Valley's elected officials discuss cooperative effort

'A united effort is always the best approach,' a congressman said.
By DAVID SKOLNICK
VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Getting everyone working toward the same goals seems like a simple enough concept, but Mahoning Valley elected officials acknowledge they don't always do this.
That won't be the case anymore, said U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Niles, D-17th.
Ryan organized a meeting Friday of local elected officials including Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams, Warren Mayor Michael O'Brien, Mahoning County Commissioner Anthony Traficanti, Trumbull County Commissioner Paul Heltzel and members of the state Legislature from the Valley.
Also attending were U.S. Rep. Charlie Wilson of St. Clairsville, D-6th, whose district includes a portion of Mahoning County, Youngstown State University President David Sweet and officials with YSU, Youngstown and Warren.
"We need to work together to get things accomplished," Ryan said after the 21/2-hour closed-door meeting at the Youngstown Business Incubator.
Initiatives with a coordinated effort by officials at the city, county, state and federal levels are more likely to succeed and receive funding than those done by just one entity, he said.
"The more we collaborate and talk, the better we'll be," Ryan said. "... We're in the position we're in now because of [past] ego battles."
To meet quarterly
The group spoke in generalities about the future of Forum Health, General Motors, YSU, job creation and transportation issues. The plan is for the group to meet quarterly and talk in more specifics.
"We want to all be on the same page and coordinate our efforts on the important issues on the local, state and federal level," said state Sen. Capri Cafaro of Liberty, D-32nd. "This is very useful."
State Rep. Kenneth Carano of Austintown, D-59th, said the various levels of government don't always know one another's priorities. So getting together and coordinating efforts will lead to accomplishments, he said.
"A united effort is always the best approach," Wilson said. "It's better to be focused on the same thing."
On the heels of this meeting, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, an Avon Democrat, will hold an economic development round-table discussion Monday at the incubator with business and community leaders. Brown wants to discuss economic development efforts and how the federal government can provide financial assistance.
Brown held similar discussions this week in Cincinnati, Dayton, Columbus and Toledo.
skolnick@vindy.com