Courtship of Lee Brunckhart

Last week, mayoral candidate Lee Brunckhart took the time to visit the various departments of Massillon City government so that he could "learn the ropes," and see how things work.

The Independent wrote a nice story about Lee's time spent visiting the various departments comprising our city government.

There was even a picture of Lee meeting with the police chief and taking notes.

No, Lee wasn't submitting his fantasy football line-up to Chief Rob Williams, the Commissioner of the CMFFL (City of Massillon Fantasy Football League).

At least we don't think so...

Lee literally got his hands dirty, as he hopped on a city garbage truck and helped pick up our trash.

A very admirable foray into the inner workings of our city.

And smart politically, as it generated a very favorable story in the local newspaper.

The Citizens for Cicchinelli Committee, AKA Safety-Service Director Mike Loudiana, stated that Brunckhart approached him about participating hands on in city government.

"It's open to any citizen, anyone who wants to go into our departments," he (Mike Loudiana) said. "They are more than welcome to visit any department and visit any employee. Lee decided to do that.We gave him clearance and he signed a release" (The Independent, September 15, 2011).

"It's open to any citizen, anyone who wants to go into our departments"

Well, almost any citizen.

There does appear to be one lone exception.

Kathy Catazaro-Perry.

According to a reliable Massillon Review source, Kathy Catazaro-Perry asked "The Committee," Mike Loudiana, if she could spend some quality time with the Fire Department earlier this year. Perhaps even take a ride on one of those shiny red fire trucks.

Mike Loudiana told her no.

What the heck, Catazaro-Perry is a registered nurse. Who better to have hanging out at the fire department in case of an emergency?

Lee Brunckhart spent a full week at city hall going from department to department.

He even got to help pick up the trash.

Probably got to do fun stuff like run the compactor, too.

Kathy Catazaro-Perry wasn't allowed to even spend one day with the fire department.

No fire truck ride for her.

Word on the street is that our Extraordinary Mayor for 99 days and his loyalists have taken Lee Brunckhart under their wing.

That Team Cicchinelli is advising Brunckhart.

That Lee Brunckhart is Team Cicchinelli's new BFF.

We certainly hope this is not the case.

And if this is the case, we hope Lee Brunckhart isn't listening.

As it is Team Cicchinelli who has brought our fair city to the brink.

Back to this "it's open to any citizen who wants to go into our departments" stuff.

The crack Massillon Review research team wants to spend a week with Parks Czar Kenn Kaminski.

We want to help him track down the park vandals responsible for all the neglect and decay in our parks.

And when we catch them.

And we will.

They got some serious 'splainin' to do.

All is Well

Innumerable Massillon Review sources have confirmed that the city is dead broke, and they have essentially stopped paying their bills.

Local merchants are not being paid for services rendered, or products delivered.

Employee pension payments are not being made, and the city is being penalized on top of the delinquent payments they already owe.

It appears that the city is unable to make the December bond payment on the Recreation Center, which is strange as the Rec Center is supposed to be paid with park tax money.

Must have been a miserable year at the golf course.

The only person who doesn't appear to have their "head in the sand," is Third Ward Council member, and mayoral hopeful, Kathy Catazaro-Perry.

She has met with the state auditors to discuss our extraordinary financial problems.

Even though the city can't pay its bills, and indeed has stopped paying bills, her colleagues on city council insist on spending the city's money like drunken sailors on shore leave.

On Monday night, Massillon City Council chose to spend $109,000 to fix streets.

Five streets.

The mayor's street and four others, at the behest of the City Engineer, Keith Dylewski.

Dylewski lied about a street ratings system, but it didn't matter to our esteemed council.

The mayor's street is getting fixed.

The Boy Wonder, Councilman Larry Slagle, exclaimed that it was a matter of safety that we pave the mayor's extraordinarily dangerous street by the Legends Golf Course.

We know, we know, don't worry, "the dollars will be there."

Slagle's partner, The Lap Dog of the Treasury, Council Finance Chair Paul Manson, doesn't have a problem spending money the city doesn't have.

It seems that Manson has a firm grip on the situation;

"We do understand this very well," he told her (Kathy Catazaro-Perry). "Maybe your problem is you don't understand it. We are not in fiscal watch. We are not in fiscal emergency. We do have bills that we have to pick and choose, but the city does not stop moving" (Paul Manson, The Independent, 9/21/11).

Thanks Paul. Rest assured, all is well, because "we are not in fiscal emergency."

Firstly, fiscal emergency means that, literally, the state comes in and assumes control of the city because the locals screwed it up so bad, they can't be trusted to run their own government.

In Paul Manson's world, until that happens, everything is fine.

Secondly, "We do have bills that we have to pick and choose"

You "pick and choose" which bills you pay?

Seriously?

When you order goods and services, do you explain to the local merchant that he may not get paid, because we "pick and choose" which bills to pay?

Paul Manson is right on one point.

Kathy Catazaro-Perry doesn't understand.

She doesn't understand the one fundamental truth of Massillon City government.

The inmates are clearly running the asylum.

A Safety Issue

On the Massillon City Council agenda last night was a proposal to fix the street of our Extraordinary Mayor For 101 Days, King Francis of the Repaired Road, Lord Sovereign of the Concrete.

Now, one might be suspicious that the only five roads being repaired in all of the kingdom happen to be in our mayor's neighborhood.

Put those suspicious thoughts to rest.

In Massillon, our city engineer has a ratings system to determine which streets get fixed.

No monkey business here.

You see, these select streets "scored high on a ratings system used by his (City Engineer Keith Dylewski) department" (The Independent, August 16, 2011).

Oh, wait, that was "The Big Lie."

There was no ratings system after all.

"Correcting an earlier report, Dylewski said the paving project was not scored on a ratings system..." (The Independent, August 29, 2011).

OK, so there was no rating system.

Surely our esteemed city council would see through this charade, and not be tricked into fixing the mayor's street.

Surely there were worse streets in the kingdom in more desperate need of repair.

Nope.

They supported it on a 7 to 1 vote.

Only Kathy Catazaro-Perry voted No.

"We need to make sure we're making payroll, paying police and fire, and we're not even paying bills" (Kathy Catazaro-Perry, The Independent, September 20, 2011).

Why "pay police and fire" when our tax dollars could be better spent repairing the mayor's road?

Catazaro-Perry shouldn't worry so much, because as we all know, "the dollars will be there."

Councilman Larry Slagle, on the other hand, sees more clearly the critical importance of fixing the mayor's street.

"I'm not going to sit on a council that stops paving the streets of Massillon,." He says it is a safety issue just as much as it is a financial one" (The Independent, September 20, 2011).

Yes, a "safety issue."

We sure don't want the mayor's car to go out of alignment.

As for the rest of us...

McCune Watch Update

Massillon's Ward 6 Councilman, David McCune, has finally returned to city council.

On Monday night, McCune participated in his first voting session of Massillon City Council since August 1st.

This brings his absence rate down to 33%.

Having missed, on average, one out of every three meetings.

Welcome back!

Perfect Attendance

The crack Massillon Review research team has been pouring over city council records to ascertain the attendance of the various members of our august city council.

We are pleased to report that four council members have perfect attendance so far this year.

Hats off to Donnie Peters, Gary Anderson, Larry Slagle and Tony Townsend.

Twenty meetings.

Zero absences.

McCune Watch

Massillon's Ward 6 Councilman, David McCune, has missed yet another council meeting Monday night.

This brings McCune's absence rate to 7 out of 20 council meetings in 2011, for an absentee rate of...

35%

McCune hasn't attended a voting session of city council since August 1st.

We at the Massillon Review will be providing, as a public service, a David McCune Watch until our Ward 6 council member starts attending council meetings again.

'Cuz All My Rowdy Friends Play Fantasy Football on Monday Night

Massillon Police Chief Robert Williams was disciplined recently as the result of an investigation launched by former Massillon Police Captain Rick Ullum.

It appears that Chief Williams was the Commissioner of his own fantasy football league.

On city time with city equipment.

Now we know why overtime is up, what with the fantasy draft and all.

We do, however, disagree with the Chief's discipline as it relates to the fantasy football league.

The City of Massillon Fantasy Football League, hereafter referred by its acronym, the CMFFL, seems like a fine use of our city resources.

Certainly less expensive than a city owned golf course, hotel, or senior housing complex.

As fantasy football is a recreational activity, perhaps it could be moved to the city Parks and Recreation Department, as a way to "streamline city government."

This could be the perfect vehicle for our Extraordinary Mayor for 110 days, King Francis the Unavailable, to settle his blood feud with Judge Eddie Elum once and for all.

On the gridiron.

Like men.

To battle for supremacy in the CMFFL.

Unfortunately, it looks like the league must begin the process of selecting a new commissioner.

School Board President Marshall Weinberg loves football. Maybe he could take over.

Absent

Massillon City Council was not able to conduct a whole lot of the people's business Tuesday night as a result of so many members of council being absent. Four members of council were unavailable for the Tuesday night session. Council member Hersher was taking a class. Council member Catazaro-Perry had a family medical emergency. Councilman Mang is personally ill. Catazaro-Perry and Hersher rarely miss a meeting.

And then we have Councilman David McCune.

McCune misses a lot of meetings.

According to city council's own minutes, McCune has missed 6 of the 19 scheduled council meetings so far this year.

McCune's absence rate is over 30%.

30 percent.

He hasn't been to a regularly scheduled session of city council since August 1.

We realize city council is a part time job.

But

Council normally has two regular meetings per month, plus the occasional special meeting.

The salary is $7,555 dollars per year.

If you have 28 meeting per year, that comes out to about $270 per regular meeting.

If your attendance record at your job was less than 70%, do you think you would still have a job?

David McCune thinks he should, as he is running for another term this November.

The first job of a city council member is to attend the meetings. If you can't attend the meetings, maybe you shouldn't run for the job.

McCune needs to do a better job of coming to the meetings.

An Extraordinary Chicken Dinner

Massillon's Extraordinary Mayor for 117 Days, King Francis the Unavailable for Comment is, has been, and will always be ten moves ahead of Massillon City Council on the political chess board.

After spending the four months since his election defeat ignoring the city's monstrous budget shortfall, pushing police and fire contract negotiations off on to the next mayor, having nothing to say about the latest sweetheart deal to collapse, the Duncan Place senior housing project, residing on one of the five worst streets in the city, and generally being unavailable for comment on any topic, our beloved mayor has one policy concern that he wishes to address before his term of office expires at the end of the year.

He wants to redraw the boundaries for Massillon's six council wards.

By law, the city's six council wards must have populations that are about equal. Typically, these boundaries are drawn after each census, every ten years, to adjust for population changes.

And the mayor wants to offer his assistance to city council.

He has proposed a committee of five people to do the work.

Including himself.

As well as;

Community Development Director Aane Aaby (an appointee of the mayor)

The Mayor's Loyal Enforcer, Council President Glenn Gamber

A Republican member of city council (can only be Donnie Peters)

A Democratic member of city council (our guess is Paul Manson)

A Committee of five, just like the Park Board, with the mayor controlling at least three of the five votes (just like the park board).

This esteemed committee of five will be controlled by the mayor.

In essence, the mayor could draw the new council borders any way he wants, potentially leaving those he considers his enemies without a council seat.

Our guess is that either Tony Townsend, or Gary Anderson (or both) will be seatless, thrown into another member's ward, when the music stops.

That way our mayor can run candidates more to his liking in the new wards.

And he has the votes to do it.

All he needs is four votes.

Council has nine members, but longtime member Ron Mang has been ill, and unable to participate in council business, so there are effectively eight council members available for a vote.

Council members McCune, Manson, and Hersher will cheerfully rubber stamp the mayor's proposal.

Donnie Peters will vote for it because he gets to be on the committee, and can cut a deal to protect his own council seat.

And if Larry Slagle doesn't support it, it doesn't matter, as the Mayor's Loyal Enforcer, Council President Glenn Gamber, gets to vote when there is a tie.

And our mayor will get to draw the new council boundaries.

So much for separate branches of government, and the separation of power.

City Council should be extremely suspicious of letting the mayor draw these council boundaries.

He hasn't been interested in city government since his defeat in the May Democratic primary.

Until now.

It makes one wonder why.

City council would be better served by keeping the mayor, who has an axe to grind, from participating in this process. They should choose committee members who aren't guided by their personal political agendas.

Letting Frank Cicchinelli control the city council boundaries is akin to letting the proverbial fox guard the hen house.

You are going to end up with chicken for dinner every single time.

Happy Labor Day, Massillon!

As a result of your hard work and toil, the City of Massillon has been able to spend your tax dollars on;

An unprofitable golf course

A restaurant at said golf course, without a business plan

The mortgage for a privately owned hotel

An arena that was never built

Unvoted, automatic annual pay raises for the mayor, city council, law director, auditor, and treasurer

The mortgage for a senior housing project, where the owner collects the rents and doesn't pay the mortgage (do we see a trend here?)

Repairing the mayor's street, based on the city engineer's "recommendation" and "ratings system"

Overtime for the mayor's appointees, including an extraordinary amount of overtime for the street superintendent who can't plow snow, and a parks director who blames the disgraceful state of our parks on "vandals," and not the hijacking of money that voters earmarked to improve our park system to subsidize a golf course.

Enjoy your day off, citizens of Massillon.

You sure have paid for it.