The filing for the May Primaries are done. I noticed that Joe Surace was unopposed. That's not surprising to me. More surprising is the fact that he is seeking re-election. Joe, what were you thinking? Why submit yourself to the bashing most public officials take in this fair village? Maybe you're like me. Even though it don't pay much the meager salary helps keep the wolves away from the door. Maybe you got a mission in mind and you are trying to get the job done. Whatever the reason, bless you.
Truth be told being a mayor of any community up & down this valley is a thankless job. The folks that quote from the "Book of They" are not the least bit appreciative for just about anything you do. For the uninformed the "Book of They" is a compilation of infamous quotes. For example the folks that use it regularly say "they oughta do this, someone should just do that", etc. It's not in hardback but it has been around for ages.
However, I'm getting off track. One of the biggest reasons being a public official is thankless is basically the fact that we are in an economically depressed area. The deteriorating economy for the village has been occurring for the past two or three decades. I can recall when we once had three working potteries in Wellsville, a brickyard and all the mom & pop stores that supported the work force of these places. There was three car dealerships, a dry cleaning establishment and numerous privately owned grocery stores. There was a dress shop and a men's clothing store. You get the idea.
They are all gone now and what industrial base do we have in this village? There's Stephenson Foundry. There's what, one or two fledgling companies where the brickyard use to be? To have the revenue needed to accomplish what all the idea people think that our village government should be doing requires a strong economic base. You don't get real estate, sales taxes and wage taxes from something that is not there. This community is basically a bed & breakfast community anymore. Most of our residents that still work at sustainable jobs have to leave the village to go to their place of employment. Lord, I truly hope the coal-to-fuel plant becomes a reality. That would be a huge economic boost to Wellsville.
So, for all you nay sayers I say let the folks that do stand up and run for council and the mayor's job do their jobs. Sure there are snafus here and there but for the most part they are doing a remarkable job with what they have to work with. They go for grants and try to keep our village in decent shape. Don't let your personal biases stand in the way of your being objective.
Simply stated Wellsville does not have the money to maintain a garden spot community and is struggling to get along with what they have. You have a voice at the polls and you can participate at the council meetings if you have an agenda to push.
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9 comments:
nib:
Your optimism is refreshing and I feel confident with continual use you will find it will become contagious and more people will follow suit. At least that is my hope for I really believe the ville can be better than it is. I also believe your blog will catch on and be a very good reading place for many to visit. Keep on plugging!
Regarding your comments, I have to disagree with you on one point and that is regarding the aspect of our elected officials being submitted to bashing. I believe in most cases this bashing may be warrented and may be brought on only because they either do not think before they speak, they are not briefed properly before commenting or they feel they should know everything and they wing an answer only to be proved wrong. The more these situations occur the less credibility they acquire. For example, the current Mayor said and I am paraphrasing ..."within the month the 9th street pottery will be cleaned up, grass planted and looking great” this was in the newspaper last year and look where we are today. Another issue was the “barrel” Saturdays. This issue was going to be looked into and these days were supposed to be cut back….again nothing but words, no actions. In my opinion, these “barrel days” are just an accident waiting to happen with the age of the participants and the large trucks trying to meet schedules to make a living. I could go on and on and on.
I can recall after retiring and relocating here how I wanted to live in town. We finally settled on Yellow Creek Township as our residence. About the same time, I recall the ville trying to get the Yellow Creek residents to become part of the ville so city status might be achieved and the opposition the township raised. I couldn’t understand the rational of the people in the township at that time. I fully understand their rationale at this time and this is very unfortunate for everyone concerned. No one is winning. Least of all the ville!
Well just wanted to let you know I enjoy your site and wish you well. Hang in there!
Oh yeah I think that they need to have barrel days more often...especially during the winter and on Sundays too. I guess that the "clubs, little tigers, prom committees, and others" never have heard of making money the old fashioned way....that is to work for it. Instead it looks like they are a bunch of bums beggin for money.
I really like to see all the trucks and trailers parked along the entrance and exit ramps of the highway right beside the "no parking signs". Then 100 yards up the road we see Wellsville police running radar trying to catch speeders...Why not ticket the trucks and trailers?
Unsolved murders in town...
So explain to me again what the city had to offer the residents of Yellow Creek township???
Enjoy what you've done thus far, it's not easy running a daily blog but keep it up, I enjoy your insight and humor!
Best Wishes!
If the mayors pay as it has been for the last 3 years were to be divided into hours and rate per hour, it's a poverty wage. The position is a full time one if he is to attend church functions, school events, chamber- miscellaneous meeting regarding village complaints and problems that need addressed. My understanding is that the pay is for part-time work. The real problems seem to be lack of organization among administration and council. Is the differences in oppinion about control and who has it, or simply that the left hand never knows what the right hand is doing. They seem to have forgotten the purposes of the committees that they have put in place, they don't share ideas or information as much as they could. As a result of the struggle for control or credit (either way) nothing gets done or ridiculous lengths of time are spent trying to accomplish a simple task that could be completed relatively quickly. Am I correct in saying that the pavillion went up in about a week? If so, give the raises, take the low bids and fix what needs fixed, they have already proven it can be done. Making a priority list might not be a bad idea either, one that everyone is aware of. Potential is there for good things if they try playing on the same team. As for power and who has it, that's irrelevant, it takes a team. In other places putting the b.s. to the side and focusing on the problem and how to fix it works well. If they can't work together what value are they?
just wanted to let you all know that there were more shots fired at 15th and commerce either Tuesday or Wednesday night. My mom called the police and they told her she wasn't the only one that had heard them and called. I don't know if there is anything in the paper about it because I read the online edition and it does not contain everything that the print edition does. So I really don't believe that this is a rumor! I think we need to beef up our "community watch" program!!!!
Nib, I remember all those Mom n' Pop stores ; Johnny Baker's Market on Main Street and Jim Fallon's on Commerce are the two that first come to mind ; Russell's Clothing, Mrs Eckfeld's Card Shop , Verna's Bakery , JC Lawson's 5 and Dime ; those were the good ole' days.
Anyone who chooses public service in Wellsville ,be it the Mayor or Council members ,has a thankless job in my opinion. They certainly can't be in it for the money ; so one has to assume it's to help better our community. But most of the good things they accomplish go without notice ; the bad things don't , which I am sure is typical in almost every village.
Nice pictures by the way and good luck with the Blog.
3:52
Are you goofy??
You stated you heard shots fired again in town and you want to beef up the neighbor crime watch??
What if they get shot?
Ol Nib,
I passed along your site to a friend and she could not read the reverse type on the black background...not sure why.
Just FYI in case you would like to change that in the future.
Your site is a good one so far. This friend is originally from Wellsville and would like to read it.
Just noticed that when reading comments posted on your site I am automatically put into a secure site (https://). Is there a reason for this? It doesn't happen on any other blogsite I visit.
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