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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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There is a double whammy going on here. Once gain the administration blindsided the council and didn't advise them of the change to every other week trash pickup. Then eason blamed the Flint Journal reporter saying it was only an option. But channel 5 also reported it saying it came from yesterdays press conference.
In the past the city was able to use some money from block grants to pay for cutting weeds and picking up trash in the designated areas of the city. Not this year! Patrick Gerace looked like the right person on paper, but in action it is a different matter.
The union had negotiated the right to bid on projects like weed and trash abatement and grass cutting in the parks. When kincaid asked Gerace if bids were sent out, he said no because the union had not signed off on the contracts. A stunned Kincaid reminded him that the unions sign off if they can't do the project cheaper and asked him to do the bid process.
Then Gerace stated the administration was working with the Land Bank to have them do the entire city and city equipment would be loaned to help them. Gerace once worked with the IMA as did Doug Weiland, now Director of the Land Bank.
Bottom line is limited weed and trash abatement and enery other week trash pickup! Gerace says they have more stimulus money than the city.
We all know how well the Land bank can handle cleanning up even their own properties. The land bank once used their property on Hemphill near the Great Lakes Tech Centre to store tractors and equipment. They contracted with Salem Housing to do the work of clean ups.The director of salem Housing at the time even hired his son.
They once had to go to Detroit to retrieve a vehicle when their employee got into trouble down there. He shouldn't have driven the vehicle to a bar.
Salem Housing made the news when they paid some child support for Vera Rison's son, an employee, to get him out of jail. The money wasn't paid back.
There had to be a phone line in the Hemphill Road building used to store equipment for the Land Bank. A creative politically hired employee put a phone on the connection and used it for sex line calls running up a hell of a phone bill.
Weiland, when he led the IMA had contracted with the city to do some of our parks
and did a great job. But you are not going to be able to keep the political influences out. I have seen programs for low income youth where the parents of the participants were any thing but low income.
Walling had better start making nice with the council as they control most of the budget process and the HUD grants. The joint review committee of the City Wide Advisory Committee and the DCEd met on Feb. 23rd and 24th at City hall.
Here were the proposed grantees:
Big Brother and big Sisters-youth mentoring
Boys and Girls Club-youth recreation initiative
genesee County Youth Corporation-Reach and Traverse Place
Flint Area Specialized training-Youth neighborhood Achievement
FlintAfrican American Drug Policy Coalition-reducing recidivism among
youthful juveniles
Salem Housing-Garfield BuncheSummer Youth Employment Program
Court Street Village-CHDO operating and purchase, rehab, resale
Flint NIPP-CHDO operating & purchase, rehab, resale & new construction
Flint Odyssey House- Smith Village a $4.8 million project
Within limits and without triggering any ramifications council can reprogram a percentage of the money.
Did walling even allow the city DPW department to bid on performing cleanups as they have in the past?
Last edited by untanglingwebs on Thu Mar 04, 2010 1:24 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 8:28 am |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Poor Kristin had the "deer in the headlight" look when Eason said she was wrong. Her story ended up in the council's packet prior to council. She must have been accurate as the other media at the press conference reported the same thing.
City of Flint sends mixed message on garbage pickup
By Kristin Longley | Flint Journal
March 03, 2010, 10:50PM
FLINT, Michigan -- Hours after the mayor announced the city will begin picking up garbage every two weeks to save money, the city administrator said the move is still under discussion.
Flint Mayor Dayne Walling at a news conference Wednesday said the city will implement reduced garbage pickups along with issuing about 60 layoff notices to non-public safety personnel. The city is working to trim a projected $8-million deficit.
"The city will be implementing a biweekly garbage collection schedule," Walling said.
"For now, our finances dictate that we make a change to keep that fund in balance," Walling said of the garbage fund. "We believe that we can continue to provide a high quality service like some other communities do with a biweekly sanitation pickup."
But at a Flint City Council committee meeting later in the evening, City Administrator Gregory Eason told council members the cuts are just proposals that are still under discussion. The mayor was not at the council meeting.
"There has been no final determination," Eason said.
City Council President Delrico Loyd said it seems like a miscommunication happened somewhere along the line.
"They need to make up their mind. The mayor can't have press conferences and say one thing and have administration say another thing," he said. "We depend on accurate information from the administration."
Eason said the reduced garbage pickup is one of multiple options on the table for cost savings.
"There are still discussions that need to be had," Eason said.
For more on this story, visit www.mlive.com/flint on Thursday.
Posted by exit247
March 03, 2010, 11:32PM
Eason or Walling in Charge? Or Donna Poplar? My goodness this administration is clueless to what the other folks in the same administration are doing! "Who's on first? whats on second? I don't know is on third?".
Montle- Still Working
Rhoda Matthews- Still Working
Solis, McCabe, Jones - Still Working
And Eason yet again has a new secretary! What are we on now? Number seven I think... |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 9:24 am |
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00SL2
F L I N T O I D
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| What a joke! Biweekly means twice a week! |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 12:48 pm |
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terrybankert
F L I N T O I D
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quote:
00SL2 schreef:
What a joke! Biweekly means twice a week!
"Biweekly has two conflicting meanings. Historically it refers to an event that occurs every two weeks. In current usage, it can also refer to an event that occurs twice in a given week. The term fortnightly can be used less ambiguously for the first sense, with a two week interval equivalent to one fortnight. Semi-weekly, similarly, can be used for the second sense; every half week or twice a week."
"There are fifty-two weeks in a year of twelve months, making for a possible 26 (or 104) biweekly events in a year. (This is a greater number than if such events were held twice a month, because most months have more than four weeks (28 days). However, biweekly is often thought of incorrectly as twice a month. Twice a month is called "semimonthly" or "bimonthly", not biweekly.)"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biweekly |
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Join in the discussion here at Flint Talk , Face Book, Google Blogger " Good Morning Flint" , Twitter, Blogging For Michgian" and MLIVE.
If you want to be seen ,show up.If you want to be heard, stand up and speak.Do not wait to follow, just lead. |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 4:23 pm |
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Derrick1965
F L I N T O I D
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Want to know a fact?
Walling will be a 1 time mayor! |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 5:07 pm |
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Pachuco
F L I N T O I D
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Call it youthful ignorance... But where exactly did people expect the 8 million dollars to come from? Cuts had to be made. We will never agree with our leaders a 100% of the time and they are no means perfect, but they have to make the tough choices that many will not like. The Mayor and his staff took a %5 pay cut and will begin to pay 20% of their health care costs. That 5% should be %15 like he is asking workers, but at least he is making cuts. Derrick, where do you suggest the 8 million dollars come from? It can't all come from the Mayor's office, even if the entire office was gutted of appointee's, clerical work, and the Mayor took no salary at all, that would not cover the 8 million dollar deficit.
Plants are being shut down around Detroit; I have cousins who used to work in some of them. You know what their boss's told them in hard times? Nothing they went to work one day and the doors were locked with a note on the door--there goes their jobs. No one likes to get pay cuts or lose apart, (big or small) of their wages, but I'd rather have a job then no job and collect unemployment.
Trust me, I know how hard our police officers and firefighters work and what their job asks of them and how dangerous they are. My cousin Chuey Luna used to be an officer (729) and I know of Raul Garcia, these are/were both good men.... But again, where will all of the 8 million dollars come from Derrick, anyone? You know what, if Mayor Walling is a one-term mayor, I would be upset, but at least he is making the cuts so we can avoid another state takeover, where deeper cuts can be made to city services and city salaries... |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 6:27 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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Pachuco- Walling ignored his budget and hired people in unfunded positions as appointees and in several depts. He is responsible in part for the growing debt. If he had responded faster to the growing deficit, it would not have grown as large. Brown made cuts nd predicted a deficit. Kincaid and other council were watching the budget to actuals that are given monthly and asked the administration repeatedly to correct the problem.
Wallings desire to keep his campaign promises and create his vision of city hall has blinded him to his obligation to keeping the city solvent. He has become as vindictive as he once accused Williamson of being. He cannot hide his anger with the unions and punishes them for his shortcomings and lack of foresight. |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 6:40 pm |
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Elias12
F L I N T O I D
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quote:
Pachuco schreef:
Call it youthful ignorance... But where exactly did people expect the 8 million dollars to come from? Cuts had to be made. We will never agree with our leaders a 100% of the time and they are no means perfect, but they have to make the tough choices that many will not like. The Mayor and his staff took a %5 pay cut and will begin to pay 20% of their health care costs. That 5% should be %15 like he is asking workers, but at least he is making cuts. Derrick, where do you suggest the 8 million dollars come from? It can't all come from the Mayor's office, even if the entire office was gutted of appointee's, clerical work, and the Mayor took no salary at all, that would not cover the 8 million dollar deficit.
Plants are being shut down around Detroit; I have cousins who used to work in some of them. You know what their boss's told them in hard times? Nothing they went to work one day and the doors were locked with a note on the door--there goes their jobs. No one likes to get pay cuts or lose apart, (big or small) of their wages, but I'd rather have a job then no job and collect unemployment.
Actually a state take over may be alright. I think at this point being so "indpendent minded" may be misguided. And I could understand cuts but the cuts he is making and then hiring the people like he does for what he is doing it for is the thing I have an issue with.
Trust me, I know how hard our police officers and firefighters work and what their job asks of them and how dangerous they are. My cousin Chuey Luna used to be an officer (729) and I know of Raul Garcia, these are/were both good men.... But again, where will all of the 8 million dollars come from Derrick, anyone? You know what, if Mayor Walling is a one-term mayor, I would be upset, but at least he is making the cuts so we can avoid another state takeover, where deeper cuts can be made to city services and city salaries...
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You fool all the people all the time,if you control the press. By pass the "offical channels" and see what is really going. |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 9:34 pm |
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Elias12
F L I N T O I D
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| Sorry there , I thought I spaced my posting better, didn;t mean to cut yours in half there Pachuco . I meant to say that a state take over may not be so horrible. Perhaps having a city council and mayor is a luxury we can not afford any longer. |
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You fool all the people all the time,if you control the press. By pass the "offical channels" and see what is really going. |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 9:39 pm |
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Adam
F L I N T O I D
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| Pachuco obviously cuts had to be made. They should have started at the top with Walling's fat cat salary. We shoudl cut they mayor's salary to like $75k with no benefits and the administrators to $50 or $60k with no benefits. Walling should also get rid of some secretaries and Greenjobs coordination and his propaganda minister. |
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Thu Mar 04, 2010 10:10 pm |
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untanglingwebs
El Supremo
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[quote="untanglingwebs"
The joint review committee of the City Wide Advisory Committee and the DCED met on Feb. 23rd and 24th at City hall.
Here were the proposed grantees:
Big Brother and big Sisters-youth mentoring
Boys and Girls Club-youth recreation initiative
genesee County Youth Corporation-Reach and Traverse Place
Flint Area Specialized training-Youth neighborhood Achievement
FlintAfrican American Drug Policy Coalition-reducing recidivism among
youthful juveniles
Salem Housing-Garfield BuncheSummer Youth Employment Program
Court Street Village-CHDO operating and purchase, rehab, resale
Flint NIPP-CHDO operating & purchase, rehab, resale & new construction
Flint Odyssey House- Smith Village a $4.8 million project
quote:
A new rumor is circulating that the Concerned Pastors wrote a grant application that was rejected because it was incomplete. They allegedly called on two council members for help. Can anyone verify?
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Mon Mar 08, 2010 9:50 am |
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Derrick1965
F L I N T O I D
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otherwise known as giving the money to:
good old boys network |
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Mon Mar 08, 2010 10:13 am |
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