As a member of the Strategic Planning Committee and now a candidate for mayor of the city of Findlay, I’d like to share my thoughts on the video below concerning the roadmap we are building for Findlay’s future.
I feel honored to be part of this committee, and the insight I’ve gained is highly valuable. It is actually one of the reasons I am running this mayoral race. I was on the front lines of the interviews, surveys, and pop-up shops, and can tell you in all honesty that the concerns of the people I had the privilege of speaking to do NOT reflect the plan they are putting together. I will discuss this further in future posts, but for now, I will highlight a few things from this video.
1. The cost for Planning Next (the consulting firm) is approximately $125,000. We are over budget. Think of this while you read my previous post about a $10-$40 million dollar park they wish to build with a $1.3 million design cost. Planning Next requested an additional $7,000 in funding in a letter to Mayor Muryn and Jeff Wobser on January 4, 2023, but our City Auditor hadn’t seen or heard of it til this meeting on February 9. Transparent? It’s just a word they use loosely with no intention or integrity behind it. Perhaps I wasn’t paying enough attention, but I’ve only heard them use that word since I started using it as part of my platform – posted Feb 3.
2. They will reach out to other entities for more feedback, however, in the Mayor’s words, “I don’t want to be selective . . . but we don’t need every church to come tell us their strategic plan. Invite entities that have governmental interaction.” (44:07 time stamp)
3. Wordsmithing seemed highly important in this plan. The mayor added “safe” to community. “It wasn’t a strong public sentiment but it was key foundational service of the City of Findlay” (1:07:23 time stamp). Recommended verbiage “A well-run city government that is transparent, easy to engage with, and prioritizes its people” (1:08:15 time stamp). My thoughts? Perhaps they should start implementing this plan since I’m running because this is exactly what they haven’t been doing.
4. The Mayor said, “One thing we heard from the public was ‘you are prioritizing an attractive place,’” but she continues, “Safety and core government services really are the priority. I recommend we move them higher up in the list.”
Yes, I’ve seen the words “attractive place to live” and “beautify the city” in the sessions I’ve sat through, but I have NOT heard the words “well-run government.” Words I’ve heard and written down have been “bring in shopping,” “make the city family-friendly,” “improve police response time,” “add more recreation,” “address the homeless population,” and “deal with our opioid crisis.” These are all issues I plan to research and create plans for as the City of Findlay Mayor.
I’m going to bring the change you want to see because I care about this community. I’m raising children here and I know exactly how you feel!