Public comment
Financial bind could have been avoided
Just a couple of thoughts regarding your January editorial (A cool retirement): 1) You refer to the president’s “familiar ‘create a crisis campaign.’” I disagree that terrorism and aging baby boomers are a fabrication. I believe that the president is addressing blatantly obvious real crises, not impersonating an ostrich. 2) Regarding the aging baby boom stress on Medicaid and Social Security causing local governments to “be facing an unprecedented financial crisis:” state and local governments have all known that this train wreck was coming for a long time. Then, during the decade of the ‘90s, when they enjoyed the biggest economic boom in the history of this country, they consciously chose to squander it to the point that within six months of the post 9-11 economy setting in, they were all whining that they had spent like drunken sailors for 10 years and were now bordering on bankruptcy. Now that all of that money is gone and nothing was done with it to deal with a known impending crisis, of course it’s someone else’s fault.
— David Childs, Dallas County, Texas, Tax Assessor
Disaster relief should begin at home
Regarding “By the Numbers” in the February 2005 issue: When looking at the loss of human life from the December tsunamis, Florida’s four hurricanes of 2004 pale in comparison. However, that being said, it is my opinion that many Floridians found the hurricanes no less devastating, at least on a personal level. There are still thousands of folks who have not yet been able to return to their homes, even from Charley, which was the first storm in August. As recently as January, families in the Florida Panhandle (Ivan) have yet to see an insurance adjuster! The blue roof (blue tarps) is far from extinct in our state. Finally, many small businesses will be closed forever as there is no way for their owners to make a comeback, even with federal assistance.
The millions of dollars sent to southeast Asia is certainly a good thing. Out of curiosity, I wonder how many foreign countries sent aid to Floridians last summer? Unfortunately, there are still too many folks here in the “Land of Plenty” who have lost everything and may never recover. In my opinion, we need to care for our neighbors here at home before we look at the rest of the world. By helping ourselves first, we will be a stronger nation and, therefore, may be able to better assist our foreign neighbors when they need it.
— John Singer, Environmental Services Director, Taylor County, Fla.
Community grants are lifelines for many
I am deeply disturbed at the proposed cuts for CDBG funding (March 2005 Platform). While Maui may be different than some of the other locations throughout the U.S., inasmuch as we administer our own programs, this will likely spell the end of our CDBG program altogether. We have areas of our community that have fallen victim to years of neglect and rely on this program to make the needed changes to preserve the heart and soul of our older towns. This may not be much money in some areas of the country, but to us, it is a lifeline for many critical projects that need just a bit of help when no other sources of revenue are available.
With recent revamping of our CDBG programs to produce a higher level of efficiency and compliance, we have been able to reach out to our most isolated communities with critical funding that would not otherwise be available. These monies are used to leverage funding from other sources, such as qualifying as matching funds for local grants or assisting local government in making determinations as to how certain entities are performing, since reporting is a key element of the program.
I firmly believe our revamped CDBG program can serve as a model for how to demand accountability of agencies that receive government funding of any sort.
Please do what you can to preserve this program for those communities, such as ours, that suffer from isolation and have few other options when it comes to programs such as this. It is not only the money that the program provides but the expertise and resources that are also placed at our disposal.
— Jo Anne Johnson, Maui County, Hawaii, Councilmember
Rural communities move ahead with Wi-Fi
I read American City & County every month from cover to cover and thoroughly enjoy the articles. I am all the time reading about cities who are innovative and progressive, and I would like to submit to you some information about a project we currently have in progress that I believe speaks highly of the progressive city we have here in Searcy, Ark. You have an article in the April issue by Dan O’Shea regarding Wi-Fi networks and the opportunities that are there for cities. We are having a wire-cutting ceremony on May 6, 2005, at 11:00 a.m. in one of our city parks, launching our newest city service, Wireless in the Parks. Our citizens can enjoy free wireless Internet access inside the park and eventually — once enough funding has been secured — will also have this free service in our Sports Complex. Searcy will be the first city in the state to offer free public wireless Internet access to its citizens. Wireless in the Parks is a unique opportunity for businesses to advertise their companies and build good will in the community. In doing so, they will be funding this project through advertising dollars rather than tax dollars. The city is also launching its updated Web site during the ceremony, as well as sharing other enhancements added to the city’s technology infrastructure. Cisco Systems, Avow Technology and HP have partnered with the city on these endeavors and will be on hand the day of the ceremony to give demonstrations and additional support with door prizes. Our slogan for this event we believe describes Searcy’s commitment to progress and providing quality services to our community and our citizens: “Big City Dream becomes Small Town Reality.”
— Mayor Belinda LaForce, Searcy, Ark.
I was intently reading the article on Wi-Fi networks written by Dan O’Shea and wanted to respond. I have been aware of the city of Philadelphia and its efforts for some time, but I wanted to share with you what a rural community in southwest Virginia has accomplished, which stands head and shoulders above many of the cited cities’ networks. Dickenson County has created the first countywide wireless network in the Commonwealth of Virginia and has approval by the Virginia General Assembly in the creation of a Wireless Authority to govern the system. Local government has performed all services in house in the development, and we recently have become the school division Internet service provider. The network was created to serve all functions of emergency management — fire, rescue and police — economic development and service to the citizenry. In addition, we currently provide other localities and cities guidance to replicate our success and implement their own networks. Please visit our Web site at www.dcwin.org for more information.
— Keith L. Viers, Dickenson County, Va., Administrator
Kudos for weekly online snapshot contest
This photo contest is a great idea — a good way to keep us all thinking about our differences AND our common ground.
— Michael Lein, Environmental Services Director, Carver County, Minn.