List of 77 City Parks to close.

[kellyroad]

Palmer Park, Patton, and Rouge Park???......toss in Belle Isle and call it a day!

[Magnatomicflux]

I suspect you're right with the adopt-a-park [[like adopt-a-highway). The City of Windsor had a strike last year and none of the parks were mowed for months even though a lot of the residents tried out of a sense of volunteerism and decency. In almost all the cases, the police sided with the unions in not allowing volunteers to cut the grass in the parks.

remember too davewindsor, "someone"...supposedly the union memebers, were booby trapping the parks with wire rods sticking up out of the ground in the long grass among other things. come across that with your good citizen mower and god knows who gets hurt by the flying metal. And then we had some rather tense flare ups between CUPE memebers and the public at large that could have easily turned nasty because we wern't helping their cause by mowing the grass. I would have to imagine the fuzz was more or less keeping people safe than being pro-union.
Unions aside, there were reports of weirdos hanging out near overgrown sections ready to pounce on people/kids strolling thru the parks.
quite frankly, i thought the parks looked rather nice with the long grass and little purple flowers that were gowing in them lol.
so watch what's in the grass Detroit, if you want to cut it yourself that is.

and...how do you take fort wayne off the list???? if there's ONE park the D keeps, it's that one. sheesh.

[Fnemecek]

The mayor can not file Chapter 9 with the approval of an emergency financial manager and the state government. But I agree that a filing now would be better than waiting for another year or two.

Are you sure that the Mayor can't file bankruptcy without approval from the State?

Several people have said it. However, I wonder if it's actually true.

I searched through the Local Government Fiscal Responsibility Act [[MCL 141.1201 et seq) and didn't find a single reference to bankruptcy anywhere in the statue. I haven't been able to find any such restriction anywhere else.

There's a clear authorization for the Governor to appoint an emergency financial manager in a situation like this. However, I haven't found any such requirement that says the Mayor can't by-pass the Governor and go directly to Bankruptcy Court.

I'm not an attorney; I could be wrong about this and I welcome any can point to such as a restriction to do so. However, from my layman's read of the law, it doesn't seem that there is any such restriction from a city filing bankruptcy without going to the Governor or an emergency financial manager.

[R8RBOB]

Yeah, well stated... I used to argue with folks justifying the late audits and smoke and mirrors that was part of Kilpatricks obfuscation of the real debt...

All done to save his own butt, while telling the fools how much he was "down for the city and the peeps".

All done to concealing his stealing, friends and family hook-ups -- especially at the end when he was in full damage-control mode and little else!! Still some would elect him back in a heart beat, poor persecuted soul he is -- don't cha' know....

In the mean time we are hear stuck at the ranch... with the roof nearly blown off... well some us are - stuck -- some are out of here!

Years ago, a friend of mind told me that Detroit would go into receivership. I blew off the observation because he was a typical suburbanite that has been preaching doom and gloom about Detroit for years.

After Detroit suffered six years of Kilpatrick cooking the books, selling or closing Detroit assets to balance the budget and now Dave Bing wants to go so far as to closing city parks in an attempt to get the council to accept his budget maybe it is time for Detroit go into receivership. I afraid Mr. Bing may be over his head and he didn't know what he was stepping into. To it off, the city is going to possibly voting to give the mayor oversight over the schools. If Bing thinks this is bad, he has three more years to deal with the council over budget and the money just isn't there.

[kathy2trips]

The Feds could take over Fort Wayne. Oh, wait...they're broke, too!

[Stosh]

Just heard on the news that Pugh stated that some sort of deal to keep Palmer and Rouge parks as well as the Fort open. That's reasonably good news, but still leaves a whole lot of others in the lurch.

[Zacha341]

So how does a city in receivership function? What's it like I ask somewhat rhetorically. Policing will be state and county? Mass distribution centers for the destitute with bull horns screaming from the "officials"... Sections of the city given over the the weeds cut off of all service [[well we already have that...)

Yeah, I recall telling people that the stalled audits were part of KK con to keep the reality concealed, but you can only conceal so long. Now we know the truth. How do the "deep-dish" KK supporter feel now? They have not received any payments for their support recently? Oh, it's all Engler and Bush's fault. I forgot. LOL!

Years ago, a friend of mind told me that Detroit would go into receivership. I blew off the observation because he was a typical suburbanite that has been preaching doom and gloom about Detroit for years.

After Detroit suffered six years of Kilpatrick cooking the books, selling or closing Detroit assets to balance the budget and now Dave Bing wants to go so far as to closing city parks in an attempt to get the council to accept his budget maybe it is time for Detroit go into receivership. I afraid Mr. Bing may be over his head and he didn't know what he was stepping into. To it off, the city is going to possibly voting to give the mayor oversight over the schools. If Bing thinks this is bad, he has three more years to deal with the council over budget and the money just isn't there.

[R8RBOB]

So how does a city in receivership function? What's it like I ask somewhat rhetorically. Policing will be state and county? Mass distribution centers for the destitute with bull horns screaming from the "officials"... Sections of the city given over the the weeds cut off of all service [[well we already have that...)

Yeah, I recall telling people that the stalled audits were part of KK con to keep the reality concealed, but you can only conceal so long. Now we know the truth. How do the "deep-dish" KK supporter feel now? They have not received any payments for their support recently? Oh, it's all Engler and Bush's fault. I forgot. LOL!

I don't want Detroit to go into receivership but what is the endgame for Detroit? Where does the city goes from here? I know that Bing want to strong-arm the council but threats can only go so far before you turn the people against you.

[Roq]

So how does a city in receivership function? What's it like I ask somewhat rhetorically. Policing will be state and county? Mass distribution centers for the destitute with bull horns screaming from the "officials"... Sections of the city given over the the weeds cut off of all service [[well we already have that...)!

I'm wondering that too. Will Wayne Co. Sheriff police the City instead? How will services such as trash pickup be handled?

I think, based on everything I've read, that it will be beneficial to Detroit to go into receivership. Yes it sucks it had to come to this, but at this point, I think the City needs a clean slate and the ability to move past the huge hole it is in now.

[missn]

An official report, and they spell it Lasher. These people are brilliant ...

[jcole]

I wonder if Detroit would get this consideration?
From NPR story What Happens When City Hall Goes Bankrupt?

What about New York City? Didn't it declare bankruptcy in the 1970s?

No, but it came close. The city was teetering on the edge of bankruptcy in 1975 when it appealed to Washington for a bailout. President Ford balked, prompting the famous Daily News headline "Ford to City: Drop Dead." [[Ford never actually uttered those exact words.) In the end, Congress did pony up some money for New York, and the city formed the Municipal Assistance Corp. — a quasi-government body that, in effect, allowed New York to lend money to itself. Other big cities — Philadelphia, Pittsburg, Miami — have flirted with bankruptcy in recent decades but not actually declared it.

[EastSider]

Are you sure that the Mayor can't file bankruptcy without approval from the State?

Several people have said it. However, I wonder if it's actually true.

I searched through the Local Government Fiscal Responsibility Act [[MCL 141.1201 et seq) and didn't find a single reference to bankruptcy anywhere in the statue. I haven't been able to find any such restriction anywhere else.

There's a clear authorization for the Governor to appoint an emergency financial manager in a situation like this. However, I haven't found any such requirement that says the Mayor can't by-pass the Governor and go directly to Bankruptcy Court.

I'm not an attorney; I could be wrong about this and I welcome any can point to such as a restriction to do so. However, from my layman's read of the law, it doesn't seem that there is any such restriction from a city filing bankruptcy without going to the Governor or an emergency financial manager.

141.1222 Authorization to proceed under federal law; local government as debtor; notice.
Sec. 22.
[[1) After giving written notice to the local emergency financial assistance loan board, the emergency financial manager may authorize the local government to proceed under title 11 of the United States Code, 11 U.S.C. 101 to 1330, unless this authorization is disapproved by the local emergency financial assistance loan board within 60 days after the notice has been received by the board. This section empowers the local government for which an emergency financial manager has been appointed to become a debtor under title 11 of the United States Code as required by section 109 of title 11 of the United States Code, 11 U.S.C. 109.


[[2) The notice to the local emergency financial assistance loan board under subsection [[1) shall include a determination by the emergency financial manager that no feasible financial plan can be adopted that can satisfactorily resolve the financial emergency in a timely manner, or a determination by the emergency financial manager that an adopted financial plan, in effect for at least 180 days, cannot be implemented, as written or as it might be amended, in a manner that can satisfactorily resolve the financial emergency in a timely manner.

Here's the relevant section of PA 72 of 1990. It specifies that a federal filing is available only to municipalities that have an EFM appointed, and it further specifies that it is the EFM that authorizes the filing. It makes no allowances for any local official.

[Fnemecek]

Thank you, Eastsider.

[Novine]

Some people here are confused about what happens in bankruptcy. In some cases, all operations are shut down and the remaining assets are liquidated. But what's being proposed for Detroit would be like what happened with GM. The company continues to operate. But through bankruptcy proceedings, contracts, debts and other obligations get voided and Detroit is allowed to operate under the supervision of a bankruptcy court. It would likely result in a reduction in services. But it's not going to lead to all city operations shutting down and the county or state having to take over services like police and fire.

[Fnemecek]

There were a series of rallies held this afternoon to protest the closure of these parks. I believe one of them is still on going, since they were scheduled to happen one after the other starting at Rouge Park.

A short video clip from the rally at Rouge Park this afternoon is available @ http://warrendale.blogspot.com/2010/...ric-rouge.html

[Frumoasa]

It would be a shame to close Lasky Park. It would be shortsighted since DPS has plans to enhance the Cleveland/White school sites and I find it improbable that the site could bounce back after being abandoned like that. An academic campus with a library [[Knapp), sports fields and green space would be such a great thing for the neighborhood. Unfortunately, if this closure goes through, only the students will suffer.

[Danny]

GHETTO ALERT!

Mayor Bing and Detroit City Council have a made a tenative deal to save all 77 Detroit City Parks. They have decided to put up to 10 million dollars combined in the July 1st Fiscal budget to spend of cleaning and maintenance of 77 city parks. However they will cut its 311 info services and close fewer nieighborhood city halls. The proposal will be presented in the city council chambers for a vote.

[bartock]

GHETTO ALERT!

Mayor Bing and Detroit City Council have a made a tenative deal to save all 77 Detroit City Parks. They have decided to put up to 10 million dollars combined in the July 1st Fiscal budget to spend of cleaning and maintenance of 77 city parks. However they will cut its 311 info services and close fewer nieighborhood city halls. The proposal will be presented in the city council chambers for a vote.

So, to bring the first post on this thread full circle, the answer is "politics."

[EastSider]

What a short-sighted "compromise." You can't on the one hand want the city to file Chapter 9 and on the other hand complain when budget cuts are proposed.

Just what does everyone suppose would happen under either an EFM or through a bankruptcy filing?

Money won't magically fall from the skies at the stroke of a pen. Norman White's revenue projections won't suddenly become accurate. His numbers are just as phony under Bing as under Kilpatrick.

Oh, wait, I know. The budget will be balanced by cutting waste, fraud and abuse!

[Fnemecek]

What a short-sighted "compromise." You can't on the one hand want the city to file Chapter 9 and on the other hand complain when budget cuts are proposed.

Just what does everyone suppose would happen under either an EFM or through a bankruptcy filing?

What will happen under a bankruptcy filing?

Well, for starters, there is the fact that close to 70% of the taxes that Detroiters pay go towards debt service of one variety or another. This includes DPS debt, general City debt, the revenue anticipation bonds, and Wayne County debt.

A massive reorganization of those debts would free up a considerable amount of cash. The problem is that a reorganization of that magnitude can really only be done under the supervision of a bankruptcy judge.

[kraig]

The Mayor bluffed, the Council folded. For all of the talk, it's still business as usual. The same games with the same outcomes. At least the last crew would have given us a rousing chorus of Onward Christian Soldiers. Sigh.

[Fnemecek]

Right, because $100 million+ can be cut from a budget without impacting services.

[kraig]

Examine what you're saying, Fnemecek. According to the Mayor, his 100 million in cuts would not have called for layoffs or the closing of any parks. But, Council's additional cuts of 31 million would close down 77 parks, layoff 100 police officers [[hmmn, a nice round number, don't you think), even though there are more than 400 funded unfilled positions. As well as a large number of firefighters and EMS workers.

Factor in, given that math, that constantly going over budget by 300 million, should have made the City of Detroit a whole lot safer and cleaner than it has been.

Kwame played this same number's game during his time as Mayor and Ken Cockrel tried to do so as well last year. I know you're not gullible enough to go for this same crap over and over again.

[Fnemecek]

Examine what you're saying, Fnemecek. According to the Mayor, his 100 million in cuts would not have called for layoffs or the closing of any parks.

Bing proposed cutting the workforce from 13,000 to 11,900. I would call that a layoff. That is in addition to things like closing the power plant and turning over control of the airport.

Factor in, given that math, that constantly going over budget by 300 million, should have made the City of Detroit a whole lot safer and cleaner than it has been.

Define "constantly going over budget". The $300 budget deficit start under the Kilpatrick regime when the City Council approved spending money from the sale of the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel in its FY 2009 budget, but refused to approve the sale itself. This, coupled with funds withheld from state revenue sharing and, yes, some accounting games by the Kilpatrick crew.

I wouldn't call it "going over budget", though, because the shortages were on the revenue side; not the spending side. It's not like we suddenly decided to fund the police or fire departments fully.

[EastSider]

Regardless of the savings that might come from giving the bondholders a haircut, parks will still have to close. Detroit does not today have the resources to maintain all of them, and they will not have the resources for the foreseeable future.

In bankruptcy, everyone's ox will be gored.