What I do want to focus on in this column is real solutions for moving our City forward; starting with the initiatives I began in 2019 during my (brief) time as Mayor. Simply put, I inherited a situation filled with confusion and problems stemming from the previous administration, including MILLIONS of dollars in unpaid legal bills from outside lawyers hired by the City to defend lawsuits caused by that administration. There existed a culture of corruption that permeated throughout the Department of Public Works (DPW), the Police Department, and the Industrial Development Agency (IDA). Together with the money they were outright stealing from the Water Department, our City’s taxpayers were on the hook for as much as $25 million dollars. That’s money the previous administration is not going to have to pay, but, as taxpayers, we are.

My first steps were to cleaned house. I started by terminating those employees who were treating IDA funds like personal piggybanks and who were costing the City unwarranted and unnecessary expenses. I got rid of the Water Commissioner who was writing blank checks to the former Mayor’s criminal defense lawyers and hundreds of thousands of dollars in sweetheart deals to his cronies for work having nothing to do with the Water Department. I also stopped the police inappropriate overtime scam that was costing taxpayers in the millions.

I didn’t do it alone, I needed the help of people who knew what to look, who could be trusted and had no connection to the city or the past administration. Therefore, new people were brought in to look at the books and attorneys to take over the many court cases. These same lawyers ultimately saved our City over half a MILLION dollars in fines from the DEC related to Memorial Field.

We settle several cases that would have cost the City millions down the line. There were also several cases the City Council refused to approve; many of which are still pending. Working closely with the Comptroller, responsible decisions were made to pay priority bills to keep the City running. My next steps were to go after the people who stole money from the Water Department, returning hundreds of thousands of dollars in repayments to the taxpayers of this City. That decision was abandoned once I left office.

Some of my opponents’ are saying I did nothing while in office but spend money on lawsuits. Well, let’s check the record. I cleaned up Memorial Field and close the deal with the county; renovated municipal parking lots; returned City Hall’s parking lot to the People; purchased four brand new fire trucks at no cost to the taxpayer for the first time in over 20 years; changed the insane alternate side parking rules; implemented disaster planning training for City workers; remove several corrupt police officers, dropped the crime rate 33%, generated business investment in Mount Vernon (including a Starbucks); set up a master plan for cleaning up the sewers with an actual engineer; closed the books in the Water Department and put in procedures to avoid what happened in the past. Successfully negotiated settlements to end expensive litigation; delivered a finished budget in October “on-time” and left “$6 millions dollars” in grant money for the incoming administration.

Unfortunately, the same problems with the Comptroller are back. The IDA is back to considering destructive PILOTs, which will cost the taxpayers additional MILLIONS in costs for services and school district expenses.

In the four months a lot was accomplish. I considered coming back because there is a lot more I wish to offer our city. I ask my opposition, rather than create false narratives, please tell me:

Do you have a plan to save Mount Vernon Hospital? I do.

Do you have a plan for closing the books on the City’s finance? I do.

Do you have a budget that isn’t science fiction? I do.

Do you have people who can competently advise the city on the legal problems this City faces? I do.

Do you have a record of financial success outside of cashing paychecks from this City? I do.

That’s why I’m running again. That’s why the People of this City have asked me to run again. That’s why the Democratic Party has nominated me to run again.

Competence is necessary. Incompetence is lethal. Those who scream the loudest are usually the ones contributing the least.

If you have thoughts or comments about this issue or any other, reach out to me at andre@andrewallace.com.

If Mount Vernon is going to “move forward,” it’s got to get away from the problems of the past and stop repeating the same mistakes over and over again! This year’s budget is another mistake and I have to be honest with you. It’s going to cause future problems in so many ways.

With Mount Vernon facing a fiscal CRISIS, we should start by analyzing what is NOT changing. The Mayor’s office salaries aren’t changing. The only thing the Mayor cut out of her budget is travel expense and promotional spending and that’s because COVID-19 is limiting travel for everyone. Forget cuts, some departments are getting raises! The Office of the City Clerk, Human Resources, the Department of Election, the Department of Management Services, the City Jail, the Animal Shelter, the Youth Bureau and the Planning Department among others. On the other hand, departments that should never suffer cuts like the Police Department, the Fire Department, the Buildings Department, the Department of Public Works, and the Programs for the Aging were on the table for major cuts.

This budget shows you all you need to know about an Administration’s priorities and it’s clear that safety and core city services are NOT priorities. Keeping loyal bureaucrats and friends employed ARE the priorities. With crime going up and buildings falling down, it is obvious that these priorities need to be modified and re-imagined. Our seniors are going to have to fend for themselves because the Planning Department needs more money – a department that hasn’t done anything meaningful in a decade (including when the current Mayor was in charge of it).

On the revenue side of things, the current version of the budget is just as bad. With over 46.665% of businesses in the City closed and not reopening because of COVID, the budget still counts on the same (even slightly higher) amount of sales tax revenue, and that’s a problem. Despite the fact that no one can transfer a title to real-estate property in the City, it projects an increase in transfer tax revenue, and that’s a problem. Then, there are huge increases on the sales and rental of City-owned properties when it takes up to two years to clear a title before that city owned property could be sold. Another problem.

As always, Law Department left off all of the settlements they enter into for legal cases against the City. There’s MILLIONS in judgments this year alone. The City hasn’t paid off the real estate tax settlements for the last three years, let alone this year’s settlements. They also ignore the fact that the Law Department spends WAY MORE every year on outside lawyers than they budget to spend – sometimes over a million more. Why do we have a Law Department if outside lawyers are going to do all of the work?

It’s almost the middle of February and there’s still no budget in final form. By the time this budget is passed by the Board of Estimates, sent to the City Council, becomes subject to a public hearing, published in the newspaper, changed and passed by the City Council, and sent to the Comptroller to process the bills, which takes about two weeks, it will be APRIL. We should probably expect our City tax bill (if we’re lucky) about the same time we’re doing our Federal and State taxes.

There’s a better way to manage this process. When I left the Mayor’s office at the end of 2019, I sat with the Mayor several times to help with a smooth transition. I left the Mayor a blueprint for how to get the budget finalized, even leaving a proposed budget for 2020; but the Mayor chose to do her own budget, which she had the right do. However, the administration had a whole year to work on this budget and it should not be late. As Mayor, I was able to get the numbers I needed from the Comptroller by sitting down together and setting egos and politics aside. As a CEO, the victory doesn’t lie with who’s right or wrong, it’s about what works or doesn’t work to get the job done.

As many of you have heard, I was recently endorsed by the Democratic Party to run again for City Council. I am truly grateful to the Democratic Party leaders and the Democratic Party Chairperson for their recognition and endorsement. As a lifelong Democrat, I am committed to helping this City rise economically. What I’m not going to do is engage in science fiction and pretend that our real priorities can be ignored.

No one is coming to rescue us. Not the State or the Federal government, especially, without a plan in place. We need to do it ourselves. It’s OUR City. It’s time to take control and stop pretending that hope and good intentions are substitutes for hard work and competence.

If you have thoughts or comments about this issue or any other, reach out to me at andre@andrewallace.com