Veto Memo from Luke Ravenstah on Campaign Finance Reform

Luke's letter with a veto.


This is getting a lot of attention for what it is and isn't.

The veto came on this campaign finance reform legislation

Ordinance supplementing the Pittsburgh Code, Title One, Administrative, by adding a new section, Article XIII, entitled, “Campaign Finance Regulations.”

Be it resolved by the Council of the City of Pittsburgh as follows:

Section 1. The Pittsburgh Code, Title One, Administrative, is hereby supplemented by adding a new section, Article XIII, entitled, “Campaign Finance Regulations,” as follows:

Chapter 198: Campaign Finance Regulations

§198.01 Definitions

For purposes of this Chapter, the following definitions shall apply:

(1) Candidate

(a) An individual who files nomination papers or petitions for City elective office.

(b) An individual who publicly announces his or her candidacy for City elective office.

(2) Political Committee.

Any committee, club, association, political party, or other group of persons, including the candidate political committee as required by §198.03, for the purpose of influencing the outcome of a covered election.

(3) City elective office

The offices of Mayor, City Controller, or City Council.

(4) Contribution

Money, gifts, forgiveness of debts, loans, or things having a monetary value incurred or received by a candidate or his/her agent for use in advocating or influencing the election of the candidate.

(5) Covered election

Every primary, general or special election for City elective office.

(6) Person

An individual, partnership, corporation, sole proprietorship, or other form of business organization permitted under the laws of the Commonwealth to make political contributions.

§198.02 Contribution Limitations

(1) Except as provided in subsection (3), no individual shall make total contributions per covered election, including contributions made to or through one or more political committees, of more than two thousand dollars ($2,000) to a candidate for a City elective office.

a. On the Wednesday following a municipal general election, the contribution limit shall increase by the percent difference in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Customers (CPI-U) for the previous two years.

(2) Except as provided in subsection (3), no political committee shall make total contributions per covered election of more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) to a candidate for a City elective office.

(3) The limitations imposed by this Chapter shall not apply to contributions

from a candidate’s personal resources to the candidate’s political committee. However, if such contributions total $250,000 or more (regardless of the time period over which such contributions are made), then the contribution limits set forth in this Section for all other candidates for that City elective office shall double.

(4) The limitations imposed by this subsection shall not apply to volunteer labor, but they shall apply to the value of in-kind contributions.

(5) No candidate for City elective office, and no political committee, shall

accept any contribution which exceeds the contribution limits set forth in this Chapter.

§198.03 Candidate Political Committee Accounts

A candidate for City elective office shall have no more than one political committee and one checking account for the city office being sought, into which all contributions for such office shall be made, and out of which all expenditures for that office shall be made. If the candidate for office maintains other political or non-political accounts for which contributions are solicited, such funds collected in these accounts shall not be used for the purpose of influencing the outcome of a covered election

§198.04 Competitive Bidding and Disclosure

(1) Any person who makes a maximum contribution during an election cycle may not be awarded a contract relating to City affairs, without going through a competitive bidding process.

(2) Any candidate seeking an elective office in the City must submit a disclosure form for every contributor who makes a contribution of five-hundred dollars ($500.00) or more:

1. Does business with or has a contract with the City, its Authorities, Boards or Commissions and the nature of said business or contract for the past five (5) years;

2. Is employed by the City, its Authorities, Boards or Commissions or was employed by the same in the past five (5) years;

3. Has an appointment to any Authority Board or any other Board or Commission of the City or has held one in the past five (5) years;

§198.05 Public Record of Reports

All candidates submitting campaign finance reports to the Allegheny County Department of Elections shall simultaneously file copies with the City Controller for the City of Pittsburgh. The Department of City Information Systems shall be responsible for maintaining an up-to-date and public database that is searchable based on the following

categories: candidate name, contributor name, contribution level, and, where applicable, employer.

§198.06 Required Notice of Contribution Limits

The Ethics Hearing Board shall annually arrange for the publication of a notice setting forth the contribution limits set forth in this Chapter, together with a plain English explanation of the provisions of this Chapter and the penalties and remedies for violations. Such notice shall also appear at all times on the City’s official website.

§198.07 Penalties, Injunctive Relief & Wrongful Acts

(1) Any person residing in the City of Pittsburgh, including the City Solicitor may bring an action for injunctive relief in any Court of competent jurisdiction to enjoin any violations of, or to compel compliance with, the provisions of this Chapter. The Court may award to a prevailing plaintiff in any such action his or her costs of litigation, including reasonable attorney’s fees.

(2) A person who brings an action or causes or precipitates an action for injunctive relief alleging a violation of this chapter is subject to liability for wrongful use of this Chapter if the complaint was frivolous, as defined thereby, or without probable cause and made primarily for a purpose other than that of reporting a violation of this Chapter.

(a) A person who brings an action for injunctive relief alleging a violation of this Chapter has probable cause for doing so if he or she reasonably believes in the existence of the facts upon which the action is based and either:

(1) Reasonably believes that under those facts the action may be valid under this Chapter; or

(2) Believes to this effect in reliance upon the advice of counsel, sought in good faith and given after full disclosure of all relevant facts within his or her knowledge and information.

(b) Allegations of wrongful use shall be investigated in the manner set forth in § 197.12.

(c) When the essential elements of an action brought pursuant to this section have been established, damages may be assessed by a court of appropriate jurisdiction considering the following:

(1) The harm to reputation by a defamatory matter alleged as the basis of the proceeding;

(2) The expenses, including any reasonable attorney fees, that the person has reasonably incurred;

(3) Any specific pecuniary loss that has resulted from the proceedings;

(4) Any emotional distress that has been caused by the proceedings; and

(5) Any punitive damages according to law in appropriate cases.

(3) The provisions of this Chapter shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the Ethics Hearing Board.

§198.08 Severability

If any provision of this Ordinance shall be determined to be unlawful, invalid, void, or unenforceable, then that provision shall be considered severable from the remaining provisions of this Ordinance, which shall be in full force and effect.

§198.09 Effective Date; Implementation

(1)This Ordinance shall take effect on January 1, 2010.

(2) By June 1, 2009 the City Controller shall provide City Council with a report on the City’s preparedness of the implementation of this ordinance.

King Solomon, my ass. Here is the deal -- you don't have a plan nor a clue

At the start of the 90-minute meeting Mr. Kraus said he felt he was in a King Solomon position where the choice he would make would not make one group happy.

The tail wags the dog these days in the South Side.

Pet owners should be safe with their dogs in their back yards or else on leashes. If you want to be unsafe, then let's talk about dogs in a tiny park space without leashes.

Does dog socialization trump kid socialization?

I understand, in the world of Bruce Kraus, how he values the promotion of cats and dogs before people as they have been a 'pre-agenda' on Wednesdays at city council before citizen public comment.

The large, enclosed grass area is for kids, first. People second. Thirdly -- for other uses.

The adjacent children's playground is part of the park and not a place to confine the kids.

Mr. Kraus provided written material for the residents, explaining that it is against the law to allow dogs to run unleashed unless they are in one of four designated areas of the city: Upper Frick Park, Lower Frick Park as well as West Park and Observatory Hill on the North Side. The Frick parks both serve the Shadyside/Squirrel Hill communities. There are not designated dog parks on the south or west areas of the city. The residents at the meeting want to change that and Councilman Kraus has pledged to help although he admitted that it may be difficult to do it in a timely manner.

Mr. Kraus had no 'dog plan' when he ran for the city council seat. I've thought about this problem for a while. He is welcome to my talking points.

There is a locked park with lots of green space in the South Side. There is a stretch of land around the river's edge by the rail road tracks that can be put into use for a dog run too.

Kraus needs to think out of the box. And, he can't be expected to do that quickly. Mr. Kraus is very busy now trying to get a new governmental registry for unmarried couples. And, Mr. Kraus is slaving over the new sign ordinance plan as the six month moratorium on all new signs is getting ready to expire. Plus, Bill Peduto isn't going to be around much in the months to come to tell him what to do.

If Armstrong Park turns into a designated dog park I wonder how Mr. Kraus is going to tax the dogs.

Suitable nearby alternatives are called hamster, fish, in-house cat, backyard and leashes. Plus there is the South Side Park ice rink and river's edge dog-run.

The current park is, so they say, not conducive to ball playing. Bull shit. Err, dog shit on them. It most certainly is an ideal place for ball playing. We played and do play on those grounds in most successful ways for decades.

That field was home to a semi-pro football team.

That field was home to the biggest Rookie Ball program in the city -- for kids ages, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and older.

When the city cut out the Rec Centers and Swim Pools -- we suffered some massive blows to our opportunities with the kids. Holding baseball practices at places where the rest rooms can't be opened sorta sucks. The pitching machine and equipment departed, to gather dust perhaps.

Then there was South High School! They used to play high school softball on that field -- without problems. Not suitable is wrong as can be.

We could let dogs to run on the lawn of South Vo Tech and the lawn of the Pgh Federations of Teachers buildings.

Mr. Ashley, who lives in one of the city�s southern neighborhoods, said that before his pet recently died, he would take his dog to run loose across town at West Park. Thank you Mr. Ashley for being the gentleman and responsible, good neighbor that you are. West Park! A good place for dogs.

Is today the last day of classes at Schenley? - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Is today the last day of classes at Schenley? - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "For many students, the finality of the occasion has not yet sunk in.

The finality has not sunk in yet, because it isn't final. There has not been a final vote. This isn't a done deal.

Seems that the students are smarter than the media.

By the way, I talked today with Chelsa Wagner about the schools and the urgency. She needs to get into the game, now, even while the state budget efforts are happening.

A change in a vote from, say Jean Fink, school board member, on Schenley, could mean that the school gets some attention to the ceilings this summer and is open again for next school year -- as it should be.

Chelsa should be calling Mrs. Fink to talk about the plans there and all the costs of moving the students.

Chelsa should care because Schenley is a city-wide magnet. Students from Chelsa's district attend Schenley. And the money that Mark Roosevelt burns with the madness of his high school reform crisis is sure to take away other opportunities for others throughout the city.

"It's kind of sad -- the fact that we'll never be back here again," said Brooke Baumbeck, 15, a freshman from Lawrenceville. "It's just sad."

You are right, Brooke. It is sad. But, it isn't just. It isn't only sad. It is also 'mad.' And, it is very bad.

Council fails to override veto of campaign reform bill

Council fails to override veto of campaign reform bill Mr. Shields said the vetoed legislation 'begins to build a house of reform. . . . The great thing about politics and baseball is that there's always tomorrow.'

Doug digs deep to come up with that expression. "There is always tomorrow."

Doug sums up the best of what happens in Pittsburgh's political scene.

There is always a tomorrow -- except when you die. Sadly, there will not be a tomorrow for the mom of Rev. Ricky Burgess. So sorry about the loss. Funeral is slated for 11 am on Thursday.

There will be no tomorrow for Schenley High School -- after graduation on Saturday -- if Mark Roosevelt has his way. Gone. Extinct.

The hope of tomorrow is burning less bright for the city itself. The city may die. It already has two sets of OVERLORDS.

So, in politics, there is not a guarantee of tomorrow.

Back to the news to sustain the discussion:

The mayor said he supports the posting of all contributions, and of big donors' relationships with the city, online. He said he would also back a ban on no-bid contracts for anyone who contributed more than a certain threshold amount to a campaign.

"I have no plans currently, or haven't necessarily worked on it, but I think it's something that we would be willing to do," he said. "Full disclosure, 100 percent transparency, is something that we could do, or work towards doing, as quickly as tomorrow." He said he could work with council to get new rules in place in time for next year's city races.

He said council's legislation -- hatched in January and the subject of a public hearing, a special meeting, and repeated council discussions -- was passed prematurely. "Maybe they were interested in just passing something before they went on their summer vacation, just to pass it, to say that we were a city that had campaign finance reform," he said.

Here is the deal, Luke. There should NEVER be ANY no-bid contracts. I'd outlaw all no-bid contracts. The public funds need to be protected. Bids insure honesty and value for the spending.

Every contract that the city enters into should be supported by a bidding process.

As to the full transparency, the solution to that is called transparent PAC accounts. If a local bank wanted to help the situation by offering TRANSPARENT PAC ACCOUNTS as a product offering to candidates, campaigns and political action committees, we'd have a most elegant, private market solution.

The legislation from Bill Peduto was NOT hatched in January. We worked in past years on this bill. The work with the experts began in 2004.

Council fails to override veto of campaign reform bill

Council fails to override veto of campaign reform bill: "Council President Doug Shields said the mayor's four-page veto message, delivered yesterday, was 'somewhat misdirected' and called some of its contentions 'balderdash.'"

I think the memo with the veto is gibberish.

Hard numbers haunt district: City schools' debt $476 million - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Hard numbers haunt district: City schools' debt $476 million - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "Hard numbers haunt district: City schools' debt $476 million

Reactions welcomed in comments. My thoughts later today.

Running to city council now.

Mayor vetoes campaign finance reform

Forced. That was the word Luke used in his description ... labor would be 'forced to' blah, blah, blah.

Mayor vetoes campaign finance reform: "Under the current bill, the labor community, whose funds are raised at the small dollar level from working men and women, and distributed through PACs, would be forced to find 50 PACs to contribute at the maximum levels proscribed by this bill to match the wealthy, anti-labor candidate.'

First of all, many labor unions force their members to give to their political action committees. Unions often extract money by force from the ranks of the union's membership. Some of those incomes are spend in PACs.

If Luke wants to talk about 'force' -- let's talk about it.

Furthermore, and more to my core of being, is the feeling that unions would be forced to match up to a wealth opponent in the spending department. The amount of money raised does not guarantee votes.

If 50 PACs each donate the limit to a candidate to match, dollar for dollar, what the wealthy opposition has invested / spent, so what. Money can't guarantee votes. The boots on the street and the people going to the polls are much more valuable than the capital in the check book of a wealthy opponent.

Finally, the PAC can give the limit and then pass the word that each of the members of the PAC give from personal accounts. The members of the union can write a check for $50 or even up to $2000 each.

The donation from the PAC to the candidate is just the tip of the point. The wood behind the arrow's point is the additional donations from individuals to the candidate directly.

Pittsburgh mayor vetoes campaign finance limit bill - Pittsburgh Business Times:

The expected veto by Luke Ravenstahl o campaign finance reform arrived. I asked via a note to the mayor for him to to sit with me and consider some counter-proposals to come along with his veto. I didn't want him to veto it. And, even if he signed the bill, he could have offered further, different suggestions for election reform.

The mayor has nothing to say, except offer four letters?

Pittsburgh mayor vetoes campaign finance limit bill - Pittsburgh Business Times:: A bill that would have limited political contributions to candidates for public office in Pittsburgh was vetoed Monday by Mayor Luke Ravenstahl.

Pittsburgh City Council last week voted 5-4 to limit candidates for a city office to a $2,000 donation from an individual and $5,000 from a group, corporation or union.

But Ravenstahl rejected the bill, which Councilman Bill Peduto, the measure's primary sponsor, said was disappointing.

'This is just emblematic of a backward thinking, old-school political town, and it's embarrassing, frankly, that Pittsburgh can't enact progressive legislation like almost every other city and state in this country,' he said.

'(Ravenstahl) said this isn't real reform. (Then) why was it supported by Common Cause, the League of Women Voters, Democracy Rising, and other reform-minded organizations?

'This has been in process for five months, and the mayor never spoke a word until he vetoed it,' Peduto said.

A spokeswoman for Ravenstahl did not immediately return a call for comment.

Update:

The Trib says that the veto came with a four page memo. I would love to see it. I'll post it here as soon as I get a copy.

Ravenstahl vetoes campaign finance limits - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: "'The ordinance before me is fraught with problems,' Ravenstahl, whose recent mayoral campaign benefited from unregulated contributions, wrote in a four-page veto message to council members. 'It provides an unfair competitive advantage for the wealthy and will have a chilling effect on the labor movement.'"

Swim coach: Jack Pidgeon: Hundreds honor Kiski headmaster's life

Hundreds honor Kiski headmaster's life: "Hundreds honor Kiski headmaster's life"

I wish I would have known him. Always wanted to meet him. He was coaching in recent years with Indiana Univ. of Pa.

Help us reach out to the city -- and in turn -- the world

If you can send out this pointer, it would be great.

http://AforAthlete.Wikia.com/Olympicpedia

Mark Rauterkus, a dad, coach, publisher and community activist is holding a day camp in June and July as a lead-up to the Beijing Olympics, called Olympicpedia. We'll work on wiki content in a computer lab M-F from 11 am to 1 pm and drop ins on a day-by-day basis are welcomed. Mark@Rauterkus.com 412 298 3432 or see http://AforAthlete.Wikia.com/Olympicpedia.

Thanks!

HealthCare4All-Downloads

HealthCare4All-Downloads: "Single Payer for Business (.pdf) NEW!

Legislative Action Letter (.pdf)

Single Payer Brochure (.pdf or .zip)

Latest Single Payer Presentation (.ppt)

Two Plans for Pennsylvania comparison sheet (.pdf)

The plans versus what we have now comparison sheet (.pdf)

101 reasons balanced health care reform works for Pennsylvania (.pdf)

Senate Bill 300, Mar. 2007 (.pdf)

Senate Bill 1085, Feb. 2006 (.pdf)

Presentation explaining SB1085 pros and cons (.pdf)

House Bill 2722, June 2006 (.pdf)

Universal Single Payer Health Care presentation (.pdf)

House Bill 700, Mar. 2007 or the governor's Prescription for Pennsylvania plan (.pdf)"

Draft Chelsa 2009

A new blog on the Pittsburgh political landscape.

Draft Chelsa 2009: "This blog is dedicated to building a grassroots movement to draft State Representative Chelsa Wagner for Mayor of Pittsburgh in 2009.

I have nothing to do with that blog. I did call Chelsa the other day and I'm waiting for her return call about some serious school matters, however.

Chelsa-target-polling - Fix PA: "Chelsa-target-polling"

Good bye to two

Sad times with the death of Dwight White and Jim McKay.

How Obama Did It - TIME

How Obama Did It - TIME: "Obama's Chicago headquarters made technology its running mate from the start."

Schenley High supporters want council hearing on school closing

I put my name to the petition at the city clerk's office this week.

Schenley High supporters want council hearing on school closing: Schenley High supporters want council hearing on school closing
Saturday, June 07, 2008 By Joe Smydo, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Far from giving up their fight to save the Pittsburgh Schenley High School building, supporters are going around Pittsburgh Public Schools Superintendent Mark Roosevelt and appealing to school board members, legislators and City Council.

They may have an ally in Councilman William Peduto, who said he's working on a plan to fund renovations to the Schenley building and redevelop the former Reizenstein Middle School property in Shadyside.

'What if we didn't borrow' to pay for the Schenley work? he said.

Schenley supporters gathered enough signatures to force council to hold a hearing into Mr. Roosevelt's proposal to close the building at the end of the school year. Council may vote Tuesday to have the hearing scheduled.

City government is so worried about abandoned buildings that it should hold the public hearing on that basis alone.

The worst and biggest abandoned building trouble spots are the empty schools. There is no plan of re-use of the schools. There is no plan of getting value or keeping value to these schools.

The empty schools are assets that are being squandered. Hell, let's not get too worked up about the empty schools because the ones that are filled with our students are getting squandered too. They are doing poorly at all aspects -- with the open schools and with the closed ones.

The most recent cost estimate, which Mr. Roosevelt released on May 19, 2008, was $76.2 million. That is not the costs to remediate asbestos. That costs includes the fix up the massive pipe organ at Schenley High School. Does Mr. Roosevelt then expect there to be a pipe organ at Reizenstein? Rather, Mr. Roosevelt is playing the taxpayers and the media like a fiddle. But his tune has gone flat now.

The cost to fix up Schenley by removal and repair of asbestos is, according to the reports that Mark Roosevelt has on his own desk, is $3.459 million. NOT $76.2 million.

Of course the district can't afford a $76.2 million fix up of Schenley. We don't want that. But we can fix some of the weak plaster there this summer and re-open that school for much, much less than what Mr. Roosevelt is trying to do.

Some other costs that Mr. Roosevelt is not talking about:

Create a grade 6 to 12 school (new school) = $11 million. Those are ex-Schenley students.

Create a grade 9 IB program at Frick, first year costs, $1-million to $2-million. Those are Schenley students.

Relocate the IB program (new school) and expand it to grades 6 to 12 in year two for a four year period at the inadequate Reizenstein building is $5-million. Those are Schenley students.

To renovate Reizenstein, now a closed school, to become a permanent home would cost, as reported in the papers recently, $35-million to $50-million. Gulp. Those are Schenley students.

Go figure. It gets worse.

The cost to relocate a one of the existing and best middle schools, Rodgers CAPA, from Lincoln-Lemington's neighborhood to downtown is $5-million. And, that makes another abandoned building in a poor, mostly black neighborhood.

Renovate Frick Middle School, an existing and very good middle school in Oakland, where my one son attends and where the other might like to go too, in two years, costs $14-million. Those are Schenley students mostly.

It gets worse still.

The soft costs for the fix-ups to the other schools are not being reported by Mr. Roosevelt and the media. And, these days, construction costs are increasing about 15% per year. Those numbers are not being told. But, those amounts are part of the Schenley fix up.

What's that about doing math and counting apples to apples, Mr. Roosevelt?

Furthermore, many asbestos and plaster repairs have been made at Schenley. Some of the classrooms have already been given new lights and a suspended ceiling. Those rooms are done!

The stair well ceiling that fell last summer was not original plaster. It was a patch. It was under the stairs where the flexing occurs due to the years of kids running and and down the stairs. The sky is not falling! The building needs a bit of touch up. There has never been an asbestos related air quality issue at Schenley, despite piles and piles of records and testing.

If Schenley was unsafe, how in the hell did they get away with having school in there this year?

Building inspections occur. The city has a department of Building Inspections and they don't like to ignore areas where our kids go.

The superintendent's spending can easily be added together to get to amounts that exceed $100-million. That's what Mr. Roosevelt wants to do. That's crazy. That must be stopped. First, we need to see the entire picture. We need a 'wholistic' view and approach.

Meanwhile, let's fix Schenley and spend $5-million to clean up the asbestos and plaster in that building forever. Done. School opens again after the summer fix up.

By keeping Schenley Pgh Public Schools can also sell Reizenstein. Sell it. That is valued land. That has parking. That is next to Bakers Square re-development. Reizenstein's re-used for many other mixed opportunities from business park to flex space to land for condos next to a park to extend Shadyside.

Ky keeping Schenley, Pgh Public Schools can sell the more valued property that is known as the Board of Education Building. Sell that, not Schenley High School. Move the administration and board to Langley High School, just past the West End.

There are other expenses that are not in the mix yet too, that were spent this year. They already paid big bucks for fix up of professional development spaces in what used to be Greenway Middle School (now Pgh Classical Academy Middle and the Pgh Gifted Center). A floor or two of that building has been remodeled. Those spaces are not for students, but for faculty and staff uses for in-service activities.

Gifted Education is also changing for the worse as well, thanks to Mark Roosevelt's plans. His pilot program is going to cost a few million that should not occur. Again, another successful program is being torn apart while the troubled areas of the school district are getting no attention and being ignored.

What about Vo Tech Education? They are not talking about that. We need Vo Tech in Pittsburgh. We've had plans from Dr. Martins sitting for years. He is now not with the district -- out of frustration.

The alternatives that make sense are quite simple, help educational goals and are prudent. Here is what can be done.

First, put the proposed "science and technology school" into Westinghouse High School. Westinghouse got a major fix up in recent times. Westinghouse is all about science and technology. People will go there if the program is special. There is a ton of capacity at Westinghouse now.

Don't mess with Frick Middle School. It is a good school now. Keep it.

Second, put the University Prep school into Schenley with the I.B. program. Change the existing neighborhood component of Schenley into University Prep with the partnership. Meanwhile, the I.B. aspects of Schenley can co-exist with the University Prep. That is a major advantage and why Schenley has been so successful in blending the kids together as a melting pot. All the aspects of last year's Schenley fit into Schenley -- just fix, or continue to fix, a few of the ceilings. Do it.

Rodgers CAPA was to move into the Milliones Middle School. That was the plan a couple of years ago. Rodgers can stay where it is. Do NOT move Rodgers downtown and jam the middle school students, the yellow buses and their performance spaces into downtown among the high school students. Keep Rodgers right where it is in Lincoln-Lemington. If necessary, in the course of the next three years, Rodgers could make a move to Milliones, as was the original plan.

The extra two floors at CAPA downtown that have become available due to an option in the building (above the old jazz club and next to the strip joint) can be obtained. But use the additional space to accept additional high school students to CAPA. CAPA is a great school for some kids. Accept more students into that school. Expand it. It is, by far, the best school in terms of academic performance. Grow what works.

In the future, I'd love to see another performing arts middle school in the city in the south, such as at the closed Knoxville.

Furthermore, don't go selling off the buildings that are empty at fire-sale prices. If the value isn't there -- don't do the deal. The closed building at South Vo Tech sold for $1-million. The deal had a 60-day window to close, as per the bid process. Well, it didn't close on time. Don't sell it. The buyer should be out his hand money and the district should keep that building.

South Vo Tech is worth $20-million. It sold for $1-million. They could put 20 condos in South Vo Tech for $.5 to 2-M each.

Furthermore, we need a good Vo Tech High School. South Vo Tech can be re-opened, modernized, and used as a Vo Tech. Duhh! The city was promised a new Vo Tech Program and direction when South Vo Tech was closed.

One of the new Vo Tech Programs at the new Vo Tech High School should be 'historic preservation.' Don't you think we have plenty of working laboratory spaces for learning about the building trades!

Back to today's P-G article:

Mr. Roosevelt says the district cannot afford to remediate asbestos and address other maintenance problems at the landmark Oakland school. The most recent cost estimate, which Mr. Roosevelt released May 19, was $76.2 million.

Lies.

Today's P-G has the headline WVU president to quit Sept. 1. It would be nice if the P-G and Trib would spend one tenth the time on looking at Mark Roosevelt as it did in efforts to dig at WVU. Now that victory in Morgantown has been secured, I hope the educational investigative reporters show up in the halls of Pittsburgh Public Schools. Garrison got knocked off the fast track. Same too should Mark Roosevelt.

I've asked Rich Lord, P-G reporter, about Schenley. He says that he has a "life mission" to not write a word about that topic. Humm. Why is that? Some bloggers call Mr. Lord a 'battle cat." I've never heard such a weird statement about a hot topic from a journalist. Has the word been passed through the news room about Schenley's situation?

Oh, and the last time Mark Roosevelt had big news about Schenley and school reform about a month or so ago, the P-G reporter on the school beat, Joe Smydo, had a 'vacation.' The news from the sub reporter on that beat nearly made me barf. She, no rookie, took the Roosevelt news hook-line-and-sinker. It was like a flashback to the Pittsburgh Promise kickoff and the $5,000 check delivery by John Tarka with Luke Ravenstahl looming. Oh well.

Mark Roosevelt wants the school board to vote June 25, 2008 to close the building.

Mark Roosevelt could be gone by June 25, 2008. He'd flee to avoid the perjury charges for his bold face distortions, as the public starts asking these questions.

Mr. Roosevelt proposed that Schenley's remaining students be reassigned to the Reizenstein building beginning next school year. Future ninth-graders would have various options, such as attending new International Baccalaureate and university-partnership schools.

Students within Pgh Public Schools have choices now. Present ninth-graders can make some tough decisions as to where to go: CAPA (performing arts), I.B. (International / Schenley), Engineering at Alderdice, Robotics at Schenley, Classical HS at Perry Traditional, Teaching at Langley, Heathcare at Carrick, ROTC at Oliver, etc.

The choices are in the system today. They are not 'great' options. The system works for many and fails lots. But, all in all -- Roosevelt's plans often remove choices. There will be 90 kids at Milliones, a new school in the fall, only for 9th graders, that have no choice. They gotta go there. There are minority students who have the talent for CAPA, but who are on the waiting list because the quota has been reached and there is no more room there.

None choose to go to Westinghouse from around the city today. But that would change once the science and technology program is put there, if it is done right, and questions about that remain high.

Until the May 19 meeting, Schenley supporters had been lobbying Mr. Roosevelt to save the building. After his recommendation to close it, the supporters stepped up a campaign to influence other community leaders.

Perhaps the supporters were more convinced that Mark Roosevelt had a brain, a calculator and a fair grasp of logic -- until recent weeks. It makes no sense to close Schenley. None. We could see this. We would explain why -- as we did a few years ago -- and the tides would change. The good guys generally win.

Roosevelt's plan just came out in May, 2008. It isn't really a plan, but his final word was given. Now comes the time to organize before the vote. The school board has to make moves in the next weeks. Now we see that Roosevelt low-balled the numbers for Reizenstein, by about $40-million.

In e-mails, leaders of the "Save Schenley" movement have urged supporters to write to school board members, council members, legislators and even to the local foundations that support Mr. Roosevelt's work.

And in blog postings and personal meeting too.

Council has no direct authority over school affairs, and school board member Theresa Colaizzi urged council to respect the boundaries between the two bodies.

City council has some authority over school affairs. Perhaps not with CAPA's electronic sign, but that is another matter. Council cares about abandoned buildings, right? Council cares about traffic at rush hour downtown, right? How many yellow busses do you want to bring downtown each school day to drop off and pick up in the cultural district -- with middle school kids? Twenty?

Council cares about the population loss. Pgh Public Schools is shrinking by 1,500 students every year. The rate of outward migration since Mark Roosevelt's arrival has increased sharply. His Rightsized plan closed 22 schools and yanked families around, again. Many got fed up and left for suburban Pittsburgh where they don't close your school a few times in your k-12 academic years.

Council cares that the Pittsburgh Promise is only a 'cruel joke.' Those are the words of the Executive Director of the Pittsburgh Foundation as he indicated that only 20% of the Pittsburgh Public School students that go to college stay in college. Giving away college scholarships to those who can't succeed in college due to a lack of preparation is a cruel joke. People are not falling for it. Their boom is a bust! Their high school reform is a college scholarship.

Pittsburgh city council cares that taxes for city schools are about to triple. The capital costs for the district are out of hand and way over the top. The district can't open and close schools at the drop of a hat and expect the other branches of government to cut their costs by 75%. Not too long ago, city council had a capital budget that was $0. Now Mark Roosevelt wants to spend $100-million on projects that are not only not necessary but will cause great damages to the city's schools. The population base is racing to nothingness.

City council cares that the Pittsburgh Promise does not apply to kids who go to Catholic Schools nor Charter Schools nor Home Schools. Those kids and families live in the city and pay taxes.

City council cares about ethical presentation of facts to the public from other public officials. They care about being honest and transparent. They care that the level of skepticism among locals for the governmental process is at a all-time low. They care that public trust is being flushed down the toilet because of a few patched walls in a building that will last another 100 years.

City council cares about air quality and building inspections too.

"City Council should be honest with the people and tell them [council members] have no say so in this matter. It is out of their hands," she said.

Councilman Patrick Dowd, a former school board member, agreed that council "has no jurisdiction in the matter." He said council could make a statement with a nonbinding resolution about Schenley, but said it has much research to do on the issue before taking that step.

Patrick Dowd did plenty of harm on the school board and did as much as he could to sustain the rampage that has unfolded with Mark Roosevelt. Dowd was a 'yes vote' -- without doubt -- for Roosevelt. And, Dowd was always quick to pounce on others who raised doubts, questions and ask about governmental policies. The school board has been reporting to Mark Roosevelt. It should be the other way around. Dowd helped him get his power.

There was a community driven process of high school reform -- with hand picked leaders by Mark Roosevelt. That group held secret meetings without minutes for more than a year. That group made some strong statements about the direction of the schools. They did research. They visited schools, like John Thompson used to do when he was in town, and traveled to some others. The high school reform task force made its report and it didn't mention a peep about closing Schenley High School. They knew and we all know that Schenley is one of the best schools in Pittsburgh. The high school reform report went right out the window one day. Mr. Roosevelt tossed it. He said so himself. Everything changed because he wanted to revert to the old battles from the rightsizing plan.

Within a month of Mark Roosevelt's arrival -- the first rightsizing plan was sprung onto the city. Deals had to have been crafted way back then about the building or property of Schenley. The rightsize plan was about elementary schools, not high schools, except for Schenley, for some still undocumented reasons. Schenley was saved then. Schenley has been starved since.

In the end, in 2009, we'll elect new board members. Mark Roosevelt will be gone. This plan will be re-done anyway.

Patrick Dowd needs to distance himself from his days on the school board, as does Darlene Harris. Our schools are frail. They used the school board as stepping stones, like others before them. Its politics 101.

While acknowledging the city has no direct authority in school affairs, Mr. Peduto said council has a legitimate interest in the vibrancy of the city and can influence school district affairs through zoning and planning processes. He said people in his district want the Schenley building saved.

"The structural problems that it has shouldn't be the reason for it closing," Mr. Peduto said.

Mr. Peduto said he's been working on a plan that would link Schenley's rehabilitation with redevelopment of the 13-acre Reizenstein site.

Under his plan, sale of the Reizenstein property would yield a quick burst of money to help pay for Schenley renovations. Reizenstein's conversion into a mixed-use development would generate new school district property taxes and wage taxes, which would be applied to the Schenley project.

Mr. Peduto said the school district would enter into a partnership with a private developer who would help to control costs by leveraging tax credits for historic and environmentally friendly buildings. He said he plans to unveil more plan details next week.

There was a time when some foolish parents told Bill Peduto to cool it. The school district's struggles should not be a political football. They were wrong to give him the advice to back off. Peduto was wrong to follow their suggestions.

The schools should not be political footballs. But, Patrick Down made a ground game in that realm. And, most things boil down to politics. I wish that the city schools played football within the WPIAL. That would be some interesting political football.

And that leads us to another thought from another friend. Some have told me that they feel that the Pgh Public Schools are being sent through the ringer so as to better merge the city and county. Could be. That is another theory, not mine. It has been known to happen before. Remember how Downtown got crushed for years, without simple trash pick up nor URA funds, yet 'blighted status' by design by Tom Murphy. He did that so he could get Urban Design folks here and Nordstrom. Well the upscale department store didn't move downtown -- and the only thing the city got was lots of trash for many years and the departure of Candy-Rama. Back to schools ....

Schenley supporters are calling on the school board to delay a vote on the building's closing until Mr. Roosevelt presents a comprehensive plan for high school renewal. Though he's called for overhauling district high schools over five years, he hasn't provided plans for each school, leaving Schenley supporters to hope the building still might be needed.

Here is what needs to happen. Mr. Roosevelt needs to do his homework. He is in charge of the schools and has yet to turn in his homework. Most recently he said that he never promised to deliver a comprehensive plan.

Mr. Roosevelt -- the homework is late.

Mr. Roosevelt -- we do the grading.

So far, Mr. Roosevelt, you've been a total failure.

In the past, Mr. Roosevelt said that the solution was to open schools from grades K to 8. Now the solution is to open schools that go from grade 6 to 12.

That's just the tip of the story.

The extended school year -- with the opening of schools in August -- is a total failure too. The ALAs (Accelerated Learning Academies) are empty in August - as they should be. Yesterday, a classroom in one of my kid's school was at 100-degrees F. In the other side, in the shaded corner, it was 95 degrees. It was cooler out doors. The same weather is expected in August.

It is too hot for Mark Roosevelt and the 'yes people' on the school board to pull the wool over the eyes of the public, our kids and our neighbors any longer.

Patrick Dowd -- speak up.

You be the judge

Is Pennsylvania a Pro-Pedophile State?

By Mike Ference

PA State Rep. Lisa Bennington, D-Allegheny County, held a press on May 12 in Harrisburg, PA to discuss House Bill 1137, legislation known as the Child Victim’s Act of Pennsylvania, which addresses statute of limitations and identifying sex abusers.

If the bill passes, it would change the age at which a civil suit could be filed from until the accuser is 30 to 50, bringing the civil statute of limitations in line with the criminal statute. The bill would also suspend the civil statute of limitations for two years in child sex abuse cases in which the statute has expired so that people over the age limit could file a suit. And it would allow the filing of such actions against child sex abusers and their enablers in both public and private institutions.

According to Bennington, it’s the private institutions where offenders have been allowed to move on and continue with their lives. “Their victims have been left behind to pick up the pieces, never getting their day in court and or a chance to see justice carried out. They live with this horrific crime for the rest of their lives,” she points out.

A 2005 Philadelphia Grand Jury Report uncovered 63 priests in the Philadelphia archdiocese who had abused hundreds of children over several decades. In some cases, archdiocese leaders intentionally concealed the abuse to protect the church.

And Bennington stresses, her bill does not target the Catholic Church. Rather, “it pertains to all religious institutions, public schools, youth groups and any organization where child sex abuse has occurred. This bill would give all Pennsylvania victims their fundamental right to hold those accountable that afflicted or allowed the abuse to occur.”

Sounds reasonable and seems like a good thing. Similar legislation has passed in California and Delaware in recent years. In California, about 1,000 victims came forward and 300 predators were identified. Yet, there’s one PA lawmaker who strongly opposes the legislation and doesn’t even intend to give the bill a hearing.

State Rep. Thomas R. Caltagirone D., (Berks County), the House Judiciary Committee chairman, says the proposed bill is driven by victims’ desire to win large legal payouts. Caltagirone goes on to say the bill is all about money, not about justice.

Ironically, Caltagirone was quick to vote with fellow legislators for a 50 percent increase in their pensions in 2001 and the infamous middle of the night pay raise in 2005. The state rep along with other lawmakers chose to take the self-induced pay grab immediately in unvouchered expenses. Many PA residents felt this made the elected officials look like money-hungry crooks, as it was eventually declared unconstitutional.

As expected, the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference deplores the bill. Choosing to continue to protect perverted priests, rather than seek justice. Likewise, the Insurance Federation of Pennsylvania is also against the bill. And while Caltagirone has officially declared HB1137 dead, his puppy-protection bill seems to be racing for the finish line.

Could the PA state rep be more concerned about protecting puppies than innocent children abused as sex toys by grown men and women? His recently unveiled, HB 2532 which would forbid dog owners from performing surgery on their pups went before the Judiciary Committee on May 14, 2008, and could be voted on as early as June 10.

As someone who has been investigating clergy abuse in Pennsylvania for almost 20 years, this writer can’t help but thing that something is amiss.

On the eastern side of the commonwealth of PA the Philadelphia District Attorney’s office issued a scathing report on the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for the high level of sexual abuse among Catholic priests and the cover ups and the reassigning of credibly accused Catholic priests by Cardinals Bevilacqua and Krol and their aides. It should be noted that Bevilacqua first served as Bishop of the Pittsburgh Diocese before his transfer to Philadelphia. Insiders claim Bevilacqua left his successor, Donald Wuerl, quite a mess.

For example, while Bevilacqua was still assigned to the Pittsburgh Diocese he agreed to place Fr. John P. Connor, an admitted child molester first within the Pittsburgh Diocese and later, after Bevilacqua took over in Philadelphia Fr. Connor was assigned there. According to testimony in the Philadelphia Grand Jury the arrangement was based on a “tradition of bishops helping bishops.” Sadly, Fr. Connor went on to abuse others and Bevilacqua was found to be a liar according to the grand jury report.

One has to wonder why the Pittsburgh Diocese voluntarily settled with 32 alleged survivors of clergy abuse. $1.25 million for crimes the Pittsburgh Diocese will never have to admit ever occurred. The settlement would not tarnish the stellar reputation of Archbishop Donald Wuerl who never had to pay a dime to any clergy abuse victims during his tenure as bishop in the Pittsburgh Diocese.

Oddly enough, an underling – so to speak – Auxiliary Bishop Bradley reconciled the situation, only weeks before Bishop David Zubik was to be installed as the new leader of the diocese. So it seems everything fell into place.

32 survivors received a few bucks, the diocese is off the hook for any future civil or maybe even criminal suits based on the settlement. Wuerl continues to do in Washington D.C. whatever it is that Archbishops do and Zubik was allowed to get a fresh start in the Pittsburgh Diocese without the interference of those civil suits that were resting in limbo for several years.

The settling of the civil suits certainly allowed for an impressive and dignified installation of Bishop Zubik, no hecklers or demonstrators from any groups with compassion for children sexually abused by Catholic priests.

And, although I have no proof, nor anyway to calculate, I would be willing to bet the farm that more money was spent on Zubik’s festivities than was awarded to 32 survivors of alleged abuse by Catholic priests from the Pittsburgh Diocese. No big deal, the worst is over.

Unless of course, somewhere down the road – maybe a year, a few months, a couple of weeks, or perhaps in the next few days – information turns up that the cases of sexual abuse actually occurred and that cover ups were the norm in the Pittsburgh Diocese just like cover ups and shifting priests from parish to parish was the norm in the archdiocese of Philadelphia.

Anyone with a little common sense would be concerned that a man of the cloth might be tempted to hide crimes of clergy sexual abuse of young children only on the eastern side of the commonwealth of PA and not the western side as well.

That’s a lot of ifs ands or buts – only time will tell if Pennsylvania is indeed a pro-pedophile state. For now it’s three cheers for Rep Bennington and HB 1137 as for Rep. Caltagirone – one politician who obviously cares more about dogs than children – maybe it’s time for the law maker to rollover and play dead.

Mike Ference is an entrepreneur, writer, speaker and amateur investigative reporter who has been probing clergy abuse in Pennsylvania for almost 20 years. He’s currently sharing details about his investigation with Pennsylvania State Trooper John Woodruff. Is a formal investigation forthcoming? Only time will tell. Mike Ference may be reached at 412-233-5491 or email him at Ference@icubed.com.

Think again about high school reform

Why mess with two good things?

Mark Roosevelt is messing with the best high school in the city in terms of academic performance, CAPA. CAPA is a downtown high school. His plan is to put kids in grades 6, 7 and 8 downtown too -- with CAPA High School.

Worse, the kids that are going to be squeezed into CAPA come from Rodgers Middle School. Rodgers CAPA is presently a good middle school. Kids go there and learn. It does well in academic performance too. It is one of our best middle schools in the city. It is in Lincoln-Lemington -- and Mark Roosevelt wants to close the Rodgers Middle School -- moving it downtown.

Closing good schools and making radical changes to them is not only silly -- but perhaps -- a civil rights issue.

CAPA is doing well. Great. Expand it. Allow for additional high school kids to get into CAPA.

Replicate what works. Fix what is broken.

Rodgers is doing well too. Replicate it. Open a second performing arts middle school. Open up Rodgers South or Rodgers West.

The second performing arts school can compete with the existing one. Perhaps there will be more of a challenge to get into the downtown CAPA as the feeder pattern would demand that the middle school students excel to get into the next level.

And CAPA can expand into additional space. Expand it as a high school.

The high school theater space at Downtown's CAPA is nice. But it is in high demand now. It can't be duplicated and made to fit the middle school and high school too.

If the plan goes into effect, there is going to be a net loss of arts education. And, arts education is working.

In case you missed Erik's interview on KDKA TV this week, here are some screen shots

From Erik

TV Show about Schenley High School and the 'sky is falling' falsehoods

Update:

In case you missed the show, stay tuned:

• The show will air on city cable at other times in the weeks to come. (Insert dates and times here.)
  

• The show has been recorded with my old, trusted, point the video camera at the tv style of recording. I'll upload it shortly to Blip.TV. (not yet live)
  

• Furthermore, you can listen to the audio now as a podcast at TalkShoe.com. Or, click the play button below.