Money is the key issue that hangs over the election for New Castle City Council.
By that, we mean the city’s financial plight. New Castle is an Act 47 community, officially recognized by the state as financially distressed and operating under a system designed to promote fiscal accountability.
There are restrictions under Act 47. But they mainly require the city to operate within a believable budget. The city still can develop policies and programs as it sees fit.
It just has to be able to pay for them.
There appear to be a lot of misconceptions in New Castle about Act 47. And many of them are held by candidates running for city council. Typically, these consist of the view that being in Act 47 is a terrible thing.
We disagree. The terrible part was the poor leadership that dug the city into a financial hole. Act 47 is the salvation, a lifeline for the community.
And not only does it force the fiscal discipline city officials were unwilling to provide by themselves, Act 47 also presents an opportunity to move forward. New Castle’s recovery plan under Act 47 includes plenty of ideas for strengthening the city and its operations.
The key ingredient is a group of city officials willing to tackle the hard work.
And that brings us to Tuesday’s race for city council and our endorsements. Voters will select three new faces for council, two for four-year terms and one for a two-year stint.
The two-year contest is a special election (resulting from a resignation vacancy) that pits Democrat Richard Beshero against Republican Theo McCracken. Neither candidate ran in the primary; they were selected for the ballot by their respective party committees.
Of the two, we think McCracken is the stronger choice. He has a long record of civic involvement that can be an asset to council. Beshero, a political newcomer by contrast, demonstrated little knowledge of city government’s structure or the responsibilities of a council member.
Candidates in the four-year contests for council are Democrats MaryAnne Gavrile and Ed Yerage and Republicans John Altman and William Schafer.
Our strongest endorsement goes to Gavrile. We believe she understands the role council must play in New Castle’s future, not only in terms of Act 47, but also in setting standards for protecting neighborhoods from poorly tended properties.
That’s something New Castle desperately needs.
Similarly, we recommend Altman as a good choice for council. As a private citizen, he was among the early proponents of Act 47, pushing the issue via petition. Without the input of concerned individuals such as Altman, it is terrifying to think where New Castle would be today.
Like Gavrile, Altman recognizes the need to target problem properties in order to protect neighborhoods. He would be a positive force on council. Altman and Gavrile demonstrate to us a knowledge base of how city government ought to run.
Although we will not endorse him in this contest, we were impressed with Yerage’s energy and passion for the city. These are admirable qualities. However, they are no substitute for the experience and insights offered by others in the race.
The final candidate, Schafer, offered little insight into city operations, despite a heavy background in local politics and government. Schafer pledged to listen to the people; we think a serious candidate ought to have a solid game plan for tackling the city’s problems.
So our endorsements for New Castle City Council in Tuesday’s election go to MaryAnne Gavrile and John Altman in the four-year contest and Theo McCracken in the two-year race.
Editorials
EDITORIAL: Council question
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Postal service’s financial woes not of their own making
It’s no secret that the U.S. Postal Service is experiencing financial troubles. One of the consequences of a deficit in the billions of dollars soon will become apparent in New Castle, when the city’s mail processing facility on Cascade Street is shut down.
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Our Opinion: UPMC, Highmark tangle for dominance. But what about the public?
Health insurance recipients in western Pennsylvania received some good news recently. The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and Highmark Inc., the two local behemoths of the insurance and health care industry, reached an agreement to extend their contract with each other. The 18-month extension will be good through 2014.
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Our Opinion: Annual Jack Butz Award honors community involvement
During his lifetime, Jack Butz was known as someone who donated much to the community. And even now, years after his passing, Butz continues to give. We refer to the annual Jack Butz Award, where a local citizen is recognized for his or her contributions to New Castle and the surrounding area.
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Our Opinion: Why would New Castle weaken architecture standards?
There are times when communities must decide what they want to be. For New Castle, one of those times is arriving later this month. New Castle City Council is considering changes to the municipal zoning ordinance that will have the effect of seriously weakening standards for the North Hill Historic District.
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Our Opinion: A box from 1914 says something about the past — and today
The former Elks building in downtown New Castle was demolished months ago, but one bit of business remained. And city officials addressed that last week, when a time capsule from 1914 was opened.
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Our Opinion: Awareness campaigns protect generations of children
The first step in solving a problem is recognizing that it exists. That was a major factor behind the recent Walk for Justice at Cascade Park, organized by the Crisis Shelter of Lawrence County.
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Our Opinion: Secret Service scandal symbolizes breaches of public trust
There are a couple of pieces of good news regarding the Secret Service sex scandal. The first is that an investigation has determined the women hired as prostitutes by Secret Service agents in Columbia apparently were just that.
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Our Opinion: Municipalities save money with shared services
In difficult financial times, finding ways to use tax dollars more efficiently is an essential government task. That’s why we were pleased to learn that Shenango Township and South New Castle Borough have agreed to share police services.
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Our Opinion: State politicians use campaign funds in criminal cases
If you want to wage a spirited defense against criminal charges, you need money. A good attorney, after all, isn’t cheap. But if you are an influential elected official in Pennsylvania facing trial, this problem comes with a ready solution. All you have to do is tap into your campaign funds.
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Our Opinion: Resignation in Neshannock highlights leadership issue
With Neshannock Township now seeking a new manager, we hope the supervisors have learned something from their experiences so far. That’s because their efforts to date on selecting a manager for the municipality haven’t gone very well. Ironically, the questionable practices and decision-making displayed by the supervisors demonstrate the need for sound management in the township.
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Postal service’s financial woes not of their own making
