ABC Water District

[stewie]

Youngstown has very few large pacels needed for major development. That is why they annexed Girard. That is why they have started annexing austintown.  There is much more annexation comming believe me.

[Youngstownshrimp]

Youngstown has a lot of "unproductive" vacant land.

[Why?Town]

Youngstown has so much vacant land that you'll have a hard time getting me to understand why it needs to aquire more.

[Penguins37]

That is why the JEDD agreement is the perfect option.  It provides the economic incentives while still reducing the overall tax rates.  The issue with so many of these possibilities is that suburban politicians are scared of losing power and hesitant to embrace any type of change. 

[connie254]

Annexing by force is not the answer, a collaburative agreement is better, but unless Williams is willing to meet with Austintown, Boardman, and Canfield govts and talk reasonably, he will get nowhere. And he will continue to drive anything good for Youngstown down the drain unless he can get crime under control, get rental properties to look good and improve Ytown's image all around, not just in business.
When he threatens to annex, even slightly threaten, he creates anger among the suburbites. But I can tell you, schooling will remain a big issue. I have heard and seen too many stories about Ytown, that will always be part of the reason suburbites are where they are. Canfield is wonderful for my son, but Austintown and Boardman would have been good for him too. I pay extra taxes to be in the suburbs school districts and I see the results of it with my son and all the children in my neighborhood.

[Penguins37]

First of all, let me commend you Connie, your commitment to education of your son is the way that all parents should be.  Furthermore, I could not agree with you more Youngstown's schools are in pitiful shape and somewhere no student who wants to receive a good education should attend.  That is why with annexation into one municipal corporation would not include the redistricting of the local school districts; this is the common practice in other communities and there is no reason we should be any different. 

Because the problems facing our valley do not stop at political sub-divisions it is imperative that people from Boardman, Canfield, Austintown and Youngstown realize the gravity of the situation and work together.  People simply saying, "the problem isn't in my town so it is not my responsibility" is not an acceptable option.  That is the type of division that has doomed our area for years.  People fail to realize that no matter what each little suburb calls itself they are all from the Youngstown area. 

As we sit today, problems are already beginning to spread to outlying areas as a result of previous years of neglect.  These problems are already visible in north Boardman and eastern Austintown.  Without everyone pooling their resources together and increasing the collective bargaining power of the Valley in grant opportunities, we are staying a dangerous course. 

When asked if he should maintain the status quo in business Lee Iacocca used to say, "Stay the course?  This is America, not the Titantic!  We must continue to reinvent ourselves and prepare ourselves for the future."  That is where we are at now. 

We are at a crossroads where we have the opportunity to leverage all of the wonderful resources we share in the Valley and utilize them to create a new community that can be a symbol of Rust Belt Revival.  The only question is if the people of the Valley are willing to come to the table and place petty differences aside so they can achieve they types of changes that are necessary. 

[connie254]

What about private?  taxes saved in YTown might have made private cost effective.

You don't much about autism and education. Ask Irishbobcat. The education in Ytown sucks but really sucks in special ed. I asked repeatedly for help moneywise and other ways and got nowhere. My son is on every waiting list there is. Because I choose to work, I make too much money and he's not eligible. Private schooling for kids like mine costs in the 5 digit range. Molly Kessler's school has a waiting list and he's too old for the Rich Center. I'm in Canfield School District and he loves every minute of it. He couldn't write his name or tie his shoes and Ytown refused to help("It doesn't pertain to school" was what the supv of spec ed said at every IEP), and I fought for OT, PT and speech to continue in Ytown. In Canfield, all those services are just done, no battles and now he can write his name in printing and cursive and he accomplished tying his shoes.
I know for a fact that the supervisors in Ytown are trying to get every child labeled spec ed that they can, not because they really are(see my other posts for that) but because they get more money from the state to "teach" these kids. Not that they're learning. The money goes into paying Wendy's friends' salaries.
For extended schooling, my son got to go to school with kids that flunked. Problem is, he's mentally around 5 and he could do more than most of these kids. Now he goes to the county summer workshops and are around kids like him. BIG difference. 
I had to report school age kids to police in Ytown for truancy. I had to know which school they went to and call the school myself to report them. Try finding out kids' last names when they are renters. If they bothered me, they got reported period.

[Youngstownshrimp]

What about private?  taxes saved in YTown might have made private cost effective.

[connie254]

But, why did you leave the city entirely?

Three words-Youngstown City Schools

[jay]

A foreclosed home in my neighborhood just sold.  The new occupants are moving in this week.  I'm hoping for the best.  We do need good people to move into our existing neighborhoods.

Both of their family cars are foreign brands. 

[northside lurker]

No thanks, I moved out 2 years ago. I was tired of loud music and cars all night long, children of all ages running around while their parents did/sold drugs, stray bullets, having my son ridiculed for being different, being called names, seeing the people on welfare with multicolored unnatural hair color and their windows wide open during the winter,reporting illegal behavior to police who did nothing.

At least the mob had better aim when they used a gun.

But, why did you leave the city entirely?  Granted, my street isn't perfect, but it sounds exponentially better than the street you moved from.  And, if my neighborhood is losing its stability, it's because people continue to leave, making room for the problematic people you're talking about.  If, instead of moving out of the city entirely, people moved to support the neighborhoods that are still stable, they wouldn't become unstable and fall into decline.

[connie254]

They already decided, and should accept the consequences of their decision.  No one forced them to move to the suburbs.  They could move back to the city and regain representation for their income taxes.  We have plenty of room.

No thanks, I moved out 2 years ago. I was tired of loud music and cars all night long, children of all ages running around while their parents did/sold drugs, stray bullets, having my son ridiculed for being different, being called names, seeing the people on welfare with multicolored unnatural hair color and their windows wide open during the winter,reporting illegal behavior to police who did nothing.

At least the mob had better aim when they used a gun.

[northside lurker]

i say let the people decide on their future. the subs already paying the majority of bills for ytown residents. as of today 70% of subs' residents pay the city income tax while the city residents pay ONLY 30% to the city coffers through the city income tax. williams would not risk his future political whatever that is through using water as annexation for additional monies for the city's coffers.

They already decided, and should accept the consequences of their decision.  No one forced them to move to the suburbs.  They could move back to the city and regain representation for their income taxes.  We have plenty of room.

[Youngstownshrimp]

Very good debate.  Of the population in YTown, how many are on government assistance?

[connie254]

Does anyone else think that the ideas of Austintown, Boardman and Canfield to form their own water district is insane?  They love to talk about how they are going to leave Youngstown behind and have their own water, however, how are they going to pay for it

i say let the people decide on their future. the subs already paying the majority of bills for ytown residents. as of today 70% of subs' residents pay the city income tax while the city residents pay ONLY 30% to the city coffers through the city income tax. williams would not risk his future political whatever that is through using water as annexation for additional monies for the city's coffers.

Exactly. Y-town gets a majority of it's income tax from suburbs. I am not going to make a slippery slope statement, but when you're on welfare, SSI, disability, retirement and not actively making an income, then Ytown cannot collect taxes from you. Remember the biggest employers are YSU, St E's and Northside, all within the city limits.