VOTE YES AUG. 5^th

 If you want to become informed before you cast your ballot, please take the time to read this letter.  

 

Iron Mountain City Council Report Card Since January 1, 2008

 

Solutions and Ideas Proposed by  Tchokreff – Burke – Caudell

Results:      None

 

Solutions and Ideas Proposed by  Rosen – Farragh – Peterson

Results:      9 issues Resolved - 8 issues Attempted to Resolve

17 Issues Dealt With So Far – Imagine If We Didn’t Have The Three  New Council Memers. THANK YOU FOR VOTING THEM IN LAST NOV.!!!

 

Below are the issues that have been dealt with in a very positive fashion by our new city council members. This is “progress and moving forward” in a very responsible way. Although the spin from the “other side” paints a very different picture of their “forget the past and move forward” mantra, the only real change that has taken place in our city is in fact from the three new council members. The statements from the three being recalled say this is all about Marquart. Apparently they need to understand what it is about. To make it VERY clear what the recall is about, all they need to do is read that which appears above. The three being recalled have not presented a single solution or idea. The old adage applies here: “If you’re not part of the solution, you are part of the problem”. We need leaders not puppets.

 

The incumbents keep saying that the three new council members have personal agendas without ever stating what they are. The new council members continually bring forth the ISSUES that have hurt our city and they offer solutions, only to be voted down with the smugness of their majority voting power. It started the very first council meeting in January. Voting VanLaanen in as Mayor was expected. They could have shown a willingness to work together as a council by voting one of the new council members in as Mayor Pro Tem. Also, after the vote to dismiss the City Manager failed 4 -3, how could they vote 4 -3 to give the manager a $3,000 bonus? It was proven beyond any doubt that our manager had failed on so many levels. They give him a bonus for doing a bad job? This is what is hurting our city.

 

The next 12 months will be a challenge, as many difficult decisions are pondered.  If we can gain City Council members who can affect change by offering solutions with proper direction, our city has limitless potential. We do need to come together as a community, which is what the recall election of August 5 will afford.

 

Rental Housing Ordinance (NEW Members  Fixed)      This issue was two years old and has needlessly cost our city over $16,000. During the December 2007 council meeting, Bruce Rosen and Don Christy requested a simple meeting with the council to resolve this. They were called extortionists at that meeting. Still, the meetings took place and the result is that we now have an agreed upon rental housing ordinance. Tina Peterson was commended by Don Christy for being instrumental in her efforts to bring agreement to this issue.  

                                                                                                                                                                       

“A” Street Project (NEW Members  Fixed)       The "A" Street project proposal of $1,200,000.00 was contested by the three new council members. This was trimmed down to $35,000.00 by Dave Farragh using our own DPW personnel. They will be replacing the sewer lines which are in terrible condition.  In one swoop, Mr. Farragh saved the city of Iron Mountain much more than he ever earned from his many years of working on the DPW.

                                                                       

5% TV Franchise Fee (They endorse)               During one of the first council meetings after the new council members were seated, the new members moved to eliminate the 5% Cable TV fee. Tchokreff, Burke, Caudell, and VanLaanen voted against elimination of this fee. It’s apparent that our residents will be stuck with this unnecessary fee until the makeup of our council changes.

           

Millie Hill Subdivision (They JUST STOPPED IT)         The Millie Hill Subdivision was stalled for NINE years. This whole development was addressed immediately by our three new council members and was approved to proceed forward.  When this project is complete, it should bring in $400,000 in additional tax revenues each year to our city. We recently found out that Marquart has stopped this project by finding a state law prohibiting burning in Iron Mountain. Burning permits will no longer be issued in our city, therefore this project is on hold until this can be cleared up. (The developers need to burn stumps and debris to clear the land for construction.) WHY STOP PROGESS!!

 

Water Storage Tank – Chlorination (We now can have GOOD Water in our City once again.)           Dave Farragh addressed the water chlorination problem that has been present for many years. The city was notified of this problem on December of 2006. Nothing was done until Dave Farragh took on this issue. It is very likely that our city will now provide high quality water to our residents, chlorine free! Tchokreff, Burke, Caudell, and VanLaanen have NEVER addressed this core issue.

 

STS Spending Approval (Finally we have new council members who CARE.)           Unapproved spending with STS Consultants, which is an engineering company, was never questioned by our previous City Council. Examples of this are the City Park, parking lot behind city hall, and Hydraulic Falls Road. The monthly expense for STS was averaging $40,000.00 per month prior to January; since then we have spent less than $1,000.00 per month. The new council members have notified our city manager that he must adhere to our city charter spending limit of $3,500. This is still being monitored closely.

 

Fire Dept. and Police Dept. Issues (They are still fighting any solution)          Our city has spent close to $1,000,000 in overtime and police bonuses in the last four years. Bruce Rosen has brought forward a solution that has been discussed for months now. This solution is to hire back ONE fire fighter and supplement the staffing with part time paid certified fire fighters. This will help eliminate the over time expense that is breaking the city. The truth regarding this issue is that we spend more after firing four fire fighters now. Spending more for less is never acceptable! This needs to be fixed before additional MIOSHA fines are assessed and the city is downgraded by the I.S.O. After FOUR YEARS with this problem, have Tchokreff, Burke, and Caudell ever brought forth any solution on this issue? NO.

 

Drive Way Blocked for 7 Years (Simple Solution – Communication and Care is Key!)            Bob and Julie Badini’s driveway was blocked for 7 years by parents, who were dropping their children off at the Dickinson Area Catholic School. In a matter of months, this was resolved by Bruce Rosen going to a school board meeting and working with them. Years before, when Bob and Julie Badini went to the City Council to complain, the response from Robin Tchokreff was, “I feel bad for you but there’s nothing I can do." Regardless of this very poor response, no one council person or city manager took the time to resolve this.

 

Open Dialogue Council Meetings (Voted Against – why fear more information on any issue?)          During the first few meetings in January, the new council members argued and moved for open dialogue with those citizens who took the time to address the city council. The vote was 4 – 3 against open dialogue. Receiving information from the many talented and informed citizens of Iron Mountain couldn’t be more important. It seems that Tchokreff, Burke, and Caudell believe they don’t need

additional information to make a more informed vote. Regardless of this, what does two way communication ever hurt.

 

Compliance with T.I.F.A. Plan Project List (It appears that they believe we are above the law!)       In 1997 when the Tax Increment Financing Authority last amended the plan, an approved project list was adopted. This project list specifically states the projects that are allowed to be funded with T.I.F.A. funds. Any time a project is proposed that is not included in this project list, the T.I.F.A. board must submit this proposed “new” project to the City Council. The City Council must hold a public hearing to amend the T.I.F.A. plan. This has been violated many times, with the Khoury property acquisition being the latest violation. This amendment process is also mandated by Michigan State Law Act 450. The city attorney has also rendered an opinion consistent with our T.I.F.A. Plan and Michigan State Law. Bruce Rosen has brought this legal compliance requirement to light without the old council members taking it seriously.

 

Paying Eden Caudell’s Mother (City Charter Violation)           Ann Henrickson, who is Eden Caudell's mother, was receiving $600.00 per month. She is no longer on the city payroll as this is a violation of the city charter. (Section 4.9) Bruce Rosen asked for a legal opinion from our city attorney and received confirmation that this was in fact illegal.

 

Start Street Repair Program (They voted against this! 4 -3)     Our streets have been ignored for years. The new council members argued to pass through TIF funds to start a street repair program. There would have been $740,000 to begin street repairs this year. Caudell stated in that council meeting that she didn’t want to start this precedent. We still can’t believe that statement! Caudell, Burke and Tchokreff all voted against starting to repair our streets.

 

2008 – 2009 City Budget (They Adopted a Budget that FAILS our City Charter – 4 - 3) During the budget workshop, Bruce Rosen brought forth potential budget savings that the city could have adopted which would have afforded a budget surplus of $165,000.  Instead we have a budget that affords just over $10,000 as a contingency fund. Caudell, Burke and Tchokreff voted to adopt this unrealistic budget.

 

Reassessment Investigation (How could they not ASK QUESTIONS)               The new council members initiated a formal investigation. This is currently still in progress. What we do know is that work began prior to any bid awarded, management decisions did not comply with laws, and we will need to start over. Caudell, Burke and Tchokreff never questioned the $200,000 wasted on the reassessment.

 

Legal Compliance (Common Sense and LEGAL compliance should be present)        The new council members brought forth the concept of having our city attorney review and render a legal opinion on every issue requiring legal compliance. How many proven violations of our city charter and Michigan State Laws had to be experienced before Caudell, Burke and Tchokreff would have done this?             

 

Grant Application (Getting Something DONE with solid plans and involvement)        After the November election, Bruce Rosen met with John Madigan who sits on the State’s Natural Resource Commission Board. (DNR) Mr. Madigan sent Bruce Rosen the application for grants. Our city is now being considered to receive $225,000 for Crystal Lake and a path to the Bat Cave. Application for a grant to help our city park will be made this coming fiscal year. The potential to create a City Park we will PROUD of is at hand, finally.

 

Jobs & Business Development (Part time jobs at minimum wage IS NOT the answer)            Tina Peterson has meet with the governor and various other Michigan State officials in an attempt to bring good manufacturing jobs here, predominantly in the alternative energy field. These jobs created would afford adequate salaries to support their families. Tina is still diligently working toward this end.

 

 

The most questionable issue that is present with the recall of Caudell, Burke and Tchokreff is that none of them have ever attempted to answer any of the reasons that were stated on the recall petitions. We believe that they don’t have a way to explain any of the above issues. They have simply rubber stamped everything that Marquart wanted, without question. The core issues shown above are finally being addressed by our three new council members, however, they are fought by the 4 incumbents every step of the way. It is amazing the progress that we hope this report card has shown, all due to the tremendous effort and diligence of council members Farragh, Peterson, and Rosen.

 

If you do take the time to research the council meetings, you will find that Caudell, Burke and Tchokreff have not accomplished ANYTHING.  Tchokreff has stated many times that he is the “old dog on the Council”  we maintain that anyone can spend a lifetime as a member of an organization, and NEVER accomplish one thing! By their vote and lack of ANY due diligence they have let our City Manager divide and hurt OUR CITY. It is time to stop the spin and outright lies that are put forth to line the pockets of a few at the expense of the many. Without your vote we will be powerless to improve all our lives.

 

 

WE NEED TO RECALL Caudell, Burke and Tchokreff

 

 

FOR A CITY THAT WILL BE MUCH BETTER AND ABIDE BY ALL LAWS

 

 

VOTE YES AUG. 5th

 

THE MOST IMPORTANT ISSUE AT HAND IS MAKING SURE THAT EVERYONE DOES VOTE. PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS TAKE THE TIME TO VOTE. WE MUST ENSURE WE GET OUR CITY BACK!!!!!!