City Council - Is Kidd Right?

Is Kidd Right?

Printed From: MiddletownUSA.com
Category: Middletown City Government
Forum Name: City Council
Forum Description: Discuss individual members and council as a legislative body.
URL: http://www.middletownusa.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=170
Printed Date: Apr 20 2024 at 5:58am

Topic: Is Kidd Right?

Posted By: John Beagle
Subject: Is Kidd Right?
Date Posted: Sep 21 2007 at 1:40pm

Nick Kidd said what?

"We have bad schools, bad streets, we will never get anyone into this town. We need to fund the police and fire and fix our streets. We have to get our schools back on board of educating the kids."

Is he right? Is there someone to blame for this? A vote for Nick Kidd is a vote for change.

Interesting. Stay tuned for more.

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http://www.johnbeagle.com/" rel="nofollow - John Beagle

Middletown USA

News of, for and by the people of Middletown, Ohio.

Replies:

Posted By: Pacman
Date Posted: Sep 21 2007 at 4:47pm

"We need to fund the police and fire ..." You can not fully fund the Police and Fire under the current circumstances, the money is just not there. Even if the Public Safety levy passes, the money will not be there. The Levy will basically keep you at the leve you are now.

The city needs to get it employee salaraies and benefits under control. The current council has lost control of these 2 expenses and it is bankrupting the City.

I have never seen a Municipality that has an Employee Run Healthcare committee meeting with Insurance Agents and determining its health care benefits and the City Council just sits there and shakes their heads OK to what the committee says. This appears to be how Middletown Operates,

Does the City not have a Human Resource Administrator that administers the employee benefits after the city determines the benefits.....it appears they don't. This is absurd.

I have also never seen where the State mandates binding Arbitration if a contract is not mutually agreed upon by the City and the Police Union. This is also absurd and leaves a City such as Middletown in dire straits. There is no incentive for the Union to agree to anything the City puts forward. I understand the arbitration normally favors the Union. These laws are archaic and need to be changed.

If the arbitrator comes back with a significant raise for the Police then they will see cuts in the Police Dept. come 2008 as I doubt the Levy will pass.

Posted By: Bill Rogers
Date Posted: Sep 24 2007 at 12:02pm

There's no denying it, the schools are having trouble keeping afloat and the city is too. I agree with Pacman, more taxes definitely aren't the fix to the problem.

Posted By: Pacman
Date Posted: Sep 24 2007 at 6:33pm

Bill you are right you can't raise taxes and spend your way out of this. It is going to take some creative leadership making some hard decisions and not sitting on their laurels.

I believe, the next levy for the schools in 3 or so years the projected deficit is supposedly $17 million. If the BOE thought this levy didn't go over well what do you think is going to happen then. We are talking laying off hundreds of employees/TEACHERS and possibly the closing of some schools.

Either the city and the Schools start cutting and controlling expenses now or disaster looms in the very near future.

The City needs to look into Intergovernmental Contracting for some services, needs to rein in its employees salaries and benefits, to at least try and get the city turned around.

Posted By: .308
Date Posted: Sep 26 2007 at 10:14am

In response to the first post I would say that If anyone is to blame for this it is Everyone over the years who, out of liberal naivet or simple greed, looked to the Government for more and more hand outs and or services.