Nearly everybody is for funding emergency medical services aren't they?
Some 7.61% of North Cantonian "registered" voters overwhelmingly (81.74%) said so in yesterday's "special" election that likely will end up costing North Canton taxpayers in the neighborhood of $14,000 because North Canton City Council could not "timely" get its act together to get Issue 1 on November's general election ballot.
Council had to know that the turnout for a "special" election was going to be sparsely participated in.
But, then again, North Canton council is not exactly a venue in which democratic-republican values seem to be highly prized. In yesterday's blog, The Stark County Political Report published an e-mail sent out by North Canton activist Chuck Osborne saying he was voting "no" and thereby urging his fellow North Cantons to follow suit.
Today, Osborne has to be questioning his judgment in taking his all-consuming fight about nearly everything anti-North Canton Council and North Canton mayor into an anti-public-safety issue.
Note: Osborne has written me to the effect that he disagrees with my characterization of him having an "all-consuming fight about nearly everything anti-North Canton Council and North Canton mayor" even to the extent of opposing the public safety Issue 1.
No surprise there to me, who expected anything else? Apparently, he thinks he always makes the right call?
He tried to make Issue 1 into a fiscally-irresponsible-council issue, but North Canton's voters were not buying that tactic.
He scored a success back in the November, 2012 general election when some 78% of North Canton 75% of registered voters voting agreed with him that North Canton's part-time council members with alternative sources for health care coverage should not be provided such by North Canton taxpayers.
North Canton council showed very poor judgment for ignoring the "will of the people" on this vote.
Eventually, council members did see the light and wipe political egg off their collective faces in implementing legislation mirroring the "will of the people."
As pointed out in yesterday's blog, it appears that some if not all of North Canton's elective government positions (plus some of its un-elected [e.g. Law Director Tim Fox]) like nothing better than to smear the highly active Osborne and to question his credibility.
And he plays right into their hands on a "for the public safety issue?"
Stark County-connected Jim Renacci (representing the 16th congressional district including north-northeast Stark County and a spur through the middle of the county down to the Timken Company complex into the heart of Canton) announced on March 20th.
Expected to join the race soon are Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor (who resides in the City of Green located in abutting Summit County) and former Ohio secretary of state Jon Husted.
In Renacci and DeWine you have (currently) the lowest polling candidate (Renacci) and the highest polling candidate (DeWine).
On Monday of this week (June 26th), DeWine was in Youngstown campaigning at GLI Pool Products.
And who from Stark County showed up in support of the DeWine candidacy but Stark County commissioner Janet Creighton (the regional chairperson of the campaign), Stark County treasurer Alex Zumbar (chairman of the Stark County branch of the Creighton "responsible for" region, North Canton mayor David Held and Alliance manor Alan Andreani.
The region includes: Columbiana, Carroll, Harrison, Holmes, Jefferson, Mahoning, Stark, Tuscarawas and Wayne counties. Each county has a county specific chairperson.
Also present in Youngstown on Monday was former North Canton mayor and state representative Dave Johnson who was telling Creighton, Zumbar, Held and Andreani that he is now 80 perhaps suggesting that his days as a firebrand Republican campaigner are over.
But his colleagues at the DeWine event were not buying that line.
Creighton says that her connection to DeWine goes back to 1990 Republican gubernatorial race between George Voinovich and his running mate as lieutenant governor Mike DeWine.
As Creighton tells it, Bob Taft was the darling of the Ohio Republican Party establishment in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Voinovich was clearly the underdog in that race.
Creighton, then as Stark County recorder, herself having to fight the local Republican Party establishment in her quest to get elected recorder, was asked by the Voinovich/DeWine team to join their uphill—turned successful—fight to defeat Taft and his party insider allies.
That campaign, Creighton says, cemented her relationship with DeWine which, of course, continues to this very day. "Loyalty" is the key for Creighton for agreeing to be a key figure in the DeWine campaign.
Creighton, who I think is the most powerful vote-getting-Republican in all of Stark County, says, she has been coveted (my word, not hers) by the Renacci, Husted and Taylor campaigns.
Consequently, The Stark County Political Report believes that Stark County could be a Republican Party civil/political war-esque battleground as the ensuing campaigns march toward the May 8, 2018 primary election.
However, it likely will be an "underground" war inasmuch as the primary players, for public consumption, say glowing things about each other. In the background, a political sophisticate has to believe that if it looks like Renacci has emerged as the main competitor to DeWine by early January, February, 2018, then things will get dicey in a hurry.
But the players will try to play the "let's be nice to each other" in public.
Creighton told me yesterday that she has confidence that Stark GOP chairman Jeff Matthews and Ohio GOP Jane Timken will not use their powerful party positions to advantage Renacci, whom the duo have strong, strong, strong ties to.
The Report expects Renacci's campaign to pick up momentum and be positioned come early next year to be the major challenger to the current DeWine lead.
Why would I have that expectation?
Despite Creighton's (and Zumbar's, too) confidence that the state and local party apparatus/structure will not be tilted to Renacci's advantage, I do not agree.
Again, Matthews and Timken will play a rhetorical game of fairness and impartiality.
And I do think the support will be clandestine and responsive to pressure from "on high."
Renacci undoubtedly will be the favorite of Republican president Donald J. Trump given:
that Renacci was provided a spot in the Trump presidential box at the Cleveland sited National Republican Convention last July,
Consequently, "Donald being Donald" it would be naive to think he will not "pull out all the stops" in support of the Renacci candidacy including:
bringing the resources of the National Republican Committee (NRC) and his own personal intervention to the aid of candidate Renacci,
including putting enormous pressure on Ohio GOP chair Jane Timken to tilt Renacci's way even if doing so would violate a pledge Creighton says she has made to remain neutral,
Always remember this: Jane Timken would not be the chairperson of the Ohio Republican party BUT FOR the intervention in the party election in January, 2016
Think the president would like to have an all out loyal to Trump governor sitting in Columbus in 2020?
Trump is already thinking about 2020?
It was unprecedented being less than six months into his first term that, last night (press camera excluded at the last hour) he held a fundraiser specifically to raise funds for his 2020 run.
The Renacci "aces in the hole" is the financial support of the Timken family (and, presumably, Ohio Republican Party chairperson Jane Timken, formerly vice president of the Stark Co. GOP) and likely Stark County GOP chair Jeff Matthews (also director of the Stark County Board of Elections) whose wife Heidi has worked in the congressional office of Renacci for a number of years.
A basic principle of political analysis in terms of whom "really" supports whom for office is "Follow the Money."
Here are the Federal Election Commission (FEC) political contribution listings for:
Jane Timken going back to 2009/2010 when Renacci first came on the scene as a congressional candidate to challenge incumbent Democrat John Boccieri, and
for the Timken Company (2016 only)
Other FEC records show "in toto" that numerous immediate to Jane Timken family members have contributed:
tens of thousands of dollars, perhaps,
totaling up to hundreds of thousands of dollars when coupled with Timken corporate contributions going back to 2009/2010,
to Renacci's congressional campaigns.
Renacci and the Timkens have a very tight relationship, indeed!
Readers will recall how Renacci threw a snit with those Republicans in charge of redistricting based on the 2010 U.S. census to get the Timken Company complex in the heart of Canton included in the reconstituted 16th congressional district.
To say again, Jane Timken became chairperson of the Ohio GOP because of the intervention President-elect Donald J. Trump as Ohio Republican Party central committee members convened in early January to choose a chairperson going forward.
Readers will recall that current governor John Kasich was during the campaign and ever since has been one of the few Republicans of political/office holding stature not to fall in with Trump.
The breach between Kasich and Trump provided the opening to Jane Timken(a former vice president of the Stark County Republican Party) to challenge Kasich ally and incumbent Ohio GOP chairperson Matt Borges.
Though he is way behind right now, nobody should count Renacci out.
He is one of the richest members of Congress and undoubtedly will have the financial resources to match DeWine's campaign finance warchest said to be in vicinity of $2.5 million as he opens his campaign.
Insofar as I can determine, all the Stark County players in a likely Renacci/DeWine square off as the leaders going into the May, 2018 Republican primary are supporters of the president.
Given the rocky, rocky, rocky start that Trump has had not yet six months a president, some of the players might be distancing themselves from the president as the next ten months unfold.
While DeWine is likely to be supportive of Trump, if the president runs into deeper political trouble if his polling slips significantly (let's say to about 30% of likely voters), The Report can see DeWine as the better position to separate from Trump.
For Renacci, he better hope that Trump heads in a positive polling direction and gets up in the 50% or better range nationally; for if he does not, it is hard to see how a Trump connection helps him overtake Mike DeWine. If Trump's number continue on a southward trek, the connection could doom Renacci's run for governor.
The SCPR does not see that over the long haul that Jon Husted and Mary Taylor will be viable candidates for the Republican nomination given that she seems to be preoccupied with pressing family problems, to wit:
Husted has taken on the Hillary Clinton designation of being a Trump deplorable. But it hard to see how he can out-Trump Jim Renacci.
Even 10 months out from the nominating election, it is easy to see that there is likely to be a battle royale between the Stark County Republican Party officialdom supporters of Mike DeWine and Jim Renacci.
One of the things that DeWine supporters will have to be wary of is "complacency" in light of one year out polls which show DeWine with a big lead.
Stark County DeWine for Governor chair Alex Zumbar (also Stark County treasurer) said that North Canton mayor David Held and former North Canton mayor Dave Johnson will be important to bring Stark in on the DeWine column in May, 2018. However, he would not "at this time" name other DeWine supporters who will be involved in the grassroots aspect of the campaign.
I did check DeWine's Ohio secretary of state 2016 campaign finance reports to get a sense of his Stark County level of support.
Results?
Not very impressive.
One contributor from Canal Fulton, two from North Canton and a half-a-dozen, more or less, from Canton.
Which means that Creighton, Zumbar, Held and Johnson really have their work cut out for them if DeWine is to win in Stark and Creighton's area of responsibility.
If the victor (assuming it will either be DeWine or Renacci) can go on to defeat the Democratic Party nominee, Stark County wins either way the Republican Primary election turns out.
Creighton says "win or lose" she will be supporting whomever the Republican nominee for governor is coming out of the May 8, 2018 Republican Party primary election.
NCCS-BOE LIKELY TO APPROVE ABATEMENT AGREEMENT TOMORROW NIGHT
VIDEOS
OSBORNE ON "OTHER PARTNERS"
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OSBORNE ON "DELAY THE VOTE"
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FOLTZ "LET'S DELAY VOTE ONE WEEK" (INCLUDES FOX ["DO NOT DELAY VOTE') ALSO HELD, KIESLING & FONTE
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CITIZENS POINT FINGERS AT MAYOR HELD
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HELD RESPONDS TO CITIZEN
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CITIZEN TRIPP ON COUNCIL PRESIDENT PETERS ...
On the surface of it, I agree with North Canton Councilwoman Marcia Kiesling (Republican, at-large), council waiting six days is not going to change the ultimate outcome on council's quest to pass legislation approving the city entering into agreements with the North Canton City Schools (NCCS) and North Ridge Place, LLC (owned by developers William Lemmon, Robert DeHoff and Dan DeHoff) in settlement of an "imperfect" process (per Councilman Doug Folts) in which (2012) North Place Ridge, as part of an Held administration "administrative" process was awarded a 100% property tax abatement on a 40 unit apartment complex on the west side of North Main Street close to the intersection of Main and Applegrove.
But digging deeper, Councilman Doug Foltz's (Democrat, Ward 1) move to put aside the legislation until next Monday night when Councilman-at-Large Mark Cerreta (a Republican) returns to council proceedings inasmuch as the vote on the ordinances is as "an emergency," may, as implicitly warned by Law Director Tim Fox, give the opponents of the legislation time to put together bombshell revelations (my characterization; not Fox's) that might derail North Canton's "best plan of mice and men" to settle a tax revenue dispute among North Canton government, the NCCS and North Ridge Place, LLC.
This blog has heretofore written three installments on this overarching issue consuming North Canton government these days, to wit:
I have this sense that some of the opponents that Fox was referring to are looking deep and wide at relationships between North Canton School board members, North Canton council members and others involved in the abatement approving process in an effort to plant in the minds of North Cantonians that the proposed settlement agreements are not the "arms-length" work products that they appear to be on the surface level.
For those listening closely last night, citizen activist Chuck Osborne (a former councilman who has been a council "nemesis extraordinaire" ever since he departed council) brought up—during the "Visitor Comments" portion of council meeting— the "relationships" factor alluded to above, to wit:
Osborne went on to ask council to delay a vote on the abatement measures pending the return of Councilman Cerreta; a plea, it turns out, was picked up upon by Ward 1 councilman Doug Foltz.
Here is a video collage-esque presentation of Foltz in action in persuading his fellow councilpersons to vote 6 - 0 to hold off on vote until next week.
Note: The SCPR has been in contact with NCCS treasurer Todd Tolson on the spectre offered by Law Director Fox that councils failure to act on the abatement pieces of legislation would likely result in an extended delay in getting the school and North Ridge Place, LLC agreement completed.
Apparently, Fox's analysis was more scare tactic than what he knew or, as it turns out, didn't know. I think Fox should have "actually" known what the NCCS BOE is likely to do at its meeting tomorrow night rather than speculate as he obviously did with council members last night.
It is reprehensible for a legal professional who knows better to engage in fear mongering.
Look at this e-mail exchange between the SCPR and Mr. Tolson
Tolson, Todd <tolsont@northcantonschools.org> Today at 1:25 PMTo: Martin Olson ... Mr. Olson,
It is my belief the NC BOE still plans to approve the agreement tomorrow evening with the contingency language, "...contingent upon North Canton City Council's approval of this agreement."
Todd TolsonTreasurer
On Tue, Jun 20, 2017 at 12:28 PM, Martin Olson <tramols@att.net> wrote:
Treasurer Tolson,
In light of North Canton City Council putting off its vote on the subject matter of this e-mail, will NCCS BOE go ahead tomorrow night with approving the agreement from its perspective?If not, when is it likely that the NCCS BOE will take up the matter again.
Thanks, Martin OlsonSCPR
While I believe that opponents focusing on "relationships" will not be able to produce revelations which will derail the Law Director Tim Fox crafted settlement agreement, this video collection of Fox's extensive plea to council to vote down Foltz's initiative, I believe the video reveals how utterly unnerved he is of the opponents having another week to re-think, double-down on techniques and strategies to undo his work.
Another aspect of last night's meeting which should be highly interesting are the comments made by various citizens on Mayor David Held's "I'm against it" ([paraphrase], the North Ridge Place abatement) statement of August, 2016.
The irony of the past Held position, as pointed out by Councilman Foltz, is that the action of abating North Ridge Place was an "administrative" decision; not a legislative one.
The SCPR thinks that council is not off-the-hook because council in putting together the abatement process at its initiative should have provided for council "check and balance" procedures.
After all, North Canton is a strong council form of government.
Here the videos:
First, the citizens:
Secondly, Mayor Held's response:
And finally, here is citizen Larry Tripp making accusations on council president Dan Peters. (note: I gave Councilman Peters an opportunity to respond, but he declined which is included at the end of the video]):
All-in-all, Foltz persisting/prevailing with his fellow councilpersons on the vote delay is a "glimmer of HOPE" for North Cantonians that Foltz might be a catalyst going forward for reigning in Fox.
A number of North Cantonians think that council created Fox (a former councilman himself) and his overbearing ways vis-a-vis any citizen who questions him, Mayor Held or council members in some sort of "in a private counsels sort of way" back in September, 2012 when he was hired.
The SCPR subscribes to this point-of-view.
Now it is time for council to put Fox in his proper place as being a legal advisor and retract his de facto status as being a virtual "one-man-rule" of all of North Canton government.
It is fitting and proper for Foltz to assume this role, if, indeed, he has the chutzpah to do so.
For he is the dean of North Canton council having served longer than any other member.
My take on observing/taking with Foltz over my years of coverage of North Canton City Council is that he knows "dysfunctional" city government from the days he worked for the city of Canton.
Is he up to being a "spark of HOPE" that council will rein Tim Fox in and thereby make North Canton government more responsive to, interactive with and embracing of the city's "inquiring" citizens?
NCCS SUPT WENDORF SPEAKING TO THE ISSUE OF "ABATEMENT"
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NCCS SUPT WENDORF ENGAGES COUNCILMAN GRIFFITH
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NCCS SUPT WENDORF ENGAGES COUNCILWOMAN KIESLING
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NCCS SUPT WENDORF ENGAGES COUNCILWOMAN WERREN
"You know, I know, everybody knows" that President Donald J. Trump is the greatest deal maker in all of human history. If you don't believe me, just ask him. He will confirm what is already obvious to all of us Americans.
Unfortunately, he is so preoccupied these days politically surviving as president of our great nation that he is not available to North Canton government to assist the administration and council in working his wiles as explained in his book The Art of the Dealto get every stakeholder on board as North Canton government endeavors to strike a deal between itself, the North Canton City Schools and North Ridge Place, LLC and four North Canton citizen activists (i.e. the stakeholders) to solve a tax abatement controversy that has flowered out of a Community Reinvestment Area decision by the city in 2012.
A controversy because a core group of North Canton civic activist are challenging a grant in the year 2012 100% real property tax abatement over 12 years to North Ridge Place, LLC for an apartment complex the limited liability company has constructed on the locale of a former mobile home park.
The contestants allege that the abatement was illegal because:
it is framed as a "new" residential abatement for a property that is in a zoned "commercial" part of North Canton, and that
the North Canton City Schools (NCCS), when an commercial property abatement exceeds 50%, must be part of the abatement process, which it was not
Yesterday's blog in the words of schools treasurer Todd Tolson set forth the actual/potential detriment the 2012 abatement action has for NCCS, to wit:
Today's blog focuses various parts of video taped presentation by NCCS superintendent Jeff Wendorf on the abatement to North Canton City Council on September 26, 2016.
First, Wendorf's prepared remarks.
Next, Wendorf's exchange with Councilman Dan Griffith (at large).
Next, Wendorf's dialogue with Councilwoman Marcia Kiesling (at large).
And last, Wendorf's interaction with Councilwoman Stephanie Werren (Ward 3).
It is clear to The Stark County Political Report that Wendorf unequivocally states and restates that North Canton City Schools want and need every available tax dollars that North Cantonians have voted for over the years with "buts, ifs, ands about it."
Seventy percent of all property tax dollars go to the NCCS whereas 12% goes to North Canton government.
Of course, the schools want economic development going forward for North Canton even though there is no direct financial connection on the city doing well with enhanced income tax collections and the schools which rely exclusively on real property taxes for revenues.
Amen!!! Economic development for North Canton, indeed! But on the city's tax revenue dime; not the schools'.
In the estimate of the SCPR it was comical if not farcical for Councilman Griffith to be asking Wendorf how city was going to do economic development if not at the expense of the schools through tax abatements.
Wendorf was exceedingly respectful in outlining ancillary ways that the schools raise outside-of-tax-dollars revenues.
While "holding bake sales" was not one of Wendorf's examples; some of the items on the list were not that far off "a bake sale" standard for generating additional revenues for the schools.
I can see it now: Buy Your Pastry Holiday Needs at North Canton City Hall in the weeks leading up to Christmas next December.
The tag-team of Councilpersons Marcia Kiesling and Stephanie Werren showed they really do not understand the difference of the dynamics of how schools are financed as contrasted with city government.
The "short-term" versus the "long-term" strategic economic planning motif that Kiesling and Werren went on and on about, sound a bit like national economist Arthur Laffer's "trickle down-supply side" theory of economic development.
Oh yes! Kiesling and Werren (the rock-ribbed Republicans I think they are), the NCCS are excited about giving up "real" tax dollar revenues for some speculative philosophical "pie-in-the-sky" that might or might not add to the North Canton city treasury via income tax, which, of course, will not benefit the North Canton schools even if abatements generate companies locating in/expanding in North Canton which eventually translates into increase income tax revenues.
Some people naively think that national political party philosophy does not filter down to local levels of government.
The national Republican Party political agenda item is to cut taxation to the bare bones (see recent Kansas debacle on an extremist application of "trickle down" public policy) and thereby "grow" your way to increased revenues on the theory that benefitting companies/entrepreneurs will take the tax savings and generate new lines of business or expanded existing lines of business which will replace rollbacks in taxation.
While the North Canton tax abatement is not a "tax-cut" in the strict sense of the expression, it is a 50% tax-cut for the benefit of a single LLC over 12 years for North Canton schools and should be seen as such.
The state of Ohio Republican Party controls a supermajority of the Ohio General Assembly and, of course, the governorship and has for quite a few years and hence we get laws like those directly relevant to the North Canton situation in which local tax dollars intended by voters to be primarily for financing local education being re-directed to economic development.
This is an example of a state political party overall point of view becoming the law of Ohio.
A politics driven economics philosophy has been encoded in the law of Ohio even to the point of overriding the intention of the votes of rank-and-file citizens who had in voting for school initiated levy issues a "direct" intention to support schools.
Names to put with this subversion of the democratic will of local citizens: Schuring (R, the 48th House District), Oelslager (R, the 29th Senate District) and Hagan (R, the 50th House District).
Are these folks small letter "d" democrats?
One has to wonder, no?
To balance things out (the SCPR being "an equal opportunity critic;" a national Democratic Party political agenda is the drive for an increase in the national minimum wage to $15 per hour.
North Canton government (the mayor and council) number six Republicans and only one Democrat.
Canton government (council) numbers 13 (including Allen Schulman as president of council) are ALL Democrats.
So with North Canton, one gets "trickle down economics" whereas with Canton you get sentiment for legislating at the local level for an increased minimum wage if rock-ribbed left-wing Democrat John Mariol has his way.
There are similar political party aligned philosophical analogies to be made on other practice/policy matters that course through government vertically from national down through the state to local government.
Make no mistake about it.
Accordingly, it is naive to accept the mostly mythology that partisan political points of view do not find their way into local government policy and practice.
I understand the need to have political parties to make the American system of government work.
But when partisan political party doctrines short-circuit the thinking process so that it becomes obvious that "the public good" takes a backseat to a perceived "political party good," a line is crossed which make partisan political party devotion highly damaging to the continued viability of the American system of government.
And there is more ridiculousness from Kiesling and Werren (and even Councilman Foltz (Ward 1) jumped in on this one): (paraphrase) "but we got rid of that mobile home park."
It is highly debatable whether or not the income tax based revenues for the North Canton city treasury outweighs the costs of city services to concentrated apartment residents who in significant numbers do not work in North Canton and therefore contribute little to nothing to city finances.
It seems to the SCPR that most of North Canton council members do not understand Taxation 101 and consequently are well on their way to long-term (to use the Kiesling/Werren expression) drive North Canton into fiscal emergency.
In one exchange between the council members and Superintendent Wendorf, he opined that perhaps he needed to education them on "inside millage" as being the only way schools could increase their revenues without a vote by the people.
I think Wendorf should save himself the effort, nobody on North Canton council seems to me to have the mental sophistication to understand the Byzantine inside millage formula.
The days of The Hoover Company providing North Canton with more money than the city needed to finance city government are long over. Nearly ten years now. Kiesling has been on council for double that period of time and apparently has not learned the fundamentals of proven ways to sure up North Canton finances.
If she thinks the North Ridge Place, LLC abatement is a model for North Canton getting a handle on financial viability and if she is representative of the rest of the members of council, I'd say that North Canton as a matter of "long-term" financial planning is in "deep, deep doo-doo."
And, oh yes! while we (i.e. council) is at it; the effect of the 100% alleged to be illegal abatement is tantamount to "let's put the excellent North Canton City Schools in financial jeopardy."
That folks, is an expression of partisan political philosophy being implemented at the local level which damages our most important knowledge/thinking power resource infrastructure; namely, our public school system.
A healthy political party import is one where there is a competition of ideas debated in public forums and the results of which express a well-rounded buy-in to policy/practice legislation; not a doctrinaire political party point-of-view rammed down the throats of us all by supermajority political party zealots.
If and when we lose our democracy it is not likely to be at the hand of a military coup-d'etat but by a steady erosion of public confidence in our ability to be informed, respected, heard and included in the decision making at local levels of government.
As I see it, North Canton government is a contemporary kaleidoscope of the undermining of our democratic-republican system of government happening right before our Stark County eyes.
The real heros of this flap in North Canton are the likes of Daryl Revoldt (former mayor, councilman and president of council), Miriam Baughman, Melanie Roll and Chuck Osborne.
But for above-pictured locking on to the tax abatement debacle of 2012, North Canton schools would have, under the original abatement, lost tens of thousands of sorely needed tax dollar revenues.
These folks are not beholden to a political party point of view, but to what is for the public good.
I am told that Baughman, Roll and Osborne are in this fight for the "long-term." Revoldt may or may not be.
These folks apparently are not into "let's make a deal" put together by "in-artful" council/mayor deal makers in that they failed to provide "checks and balances" on a bad deal for the NCCS.
Why?
Because they believe the original deal was illegal and that therefore North Canton schools should have all the dollars less those already abated to North Ridge Place, LLC.
The unremunerated consistent, persistent, skillful work ethic of the civic minded Baughman, Roll and Osborne far surpases the current crop of taxpayer paid councilpersons serving on North Canton council.
As we all know, "the worm turns" in ever so many directions.
Who knows, including itself, where a worm will end up?
In this instance, we are analogizing "as the worm turns" to working for politicos.
For Mary Beth Bailey: Masillon's clerk of council, since 2003, the ups and downs of working for politicians has been more trying experience than figuring out the next movement of an earthworm.
It was a moment of triumph for her when she was appointed this past Friday as North Canton's clerk of council by 6 to 0 North Canton City Council vote.
For she was definitely under a lot of pressure as applied by Massillon mayor Kathy Catazaro-Perry "to move on" from being Massillon's clerk of council.
Since the days that the mayor was a Massillon city council person (first elected in 2003 as a Democrat, Ward 3), she has steadfastly pursued Bailey's removal.
As far as the SCPR is concerned, Massillon suffered a loss and North Canton a huge gain in landing Bailey.
Writing about the Bailey appointment as clerk presents an opportunity for the Stark County Political Report to deal with a number of political issues/phenomenon that touches on a number of Stark County political entities.
Stark County itself: Bailey's successful run in county government,
Massillon: Bailey's trials and tribulations in Massillon at the hand of councilperson/mayor Catazaro-Perry and the Johnnie A. Maier, Jr political machine,
North Canton: as the prospect of her working for His Majesty, Tim Fox, the law director of The Dogwood City, and
The twists and turns of "insider politics" when it comes to appointments by North Canton City Council
To their credit, most members of Massillon City Council supported Bailey in facing down Johnnie A. Maier, Jr protege Catazaro-Perry. She probably could have hung on had she not been selected by North Canton.
But being the object of what the SCPR thinks was an unwarranted attack by the Maier forces is not a whole lot of fun and therefore it was no surprise at all to see Bailey's name on the upwards of 100 names list of applicants to the post that became available on or about June 1st when long time Massillon clerk of council Gail Kalpac retired - The Report thinks - because of the utter impossibility of working for Fox.
It appears to the SCPR that the self-described (to the SCPR) "tough man," has in effect maneuvered himself into being the unelected head of North Canton government.
As far as The Report is concerned, North Canton City Council and the mayor have allow Fox to run amok and consequently, next year's election could see the introduction of candidates for council and the mayoralty with the primary issue being "reining Fox in."
It could be a case for Bailey that she has "jumped from the frying pan into the fire" in agreeing to take the North Canton job.
As impossible as Fox seems to be to work for, undoubtedly, Bailey being forewarned, will come equipped to deal with it. Out of her Massillon experience she is practiced in working in "uncomfortable" environs.
Bailey started out her career in local government in June of 1986 when she took a job with the Multi-County Juvenile Attention Center located in Canton. She worked there until 1997.
In 1997, she switched over to the Stark County auditor's office where she worked for now Stark County commissioner Janet Weir Creighton.
In March, 2003 she was appointed as clerk of council by Massillon City Council by the-them members:
Tim Bryan (Democrat/at-large),
Jim Filhour (Republican/at-large),
Mike Loudiana (Democrat-large),
Ronald Mang (Democrat - Ward 1),
William Aman (Democrat - Ward 2),
Claudette Istnick (Republican - Ward 3),
Gloria Autrey (Democrat - Ward 4),
Glenn Gamber (Democrat - Ward 5), and
Paul Lambert (Democrat - Ward 6)
In Bailey's case, her foremost squirmy "political" worm is none other than Massillon mayor Kathy Catazaro Perry.
It seems to The Report that Bailey's happiest public employment was with Janet Creighton when she was Stark County auditor.
In the course of conversation with Bailey [reference: a SCPR visit to Massillon City Council], The Report learned she once worked for Janet Creighton as auditor. "Oh, [from The Report] you must be a Republican." "No," she responded "I'm a Democrat" and then she went on to describe how she was hired into the auditor's office by Creighton notwithstanding her Democratic Party credentials.
Bailey described in detail the non-partisan way in which she was treated and the attention that Creighton pays to her employees and how so very much Janet Creighton is 24/7 the genuine, caring person she seems to be.
And let the SCPR emphasize, everybody in Massillon government except for Catazaro-Perry and now council president Tony Townsend have appreciated Bailey's work.
The thinking on the part of some Massillon council persons is that the mayor and the council president are front persons for clerk of courts Johnnie A. Maier, Jr who, it is thought, covets the council clerk position "for one of their own."
An ironic twist to the Bailey appointment in North Canton has been the failure of a well known North Canton civic activist to see her appointment coming.
The activist was convinced from the day the application list was revealed that a David Held protege; namely, Jamie Grippi, Operations and Planning Manager at the Stark, Tuscarawas, Wayne Joint Solid Waste Management District (Solid Waste) would be Kalpac's successor.
Held, in addition to being North Canton mayor, is the CEO at Solid Waste.
And the SCPR thinks there was good reason for the activist to believe that Grippi would be North Canton Council's choice.
Looking at her resume (extract presented below), it seems that she has impressive credentials :
In recent years, North Canton City Council has been plagued by "inside politics." Accordingly, the activist's thinking has some basis in the prior conduct of council and the administration.
As was pointed out by Councilperson-at-large Marcia Kiesling during last Monday's council meeting, nearly every existing member of council (excluding only members Foltz and Griffith) has been appointed to council by the remaining council members.
And throw in a few law directors and at least one administrator (Grimes, North Canton's former police chief) and some others, it seems as if those with an inside connection ended up with a city of North Canton job.
But the SCPR believes that council and Fox were caught unawares on the precipitous resignation/retirement of Kalpac. Because of the key and vital role that a clerk of council has in the smooth and effective functioning of council, The Report thinks that council - as a matter of survival as a credible part of North Canton government - was forced to abandon its "insider" propensities and sift through the applications for a person who had direct experience in working for a city/village council.
Hence, the North Canton political worm had turned favorably for the beleaguered in Massillon clerk of council and what have not been possible (if council and Fox had more time to recover from the "sprung upon them" Kalpac retirement) under different circumstances became a "no brainer" given Bailey's resume.
From 1956 through 2012, there was a television soap opera entitled As the World Turns" viewed by millions upon millions of Americans.
In Stark County today, it might well be appropriate to describe the "ebbs and flows," the "ins and outs," and the "ups and downs" as being a Stark County version of the 44 year running soap opera except that a more apt title for the political machinations is "As the Worm Turns."
Do not expect that North Canton has turned over a new leaf in actually going out and getting the best qualified person for clerk of council in Mary Beth Bailey.
The SCPR fully expects that the clerk of council process was an aberration and that with the next appointment the "worm will turn" once again to politics as usual.
It is the battle of which story is the most compelling?
William J. Healy, II, mayor of Canton, and his problems. Or, the clash between Jackson Township and its partner Canton versus North Canton.
Benjamin Duer of The Rep reports this way on Jackson Township trustees reaction to North Canton's annexation efforts of the Fosnaught Auto Parts business located in Jackson in order to block a Jackson/Canton Cooperative Economic Development (CEDA) agreement, to wit:
Pizzino [Jackson trustee & president of the board] said the board is “united” in its fight, and would explore all legal action to stop North Canton.
He also said the board might eliminate free mutual-aid agreements they have with North Canton for police and fire services.
Is Pizzino willing the jeopardize the safety of North Cantonians because of the Jackson trustees' tiff with North Canton officials?
On the other side.
The STARK COUNTY POLITICAL REPORT (The Report) has learned that North Canton may renege on its deal to provide water to Jackson Township over this fight. Do North Canton officials have any concern for the well-being of the water users?
Folks, this is real warfare!
The question. Is this fight in the best interest of Stark County?
Most would probably agree that it is not.
But who is going to step forward and bring the warring parties to a truce and, in fact, something beyond that - a win-win-win situation for Jackson, Canton and North Canton?
B.A. - Political Science
J.D.
AN INDEPENDENT MINDED POLITICAL COMMENTATOR
Until 1976 I was a Republican. Since then I have considered myself a Democrat. So after long term stints of being a Republican, then a Democrat, I have come to the political position I feel most comfortable with - being an INDEPENDENT MINDED ANALYST who demands effectiveness of our politicians - Republican, Democrat or whatever.
I have changed my political affiliation to "non-partisan" by not voting in either political party primary election.
