Published: September 05, 2009 01:54 am      

LETTERS: Sept. 5, 2009

Incidents not first time for vocal group at City Council meetings



After reading Steve Kozarovich’s opinion in the “Cheers and Jeers” column Aug. 26, I felt I needed to respond so the people in our community would know what happened at our City Council meeting.

At our Aug. 20, 2009, council meeting, Vickie Denhart, a senior citizen, was at the podium speaking on issues that concerned her. As she was speaking, a small group of people who call themselves the “progressives” began making “catcalls” and one even started making whining sounds like a that of a dog.

I asked that these people stop and allow the elderly lady to speak. At that time, Roger Baylor started hollering and would not sit down. The police officer walked over to Roger to escort him out. As they were leaving, another one in the group started to act up and when the officer turned to quiet him, Mr. Baylor moved to within inches of this lady and called her a “lying b---.” She was obviously frightened, and at that time Mr. Baylor was removed.

As the meeting went on, the remainder of this group was disruptive and made gestures as they left. It was very disturbing considering two of these five people are guest columnists and write for The Tribune and some are the Mayor’s appointments to various boards.

Please understand, this is not the way our City Council conducts its business. The members of the council are civil towards each other, and we all appreciate our citizens’ views as well as each others.

Unfortunately, this is not the first such incident with this group. This same group followed Steve Price out to the hall and then to his car, cursing Steve because he would not agree with them to turn Spring Street into a two-way street at a different meeting. These are not isolated incidents. It is a shame that a few people will be disruptive while the remainder of the public are very respectful.

So that the citizens of our community will have an opportunity to know what the Council will be working on, passage of ordinances and information in general, I am in the process of starting a Web site that allows you to read or hear the entire council meetings, how we vote and issues that are before the council.

Thank you.

— Dan Coffey, District 1 Council, New Albany



Even if waste rate rises, cost is less than years ago



Larry Howard wrote a fairly rational letter on Aug. 27, 2009. He sounds like a fellow I’d like to know better. I, too, am disappointed at New Albany’s inability to maintain services in the areas of yard-waste and non-garbage item removal.

However, Mr. Howard’s engagement in the particulars is deficient. As I read his submission, I read it as a critique of our incumbent mayor. The outsourcing of trash/garbage collection is something that Mayor England has criticized, if not demagogued. The contracting of these services is something Doug England would rightfully deny responsibility for.

Yet, contracting with Southern Indiana Waste Systems, now apparently operated by a company called “Eco-Tech,” was, in fact, a bold and proper move by our previous mayor, James Garner.

The measurable cost of collection services when conducted by city employees exceeded $18 a month. SIWS offered the city a rate under $13, if I recall correctly. Whether we received a bill for it or not, we all were paying far more for garbage/trash collection in 2006 than we are paying today. The SIWS contract, to date, continues to be a much better deal for New Albanians than what we were getting in the first half of this decade.

Mayor Garner (and SIWS) moved heaven and earth to protect the employment of the city workers. That was the only arguable aspect of the “privatization” of those services. As I recall it, four of 28 city employees declined to take the drug tests, or to seek CDL certifications required to work for the private contractor. All city employees were offered employment with equal benefits and wages.

The contract approved between the city and SIWS envisioned annual CPI rate increases (to the city). The City Council, fully cognizant of the true costs, has to date failed to assess a billed cost sufficient to pay the current bills. That is, we are paying less than the cost of collection services today. But we, as a city, are still paying it. But instead of us paying the actual costs, we are robbing other funds to subsidize garbage collection. Mayor England, as do I, believes that we should all be paying the actual costs through our monthly rates and not be robbing other funds.

Finally, and most importantly, even if a rate increase is approved, and our public works employees are assigned to non-collection tasks, we are still paying less than what we were paying in 2006 and 2007. No one, including the mayor, the City Council, or Mr. Howard, seems to acknowledge that fact.

Mayor Garner, at the apparent cost of his re-election, made the right choice in 2006 to outsource collection services. Even if the council approves a rate increase, ratepayers are the winners, and there are no unwilling losers. We pay less today than we did three years ago. James Garner deserves credit for that.

— Randy Smith, New Albany



Recent article highlights importance of dollars being spent locally



Kudos to your newspaper; staff writer, Leslie Harmon and her recent article, “Keeping Southern Indiana Weird;” and to all locally-owned businesses in our community.

The staff of Generations Funeral Home in New Albany echoes the sentiments expressed in the article on the significance and impact of spending our dollars on locally-owned products and services. The trickle effect of keeping expenditures local is ongoing and beneficial to the entire community, not only in terms of dollars spent, but also creativity, ingenuity, fellowship and community spirit. Let us continue to encourage local businesses to utilize each other’s products and services and to promote the same to the people whom we serve.

— The Staff of Generations Funeral Home, New Albany