  Cargo_kitty Member Username: Cargo_kitty Post Number: 7 Registered: 07-2008 |
what changes would you make to the city, the government, in general?? What types of businesses would you pursue? How would you take care of the people? | ||
Detroitnerd Member Username: Detroitnerd Post Number: 3107 Registered: 07-2004 |
Kick out all members of Kwame Kilpatrick's "transition team." Institute rigorous civil service examinations so city jobs are for qualified people, not plums for patronage. Pay for a department that does oversight -- even if it costs a few million to run, I'll bet it'll save millions more. Develop an arm to review legal claims against the city. Privatize city airport Develop ways to ensure that communities are canvassed on what THEY want, to develop new programs that aren't all top-down or business oriented. Cut homeowner taxes. Cordon off some areas of the city where nobody lives or works. Get serious on bringing those streetcars back. | ||
Chuckjav Member Username: Chuckjav Post Number: 667 Registered: 09-2007 |
First thing I would do.... Find out why Detroit doesn't seem to benefit, in a manner previously promised, from the gambling Casinos. Second thing I would do.... Push for a new system of municipal government; no more "strong" mayor and "strong" City Council - that particular concept seems absurd. | ||
Buzzman0077 Member Username: Buzzman0077 Post Number: 200 Registered: 11-2006 |
Push for a ward system. Restart Police walking the beat. Start benchmarking the city departments against departments from other cities. Lest I forget, most importantly, push for a strong regional multi-modal mass transit system. (Message edited by buzzman0077 on August 27, 2008) | ||
Johnlodge Member Username: Johnlodge Post Number: 8459 Registered: 10-2003 |
Find any and every way to get more police out there. Beat cops and mounted divisions to improve resident/police relations. Response times down to a proper level. Enforcing fines on blighted properties, especially if they are owned by people with the money to do something about it who live elsewhere and just don't care. Remove every single person from the Kilpatrick friends and family plan from the city payroll. | ||
Detroitstar Member Username: Detroitstar Post Number: 1323 Registered: 01-2006 |
1. I would donate 80% of my income to the city's pension fund. While in office my home is payed for, so all I really need is enough to survive. I can go back to making money for profit when I'm done serving the public. 2. Study, evaluate, plan, and the implement a strategy for a stronger, more stable school system. The failure of our schools is the #1 reason our city sucks...not the mayor or poor economy. An intelligent city will always be better off then a rich city. 3. I would establish a task force of aides from my 10 most costly departments. We would evaluate each department as a whole to isolate where there are funds in excess and where there are needs. By doing this as a group it establishes a type of checks/balances across the government. 4. Commission a report of the areas with the lowest quality of public services. By highlighting the areas with the worst services we can establish a more efficient plan for trash pick up, improving lighting, etc. 5. Determine the 12 most viable areas for retail development outside of downtown. Create a viable plan to develop these centers for 2 purposes. 1-provide employment as well and retail opportunities in the city. Keeping people here will only happen when we have both jobs and quality retail establishments; 2-Encourage people to utilize the resources of their neighborhood instead of having to travel for them. My first 100 days in office would closely resemble that of Franklin D. Roosevelt. I believe budget, population, or economy should never get in the way of reform and reconstruction. | ||
Nick Member Username: Nick Post Number: 4 Registered: 08-2008 |
First thing I would do is nail my chief of staff. Then I'd have my secret service find Sean of Detroit, abduct him, and make him wear a jester outfit to jump around in at all of the dope-ass cocktail parties at the Manoogian. Then I'd make sure we got a f*cking Cheesecake Factory. | ||
Professorscott Member Username: Professorscott Post Number: 1597 Registered: 12-2006 |
Detroitstar, I like your thinking but #2 is outside the scope of City government. The school district is a government unto itself; the City has almost no input at all into how the school district operates. If you want to revitalize Detroit at all, you have to give people a reason why they'd want to live in Detroit as opposed to Madison Heights or Southgate. Anyone have any thoughts in that direction? | ||
Detroitstar Member Username: Detroitstar Post Number: 1324 Registered: 01-2006 |
Nick, would you put the cheesecake factory inside the train station which would be renovated by Magic Johnson? | ||
Johnlodge Member Username: Johnlodge Post Number: 8463 Registered: 10-2003 |
No, he'd put it on Belle Isle with the amusement park. | ||
Detroitnerd Member Username: Detroitnerd Post Number: 3113 Registered: 07-2004 |
Light rail will revitalize. Downtown Detroit has 20 percent of the city's jobs, and that's something we can still build on. | ||
Registeredguest Member Username: Registeredguest Post Number: 410 Registered: 10-2003 |
"First thing I would do is nail my chief of staff. Then I'd have my secret service find Sean of Detroit, abduct him, and make him wear a jester outfit to jump around in at all of the dope-ass cocktail parties at the Manoogian. Then I'd make sure we got a f*cking Cheesecake Factory." Could you also build a 50 story tower, like the one that is being built in Oklahoma City, so that we can REVIVE THIS ECONOMY?••••• If you do, be sure to add in some ground floor retail. I want my Jazzy Cafe! | ||
Nick Member Username: Nick Post Number: 5 Registered: 08-2008 |
"Could you also build a 50 story tower, like the one that is being built in Oklahoma City, so that we can REVIVE THIS ECONOMY?••••• If you do, be sure to add in some ground floor retail. I want my Jazzy Cafe!" HA! Cross reference to the 'shout outs' thread??? | ||
Detroit313 Member Username: Detroit313 Post Number: 710 Registered: 02-2006 |
.....KILL MYSELF! <313> | ||
Detroit313 Member Username: Detroit313 Post Number: 711 Registered: 02-2006 |
Sorry, What is, I WOULD Kill Myself Jeopardy answer <313> | ||
Professorscott Member Username: Professorscott Post Number: 1598 Registered: 12-2006 |
But then, 313, after you killed yourself, you wouldn't be around to categorically deny that you had killed yourself, and to spend millions of taxpayer dollars (and distract the entire region for months) trying to keep the fact of your killing yourself from coming to light. | ||
Detroitplanner Member Username: Detroitplanner Post Number: 1862 Registered: 04-2006 |
Eliminate several city departments through consolidation. Privatize garbage collection to get rid of $300 and have bulk pick ups every other month. Reduce income tax to one percent for residents and 0.5 percent for non residents. Do not include interest as income. Ride the bus to every event that I could so I can talk with the people and look for ways to improve interconnectivenes and improve operations through investing in technology and financially feasible capital equipment. Get rid of half my staff as well as re-asign my policemen to patrol officers. Look for ways to make the city more accountable to its taxpayers. Cut the grass every once in a while. Review the Department of Administrative Hearings. Go after owners of eyesores with lawsuits & reduce the penalities for minor property offenses (I've heard stories about people getting thousand dollar tickets for putting garbage out a day early while the house next door is in shambles). | ||
Ggores Member Username: Ggores Post Number: 325 Registered: 10-2007 |
1. Turn on all the street lights. 2. Buy each tax paying household/landscaper a brand new lawn mower. 3. Plant a garden, out of selfishness. (Message edited by ggores on August 27, 2008) | ||
Lo_to_d Member Username: Lo_to_d Post Number: 98 Registered: 07-2007 |
"Reduce income tax to one percent for residents and 0.5 percent for non residents. Do not include interest as income." How about completely eliminate income tax for city residents and keep the commuter income tax right where it is. I mean really, does it make sense to tax resident's income more than other's. That is a sure way to keep people moving out of a city. You don't tax things that you want to happen, like people living in the city that make money. Increase the city gas tax to offset the loss and encourage more bus riders. | ||
Detroitplanner Member Username: Detroitplanner Post Number: 1865 Registered: 04-2006 |
Lo_to_d I believe that state law says that income tax for non-residents must be half of what it is for locals. I have eliminated $300 in property taxes for the garbage fee and cut back income taxes to only a portion of what it currently is (2.5 percent). Both the income tax and the property tax are obstacles for folks to move into the City. However, we need to ensure that there is a diversification of funds coming in. Theoretically the dropping of these two taxes by a fair amount will entice those on the fence to move in. It also makes it less of a burden for those with high incomes to justify living within the City. Those higher income folks will help increase the number of retail establishments and provide sweat equity for the restoration of neighborhoods. Higher income folks are also much more involved in the political process, therefore we will have a greater pool of qualified candidates to select from. | ||
Lo_to_d Member Username: Lo_to_d Post Number: 99 Registered: 07-2007 |
if that's true, its no wonder our cities suffer in michigan. I agree they need to be lowered, but it shouldn't even exist for city residents. Think about when Quicken moves downtown. People are going to see that they get taxed more if they moved closer to work, but if the tax would be removed if they actually lived in the city, I think many would move in, if nothing else to save money. | ||
Hunchentoot Member Username: Hunchentoot Post Number: 104 Registered: 03-2005 |
I would work to have the city's zoning changed to eliminate minimum parking requirements and mandate transit-oriented, new-urbanist and "green" development. | ||
Detroitplanner Member Username: Detroitplanner Post Number: 1867 Registered: 04-2006 |
I can't find a specific reference to cite, but this table agrees with what I said: http://www.taxfoundation.org/p ublications/show/23363.html | ||
Lo_to_d Member Username: Lo_to_d Post Number: 100 Registered: 07-2007 |
wow. thanks for the link. the state really needs to change this. At least make it equal. And all along I thought this was our stupid city government. | ||
Sean_of_detroit Member Username: Sean_of_detroit Post Number: 1664 Registered: 03-2008 |
Nick, welcome to the boards! Do I know you? Hi, my names Sean, I live in Detroit, and am an Aries. You want to see me in a jester suit? Sounds kinky... give me your contact information and we'll see what we can arrange! HA!  Jokes aside, I have no desire to ever be a politician. Working with a politician maybe... but I don't want to be one. My goal is to push others right now. | ||
Scooter2k7 Member Username: Scooter2k7 Post Number: 129 Registered: 10-2007 |
I am too honest to be the mayor of Detroit. I am not racist, I have a conscience, I know (and practice) what morals and ethics are, and I take responsibility for my actions. So I guess I am not qualified to be the mayor of Detroit. | ||
Sean_of_detroit Member Username: Sean_of_detroit Post Number: 1667 Registered: 03-2008 |
Shout outs thread? | ||
Sumas Member Username: Sumas Post Number: 241 Registered: 01-2008 |
My priorities would be: 1.) Clean sweep of patronage jobs 2.) Improve police response time 3.) Give a 1/2 half vote to non resident workers as a start to regional governance. 4.) Privatize schools 5.) Improve and protect city parks. 6.) Enforce blight ordinances and address foreclosures and its implied blight 7.) Create a training program for new and existing city employees to instill the novel thought that tax payers are your bosses. 8.) Work with suburbs to create quality mass transit. 9.) Eliminate the garbage tax 10.)realign funding for various city departments. We are no longer a large city and deep cuts need to made accordingly. | ||
Sumas Member Username: Sumas Post Number: 242 Registered: 01-2008 |
Forgot one thing... fire/eliminate the law department. They are all useless. | ||
Mayor_sekou Member Username: Mayor_sekou Post Number: 2513 Registered: 09-2006 |
I would have Lowell change my handle to President Sekou. Fire Police Chief Ella Bully Cummings and most upper brass and hire outsiders who are familiar with a compstat/broken windows style of policing so it can be applied here. Also, try to return DPD numbers to the pre Kwame levels. I would probably be the toughest Mayor of all time on crime and honestly it would likely be one of the main themes of my candidacy. Fire anyone one in upper managerial positions who I deem unworthy of working for the city of Detroit. Cut all fat out of every department in the city from top to bottom. Propose re zoning the city so future development is more in line with the transit oriented dense urban oasis it can be instead of a big factory town. Cut unnecessary taxes across the board. Try to take over the school system or let it die in favor of charters or private schools. I would extend an olive branch to all neighboring communities to let them know that Detroit is open for business and it’s open for all regardless of color, class, etc. Lobby Lansing hard for transit until we get it. Break the unions as hard as possible with the exception of the teachers, transit workers (for a time), police officers, and fire fighters. Everyone else though…..heh heh heh. Keep a firm hold of the water department and use it as leverage against anyone who opposes the best interests of Detroit. Privatize the trash department. Eliminate the legal department. Promise to never embarrass the city in any way shape or form. And more stuff I don’t feel like typing right now since I’m not running for Mayor anytime soon. (Unless I get suddenly famous or rich.) | ||
Mayor_sekou Member Username: Mayor_sekou Post Number: 2516 Registered: 09-2006 |
Lobbying, if you are unfamiliar with the term, exists for the sole purpose of trying to influence people like the legislators who make these decisions to see things your way. Pretty much all legislation is the result of some organization or entity lobbying their cause to the appropriate party, including legislation that funds comprehensive transit in areas where it exists. Besides what I would do is much more effective than spamming an anonymous message board. How is that fuel tax working out for you? | ||
Danny Member Username: Danny Post Number: 7690 Registered: 02-2004 |
Trainman, Go for it. I would nominate you to run for Mayor of Detroit. |
