Carroll Commencement
Fairborn commencement
Badin graduation
Ellen Belcher is the Dayton Daily News opinion pages editor. She writes about state government, education, the environment, higher education and all things Dayton.
Martin Gottlieb is an editorial writer and columnist for the Dayton Daily News opinion pages. He focuses on the political process itself and does such national issues as war, the economy, taxes and Social Security, as well as a hodge-podge of local and state issues.Home > Blogs > A Matter of Opinion > Archives > 2009 > October > 20
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Editorial: Compton, Cline, Singer best for Centerville
2009 ELECTIONS
Centerville residents have to eliminate someone who is running for city council.
Three incumbents want to be re-elected; a newcomer, who says she respects each of her opponents, would like to move one of them off.
Brooks Compton, 55, and James Singer, 75, are running as a team. Mr. Singer, an engineer, has been on council for 32 years; Mr. Compton, an attorney, has nearly 18 years of experience (though the service isn’t consecutive). Together, the men have close to 50 years of time in their positions.
Doug Cline, the youngest of the candidates, at 51, has been on council since 1999. Knowing the level of experience she is up against, Joy Brush’s pitch is that she would bring fresh ideas to the table.
There’s no case for throwing out the incumbents. All three are dutiful and engaged in the community and the city’s business.
Mr. Compton was deputy mayor for six years and has been on numerous city government committees, as well as groups that promote the community and its amenities. He was co-chair, for instance, of the “Yes for Rec” levy campaign.
Mr. Singer, too, has been deputy mayor. He’s worked on issues relating to the big picture, sitting on the Financial and Long Range Planning Committee. He has also focused on specific problems, serving on the Storm Waster Drainage Task Force.
Mr. Cline has been deputy mayor since 2004. An investment adviser, he co-chaired the “Create the Vision” task force and a committee designed to modernize development rules and restrictions.
Ms. Brush, 63, is not new to Centerville’s civic scene. She has been president of the Centerville/Washington Twp. Americana Festival, a major community event. She has volunteer activities to her credit and owns Mobile Health Services, which screens individuals applying for life insurance.
Centerville’s controversies are small and easy as compared to the problems many other local governments are having. As ugly as things have gotten with Sugarcreek Twp. about how much tax revenue each jurisdiction will get from the development occurring at the Dille property, and even as tense as relations have been with Washington Twp. over the question of merging, Centerville is financially stable.
Things may not always be so simple, though. All of the candidates are worried that many Centerville properties are too pricey for young families, a reality that impacts the schools and the kinds of businesses that will locate there.
The candidates also are sensitive to the fact that Centerville can’t offer young professionals some of the housing options they want — small, affordable places that allow people to walk to shop and even to work.
Meanwhile, as the community ages, property taxes, especially for the schools, are not cheap.
With Montgomery County putting on the pressure for Washington Twp. to pay the sheriff more for police service, it will be interesting to see whether Centerville and the township can work out an arrangement that gives Centerville that responsibility.
Centerville administrators have been predicting this day would come. If Centerville ends up providing police protection for both communities — while the township already provides fire service for Centerville — you have to wonder why in the world the two local governments don’t merge.
Centerville is lucky in so many ways, not the least of which is having good people who are interested in the city government.
Mr. Compton, Mr. Singer and Mr. Cline are assets and deserve voters’ support.
Permalink | Comments (2) | Post your comment | Categories: 2009 endorsements, Editorials, Ellen Belcher, Suburban Communities
Editorial: Voters should know if a candidate can hold office
With it up in the air whether city council candidate Edward Jones can serve if elected, West Carrollton residents could be throwing away their vote by supporting him.
That’s a situation the Ohio legislature should fix. The rules should be clear about who is eligible to hold public office. Candidates also should have to disclose if they have felony convictions, so a determination about their eligibility can be made before ballots are printed.
On the question of whether Mr. Jones is an appropriate candidate for city council, voters should steer clear of him because of the nature of the crime he was convicted of only last year.
Mr. Jones’ eligibility to serve on city council is unclear because he was convicted of receiving stolen property, a fourth-degree felony. Police said Mr. Jones received merchandise stolen from a local dollar store, which ended up being offered for sale in a store owned by his ex-wife, Jody Jones.
Ms. Jones sits on West Carrollton Council. A grand jury did not indict her. In all, $8,000 in stolen merchandise was found in her store.
Mr. Jones, who was seen on surveillance tapes gathering merchandise in the dollar store and leaving without paying, pleaded no contest, was found guilty, performed community service and paid $2,244.29 in restitution.
West Carrollton Law Director Lori Kirkwood’s view is that, as a convicted felon, Mr. Jones has forfeited his privilege to hold public office under Ohio law. If he is elected, she said she’ll go to court to bar him from taking a seat.
A spokeswoman for Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray said that office does not issue opinions in cases such as this unless formally requested to do so. But she pointed to recent opinions, including one from 2006, that appears to support Mr. Jones’ view that he can serve.
Commenting on a case in Clermont County of an ex-felon seeking a seat on a zoning appeals board, that Ohio Attorney General’s opinion said:
“… a person convicted of a felony under the laws of Ohio is restored the privilege of holding an office of honor, trust, or profit, which had been forfeited by operation of R.C. 2961.01, when the person is granted a final release by the Adult Parole Authority…”
Since Mr. Jones has completed probation, this opinion favors him.
Still, there is no guarantee the law would be interpreted the same way this time. Other cases, with somewhat different circumstances, have disqualified potential officeholders. Only lawmakers can eliminate any ambiguity.
West Carrollton voters should know when they enter the ballot booth that all the candidates are truly eligible to serve. They can’t be sure of that in this case.
Meanwhile, Mr. Jones’ record is disturbing, so much so that he shouldn’t be in a position of trust. Six people are running for four seats. Voters have other choices.
Permalink | Comments (0) | Post your comment | Categories: Editorials, Elections, Scott Elliott, Suburban Communities
