This week’s workbook left me nearly speechless…nearly, but not completely.

I urge everyone to take the time to read at least the minutes of the City Council retreat (pages 30 through 32 of the workbook).  You can find it by going here http://www.cityofmiddletown.org/council/meetings.aspx and then clicking on 2/21/2012 on the “Workbooks” pulldown menu.

Just in case you can’t make it through to the end, this seemed to be the retreat’s stated conclusions:

 “Council discussed goals and listed many: (1) bolder action to address housing issues; (2) taking one thing and marketing it well; (3) create a positive message/tag line; (4) schools; (5) capitalize on the riverfront; (6) entertainment; (7) Middletown Promise; (8) clean image; (9) reduce crime/drugs; (10) employment opportunities; (11) Financial Plan; (12) user friendly/customer service consistency; (13) relationships with neighbors; (14) infrastructure – streets/water/sewer/buildings/facilities.”

Reading between the lines, here is what I surmise are some of their unstated goals:

·       Raise income and property taxes

·       Increase water and sewer rates by 50 to 75%

·       Continue ignoring our deteriorating streets (except in selected neighborhoods--wink, wink)

·       Cease televising the “work session” portion of City Council meetings

·       Begin photo enforcement of speed limits

·       Resume having additional council meetings disguised as “committee meetings”

Community Revitalization Director Adkins reported the similarities in the City’s Master Plans going back to 1963, and how they have always seemed to fail.  Look for a “new” master plan to be prepared, identical to all of these old master plans.

Legislative Item Four deals with the agreement with Higher Education Partners to either purchase (or otherwise develop?) “certain real estate” for use by Cincinnati State.  The staff report was not ready Friday and we will be ambushed with it Tuesday  it will be sprung on us at the last minute it will be presented to council Tuesday evening. (This may even take another “executive session” for the purposes of discussing the sale of public property at competitive bidding, when premature disclosure of information would give an unfair competitive or bargaining advantage to a person whose personal, private interest is adverse to the general public interest.)

PS: I wonder if any member of council has ever read the very NEXT two sentences of ORC section 121.22(G)(2): “No member of a public body shall use division (G)(2) of this section as a subterfuge for providing covert information to prospective buyers or sellers. A purchase or sale of public property is void if the seller or buyer of the public property has received covert information from a member of a public body that has not been disclosed to the general public in sufficient time for other prospective buyers and sellers to prepare and submit offers.”  Think of the dozens of times over the last couple of years that council has gone into executive session invoking section 121.22(G)(2), yet they have NEVER sold any property by competitive bidding…ONLY by negotiating with a single, selected, party!!! And sometimes they have given it away, or even PAID the party to take the property!!!

As I recall, the “upstairs, non-televised work sessions” were last instituted back in early 2008.  Does anyone else find it interesting how Mayor Mulligan seems to bring this up right AFTER elections???  If he is so afraid or ashamed to discuss the people’s business in full view of the people, why didn’t he make it an issue back in October…BEFORE the election???