Candidate's Meeting
Tomorrow
Thursday November 3rd
7:00pm
Tomorrow night, Thursday, November 3rd, 2011, there will be a meeting at Hawthorne Elementary School for another opportunity to meet the candidates for Minerva Park's Village ballot. Hope to see more interested residents there!
What candidates are going to be there? I asked several who said they hadn't been invited so what is this all about if we aren't going to have an opportunity to talk to the majority of those running for office.
ReplyDeleteThe town hall meeting at Hawthorne Elementary School on November 3 is NOT a recognized or condoned town meeting by the Village of Minerva Park.
ReplyDeleteThe flyer announcing the meeting is actually campaign literature which was produced by Mr. Benedetti and distributed by himself and his supporters. The question has been raised by residences and other candidates if the front of the flyer violates the Franklin County Board of Election ethics rules since the notice gives the false appearance of an official notice by the Village of Minerva Park and not campaign literature from Mr. Benedetti.
I am not discouraging residents from attending the Benedetti town hall meeting, but did want to make it understood that this meeting has been organized, and will be run by Mr. Benedetti and therefore must be viewed as not a “meet the candidates night”, but political maneuvering and propaganda for the purpose of electing Mr. Benedetti to Council.
I am sending this as Anonymous as most of my named comments end up in the spam folder due to Google’s filtering.
It seems the passing out of the flier for a town hall meeting on 11/03/11 was a general invitation to all MP residents to attend which would include the candidates. Candidates had the choice to either attend or not attend just they had a choice to attend the MPCA candidate's night or not attend, and nothing can require them to attend.
ReplyDeleteThe flier did clearly state it was from Tony Benedetti and that he was running for Minerva Park council. It clearly Stated it was a "Town Hall Meeting" for Minerva Park residents, and it did not state was an official notice or a notice from the Village of Minerva Park, or from Minerva Park or any that it was from "Minerva Park" anything.
The flier also contained a number that people could call if they had any questions and I would be curious as to how many called, as well as curious as to how many were dissuading from calling or attending due to what seems to be biased opinions from some.
The flier states issues that have been previously raised and are by no means specific or exclusive to Mr. Benedetti. It seems a reasonable option to have had another chance to meet candidates since the previous one provided was not able to accommodate all and as well as basically running out of time. That was disappointing as well as some of what seemed to be 'canned' questions asked at it, but maybe the MPCA did not feel the need and kudos to Mr. Benedetti for taking the time and energy to try and offer another option!
I neither received an invitation (letter, email, voice mail, phone call), or a flyer at my house.
ReplyDeleteNeither did people around my house on Lakewood.
So it seems I wasn’t wanted or welcome at the town meeting, so I didn’t go. Charles L.
Mr. Benedetti made several announcements about hosting a second opportunity to air issues during both the MPCA sponsored Candidate's Night and in and around the community building during and after council meetings.
ReplyDeleteThe date and location was shared here on this blog, giving further notification to those whose homes were accidentally (and unfortunately) missed on the hand-outs.
Charles, you personally knew of the event obviously because of the above comment posted at around 2pm the day of the meeting. Tony's phone number and address are available in the directory. If you felt purposely excluded, you could have brought the issue up with him directly. If you cared to hear what he (and other candidates and residents) had to say you could have made the effort to appear at Hawthorn. I feel that effort is on you as a candidate. As is the effort to meet with a resident who is interested in talking things over with you, such as Blaine Allen requested but hasn't been followed through with. Though perhaps it is felt that he is just one of Tony's supporters who wants to have a "bitch fest" as Lynn is credited with summarizing Tony's meeting to another Wildwood resident (that is word-of-mouth though, so she may have used more proper language at the time).
I know for a fact that Lynn Eisentrout and Sharon Bierman both received fliers in the same manner as other residents, and the two of them chose not to attend. Likely because they knew their poor management choices were going to be questioned and shared with a new audience. Without a three-minute speaking limit.
I do understand that candidates could have been directly invited just as they were for the MPCA sponsored Candidate's Night (which also asked for an R.S.V.P.) but I feel as a candidate who is running against Mr. Benedetti, it is on that candidate to take the effort to get involved, to show their viewpoints, or at least make the time to listen to what Mr. Benedetti (and others present) had to say; perhaps even to share facts that Mr. Benedetti and other residents may be unaware of.
The pattern of excuses and noncooperation is something I want to see change in our elected officials.
--Jessica Rhoads
Hey "Walking in Minerva Park said... " ... Well said!!!
ReplyDeleteWalking in Minerva Park,
ReplyDeleteEvery time Mr. Benedetti and I have talked, he gets angry and upset. When I was passing out flyers in his court he came charging out of his house and accosted me about the so called business I was running out of my house without a permit. I tried to explain that I did not have a business, but he kept going on and on about how I am part of the problem instead of listening to what I had to say. On my website I have explained the home business issue in detail.
Mr. Benedetti is not a bringer together of people, but a divider. He contributes little, doesn’t volunteer, isn’t a member of the MPCA, and does not understand government accounting. At one time I believed in some of the points he raised, but as the election has progressed, he appears to have become fixated on expelling a woman that has lived in the village all her life, has volunteered countless hours, served on Council and in the MPCA, and has been Mayor for 8 years. If you disagree with her politics, that is okay, but attacking her personally is wrong.
There are comments within this blog and remarks I have heard that I believe are just personal attacks. What alternative motives does she have other than making Minerva Park a nice place to live? What evil plan does she have? Running a Village, even a small one, is not an easy task. There are hundreds of issues that come up during the course of a year, most involving how to spend the limited funds the Village has. No easy task because I have been there working with limited budgets and greater expenses, as an administrator for Columbus Division of Fire.
The Mayor is the executive branch of the Village, just as the President within the Federal Government. The Council really runs the Village as it is the legislative branch and controls the funds, much like the Senate and House of Representatives at the Federal level. The two are independent of one another, something many people do not understand.
Relating to Mr. Benedetti’s flyer, I firmly believe it was a campaign leaflet, nothing more. By Board of Election laws, it should have had printed somewhere on it the disclaimer “Paid for by….”. If the front side of the flyer was all that was passed out I would have had less of an issue with it, but it still should have told us who was sponsoring the “Town Meeting”. The lack of a sponsor gives the impression that it was an official notice by the Village, even if “Minerva Park” did not appear on the flyer. It is the impression that counts, not the facts. Some people may not have turned the flyer over to see the “political” part. For a man that craves sticking to the details and doing the “right thing”, this was a big mistake. As far as the statements on the back of the flyer, I have addressed them on my website if anyone cares to read my opinions.
Continued...
... Continued
ReplyDeleteConcerning Mr. Allen, he called me twice and we talked on the phone. I told him I was willing to meet and continue talking. Both times he was to call me back when he was free later in the afternoon; I never received a call back. The last time he called was on Saturday morning; I was busy and didn’t answer the phone so he left a message. I thought about returning the call, but then I thought why? We have tried this twice, he is a hardcore opponent of the current administration, therefore really doesn’t care about my opinion, so why waste my time. So I did not call him back. Maybe I should have, but it was a decision I made.
In conclusion, I have made an interesting observation. The most vocal of those who have an axe to grind with the current administration are those who have done something against the Village rules and now feel they have been unfairly treated, that includes terminated police officers. There is much that happens behind the scenes that is not public knowledge, but never the less influences decisions that those in leadership roles must make. All leaders must make decisions all the time that upset people. If Mr. Grosh is elected Mayor, he too will have to make those decisions, and I am sure he will upset people. It is the nature of politics and leadership. It is up to those that vote to determine their future leadership.
If elected to Council I will try to do my best in resolving some of the issues I have written about on my website. It is now up to the residents to cast their votes. We will all know our future on Wednesday.
Charles Legg
Charles your running a bus. out of your house! IT simple. Look past your nose.Its simple your doing something against the Village rules! Get a clue. Marty Grosh went to every door because it was important to him. Unlike you the others running for council and Lynn. I guess it is not important to hear from every one just the ones that make you feel good. Marty even had you over to his house to talk with him and you were worried that Lynn might find out. Come on stand up for your self.
ReplyDeleteBlaine Allen
I told Lynn I had talked with Marty, it was no secret. And for the last time, I AM NOT RUNNING A BUSINESS OUT OF MY HOUSE and if I were, according to Sara, I do not need a permit for the type of business I am accused of running. All the details on this subject are at my campaign website. You and Tony must believe I am stupid. The permit is $10 per year. Why would I NOT want to get the permit? Just to make a point that I am better than you and others in the Village. If you think that, then you and Tony are shallower then I have given you credit for.
ReplyDeleteI literally put my life on the line for 30 years as a firefighter saving the lives and property of people. I believe that counts for something; I believe it indicates some level of dedication and integrity. What have you and Tony done for the past 30 years? One of the issues you and Tony have is that you say you want to work together and want to listen to others, but your minds are already made up. It is this constant type of bounce-back negative rhetoric that Suzan referred to as harassment. It goes far beyond a public records request and I hope other readers of this blog will also see that.
In addition, I have absolutely nothing against Marty as Mayor and if elected, I wish him luck. However I can only cast one vote for a person, so I do support Lynn for Mayor simplify because she has experience in the job, experience in writing grant proposals (it’s more than filling out a form), and unlike you and Tony, I see no capital offences she has committed, just strong opinions and disagreements that you and Tony have about how she is doing the job.
The residences will speak through their votes tomorrow. If I am dead last in the results, I will not be disappointed, I will just sit back and enjoy the political show unfold. If I am in the top two, then I will thank the residents that voted for me and will attempt to correct some of the wrongs others have spoken of with the current Council.
This is the last comment I am posting on this blog. I see that I have stooped to the same rhetoric level as you and Tony and I refuse to continue to do that and my apologies to the other readers of this blog for doing so.
Charles Legg
This series of excuses and "bass-ackwards" way of doing things is what needs to change in Minerva Park.
ReplyDeleteLet's be real here people. It's not that hard. There are only 1,272 residents in MP. We don't need political madness like we have now.
No one can please everyone, though I do have to question the rate of agreement among current council members; 5 out of 6 people agreeing 100% of the time with their votes?? Something's not quite right here. Perhaps, like most residents, they are afraid to speak out against Lynn Eisentrout and her "little friends" (borrowed from her generalization of the "group" who disagree with her management style).
The thing is, while elected officials are going to have to disagree with some residents, they don't have to LIE about it, to be deceitful, to repeatedly say "I don't recall" or "I'll look into that". The "current administration" gives residents the run around. There are no upfront answers. There are no honest answers for the most part. It's despicable. We are not big government, the attitude is not necessary. Let's. Be. Real. It's that simple. At present, that's not what we have.
If you want to go into election laws, look at Lynn's signs. There are signs in vacant lots, and I'm sure there are several in properties without permission. I know of cases personally. She has also been seen removing her opponent's sign and tossing it in the ravine. The same ravine you and she are apparently spearheading taking care of. While you're investigating Mr. Benedetti's "infraction" why don't you look into hers as well? I don't have time to play the election law games with everyone, though it seems any time any one of them are opposed the guns come out; look at the post here about the election of 2003 where Suzanne had an opponent, they published it in the villager they were charging her with breaking election laws. And that's just the one they published; what else was there that we don't know about?
How about the last time Mr. Benedetti attempted running for council? Have you heard what happened then? Sharon Bierman went down to the B.O.E and tried to tell them that there was already someone else running for the position, they didn't need to let him fix an error on his petition. They wouldn't have fixed it anyway and wouldn't have cared what Sharon (who claimed she was representing Minerva Park) had to say but the point of the matter is that current administration does not "play fair" when it comes to election laws themselves...don't selectively enforce if you're going to start tattling on any potential election issue you see. Then you're really playing like the current administration. Let's. Be. Real.
Minerva Park needs preservation of the community we have, not a continuation of the political games we're seeing out of this office. Things are done backwards (which usually means in an illegal way), behind-the-scenes unnecessarily, and pushed through without letting residents know. This has to stop.
Hey "Walking in Minerva Park said... " ... Well said!!!
ReplyDeleteIt's November 9th and Lynn is still Mayor! The people have spoken.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately that is the case and hopefully how some things have been done will improve but I would not hold my breath. Apparently, placing signs in vacant lots and on properties without permission, and throwing the opponent's sign into the ravine works!
ReplyDeleteThere are WAY too many self-proclaimed experts on how things should be done in this village. Unfortunately those people don't have the common sense to understand that unless you are either educated to do a profession or job and/or you actually do a job...all you are voicing is a subjective opinion.
ReplyDeleteI do not think many have been self proclaimed experts, or that most have said how things should be done as opposed to questioning how some things have been done. Plus, although there is not anything wrong with a subjective opinion, some have provided a reasonable basis for their opinion.
ReplyDeleteMr. Legg, being a firefighter is a respectable profession and a conscious choice one makes. You chose a profession that at times leads to placing your life in jeopardy which is commendable, and you received compensation and whatever else for doing so. It does not sound like you were forced to be there, and for you to carry on as though others should afford you more than you received during your service and put them down seems a bit petty. I am glad most others that choose to work in professions that at times leads to placing their life in jeopardy, such as the military are not always sounding as petty and entitled as you do.
ReplyDeleteYou should all be jumping up and down for joy you have your Mayor, but the problems have only just begun. CONGRATS
ReplyDelete