Tomorrow, the City Council will be voting on three different bills which surround the contentious City Manager initiative. Today’s Capital (and Josh Stewart) did a good job explaining the players and controversy surrounding it.eyeonannapolis.net, Eye On Annapolis, Apr 2010

You should read the whole article.

Scott has asked me to be a guest blogger while he is in the hospital and it is an honor to be given this responsibility. I visited Scott in the hospital yesterday on 1/30/2010 and he is doing as well as can be. I will be visiting him periodically to stay atop of his health [...]]]> All,

Scott has asked me to be a guest blogger while he is in the hospital and it is an honor to be given this responsibility. I visited Scott in the hospital yesterday on 1/30/2010 and he is doing as well as can be. I will be visiting him periodically to stay atop of his health and hope to keep his spirits up.

If you would like to wish Scott a “Get Well” wish, you can either respond here or send me an email directly at keith@kmcwebstudios.com and I will be sure he gets your wishes. I am sure, Scott would love to hear from his friends who can not be able to visit him in person.

I will provide more details of his status as I am allowed to provide by Scott. Please think of Scott in your prayers and wishes for a speedy recovery back to health.

- Keith, college friend

Weather forecasts are projecting as much as two [...]]]> Snow Emergency effective at 11:00AM Saturday

Annapolis, MD (12-18-09) — Mayor Joshua J. Cohen declared tonight that a snow emergency will go into effect as of 11 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 19, meaning that vehicles parked along emergency snow routes must be moved by then or risk being impounded.

Weather forecasts are projecting as much as two feet of snow to fall in the region into Sunday morning, and Mr. Cohen said that the removal of cars along key arteries will greatly assist Department of Public Works crews in keeping up with snow removal efforts.

A list of emergency snow routes and snow connector routes is available on the city’s Web site, www.annapolis.gov. Clearing emergency snow routes is the first priority. City emergency officials encourage affected residents to move their cars into public garages. Parking at city garages is free of charge. City officials greatly appreciate the cooperation of residents during this storm event.

In a press release this afternoon Mayor Cohen announced the elimination of five(5) positions within City Hall.  They are as follows:

 Chief Information Officer

Elections Administrator

 Special Assistant to the Mayor

Executive Office Assistant

General Clerical Position (was a temporary position)

In addition to the elimination of these positions, a hiring [...]]]> Mayor Cohen cuts 5 positions

Enacts Hiring Freeze as well

Annapolis Mayor Josh Cohen (D)

In a press release this afternoon Mayor Cohen announced the elimination of five(5) positions within City Hall.  They are as follows:

 Chief Information Officer

Elections Administrator

 Special Assistant to the Mayor

Executive Office Assistant

General Clerical Position (was a temporary position)

In addition to the elimination of these positions, a hiring freeze has been announced.  The hiring freeze is City wide with the only exceptions being Police and Fire Personnel and these will be examined on a case by case basis.  The elimination of these five positions and the instituting of a hiring freeze is a good start for the new Administration, however, let’s all keep our eyes on the ball, there are still a lot more cuts/consolidations that need to be made at City Hall. 

I commend the Mayor on his timely decision, as eliminating positions is never easy but in this case very necessary.  As stated above, there are more cuts and consolidations that need to be made, especially in light of the new positions created and the looming structural deficit that hangs over this fiscal years budget as well as those in the forseeable future.  I am also deeply concerned by the Mayors decision to re-appoint Alderwoman Classie G. Hoyle to the Finance Committee and reportedly make anyone other Council Member wishing to serve on this key committee promise to vote for her as Chair.  This is at best rewarding and condoning bad decision making over the past 3+ years since he left the position; but more realistically paying back a political favor at the Peoples expense.  Not good!

It is important that each of us keep an eye on the initial decisions being made at City Hall, however, we also must be mindful  that analyzing every decision individually is somewhat short sighted;  let’s see what additional changes the first 30 days bring, and then the first 100 days of this Administration.  I think this will give us all a much clearer picture of the direction of the new Administration.

Next 4 years may be more costly than last 8 Hold onto your Wallets Annapolis, and tightly

MAYOR COHEN ANNOUNCES THREE APPOINTMENTS

Annapolis, MD (12-11-09) – Mayor Josh Cohen announced his next round of appointments this week, focusing on grants, overseeing the city’s boards and commissions and organizing special [...]]]>

Mayor Josh Cohen

Next 4 years may be more costly than last 8

Hold onto your Wallets Annapolis, and tightly

MAYOR COHEN ANNOUNCES THREE APPOINTMENTS

Annapolis, MD (12-11-09) – Mayor Josh Cohen announced his next round
of appointments this week, focusing on grants, overseeing the city’s
boards and commissions and organizing special events. Two of the three
appointments fill existing positions while the third is a new position.

Mr. Cohen has appointed Lyn Farrow Collins to the new position of
Grants Coordinator. This full-time role is responsible for identifying
funding opportunities, coordinating grant application, reporting and
record-keeping, and establishing more accountability for the City-issued
grants.

Ms. Farrow Collins has broad experience in fund development. She worked
most recently as a resource development manager for The Maryland
Mentoring Partnership. She has also worked in the public and private
sectors in marketing, communications and public relations. Ms. Farrow
Collins earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from
Widener University and a master’s of science in business from Johns
Hopkins University.

“We have identified a need for better coordination and efficiencies
within our grants processes,” said Tim Elliott, Director of Finance.
“The Grants Coordinator will better position the City to strengthen
our real revenue needs to help with looming budget shortfalls.”

Mayor Cohen has named Jenelle Murph as the new Special Projects and
Events Coordinator, a full-time position previously held by Karen
Engelke. This position is responsible for coordinating most
city-sponsored events as well as overseeing the permitting process for
events such as parades, walks and festivals. Ms. Murph previously worked
as an event and marketing coordinator and performed sales work in the
pharmaceutical industry. Ms. Murph received a bachelor’s degree in
marketing from Morgan State University and an MBA from the University of
Maryland, University College.

Mr. Cohen has also appointed Hilary Raftovich as the Boards and
Commissions Coordinator, a part-time position previously held by Jim
Clark. This position is responsible for identifying vacancies and
recommending appointments for the city’s 33 boards and commissions
which advise the city on matters ranging from transportation and
recreation to aging and the environment. Ms. Raftovich has lived in the
Annapolis area for the past 14 years and previously owned a restaurant
and catering business. She earned a bachelor’s in American Studies
from Evergreen State College in Washington State.

All three positions are contractual and report to Gail Smith, Director
of Services.

###

Now, let’s examine some facts and hard numbers here:

• Lynn Farrow Collins — A friend of Cohen and campaign volunteer.  Now appointed to a NEW $58,000 per year position for which there is are no budgeted funds.

• Jenelle Murph — A friend of Cohen and Alderwoman Classie Hoyle’s, oh, and yes, a campaign volunteer.  Another position reportedly paying $58,000 per year.  I need to check my facts, however, I believe her predecessor made at least $10,000 less per year.

• Hilary Raftovich — Another friend of Cohen’s and his campaign volunteer coordinator.  She is part-time and reportedly makes almost $15.00 per hour, no minimum or maximum number of hours specified for this position.

I sent an e-mail to PIO, Phill McGowan earlier this afternoon for some additional information, but have not heard back yet.  I will update this post as necessary, or who knows, depending on the information received, I may do another new post.

Don’t worry, it is only your tax $, the Mayor is spending.  He promised fiscal constraint, transparency in government, a new tone at City Hall, and that the next 4 years would be nothing like the last 8.  Oh yes, and how could I forget; that the creation of any new positions would be offset by the elimination of exisiting positions.  Let’s see, today is Day 4 of the Cohen Administration, we are +2 new positions (not including Doug Smith, our CAO) and almost up $150,000 in just Salaries, not including benefits, etc…

Stay tuned, it can only get better!

Hope to see each of you on Monday evening.  Remember, our City government works best with your participation and input.

If you would like to automatically receive a copy of these public hearing notices and meeting agenda’ [...]]]> City of Annapolis – Council Agenda and Public Hearings

Monday, December 14, 2009 — 7:30PM, EST

The following Agenda and Public Hearing schedule has been released by the Office of Law for Monday nights City Council Meeting.  Click here to view.

If you would like to automatically receive a copy of these public hearing notices and meeting agenda’ directly from the City on an continual basis, you can sign up by clicking here.

Hope to see each of you on Monday evening.  Remember, our City government works best with your participation and input.