It’s time for city voters to support Youngstown schools

It’s time for city voters to support Youngstown schools

EDITOR:

The problems of Youngstown and the city schools is not race or religion. It is ignorance, plain and simple. The school district of Youngstown has taken full advantage of building new schools and rightly so. The difficulty comes when the people of Youngstown have to provide the funds needed to pay for these buildings. As a former state legislator, I know the state does not provide very much money for educating the children. This is the responsibility of each local district. Why? Because we do not want states controlling our educational process. We want local people to decide the education of our children.

The school board, a few days ago, approved a resolution to place a 9.5-mill tax levy on the March 2008 ballot. This would generate $5,291,510 and, according to the board members, this will not be enough because they had to borrow $15 million from the state in May and this money must be repaid. The last time the levy was on the ballot, a fiscal oversight commission made necessary recommendations for cuts that the school district needs to make and Supt. Wendy Webb is in the process of doing this and she will need our help and assistance when these cuts are made.

On another matter, the Catholic schools in Youngstown have been closing one at a time. Why are these schools closing? The answer is simple — our people don’t want to pay for educating their children, and this has nothing to do with race or culture. Therefore, these children depend on the Youngstown city schools. The levy lost by some 2,000 voters and all we need to do is change 1,000 votes from a negative to a positive, and I’m counting on the good citizens of Youngstown to help in this endeavor.

Why should Youngstown children be denied an education of opportunity that you adults received? It’s time our religious leaders come forward and publicly support the levy.

THOMAS P. GILMARTIN Sr.

Youngstown

New ditch, same old story

EDITOR:

I thought I’d pass on a recent experience that sheds some light on how our tax dollars are being spent. I live on Route 224 near Bailey Road. Long ago, I received a notice from the state that they needed to repair a small bridge that was near my home, where I have lived for decades. In addition to replacing the bridge, the state determined that it was necessary to replace a drainage ditch that ran along 224 in front of my home.

For a distance of perhaps quarter of a mile, hundreds of trees and shrubs were installed along the banks of the new ditch. The ditch itself was widened and sculpted in a meandering fashion, according to the engineer’s plans. ‘Coir logs’ were installed along the edges of the ditch to prevent erosion. Old stone that I had installed decades ago to prevent erosion was removed and replaced with new stone. The explanation for all this work and expense was that it was necessary to create a suitable environment for the local bugs and critters.

Unfortunately, and in spite of my warnings, the state’s contractor cut into my septic laterals and they now open-flow into the new ditch. My complaints about this to ODOT and the county health department remain unanswered. Perhaps they think my sewage is good food for the bugs. What a country.

JOHN CARRADINE

North Jackson