April 6, 2008
Tedesco on DPI
In today’s P-I, DPI President Joe Tedesco communicates that DPI is alive, busy with the tasks of searching for a new Exec. Director, searching for a new office, and identifying its scope of project focus (named: beautification of Old Towne, Halifax Triangle; R/UDAT; Army Community Heritage Partnership).
I am the Vice President of DPI and know how hard Joe has been working to keep the organization moving forward. The key thing for folks to consider is that DPI’s struggles must be put in the broader context of the challenges Petersburg faces. Very recent examples include;
- St. Joseph’s School is struggling
- Disruptions at PHS
- Downtown merchants struggling during current economic downturn
- Downtown restaurants and bars reducing hours of operation
- SR reducing schedule and operating challenges
- Decline of our Chamber
- Continued drop in Petg populations
- Petg, “the most dangerous city in central Virginia” according to RTD 2 weeks ago
- Police Chief Dixon requests 33 more officers; the ciy proposes to give him 5
Now is the time for our city to pull together, and for city hall to be 100% open and honest about the challenges we face if we are to address them thoughtfully and effectively.
re: “Police Chief Dixon requests 33 more officers; the ciy proposes to give him 5″
I first heard this at last Thursday’s Ward meeting. A woman stood to ask why (esp. in view of the ‘most dangerous place to live’ tag) this fundamental office is not being allocated more funds in the coming year. Mayor Mickens’ response was that the concerned woman could feel free to kick in more than her assessed property taxes at any time. I think we all appreciate that Petersburg’s coffers are finite/scarce. And naturally, finite resources necessitate tradeoffs — no two ways around it. That said… both at the Ward meeting and during last year’s budget hearings, Mayor Mickens underscored the importance of speaking to Council to share with them how we’d like our tax monies allocated/prioritized among competing interests.
From my own limited experience showing up at various (but certainly not all) civic meetings, what I perceive to be more/less consensus is that the citizens want to see competitive pay for our teachers, competitive pay / increased staffing for our police, competitive pay for our fire personnel, and adequate resources for road and other infrastructure repair. I’ve heard other priorities, but these 4 stand out as widely agreed-upon priorities (if not exhaustive). But this is just my perception.
I suggest if folks have views that they’d like taken into account, they turn out at the upcoming Council meetings as requested by the Mayor.
Also, it was suggested that to engage thoughtfully, folks take the initiative to seek out a copy of the proposed budget. Friday I put in a request of the city manager’s office for a digital copy (for sharing online, so folks don’t have to form a queue in city hall). I can’t imagine not having a copy up on this site sometime this coming week.
The Mayors response for the women to kick in more than her assessed property taxes is what one might expect from her and the rest of what we now call our City Council. Maybe if we had not bonded our taxes to build a defunct golf course, spent another $200,000 or so on the falling down Southside Station or spent another 2 or 3 hundred thousand on the Farmers Market that now stands idle for lack of funds to complete, we could afford better roads, more Police Officers and a host of other things that are badly needed. What we have now including the Mayor is the Blind Leading the Blind. What can the DPI do to help? Very little I’m afraid. If it has taken almost a year for them to find themselves and have no idea now as to what direction they are going in, I suspect they never will. Perhaps they could all buy a new set of golf clubs, drive out to the golf course on one of our splended trashy torn up roads and hit a hole in one.
Mickens’ flippant response to a serious and very important concern is outrageous & shameful. What Mickens should do, and do now, is resign her council position. We need council members who comprehend the challenges we face and work hard to resolve them. We don’t need persons who offer snide rejoinders to citizens’ concerns. If people felt safe in Petersburg, if a decent public school education could be acquired and if the infrastructure were not falling apart, more decent folks would move in, the trash would be moved out and Petersburg would be in a continually improving position rather than the continually deteriorating situation we face: largely because of the failed leadership of Mickens and her ilk.
Ok…so what happened with Denise? I remember at least four different occasions where Dulaney Ward praised her up and down in front of mixed company. Where’d she go–and after less than a year? What was it, like eight months?
The following letter is from a couple living in New York. This is an actual email and is what too many potenial visitors see and pass on to their friends and neighbors.
Our Recent Visit; We recently visited Blandford Church and were amazed at how un-kept the area was. The grass was so high and the neighboring surroundings were so scary that we will definitely not return to this historic city. Though our tour guide was wonderful we can’t help but anguish over the demise of this area due to drugs, unemployment, poverty and just plain filth. It is a shame this city could not learn from Fredericksburg and Gettyburg and revive its history.
Make no mistake about it, cities are built not by taxes alone, where are the patrons? Have we driven them out into their county estates? Any turnaround requires city leaders to ask patrons, hat in hand to fund civic projects. That’s how its done. I’d do it but it wouldn’t matter coming from me.
Somebody needs to explain why anyone believes raising taxes would bring prosperity.
Here is where I agree with indigenous.
If you go to DPI’s website, you will see a link for volunteering or something. There are pictures of a bunch of people standing around with shovels. I am in several of those pictures.
THAT was DPI a few years ago. It was a small group that KNEW what they were there for. No expensive brochures were planned, no one was looking for handouts from larger organizations — and there were NO COMMITTEES!!
I remember several people complaining to me about DPI at that time saying DPI should be joining with this group, or doing that — and I responded by saying that the people who work with DPI do it because there is NO TALKING, just getting together and picking up trash, planting trees — then having some beers. No coalition building, no committees, no subcommitees, no salaried executive directors, no hyping itself to the community. The organization existed to improve downtown petersburg — not in order to itself exist as an organization.
Some of the people who complained to me about DPI are now involved in its present incarnation.
I haven’t been involved in a long while. Too many chiefs, not enough indians. Time spent delivering flyers could be spent picking up trash, money spent on brochures could be spent buying beautiful landscaping.
The orginal leaders of DPI got a lot done, but part of the reason why the present organization doesn’t seem to understand why it exists probably has to do with all the “coalition building” they’ve done. They even once had me sitting down with people that just whine continually at council and never pitch in to make downtown a better place, in my opinion — and that was poison, to me anyway.
I’d understand if DPI was spending $$ to hype petersburg to people in, say, NJ. But hyping DPI to petersburg just accomplishes legitimizing yourself, and not a single flower is planted in the meantime.
I remain open-minded and am sorry this sounds so bitchy. IF they get something done, instead of fruitlessly asking others to do things, I’ll be very favorably impressed.
But I’ve seen a few too many “big picture” people come up with glossy plans that disappoint most when they realize the PLANS were the goal, not the actual fruition — that, of course, was left up to other people.
DPI swelled their membership considerably, and I was very happy. But all these meetings and sending money to printing presses takes time and energy away from getting small things done NOW — and there’s a TIME value to things: You get it done now, it has more future value than if you get it done two months from now.
All this said, if they can even get THE CITY to listen to them and do some positive things, I’ll be happy.
But the city has lots of competing priorities… and factions to please.
Somebody needs to explain why anyone believes raising taxes would bring prosperity.
They believe it because; Thats all they know! That’s the way it has been done in the past and will continue in the future. We have no tourist trade because David Canada didn’t want any. He did not know how to step into it and when he was pressured by NEW BLOOD moving to town, he had to at least make an effort. When it failed or is failing, he makes a point to move his office around town.
Not sure what happened to Denise, but it was no big loss. She wouldn’t give you the time of day if your life depended on it. Delaney Ward is a nice guy, but doesn’t know as much about what is going on as some newcomers do.
I just visited the site. Look at this:
“DPI, for the benefit of our community, is actively soliciting new Volunteers,[why is volunteers capitalized?] particularly individuals representing the diversity in our community. [So, they don't value individuals who DON'T "represent the diversity in our community" as much? What does this mean?] We need volunteers that are creative, visionary, and mission dedicated. [really? I thought that was what LEADERS were supposed to be, not volunteers] Volunteers who no longer want to do the same old thing, in the same old manner and get the same old results. This new type of Volunteer is the only one that can move the City forward in spite of the challenges. These Volunteers will use their intelligence much more than their brawn. [to do what, debate?] There [they really shouldn't let spelling errors like this come right after lionizing intelligence over brawn] voice will be heard in our community through their actions and not their verbosity. [well, now the author is talking. What are these actions, outside of talking?] More importantly these Volunteers realize their “service to the community is not a chore, but rather a privilege”. ” [again, LEADERSHIP is a privilege, volunteering resembles licking envelopes.]
We need local government that is not dedicated to the maintenance of slum lords, illegal group houses and drug houses. That would be an important start.
Enough with all these Executive Directors at these non-profits, who don’t pay taxes etc,etc.
Tell me again, why there is an organization called DPI, that’s asking for $200,000 in tax payer funds? What does it do that’s worth 200K? How long has it been here or is it a sinecure(nepotism)?
Speaking of Diversity, let’s have some. Solutions all around, get whites to talk about schools, crime and unemployment and blacks talking about historical preservation. We have to get people out of their traditional roles and ghettos if we are too move ahead.
No more Party politics either, let’s be Petersburgers first.
Peace, OUT
“Speaking of Diversity, let’s have some. Solutions all around, get whites to talk about schools, crime and unemployment and blacks talking about historical preservation. We have to get people out of their traditional roles and ghettos if we are too move ahead.”
Ditto.
This is probably the LEAST diverse place I have lived in the U.S.
Blacks and whites are too constrained by their traditional dialog. This place needs more asians and latin americans to shake things up. There’s WAY too many leftists and poor people speaking to each other in a delusional finger-pointing, mirror-free echo-chamber. This town needs more fiscal conservatives. Immigrants from africa tend to be one of the highest educated of all groups in america — we could use some of them too, showing EVERYONE what black people are capable of. Diallo was more ethnically african than african american, and the dems ran him right out of here because he saw right through all the collective victimhood crap the liberals feed folks for mental breakfast day in, day out.
It’s not ethnicity I’m talking about, but getting beyound color. African-Americans do live under pressures of their history. It not all equal. I do agree with you on most points, but in civic discourse it should be ideas that matter, without regard to race.
Asian and Latin gangs do shake things up in California, but that’s not the action we need.
As for Diallo, he simply went back to NY where he’s doing quite well. He did draw a considerable chunk of the vote, but not enough to win. The Democratic machine is powerful, if only we could direct it towards something useful; that would be the trick.
“It’s not ethnicity I’m talking about, but getting beyound color. African-Americans do live under pressures of their history. It not all equal. I do agree with you on most points, but in civic discourse it should be ideas that matter, without regard to race.
Asian and Latin gangs do shake things up in California, but that’s not the action we need.”
“gangs” come in all colors. Your sarcasm is not lost on me, but I am saying that ethnicities outside of the two domanant ones can cut through much of the bull the two dominant ones live with.
If you are not talking about ethnicity, fine. But you did use the word diversity… as far as getting out of one’s ghettoes are concerned, what makes you think whites are unconcerned about education? Crime?
Well, I agree with YOU about most of your points. But I do not wish to tar ALL executive directors. Your post implies they are all bad. I merely think they should be judged based upon how much financial good they do the cause per $ of salary. Some do an amazing job. Some just manage to bring in money to keep the org. going…
Good news!!
DPI, after much thought and time, has decided on their new direction…..
The same mission they had when I was a member!!
http://www.progress-index.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=19831382&BRD=2271&PAG=461&dept_id=462946&rfi=6
This is good news. Per the PI, the group plans on the humble, doable goal of planting trees!
The only fault I have with the old group of twelve or so that I was a member of was: we were great at planting them, but we were poor at keeping ‘em alive.
If they ask for help, I’ll probably pitch in, but I’d like to see some of those people who were so enthusiastic about joining “commitees” out there with a shovel with me first. I’d also like to see some of those people who represented “inclusiveness” doing their share too.
I was just thinking a few days ago as I was walking up adams street downtown, “a big part of the reason this area looks like a war zone is that there are no big trees around here,..”
A big part of the reason that I and other like minded peopl helped the orignial DPI led by Jim was that it was an oportunity to do something positve for petersburg WITHOUT subcommittees, fundraising, political wrangling. You just showed up and got stuff done. No talking, no deciding which tie to wear.