McNally takes office at a time of uncertainty in Youngstown

Mayor John A. McNally is call- ing on the residents of Youngstown to get involved in the improvement of the community to transform it into the “jewel of Northeast Ohio,” as he put it during his swearing-in ceremony Monday.

We applaud McNally for recognizing that one of his main tasks as mayor is to be a cheer- leader for the city. But we would note that there are some deeply rooted problems that only government has the ability to tackle, problems that have contributed to many residents’ sense of hopelessness.

Foremost of those is crime, especially in the predominantly black neighborhoods. During the primary and general election campaigns, McNally, former Mahoning County commissioner and former Youngstown law director, let it be known that ridding the city of drug gangs responsible for much of the serious crimes would be a priority.

In that regard, the mayor’s appointment of Robin Lees, a retired police officer who served as head of the vice squad, the Mahoning Valley Crisis Response Team and the Mahoning Valley Law Enforcement Task Force, does send a clear message to the community about the administration’s intentions.

Lees has had a close working relationship with all the law enforcement agencies — local, state and federal — that have joined forces in war on the gangbangers. We have no doubt that the new police chief will continue that partnership.

But crime isn’t the only contributor to the deterioration of the neighborhoods. The more than 3,000 dilapidated houses that need to be demolished have been a challenge to recent administrations.

More progress has been made in the past two years and four months under former Mayor Charles Sammarone than at any time before.

During the campaign, McNally bemoaned the fact that federal environmental regulations are a major impediment to an aggressive demolition program. He suggested that he would be willing to ignore the requirements for the removal of asbestos and other environmental hazardous material from the homes before they are torn down.

Washington connection

We previously advised against taking on the federal government on this issue and, suggested, instead, that McNally meet with former Mayor Jay Williams who is now with the Obama administration.

Williams has been nominated by the president to head the Economic Development Administration. A Senate confirmation vote is pending.

During his tenure in office, Williams also was critical of the federal EPA regulations and sought waivers. He, therefore, has first-hand knowledge of what older cities like Youngstown are facing as they attempt to stop the spread of neighborhood blight.

The overall appearance of the city has also drawn complaints from residents for many years, and McNally said he wanted to engage community organizations more actively in dealing with such things as the entry ways into Youngstown.

As the population declines, the tax base remains stagnant and city government faces the prospect of a $5 million budget shortfall in five years, McNally will have to deal with the reality of a shrinking city.

His desire to get residents involved in the transformation of Youngstown is a good thing, but he should not be discouraged if the response is as anemic as the turnout in the mayoral election.

Inside City Hall, McNally has surrounded himself with old hands in government, including Finance Director David Bozanich, who retired Dec. 28, 2012, and was rehired by former Mayor Sammarone through the end of December 2013.

Bozanich undoubtedly has a firm grip on the city’s finances, seeing as how he has been around for more than three decades. But he has notified the new mayor that he intends to leave city government by June 30.

That should give McNally enough time to not only get a firm handle on the city government’s budget, but to evaluate the finance department and come up with a job description for the new finance director.

Top lawyer

For law director, the other key cabinet position, McNally appointed Martin Hume, an assistant county prosecutor.

The Vindicator endorsed Hume for Girard Municipal Court judge in 2012, and said at the time that he stood out in the crowded field for his vision and forward thinking.

Who the city has as its top lawyer is of particular concern to us because of the tendency of government at all levels to wrap the people’s business in secrecy.

The mayor and finance and law directors make up the board of control, which is why the two cabinet positions are so important.

McNally also retained Fire Chief John J. O’Neill, water Commissioner Harry L. Johnson III, building and grounds Commissioner Sean McKinney and parks and recreation Director Robert Burke.