Were They Psychic? - WordPress.com · 10/11/2015 · October 25, 2015 Our Hometown News

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Our Hometown NewsP.O. Box 42187Brook Park, Ohio 44142

Serving the City of Brook Park and its more than 19,000 ResidentsOctober 25, 2015 Vol. No. 32, Issue 3

Psychic- p5

Mayor Attacks Powers - p5

Dillon and Colton say, “Vote for Grandma.

She has lots of experience.”

Paid for by Friends of Carol Horvath, Gary J. Horvath, Treasurer

6131 Smith Rd. Brook Park OH 44142

Mayor Attacks Councilwoman Powers

In what has become an all too familiar event, Mayor Coyne again was vicious in his verbal attack of Ward 3 Council woman Mrs. Powers at the Council meeting Tuesday October 20th. Many in attendance at the meeting or who watched the live video streaming of the meeting expressed their disgust of the Mayor’s merciless abuse of the Councilwoman.

Mrs. Powers, who has a soft spoken non-controversial personality, has become the favorite council member of Mayor Coyne’s abuse since she began

to question and reject Coyne’s agenda to close the Ruple Road fire station. Powers’ active opposition to Coyne’s program to raise property and income taxes in the special election last August and her active promotion on behalf of restoring the senior snow plowing issue has sealed her fate as Coyne’s favorite whipping boy on council.

We asked the councilwoman how she could seem to remain so calm in the face

The Finance Director’s Economic DilemmaHe May Not Have To Transfer $1,000,000

Dilemma - p10

According to Finance Director Cingle the money coming into the city this year is so much more than anticipated he may not even have to use any of the $1,000,000 that was transferred from the sound insulation savings account into the economic development fund to pay for the senior snow plowing, sidewalk repairs and cross connected sewers.

This creates a real problem for Cingle since his concern is to build up the cash reserves of the city and if he doesn’t use that money which Mayor Coyne raided out of the city’s rainy day savings account, money that Mayor Coyne has included in his budget and is counting on using, then Cingle will be reducing those cash reserves by a $1,000,000.

It is important for the residents to understand how the city establishes its

rainy day fund. It’s really very simple, when the city rakes in more money in any year than it spends to operate the city, the difference is put in the bank as a cash reserve fund or as we know it, a rainy day fund.

This year the money coming in to operate the city after 9 months or after ¾ of the year has been completed, with the $1,000,000 savings added in by the Mayor, means the city will take in over $23,300,000, or about 2 million more to operate the city than the Mayor budgeted. At the same time the cost of operating the city will be about $19,200,000 which will be another $2,500,000 less than the Mayor said he was going to spend. That means the city will be looking at about a $4,500,000 surplus in the city’s operating funds. This

Were They Psychic? Or Did They Know What

They Were Doing?One of the most often repeated attacks,

on Ward 1 Councilman Troyer and Ward 3 Councilwoman Powers, by the Mayor and the entrenched political majority on Council, has been their refusal to agree last March with the Mayor’s bloated annual budget that he presented to Council. Both Powers and Troyer voted NO on Mayor Coyne’s budget.

We asked both council members if they were aware that in refusing to adopt the Mayor’s proposals they were voting against senior services that they said they were for? Both were unanimous in their agreement that “Coyne’s budget contained millions of dollars in new spending that they thought were unnecessary and harmful to the city at this time. They pointed out that the Mayor had laid off 17 full time employees on January first and the Finance Director said that would save the city $1,600,000 dollars in payroll compared to last year. He also pointed out the city would no longer be spending the more than $400,000 for the 3 year PERS buyout program. Our understanding was that those reduced expenditures would save the city over $2,000,000, and yet the Mayor’s budget had us going into the city’s savings account and borrowing an additional $1,000,000 from our rainy day fund and he still couldn’t balance the budget. His budgeted spending still contained a deficit of over $300,000.”

“We knew these figures were completely out of whack. The city had operated at a surplus last year and the Mayor had repeatedly stated that no city employees had received a raise this year.

Senior Snow PlowingFinally the Mayor has begun to make

public some of the facts about the senior snow plowing contracts that each person will be forced to sign if they choose to be a part of this years program.

According to the Mayor the companies he has chosen will enter into a contract with each individual for $250.00 and to add insult to injury, because the city is not involved just a for profit contractor, each person will also have to pay an additional $20.00 sales tax, for a total contract price of $270.00.

Since the city has $85,000 to spend why the city did not enter directly into the

contract with the snow plow companies was never explained by councilman Salvatore, the one who introduced and worked on the legislation with the Mayor.

Since there are only about 200 seniors who have signed up, it is obvious that the city could pay the total amount and still only spend about $50,000 at the $250.00 contract price thus saving about $35,000, Then the seniors would not have to pay anything and the city would not have to pay any sales tax either. Plus the fact that individual seniors were able to negotiate contracts on their own last year for

Snow Plowing - p9

About Toilet PaperBy now all of you should have

received a newspaper mailed to you and paid for by Mayor Coyne. The name of the paper is “The Brook Park Registered Voter”. In this paper Mayor Coyne likens Our Hometown News to a giant roll of toilet paper.

While we have no comment about this type of gutter politics, we do think the choice of the Mayor to use the analogy of toilet paper is very significant. We all know what toilet paper is and more to

the point we all know also what it is used for, and in this instance that is exactly the function of the facts presented in our articles in Our Hometown News performs for the residents of Brook Park.

Consistent with the proper function that a community paper should perform is brought out and expressed very strongly by Federal Judge Sara Lioi in her recent decision to release the thousands of documents, recordings and phone calls that were part of the evidence used to

convict county officials Dimora, Russo and some 60 other public officials and contractors.

According to Judge Lioi in her written order to release the sealed documents for public viewing, she wrote the release of the documents “will also serve as a reminder to the public of the need for vigilant monitoring of the conduct of those entrusted to serve the public.” Ask yourself how you would be able to vigilantly monitor the conduct of our Brook Park

elected officials by yourself? How would you be able to determine whether they are telling you the truth when they ask for more money or quote their statistics or do away with city services?

This is the job that is performed by the press as it properly performs its duty as a watchdog of the people. That is why the press is guaranteed freedom by our Constitution. We can certainly tell you that government officials are not happy

Toilet Paper - p5

Our Hometown News October 25, 2015

Brook Park 2015 General

Election

President of Council

JIM ASTORINO

Law Director

CAROL HORVATH

Ward 1 Council

TOM TROYER

Ward 2 Council

JIM MENCINI

Ward 3 Council

JAN POWERS

Ward 4 Council

PENNY PETERLIN

At Large Council (Choose 3)

CHRIS GRAVES

JULIE MCCORMICK

JACK THOMAS

I am Penny Peterlin and I am asking you, the residents of Ward 4, to choose me as your city council representative. My husband, Mark grew up in Brook Park as have my children. They were very active in many of the activities Brook Park had to offer. I even coached some of their ball teams. It was a great place for our children. I am proud and happy to be a Brook Parker. Now my children are grown up. My youngest graduated high school this year, so I have plenty of time to

Paid for by Penny For Ward 4, Mark Peterlin, Treasurer, 14150 Starlite Drive Brook Park

Vote for Penny PeterlinAn Independent Candidate

for Ward 4 Council

devote to the job of Ward 4 Rep. I have worked at the same job for over 16 years and have worked my way up to a management position. Two years ago, Mark and I started a home based business: Eternity Memorial Products. I am asking for your vote because I believe Brook Park can be a great place for families again. I will work to restore the Rec. Center and all of our badly needed senior services. I will work toward better financial management. The only endorsement I need is your vote, that way I will not owe anyone any favors. I will be free to fully represent you, my constituents. I will talk with you, meet with you and take my direction from you. I will do everything I can to make Brook Park a place we can be proud to call home.

Re-elect CouncilwomanJan Powers

An Independent Voice,NOT the Mayor’s ChoiceElection Year Again...ALREADY!!!Once again this is an election year. It seems like only yesterday I wasasking for your vote. Time flies whenyou are having fun! It has been fun!

... and frustrating and a learning experience. I have thoroughlyenjoyed working for you and sincerely hope you will return me to city council to represent our ward. Two years ago, I told you I would introduce legislation to enable the public to vote on elected officials’ pay raises, restore televised council meetings, restore the sidewalk program, develop a volunteer program to help homeowners maintain theirproperty, and stop using the Emergency Clause to pass legislation. During my first term on the city council, I have worked hard on all of these things and more. Some of these items have not yet come to fruition, due in part to a majority of our council voting in lockstep with the mayor against them. Rest assured that in my second term on city council, I will continue to push for these items, and with a few new faces on the dais we might see more of them pass. Last spring, after the Ruple Road fire station was closed, I helped in the successful effort to get it reopened via the special election this past February, ensuring that ALL of our residents have the same safety protection. Last summer, I fought against the tax levies and was the only member of council to vote against them. Those levies would have cost seniors and hard working residents hundreds of additional dollars in new taxes. This year, along with my colleague Tom Troyer, I introduced an amendment to the 2015 budget that would have saved the taxpayers $1.5 million dollars. In the end, the effort ended up trimming $500K from this year’s budget. I also pushed to have our animal shelter moved from a building on which we were paying a lease into a vacant, city-owned building, saving the taxpayers another $30,000. The new animal shelter is in the old fire station on Smith Road. Please stop by and adopt a pet.

[email protected] JanPowers4BP.comPaid for by the Committee to Elect Jan Powers Jan Powers Treasurer 16110 Harrison Dr. 44142

Preferred Candidate

Preferred Candidate

Candidate Endorsements

More Facts Contained In Council’s Legislative Update

In our last issue we informed you that Council had prepared a 12 page booklet that was intended to be mailed to the residents. This Legislative Update which was to be on the agenda to be voted on would have provided the voting records of each of the 7 Council members on 100 votes that were taken from January first to August 18, 2015.. Before the issue, which had already been placed on the Council agenda, could even be discussed, Mr. Salvatore made a motion to remove the Legislative Update from that evening’s agenda. His motion was immediately seconded and approved to remove the item from the agenda.

You have to remember that this was a document prepared and paid for by Council, from Council’s own records that listed how each member had voted on the 100 issues Council had chosen to be recorded in the document.

Councilman Mencini is unopposed this year and Councilman Higgins has chosen not to continue as a candidate for election, therefore, we will not record their votes. We will only be concerned with the votes of D’amico, Burgio, Salvatore, Powers and Troyer.

Since the vast majority of legislation is introduced by Mayor Coyne we will list the

number of times each Councilman voted NO and how many times each Councilman voted Yes in support of the Mayor.

Councilman D’Amico had ZERO NO votes and 100 YES votes

Councilman Burgio had ZERO NO votes and 100 YES votes

Councilman Salvatore had ZERO NO votes and 100 YES votes

These three Council members voted yes for every issue that came before Council which includes the 25 issues on Mayor Coyne’s agenda One resident who read the Update booklet commented: “It doesn’t take any ability or experience to sit back and collect a $15,000 salary to be nothing but a yes man rubber stamp for Mayor Coyne.”

Councilwoman Powers had 32 NO votes and 68 YES votes

Councilman Troyer had 22 NO votes and 78 YES votes

The voting record of these two council members indicate they actually investigated each issue and voted independently as they determined the merits or harm of each issue.

There comes the time before every election when many voters look for obtaining assistance in gaining the necessary information that will help them make their decision on for whom they will cast their vote. Traditionally that help has been supplied by the community newspapers. As readers of the Plain Dealer are aware, that paper together with its sister publication the News Sun, has been doing that for several weeks. Unfortunately these publications cover so many communities they can not be totally familiar with the issues and candidates in each community.

We at Our Hometown News are unique in that Brook Park is the only community that we serve. And not only that, but in true community journalistic theory (see Wikipedia for the Dewey democratic community journalistic concept), we also take part in all of the important issues facing our city, unlike the elitist republican journalistic concept (see also Wikipedia) practiced by most major news organizations.

This year we have tried to consistently follow a set of principles in our recommendations so that we can eliminate any favoritism or emotion in our decisions. While term limits have not been adopted in Brook Park, we think that 8 years is a long enough time for an elected official to accomplish their goals after that they should either step down or be replaced.

Also we are all familiar with certain favored persons and families who have used their family’s

political ties as well as their own party political cronies to appoint or hire, not only them but multiple members of their families also. Even including their own wives. Some of these career politicians even double dip by working for two or more different cities at the same time.

Therefore, we have not endorsed any candidate:

1) Who is an officer of any political party whether Republican or Democrat.

2) Who is currently or who has been an elected official of Brook Park for 8 years or more.

3) Who is currently a politically appointed employee of Brook Park or any other community

4) Who has already been an elected or appointed official of Brook Park

5) Who is a relative of an elected or appointed official of Brook Park.

More Women in Office

With the finances of the city such an important issue in this election we think it is important that we begin to elect more women to be a part of making the decisions that govern the day to day finances of our city. It is our wives, mothers and grandmothers who have had the responsibility for the day to day financial operations of their own homes, many times having to pinch pennies when faced with the difficult choice between wants and needs, due to limited incomes We think it is time,

when possible, to give them the opportunity to accomplish the same for our community without discrimination because of their age or sex. In this year’s election we are fortunate to have four such candidates and consequently, we have endorsed all four of them.

October 25, 2015 Our Hometown News

Russell Horner is a life-long Brook Park resident and currently works at a large public company Park-Ohio Industries, Inc. as their Director of Planning/Forecasting and Global Treasury Management. Russell is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and also holds many other certifications such as: Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), Certified in Financial Forensics and is a licensed Private Investigator in the State of Ohio.

Russell is married to Debbie and has three children, Chris, Becca and Alex.

Horner’s CornerBy: Russell Horner, CPA

I want to thank all of you for submitting your questions and comments. Remember, if you have a question on a financial, tax or other topic, please let me know. You can send me your questions to 21858 Forestview Circle, Brook Park, Ohio 44142 or call me at 440-243-0571. My sweet and wonderful wife Debbie will take a message if I am not available or you can leave it on my answering machine. Your question will remain anonymous so there is no reason to be afraid of asking your question(s).

Yes, It’s hard to believe that tax time is only a few month away…..here are a few questions I received already for the 2015 tax season.

Dear Mr. Horner: What is the standard mileage rate for my charity activities in 2015? The standard mileage rate for charity is $.14 per mile. Also, the mileage rate for business purposes is $.575 per mile and Medical transportation is $.23 per mile.

Dear Mr. Horner: My wife and I receive a pension and social security. I want to take money out of an IRA to buy a car. How will this affect my taxes? First of all, please remember that everyone has a different tax situation and there is no one particular answer that is right for all. If you are considering something that is different from prior years, you should discuss it with your tax advisor to go over any ramifications of your actions. In this situation, the taxpayers total pension, interest and dividends they earn has a small portion of their Social Security being taxable. If they take additional money from their IRA to purchase a car, more of their Social Security is going to be taxable, as well as the amount of the IRA distribution. We developed a plan to have them finance the car over a three year period, while taking 1/3 of the car purchase from their IRA each year. We looked at the total taxes over the three year period versus taking it all out in one year. After analyzing the total taxes, we concluded that it was more beneficial for them to finance the car over a three year period.

Dear Mr. Horner: My 401-K at work has lost more than $25,000. Can I deduct this on my income tax return? No. These losses are considered “Paper losses”. In order for losses or gains to be potentially included on your tax return, a taxable event must occur. A taxable event would be when you actually sell the security or if the security would become worthless. These are the most common events that would trigger the recognition of a

loss gain on your tax return.

Time to Smile

I would like lighten the mood a little with a few definitions taken from the “off the wall” dictionary.

I will start with some easy ones to figure out…..

Word “Off the Wall” Definition

Urine (Ur-In) Where you are when you are not “Out”

Tumor (Too-More) One more than “one more”

Relief (Ree-Leaf) What trees do in the spring time

Here are some that may take a little more thought…..


Burglarize What a crook or robber sees with.

Paradox Two physicians

Medieval Not completely wicked

Benign What you are after you be eight

Lastly, a couple definitions for the ladies…..


Cantaloupe Have to get married in a church

Eternity The last two minutes of a football game

Dear Mr. Horner: The next one is not a question, merely a letter I received filled with numerous complaints……I have been a resident for more than 25 years and I am very sad to see our City in such bad shape- From: disappointed. Dear disappointed, I know that better days are ahead for our City. Every City goes through a period of transition in its lifetime. Sometimes this occurs during poor economic conditions, political unrest or when there is a demographic shift. I believe our City has experienced a combination of all three of these factors. Political Unrest- Brook Park has always been a vicious political town. I personally have has literature stolen, campaign sign removed and even one burned in a front yard. Personally I think that this comes from the blue-collar work force mentality and the personal pride that our residents hold so dear. Let’s face it, we are tough people here in Brook Park and we are always going to stand up for what we believe in. Poor Economic Conditions- With the drop in business with FORD, NASA and other businesses in our City, I believe we were too slow at making the necessary changes in our City government. In addition to having a “Master Plan” which is a long term road map for planning future growth and City expansion, the City should have had a “Reduction Plan” in the event of revenue fallout. Unfortunately we did not have such a plan, which would have systematically and gradually reduced City employment, services and other functions as necessary, in order for us

to maintain a balanced budget. Demographic Shift- Over the past few decades we have seen the overall average age of our population increase within our City. The increase to the average age was not due to life expectance or infertility, but primarily is due to our children growing up and moving out of the City. A few short decades ago, the City of Brook Park was the perfect place to buy a home and start a family. Homes were reasonable, work was available, the crime rate was low, great schools and there were numerous family oriented recreational and activities available. However, over the past few decades, we have seen this demographic change or shift in the number of adults and number of children. This was also seen in reduced students in our school district, which was the primary reason for the consolidation of our middle and high schools.

All three of these components have played a part in the current condition of City. However, the largest factor for some of your specific complaints is specifically due to the Administration and Council. We did not have a plan or take proper action once this demographic change was noticed. The administration and Council should have been focusing their efforts and shifting money in the budget to create more programs and services for our seniors. (Not take them away or reduce their services).

Please do not give up on our GREAT City. We are coming up on a very important election for Law Director, Council President and the rest of Council. It is critical that you elect those whom you feel will work hard to get our City back on the right track. Remember, we desperately need an unbiased Council, which has the interest of the residents and City as a priority. If the Law Director and Council actually performs their duties with this in mind, they will provide the “check and balance” to the Administration.

Dear Mr. Horner: Ward-1 has three candidates for Council. Is there a standout candidate? Yes. I believe that there is a clear candidate to represent and work for Ward-1 residents. We should try to focus on a candidate’s accomplishments while they were in office and not whether they are a “nice guy”.

*** Please see my letter to the Editor for my chosen Candidate.

I hope everyone takes the time and effort to research the candidates and cast their vote in this very important election.

Until next time…..Stay healthy, be safe and continue to laugh and smile.

GEEK SHOP• COMPLETE AUTO REPAIR •

14998 Brook Park RoadCleveland, Ohio 44135

216-676-4400 • 216-676-4431

WE ACCEPT USED OILP.O. Box42187 • Brook Park, Ohio 44142

216-676-0202email: [email protected] • Editor: Tom Greenlee

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EDITORIALS & LETTERS FROM THE COMMUNITY


Re-Elect Him...He Has Earned It!!!

Why Re-Elect Those Whom The Mayor Blames?

For the past 22 months Mayor Coyne has frequently stated that the Elliott administration and the previous city councils are responsible for Brook Park’s problems. What Mayor Coyne fails to mention is that three of the present council members seeking re-election, Carl Burgio (At-Large) Rick Salvatore (At Large) and Tony D’Amico (running for Council President) as well as former councilman Danny Colonna (running for Ward 1) were all members of city councils while Mark Elliott served for 12 years as mayor.

Since Mayor Coyne has pointed out that Burgio, Salvatore, D’Amico and Colonna share the blame for the dire situation Brook Park now finds itself facing, then why should the residents of Brook Park re-elect these same individuals

to city council on November 3rd? According to Mayor Coyne, they didn’t get the job done correctly during the 12 years of the Elliott administration, so why should we believe they’ll get the job done correctly if given another chance?

In my opinion, just how many bites at the apple should Burgio, Salvatore, D’Amico and Colonna be given before the residents realize “enough is enough” and that we deserve far better than ever before?

Isn’t the definition of insanity doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results?

Susan M. AndersonBrook Park OH

Dear Resident:

My husband’s opponent and his friends would like you to believe that my husband is only about fire fighters, that’s not true. Jim is about our community. Over 30 years my husband and our children have been involved in the Brook Park community. From helping the Seniors to the children and yes politics, we are involved in the community throughout the year, not just at election time.

Yes, Jim was the union president in Brook Park and in many other cities throughout Northern Ohio. Yes, Jim knows the INS & OUTS of our city budget. He even knows about the back

room politics and how that hurts our community. Yes, Jim fought hard to keep our community safe. If you haven’t been paying attention, our mayor and many of the mayors throughout Northeast Ohio want to privatize our EMS to for-profit companies at the cost of our pocketbook and even more, our health.

If you vote for Jim Astorino you will not be disappointed. He will continue to fight for OUR safety and OUR community.

Sincerely,Patti AstorinoFormer Ward 2 Councilwoman

Jim Is For Everybody

I Was At Ford Middle School

Everything About Everything

I was one of the very few residents who attended the Mayor’s State of the City Forum on October 12th. The Mayor talked about the city fighting Ford Motor Company for their land labeling them the grave yard and doing a brown field. I am puzzled by that. Do we want to upset Ford Motor and the more than $2.7-$3 million dollars in income tax they pay us now? I do understand at one time FORD Motor income tax was $9 million but at the same time NASA only gave us $500,000.00 -700,000.00 now since the entire NASA complex is located in Brook Park $ we received $5.5 million and more. My question is to do a BROWN FIELD and

FIGHT FORD worth shutting down and privatizing our city? The cost for attorney fees, not to mention the millions, perhaps billions of dollars that will be needed to clean-up the land? All of this at the risk of the demise of privitizing all our city services? Why are we acting like we have billions of dollars? Why do we continue to elected officials who act like are they BIG SHOTS from a big city, what wrong with keeping our city run services?

Is this the reason why Mayor Coyne so desperately needs Salvatore, D’Amico and Burgio reelected, so they can go along just to get along?

BJ Missoura

As far as I am concerned, the Dynamic Duo Burgio & Salvatore along with their sidekick Boy Wonder Colonna are part of the problem, not the solution. Burgio walked with Mayor Coyne against the residents on the Fire Station issue. Salvatore also worked against the residents and I am guessing that the price of Salvatore’s vote is Mayor Coyne probably telling Salvatore he could soon be the Parking Garage Czar of Brook Park. Colonna never spoke on the issue until NOW. Now at campaign time the Boy Wonder Colonna has found his voice.

Carl Burgio, Rick Salvatore, and Colonna have been on city council for a very long, long time. Too long if you ask me. For nearly 30 years Salvatore voted with Mayors Coyne & Elliott nearly 100% of the time. Burgio’s been at it for 15 years, voting with both mayors about 99% of the time. Colonna for a dozen years.

Last time Burgio & Salvatore were on Council when Coyne left office they

voted for:

• Coyne’s sick time at a cost of tens of thousands of dollard.

• Coyne’s generous pay raises to all staff.

• Coyne’s gift to the retirees of free health care through a reimbursement program.

• Coyne’s paid lunches and uniform payments for civilian employees.

Then Burgio, Salvatore and Colonna were on council when Mayor Elliot was in office:

• Burgio, Salvatore and Colonna did nothing to call for fiscal accountability.

• Burgio, Salvatore and Colonna could have been proactive in building up the city reserves by rescinding the goodbye gifts Coyne gave his buddies, instead ofnearly bankrupting the city coffers.

Instead Burgio, Salvatore & Colonna spent city money like drunken sailors:

• Building a gazebo to nowhere

• Paying a prime rate for rent to a commercial property owner for animal shelter place instead of using the old fire house which could save tens of thousands of dollars each year. Instead they bulldozed the station and left us with another empty lot.

This time around Burgio & Salvatore voted for or supported:

• Coyne’s salary/benefit structure which created a TOP HEAVY, HIGHLY PAID MAYOR’S CABINET:

- Mayor $132,000- Service Director $117,000- Safety Director $115,000- Building Commissioner $117,000- Economic Developer $109,000- Recreation Director $106,000- Human Resources $96,000- Finance Director $119,000- Law Director $90,000- Assistance Finance $101,000

• Coyne’s elimination of senior services and they took no action to protect the residents

• Coyne’s downsizing of rec center and they took no action to protect the youth

• Stood-by and let Coyne destroy Home Days in 2014

Today moving into the future the Dynamic Duo of Salvatore and Burgio support Mayor Coyne when he says let’s privatize as many city services as possible. All of this so Mayor Coyne can do what Coyne does best - hire high priced attorneys and rack up legal bills to get his way until all the money is gone.

Mayor Coyne put a nice paper for all of Brook Park citizens telling them who to vote for. Most of the hackers who sincerely asked you to vote for are friends of family that work for the city or employees that work for councilman.

Terry Hugo

Letter to the Editor

The residents in Ward-1 have the opportunity to re-elect someone who actually has had many accomplishments for Ward-1. Councilman- Tom TROYER has improved our safety (Ruple road Fire Station opening), communicated with the Mayor to patch our roads, challenged, questioned and improved our annual budget and addressed numerous issues for the betterment of our City. Note: His opponent has never provided this kind of

effort and has done absolutely nothing for the West end residents while At-large. Over the next 3-5 years our City will be experiencing a significant transforming and we need to ensure that our Council representative isn’t afraid of hard work and to stand up for the residents. I respectfully ask that you join me on November 3rd, by casting your vote and Re-Electing Councilman- Tom TROYER. - Russell Horner

My name is Carol Dillon Horvath, and I am running for the position of

Law Director for the City of Brook Park. I decided to run for this position because I believe that our city government is out of balance. I believe that our city needs a Law Director who will act independently. I wished to give our voters a choice of candidates for this position.

I have previously stated that our government consists of 3 separate but

equal branches: Executive = Mayor, Legislative = City Council, Judicial = Law Director. This is a simple way of indicating that one of our Law Director’s most important jobs is to assist in drafting ordinances for our city and to interpret those ordinances.

As an elected official, our Law Director is independent from the executive branch of our city government. Prior court decisions have determined that

our city’s law department is under the domain of council, not the mayor (Coyne v. Salvatore, et. al; 2002-Ohio-5819). Further, in this decision specific to our city and its charter, our Court of Appeals stated that the Law Director “is an elected official whose only duty to the mayor is to represent the city as mandated by the charter…”

If elected as Law Director I promise to be impartial and independent according to

the terms of our charter and state law. As

a daughter, wife, mother and grandmother

with four generations of family living in

our city, I promise to work tirelessly to

resolve our city’s problems. I respectfully

ask for your vote.

Sincerely,

Carol Dillon Horvath

Paid for by Carol Dillon Horvath, Gary J. Horvath, Treasurer,

6131 Smith Rd., Brook Park OH 44142

To All of the Residents of Brook Park


ChrisGraves4BP.com [email protected] for by Friends of Chris Graves, Chris Graves - Treasurer, 5088 West 147th St. Brook Park, Ohio 44142

Residents of Brook Park, what a pleasure it has been seeing and talking with you while I walk the different wards of our city. As I listen, the biggest concern I'm hearing is that you are not happy with the direction Mayor Coyne and the old guard on Council are taking our city. There's an old saying, “If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got”. Seems to me we have been electing the same people for a while now, and getting the same results. The sitting Councilmen at Large are nothing but yes men for Mayor Coyne. From January to August, when it came to total votes (all votes including amendments) there were 100 votes taken. Rick Salvatore voted no one time. Carl Burgio and Tony D'Amico voted no zero times. On final passage votes there were 35 taken (25 on legislation proposed by Mayor Coyne) Rick Salvatore, Carl Burgio and Tony D'Amico voted no exactly zero times. These numbers were taken from the pamphlet Council was going to have printed up and sent out, but at the last second killed it because they realized how bad it made them look (you can view the report on my website). It's not hard to figure out that a vote for Salvatore, Burgio, or D'Amico (even though he's running for Council President) is a vote for the Mayor and his Agenda. This is not supposed to be how it works with Council members in the Mayor's hip pocket! Again, “If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got”. I would please ask for your vote on November 3rd and help me to be one more independent thinker and voice on City Council. Chris Graves

November 3rdPlease Elect

Chris GravesBrook Park CityCouncil At Large

Not valid with any other offer.

Expires 11/30/15

Mayor Attacks Powersfrom page 1

of the Mayor’s abuse. She said “I realize this is just Coyne’s normal personality. As the only woman on council and not a member of his yes man majority, and with the President not only permitting Coyne to abuse me, but also at times even joining in. Coyne obviously figures I’m fair game and he can feel free to take out his frustrations on me. I really think the mayor has a hard time dealing with women and this is just the way the mayor

treats them. I also think it is intentional, that with four women candidates on the ballot, the mayor has spent thousands of dollars of his own money promoting his chosen candidates and not one of them is one of the four women.”

Many residents hope that Mayor Coyne will alter his method of communication with Mrs. Powers once the election is over and the very real possibility exists that there will be other women for him to have to work with.

So how could it be possible to cut over $2,000,000 out of our spending, borrow another $1,000,000 and still plan to spend over $300,000 more than that. Frankly we didn’t believe the Mayor’s budget was accurate?”

What You Haven’t Been Told

What most residents have not been told is that both Powers and Troyer sat down and studied the budget and determined that the city could spend only $19,300,000 this year, not the $21,700,000 presented to Council by Mayor Coyne in his budget. Consequently they prepared a detailed paper explaining their recommendations along with the necessary amendments needed to adjust the Mayor’s proposed budget. Then on February 24 they presented their recommendations to their fellow council members. And that’s when they hit a stone wall. They found out that none of the other members of council were interested in passing a budget by March 31 that deviated so greatly from the Mayor and one by one they rejected the amendments as Powers and Troyer presented them.

Why We Voted NO!

Both council members said they knew the Mayor’s budget was inflated and that there would actually be more than enough money to pay for restoring the senior services as a service provided by the city and that the city had no need to dip into our rainy day fund for an additional $1,000,000. As a result they said “we voted no on the Mayor’s budget.”

Accurate Because They Did Their Homework or Psychic?

So, were these council members accurate in their projections or were they just shewing that they don’t understand and just don’t get it, as the Mayor constantly accuses them? According to the Finance Director’s monthly report through September, or after three quarter of the year has been completed, the city is on schedule to spend approximately $19.2 to $19.4 million this year, exactly what Troyer and Powers predicted. Did they have a crystal ball or were they doing their homework and using the Finance Director’s actual figures that were provided to all council members? As the official with the actual financial

information, we suspect that the Finance Director would have presented the same kind of budget if he had that responsibility instead of the Mayor.

We’ve Got The Money-But No Employees

Even the Mayor is now admitting that he did not terminate the senior services because the city does not have the money. Now, according to the Mayor, it’s because the city no longer has the employees to do the work. So, why does the city no longer have the employees to do the work? Because the Mayor laid them all off! Why did the Mayor lay off 17 employees all at the same time? So that there would not be enough workers to provide senior services?

Psychicfrom page 1

when the press is doing its proper job. This identifying of our paper as toilet paper by the top elected official in our city is proof enough of that. Several recent examples of testing the Mayor’s accuracy in his statements to the people should suffice.

At the Town Hall meeting on Oct. 12 at Ford Middle School the mayor questioned the accuracy of the information that is provided by the HTN. At the meeting that night he boldly stated, “I have never lied to the people of this community.”

Since he is questioning the credibility of the information in the HTN, let’s examine the accuracy of some of his own important statements.

(1.) At one point of the meeting the mayor stated that when he was mayor before the city had a 60/40 split of the income tax revenue. What this means is

that 60 cents of every dollar of income tax revenue collected goes to the General Fund for the basic operation of the city. He stated the other 40 cents of every dollar went to capital improvements, the city infrastructure. He also stated that 5 cents of the capital improvement money was set aside for debt retirement. He stated we always had money to rebuild our streets and we always had money to pay our debt.

The problem with his statement is when he was mayor before, the city never had a 60/40 split. Mayor Coyne first took office on Jan, 1, 1982 and served as Mayor until Dec. 31, 2001. And yet from 1974 until 1997 the income tax split that is established by City Council remained unchanged at a 70/30 split. Then in 1997 the tax split was reduced from 70/30 to 75/25 where it remained until 2009. In other words there was 5% less being devoted to our capital needs. during the

Toilet Paperfrom page 1

Toilet Paper - p9

What Kind of City Do You Want to Live In?Imagine Brook Park with....• A private prison at Bally’s• A detention center at Brookview Elementary School• An adult bookstore at Brookgate shopping center

According to Ted Hurst, Building Commissioner and Chief Zoning Officer for the City of Brook Park, these are just a few of the inquiries being considered.

Ted Hurst was on social media on September 4th asking how residents from Brook Park would feel about these businesses moving into our city.

CallCall your elected officials and let them know how you feel about this. We all need to stay involved to get Brook Park back on the right track.

CALL CITY HALL AT:216.433.1300

The time is now to take our city back. Vote for the independent voices.

Not the Mayor’s choices.

Ted Hurst

Paid for by Citizens for a New Brook Park. WIlliam Schmidt. 6464 Claudia, Brook Park, OH 44142

Unedited screenshot of actual conversation on Facebook.

VOTE FOR TRUE INDEPENDENT VOICES, NOT REPUBLICANS

DISGUISED AS INDEPENDENTS.

A BLUE COLLAR TOWN CAN’T AFFORD RED STATE POLITICS.

PAID FOR BY CITIZENS FOR A NEW BROOK PARK. WILLIAM SCHMIDT. 6464 CLAUDIA DR., BROOK PARK, OH 44142

Edward Orcutt is running for the Ward 3 seat on Brook Park City Council. He is on the ballot as

an “Independent”.

ED ORCUTT IS NOT AN INDEPENDENT.

Orcutt has voted in Republican primaries in the past, and is endorsed this election by the

Republican Party of Cuyahoga County.

Gregory Stemm is running for the Ward 1 seat on Brook Park City Council. He is on the ballot

as an “Independent”.

GREG STEMM IS NOT AN INDEPENDENT.

Stemm is a registered Republican and has voted in Republican primaries.

Paid for by Committee to Elect Jack Thomas, Jack Thomas, Treasurer 15913 Remora Blvd. 44142

Personal Information:• Married to Kathleen Thomas• We have 7 children and 7 grandchildren• One son is on active duty in the Air Force, serving tours

in both Iraq and Afgahanistan• Raised on Ledgebrook Drive in Brook Park• Father John, created Brook Park Lions Club

Professional Qualifications and Various Awards:• Graduated from Midpark High School – Class of 1973• Attended L.C.C.C. – Journalism and Oral Communications• Worked for United States Postal Service for 36 years, retired as Postmaster• Nationally Recognized Facilitator meeting & training sessions for U.S. Gov’t• Former Vice President of Education for Berea Toastmasters• Served on the Board of Directors for S.T.A.R.T.,(Support to at Risk Teens), a division of Lutheran

Metropolitan Ministries for 4 years• Recipient of Award for Oral Communications from Dr. Roy Berko, L.C.C.C.• Member of the Development Team for Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute, a branch of the Federal Executive Board Of

Cleveland, Specializing in Communication and Presentation Skills• Received Wings of Excellence Award from Cleveland Federal Exec. Board for portraying

excellence in the work place and promoting the image of the Federal Government in the Local Community

Since my first ad in this paper, I’ve been very busy doing research to deliver presentations to various groups, including residents and City Council itself. My purpose was to show my approach to the job. During those sessions, I have pointed out that the numbers for our recreation center listed in the City Annual Financial Report are inaccurate and therefore ineffective as tools in setting future budgets and expectations. I also created a flyer that I presented to West Side residents on how the recreation center could have been marketed when the downward trend began. Next, I fought for the restoration of the snowplow program for seniors based on figures given by the city and history from the National Weather Service related to these services. Unfortunately, the answer I receive is always the same- we don’t have the people anymore. I get that, so maybe we got rid of too many at once since the alternatives are proving to be cost prohibitive. I also pointed out that the numbers in the CAFR for the dog warden have grown in calls answered per year from about 70 per year for 8 years straight and then they jumped astronomically to over 1200 per year! Again, it was obvious that no one had paid attention to this. Later in the meeting we found out that the warden had been awarded a new truck for his efforts and it was being sent to Iowa for a $13,000.00 retrofit. Now there’s money well spent. Finally, any questions you have on my stance on other issues facing our city, (including why I think the transfer of our 911 calls to a central call center may come back to bite us in the end), can be answered by viewing the Plain Dealer sponsored debate for candidates for Council at Large. It was very professional and a 3rd uninterested party served as the moderator. That debate is in contrast to the one hosted by the city in which the Mayor was the moderator. The website to view this debate is www.cleveland.comThanks again for your support and I look forward to serving you in the future.

Personal Information:• Married to Kathleen Thomas• We have 7 children and 7 grandchildren• One son is on active duty in the Air Force, serving tours in both Iraq and Afgahanistan• Raised on Ledgebrook Drive in Brook Park• Father John, created Brook Park Lions Club

Professional Qualifications and Various Awards:• Graduated from Midpark High School – Class of 1973• Attended L.C.C.C. – Journalism and Oral Communications• Worked for United States Postal Service for 36 years, retired as Postmaster• Nationally Recognized Facilitator meeting & training sessions for U.S. Gov’t• Former Vice President of Education for Berea Toastmasters• Served on the Board of Directors for S.T.A.R.T.,(Support to at Risk Teens), a division of Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries for 4 years• Recipient of Award for Oral Communications from Dr. Roy Berko, L.C.C.C.• Member of the Development Team for Cleveland Federal Community Leadership Institute, a branch of the Federal Executive Board Of Cleveland, Specializing in Communication and Presentation Skills• Received Wings of Excellence Award from Cleveland Federal Exec. Board for portraying excellence in the work place and promoting the image of the Federal Government in the Local Community

Jack ThomasCouncil At Large

JackThomas4BP.comJack Thomas,Candidate, Council at LargeBrook Park, OH 44142.

Paid for by Committee to Elect Jack Thomas : Jack Thomas, Treasurer 15913 Remora Blvd. 44142

[email protected]

Since my first ad in this paper, I’ve been very busy doing research to deliver presentations to various groups, including residents and City Council itself. My purpose was to show my approach to the job. During those sessions, I have pointed out that the numbers for our recreation center listed in the City Annual Financial Report are inaccurate and therefore ineffective as tools in setting future budgets and expectations. I also created a flyer that I presented to West Side residents on how the recreation center could have been marketed when the downward trend began. Next, I fought for the restoration of the snowplow program for seniors based on figures given by the city and history from the National Weather Service related to these services. Unfortunately, the answer I receive is always the same- we don’t have the people anymore. I get that, so maybe we got rid of too many at once since the alternatives are proving to be cost prohibitive. I also pointed out that the numbers in the CAFR for the dog warden have grown in calls answered per year from about 70 per year for 8 years straight and then they jumped astronomically to over 1200 per year! Again, it was obvious that no one had paid attention to this. Later in the meeting we found out that the warden had been awarded a new truck for his efforts and it was being sent to Iowa for a $13,000.00 retrofit. Now there’s money well spent. Finally, any questions you have on my stance on other issues facing our city, (including why I think the transfer of our 911 calls to a central call center may come back to bite us in the end), can be answered by viewing the Plain Dealer sponsored debate for candidates for Council at Large. It was very professional and a 3rd uninterested party served as the moderator. That debate is in contrast to the one hosted by the city in which the Mayor was the moderator. The website to view this debate is www.cleveland.com Thanks again for your support and I look forward to serving you in the future.

Jack ThomasCouncil At Large

Jack Thomas,Candidate, Council at Large Brook Park, OH 44142.

JackThomas4BP.com [email protected]

The choice is YOURS.If you don’t want more of this:If you want more of this:

• Increased City taxes• Cuts in the senior snow plowing• Cuts in the senior grass cutting• Cuts to City employee’s work force• Privatization of city services• Suing residents of our City

• Mayor fiscal accountability• Restoring senior services• Transparency in city government• Stops the Mayor’s attempt to privatize• End the suing of residents• Having your vote count & voice heard

Say no to the Mayor’s Choice.

...VOTE the Independent Voice.Independent Voice

Jim Astorino (Council President)Carol Horvath (Law Director)Julie McCormick (Council-at-Large)Jack Thomas (Council-at-Large)Chris Graves (Council-at-Large)Tom Troyer (Council Ward 1)JimJimmy Mencini (Council Ward 2)Jan Powers (Council Ward 3)

Mayor’s Choice

VOTERS’ GUIDE2015 BROOK PARK

Tony D’Amico (Council President)Neal Jamison (Law Director)Rick Salvatore (Council-at-Large)Jeff Duke (Council-at-Large)Carl Burgio (Council-at-Large)Danny Colonna (Council Ward 1)Rich Scott Rich Scott (Council Ward 4)Ed Orcutt (Council Ward 3)

Paid for by Citizens for a New Brook Park, William D. Schmidt, 6464 Claudia Drive, Brook Park Ohio 44142.

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Real Estate Word with Chuck

So far, 2015 has been one of the busiest Real Estate years that Brook Park has seen in a long time. Most home sales were brokered by Real Estate Companies, but some transactions were handled by banks, the county or were private

party transfers. The first 3 quarters of 2015 (January 1 - September 30), shows there were 171 residential properties (single detached)

SOLD in Brook Park; as recorded in the MLS (multiple listing service). The “MLS” is a computer tool that Real Estate professionals and appraisers use to track data regarding listings and sales handled by Real Estate Brokers.

Records show a wide range of sale prices in Brook Park from a low of $32,000 to a high of over $250,000. The average price of a Brook Park SFR (single family residence) was $98,472 and a sale took an average of 68 days.

Many factors are considered when determining the true market value of any property. Some of the variables

include: year built, number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms, square footage, updates/repairs that are complete/incomplete and overall curb appeal. An experienced agent will also be able to help determine what the POS

(point–of-sale) inspection will require. There are other components studied as well to determine the market value of a home, including analyzing past sales data in area and what time of the year the valuation to be applied. All of these elements are studied by an experienced broker, who will accurately determine a realistic value

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Re-elect CouncilwomanJan Powers

An Independent Voice,NOT the Mayor’s Choice

Paid for by the Committee to Elect Jan Powers Jan Powers Treasurer 16110 Harrison Dr. 44142

[email protected] 216-676-4372

On November 3, 2015

I will continue to work for you, all of Brook Park, as long as I am "THE PEOPLE'S COUNCILWOMAN".

Some of my goals for the next council term are:Restore the senior bus as it was before 1-1-14.Restore senior snow plow as it was before 1-1-14. NOT the $250.00 to $350.00 it will cost them under the "NEW" plan.Return our waste pick-up.Propose that the 2016 budget to have a provision for 45 gal. trash cans. Several of our citizens have fallen and broken bones because of the weight and awkwardness of the overly large cans.Expansion of our youth programs to include dance and theater.An active road repair program, we do have money in the budget.Continue to fight for cutting wasteful spending. I want to thank all of you who have tirelessly worked for me and spoken to your friends and neighbors about me. I really appreciate all you have done for me and for making the past two years possible. Also, thanks to all the people who have written to me with endorsement letters: Susan Anderson, Chris Holmes, Rich Anguiano, Emma Dunlap, and others.

The one endorsement I truly need is your vote.

All I ask of you is to please vote for me one more time. This time we will all, hopefully, vote for the independent voices on council. Tom Troyer and I have shown you what two members (out of eight) on our citycouncil can accomplish for our city. Think of what could be done if wehad the entire city council working in the best interests of the citizensof Brook Park.

Vote for Tom Troyer Ward 1

I/He won’t mislead you!

Dear Ward One Residents:

The recent literature sent by Dan Colonna to Ward 1 residents attacks me with misinformation. However, His claims conveniently distort the truth. He takes credit for sponsoring legislation to spend money to renovate the Ruple Road Fire Station and claims I should have “demanded” those improvements. But, Shortly after I took office that Station was closed down. You can’t renovate a closed fire station, that’s ridiculous. I did help with the successful fight to re-open the Fire Station. Dan Colonna didn’t help, he was missing in action when it came time to help the residents with their legitimate safety concerns.

He said he “sponsored legislation” to oppose SB5. Actually, he was a co-sponsor. That means another Council person comes up with the idea and introduces the legislation and then he adds his name to the legislation after all the work is done. What he forgets to tell everyone is that when he was on Council he voted to impose a labor contract, which was a main component of SB5. He grandstands about opposing a bill that attacks labor unions at the same time he is attacking a labor union. Sounds hypocritical to me!

He claims I never communicate with the residents yet I have placed a Ward One report in almost every edition of the Hometown News since I took office. It is the only Brook Park newspaper that goes into every home. Even your friends and neighbors in other wards get my report!

He claims I did not fund some projects. I proposed amendments to our budget that would fund all of the important services our residents need, without spending our city savings. Some of the amendments I asked for were eventually passed but there was still too much spending on other items.That’s why I opposed the budget. My proposed amended budget would have left plenty of funding for our sidewalks and our Senior services without spending down our savings.

My opponent also takes credit for the formation of the Beautification & Pride Committee. I have been actively involved for many years in that program and rarely see my opponent at the meetings or involved in the activities, in fact when he does show up at the meetings it’s usually just for the last few minutes of the meeting. Once again, he always seems to be missing in action but does not have any problem taking credit for the work of others.

In conclusion I would like to point out that his literature asks you to return him to City Council Ward 1. Funny thing is he was never the Ward 1 Council representative. He can’t even be truthful on the simple things, how can we trust him at all?

I am asking for your vote to return me as your Councilman. I may not be the Mayor’s choice, but I am your voice. In fact, the Mayor has repeatedly referred to me as “his conscience”. Everyone needs a conscience.

Tom TroyerWard One Councilman

Paid for by friends of Tom Troyer, 18352 Kalvin Drive, Brook Park 44142

“BECAUSE THERE IS SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE IN THE RECORD TO SUPPORT SERB’S FINDINGS THAT THE CITY COMMITTED UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES, THIS COURT AFFIRMS SERB’S SEPTEMBER 29, 2011 ORDER.”

As a councilman who votes YES 100% of the time, my opponent wishes to suppress all dissent or ideas that are contrary to what the Administration wants. His idea of a win-win situation is one where no one ever speaks up against his agenda. at way he wins!

AAs the �re�ghters representative it was my duty to defend our members’ rights. Whether it was a wrongful termination, unjust discipline or a contract violation, I represented the rights of �re�ghters. e vast majority of the time the courts and hearing officers upheld my position.

What my opponent is accusing me of would be like feeling sorry for a bank robber and blaming the prosecutor for holding the bank robber to the law.

IIt bothers me that my opponent appears to be more concerned about defending the Administration than he is about what is the right thing to do. I am disappointed that my opponent does not understand the need to stand up for working families. is makes me wonder whether he will have the best interests in mind for the working families of Brook Park.

Will my opponent be an advocate for the old saying, �You can’t �ght City Hall��

II will be an elected representative of the People. at is the type of strong leadershop I will bring to City Council as the Council President. Please don’t be fooled by my opponent’s false allegations. I will continue to work hard for the people of Brook Park.

Sincerely,

ere he goes again!

Paid for Friends of Astorino, Patti Patton Astorino, 6258 Engle Rd., Brook Park, OH 44142

$250.00 without Coyne’s assistance. Does this whole deal pass the smell test for you?

If Coyne had been negotiating directly with contractors for a city contract, it seems reasonable to think he could have arrived at a much better price than $250.00, more like $200.00.

Then, even if there were 500 seniors in the program not 200, the total cost of the program would only be $100,000 and with the city spending $85,000 that would leave a balance of $15,000 that could be divided up by all 500 participants for a total of only $30.00 for each one to have snow plowing for the year. But that would be too reasonable and not the program designed by the Mayor.

Snow Plowingfrom page 1

12 year period of our greatest profitability. And who do you think was the culprit who had so little concern for using all of the revenue available for our capital needs that he would reduce the tax split by 5%? It was none other than our own Mayor Coyne. Not only did he never have a 60/40 split, he even reduced the 70/30 split that he did have to 75/25.

(2.) The mayor discussed the new jobs coming to Ford Motor. He reported there have been 215 jobs added in the past year and that these new jobs created $2.4 million in payroll. He told the people of this community, as he had many times, those new jobs only create $48,000 in additional income taxes. Now, I realize the Mayor may not have a high opinion of the mentality of Brook Park residents, but simple math that we all learned in the second grade tells us that for $2.4 million in payroll to be created by 215 jobs that the average compensation of those jobs would be approximately $11,000 a year, or about $5.50 an hour for a 40 hour work week. That’s about $4,000 a year less than minimum wage. Instead the 215 jobs were all being paid more than $28/hour so the annual total salary, again using simple math, would be approximately $60,000. For the 215 employees that would be total payroll of $12.5 million a year and at a 2% tax rate that is $250,000 in tax revenue for the city, not $48,000.

For a man that claims he never lied to the people of this community he sure seems to be misrepresenting facts.

Toilet Paperfrom page 5


The Old Guard of Brook Park City Council

Rick SalvatoreCurrently: Council-at-LargeRunning for: Council-at-LargeYears on Council: 25+Legislation Adopted: 3

Tony D’AmicoCurrently: Council-at-LargeRunning for: Council PresidentYears on Council: 4Legislation Adopted: 0

The voting record of the rubber stamping trio this year shows that they not only underperform but also can’t think for themselves and follow the mayor’s lead on all issues that have been presented.

Carl BurgioCurrently: Council-at-LargeRunning for: Council-at-LargeYears on Council: 16Legislation Adopted: 1

From January 2014 to October 2015, 78 ordinances were passed. 62 of those ordinances were introduced by Mayor Tom Coyne.

Paid for by Citizens for a New Brook Park. William Schmidt. Treasurer. 6464 Claudia, Brook Park, OH 44142

‘/”

Ward 3 Report, October 2015

Paid for by Citizens for a New Brook Park, William D. Schmidt, Treasurer, 6464 Claudia, Brook Park, OH 44142

The best discussions I had with residents for the past few months are started when they ask me the question, “What would you do different than our current Law Director?” That’s a great question. As most of you know two of the major issues that have been divisive in our community involve the closing of the Ruple Road Fire Station and the discontinua-tion of the Senior Driveway Snow Plow program. First, let’s look at the Fire Station issue. Since 1973 a city ordi-nance existed that said there will be three firemen on duty at the Ruple Road Fire Station. In May 2014 when the mayor closed the Ruple Fire Station, he did not have City Council repeal this ordinance. He simply chose to not follow the ordinance. Therefore, the mayor was acting outside his authority. He was not following the City Charter that imposes the duty on the mayor to see that all laws and ordinances are enforced. If I were the Law Director I would have the duty and obligation to correct this infraction of the City Charter. Since the current Law Director did not take any action, the people circulated petitions, placed the matter on the ballot and passed the amended ordinance to re-open the Fire Station. All these actions are permitted by the Charter. However, the Law Director then felt it is his duty and obligation to sue the residents over this action because he believes it is a violation of the charter. Now he is going to do his job and enforce the Charter. Why didn’t he do his job before and enforce the Charter when the mayor closed the Fire Station and refused to enforce the ordinance?

Also in 2014, the mayor decided to discontinue the Senior Drive-way Snow Plowing service. However, he did not ask City Council to repeal the city ordinance; he simply chose to ignore the ordinance. Once again the mayor was in violation of his mayoral duties that are outlined in the City Charter. Again, the Law Director made the decision to take no action against the mayor. If I were the Law Director I would have the duty and obligation to take action to make sure all laws and ordinances are enforced by the mayor. I would not practice the Selective Enforce-ment that currently is applied. Going back to the question I am being asked at the door, “What would you do different than our current Law Director?” Electing me as the Law Director will mean that the laws of the City of Brook Park will be applied equally. There will no longer be Selective Enforce-ment of the laws. I will not provide shelter to elected officials that choose to violate any of the laws and ordinances of Brook Park. It is the Law Director’s responsibility and obligation to make sure everyone is treated equally under the law. It has not been happening in Brook Park. The people of Brook Park deserve a Law Director that will vigi-lantly monitor the conduct of the elected officials that are entrusted to serve the public. As your Law Director, you will never have to ask me, “Why are you enforcing the law on me, when you don’t apply the same laws to our city officials?” With me as your Law Director, everyone will be treated equally under the law.

Hat’s off to Terry Hugo!

This wonderful neighbor, who owns “The Geek Shop” for automotive repairs at the corner

of Brook Park Road and West 150 Street, has offered to snow plow (FREE) all qualifying seniors’ driveways in ALL of Fairlawn!

What a wonderful and selfless act! THANK YOU, TERRY!

For the rest of Ward 3 (and the city) please check my website (JanPowers4BP.com) for a list of private snow plow companies that you can hire.

Boss Pro-Karting will be coming to 18301 Brook Park Rd. Our young folks will be very happy! Every new business is great, adds to our income taxes, to help us run our city. Please give all our businesses your support.

We have had numerous problems on various streets in Ward 3. I would like to send a message to all parents: “Train up a child in the way that he shall go and when he is old, he will not depart from it”. Proverbs 22:6.

I am currently working on a program for “Neighbor Helping Neighbor” in which we reach out to our home bound seniors and extend the hand of friendship with a visit and/or to find small ways to offer them a little help. Often a short visit is all they need to lift their spirits and make their day.

We OWE our seniors for the community they built for us. Many of the original residents are still living in the homes they purchased when they were first built, and still paying real estate taxes. Let’s honor them by recognizing their contributions and sacrifices by restoring the services for which they continue to pay.

Jan Powers

surplus then increases our cash reserves or rainy day fund by the $4,500,000.

So, now you see the decision the Finance Director is faced with. Does he pay for the senior snow plowing, sidewalk repairs, and cross connected sewers with the excess cash he has which would reduce this year’s addition to the rainy day fund by $1,000,000 or does he keep the

sound insulation savings account money in this year’s operating revenue and add $1,000,000 to the operating fund cash reserves?

What would you do if you were the Finance Director? My opinion after talking to him is that he will put the $1,000,000 back in the sound insulation savings account and pay for these services out of the surplus money that is coming in this year.

Dilemmafrom page 1

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Your Strong, Independent VoiceNot a Political Insider

I am proud of the fact that I was one of the few community leaders who stood up against the closing of the Ruple Road Fire Station. I was happy to work vigorously with the residents of Ward One to get Issue 2 on the ballot for a vote of the people. I am delightedthat we received the support of the voters to re-open the Fire Station. The people have spoken and the Ruple Road Fire Stationshould remain open. I have listened to your concerns and I know what issues are important to you. In my first term, I have stood up to Mayor Coyne on your behalf. The Mayor’s proposals and actions on the closing of the Ruple Road Fire Station, eliminating senior services, privatizing city services, no-bid contracts, and overspending in the budget have all met with my opposition. The policies of Mayor Coyne’s administration should meet the needs of the community and I will work hard to make sure that happens in my second term.

Paid for by Friends of Tom Troyer, 18352 Kalvin Drive, Brook Park 44142

AS YOUR COUNCILMAN, I MADE A DIFFERENCE BY BEING:

FOR Continuing Senior Services FOR Reinstating the Sidewalk Improvement Program (ord. 9918-2014)

FOR The Reduction of Elected Officials’ Salaries FOR A Comprehensive Flood Remediation Program AGAINST The City suing residents over election results AGAINST The privatization of our Paramedic Ambulance (EMS) AGAINST The privatization of Trash Pickup AGAINST The spending down of our savings (fund balances)

TOM TROYERWard 1 Council

I will continue to work for the people, not political interests. I am the ONLY independent choice.

www.TomTroyer.com 216.265.9159 [email protected]

Mobile Food Pantry at Redeemer ChurchBrook Park Beautification & Pride Comm.Best of Brook Park AwardAudrey’s OutreachC.E.R.T.

Re-Elec

t

“Don’t worry guys, I’ll take care of these people with this lawsuit. Then we can run the town the way we want.

Imagine the people thinking we work for them!”

Paid for by Citizens for a New Brook Park, William Schmidt, 6464 Claudia, Brook Park, OH 44142







www.jimastorino4bpk.com Paid for by Friends of Astorino. Patti Patton Astorino, Treasurer. 6258 Engle Rd., Brook Park, OH 44142

Dear Neighbors:

The time is now to take back our city. The time is now to say NO to citizens being forced to haul yard waste; to say NO to destroyed youth programs; to say NO to a closed Rec. Center; and to say NO to cutting Senior services like grass cutting and snow removal. The time is now to RESThe time is now to RESTORE AND PROTECT OUR SERVICES. The time is now for a clean sweep. I humbly ask for your vote to be COUNCIL PRESIDENT.

North Shore AFL-CIO Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #15 (FOP)United Steel Workers District 1 Ohio Patrolmen's Benevolent Association (OPBA)Communications (CWA #4340) AFSCME (State, County, Municipal Employees)Baker's Local #19 (BCTGM) Baker's Local #19 (BCTGM) International Association of Machinists (IAM)Worker's United Northern Ohio Fire Fighters

ENDORSED BY:

“Jim Astorino has a common sense approach to solving problems; that means good government.”

Jimmy MenciniWard 2 Councilman

“Jim’s qualifications and accomplishments have earned him my support and respect... his dedication to the residents and well-being of the city cannot be matched by his opponent. Jim is trustworthy and honest and understands the importance of being truly independent and not being influenced by aby any person or group.”

Russell Horner

“I have known Jim Astorino and his family for many years. Our city needs his leadership, experience, and honesty.”

Bernie SpinaFormer Brook Park Councilwoman

BROOK PARK IS FACING CHALLENGING TIMES.

THERE ARE TWO DIFFERENT WAYS TO DEAL WITH THE CHALLENGES.

With Astorino, you control spending and honor your budget.With D’Amico-nomics and the Mayor, you increase taxes.

With Astorino, you cut deficits through growth and less wasteful spending.With D’Amico-nomics and the Mayor, you increase taxes.

With Astorino, you create incentives that move us all forward.With D’Amico-nomics and the Mayor, you increase taxes.

They both work. The difference is...

ASTORINO WORKS FOR YOU.D’AMICO-NOMICS WORKS AGAINST YOU AND FOR THE MAYOR’S AGENDA.

Were They Psychic? - WordPress.com · 10/11/2015 · October 25, 2015 Our Hometown News

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