Dru Siley - Is this the best we can find?

[m buckley]

Ah! "The Petulant One" strikes again. Ryan it sounds like you've been exiled from Mr. Siley's dull orbit. On a serious note how did we get to the point where Mr. Summers, Mr. Siley and Ms. Madigan hijacked this town and began running it like it was their private club, where transparency and truth are pushed to the side and the ends too often justify the means. There's an election coming. I hope someone steps up. The old order, the old way of doing things needs to end. This self perpetuating political clique needs to be broken up. In the meantime, Ryan, you're on double secret probation. Be careful - a public shunning can't be far behind.

[marklingm]

Dru must be upset channel 5 did a story on the volunteers that are calling businesses. He now unfriended me on Facebook!

[Meg Ostrowski]

Someone who read my recent posts in this thread told me that I seemed to simply be coming to Dru’s (and Mary’s) defense. It is true that the tone made me uncomfortable and I was attempting to alleviate that.

BUT

My point was that they are employees. They take direction and focus on priorities set by their boss, our Mayor and Public Safety Director. “The buck stops there.”

I certainly don’t envy the Mayor. His is a big job with many responsibilities.

I am praying for a thaw and a hospital miracle.

[m buckley]

Meg, I'm not as familiar as you are with Mr. Siley or Ms. Madigan. I don't know them as Dru and Mary. Unfortunately I do know them as people entrusted with power who lied to myself and my neighbors on Grace . Again, if you want to challenge Colleen Cotter's article or her timeline in the Observer, that's a discussion I'm willing to have. As for Mr. Summers, I agree the buck should stop with him . For the record the last time I saw Mr. Summers was in front of City Council at a Committee of the Whole meeting (I believe it was 10-13) when he earnestly promised to bring all sides together after a Drug Mart traffic study. We're still waiting on that meeting, I presume our Council Rep Ms. Madigan is still waiting with us; unless of course she's relegated that moment to "The Land of Rumors"

[m buckley]

Meg, I need to correct my last post. The last time I actually saw Mr. Summers was at the 12-13 Planning Commission meeting convened ostensibly to discuss Drug Mart's traffic study. That was a meeting presided over by Mr. Siley, with Ms. Madigan in attendance . A meeting at which we were told our right to speak would be curtailed to 3 minutes each while the mayor took the opportunity to end all discussion concerning truck traffic on Grace. Ms. Madigan (our representative) declined to comment at the time or for that matter at any time, about the heavy handed way that our right to speak had been limited or about the broken promise by the mayor made in front of her at the Committee of the Whole 2 months earlier. It was in short, a political ambush.

[Meg Ostrowski]

Someone who read my recent posts in this thread told me that I seemed to simply be coming to Dru’s (and Mary’s) defense. It is true that the tone made me uncomfortable and I was attempting to alleviate that.

BUT

My point was that they are employees. They take direction and focus on priorities set by their boss, our Mayor and Public Safety Director. “The buck stops there.”

I certainly don’t envy the Mayor. His is a big job with many responsibilities.

I am praying for a thaw and a hospital miracle.

Meg, I'm not as familiar as you are with Mr. Siley or Ms. Madigan. I don't know them as Dru and Mary.

For the record, I do not personally know Mr. “Dru” Siley, the Ms. “Mary” Simon that I was referring to, or Council Member Madigan.

I used first names (as done by others) given the casual nature of this forum, “Good Neighbors Talking Over the Digital Fence.”

I did not mean to imply familiarity, apologize for any confusion and again am not defending anyone's behavior.

[m buckley]

Meg, I apologize to you. This is obviously a sensitive subject on Grace and in my effort to make sure that Ms. Madigan and Mr. Siley are held accountable for their actions I inferred more than I should. Sorry. Mark.

[marklingm]

"Dru Siley - Is this the best we can find?"


What if the answer is, yes?

[marklingm]

Someone didn't like me pointing out the truth. Rather than fess up and apologize for his hypocrisy he just blocks me. Mayor Mike Summers sure knows how to pick great leaders in this city...

Ryan,

You had me curious so I checked out Dru on Twitter yesterday ... and I'm blocked, too.

Funny stuff!

As an aside, where did all the Retweets from Dru and Mike's Twitter accounts go to on the official City of Lakewood Twitter account?

Matt

[Ryan Salo]

I wonder if they got legal permission to delete it from the same person that said they could block citizens from accessing the twitter account they use during official city business and the same that said they could secretly meet to negotiate the sale of a public asset.

[Jim O'Bryan]

I wonder if they got legal permission to delete it from the same person that said they could block citizens from accessing the twitter account they use during official city business and the same that said they could secretly meet to negotiate the sale of a public asset.

Like kids playing government.

Nothing like city hall defending secrecy and selective access.


.

[Lori Allen _]

Hey Ryan, is the city planning on paying you for your hard work? Besides Mary Simon, (who I have seen out several times), what in Heaven's names are the rest of the city inspectors doing, playing cards at we the taxpayer's expense? How about the sidewalks on the south side of Clifton between Belle and Ramona? One inspector could go out there and quickly go house to house and write citations. The school guards stand out everyday in this weather to protect our kids at a fraction of the pay the inspectors get. Why does Summer's think this problem is everybody else's except his? After all, isn't he the leader of this city?

[Lori Allen _]

Here are the pictures of south side of Clifton between Belle and Ramona:

[Ryan Salo]

My son and I went to hear the Mayor's state of the city address. Halfway through I realized I was just a few rows behind Dru Siley. After it ended I had the chance to have a loud conversation with him after I chased him down to talk. At first he said I was rude and he had nothing to say to me. He viewed the posting of a picture of his home was used as an aggressive intimidating way. He said he had cleared his driveway and was planning to do the sidewalks after work on Friday.

He said he is pleased with how his department is handling sidewalks and that there is always room for improvement. He basically told me he doesn't enforce the ordinance because he said he doesn't believe that doing the work for the businesses is the solution, he said training and education is key and he pointed to the fact that most businesses shovel as an example that what they are doing is working. He believes in working with the business owners...

He mentioned that his department has a lot on its plate and they are doing a wonderful job as a whole. He did say he didn't want volunteer vigilantes threatening to report businesses instead he would be open to volunteers handing out flyers just saying they were there to educate. Even though the conversation started very heated we ended amicably. We still have very different views on how the situation should be handled and I will still fight for stricter enforcement. I don't believe we need to wait for someone to get hit by a car to turn up the heat on city ordinances.

I had taken my son to watch the mayor speak but he said his favorite part was watching me and Dru talk.

Just for reference here is a copy of the full ordinance. I had never noticed the part about business districts only have until 9:00am to clear their sidewalks. This is definitely not being enforced...

521.06 DUTY TO KEEP SIDEWALKS IN REPAIR AND CLEAN.
(a) Every owner, occupant or person having charge of any tenement building, lot or land fronting any avenue, street, alley or public highway in the City shall remove and clear away, or cause to be removed or cleared away, snow and ice from a path of at least four feet in width from so much of the sidewalk whether or not flagged or paved as is in front of or abuts such building or lot or land.

No person removing snow from any driveway, sidewalk, public or private parking lot or private premises within the City shall deposit the same on the street, pavement, sidewalk or driveway apron of any public street. (Ord. 3-85. Passed 2-4-85.)


(1) Except as provided in subsection (b) hereof, snow and ice shall be removed from all business districts within the City by 9:00 a.m. of each day.


(2) Except as provided in subsection (b) hereof, snow and ice shall be removed from all other sidewalks within the City on the same day as the cessation of any fall of snow, sleet or freezing rail or not later than 8:00 p.m. after the cessation of such fall, whichever period is longer.


(b) In the event snow and ice on a sidewalk has become so hard that it cannot be removed without the likelihood of damage to the sidewalk, the person or entity charged with its removal, shall within the time mentioned in subsection (a) hereof, cause enough abrasive material or sodium chloride or derivative thereof to be put on the sidewalk to make travel thereon reasonably safe and shall then, as soon thereafter as weather permits, cause such sidewalk to be thoroughly cleaned.


(c) Every owner, occupant or person having charge of any tenement building, lot or land fronting upon any avenue, street, alley or other public highway of the City shall keep the entire width of such sidewalk from curb to lot line, free and clear of all earth, sand, brick, stone, rubbish, dead trees and dead branches of trees or other material which from any cause whatever shall have accumulated or may accumulate upon such sidewalk above the established grade of the same and shall also cut and remove from the sidewalk between the lot and curb line, all weeds, grass and vegetable growths that are more than four inches in height.


(d) If the owner of any building, lot or land fails to comply with the provisions of this section, then the Director of Public Works may remove the snow, ice, earth, sand, brick, stone, rubbish, dead trees or dead branches of trees or other materials, weeds, grass and vegetable growths, from the sidewalk in front of the premises of such owner, and may charge the expense thereof to such owner, and if, upon being notified, he fails to pay the City the amount of such expense, then such amount may be certified by the proper City officer to the County Auditor, and the same shall act as a lien upon the property of such owner, and shall be collected as provided for in the case of special assessments.


(e) For the purpose of this section, the term, business district, as set forth in subsection (a)(1), shall include all properties abutting or within 150 feet of Detroit Avenue from 117th Street to the Detroit Bridge approach; abutting or within 150 feet of Madison Avenue from 117th Street to Riverside Drive; abutting or within 150 feet of 117th Street from Lake Avenue to Berea Road; abutting or within 150 feet of Warren Road from Detroit Avenue to Franklin Boulevard; abutting or within 150 feet of Sloane Avenue from West Clifton Boulevard to Phelps Avenue; abutting or within 150 feet of Berea Road from West 117th Street to the City limits; abutting or within 150 feet of Hilliard Road from Madison Avenue to Woodward Avenue; abutting or within 150 feet of the Detroit Bridge approach from Detroit Avenue to the Rocky River Bridge.


(f) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.

[Lori Allen _]

Ryan, I was sorry to hear about your encounter with Mr. Siley. I applaud you for being brave and standing up to this Administration by trying to help our community, especially the senior citizens and those in wheel chairs. In my conversations with others living in Lakewood Mr. Siley's comments and attitude in general is the norm for City Hall. Perhaps Mr. Siley and others at City Hall should be reminded that they work for us and we pay their salaries. It is the Mayor's job to make sure that the taxpayers in Lakewood are treated respectfully, regardless of the feelings or opinions that those at City Hall may have. I think the Mayor needs to get himself together. Maybe, (ha ha), then he can remind himself that his position is to take care of his city and most importantly, to take care of his citizens. As for handing out flyers, the city should be sending out a mailing to the citizens that explains the snow removal ordinances. Perhaps due to what appears to be inflated salaries at City Hall, we can't afford it!