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Expect Five or Six Mills

By Mike McGarry

May 28, 2009

Despite what most people say: “They are driving businesses out of town”, “How can they do that?”, “What are they thinking?” taxes are going way up in Hartford, with even more pain slated in the future.

And, with the parks a mess, potholes everywhere, city departments stripped to the bone, the Mayor’s veto of the reduction in Arts funding was held up. The Arts will get 1.7 million dollars, basic services shrink and city workers give up benefits. Is this the time to add new city encumbrances as businesses leave, people abandon their houses and cars go unregistered (untaxed and insured)?

The city union members must feel particularly befuddled. Many supported the Working Family Party only to find that the worm certainly has turned against them. Reducing the size and scope of basic city services while hiring kids to paint murals might strike some as strange. Will the weeds block the murals?

Our dire prediction is that, about the time of the Mayor’s trial, Hartford will find itself unable to function, financially, and it will be time for a financial control board. The State, however, can’t, or won’t, step in until the next legislative session. By that time, our credit may be ruined. But, we’ll have a couple of new murals!

A big disappointment in all this has been “The Old Grey Lady” also known as The Hartford Courant. Except for the paper’s blog, “City Line,” little of the nasty battle between the Mayor and the Council has been reported in our once-upon-a-time paper of record.

With the Mayor calling for half of the council staff to be eliminated (most of whom are active Democrats), obviously Perez’s political base has dwindled.

When seven or more council members vote against his pet projects, is he still in charge? In charge of what – a ship about to sink?

One wonders, as we look at the results of a government that isn’t governing, just who will come forth as our next set of leaders. Certainly a few new faces would be refreshing.