What do you Believe?

I BELIEVE SPEECH

What Tommy said V.S. What we (The City) got!

• What he said:    The theater project
• What we got:   A bankrupt theater & empty store fronts / vandalized cars.

• What he said-     The Intermodal Transportation Center
• What we got-    A $12 million dollar garage that cost $27 million/ An overpriced bus station that stole 3 Million from the Hotel Sterling

• What he said-     The Hotel Sterling
• What we got-   Dilapidated shell used for embezzling 20 million/ Lies to the federal government about pre-flood status.

• What he said-  The street lights
• What we got-  An excuse to rip down canopies

• What he said-     The Riverfront Project
• What we got-      Federal Funded View of river. 

• What he said-     The Pine Ridge Development
• What we got-      A home for Leo Godzic/ A few homes surrounded by weeds and dirt/ townhouses that won’t sell.

• What he said-     Computerized City Government
• What we got-    Missing Credit Card Statements & nonexistent records/ A system that can be corrupt faster.

• What he said-     And yesterday, I authorized our Fire Chief to put specifications together for 3 new fire engines and 2 new ambulances.
• What we got-       Three Closed fire stations. /3 repair hogs

• What he said-     We have spent more than $3 million dollars to make our streets cleaner and our neighborhoods safer. 
• What we got-    Potholes, Drugs, Crime, Gangs, Weeds, Dirty storm drains and… broken street sweepers.

• What he said-     Our Fire Department is second to none and we will continue to be fully committed to them to ensure their safety and the safety of our residents and visitors. 
• What we got-      Understaffed, overworked firefighters with limited tools.

• What he said-     Our Department of Public Works will continue to be supported with new equipment that will allow us to keep our streets and neighborhoods cleaner.
• What we got-  DPW cut more than in half by Tommy.

• What he said-     City Hall employees have been provided with new, upgraded computer technology which will allow us to better serve the entire city.
• What we got-      A friend sold us computers at double the cost of Staples.

• What he said-     We have established a new “Yard of the Month” program recognizing the best kept properties in our neighborhoods. These properties will receive gift certificates from local businesses for their efforts.
• What we got-   Any yard with a Tom Leighton sign is eligible to play.

• What he said-     A new project termed The Leighton Initiative will establish a program where we go into neighborhoods, purchase multiple bad properties, demolish them and turn the land over to people committed to building new homes on larger properties.
• What we got-   Sell them to a campaign contributor for less than the city paid for them / The Sullivan Street Fire!!!

• What he said-     The program, called “Invest in Wilkes-Barre”, will provide the City with $3 million dollars for small business lending.
• What we got-      Bankrupted Chamber of Commerce. / Bars..... Lots of Bars. Closed restaurants and businesses.

• What he said-     Invest in Wilkes-Barre” will not only bring business to our downtown, but allow main roads like George Ave to once again become a thriving business district.
• What we got-    Drug houses/ blight/ burnt building/ weeds / men urinating outside and people smoking crack and shooting up at the local drug bar.

• What he said-     Within the next year we will have a new restaurant occupying the former First National Bank on Public Square.
• What we got-      DID I MISS SOMETHING?

• What he said-      We are also going to install cameras for public safety in our neighborhood parks and in our downtown.
• What we got-   A multimillion dollar system that rarely works and takes pictures of leaves when it does / A home security system for JJ Murphy & Tommy.

• What he said-     We would like to outfit our police cruisers and fire engines with computers to make their jobs safer. Can you imagine firefighters having building plans and hydrant layouts within seconds while they are responding to a fire?
• What we got-   NOTHING. Absolutely…. NOTHING.

• What he said-     We will purchase a municipal software program that will allow residents to utilize city services from home.
• What we got-    Yeah Right! / When? / They can't even accept PayPal!/ How's that going?

• What he said-     Not only are we getting new playground equipment in Coal Street Park and Kirby Park, but we are looking at redoing both parks.
• What we got-      Rink for the Penguins. Tiny playground at Coal Street and a taxpayers paid trip to Las Vegas for Councilman Tony Thomas so he could rent movies in his room with city credit card. !  Kirby Park  NOTHING except… scum and grime floating in pond.

• What he said-     We are in the beginning stages of planning with the PENGUINS a comprehensive overhaul of Coal Street Park, which will include bringing back ice and deck hockey along with additional recreational activities.
• What we got-      Residents can use it 12 Hours per Month.

• What he said-    At Kirby Park, we are looking at adding a lighted rubberized running track and a permanent Healing Field memorial.
• What we got-    Nothing…. Sorry they must have forgotten Kirby Park was still in Wilkes Barre.

What do you believe???