From: Sande Hummel
Columbus
Fred Armstrong is a really nice guy, and he had the ability to work with the City Council in a spirit of collaboration that transcended party lines. They all got along great and accomplished almost everything that Armstrong wanted. Now, that is what all of the Lienhoop supporters seem to be calling for.
The question is, did that spirit of collaboration benefit us? When they all voted to add a $14-a-month fee to pick up our trash, did that benefit you? When they kept spending money in the midst of a recession, did that benefit you? When they were spending a paltry $400,000 a year on our streets, did that benefit you? When they voted to tear down the old Commons and replace it with a new one at twice what it would have cost to remodel the old one, did that benefit you?
When they created CDI and spent your tax dollars in secret, what did that do that was a benefit to you? When they voted for a bond issue to build the downtown outdoor sports complex while a challenge to it was still in court, did that benefit you?
Now we have a candidate who was a part of a lot of that, asking you to allow him to replace our incumbent mayor so that he and the City Council can work together in a new, positive spirit of collaboration and cooperation. Mayor Kristen Brown is spending our tax dollars to benefit the entire community. She has gotten rid of the toter fees, is rebuilding our streets, is the first mayor in our history to be spending money on much-needed improvements to East Columbus, is a mayor who has brought us curbside recycling without an additional tax and who is helping rid our neighborhoods of blight.
And we are being asked to allow Jim Lienhoop to replace this kind of progress simply because Brown has had the courage to fight for us as an entire community instead of bowing to the special interests who put themselves above the good of the city? A mayor who has fought the City Council because she cares about us?
Be very careful about who you vote for in this primary election. Vote to continue the progress instead of putting us back to where we were four years ago. Vote for Brown so we can keep moving forward.
