Well, I was skeptical still so AGAIN queried source? More back and forth with some calls to folks who live close and it turned out the incident is alleged to have happened on what we call 15th Ave and 9th St. What is nifty about this location is that 15th comes across, then doglegs down to what used to be 8th St and becomes 15th again. After a few houses, back to 8th. This has eliminated part of 9th and 8th but is in name changes only. And NOW, thank Heavens, two of Vienna's finest were supposedly on the scene. That is good and proper police work. Was advised possibly a bath salt episode? I don't know, have not heard much on those for some time? Guess could still be making the rounds from supplier in Ohio? But in Truth, I am skeptical that people get screwed up bad on just about anything from Alcohol to Heroin and are prone to behaving badly and even dangerously.
Is this correction really important? Yes, to me, I try to be as accurate as possible on events occurring in Vienna that somehow don't make any news reporting. The never ending censorship and cover up on what goes on here is sad. This is as so many say, and for sure know, a great little town. But as in ALL towns, large, small or whatever; things go on that are part of the slimy underbelly of crime in many forms that goes on. We ALL need to be alert and act accordingly when things happen. And I for damn sure don't mean take photos and send them all over the internet. CALL the authorities and hope they do their duty and respond. I believe it was a drug situation; but did the Police do anything?
Now some on that City Council meeting of the 23rd of June. This MAY also account for the very bad behavior of some of the Council Members and Department Heads that night.
For reasons not explained in the open, at the time Ms. Smith got not only her "longevity" raise of $.50/ hour= $1040/ year; she also got another raise of $85./hour= $1768/ year for cash increase of $2808/ year. And what no one heard about was the $1000.00/year City paid 100% premium for Vision costs per employee. So IF and I repeat IF all went as discussed in Council meetings, Ms. Smith got a miserly yearly increase for 2016- 2107 of $3808/ year for cash and benefits. The other Full Time Employees with one exception only $2040/year.
One other employee- the Human Resource Director, got the $1040. + $2000.= $3040/ year cash and the $1000. for vision premiums= $4040/ year increase. This was because P'burg pays more than the City of Vienna and has three times the population and three times the number of Employees. But Mr. Rapp insists our folks make as much OR more than anyone else. Her biggest accomplishment is said by the City Cheer Leader to be all the time and effort she puts in to do the Graphic Arts part of the quarterly Newsletter. Pretty decent money for a manual or CAD draftsman. I would venture her pay and benefits now runs between $50 and 60K/ year. I will question but that this person would not make it as Human Resource Honcho in P'burg? Anyone smell the B.S.?
It was said Ms. Smith got hers for being promoted from a C3 to C5 Clerical position. The operative term here is "Position". In the past couple of years as she gathered in "Titles", there was supposedly an increase in work performed. She was alleged to NOT be getting paid as Liaison between the Police Department (for which she works); the City Clerk position and as the Substitute Magistrate?
The interesting part of this is that she seems to be assigned more and more positions to do two things:
1. Consolidation of Control over numerous City functions. Some questionable as Conflicts of Interest?
2. Guess the Mayor was trying to get her to a 40 hour work week?
As City Clerk, it was to do certain projects that I would suspect have not even been started. One has to ALWAYS listen to Mr. Rapp so closely. Even then will get one reason that in truth has no connection to his real agenda. Put your money on controlling the City Election Process.
Now the part that I think most likely ticked off Ms. Smith and Mr. Rapp plus maybe even the ADA/ City Atty., was my posting on 06/15/2016 (Pay raises and more pay raises). In that posting, I clearly noted my strong belief that Ms. Smith did NOT have legal standing to be voting on her raises/ benefit increases. I gently chided the ADA/ City Atty., for his very questionable determination that she could do this because there are more than 5 employees in the City?
Now as I have noted several times, it seems the ADA/ City Atty., has no problem coming up with the determination that Mr. Rapp wants to continue his ongoing ignoring and violations of Federal/ State and City Ordnances?
In the meeting of the 23rd, Ms. Smith got sent out of the room while the City Council rubber stamped all the raises. Even Mr. Azinger the Elder who is also running for Mayor to cut spending voted YES. On everything but pay raises, he says. Typical old time Politico; buy votes; buy votes and buy more votes.
This I will admit gave me tremendous satisfaction. Not because Ms. Smith got kicked out of the room, she could have in actuality just sat in her chair; but I know she had to leave the room. My pleasure came as Mr. Rapp, Ms. Smith (and boy did she gloat a year or so back when the ADA/ City Atty., said she could vote on pay raises and benefits. Smiles from ear to ear.) What really counted was the fact that for if not the obeying of Conflict of Interest Policies at whatever level; that it was forcing them to do those three famous words I love so much: Morals, Integrity and Ethics. They did the right thing for the first time I can remember since 2013 and going back to Mr. Nohe from 2008. It did not matter because everything was lumped into one vote. That I believe was questionable too. Each special raise needed to be approved individually in the event a Council Member or so had some spunk?
Mr. Rapp noted that construction on the Filtration system at the wells 11- 14 would start on the 27th. Yet I was there on the 24th and the crew was already filling in over some of the pipes. They would have had to start by the 23rd? Semantics or some kind of "don't let what get out"?
The Lady from Sam's Club failed to show up and the ever present TV crew ended up with much less to report on what seems to be the never ending donations to the Neale Cemetery. As I have said before, if the City wants to maintain it all the time; annex into the City as a Historic Site and get with Mr. Enoch who is a big mug wump in the Wood County Historical business in one capacity or another to find State/ County Funding to assist with it. 'nuff said'.
(Paid for by the Candidate- Lawrence J. Wilson for Mayor of Vienna).