DISCUSSION: JACKSON TWP FISCAL OFFICER RANDY GONZALES "THE QUINTESSENTIAL - BACKROOM POLITICIAN?" PUSHING FOR HEALY "OUT-OF-TOWNER" NESBITT?

The STARK COUNTY POLITICAL REPORT (The Report) showed up at the interviews that the Governance Committee of the Stark County Council of Governments (SCOG) had scheduled for Tuesday, March 3, 2009 at the Stark County 9-1-1 Center for candidates of the Project Manager position of the "new" Stark County 9-1-1 countywide system.

The Report learned long ago that politicians with an agenda abhor the light of day. Who was the first to object to The Report sitting in on these interviews for a "public" position. You've got it. None other than Randy Gonzales.

The conversations posed in this blog are paraphrases of the actual conversation.

Gonzales: (to The Report) You don't think your going to sit in on these interviews, do you?

THE REPORT: Yes, I do. These interviews are to fill a public position.

Gonzales: We may be asking questions the answers to which could prove embarrassing to the interviewees. The answer could cause an applicant to lose a currently held job. (this answer is actually a combination of reasons for the exclusion given by Gonzales, Stark 9-1-1 Director Tim Warsler and Massillon Fire Chief Tom Burgasser)

THE REPORT: That's part of the territory, when people apply for public jobs. If I am need access, I will be looking into whether or not there has been a violation of Ohio's Sunshine law, and if so, filing litigation for remedies provided for in law).

Gonzales: We are going to call the prosecutor's office to find out whether or not we have to let you sit in.

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The assembled interviewers asked The Report to vacate the interview room while they check with Stark County Prosecutor John Ferrero's office.

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Predictably, Ferrero's people (remember John Fererro was formerly the head of the Stark County Democratic Party) (also, Ferrero is a member of SCOG at large: a conflict-in-interest?) - being part of Stark County's political network - sided with Gonzales, et al.

All of the foregoing raises the question: Why The Report thought it important to cover the interviews?

Answer: The Report believes that Randy Gonzales had a pre-interview agenda to push for Canton Safety Director Tom Nesbitt to become the selected Project Manager. He wouldn't want the public-at-large to know about the credentials of the candidates before the decision of whom to hire was a done deal. The "privacy" thing is phony-baloney. It's like an attorney who asserts the attorney-client privilege to protect the attorney; not the client.

Busto, Kerstetter and Tenan had no chance at all from the get-go because they are not politically involved and connected. The Report did talk with Mark Busto before his interview and it is clear to The Report that Busto is as qualified, if not more, on "9-1-1 credentials" as Rich Peterson (the fire chief of Nimishillen Township). But he is apolitical. Peterson, in addition to Nesbitt and Concatto, are very much politically connected.

Back to Jackson Township Fiscal Officer Gonzales (who also works for another Stark Democratic Party kingpin Phil Giavasis - Canton Municipal Court clerk of courts).

The Report has written before that Gonzales is the de facto chairman of the Stark County Democratic Party. All one has to do is go to a Democratic candidate fundraiser to see Gonzales huddled up with one or another of his political confidants.

The Report believes that all important Stark County open public positions are filtered through Gonzales more than titular party head Johnnie A. Maier, Jr.

Does a party stalwart or a stalwart's relative need a public job? Check with Randy. He has the political clout in Stark County. Gonzales' own son (who ran against Scott Oelslager - the 51st - two elections ago) works for Stark County Recorder Rick Campbell. Best qualified of 300,000 plus Stark Countians for the job? Could be. But it also could be that his father is a jauggernaut Stark County politico.

The Report has not figured out why Gonzales is fronting for Nesbitt. A newcomer to Stark County, who is an out-of-towner that Mayor Healy brought into Stark to be Canton's safety director and who already wants to leave? In time, as the recently deceased Paul Harvey used to say, we will get "the rest of the story."

Had The Report been allowed into the interview, non politically connected folks like Busto, Kerstetter and Tenan would have fared much better. Because the interviewers would have known that The Report would share the credentials of the non politically connected with the Stark County community.

In the opinion of The Report, Randy Gonzales is a backroom political deal maker of the first degree. But he is not the only one in Stark County: Phil Giavasis, Kim Perez, Gary Zeigler, Janet Creighton-Weir, Jane Vignos (especially in their days as county auditor), et cetera.

The Report's objection?

These are public jobs. They are not Gonzales' or for any of the other Stark County politicos' (Democrat or Republican) to hand out.

The Report predicts that either Tom Nesbitt or Rich Peterson (sponsored by Stark County Commissioner Todd Bosley) will be the choice presented to the full SCOG assembly.

Peterson is a Stark Countian who has vast experience in 9-1-1 operations (reference: CenCom of Nimishillen Township) is a no-brainer choice over Nesbitt.

The Report ends this discussion with the following question: Mark Busto with all of his experience and "time-in-grade," doesn't even get a smell?

Doesn't this whole process smell to high heavens?

DISCUSSION: MARCH 3, 2009 - MOST IMPORTANT DECISION FOR STARK'S 9-1-1 TREK TOWARD A COUNTYWIDE SYSTEM

The STARK COUNTY POLITICAL REPORT (The Report) has learned that over 100 applied for the newly created position of 9-1-1 Project Manager.

Today, the Stark County Council of Governments 9-1-1 Governance Committee will interview six finalists for the Project Manager position.

The person selected with have the responsibility of paring down the current 11 9-1-1 dispatch centers down to one, with - in all likelihood, a back up.

The political career of Stark County Commissioner Todd Bosley could hinge on how well the reorganization of 9-1-1 goes. Democrat Bosley ran in 2006 on fixing 9-1-1 and, in the opinion of The Report, won on the issue. His opponent, Republican Richard Regula, fell completely on his political face in hem-hawing around on his failure to repair the broken system.

Bosley took political risk by convincing fellow commissioners Harmon and Vignos (now retired) to vote for a increase in the county sales/use tax part of which increase is to be used to fund the 9-1-1 rehab.

Stark County safety forces were surprised by this bold move. Though a number of village/city and township safety officials are into protecting their respective turfs, the sudden prospect of having money available put them in a spot of not being able to say no. Especially in light of the additional financial fact that the creation of a countywide system relieves most localities of dispatching expense. Money that the subdivisions need to apply to other local government functions.

Now to the candidates for Project Manager:

Mark Busto is one of two of the six candidates who has the most direct experience managing a 9-1-1 dispatch operation. He has been with the Regional Emergency Dispatch (RED) Center since 1989. Busto is a guy who has worked his way up through the ranks. This attribute has to warm the hearts of everyday Stark Countians. He is now the Executive Director of RED and has been since 2008.

Joseph Concatto wants to come out of retirement to be 9-1-1 Project Manager. Up until Republican Janet Creighton-Weir was defeated by Democrat William J. Healy, II in November, 2007. Concatto served the Creighton administration as service director, safety director and chief of staff. Pre-political involvent, Concatto was Fire Chief of Canton. Moveover, he had been a member of the Canton Fire Department since 1969. His relevant experience to the 9-1-1 Project Manager position is centered in his management responsibilities. He did oversee the construction of a fire station in Canton. And he oversaw the move of Canton's dispatch center from city hall to 30th Street.

Tim Kerstetter comes out of private enterprise. His current employer is Diebold (since 1995) where he is Director of Corporate-wide Safety Wellness operations. At Diebold he has managed large operations. For Stark Countians who are interested in a "fresh face," Kerstetter might be an attractive alternative.

Tom Nesbitt is an interesting candidate. Most of us Stark County political observers fell off our collective chairs when we found out Nesbitt (Safety Director for Canton Mayor William J. Healy, II) was applying for the 9-1-1 Project Manager position. His move was the first "public" sign that all is not well with the Healy administration. Again, here we have a candidate who has generalized management experience. Nesbitt came here from Nebraska where he spent years with the Nebraska Highway Patrol working in and managing Nebraska's statewide communications system.

Rich Peterson of Nimishillen Township Fire Department (NFD & CenCom Dispatch) is almost a mirror image of Mark Busto. Peterson is also Service Manager at Kempthorn Motors. He has been with the NFD since 1984 and the head of CenCom 9-1-1 Dispatch which is located at a newly constructed fire station in Nimishillen Township.

Richard Tenan has a curious history. His current employment is with communications consulting company GeoCom. GeoCom was hired by the Stark County Council of Governments to do a study of Stark County's 9-1-1 system of eleven dispatch centers. So Tenan wants the opportunity to fix a system he had a hand in critiquing. He has management experience in setting up and operating 800 megahertz communications systems which is the system that Stark's 9-1-1 wlll use.