Austintown trustee lashes out at Youngstown’s plan

By Ed Runyan

Youngstown’s mayor said the city’s work force has been cut in half.

AUSTINTOWN — Township Trustee Bo Pritchard said Monday he’s skeptical of putting $9 million per year of Austintown residents’ money in the hands of Youngstown as part of a joint economic development district — because of the city’s poor track record of fiscal responsibility.

“This proposal takes $9 million out of the hands of Austintown citizens and puts it into the hands of government,” Pritchard said, adding that the city “hasn’t shown a great ability to police themselves” in financial matters.

The $9 million per year is the amount that would be collected in the form of a 2 percent income tax from those who work in Austintown, charged by the city to all workers whose employer receives Youngstown water.

Nearly all of Austintown receives its water from Youngstown.

“The best avenue for Austintown is to stand firm that this proposal will not benefit Austintown, Boardman or businesses. It will benefit only one thing: Youngstown’s unquenchable thirst for tax dollars. We don’t think that makes sense for anyone,” Pritchard said during a township trustees meeting.

He said the township will be considering various options in the coming months, such as incorporating as a city, in order to avoid becoming “part of Youngstown.”

Trustees plan to send a newsletter to township residents sometime in April to inform them of the township’s options. A public meeting will also be held this spring, said Trustee David Ditzler.

An example of the city failing to police itself, Pritchard said, is that the city has dropped in population from 170,000 to 80,000 in recent years but has failed to shrink the size of its government in response.

“The city needs to address that it needs less government,” Pritchard said. He added that the city has also failed to heed the recommendations contained in a 2000 performance audit by the Ohio auditor’s office.

Youngstown officials announced a month ago a proposal to charge the 2 percent income tax in exchange for economic development in the townships and a reduction in its water surcharge from 40 percent to 20 percent. Another quarter-percent income tax would be collected in and sent to Boardman and Austintown.

In Boardman, the city would collect about $8 million annually, with $1 million going to the township.

Ditzler said it is not clear how much the proposal would bring in to Austintown. Trustees put Youngstown’s proposal on the township’s Web site at www.austintown.org.

The proposal also calls for those who work in Youngstown to see their city income tax reduced from 2.75 percent to 2.25 percent. That reduction would mean about $8 million less in income tax collected from those who work in the city, Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams said.

Various Boardman and Austintown trustees have spoken against the plan.

Pritchard said becoming a city has drawbacks, such as requiring the township to take on the responsibility of maintaining county roads. The township would go from having about 110 miles of roads to maintain to about 160, he said.

He added, however: “Becoming our own city still sounds better than becoming part of Youngstown.”

Pritchard said the township form of government provides basic government services, such as police, fire, roads and parks in a “vastly less cash-flush environment than the cities.”

A proposal created by The PRM Group of Cleveland estimates the Joint Economic Development District would generate $439 million for the city and two townships over a 20-year period. If deals are fully implemented with the two townships, PRM said, 500 acres of new business development could occur in Austintown and 250 acres in Boardman.

Williams, told of Pritchard’s comments, said the city has reduced is work force from 1,600 employees to 800 and has implemented a number of suggestions from the 2000 performance audit.

He said when Pritchard mentions the revenue that would move from township residents’ hands to the city, he fails to mention the thousands of Boardman and Austintown residents who work in Youngstown who would benefit from a reduction in their income tax rate.

He urged those interested in the proposal to read it “cover to cover.”

In other business, Fire Chief Andrew Frost reported that Wal-Mart has donated $1,000 to the fire department for the third straight year. The department has not yet decided how to spend the money. Ditzler said a store official calculated that the store gave $27,000 to the township for a variety of causes in 2007.

Trustee Lisa Oles said the township has received numerous complaints from township residents about potholes on county roads that run through the township. The township is legally prohibited from spending any money on those roads — such as Mahoning Avenue, Countyline, Raccoon, New, Ohltown and Webb roads — because they are maintained by the county, she said.

runyan@vindy.com