I rode one of the Democratic Committeemen around on EVERY street in the Center Street section of the First WARD not long after I got in office. We made up a HUGE list of Code Violations from street view and sent them off to Development. I never saw Geoff on the streets and I patrol.....ask anyone.
I never heard another thing about my/our list, and every time I asked for an update, they said things like, " oh yeah....that's in court or that's going to court ".
You know what though, there definitely is Selective Enforcement going on, but I don't totally put the blame on the Code guys.........they are on a very short political leash.
The blame for everything , I mean everything, comes out of the Mayor's Office and a certain Department Head that lives in Hamburg. They give the Code guys and the rest their marching orders and if people want to keep their job ......they march hup two ! Can you imagine working under those conditions?!?
There is stuff wrong all over the City.......the City needs to work with people, not beat them down.........but after so long-----the Committee-people who are supposed to be the eyes for the Councilperson in their Ward, and then the City, are responsible for the extended blight! The Committee-person plays a BIG part in the break-down of the Lackawanna neighborhoods, historically they were the people citizens told the issues too and the Councilperson worked with the Mayor/Departments to resolve. Today they have become the Lackawanna "family and friends club" , endorsing who they are told to, and toasting each other at their numerous cocktail parties for getting so and so's kid in. Buffalo is coming down on boarded up buildings on Main Street, we are so used to the blight throughout Lackawanna that some people just accept it.
And then there are those of us who DON'T and won't! November 8th, 2011 is upon us !
Too Little-----Too Late!