The Observation Deck

Brian Essi wrote:In the PD editorial candidate interview (at about minute 20 Part 2) Summers finally admits the reasons he ignored both Metro proposals was because he believed that he and his cronies on LHA's Board would have to "GIVE UP CONTROL" of the MONEY and LAND in order to keep a hospital to care for the people.

Meg Ostrowski wrote:

Brian Essi wrote:In the PD editorial candidate interview (at about minute 20 Part 2) Summers finally admits the reasons he ignored both Metro proposals was because he believed that he and his cronies on LHA's Board would have to "GIVE UP CONTROL" of the MONEY and LAND in order to keep a hospital to care for the people.

At the Lakewood Hospital Informational Meeting held at The Winton Place on Saturday, October 3rd, the Mayor’s sentiment was echoed by two, eighteen year members of LHA. One informed us that he personally contributed to and has written LHF into his will. The other emphatically proclaimed that “this is about preserving the resources.”

Jim O'Bryan wrote:

Meg Ostrowski wrote:

Brian Essi wrote:In the PD editorial candidate interview (at about minute 20 Part 2) Summers finally admits the reasons he ignored both Metro proposals was because he believed that he and his cronies on LHA's Board would have to "GIVE UP CONTROL" of the MONEY and LAND in order to keep a hospital to care for the people.

At the Lakewood Hospital Informational Meeting held at The Winton Place on Saturday, October 3rd, the Mayor’s sentiment was echoed by two, eighteen year members of LHA. One informed us that he personally contributed to and has written LHF into his will. The other emphatically proclaimed that “this is about preserving the resources.”

Meg

I believe you are speaking of two different things while speaking about the same thing.

My single biggest problem with this entire deal, outside of the secrecy and misrepresentation from elected officials is that Money that was public, is going to the Clinic to come back as money in a private institution. That answers to no one.

This is why I refer to it as money laundering. Taking public assets and making them private or public private is a constant theme of Republicans.

I could car less if a private institution came to Lakewood and set up for healthcare. I could care less if the Clinic built a Family Health Care Facility in Lakewood with their own money. But taking public funds, and making them private just strikes me as theft. To spend millions more in public assets to move that money to a private institution is sick.

But to paraphrase Becky Patton from the Library Hospital Meeting, "Lakewoodites do not understand it well enough to vote, and besides I do not like the way they vote." I understand what she is saying, and even if I agreed with her, it doesn't make it right.

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Corey Rossen wrote:

Corey Rossen wrote:Jim,

Who would receive the money once (if) it becomes private?
What criteria is in place to determine who would then receive the private money?
Who allocates the private money spending (and where it goes)?
Where are those people (the ones who would control where the money is spent) in this process now?

Corey

Jim O'Bryan wrote:

Corey Rossen wrote:

Corey Rossen wrote:Jim,

Who would receive the money once (if) it becomes private?
What criteria is in place to determine who would then receive the private money?
Who allocates the private money spending (and where it goes)?
Where are those people (the ones who would control where the money is spent) in this process now?

Corey

According to the Mayor, it is a yet formed, yet named, and yet un-staffed Non-Profit.
I was told back in February but a member of the "team" that they had talks with the Cleveland Foundation, and other Foundations to hold the money until it was set up. (THIS IS NOT AN UNCOMMON PRACTICE IN THE WORLD OF NON-PROFITS AS THEY GET RESTRUCTURED) I put that in caps because the LHA and LHF have completely different missions with their money. No matter what happens here, at some point, now, later, in 2026 the LHF will have to find something to do with about 30% of their restricted funds.

Jay Foran of the Active Living Task Force, strangely silent, has indicated the new non-profit could possible have something to do with active living and/or wellness. Currently there are grants for active living and wellness, and this term suits the entire process well for keeping money in house.

So the Criteria as I understand it, is wellness, health, private foundation. The other thing kicked around is something like the Cleveland Foundation. But this is laughable for many reasons. The biggest is that The Cleveland Foundation is the largest foundation of its kind in the world, they can move mountains. On a Lakewood level that means over paying jobs for people to look for money, and we have tried that before, and while they gave themselves a ton of awards, nothing really was accomplished until they moved on.

We have no idea who is in it. We are just pledging them $34 million in public money, and $500,000 a year for 15 years. That sounds like payroll numbers to me. No Corey, give me your money, I'll take care of it for you, not sure how, but...

Are they in the process now? Who knows, we are not allowed to know their names. It has been indicated many times that many of the same people that drove this bus into the ditch will be driving the new shiny bus. THAT IS THE DUMBEST PART YET.

To really put this into perspective, with my opinion, and this will piss everyone off, but of course.

If this goes down, we need to get as much as possible. I have been in some talks where they are talking about $383 million in damages easily. We certainly need more from the Clinic than is being asked, yet the Mayor is reluctant. Whatever we get, we need to keep in the public's hands with strict control over it. We are losing way too much to not make the most of it. This is best done in public, all of this should have been done in public. This money cannot be squandered, and it certainly should not be left to those that schemed to get it.

But before we gt to that point, City Hall needs to come clean and open the books. They need to convince Lakewood Hospital Association to open all the books. Le's drag this nightmare into the light of day and try to sort through it.

It heads off a bad mistake, it heads off a civil war, it helps to restore trust, and is positive for the City.

Stop the insanity, stop the war, open the books, let in the light of day.

Please

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Brian Essi wrote:In the PD editorial candidate interview (at about minute 20 Part 2) Summers finally admits the reasons he ignored both Metro proposals was because he believed that he and his cronies on LHA's Board would have to "GIVE UP CONTROL" of the MONEY and LAND in order to keep a hospital to care for the people.

So his "CONTROL OF MONEY" of the land and money was more important than having a hospital in Lakewood.

Summers' MO is also to CONTROL INFORMATION---please recall that he kept the Metro proposals secret and mischaracterized them even after the records laws forced him to reveal them to the Public.

So there you have it---the Summers administration in a nutshell---His control of money and land are more important that taking care of people.


Lakewood mayoral candidate endorsement interview Part 1:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArMUL13VIAc

Part 2:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGery42-zSs


Special thanks to Todd Heckeler for bringing these gems to the Deck.