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT), provided that funds for such purchases have been properly appropriated.

(2) The City Manager, through the City Purchasing Agent, is hereby authorized to make purchases, for the City, of goods or commodities costing twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) or more through the ODAS or ODOT program provided that:

A. The procedure set forth in Ohio Revised Code have been followed regarding such program;

B. Funds for such purchase have been properly appropriated; and

C. City Council approved the final purchase price of each such purchase on its consent agenda or by separate motion.

(e) Purchase of real property.

(1) The City Manager is hereby authorized to bid on and purchase, at County Sheriff’s foreclosure sales, real property, the rehabilitation of which property was performed with Community Development Block Grant Loan Funds (Rehabilitation Revolving Loan Fund). The City Manager may bid up to the amount of the remaining balance owed to the City on such rehabilitation loans, the amount of senior liens on such property and court and sale costs.

(2) The Director of Finance is hereby authorized to expend moneys for such purposes from the Rehabilitation Revolving Loan Fund, as authorized by the current appropriation legislation.

(Ord. O97-129, passed 11-18-1997; Am. Ord. O2003-28, passed 4-1-2003; Am. Ord. O2006-35, passed 5-16-2006)

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Hermes Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 9:53am
Originally posted by Vivian Moon Vivian Moon wrote:

Ahhh Mike
You always make my day a little brighter...
Remember last year when Mr. Adkins came before council and declared all of Middletown a SLUM with the 54% rule so CDBG money could be used in any area of the City….this was a blank check.
 
With this declaration of being a "slum" why in the world do we need or want an art center ? With the decisions and ideas coming from "the hall" I can't help but wonder who are the crack heads, alcoholics, meth addicts and paint huffers. Could be one or two heroin addicts down there too as far as I know. Or would an addict even make decisions like what we see coming out of "the hall" ? Ermm
No more democrats no more republicans,vote Constitution Party !!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote VietVet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 11:14am
I'm confused myself Hermes. Seems we have a conflict in place here. The city doggies are doing a fine job bringing in the "Ghetto Theme" with their pet project of keeping fed assisted people in their buddy's Section 8 houses. And.....at the same time, these same people, who are wanting to create the country's largest ghetto, are promoting the very best "pinky in the air/snooty people only/caviar eatin' champaign drinkin'" fine arts district for our welfare town. Kind of a conflict of styles for the town theme, wouldn't you say? Do any of the    's running this town REALLY know what they want or what direction they want this town to go? OR.....OR....are they trying to come up with a new dynamic program where they try to incorporate a little "artsy culture" into the Section 8/low income community here? If so, it reminds me of the Three Stooges episode where the rich folks take in the stooges and try to make them gentlemen. Great laughs....kinda like the city management.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spiderjohn Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 12:21pm
you might also check the current relationship between the city and the MCF/Mr.Gordon.
When I was a member, we voted on allowing Mr.Gordon to approve and pay grants from $5,000 and under, without board/committee approval. I don't care for this type of thing for the exact reasons and examples mentioned by Mike P above. But not wanting to make waves and go against the flow(it happens occasionally), I voted with the majority since my vote wouldn't have altered the decision, and at that time I had no other reasons to doubt Mr.Gordon's intentions.
 
At that time, the City manager was developing a close relationship with Mr.Gordon and Mr.Scorti, asking for both sizeable and smaller grant requests for municipal pet projects. This also led to confidentiality concerns because the city did not want their grant requests and project intentions made public. I posted(on this site) the specifics of a municipal request for the MCF to fund the salary of a "downtown czar" at $80,000+ to work on downtown projects while being headquartered at the city building. It was also stated at that time that this "czar" would be under city control while not on the city payroll, and this was necessary because ED's Mr.Robinette would ONLY be working on east end renaissance projects.
 
So--you might want to examine the role of the MCF in any financing, though it is private and not under taxpayer scrutiny. Still--if you contribute to the MCF, you MIGHT want to know exactly how your $$ is being used.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 2:24pm

Last weeks City Council Meeting
I have a lot of questions concerning the last week council meeting.

1.  Renaming of
Sunset Park – I’m against the renaming of Sunset Park
.
    Nothing against Mr. Armbruster but I don’t want the name changed.
2.  Swallen’s Building - I was amazed that the Swallen’s Building had NEVER
     been placed FOR SALE on the open market while we the tax payers
     footed the bill to the tune of $100,000 a year.
3.  Property for Bike Path – I do believe the City is doing a number on this
     poor guy. He stated that his property is valued at $35,000. The City
     had offered him $2,000 or $3,000 for all his frontage....however it
     seems that the City FORGOT to tell him he would not be able to build  
     anything on the other part of his property. If the City wants and needs
     the property for the bike path then they need to purchase ALL the
     property. This deal has a REEEEALLY bad smell to it.
4.   
South Park
– If we can’t take care of the parks we have now why do we
      need park equipment for another park.     

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 2:30pm
Spider
At the last council meeting Judy stated the they had received a $15,000 MCF grant for the Middletown Cemetery....HOWEVER....she didn't say anything about the $20,000 MCF grant for the Community Center.
I was told that the City didn't have time to write the grant for the cemetery...so the next question is...who wrote the grant for the Community Center? 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Hermes Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 5:04pm
I love Middeltown !!
 
It just keeps getting better !!!  Cry  Dead
 
Next thing you know the city will want a "street car" like Cincinnati. Shocked
No more democrats no more republicans,vote Constitution Party !!
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote DuaneGordon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 5:39pm
I've never posted on this message board before, but I felt some errors in what Spiderjohn stated and insinuations in his posting could not be ignored. Primarily, it should be clarified that the Foundation has never given me any authority to singlehandedly approve any grants.
 
The Foundation has for at least the past decade, possibly much longer, delegated to a subcommittee consisting of the executive director, the board president, and the board vice president the authority to approve grants of $2,000 or less without taking the matter to the full board. The reason behind that authority had been to allow the Foundation the flexibility to respond to emergency needs in the community as they arise instead of requiring everyone wait two to four months before a decision is rendered on a grant application for a small, immediate need.
 
The board almost two years ago increased this limit to $5,000 and shifted responsibility for all grant requests of $5,000 or less to this subcommittee instead of the Distribution Committee, but that was due to the fact that the Distribution Committee and Board of Trustees were being inundated with requests for $1,000 or $2,000 or $3,000 that were taking hours to discuss and resolve, and they wanted to instead focus on the larger grant requests ($10,000 or $25,000 or $50,000 applications) and ensure time was available to adequately vet and evaluate these larger requests that have a much greater impact on the community.
 
In making this adjustment to procedure, the board actually greatly increased the degree of oversight over what had been in place. Under the previous executive director, there was no limit on the amount that the subcommittee could award in a year, and there was no requirement that the board even be notified of grants paid using this method. So, theoretically, the subcommittee could approve 500 grants of $2,000 each, spending $1 million without ever letting the board know about a penny of it. The new procedures capped the annual amount that may be spent using this method and required that all grants paid through this process be reported to the full board every quarter for retroactive approval.
 
Finally, all grants approved via this method are recorded in the Annual Report that the Foundation publishes every year (available online at http://www.mcfoundation.org/MCF_Annual_report.pdf) and are also disclosed every quarter in our press release of grants paid. The most recent quarter's list is available online at http://www.mcfoundation.org/pr-grant0510.htm and was also published Sunday in the Middletown Journal. We do not, however, single out which grants went through this process and which were decided by the full Distribution Committee and Board (which sometimes will take a request for greater than $5,000 and approve awarding less than $5,000), so not necessarily all grants of less than $5,000 were decided in this manner.
 
We have approved close to 40 grants using this method over the past six quarters that it has been available, and only four of those were for municipal requests: two of Abby Ison's summer programs for children, one project at the community center, and one park project.
 
Finally, I'd submit that I don't really have a special relationship with any city official any more so than I have with a few hundred other individuals in the city. In fact, I think I've spoken with Vivian Moon more in the past few months than I have the city manager. Also, the Foundation is not involved in any of these property swaps or financing deals and such on which this topic focuses.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 12 2010 at 5:51pm

As I have said many times before...without the support of the Middletown Community Foundation the Middletown Cemetery would still be a weed field. Mr. Gordon has given me two grants within the past 6 months, one was an educational grant and the other was for the cemetery.

 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote DuaneGordon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 13 2010 at 3:17pm

Spiderjohn, noticed that your response had been deleted where you said that the clarification I gave was correct and you wondered about the amounts of grants given to the city under my tenure at the Foundation and those of my predecessors. But I took a few minutes to research the answer for you, so I thought I’d post it anyway.

 

When looking at the numbers, granting for the city has actually remained pretty constant since inception.

 

Since I came here, I’ve overseen 10 quarterly grant cycles that have resulted in $1.3 million of distributions approved from the Foundation’s unrestricted grantmaking pool. Of these, 20 grants totaling $150,000 were paid to the city, roughly 11 percent. The largest of these were $25,000 to purchase materials for low income homeowner repairs, $24,500 for police training, $21,450 to replace the control system of the carillon bells, and $20,852 for a handicapped-accessible playground next to the Dream Field in Goldman Park.

 

Kay Wright oversaw about 30 quarterly grant cycles during her time at the Foundation, resulting in $3.5 million in grants awarded over that time. Of these, 32 were to the city totaling $375,000, again roughly 11 percent. The largest of these included $50,000 for the Douglass Park splash pad and $200,000 for the bike path along the river (which we’re still paying off).

 

During Norm Hayes’ time at the Foundation, it looks like he oversaw about $1.7 million of unrestricted grants, of which about $200,000, again about 11 percent, went to the city. This included buying the showmobile used at concerts, trees for Smith Park, the plaza fountain, welcome signs, and flags.

 

These numbers don’t include programs of ours that would not be able to make grants to the city (such as scholarships or endowments we hold for specific nonprofit organizations) but do include all of our unrestricted grantmaking for which we accept grant applications.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spiderjohn Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 13 2010 at 3:43pm
Correct Mr.Gordon.
I deleted that posting.
 
Thank you for your time and explanations.
 
You have made many excellent choices since your arrival, and I should concentrate on the positives.
 
The MCF change in leadership would seem to break the connection that was evolving during my brief tenure with the organization.
Still--I read no mention of the Paducah trip, or the 2nd ward project headed by Mr.Scorti(conflict?) that was holding funds during my tenure with MCF, or any similar "projects". We could have differing definitions of city-funded or city-related granting, however you have been most gracious in explaining your situation.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Bill Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 13 2010 at 3:51pm
thanks Mr. Gordon, that's helpful
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote DuaneGordon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 13 2010 at 11:55pm
Glad to share the information, Spiderjohn and Bill. We try to be as open as possible with our work in the community and if anyone wants to know anything about us, I enourage them to call and ask -- or just drop by and chat with me.
 
No, I didn't include the Paducah trip in these numbers, but that was not a "city" project. That was an idea from the end of Kay Wright's tenure. I inherited and oversaw implementation of it when she left. The Foundation's only expense, though, was a few hundred dollars to rent the bus to take the group down there. About 60 or 70 community leaders were invited including pretty much all major property owners downtown, all MCF trustees, the leaders of several arts organizations in town (since Paducah's redevelopment focused on the arts), representatives from area banks, Realtors, representatives from other area foundations, all city council members, the city manager, representatives from South Main Street's historic district since it borders downtown, representatives from the Chamber, the media, historical society, and several others. If I recall correctly, about 25 were available to go. They each paid their own way (hotel, meals, etc.), and we covered the bus rental. While it hasn't resulted in any real business developments -- yet -- the trip did spur an ad hoc downtown committee of the Foundation that continued to meet for about a year, and it was the discussions from these meetings that helped convince the city to commission a comprehensive downtown redevelopment land use plan, which was done with city funds, not foundation money. Another direct result of the trip was inclusion of downtown in the United Way's Place Matters project of neighborhood redevelopment, and that has a few promising small-scale projects that are now in the works as a result. It also helped get discussions started with the Penndleton Arts Center that is supposed to be coming to Middletown, but I've not been directly involved in that, so I really don't know any specific details on it other than what's been reported publicly about it .
 
On the "Second Ward project headed by Scorti," I think you may be confusing two different things. The United Way's Place Matters program is focusing mostly on the Second Ward, and we supported it via a grant to Miami University last year, but Scorti was not involved in that and it has never been "holding money" from us.. However, a project at the time that was headed by Scorti was Middletown Promise, which is city-wide, not Second Ward. That project, for which he is board president, is hoping to secure private donors to fund a scholarship program that would cover tuition for all graduates of Middletown High School. It was modeled after a similar program in Michigan and the goal was to use the leverage of a free college education to attract middle class families to the city, but it had no involvement of the city administration at that time, so it wasn't a "city project" and consequently wasn't included in the above numbers. This was also one of Kay Wright's projects that I inherited. At her final Board meeting in 2007, the Board committed to support this project. At my first Board meeting in 2008, that grant was finalized and formally approved to fund half of the program's first-year operations, which were to focus on conducting a feasibility study to determine whether it was possible to raise the money to do the full project. Shortly thereafter, the program hired Kay Wright as its part-time executive director, but her tenure there ended in less than a year and the program went on hiatus. It recently regrouped and began working again on the feasibility study.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote spiderjohn Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 14 2010 at 7:05am
Thank you again for the clarifications, Mr.Gordon.
 
The MCF makes a large # of grant choices.
As with anything else, some don't function as hoped.
Your spin above was very good.
We all must use lemons to make lemonade.
 
You reference many of Ms.Wright's projects as baggage left on your doorstep.
I thought her leadership to be very good.
 
Some might view the Paducah trip as non-producing(after the fact, of course), and similar results with the south end project still in development as you mention.
 
Still--you do your best to make the right call, and hope for the best as to results.
Your record is pretty good so far.
 
jmo
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Dead man walkin' Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 14 2010 at 7:15am

Spirit says that Middletonians will be getting hoodwinked once again Tuesday night.

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil" (Psalm 23)
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MUSA Council
MUSA Council
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Joined: May 15 2008
Status: Offline
Points: 7008
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote VietVet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 14 2010 at 7:44am
Vivian- the Swallens Building- didn't Perry Thatcher say he had an interested party that wanted to pursue the Swallens Building? Then, after his statement, it faded into the sunset as to interest, right?

Bike Path property- can the city tell a property owner that he can't build on his property if it is properly zoned? The city can't use the old "emminent domain" crap and seize his property for the bike path, can they? Does the city just make up property rules on the fly as the need arises? What's the deal with this?

South Park- Common sense, perhaps?.......evaluate the need before spending the money. How many people use South Park? Do the people who use South Park use the amenities that are there now? If the numbers merit the cost, then spend the money. If not, there are plenty of potholes to patch. Divert the money to the streets. This money might patch a hole or two. Lord knows, they are good at "diverting" money, right Mr. Carolus?

Renaming Sunset?- Don't we have a park out by the water tower off Manchester that needs a name? How about that becoming Armbruster Park? It's in an area of town where he lived and didn't he have a hand in getting that developed? Don't remember. JMO
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Vivian Moon View Drop Down
MUSA Council
MUSA Council


Joined: May 16 2008
Location: Middletown, Ohi
Status: Offline
Points: 4187
Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 14 2010 at 10:49am
VietVet

Swallen's Building - Walter Leap said he had four quilified buyers over the years for the Swallen's Building and the City turned down all the deals...now we the citizens get to foot the bill for the million dollar demo bond.

I have also been told that the bank building has now been offered to the Middletown Historical Society. Was this building ever put up for sell by Mr. Thatcher?

Bike Path - Vet I believe if the City buys all his frontage to the property his property will then be landlocked and therefore he will not be able to build on it. The value of his property will go down and the only people that he can sell the rest of his property to are his neighbors on each side. He stated before council that he didn't want to sell his property beacause he wanted to build on it later....Keep your eye on this deal. 

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