Pickerington Area Taxpayers Alliance

Initiative petition signatures expected to be validated soon

The petition proposes a charter amendment that could appear on the May 8 primary election ballot.

By DAVID S. OWEN
The initiative petition to amend the Pickerington City Charter was delivered to the Fairfield County Board of Elections Feb. 27, and is expected to be validated before today.

After the petition is validated it will go before City Council as an ordinance for approval and is expected to be placed on the ballot for voters to decide in the May primary election, city officials said.

Board of Elections Deputy Director Peter Kukla said the petition had 913 signatures attached, and the process for validating each one is the same process used for validating referendum petition signatures.

The proposed charter amendment would allow the city the right to conform its boundaries and annex territory regardless of what agreement the city happens to enter into with any surrounding government entity.

Kukla said the board of elections does not get many referendum or charter petitions to validate each year and said the recent two petitions submitted by the city are the only ones they have received so far this year.

Economic Director Tim Hansley said the initiative petition should have no problem getting certified.

''Our law director has advised that there is a Supreme Court case law that says council has to take very quick action to get it on the ballot in May,'' Hansley said.

''If council does not take quick action, the court itself can place it directly on the ballot,'' he said.

''For whatever reason it misses the May ballot, then the city would have to pay 100 percent on a special election, instead of sharing the cost with the school district if it is on the May ballot,'' Hansley said.

''I cannot think of a scenario where it won't be on the May ballot,'' he said.

During his 14 years as city manager in Dublin (between 1987 and 2001) Hansley said that city never had a citizen's initiative charter amendment to consider.

City Law Director Phil Hartman said although he is not 100 percent sure yet, it is possible if the charter amendment is approved by voters it might cause the current negotiated Master Economic Development Agreement between the city and Violet Township to become invalid.

To Tony Barletta

Hey Tony,

Since the Times-Sun and their reporter (who also appears to be employed by Dunlap and Fix) doesn't post their letters to the editor online, can you post a copy of yours here? It was a real good letter.

Some quotes and comments



?“Pickerington Development Director Tim Hansley, who has been reviewing the revised version, said there are some changes the township is proposing.?”

NOW the development dude is looking at it? Why is Fix allowing this? Shouldn?’t he be more interested in getting the trustees to vote on it rather then piddling around with simple details?

If the city staff wasn?’t brought in earlier to conduct this review BEFORE council was forced to vote on it, why now? Where are the endless emails from Fix assuring his votes on the trustee board like were published when he made the deals with the council?

Gosh Darn It Fix !! (that?’s for the webmaster) MAKE THEM VOTE!!! We want cooperation at ANY cost. Isn?’t that what the trustees want?




?“ ''I would say 30 days is probably too short, and 120 may be little bit long, so, I guess if we were actually negotiating we could look at somewhere between the two dates,'' he said.?”

NEGOTIATING. What a purely simple and novel concept. Good for you Hansley. You seem to have a firmer grasp on the concepts of running a city than your pathetic boss. What a sorry excuse for a city manager. She is feeble to have let politics rule the day for this long.




?“''We're willing to talk about anything, but we picked the number to begin with that is realistic that it can happen once a master agreement is worked out,'' said Township Trustee Terry Dunlap.?”

Since you are so willing to talk about anything Dunlap, talk about this: WE DON?”T NEED YOU! Talk about how you will function once the city forms its own township. That snowball is rolling faster and growing bigger each and every time your lapdog Owens writes a story.




?“When asked if the township could give the city a share of the property tax, Dunlap said, ''No, because it gets too complicated.'' ?“

Complicated for who Dunlap? Your pea sized brain? At what point did tax sharing become too complicated to be negotiated? Are you saying that this has never been done in Ohio? I hope not because again you would be wrong. Ask Wanda. She seems to be the only one with half a brain in your operation. Ask your buddy Bill. Better yet, ask your fellow Republican bedmate Ed Laramie. If you have the time, Ed has an explanation.




?“''If we share property tax, then that means that the people who voted for extra police protection in the city would be sharing police protection money with the township and we would be sharing fire protection money with the city,'' Dunlap said.

''It's not a fair an equitable way to do it because it's harmful to the township and the city residents.

''The only way to do that is through income tax on the new area which doesn't hurt any current residents,'' Dunlap said.?”

SHARE, SHARE, SHARE!!! Isn?’t that what this gosh darned agreement is all about? The only thing you are willing to share with the city is the air you breathe. It?’s time to be honest with your constituents Dunlap. And that includes us poor city folk. YOU WANT IT ALL. YOU WILL NOT SHARE.

I am on a roll

?“''What (the township wants) to do is eliminate or reduce the definition of expenses ... and their point is, if we're allowed to count a whole bunch of stuff in as expenses, then there would be no income tax left to share with them,'' Hansley said.?”

Well DUH!!!! Try and get this Hansley. They want us to foot the bill for ALL EXPENSES. They want their cut up front based on projections and guesses. They want it all dude.




?“''All we're asking is to have a cooperative sharing of what's best to the total community so that we can get some business and some commercial going in this area,'' Dunlap said.?”

No you moron. All you are asking is that we roll over and beg for your crumbs. You want us on our backs begging you to scratch our bellies just like Fix and Shaver do. Your ?“total community?” exists 100% OUTSIDE the city limits of Pickerington. All you ever want from us is your $250,000 annual extortion fee and our votes AND NOW half our income tax with no expense or effort on your part.




?“''That will help offset the schools cost of operation with more tax dollars coming in from commercial development, and benefit everybody,'' Dunlap said.?”

Don?’t even go there Dunlap. Leave your ?“It?’s all for the kids?” rhetoric to the Weltlich/Reade/Fix Team who are on their quest to Fix Pickerington (no pun intended). It?’s not for the kids, the schools or the city. IT?’S ALL FOR YOU AND YOUR ?“TRUE?” TOWNSHIP RESIDENTS.




?“''If we're going to share in the good, we need to share in the bad ... the deal needs to make sense for both of us, or the deal ought not to be done,'' Hansley said.?”

MY GOSH HANSLEY, what the heck cave have you been living in? THE DEAL IS DONE. By hook or crook, this agreement will never get to the voters. It will be repealed, rewritten to the township?’s specifications and voted on again with the 4-3 success in the bag. Didn?’t you read Fix?’s emails where he tells the trustees and the mayor of Canal that HE HAS DELIVERED?? What you are reviewing on your desk now is just a little bump in the road. It will be overcome because Fix OWNS 4 votes. His three compadres are in this with both feet. If any of them were willing to bite the bullet and change their vote, they had ample times and opportunities to do it. They didn?’t and they won?’t. They are almighty and omnipotent councilmen after all. They are smarter than simple folk like you and me. You are there to be Jumping Judy?’s whipping boy and errand boy to go to the meetings she doesn?’t want to attend and face the residents she can?’t face.

I wish I was a fly on the wall when Jovial Judy reads your quotes. Her freaking head will explode!!!! HOW DARE YOU SAY THE DEAL OUGHT NOT TO BE DONE???? While I appreciate you telling the truth, she will not, that?’s for darned sure. TRUTH IS IRRELEVANT TO HER, pleasing the politicians is her only goal. The city can go straight in the crapper but as long as her masters Shaver and Fix are happy, she?’ll pull the flush handle.