The Last Ride of the Four Horsemen

"The Mayor explained that the merging of these two areas will maximize resources of the current departments and provide an organizational structure which will promote efficient operations giving top notch service to the public. The Mayor believes this decision now, in the long term, will be beneficial to everyone, and he stated that they promised the citizens that the city would not subsidize this golf course" (Parks and Recreation Board minutes, November 14, 2002).

Cicchinelli claimed that his proposal "was not a big scheme to have the parks department cover the golf course's expenses" (The Repository, December 17, 2002).

Of course, it turned out to be nothing more than an extraordinarily "big scheme to have the parks department cover the golf course's expenses."

But, bad as it was, certain members of our city council have made it worse...

Let us paraphrase the late sportswriter, Grantland Rice;

Outlined against a blue-gray December sky the Four Horsemen rode again. In dramatic lore they are known as famine, pestilence, destruction and death. These are only aliases. Their real names are: Gamber, Slagle, Hersher and McCune.

These four members of council, joined by Paul Manson, voted to accept bids to sell Hetrick Park last night at the final regularly scheduled council meeting of the year.

Our council, at our Extraordinary Mayor for 11 Days, King Francis the Schemer's behest, with the backing of his Park Board Lackeys (his appointees to the Park and Recreation Board) have begun the process of selling off our parks.

Why?

Because we don't have the money to properly maintain them.

Why?

Can you hear the giant sucking sound from the Southern edge of our city?

It is coming from the Legends of Massillon Golf Course.

Dollars the voters intended to be used for parks and recreation have been hijacked to subsidize the debt ridden golf course, a white elephant which will serve as a monument to the reckless financial wheeler dealer era of our soon to be departed mayor.

We will paying the debt on this developmental debacle until 2032.

Of course, the four horsemen have made this worse...

"You're right. We did go into this without a business plan"

- Julie Jenkins, Office Manager, Parks and Recreation/ Legends Golf Course, in a letter to the Massillon Review confirming that the City of Massillon spent almost $200,000 dollars to buy the restaurant at the golf course without having a business plan.

Despite the absence of a business plan, these four, the same four who voted to sell one of our city parks to raise cash for the parks department last night, felt it was a prudent fiscal decision to spend almost $200,000 dollars last year to buy the restaurant at the golf course, Club Legends.

We remember Cicchinelli surrogate, Lee Brunckhart, at the Fall mayoral debate, waxing on about the egg sandwich he had at Club Legends. He knew when the butter hit the pan that he was in for the epicurean experience of a lifetime.

Perhaps if Brunckhart went to McDonalds for an egg sandwich and we held on to our $199,000 dollars, we would not be putting our parks up for bid.

Sadly though, the rubber stamp era of city council will be coming to an end. The Four Horsemen, joined by reliable rubber stamp Paul Manson, who would have voted for the restaurant purchase had he been in attendance for the vote, will be down two members.

The voters have chosen replacements for David Hersher and David McCune.

As a result, hopefully, the fire sale of our parks will come to an end.

And money the citizens voted to tax themselves to improve our parks will actually be used to improve our parks.