One More Bad Call

City officials wasted more taxpayer money by spending $41,200 on a housing study to determine what types of residential dwellings will be needed in the future.

The results of the study are glaringly similar to the already existing City “Master Plan.” In the video below, Council President Moe Romeo makes an unsuccessful attempt to convince a skeptical citizen that the studies are not the same.

Links are available below to compare both studies.

• time: 3 min. 26 sec.

BELOW ARE TWO LINKS TO THE ZIMMERMAN/VOLK STUDY:

AN ANALYSIS OF RESIDENTIAL MARKET POTENTIAL

 NOVEMBER 2008

• TARGET MARKET DESCRIPTIONS

• METHODOLOGY APPENDIX TABLES

PLEASE CLICK BELOW TO VIEW THE ALREADY EXISTING

SOUTH EUCLID MASTER PLAN

Please see other posts at SEO regarding the housing study:

• More Socialized Real Estate?

• Flawless Assessment

Prolonging The Agony

Please click on image below to view full size.

Although the Mayor and her Administration view their aggressive tactics to obtain any available sources of funding as commendable, “robbing Peter to pay Paul” will not benefit the citizens of South Euclid or the County.

Why would Cuyahoga County allocate money for a municipally funded, highly unnecessary retail and housing complex, during the worst economic times since The Great Depression? Particularly perplexing when there are dangerous issues requiring immediate attention such as the rebuilding of the I-90 Bridge and other huge county infrastructure needs.

As for South Euclid City officials, it would behoove them to expend such zeal and ambition to address the unacknowledged and unacceptable violent crime situation. Some equally noble efforts to obtain millions of dollars for the safety forces and local infrastructure improvements would be impressive.

How is it, county sources of funding are presumed available despite the Port Authority's new "development-finance policy" seeking to minimize their support of suburban retail projects?

Please click on the links below to read details of the Port Authority's decision:

• Port Authority Balks At Retail Projects

• Behind The Scenes

Please see other Cedar Center related information:

• Irreconcilable Details

• Failure To Communicate

• Waiting For The Financial Timeline...

The Old Switcheroo

“Cedar Center developer pulls out, South Euclid still seeks properties"

- The Cleveland Plain Dealer - October 04, 2006:

• “...City Council President Moe Romeo expects the council to support Welo and the case at a closed meeting Monday. Romeo said he favors pressing on, even if the city has to borrow money and later recover it from a buyer...”

Please click on article below to view full size.

“Cedar Center deal falters”

- The Sun Messenger - October 05, 2006:

• “...Plans unveiled in December, 2004, have the city buying all properties at Cedar Center, on the northwest corner of Cedar and Warrensville Center roads, then selling them to a developer...”

Please click on article below to view full size.

“Fate of S. Euclid plaza shops uncertain”

- Cleveland Plain Dealer - December 20, 2006:

• “...South Euclid officials have pledged to help Cedar Center businesses find space in a new building at the Cedar Center site, after it is sold to a developer, or somewhere nearby...”

Please click on article below to view full size.

“SE will buy Cedar Center Properties”

- The Sun Messenger - December 21, 2006:

• “...Once the agreements are finalized, the city will buy the properties from the owners and sell them to a developer...”

Please click on article below to view full size.

“Cedar Center: a green light”

- The Sun Messenger - January 11, 2007:

• “...South Euclid is negotiating with four developers. Once chosen, the developer will buy the property from the city...”

Please click on article below to view full size.

Another Piece Of The Puzzle

Please click on image to view full size.

Please click on image to view full size.

Please click on the link below to view the "PRELIMINARY OFFICIAL STATEMENT, DATED JANUARY 14, 2009 - CITY OF SOUTH EUCLID, OHIO - GENERAL OBLIGATION NOTES":

• http://www.scribd.com/doc/11051702/Prelim#document_metadata

Please click on image to view full size.

Please see related post at SEO:

• Evading Public Deliberation

Altered Topography

Homeowners on W. Anderson Road are experiencing flooding issues and have contacted the Building Department and their Councilwoman to receive help.

• time: 2 min. 31 sec.

The photographs below are of the Anderson and Green Road area in South Euclid, before and after the Cutter's Creek development. Note the proximity of W. Anderson Road (circled in red below) to the construction site.

Please click on image to view full size.

Please also see another related post at SEO:

• Failure To Act!

Evading Public Deliberation

The original $17 million that elected officials decided to wager on Cedar Center has now grown to $20 million with Ordinance 01-09. Once again, the legislative process did not include any open discussion.

At the South Euclid Council meeting on January 12, 2009, City Engineer, Andy Blackley announced that South Euclid has obtained a loan from the District One Public Works Integrating Committee for the amount of $287,000. This money is to be used for infrastructure improvements that are necessary for the reconstruction of Cedar Center.

• time: 3 min. 03 sec.

Please click on the following link to view the entire text of Ordinance 01-09:

• http://www.scribd.com/doc/10358057/Ord0109

Click on the links below to view information regarding the District One Public Works Integrating Committee:

• http://bocc.cuyahogacounty.us/en-US/public-works.aspx

• http://planning.co.cuyahoga.oh.us/dopwic/

• http://planning.co.cuyahoga.oh.us/dopwic/09awards.html

Dissatisfied Customers

The Cleveland Plain Dealer hosts local “forums” or community message boards which promotes public discussion on their website, Cleveland.com. Of course, one must take the unfiltered and often unverifiable nature of this forum into consideration. Still, it could be considered a sampling of citizens’ thoughts and opinions. Below are some reader’s comments that were posted recently on the South Euclid forum at Cleveland.com. It appears the natives are becoming restless.

In the 27 second audio clip below, Ward 4 Councilwoman Jane Goodman explains there is a realignment of City Service Department employees to accommodate the continued and accelerated municipal involvement with Cedar Center.


Please click on image to view full size.

• time: 0 min. 27 sec.

Please see related post at SEOversight:

Tax Increase Necessary For PAY Raises?

You WILL Be Donating

Why wasn’t the funding secured prior to starting construction on the Playground of Possibilities?

What happens if sufficient donations are not received to cover the remaining costs?

Was the original $150,000 “loaned” to the project ever returned to the general fund?

Do city officials actually believe that the playground will operate fiscally independent thru ample donations?

Will the taxpayers be on the hook again?

Below is a video which was previously posted on SEOversight. Its relevance is noteworthy enough to review. It is unclear why the funding for the “ground cover” is now unavailable. Mayor Welo stated $150,000 “loaned” to the project from City funds included that cost.

• time: 2 min. 40 sec.

Please click on image to view full size.

Please also see other related posts:

• Wake Up Call

• Ward 4 Meeting

• Playground Update

• Trifecta Of Panic

• Letter To The Editor

• Financial Discrepancies

Good Points

Below is an always appreciated reader's comment which was made on the post, "Where Have All The Minutes Gone?" We have included our response. If you wish to read or post comments, as described at the top, right column of South Euclid Oversight - simply click on the title of any post which appears as the "headline."

We will take immediate action to organize the information display in an archived format for easier upload.

We encourage all to motivate everyone you know with an interest in South Euclid to take notice and speak up. Now is the time.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

A few things:

1) The blog needs to be broken up into pages. Loading the entire site is painful due to the amount of embedded flash video, etc.

2) The city has always been behind in posting minutes - often by six months or more. I agree, they need to step up the pace of posting to be current

3) I think the better focus should be on projects such as municipal wireless, Playground of Possibilities, crime and most of all: Cedar Center, which, if anyone has noticed, is the biggest white elephant of all.

January 8, 2009 7:59 AM

SOUTH EUCLID OVERSIGHT said...

Thanks for your input. We'll attempt to organize the information so it isn't all loading at once.

We appreciate your advice. We like to monitor different aspects of City activity for many reasons, but also don't want to limit the information provided. We're always open to suggestions on topics. SEOversight recognizes the need to concentrate on the topics you have mentioned. Those indeed are the "biggies."

Cedar Center has become the top candidate for insanity, but equally disturbing is the lack of attention given to the alarming rise in crime. There seems to be an attitude from City officials that denies the acknowledgment of such activities for the sake of image control. Not addressing the problem head on will be the demise of South Euclid. It is unfortunate that the money and efforts put toward Cedar Center were not appropriated to make South Euclid safe. Now THAT would really boost the City's image and give the politicians their sought after accolades. It is most unfortunate they can't grasp that concept.

Please always feel free to contact us via SEOversight, or directly at seoversight@sbcglobal.net.

Thanks again, and do spread the word.

Where Have The Minutes Gone?

Simply because City officials state something as fact does not make it so. For instance, although they published in the South Euclid "Update" that they are "Keeping You Informed," actions from inside City Hall prove otherwise.

The city website is not kept current with City Council Meeting Minutes.

In the Jan/Feb issue of "Update," there is barely a mention of Cedar Center, surprising that a project demanding so much public money and man hours would have such little commentary from elected officials.

Please click on image to view full size.

With the exorbitant salaries being doled out, it's not asking too much to keep those who pay those hefty wages up to date on city matters.

Please click on the link below to review salaries at City Hall:

• 2008 Salaries

What Happened?

According to the Cuyahoga County Treasure's Office, the following City-owned parcels had fallen into delinquent status for the tax year 2007, but they were paid and "current" on November 17, 2008. $11,456.34 was the total amount accrued and paid in penalties. The 6 properties are located at Cedar Center. It is unclear why these 6 parcels were the only properties which were delinquent in payment, of the approximately 59 that make up the Cedar Center "project."

Amount of penalty paid on parcel # 025 = $2,318.68:

• http://auditor.cuyahogacounty.us/repi/taxbill.asp?txtParcel=704-24-025&year=2007

Amount of penalty paid on parcel # 020 = $3,687.36:

• http://auditor.cuyahogacounty.us/repi/taxbill.asp?txtParcel=704-24-020&year=2007

Amount of penalty paid on parcel # 018 = $1,324.17:

• http://auditor.cuyahogacounty.us/repi/taxbill.asp?txtParcel=704-24-018&year=2007

Amount of penalty paid on parcel # 016 = $1,272.42:

• http://auditor.cuyahogacounty.us/repi/taxbill.asp?txtParcel=704-24-016&year=2007

Amount of penalty paid on parcel # 044 = $322.71:

• http://auditor.cuyahogacounty.us/repi/taxbill.asp?txtParcel=704-24-044&year=2007

Amount of penalty paid on parcel # 006 = $2,531.00:

• http://auditor.cuyahogacounty.us/repi/taxbill.asp?txtParcel=704-24-006&year=2007

YEAR IN REVIEW 2008

YEAR IN REVIEW 2008 - PART 1 -

• time: 9 min. 55 sec.

YEAR IN REVIEW 2008 -PART 2 -

• time: 3 min. 53 sec.