Some Suggestions on Mayor Sullivans' First Budget
Mayor Mike Sullivan is in the process of
putting together his first municipal budget. The budget year ends
on June 30th and the council must approve the new budget prior to
that date. That means the process of developing a budget plan is
in progress right now. Given the need for radical change in the
way Lawrence does business, here is a list of suggested
expenditures that Sullivan must include in his budget if we are
to begin moving forward.
Education and Job Training
Superintendent Laboys' initiative for English instruction and
mainstreaming immigrant students is a major priority which should
be expanded in the school budget. But adult training and
education for Lawrence's adult immigrant population is also
paramount to the growth of our city. ESL classes and job training
skills deserve more than just minor consideration when you
consider that there is a three-year waiting list for ESL classes
and very high unemployment rate. City residents who have been
laid off, as well as those who have recently come to this county
need extra help. Helping them to excel in English proficiency and
improving their chances in the job market will help the city
enormously because those who can obtain marketable skills will be
less likely to commit crime or go on welfare. It is much less
expensive for the city to educate and train adults who have these
needs than it is to deal with the effects of an uneducated and
unskilled population. Serious attention must be given to ESL and
job training through the adult learning center, the senior
center, private businesses and the school department. A penny
spent today is a dollar saved tomorrow.
Public Safety
Fire Chief Richard Schaffer says it will cost about a million
dollars to open the Glen Street Fire Station. It will also cost
about $800,000 to pay for staffing and training. In a city budget
that is sure to exceed $180 million, spending less than $2
million to ensure the safety of all residents is a drop in the
bucket compared to the cost of lives should a disaster take
place. With the Glen Street Station open, residents in all
corners of the city will have the added protection of back up
firefighters when a four or five alarm fire breaks out especially
on those occasions when the fire department must respond to more
than one fire at a time. The council has said this is a priority
but the mayor must include it in the budget.
First Time Home Buyer Program and Community Development
The first time homebuyer program in Lawrence is a huge asset that
cannot be overlooked. Though the federal government funds the
program directly, there are a number of things that the Mayor can
do to expand the program from the city budget. Hiring qualified
people and adding competent staff to the Community Development
office will help more people get into their first home faster.
Also, some councilors have been calling for an adequate master
plan for the city, which can be the long-term model of
residential and business development. The last master plan put
together by the Dowling administration was a complete joke and
does not address the myriad of infrastructure problems Lawrence
is facing. There should be enough money in the budget to study
the possible development of Lawrence over the next 20 years and
start the process on its way. Last year the city paved 12 roads
in the entire city. An expansion of the DPW budget with specific
allocations put toward street and sidewalk repairs cannot be
overlooked.
Inspectional Services
The inspectional services department is severely underfunded and
understaffed. Landlords routinely fail to get occupancy permits,
business routinely fail to comply with zoning and licensing
requirements. The city's failure to deal with these problems has
less to do with incompetence and much more to do with an
overworked department, which is the enforcement branch of civil
codes. More alarming is the number of businesses that deal with
hazardous waste materials with no toxic substance inspectors to
make sure the land, air and water of the city is not being
contaminated. This is a quality of life issue which, if it
continues to be ignored, puts the health and safety of everyone
at risk, especially those who live in the more dense areas of the
city.
Parks and Playgrounds
Since the city disregarded the wishes of residents and destroyed
two parks to build schools, Lawrence is in even more dire need of
green space than ever before. With hundreds of vacant lots in the
most devastated parts of the city it only stands to reason that
some of these lots get targeted immediately in the budget for
playground and park space. During the Sullivan administration
(Kevin Sullivan) a public-private partnership was put together to
target lots in certain areas of the city to plant vegetable
gardens, trees, erect swing sets and park benches for neighbors
to recreate in. North Lawrence is filled with vacant lots, some
of which could be used by the residents of those neighborhoods.
When Adopt-a-Park was put together in 1986-1987 neighbors pitched
in to help create green space and thereby took ownership of that
property. It cost the city very little to start up and, had the
program continued there would be many more nicer looking
neighborhoods on the north side of the city today. Through a
volunteer board and a few thousand dolls in the city budget,
Lawrence could be well on its' way to cleaning some of the more
blighted areas of the city and provide quality of life for the
people who live there.
Return Lost Money and Green Space to the Public
Developers JPI gave the city $50 000 to build a real parking lot
large enough for 25 cars and a bus turn-around at Den Rock Park.
They agreed to help fund park improvements because of the Den
Rock development. The city was supposed to put the parking lot
out to bid this spring but they discovered that oops... the money
was spent on something else. Add onto that a $200,000 grant from
the 1996 open space bond bill that we lost because we didn't
create a capitol improvement plan, and a $135,000 grant to build
a bike path along the Shawsheen River which was lost by the city
due to incompetence and lack of attention by the last
administration, and you can see the city has quickly lost its'
most precious resource: parks and open space. The next city
budget must, at the very least, begin to address this through
community development by adding funding to replace the open space
that has been lost.
Small Business Assistance Office
Here is an idea that was talked about during the last election
and it should be given some attention. Businesses, especially
small businesses, have the torturous task of leaping from city
department to city department in order to get the required
permits and licenses to open up shop here in the city. The
current system seriously discourages outside businesses from
coming here. A Small business assistance office, staffed with
people who can provide prospective businesses with exactly what
is needed to get their business going (and pamphlets that explain
the city process) would be one stop shopping for those who want
to make Lawrence their new home. This office should contain
applications for all licenses and permits with someone to answer
questions. The cost would be minimal compared to the tax revenue
this would generate. Several business owners I have spoken with
over the years have said that the process is so complicated and
cumbersome, that they discourage their friends from relocating to
Lawrence. A more user-friendly approach will lure potential
business owners here. For the cost of printing pamphlets and a
few city workers to deal directly with the business community the
expense will more than pay for itself.
Senior Citizen Assistance
There is no reason why senior citizens should have to pay so much
in city taxes, permits, licenses and other city fees. These are
people who have paid taxes all their lives and are stuck on a
fixed income. Though a tax break for seniors will result in
decreased revenue for the city, I believe it is one of those
things that cannot be looked at with a cost-benefit frame of
mind. The Senior Center is in need of more staff. Senior citizens
are in need of transportation and it is our obligation as a
community to provide whatever services they need. As interim
Mayor, Marcos Devers gave the senior center a janitor that was
badly needed. Mayor Dowling had continually denied this expense
in her budgets. Shortly after Devers left office as interim mayor
the janitor was removed. The senior center is one of those
entities in the city that has to be given a top priority in the
city budget. Even more importantly, the number of Hispanic senior
citizens is rising rapidly with very little consideration being
given to their needs in the budget. Mayor Sullivan needs to sit
down with Barney Riley and objectively look at how inadequate the
staffing and funding is for Lawrence seniors.
Less Money to Charities
It's "nice" and makes us feel good to give money to
charity. But the city has serious needs that must be funded with
the limited resources we take in. Last year the city gave money
to charities through the CDBG grant process, not to mention
paying for private institutions to get such items as fencing. If
we are going to make a real effort to rebuilt Lawrence after 12
years of bad planning we must focus every dollar on the highest
priorities. Once our parks are replaced, the fire station is
built, the streets are paved and other necessities are taken care
of the city can give all it wants to Lazarus House, the Red Cross
and The Salvation Army. Until then, we have to try and catch up
on all the things that were ignored or sloppily dealt with over
the last 12 years.
While I am sure the administration will say it is impossible to
fund all the projects I have described above, Mayor Sullivan can
begin to address the issues I have outlined with a four year plan
beginning with this budget. As members of the general public you
should take the time to call the mayors office as well as your
City Councilors to tell them your feelings on how your money
should be spent. My list of suggestions is not all-inclusive as I
only have so much space here in Rumbo. I simply looked at what
the immediate needs of the neighborhoods happen to be and of
course, I may have missed a few. So, feel free to let your city
officials know what you think and contact me if you have a
suggestion that no one is listening to.
