May 6, 2014 ballot: Victory!

Here's a message to the Sylvania Board of Education from me, Mad Jack.

You Lose!

From The Blade: Unofficial Results of the May 6, 2014 Election as of 5/7/2014 9:02 a.m.

Sylvania schools 3.8-mill continuing permanent new tax levy for operating expenses
Votes
FOR              4,357
AGAINST     4,864


We the people, the Great Unwashed, the hoi polloi, the commoners that you and your ilk look down upon from the dizzying heights of your ivory towers, we've had enough of you and your demands for more, more and still more!  You're nothing but a bunch of chazzers.  You've been eating at the public trough for so long that you don't fly straight anymore.

In spite of you and your best efforts, your demand for more money failed.  Now we'll get to live in Sylvania Township for a while longer, no thanks to you.

May 6, 2014 ballot: Sylvania School Lawbreakers

A few days ago I wrote about the upcoming election.  You can read about it at May 6, 2014 ballot: We're Broke, or not as it amuses you to do so.  Since then the arrogant administrators that comprise the Sylvania Board of Education (BOE) have given raises to a host of school employees, all of whom make well over the median household income (2011) of $58,720 per year, and about three times the estimated per capita income (2011) of $31,187.  Additionally, all these people enjoy full teacher benefits, retirement and perquisites.

Ask yourself if a person could live on $58,720 per year, then look at what we are paying these people and decide if they truly need a raise.

As published by the Toledo Blade on Tuesday, 4/29/2014: Sylvania School Board Approves New 3-Year Employment Contracts

Southview High School's athletic director Susie Felver, whose salary increased $4,757 to $90,314
So now we're paying a gym teacher $90 grand? WTF?!

Director of disability services Michalene Sujaritchan, who got a $5,483 raise to $104,113
Just what does a director of disability services do, anyway? I mean besides suck up money from the public trough.

Assistant principal at Northview High School, Kasey Vans, whose new $88,761 salary includes a $4,681 raise.
$88 grand for an assistant principal? What are they, nuts? What did Vans do to deserve a raise, anyway? Besides show up for work everyday. Here's a few more, again from The Blade.

Employees whose contracts were renewed for three years and their salaries are:
Joseph Shamy, food service director, $78,391
Julie Sanford, assistant curriculum director, $88,761
Amanda Ogren, assistant principal at McCord Junior High School, $87,881
David McMurray, Southview High School principal, $110,403
Chad Kolebuck, Hill View Elementary School principal, $96,371
Karen Hehl, Timberstone Junior High School assistant principal, $87,881
Darren Estelle, assistant director of information technology, $90,926
Edward Eding, Maplewood Elementary School principal, $96,371
Jeremy Bauer, Stranahan Elementary School principal, $96,371
Michael Bader, Timberstone Junior High School principal, $104,113
Alan Bacho, director of facilities, $104,113

Director of facilities, over $100 grand. For what? Fire Bacho and let the assistant principals do his job. The seem to make about as much.

This is why the Sylvania BOE is demanding more money. They spend money that doesn't belong to them like there's no tomorrow.

Keep reading, because here's the best part.

Chris Myers over at SwampBubbles posted this on Tuesday, April 29th. It seems that members of the Sylvania school system are using school resources paid for by our tax dollars to promote the new levy they don't need.  As Chris points out, this is in violation of Ohio law.  Here's a link to the article and another to the Ohio law.

SwampBubbles: Is Sylvania schools using district resources to promote the levy? The answer is yes, the question should be to what extent?

LAW Writer® Ohio Laws and Rules: 3315.07 Instructional program for employees - supplies and equipment for local school districts.

(C)
(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (C)(2) of this section, no board of education shall use public funds to support or oppose the passage of a school levy or bond issue or to compensate any school district employee for time spent on any activity intended to influence the outcome of a school levy or bond issue election.

Chris bases his accusations on email that he, personally, received from the Sylvania school system and that he displays on SwampBubbles.

This is a brand new low, even for the Sylvania BOE.  Hand out raises, demand more money from the taxpayer and use school resources to promote the tax levy.  Typical politicians.

May 6, 2014 ballot: We're Broke

Times are tough all over according to the Sylvania Board of Education.  The Sylvania school system needs more money.  A lot more.  There's only one place to get that money, and that's from property owners in the school district.  Never mind that we're already over-taxed.  What matters is the school system, because it's for the children.

This all came about because of greed and the path of least resistance.  Greed, because if you're on the Board of Education your job is easier and a lot more enjoyable if you can fund some kind of program without cutting the funding for something else.  That way, everyone with their own personal agenda is satisfied and the board members will get re-elected next term.  This dovetails nicely into the path of least resistance because it's a whole lot easier to explain why the school system has no choice but to put another levy on the ballot rather than cut unnecessary services and eliminate extraneous personnel.

It's tough to get solid information about school funding and this levy, but I've found some.  In an article from the Toledo Blade, Sylvania Schools Levy Supporters To Greet Voters At Polls

According to the article, the school system has recruited volunteers to greet the voters and encourage these people to support this brand new levy, which is a 3.8 mill continual-operating levy.  That means that once it's voted in, we can't get rid of it.  There is absolutely no way to get a levy revoked.

What voters don't realize is that up until recently, the State of Ohio was picking up a portion of those property taxes, but as of July 2013 that activity is discontinued.

From the Toledo Blade on Monday, 7/29/2013:

Ohio Cancels Property Tax Rollback - Existing Levies To Get Funding Break, But New Ones Will Not

Many Ohioans didn't realize the state was picking up as much as 12.5 percent of their local property tax bills, one Senate Republican recently said.

Which is very likely the truth.  Most people get sick when they write that check for property tax.  How many taxpayers would take the time to see how the amount is calculated and if it's correct?  Not many, I'm thinking.

Local governments and schools heading for the ballot in November to ask voters to support new or replacement levies will have to tell them that the price tags attached will be higher than they were previously told. The taxpayer will pay the entire tab for any new taxes approved.

Which is only partially true.  Up until I found this article, I hadn't been aware of that particular circumstance.  All I'd heard was the usual mantra about needing more money and how none of this was the BOE's fault.  It was the Federal government, the State, the economy, the falling property values... anything but uncontrolled, irresponsible school spending.  At the root of this is the State of Ohio making cuts to education - except that it isn't.

The recently passed [Ohio State] budget contains $717 million more in basic per-pupil subsidies for K-12 schools over the next two years...

The State of Ohio is continuing to subsidize K-12 education.  That includes Sylvania.

One item that is never spoken of, and I kind of think might be the dirty little secret that the Sylvania Board of Education wants to suppress is the current tax rate.  Information on this is hard to find, but what I did manage to find is worth reading. From the Toledo Blade on Monday, 1/27/2014:

Auditor Gets Sylvania Tax Measure - Schools To Seek Additional $4.9 Million Levy To Avoid Deficit In ’16

The article states that the school system doesn't need the money right this instant, which is what they would have us believe.  No, they say they need the additional money to avoid a deficit in 2016.  In plain English, they say if they don't get more money now, right now, in 2016 they'll be spending more money than they are taking in.  Running in the red, so to speak.  To my way of thinking, this gives them two years to decide just which expenses they'll cut back on.

So how much are we taxed right now?  According to the article:

The Sylvania schools now collect 44.98 mills of operating levies, all continuing.

Compare that to the measly 3.8 mills they are asking for now, and it doesn't seem like much.  It's only an increase of 8.44%, but that's how levies work.  Just increase the tax a little at a time and maybe no one will notice.  Until they try to buy groceries, that is.

We've been through this entire business before.  Again, according to the article:

Its most recent new levies were 4.9 mills each, passed in 2004 and 2011.

Just three years ago a new levy barely passed, and they had to hold a special election to do it.  That levy was supposed to 'stabilize everything', according to the school board.  But now they're back again, asking for more money.

So how much will a property owner be paying?  If your property is worth $100,000.00, you'll be writing the Sylvania school system a check for $4,878.00, and because the State of Ohio is no longer covering a part of your property tax, you'll be paying the entire amount.

There is still a significant portion of retired people in Sylvania, or people who have moved here and are not wealthy.  An extra $5,000 a year goes a long way towards a nice life.  You can forget that, though, and it's because of the school system.  They don't care if you're poor, if you're retired or laid off or have other expense.  Their attitude: Too bad.  Pay me.  Just be thankful I'm not asking for more.

My family has lived in Sylvania for over 50 years, but it's getting to the point where we are being taxed out of our own home, and we're being forced out by an elite cadre of elected officials who don't give one final damn whether we stay or leave, so long as their hog trough is full.

If you would like to write these people and share your views on lower taxes and responsible government, here's a list of email addresses:

Sylvania Board of Education

Jim Nusbaum, President
jnusbaum@sylvaniaschools.org

Julie Hoffman, Vice President
jhoffman@sylvaniaschools.org

David Spiess
dspiess@hotmail.com

Vicki Donovan Lyle
vlyle@sylvaniaschools.org

Stephen Rothschild
srothschild@sylvaniaschools.org

Sylvania Township Trustees

John Crandall
jcrandall@sylvaniatownship.com

John Jennewine
jjennewine@sylvaniatownship.com

Neal Mahoney
nmahoney@sylvaniatownship.com

All three turncoats trustees have publicly supported the new school levy, I suppose because it means more money for the government.  Never mind the constituents that have to live with it.  They'll get along just fine.

The real truth is that if this levy fails two things will happen.  One, there will be a special election held at a time when voter turnout opposing the levy is likely to be very low.  Two, there will not be any change in the performance of the Sylvania school system.  Of course you can't convince the school board of that, but it's true none-the-less.

Vote no.  Tell them that they've got enough money already, and that they can learn to live within their means.  Like the rest of us.

Sylvania Township Trustee Election 2013 - Unofficial Results

The unofficial election results are in, and unless something completely unforeseen happens here's how things shake out for Sylvania Township.  As usual, there's good news and bad news.

Read on, with an obligatory profanity warning

Sylvania Township Trustee Election - Write Your Candidate!

One thing you can always count on.  If you are fortunate enough to ever be able to speak directly to your elected official (at any level) you can bet your bankroll against a plugged nickel that it's close to election time.  Otherwise, we're supposed to shut up and take it, unless we're applauding whatever latest fiasco our fearless leader is spending our tax dollars on.  I could go on in this vein for another thousand words or more, but what's the point?

It's about two weeks until election time, and if you want to write your potential Sylvania Township Trustee and as a few pertinent questions, now's your chance.  What - don't have his email?  Ah... how about that.  Here are a few of the email addresses for your candidates - those without an email address can be contacted through their website:

Sylvania Township Trustee Election - 2013

Up for reelection are Haddad and Jennewine. I wrote a warm, sensitive but somewhat lengthy piece on the election and was about to post it, but then I fat fingered the keyboard and lost the whole business. Oh well. Here's the summary:

Penny Levine, D (Moonbat)
No. Not just no, but hell no. I've written about Levine before, and in two years neither of us have changed. The woman is crude and authoritative. She wants to raise taxes, enact new tax levies and she favors the elimination of the township in favor of a city. She refuses to get involved in the Internet because putting anything in writing can come back to bite you later on. Anyone is better than Levine.

John Jennewine, I (Moonbats won't have him and Wingnuts kicked him out)
Yes. Incumbent Jennewine hasn't done much for government, but that's a good thing. The man knows enough to think things through carefully and he seems to be pretty well organized. He hasn't destroyed anything, and if he has any fault at all it's that he's failed to hand Haddad a haymaker to snot locker when Haddad started up with him.

John Jennewine has been keeping his eye and business acumen on the major projects in Sylvania, such as the construction of a new fire house, and is doing his best to bring this one in under budget. That means that:
1. He's showing responsibility. It took me a minute to realize this, as so few politicians show real responsibility these days.
2. He's guaranteed to get right under the thin skin of every Moonbat within payoff distance. Keeping an eye on the money means a whole lot less of it will get wasted, which pisses off the Moonbats.

Don Miller, R (Wingnut In Name Only)
Yes, and I'd vote for him twice. Miller favors separation of city and township; he opposes annexation of township land by the city. More importantly, Miller is a successful business owner who believes in raising tax money by attracting more successful businesses to the area. This is a very refreshing outlook.

Miller is that very rare commodity that should be seized before he wises up and refuses to get involved in politics: he's an honest, intelligent politico. My only reservation about Miller is that he's inexperienced and has solid, well-reasoned ideas about the best way for the Township to grow. As such he'll be opposed for no logical reason, he'll get shouted down at meetings and Haddad will call him names. If he can hold on to his temper and exert some patience, Miller could make a real difference.

John H. Crandall, D (Moonbat)
No. Crandall is over 70 years old and favors increased taxation, increased government authority and truly believes that the township should be eliminated in favor of one big city government - with John Crandall in the driver's seat. If you want someone else to run your life for you, there are better options than Crandall.

Kevin Haddad, I (Moonbat Without A Clue)
No. Incumbent Haddad is the same old Haddad that wouldn't get off the garbage collection jag until he attended a Township meeting and a group of residents hung him in effigy. He's got the tenacity of a Lake Erie catfish and a Levine-esque love of government oversight - especially with Haddad at the wheel. Want to end up in the ditch? Vote for Haddad.

For my comments about Levine, see Toledo Talk: Sylvania Township Trustee Election, 2011 and November Election Results and Ruminations - 2011.

I'll be posting more later on, including a few websites where the candidates can make their platform and priorities known to The Great Unwashed.

Gang War Heats Up

The gang war is heating up and The Blade is making the most of it.  Here's a quick look at the latest news from the Toledo Blade: Mayor calls Blade series ‘irresponsible’

Toledo Mayor Bell: Toledo does not have a gang problem...

Toledo Police Chief Diggs: Most of our problems are gangs...

Real good, guys.  Are these two actually on speaking terms?

Congratulations to the Sylvania Township Police

Sargent Robert Colwell of the Sylvania Township Police Department was off duty when he saw a suspicious vehicle pulling out of a parking lot.  Sargent Colwell followed at a discrete distance, and when opportunity presented itself Sgt. Colwell called for a uniform car to pull the suspicious vehicle over.

Busted!

You can read all about it in Off Duty But Alert.  My sincere congratulations along with a tip of the old fedora and a hoist of the morning bourbon glass to Sargent Robert Colwell for an outstanding job.  I also congratulate the men and women of the Sylvania Township Police Department.

You guys are great!

Call 9-1-1

A long time ago I called 9-1-1 to report a crises in progress, namely a violent, drunken woman who was outside my home and trying to get inside and make my life miserable.  Or something.  The woman in question was an ex-migraine who hadn't quite fully accepted her new role.  I have no patience with drunks, especially violent drunks, but I knew an entire department of upstanding men and women who did - and I'm not talking about grade school teachers.  The Sylvania Township Police have all the patience in the world, plus they are unfailingly kind, helpful, thrifty, goodnatured, witty and experienced.  They know how to deal with drunks.  So I called nine one one and explained the situation to the helpful voice on the other end of the line, requesting a car for one along with reservations for a room with a view.  Then I sat back and waited.

45 minutes later the phone rang.  It was the Sylvania Township Police department.  They couldn't find my house.  No, I'm not making this up, but I wasn't all that surprised either.  My home is difficult to find and the police haven't been out here in many, many years.  The thing is, a lot can happen in 45 minutes.

Sylvania Township Government: Less is better

I thought the Sylvania Township Trustees might learn something about the township and the people they are supposed to be representing. Maybe, maybe not. Here are two stories from the Toledo Blade:

Refuse pickup on agenda in Sylvania Twp.; Trustees schedule vote after postponement

Trustee Kevin Haddad, who made unified trash and recyclables collection a key part of his election campaign...

That's it. Kevin Haddad can't seem to understand that Sylvania Township residents will handle refuse collection as the individual household sees fit; not as Kevin Haddad desires. I think the other two might understand this concept a little better than Kevin. Here are the results courtesy of The Blade:

Board rejects townshipwide trash pickup

When he ran for Sylvania Township trustee in 2009, Kevin Haddad made townshipwide collection of trash and recyclables a cornerstone of his campaign.

But as debate came to a head on the subject last week, with a trash-collection firm's price to provide such a service due to expire, Mr. Haddad promised to never revisit the subject if his colleagues on the township board voted it down.

Trustees John Jennewine and Neal Mahoney soon tested that promise by forming the 2-1 majority against the idea.

I've got news for Kevin Haddad: He wasn't elected because of his ideas about trash collection. He was elected because Kevin Haddad was slightly less objectionable than the alternatives. Slightly less. My congratulations to John and Neal for making a wise decision.

The real question is: Why are we even wasting time with this? Reading a little further reveals that:

Previous township boards rejected townshipwide trash collection, but Mr. Haddad said he revived the idea because he had become weary of being awakened most mornings by garbage trucks on township roads and of having to cart his own recyclables to drop-off stations.

The emphasis is mine. So let me get this straight. Maybe it's just me, I'm a little fucked up here... Just because Haddad's beauty sleep is being disturbed, the rest of the world should roll over and capitulate to whatever hair brained scheme this oxygen thief comes up with to allow Himself to rest unmolested by people earning a living until a suitable hour. Would 10:30 AM suit your royal benevolence?

What a jerk.

Kevin isn't alone. The Lucas County Commissioners have the same idea. Check the link if you want: Countywide trash plan touted; Gerken invites residents, officials to vote with wallets

"You decide. We do not have the authority to force you to do this. Nor do we want to," Mr. Gerken said. "We've got an opportunity that I haven't seen here in 20 years, with the city of Toledo willing to change the way they do business. That opens opportunities for our suburban communities, villages, and townships."

What Gerken means is that regretfully we do not have the authority... I keep getting visions of Barone Sanitation.

People that live in townships do so to escape government. They want less civilization, not more. The Lucas County Commissioners understand this and they don't care. They want everyone under their greasy thumb. Me, I'm voting against it.

Sylvania School Levy

They're at it again. The Sylvania public school system went into an apoplexy when the voters defeated a property tax increase in the last election, and that was when The Anointed One was on the ticket. Here's the latest from The Blade:

Sylvania school board to kick off levy campaign with rallySylvania school board to kick off levy campaign with rally

Having persuaded its employees to give up $1.4 million in pay and having cut spending by a further $5 million for the upcoming school year, the Sylvania Board of Education now has six weeks to persuade district voters to change their minds about a tax levy they rejected in November.

Clearly cutting pay, benefits and school spending is not going to cause the schools to close. Instead, it's going to force the school system to live within the means of the tax paying property owner. This isn't a bad idea.

This property tax was defeated once, and once should have been enough. That the school board has the audacity to bring it up again when they think that the opposition - property owners in Sylvania - will have a poor turnout is unscrupulous.

The school system doesn't need more money. The employees need to get along with a little less, and if they don't like that they can always seek employment elsewhere. Many property owners are retired and living on a pension that doesn't go very far these days. Other property owners are suffering from the lousy economy. Money is scarce. It's time our elected officials realized that even those who are willing to pay just do not have the money.


I'm voting against this levy, and I encourage everyone else to do the same.

Of Bad Investments and Bailouts

Consider the empty field in the photo below.

Most everyone who looks at this area will define it as undeveloped land, but not so long ago some enterprising individual saw it as a walled enclave containing a desert (think New Mexico) several hundred upscale homes and a golf course with fairways wide enough to cut the discriminating player's mulligan rate by half or more. The golf course would contain an artificial hill, be 7000 yards and closely resemble Las Sendas in Scottsdale, Arizona without the difficulties one generally encounters when playing Las Sendas. Take it all around, this was an ambitious project at best, and would incorporate buying up perfectly good farm land, getting the zoning changed and ultimately forcing a selective area drought so as to make a Southwestern desert in Northern Ohio. Undaunted by the complexities involved in the radical change of an established climate, the developer damned the torpedoes and ordered full speed ahead. The news became official when ground was broken in June of 2000 and the story hit the press in September of the same year. Happy Y2K, and here are two links to a business site and the local bird cage liner.

The desert is coming to Sylvania

The man behind the daunting task of bringing the desert to northwest Ohio is Jack Sparagowski, an avid golfer and president of Sparagowski and Associates market research and criminal investigations firms.

'Desert look' planned for golf course, homes

Hoses are expected to be priced in the $500,000 to $1 million range with villas priced at about $300,000.

Remember that these are year 2000 prices. At the time the Toledo area was sliding even further into the gravel pit, but Sparagowski decided that his project was immune to failure. It was during this period that I was reminded of the six phases of any project: Enthusiasm, Frustration, Despair, Search for the Guilty, Persecution of the Innocent and Praise for the Non-Participants. We have just seen the Enthusiasm phase.

Moving right along to the fall of 2002, it looks like the swamp has failed to drain and the promised desert is still on the drawing board.

Desert Village Limited Partnership fights litigation

We contacted Jack Sparagowski, the key principal behind Desert Village Limited Partnership, an Ohio Limited Partnership involved in developing this project. Sparagowski confirmed that several delays had occurred with the golf course construction. He also confirmed that he has become aware of a number of rumors concerning the financial situation with this development.

"There is simply no truth to any rumors about financial problems," Sparagowski stated.

Litigation stalls work on upscale subdivision

Lawsuits allege default by project's developer

The future of a pricey Sylvania Township golf course and housing development is in doubt after a series of lawsuits filed against its developer has brought construction to a standstill.

Evidently there was some question about earth moving, contracts and invoice terms. Well, these things happen. Then there's the little problem about bank financing and how it's no longer available. In one case Sparagowski found a loan officer who was an avid golfer and was willing provide an enthusiastic green light. When news of the latest investment floated to the top, the green light was turned off, removed from the light socket, the wires to the socket were cut and the light along with the loan officer were instructed to leave the banking industry and take up street sweeping. The bank then began the arduous process of damage control. Perhaps a bit late, as in the spring of 2003 we see the developer reaching out for some help:


3 Area Developers In Deal For Proposed Golf Site

180 Acre Western Sylvania Township Development - New Park Included In Plans

Then there's the rumor mill, which keeps passing notes about financial problems - the same problems Sparagowski claimed he didn't have. So... if there aren't any problems, then why did this hit the news?

Chapter 11

On April 28, 2003, Desert Village Limited Partnership (“Desert Village”) filed a voluntary petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.

Looks like there might be some truth to the rumors after all. With Desert Village filing Chapter 11, the land is up for grabs. The Olander Park System of Lucas county snatched up a hefty parcel and started trying to change the man made hill into something suitable for sledding.

Olander Park system takes steps to add hill for sledding

"The Board of Park Commissioners ran the park system just the way my little Polish mother runs her household: If we didn't have the cash, we didn't buy anything," said Gary Madrzykowski, Olander's director.

But while the park system has retired the loan for the original Sylvan Prairie purchase, it isn't free from debt yet. That's because it also borrowed money for the 51 acres it bought 11 months ago for $875,500 from Brint Park Holdings, LLC to boost the site's total to just under 150 acres.

While grants covered $495,390 of that cost, a 10-year mortgage was taken out from Huntington for the rest. Mr. Madrzykowski said the park system intends to pay that off in three years.

I think Gary doesn't remember much about the way his mom ran their household, as it would seem that a ten year mortgage was required. What really bothers me about this entire business is that the government bought the land at a good deal less than a fire sale price, and it shouldn't have. Now I wonder just who oversees the purchases for The Olander Park System and how this purchase was approved.

This is quite a history for land that still sits empty. Quite possibly everyone would have been better off if the project had never been started. I know that a few of the vendors who were involved likely feel that way, and I also note that many of these people were from out of town and didn't understand the Toledo metro area or never gave any thought to just why a project that specifies transforming farm land into desert is not going to work. Clearly building permits were issued by the local government and the zoning for the land was changed without incident. Me, I just put it down to the new economy: I'll build it and the government will cover my mistakes.