Eliminate Strong Mayor and Council Boundaries!

GOOD MORNING FLINT!
10/16/09
Terry Bankert


Terry Bankert is a Flint Divorce Attorney lawyer sharing his opinion with you.


Do you want you Flint City Council reduced from 9 to 7 position?

Do you want you Flint City Council to run city wide, represent city wide?

Do you want your Flint City Council to be full time. And by impication recieve full time pay increase?

There are candidates running for Flint City Council that what all of the above.

“About 50 people came out to hear Flint City Council candidates talk about public safety, vacant land and the effects of population loss at tonight's question-and-answer session.”[f]
　
It is a scary event to watch a senior citizen have a seizure. That happened last night at the candidate forum. The candidates were down to the last question. The lady was okay, from comments and actions of friends around her it has happened before. The forum ended.
　
Eric Mays poised a difficult question to the organizers. Should an announced write in candidate be allowed to participate in the forum?

Mays was allowed to participate.
　
THE EVENT

Wards 1, 2 and 3
Thursday,
October 15th
Mt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church- 4805 N. Saginaw St.
Moderator: Paul Rozycki Political Science Professor at Mott Community College.

Candidates:
1st Ward- Darryl Buchanan and Delrico J. Loyd ,write in candidate Eric Mays.

2nd Ward-David Davenport and Jackie Poplar

3rd Ward- Johnnie Coleman and Bryant Nolden

Thumbnail pictures.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/30366181@N05/sets/72157622596990894/


This event was sponsored by,

Cosponsors: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Zeta Beta Omega Chapter, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Flint Alumnae and The League of Women Voters of the Flint Area


I am taking no sides and will limit my comments so preference cannot be interpreted. It is up to the voters in each ward to pick their representative. Ward representation is important. So I will talk about that.
　
A council, nine members running city wide for city council could all come from the same neighborhood, same street, same family or coalition, and win because of the financial support of one person ( Mott, Williamson), one union (UAW, or Faternal Order of Police), or one interest group , for instance "downtown investors", would you want that?

There are candidates running for Flint City Council that are encouraging your loss of representation.... BEWARE !

One candidate even wants to do away with the strong mayor form of government.... BEWARE.!

These proponents were not opposed by the other candidates........BEWARE!

My read is that these issues are on the table, coalitions with multiple agendas are maneuvering.

Is County Executive the real agenda?

Is it "Downtown" over the "Neighborhoods"?.....BEWARE!

When I was Flint Ombudsman and Tim Herman was Flint City Finance director he called me the Charter Cop.

Well I guess I was.

I think the democratically established process of government is important. It is not a casual thing to violate a law, or a city charter.

These are the ways the people through elected representative decide how our government is organized.

So if I am the charter cop, lets go on patrol.

The following is from a 1974 weathered newspaper handout produced by the Flint Charter revision Commission’s Charter revision was just about my first public act when I was about 25 yrs old. Nic, Dayne, Ryan ,DelRico, ya’all got nothing on me.

Here is part of the argument to keep the strong mayor form of government. The city manager ,city commission form of government was worse.

“4.The Charter must provide clear line of authority.” ”One recurrent objection to the 1929 Charter was the way in which it fragments the authority of government officials. It is hard to determine who is responsible for getting the job done under the present Council-Manager system.”

My view is the council has not stepped to the plate and exercised the power it has. Strong mayors, several, have dominated the council.

The council had been elected by ward prior to the last charter revising.”…the CRC [Charter Revision Commission] has not changed the present Charter unless it saw a clear need to do so.”

Debate on this issue is a good thing.

If the community is convinced then a charter amendment should be put forward. But the community should actively debate this issue, not be suprised on election day.

THANK YOU FLINT JOURNAL FOR COVERING THIS EVENT. CHANNEL 12, CHANNEL 5 HOW DARE YOU TO NOT BE THERE. At least I did not see them.

“Here is a summary of some of their answers:

In light of declining revenue, what programs would you eliminate or reduce to boost public safety?[f]

Buchanan proposed cutting back on police overtime and having city employees take a four-hour furlough each year. He also advocated awarding more city contracts to city companies.[f]

Mays said the city could save money by better evaluating lawsuits. He said he would put the money into the detective bureau and more undercover police officers.[f]

Loyd also said the city could save on legal costs and added that the city could generate more revenue by having beefed up code enforcement. He said the city should make sure the leaders in every department are performing up to standard.[f]

Coleman, a former councilman, said the city in the past brought in consultants to evaluate where savings could be found. He said the city council also held budget classes to become better educated on the budget process.[f]

Nolden said he can't cite specifics until he's elected but suggested offering early retirement incentives to officers with higher seniority to make way for more new officers. He also suggested furlough days for city employees.[f]

Davenport, a vocal critic of the Genesee County Land Bank, said the city should end its contract with the agency. He said he would put more surveillance cameras throughout the city.[f]

Poplar pointed to an ordinance amendment she drafted that made it easier for local vendors to get city contracts. She also said the city needs to fix more sidewalks to cut down on lawsuits.”[f]
　
　
You can attend future candidate forums in Flint and Burton.

FLINT Wards, 4, 7 and 9 Monday, October 19th
Brennan Community Center- 1301 Pingree St.
Moderator: Gabe Gutierrez, WJRT TV-ABC12 Candidates:
4th Ward -Joshua M. Freeman and Sandy Hill
7th Ward- Denise Smith Allen and Dale K. Weighill
9th Ward- Scott Kincaid and Jeanne R. Reiter


Wards 5, 6 and 8 Tuesday, October 27th Calvary United Methodist Church, 2111, Flushing Rd. Moderator: Tia Ewing, WNEM-TV5, reporter Candidates:
5th Ward- Bernard Lawler and Lynne Waybright
6th Ward- Sheldon Neeley and J.C. Walker
8th Ward- Ehren Gonzales and Michael J. Sarginson

All candidates for Flint City Council have been invited.

ASK THEM ABOUT;

ELIMINATING THE STRONG MAYOR,

ELIMINATING COUNCIL BOUNDARIES,

ELIMINATING TWO COUNCIL SEATS,

MAKING A FULL TIME COUNCIL AND FULL TIME PAY AND

FULLY FUNDING THE FLINT OMBUDSMANS OFFICE.

[I feel alone in my support of the Ombudsman, ask Gonzales why he opposes it!OKAY...I held that post and have blinders on.]

The general election will be held Tuesday, November 3, 2009.

The cosponsoring organizations are all non-partisan and do no support or oppose any candidates. Cosponsors: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Zeta Beta Omega Chapter, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Flint Alumnae and The League of Women Voters of the Flint Area Candidate


Forum:

Burton City Council
7 P.M. to 9 P.M.

Tuesday, October 20th Burton City Hall- 4303 S. Center Rd.

Moderator: Jack Minore- Former State Representative

Candidates: Jennifer Morquechio Larry Petrella Vaughn Smith Laurie L. Tinnin Danny Wells Paula Zelenko

3 SEATS AVAILABLE – EACH FOR A FOUR YEAR TERM

All candidates for Burton City Council have been invited. The general election will be held Tuesday, November 3, 2009.

The cosponsoring organizations are all non-partisan and do not support or oppose any candidates. Cosponsors: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Zeta Beta Omega Chapter, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Flint Alumnae and The League of Women Voters of the Flint Area

Posted here by
Terry bankert
http://www.flintfamilylaw.com/


[f]
http://blog.mlive.com/flint-city-beat/2009/10/public_safety_vacant_land_topi.html

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