Taking to a road not traveled

You know it’s time for a break when ...

You answer a call from Jain, your significant other, with “Bertram de Souza, may I help you?”

You find that after 36 years on the job, you know more about the private lives of your friends who are your employers, Vindicator Publisher Betty Jagnow and her son, Mark Brown, the general manager, than you know about your brother in Canada and sister in Britain.

Your identity is inextricably tied to The Vindicator. “I thought you’d be a lot taller” is one of the many reactions from long-time readers.

Your blindness in one eye (marked with a plastic lens cover) triggers a snarky reaction from the many people who have been offended by what you’ve written about them over the many years: “So, who was the lucky guy who nailed you?” There was a day when you would laugh. Now you wish that a 1,000 fleas from a sweaty hog would nest in their armpits.

And you know it’s time for a break when ...

Your gray hair, once called distinguished, now brings reactions such as this: “Those winter boots are really a good bargain. My grandfather just bought a pair.”

You aren’t sure if the thoughts in your head about the Oakhill Renaissance Place conspiracy case came from a source, or are the result of a fertile mind.

Here’s one that just won’t go away: The owner of a nursing home is going to make an offer to Mahoning County commissioners to buy the county government-owned Oakhill Renaissance Place, the former Southside Medical Center. Commissioners Carol Rimedio-Righetti and David Ditzler (not sure about Commissioner Anthony Traficanti) will jump at the chance of getting the downtown complex off the county’s books.

Then, the new owner will bring in architects and engineers to calculate how much it would cost to turn the former hospital buildings into nursing residential space.

The nursing home operator will announce that it’s cost-prohibitive to meet federal and state standards that apply to nursing homes. He will then say that he’s looking for a buyer.

And voila, the new buyer is ... Anthony M. Cafaro Sr., the alleged mastermind of the conspiracy to block Commissioner Traficanti and former Commissioner David Ludt from buying the Oakhill complex.

Cafaro, retired president of the Cafaro Co., had some high-powered elected officials doing his bidding, including then Commissioner and now Youngstown Mayor John A. Mc- Nally and then county Auditor Michael Sciortino.

McNally, Sciortino and Youngstown Atty. Martin Yavorcik are facing a slew of state criminal charges for their roles in the conspiracy. Their trials in common pleas court in Cleveland are set for March.

AIMING FOR CAFARO

It is by no means a stretch to believe that state prosecutors are aiming for Cafaro and that it’s a just a matter of time before McNally, Sciortino or Yavorcik plays “Let’s Make a Deal.” You see, prosecutors have tapes, lots of tapes and other damning evidence.

So, what does Cafaro do to show that he had only the best interest of the taxpayers at heart when he sought to block the purchase of Oakhill and to stop the commissioners from relocating the Job and Family Services agency from the Cafaro-owned Garland Plaza?

He buys Oakhill and agrees to be a public-spirited landlord who won’t just give the commissioners a break on the rent but will pay for all the improvements.

In return, Cafaro will have the commissioners standing up in court pleading with the judge to let this civic-minded individual free.

(That’s assuming that Cafaro gets charged.)

So, was that scenario whispered to this writer, or did it simply emerge from the deep recesses of a cynical mind?

To even ask the question means that it’s time for this writer to take a break.

While gone, the Editorial Desk will be in the capable, experienced hands of Rick Logan, an editorial writer and longtime news editor of The Vindicator.

Changes have had to be made, which will be evident Monday with the redesign of the Editorial Page and the elimination of the Commentary Page. Sunday will be the only day when the two pages are featured.

But don’t fret, dear readers. This writer will still be present on the Editorial Page each Sunday — with some of his favorite columns.

So, what will taking a break accomplish? There’s no telling. It’s a road that has never been traveled.