The Observation Deck

From the Lakewood Outdoor Basketball Committee Facebook page ....

The FULL COURT GRAND OPENING!!! We’re extremely happy and excited for outdoor full court basketball to be back in Lakewood.

Please join us at Madison Park Wednesday, July 25th at 6:30pm as we kick off a respectful, positive and healthy start for this first of hopefully many full courts here in Lakewood.

#bringfriendsandneighbors

I hope to see some of my old Lakewood friends as I make a return visit from The 330.

I plan to be there to document it for the LO.

It was a wonderful event....lots of kids, community leaders, LOBC members, and community activists were in attendance.
The kids were thrilled with the court, which was lined on Wednesday in time for the grand opening.
Here is a link to my Lakewood Observer photo gallery:

http://lakewoodobserver.com/photoblogs/ ... ning-72518

Expect a full written report in the next print edition of the Observer.

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Peter Grossetti wrote:I hope to see some of my old Lakewood friends as I make a return visit from The 330.

This is great news as we quickly close in on 1/3rd the number of full courts we started out with before "they" were perceived as problems.

At this rate we will have completely erased the vandalism of small minds in this city by 2025!

A win for all, even those in the 330!

Ohhhhhhhh have we forgotten where it started and why?



.

Very mixed feeling here.

I'm glad the citizens finally succeeded in getting outdoor hoops back in Lakewood in a park, but this puts a period - maybe just a semicolon - on a rather dark period in dealing with city government, the mayor in particular.

My interest in outdoor basketball came out of my involvement with the Kauffman Park group, which was strongly opposed to the closing. At one point we met with the mayor to discuss an alternate location in the park for the hoops. The group, which included a Lakeland resident and a Lakewood Alive representative disagreed with a proposal by the mayor and I, as the president at the time, was designated to tell him. I could have gone for a compromise, but the group wanted no part of that.

In a 10-minute conversation with Summers, in which he basically went ballistic at being told no, my opinion of the man changed drastically and possibly forever. How could this guy be mayor if he couldn't negotiate with a citizens' group? Later, as more a more serious issue came up, my question became, how could he negotiate anything?

So I'm truly happy for the LOBC and the people who will enjoy the basketball court. And I remain willing to support a viable effort to recall this mayor.

Dan Alaimo wrote:In a 10-minute conversation with Summers, in which he basically went ballistic at being told no, my opinion of the man changed drastically and possibly forever. How could this guy be mayor if he couldn't negotiate with a citizens' group? Later, as more a more serious issue came up, my question became, how could he negotiate anything?

The Team Summers negotiation strategy:
When dealing with big business, immediately drop your pants and bend over.
When dealing with normal citizens, stand your ground and fight tooth and nail. Lie and cheat if necessary, no holds barred.

Dan Alaimo wrote:And I remain willing to support a viable effort to recall this mayor.

No need for a recall....at this point Summers is just going through the motions.
By his own admission, he had one reason to run for re-election: To destroy the hospital.
That mission is accomplished...I'm sure he'll be thrilled to leave office.

Instead of thinking about a recall, focus your energy on the 2019 elections.
We need fresh leadership in mayor's seat....not Sam O'Leary or some other Summers lackey.
We also need to make sure that Anderson, O'Leary (if he runs for council), and LItten are beaten soundly.
Team Summers is already on the run....they are losing elections and confidence.
2019 is the year to end the madness.

I see a group of at least a dozen who are the new activists and have demonstrated already a knowledge of Lakewood who will be qualified contenders for Council seats and the office of Mayor.

I hear Cindy Marx is being told/wants to run in Ward Four.

That’ll be a laugh!

Dan,

You were always an advocate of the basketball court at Kauffman Park. It was a tragedy when Mayor Summers let a deranged man single handedly close the court. After the Lakewood Park location opened, it became a court for elementary and middle school kids from Grant, Lincoln and Harding. Centrally located with good visibility.

Mike-Sam O'Leary is delusional if he thinks he will become mayor. Once the hospital building faces the wrecking ball, residents will ask how 5 members of council voted for a development over the hospital. I'm still baffled that the current members of council have not written a formal letter to the Ohio Attorney General or the Department of Justice asking for an investigation.

Nadhal

Well said, Nadhal.
Big thanks to Nadhal for his tireless leadership in the early days of LOBC....without him, we might not even have the Lakewood Park hoops.

Nadhal Eadeh wrote:You were always an advocate of the basketball court at Kauffman Park. It was a tragedy when Mayor Summers let a deranged man single handedly close the court. After the Lakewood Park location opened, it became a court for elementary and middle school kids from Grant, Lincoln and Harding. Centrally located with good visibility.

Dan is awesome. In his own quiet, steady style he fights for what's right.

Nadhal Eadeh wrote:Mike-Sam O'Leary is delusional if he thinks he will become mayor. Once the hospital building faces the wrecking ball, residents will ask how 5 members of council voted for a development over the hospital. I'm still baffled that the current members of council have not written a formal letter to the Ohio Attorney General or the Department of Justice asking for an investigation.

I share your skepticisim of Sam the Sham's chances. However, there are two things to consider:
*As the "Team Summers" candidate, it would take a credible candidate to beat him. Few people have been willing to run for mayor in recent years. Summers was unopposed in 2011, and the only reason Skindell ran in 2015 was to save the hospital. It would be foolish of him to run again.

*For the reason given above, I actually think he's got a better chance being elected mayor than being re-elected in Ward 2.
Ward 2 is a hotbed of activists that want Sammy gone. (As you might recall, O'Leary was elected in 2015 under the false pretense that he supported the hospital)
It's a virtual guarantee that he would face a strong opponent in that race.

In Ward 2, to Nadhal and Mike: Thanks.

Will Cindy run against Dan if he doesn't run for mayor?

Will Summers step down for Sam or Tom to run as incumbent?

Also, did you know that Tom Bullock is Susan Moran Palmer's campaign manager?

Brad Presutto wrote:Will Cindy run against Dan if he doesn't run for mayor? No, because she would lose, badly

Will Summers step down for Sam or Tom to run as incumbent? Sam, maybe. Tom will never be appointed mayor

Also, did you know that Tom Bullock is Susan Moran Palmer's campaign manager?

I was hoping the dems could flip the 16. What a terrible choice for campaign manager. Does she want to lose?

Dan Alaimo wrote:Also, did you know that Tom Bullock is Susan Moran Palmer's campaign manager?

Let's see....Tom Bullock's keen political instincts vs. a well funded former Ohio State football star?
You can put a toe tag on Palmer's campaign right now.
Dems and progressives should invest their time, effort, and money on winnable campaigns.

Interesting side note: Palmer's campaign website does not list Bullock among its endorsers.
So apparently Bullock now realizes that he is a political pariah.


https://www.susanpalmerforcongress.com/endorsements/

Mike-

My suspicion is that when the wrecking ball hits Lakewood Hospital, the blame game begins:

“What did you do to prevent the closure of the hospital?”

1. You don’t vote to allow for a development that’s predicated on false hoods and fiction. Retail is dying.
2. You don’t close your largest employer in the hottest market in Northeast Ohio.
3. It’s an absolute shame, 7 current members of council have been presented with credible evidence of backroom dealings and corruption and nobody writes a public letter to DOJ or the Ohio Attorney General?

Mike Summers and his allies on council closed an institution that survived over 100 years in Lakewood. Nothing to run a campaign on.

Nadhal