•
o
ByB
The City Commi 'on
oted 4-3-1 not to upport
ayor ilce Cooke' atten-
dance at 4-day yor'
Leadership Institute spon­
red by the United Con­
ference of ayor in Fre .'
no, California.
yor Cooke id,
"The institute de' ed to
be educational and it would
help me to do my job
m yor better." He pointed
out tha from 800 to 900
mayor have already reg-
or I
istered for the four day
orkshop.
Cooke also stated, "I
am requesting 900 for the
trip, but this money will
not come out of General
Funds." He provided e ch
commissioner a copy of the
regi tration information.
On this form inform -
tion was given cone min
availabt funds for 'lthe ex­
pen for this trip. It
id, "E ch participant .
respon ible for hotel and
Time Pe
d Hull d
e e et op of
or perforrned : wa
° v' "Invitation to
Horton id they
depe d upon verbal de ription
of the job to be done from Community
Service Director Bill Lilly.
The two pest compani ere given
opportunity to split the job. Both
owner id, no to that invitation ccord ..
in to both Horton and Bishop. How­
e er, no bid ere arded the contr ct
due to cash short g according to it­
chell.
At th or op Bishop gain offered
to do the job according to his origin
proposal for 29,000. He al added,
"I'll allow you eight months to pay me."
He 0 ed the commissioners petition
igned by itizen of the city and cir­
cul ted by his aff. Hated, "I am
HARBOR - City re -
dent who gathered at the Captain'
Tabl , S turday, April 21 to ear from
city oft} ho to apply for HUD
fund had one me ge for the city:
"Stop p ying games!"
Community Service Director Bill
Lilly, ho convened the meeting, told
tho in attendance the city will receive
• approximately 614,000 in HUD En­
titlement fund for the fiscal year
beginnoing October 1, 1984.
Lilly outlined eligible ctivi es for
tho fund and gave deadline of ay
31 , by hich time propo from
organization mu be ubmitted.
Remarks m de by Rev. el
illiarn , p tor of Hope United etho-
d' e applauded h
further
d
oing to live ith r t and I h ve
ignatures of 1,385 other in Benton
or ho don't ant to either."
B' op cited veral reasons for not
'vin up h ° effort to e Benton Har­
r get this rodent control program.
id, U have lived in this city and
b n in busine here for 27 years. I
e educated my children here and
my grandchildren are here, I pay taxes
. her on personal property and I have
my busin here. I pay the city 647
e h month and 1 have . tere here. I
care bout the city and I am not going
to stand around and let overpaid people
with no interest in Benton Harbor decide
hat's be for u . '
There have been a nwnber of obstacles
to surface since the rodent control idea
w initiated.
According to itchell the rodent
control program evolved from a casual
conversation between him If and Bishop.
itchell reportedly id, ''Why don't
you help' us get rid of the rat ," Bishop
developed a plan and things began to
move and ha e not opped yet. t
"I submitted price to do the job for
the city upon reque of itchell,"
Bishop 'd. According to Mitchell,
Bishop also provided the city with a
copy of standard bid specifications for
the pe control indu ry. When the
rodent control plan wa presented to
the commission by it chell , the com­
mi 'on cho to have the job open for
bids.
HuD nd Horton bid on the same job
and under bid All Time Pe Control.
However, 64 All Time Pe . Control's
propo and price was already in and
ccessible to others," Bishop ide "I
c
Y:
T
summarized and echoed what others
before him had ld.
�'There is a credwility f ctor with
the HUD fund ," Rev. Williams id.
"The money come and the money
goe . Honey attract bee. The Citizens
• Advisory Board should not be a window
dressing. e are sick and tired of putting
thing on paper and then emasculating
the program "
Rev. William suggested that the
Citizen Advisory Board should be pre­
. ding at the meeting called by' city
ff. "The commi . on should come as
rvants of the people to listen to what
the people are ying. There should be
genuine participation," The minister
ted.
He a eo the community develop-
APRIL 25 - MAY 1, 1984 THE CITIZE
PAGE THREE
v
td, because I don't ant
to put r. John n, Finance
Director on the pot. "
Cornrnis ion Echol
tated th t she would like
ing i bad and the public
ould not under d ho
we need to borro money
one e and then vote
to nd the m yor for
wor shop to Californi the
next week. Commi loner
Randall Juergen n id, I
am ready to pport this
but the travel policy needs
development. "
The ayor conclud d
the meeting with ord th t
drew a round of applau
from his supp rter in the
audience. He'd, "You
continually fight me on
everything I attempt to do
for the City of Benton
� Harbor, whether good or
b d. You refu to support
a man ho can and on
. hi own two feet."
Cooke continued by
calling some commi loner
"a stumblin b c to the
progre " of the c mmi
. on and the city. He
to see the m yor go to the
workshop and especially be­
u some people feel he'
not doin his job well.
ommi loner Ralph Cren-
obstained from voting.
Commis loner Charle Hen­
derson referred to the city's
vote I t week to bono
300 000 ying "The tim-
AURICE BISHOP. 0 r
of AD- Tone Control
I
believe my price wa given away, but
I won't call any name", he continued.
Mitchell said, however, "I don't know of
anything sh dy or under the table having
been done."
illie Horton owner of Hull and
Horton Pest control said he turned his
bid in at 5 p.m. April 6 in a ed en-
velop a required. Horton id there
was no public .opening of the bids. He
stated he felt like the unusually ort
time allowed to prepare his bid - le
than 48 hour designed to keep
him out of the bidding, Horton said •
the city wa "shocked" to find his bid
lower than Bishop's and dropped the
project becau he wa low bidder.
ccording to Mitchell, the city had
realized that it did not have funds to
make it to June 30, Mitchell said, "When
we went out to bid we thought we had
money to afford it."
comm
i be to move
i in the y of
even if that includes
The comrnissio al
adopted n ordlance end­
ment to reflect the internal
reorg nization of In-
tion and C mmunity
Service Departmen Thi
re ructing will line
in pection and lice· of
all f cillti requ'· any
ch in pection . cen-
to come und the
dire ti n of C unity
e Department.
ment staff to "not play game " and to
genuinely activate a real citizen partici­
pation proce where "credible priori­
tie " would be developed and "credible
propo " could then be developed.
, e also have a right to e pect
hone monitoring, which bas been
another charade," Rev. William told
ciy staff.
He noted that uch a proce could
only make their own job ea ier ..
Long time Citizens Advisory Board
member Lourell Lange told Lilly and
his taff,' e want what's going to ben­
efit Benton Harbor. The money h s
come and we've nothing to show for it."
She criticized city ff ying,
"They come to the Citizens Advi ry
Board for approval hen it' time to
go to HUD, but when the money c
they spend it the way they
Only five members of the Ctizens
Adviosry Board were present for the
meeting. The time and place of the
se ion h d been criticized earlier by
Board member George ysinger.
ysinger had said the public
library or city hall chamber 0 d
have been u d rather than th Cap­
tain' T ble. Wysinger said by tting
the meeting for the day before E er,
the city was guaranteeing poor partici­
pation.
Ully told tho in attendance
Saturday, that a public hearin would
be held.