Lakewood's 2016 Census Estimate

[Meg Ostrowski]

50,279

Is this cause for concern?

http://www.cleveland.com/datacentral/in ... tails=True

[Bridget Conant]

Only 279 people keep us from dipping below the critical 50,000 level.

Yes, that IS concerning.

We have built new housing at Rockport, Clifton Pointe, and McKinley Place yet the numbers continue to decline.

There seems to be a disconnect somewhere

[mjkuhns]

I looked over census estimates, once, and historically they tend to be slightly ahead of the actual population loss eventually found in the full, decennial census.

But not enormously, and the census has never estimated that Lakewood was losing population, then found that population was actually stable or growing.

So yes, in the big picture, this should be concerning.

[Bridget Conant]

Falling below 50,000 persons means the loss of not only access to certain federal funds, we lose the federal designation of "city" and become a mere town.

[Michael Deneen]

As always, Meg delivers an excellent post to the Deck.
This is VERY concerning......allow me to explain.

I served on the Citizens Advisory Committee for five terms in the 90s/early 2000s. Our job was to determine how Community Development Block Grant funds were spent by the City of Lakewood. CDBG funds come from the federal government. Lakewood has historically gotten millions of dollars annually via this program.
These funds have gone to wonderful use....primarily road construction/repair, social programs, and anti-homelessness efforts.
I can tell you from first hand experience that it's very difficult to choose the distribution....there are more worthy causes than there are dollars granted.

Even when we were still a "wealthy" city, Lakewood qualified for these funds by meeting two criteria:
1. Age of Housing Stock
2. Population over 50,000

As long as me met these two criteria, we were able to get money automatically.

If we fall below 50,000 people, we no longer automatically get the funds. We would then have to apply and hope that they grant us money based on economic factors.....basically, we'd have to prove that we're poor enough to need the money.

I mentioned this to Jen Pae in one of our online spats over the past couple years. Naturally, she poo-pooed the threat. She said something along the lines of "there are other ways to get CDBG funds".

This would set up an inherent paradox. Team Summers brags about "Progress" and "Moving Forward" and makes empty claims about Lakewood being on the rise. Once we fall below 50,000....which is a strong chance in 2020.....they will simultaneously be "crying poor" to Uncle Sam*.
*This assumes that Trump and the Maniac Republicans haven't already destroyed the program by 2021. If that happens, none of this matters.

Naturally, Summers himself will be long gone by the time the poop hits the fan. Whichever of his stooges he leaves in charge (Bullock? O'Leary? Butler?) will be the sucker left holding the empty bag.

[Pam Wetula]

When people leave Lakewood, they often cite 2 things: PROPERTY TAXES and PARKING.

With no Industry to speak of in Lakewood and with a veritable plethora of low paying jobs from the emphasis on growing restaurant and retail, I predict an income tax increase and a property tax increase

As the city is already pushing landlords to provide tenant social security numbers so the city can track income taxes plus the change requiring college students to file (home rule could have been maintained, despite the state's rule) , it is already obvious that the city needs more money.

Wait until the poorly constructed Rockport Townhouses lose their tax abatements and are hard to sell.

Wait until we do go under 50,000 and lose some government funding.

Our Representatives vision of brick & mortar retail and restaurant will be our undoing.

Our Representatives inability to ATTRACT and RETAIN significant industry to Lakewood is already hurting us.

God help us. We are so screwed!!!

[Michael Deneen]

Our Representatives inability to ATTRACT and RETAIN significant industry to Lakewood is already hurting us. God help us. We are so screwed!!!

Gosh Pam, why do you hate Lakewood?
Haven't you heard about all the "Progress" that is happening?
Wonderful things like an empty hospital, the Bin's demise, an unwanted School Board building for sale, and the empty U of A?
and of course..............Solstice Steps!

Big celebration June 21! yay!

[Pam Wetula]

Our Representatives inability to ATTRACT and RETAIN significant industry to Lakewood is already hurting us. God help us. We are so screwed!!!

Gosh Pam, why do you hate Lakewood?
Haven't you heard about all the "Progress" that is happening?
Wonderful things like an empty hospital, the Bin's demise, an unwanted School Board building for sale, and the empty U of A?
and of course..............Solstice Steps!

Big celebration June 21! yay!

Please don't put out there that I hate Lakewood! I love this city and that is why I am so upset. I know you are kidding me and being sarcastic but some people are not happy with my "in their face" style and they do think anyone that questions things is a hater.

Given that, your comments on all the "Progress" is spot on !!

See you at the big celebration on June 21st!

[Pam Wetula]

Our Representatives inability to ATTRACT and RETAIN significant industry to Lakewood is already hurting us. God help us. We are so screwed!!!

Gosh Pam, why do you hate Lakewood?
Haven't you heard about all the "Progress" that is happening?
Wonderful things like an empty hospital, the Bin's demise, an unwanted School Board building for sale, and the empty U of A?
and of course..............Solstice Steps!

Big celebration June 21! yay!

Please don't put out there that I hate Lakewood! I love this city and that is why I am so upset. I know you are kidding me and being sarcastic but some people are not happy with my "in their face" style and they do think anyone that questions things is a hater.

Given that, your comments on all the "Progress" is spot on !!

See you at the big celebration on June 21st!

[Bridget Conant]

Yes, people who ask questions are marginalized as "haters" to distract from the real and pressing issues for which the PTB have no answer.

I've even seen Facebook retorts like "you hate Lakewood, why don't you just move?"

Sort of funny considering if they got their wish, the city would really be screwed, as Mike Deneen so carefully outlined above.

[Dan Alaimo]

Say what you will about other posts, this 50,000 threshold is a very serious concern. If people dismiss it as the rantings of "negative Nellies," they are not serving the City well.

[Dan Alaimo]

Interesting thought (at least to me) out of the Dem club meeting tonight. Found out that refugees would count in the census. We could do well by doing good, if not for the priorities of Trump.

[Michael Deneen]

Interesting thought (at least to me) out of the Dem club meeting tonight. Found out that refugees would count in the census. We could do well by doing good, if not for the priorities of Trump.

I'm sure City Hall will heavily promote Census participation among the renters.....that will be the first and only time Team Summers ever gave a damn about them.

[Lori Allen _]

When people leave Lakewood, they often cite 2 things: PROPERTY TAXES and PARKING.

With no Industry to speak of in Lakewood and with a veritable plethora of low paying jobs from the emphasis on growing restaurant and retail, I predict an income tax increase and a property tax increase

As the city is already pushing landlords to provide tenant social security numbers so the city can track income taxes plus the change requiring college students to file (home rule could have been maintained, despite the state's rule) , it is already obvious that the city needs more money.

Wait until the poorly constructed Rockport Townhouses lose their tax abatements and are hard to sell.

Wait until we do go under 50,000 and lose some government funding.

Our Representatives vision of brick & mortar retail and restaurant will be our undoing.

Our Representatives inability to ATTRACT and RETAIN significant industry to Lakewood is already hurting us.

God help us. We are so screwed!!!

Pam,

Thank you for mentioning the Rockport Townhouses. If they truly are the most sought after housing option, why the need to provide such tax abatements? It seems like an oxymoron. Also, you may have noticed that last summer, we had three of the townhomes by Ridgewood for sale (three in a row), one on Hopkins for sale, and two in a row on Newman for sale. These were the ones built int he 2006-2007 era. They sat for months and months before selling, and a few of them are still for sale.The townhome on Hopkins sat for sale and vacant for over a year. If they are the hot items that Mr. Summers touts, perhaps Mr. Summers would like to explain the above.

My point being that Mr. Summers and City Hall seem to think that this type of housing attracts new residents. While a noble idea that may work elsewhere, it must not be working in Lakewood, based on my above example.

If a city wishes not only to attract, but keep new residents, it would be best to do the following first:

1. Maintain an honest, transparent government (clearly that is not the case right now).
2. Work on maintaining current housing stock before building new.
3. Ensure that city streets are kept clean, and free of excessive graffiti, litter, and overgrown grass.
4. Ditch this penchant for running a clique of 50+ year-old, multi-millionaire white males that are friends of the mayor running City Hall behind the scenes as a "shadow government".
5. Create and implement an action plan for attracting diverse businesses, especially family-friendly businesses (e.g. not approving bars at every City Council meeting).

Mr. Summers and City Hall should seriously consider implementing the above steps if they wish to keep our population above 50k. Perhaps they are already busy enough chasing their tails as it is.