Take a bus downtown today; save gasoline, fight gas hike

Opinion: July 28, 2008 at 12:00a.m.

EDITOR:

The Mahoning County Green Party is asking all Mahoning County residents to show support for the WRTA bus levy, as well as show opposition to Dominion East Ohio’s rate hike at a Public Utilities Commission of Ohio hearing at 2 p.m. today in City Hall.

We are encouraging all residents to ride the WRTA bus to downtown Youngstown today to attend the hearing. Dominion East Ohio is seeking a flat fee bill increase of $17.50 per month for the distribution of natural gas.

With gasoline at $4 a gallon, we need to show Valley residents that we need a better mass transit system if gasoline prices continue to rise, plus tell the PUCO we cannot afford a new flat-fee gas hike.

With school levy issues coming up in August and November, the issues are coming down to providing education for our children, filling our gas tanks, or giving more money to Dominion East Ohio Gas.

DENNIS SPISAK

Struthers

Youngstown already gets its fair share of outside help

EDITOR:

As Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams argues his case for a JEDD agreement with Austintown and Boardman townships, he often throws out statistics, such as two-thirds of all people who work in Youngstown live outside of the city and about the success of JEDD agreements in Akron. According to Mayor Williams, theses JEDDs are a win-win for the city and the townships. This leads me to ask the mayor a few questions.

1. What percentage of city tax dollars actually come from Youngstown residents?

2. What percentage of Youngstown water’s total intake (surcharges and collections) actually come from Youngstown residents?

3. What percentage of new building in downtown Youngstown has been private investment?

4. How much debt is the state of Ohio presently carrying for the Youngstown school system and who is paying the majority of the cost for all the new school buildings?

5. Who pays for Youngstown’s one true gem, Mill Creek Park?

6. Who paid for the Chevy Centre?

7. What percent of Akron’s JEDD was on land that was already developed and applied to existing businesses?

If the mayor answers these questions, I think it will be clear that the residents of Austintown, Boardman, Mahoning County, the state of Ohio and for that matter the United States as a whole have already done more than their fair share to help the city of Youngstown. It’s time for Youngstown to stand on its own.

GARY RUSSELL

Austintown