Council tries to save their own butts!

The redistricting battle has been going on for nearly 5 years and it is not over. The brain trust of city council are at it again trying to undermine the will of the voters. Council believes that the voters of Wilkes-Barre are a bunch of morons, who did not know what they were voting for in 2001.

Shame on all of the members of Council who believe that! People in the City want to know, see and be able to contact their councilperson all the time, not just during election years when councilpersons suddenly get humble and actually talk to voters, maybe even knock on their doors to ask for votes.

Anyone who knows the Wilkes-Barre political landscape knows that that woman from North End who started the new anti-district petition drive is the wife of a retired city employee and they are close friends with a female councilperson from the Heights and her husband, who may also be in politics.

Councilmembers presently have no incentive to help anyone because it is easy to spread the blame for inaction to other members or the administration, they have been doing that for 12 years or more. Example: There are currently 3, that's right 3!! members of council from the Parsons/Miners Mills area and none have done anything about the deplorable condition of George Ave. George Ave has more operating retail businesses than the entire downtown. Maybe if one councilperson had to depend on the votes of the citizens who live near and use George Ave the road may have been paved sooner. The last time George Ave was paved was the late 1970s. This is mainstreet Wilkes-Barre where taxpayers live and work. It has no representation from the present council who are more concerned with keeping the downtown buildings and businesses operating, all of which. owned by rich back mountain people who pay little or no taxes to the City thanks to KOZ and other free tax programs.

I attended a City Hall for Day in Parsons back in 2002 and was told that George Ave was in the OCD budget. Why is it taking so long to pave one of the main business districts actually in Wilkes-Barre. Is it because the present Mayor lost Parsons in his mayorial election? Is it because the money was move to the downtown projects? Oh, it is scheduled to be paved sometime this year, just in time for next years election. Parsons was punished for 3 years because of the last election and now it is finally getting something (long overdue) because re-election is near. VOTERS OF PARSONS, DON'T BE FOOLED!

Council districts will better serve the taxpayers as taxpayers will know their councilperson and be more open to contacting them. Also, if qualified people are elected, they will be able to serve the needs of their district and also the needs of the City as a whole.