Pickerington Area Taxpayers Alliance

My Dearest Ignonymous,

I enjoyed your terminology as to minor league status of our local press corps (Cubs). I?’ve convert this to baseball teams for analogy. Obviously those in position to secure an Ernie Banks caliber talent consider the effort toward informing all of us at that level not worthy.

Question: So what is one to do when management doesn?’t value the task at hand?

Answer: Change the playing field!
Isn?’t that what PATA did via this website and previous newsletters?
Is it time to do so again?

I agree with you that endless and jumbled threads are just unwieldy and confusing. So I?’ve begun a new thread?… and yes there are hundreds of topics to chose from. I?’ll start with Charter reform. Don?’t really know why?…. it might ?“inspire?” Mr. S., it might confuse him (others), it will likely just show that Pickerington hasn?’t reformed itself enough yet.

Change 1.

NO annexations by EMERGENCY.
It might be more appropriate to mistype the ballot title ?“buy emergency?” because that is what really kicked off the debt to us Picktown folks over the years.
I had wished Mr. O?’Brien had gotten that through Council in ?’05, but of course there were those who thought they could convert the likes of Misters Wright, Parker, and Sabatino. Mistake one.
Why is this important? Emergency annexation has a dreadful history of zoning deals attached with expensive incentives?…. Still why the ?’06 budget is expense side heavy. I also consider contract zoning illegal ?– as well as stupid.

Change 2.

REQUIRE campaign contribution disclosure in the local media the week before the election.
Why is this important? Obviously we have a 200 year history of money buying influence in government. Pickerington is NO exception. I think we ALL want honest government so every candidate should (sorry but borrowing from Jerry McGuire) ?“show us the money?”. Don?’t do it?… Don?’t run ?… and don?’t get inaugurated!

Change 3.

Establish rules and guidelines, by Charter, for potential Commercial Incentive Tools.
TIF?’s, Abatements, Re-development zones ?– to mention a few.
Why is this important? Establish RULES that the public is comfortable with and that businesses and entrepreneurial enterprises will KNOW ?“we as a community are serious about the development of a broad, stable, tax base.?”

Well those are a start?…. continue if you like.

Sincerely,


By Be real

CEDA will work better than Amend

I was with you until you hit number three. I think this would be a misuse of the Charter. Once these regulations are placed in the Charter they are very difficult to change. If market changes were to occur and the city was restricted in any by these charter regulations then they would be years away from competing for any new economical development.

I believe the city has written up some kind of debt policy that addresses some of what you say. As for the economic plan I believe the CEDA talks currently going on will keep all sides in check in the future. If the three government jurisdictions can reach an agreement and hold each other to it that will be the best vehicle in developing that stable tax base.

My turn?

Dear Be Real,

Applying your analogy to the city government, I see several minor leaguers who have been in the minors for so many years they have grown old there. Now they want to play in the bigs and they have no idea of what awaits them. I am not a real big baseball fan so let me jump over to football for a minute. A guy who was my cousin?’s best friend growing up played college ball. He was a punter. Actually, he was a rather gifted punter and got drafted to the pros. Having had ball hiked to him for the better part of 15 years, he of course had to make friends with the center of the pro team. The first day of practice the center asked him how he wanted to receive the ball. The punter said ?“Huh???” The center said laces up, laces to the left side, laces to the right, the ball at a 45 degree angle to the right, left, etc.? The punter was totally amazed that something like this existed. Here?’s a guy who had balls hiked to him almost daily for 15 or so years, and the ball got to him however it got to him and now that he was in the bigs, someone told him he could have the ball presented to him in any possible manner he chose. He stayed with the team for nearly 10 years, was successful, retired and then fell back on his education for a second career. Moral of the story ?– no matter how long you play in the minor leagues, you have no clue as to what awaits you, good or bad, in the bigs.

PATA, like it or not, had probably the most dramatic impact on this community ever seen. However, PATA is now only this forum. The power and passion of PATA went to Oregon just before the 2003 elections. The air was let out of the balloon, never to return. I loved Bob like he was my own brother but I am so happy for him and his family that they got out of here. If he was still here and saw what has become of the very people he helped got in office, he would be sorry. He always reminded me that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. We changed our representation to people we thought had morals and ethics. Now, an election cycle later we have returned the apparent majority vote to a regime not unlike what we unseated in 03. Different faces and different names but the same old power game. Some of these power brokers were a part of PATA so there can no longer be a PATA unless you start over again.

Change 1: I publicly, OK anonymously supported O?’Brien?’s efforts for this change but understood that he had to postpone it to get the other two passed. Look at the result. They were overwhelmingly passed and the charter is stronger for it.

Change 2: Good idea but even in the old PATA days when Bob posted the finance reports and connected the dots for us showing the sources of the ill-gotten gains, these people still got elected. We know that very little funding for some of the successful candidates came from Pickerington and if someone requests and posts this year?’s reports you?’ll probably see that some of the losing candidates were funded exclusively from within Pickerington. Apparently none of this is of concern to the voters. They chose politicians this go around.

Change 3: Another good idea but is there anyone elected who is smart enough to champion this? Some of these people haven?’t put forth an ounce of effort since they were elected. Something like this would require effort and I am not sure we have anyone willing to offer it.

More to come later. Got to get back to work.

Iggy.


By Ignonymous

Charter vs CEDA



Dear Anonymous,

I respectfully disagree with you regarding a POLICY, via CEDA, being enough. If we wish to send and establish a clear LOUD message of moving toward a stable tax base to the business community that we wish to attract a Charter amendment is the best approach.

Why? ?– Policies are too flimsy. For me, too much of an animal of changing winds and political agendas. If you haven?’t followed the endless political jargon of candidates versus subsequent offices holders a candidate will say anything to get elected ?– then do a ?“Parker?” --- we were elected to do what we want to do?….. He was not alone in this and likely won?’t be the last to speak one way then act differently once in ?“place?”.

Reasons supporting Charter amendment;

1. It isn?’t easy to change?…. Yet can be changed by a vote of the people called for by either Council or the people if needed.
2. Hasn?’t a previous Charter amendment, via Initiative, sent a clear message of the Public?’s wishes regarding discontinuation of the previous policy of residential developer incentives?
3. Hasn?’t a previous Charter amendment, via Initiative, sent a clear message of the Public?’s wishes regarding zoning that Administrators and Elected?’s failed to listen to without the amendment?
4. Are only policy matters within the Violet Township ?– Canal Winchester CEDA of 5 years enough to make it a ?“booming success?” to date?


If we want change we need the clear, publicly voiced message of a Charter Amendment. Or we can cross our fingers, wish on a lucky star, and try to find a mind reading - sugar daddy of a company to come our way.

Just my opinion.


By Be real