What’s the hurry? Ohio leaders have said they won’t “raid” revenues on Fitzgerald’s claims. Seems a mother’s wisdom of “think before you speak” is the best option for him to follow.
Since February, Cuyahoga County Executive Ed Fitzgerald promised us that the revenue fromCleveland’s casino would be flowing to downtownClevelandfor development purposes. When he addressed the issue with the county council in February, he said he had a plan of how all of this will work and that the money would be spent wisely on projects benefiting all Clevelanders. Well, it’s been seven months and we have yet to see this plan, other than talking points and bullet points.
That’s just it, there is no plan. So, for Fitzgerald to say that this money is needed urgently for downtown development is silly political pandering. For example, if the core of his casino revenue plan rests on spending this money immediately downtown, then why hasn’t he, or his office, reached out to the City Economic Development Director Chris Warren on the issue?Warrenis chief of regional development for Mayor Jackson with almost 40 years of experience in economic development but hasn’t even been approached by Fitzgerald or his staff. In fact, he even testified to this in a recent council committee hearing, which is public record.
Ed Fitzgerald should work together with Mayor Jackson, and even the mayors of the surrounding communities, instead of spouting rhetoric about how to spend money in their communities. He should also listen to our representatives on the county council on their well-developed ideas on investing the casino revenue money for the good of all citizens.
Impulsive spending without careful planning could hurt us economically (isn’t that what got us into this economic downturn in the first place?). Both for those who live in our neighborhoods and for those who commute into the city of Cleveland every day, perhaps looking into other ways to spend the money locally isn’t such a bad idea after all. Of course, developing and maintaining a strong, vibrant downtown is important, however, by following Fitzgerald’s vague, impulsive political whims it may come at a cost to local neighborhoods as well as the region at large.
What’s the hurry? Ohioleaders have said they won’t “raid” revenues on Fitzgerald’s claims. Seems a mother’s wisdom of “think before you speak” is the best option for him to follow.
