Ask the Mayor

Akron citizens received our copy of the quarterly City publication put out by our local government. In this issue, is a new feature -- a tear out post-card that allows each of us to ask one question of our Mayor. All we have to do is put our name and return address on it and a stamp. Someone, we are promised, from city government will answer our questions. So why not call it "Ask someone in city government?"

Trying to narrow it down to one question is a bit difficult. I'm tempted, after reading the mag through from cover to cover, to ask a follow up question to one of three printed in the current issue. The question is about the proposed sale of our sewer system to create a scholarship program for all Akron Public School students to attend Akron U. The mayor sketches it out by focusing on the scholarships, promising an aggressive campaign to raise the necessary funds from a variety of sources. His words about leasing the sewer plan are still too vague for me. He promises that the city will address "citizens' concerns about future rates, environmental issues and service."

Quite frankly, Mayor Plusquellic, I'll believe your plan when I see all the details in black and white, not just promises. My question is -- when will we see an actual detailed plan?

The other question also arises after reading City mag. Why must every single Rock the Lock on Friday nights feature a cover band? Aren't there enough interesting local bands to at least have every other Friday feature original material? And if we have to have all these cover bands, including tributes to the following: Kiss, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Doors, Fleetwood Mac, Jimmy Buffett, CArlos Santana, CSN&Y, Tina Turner, Journey, Bon Jovi, Creedence, Led Zeppelin, U2 (!), Aerosmith, Bob Seger, and ZZ Top -- can't we at least have a Kinks Kover band, huh??

I realize those are a lot of frivolous questions, so maybe I'll stick to bugging him about the sewer system. Because we citizens won't get an opportunity to vote on it directly. It will be put to City Council. And we know that City Council is not likely to vote against our mayor, although they showed some spine today by voting to reject a deal to pay off local business man and charter school magnate David Brennan's downtown hotel debts.

There is a local group forming to oppose the sewer move. Get the info here.