Is It Time for Bortz to Switch Hats ?
The Ohio Ethics Committee recently issued a more formal statement telling Cincinnati Councilman to recuse himself from voting on any more streetcar issues (Fishwrap Story). Apparently they think it will be a success, too. I still don't see an issue.
The Fishwrap also whined about not being spoon-fed information from city hall, did some backpedalling on a goofy poll they commissioned & kinda conceded they maybe might have been kinda biased in choosing their Letters to the Editor (Fishwrap Story). This resulted in a flood of pro-streetcaar letters being published.
Still, maybe they have some semblance of a point about city hall not making their case for a streetcar tying together the basin & the Clifton area thus tying together the 2 densest areas of employment with a ton of potential housing, retail & service real estate in between. Maybe they haven't made a case clearly enough for boosting the city's tax revenue with new residents, businesses & jobs. Maybe they haven't made the idea clear that more eyeballs on the street will deter crime more than having police standing shoulder to shoulder on every street in town. Maybe they haven't convinced people that a deserted, abandoned neighborhood is worse than a populated neighborhood.
So maybe it's time for Chris Bortz to stop legislating on the issue & to get out there & SELL the issue. He HAS been a staunch proponent from day 1. He apparently has support & knows how to campaign. He keeps getting elected. Perhaps he can get a pitch together & take it on the road to community council meetings, festivals & all the places he went to campaign for his election in the first place. Maybe he can explain that painting racing stripes on a '72 Pinto leaves you with - a '72 Pinto.
WLWT reports Stan Chesley is blasting city council for not finding funding for city pools. Dunno why he can't set up an ongoing foundation or something, but maybe Bortz should spend some more time looking for private sector investment for the streetcar.
There is no reason his inability to legislate on the issue should stop his involvement with the issue.