Star Beacon Opine: Ashtabula’s city manager defends hometown On Friday, Sept. 25, Nancy McArthur, candidate for Ohio state representative, 99th District, held a press conference in front of City Hall in downtown Ashtabula. She portrayed a very negative image of our city and, as Ashtabula city manager, I feel the need to defend my hometown, our city and the men and women who live, work and enjoy our community. Ms. McArthur never attempted to contact me regarding the issues within our community. In fact, she did not even give us the courtesy of a phone call to let us know a press conference was going to take place on city property. Several members of the city’s staff were upset by the way Ms. McArthur portrayed our city. This disappointment stems from their knowledge of all the work we are doing to better our community. Ms. McArthur, who is a resident of Geauga County, clearly does not know Ashtabula’s story and her perception of our town is flawed by the vague website data she used in her speech. Had Ms. McArthur met with me, our police chief, the county sheriff or any member of the city’s staff before publicly degrading our area, she would have been educated on what we are doing to combat the recent rash of crime rather than use it for her political gain. She would have learned about the collaboration between local, state and federal law enforcement agencies dubbed “Operation Summer Crush.” This operation has been extremely effective in identifying and arresting drug dealers and those who commit violent crimes. She would have learned about our partnership with the state attorney general’s office and the Safe Neighborhoods Initiative. This initiative addresses violence caused by repeat violent offenders and gives these individuals a chance to change their lives. She would have learned the majority of our violent crime is not just random acts of violence on innocent bystanders. Yes, we had an incredibly horrific case of mistaken identity and innocent lives were lost. However, the majority of the violent crime Ms. McArthur capitalized on was committed by people connected in one way or another to the victims. Due to the teamwork and collaboration of our law enforcement partners, the individuals committing these crimes will be brought to justice. Ironically, during her press conference Ms. McArthur faced the beautifully restored Ashtabula Hotel, which now houses Signature Health. In her speech, she stated nothing was being done to curb addiction and offer help for substance abuse. Had she met with anyone about these issues or even took the time to know her surroundings, she would have realized Signature Health delivers accessible, comprehensive recovery services to those who are experiencing mental health and/or substance abuse problems. This building rehabilitation was not only a multimillion-dollar investment into our local economy, it is assisting with the services Ms. McArthur stated were non-existent. Had she made one investigative inquiry about the city, I would have explained to Ms. McArthur that the city had no choice but to put a police levy on the ballot to add the additional resources needed to combat crime. We would not have needed this levy if the state had not slashed the city’s local government fund over $750,000 in the past few years. The state’s claim to a balanced budget along with over $1 billion surplus comes on the backs of the local cities, townships, counties and school districts stripped of these funds and forced to ask the taxpayers for help. This created the lack of resources needed to effectively deal with the issues Ms. McArthur discussed. These politicians creatively placed the blame for your taxes going up not on the state, but on local leaders throughout Ohio who relied on these funds to provide the services you expect. While she did a great job defaming our city, she presented not one viable solution to our problems. Ms. McArthur did not explain how the dollars we send to Columbus would come back to our area. Had she committed to working to restore the local government fund if elected, it would have been a start. To think one can fix these problems with a piece of legislation as she suggested is incomprehensible. Had Ms. McArthur taken the time to educate herself fully about our city, she would have known about the many initiatives and programs in place working to correct our problems. She would have been educated about these efforts before coming onto our City Hall property and slandering our community. I firmly believe Ms. McArthur owes the residents of this community, those who do business in our area and the men and women working hard on these issues an apology for not being aware of all we are doing to make this a better place to live, work, visit and raise a family. The writer, James M. Timonere, is Ashtabula city manager.
Posted on: Sun, 19 Oct 2014 06:51:50 +0000
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