Property Tax Rate Could Increase Nearly 39% in Two Years

There is a ton of stuff for Guilford County residents to speak out against during Thursday night’s County Commissioners meeting.

The N&R has compiled a quick and easy guide to what will be discussed,

Eastern Guilford High School
How much: $45 million
Would buy: A new high school, which is already under construction, to replace the one that burned in 2006.
Why: Most seem to agree that the high school needs to be built, and this bond might have the most public support.
Why not: Those opposed likely are against any bond or tax-rate increases. For any bond passed, there likely would be an increase on the property tax rate. Taxes for the owner of a $200,000 home went up about $60 in the 2007-08 budget . The owner of that same house would see that tax bill increase $58 next year and then another $97 in 2009-10 if all of the bonds passed (38.7% - I added the percentage).
Notable: Commissioners promised to find the money to rebuild the school. They also asked the school board to make the money request into a bond proposal that could go to voters. Then, when it was part of a total package including $412 million for other school projects, the commissioners pulled it out for a separate referendum.

Read more here.

Tuesday’s Council Meeting: Districts Revamped, Homeless Speaker from the Floor

Tuesday’s City Council meeting allowed council members to vote on the fate of how the council districts will map out.  Wells and Bellamy-Small were pushing for a plan referred to as “Plan B” while Matheny pushed for a plan he helped create called “Plan Q.”  After several minutes of discussion council first voted on B, which failed 4 to 5.  Council then voted on Q, which passed 7 -2.  I do know that Q will give Matheny a larger part of downtown as his district would extend up to Friendly Ave.

There were two very interesting individuals that chose to speak during the “Speakers from the Floor” portion of the meeting.  The first was a gentlemen that nearly had all the council members laughing out loud as he rambled about explosions in his yard and various other items.  You can watch his speech here (fastfoward to 1:43:50).

One of the last speakers was a gentlemen named Anthony Tanner… and he likely got everyones undivided attention.  Mayor Johnson called his name and he quietly walked to the podium.  Upon his arrival he calmly said, “My name is Anthony Tanner and I am homeless.”  Take a moment and hear what he had to say by clicking here and fast forwarding to 2:14:25.

Bellamy-Small, Goldie Wells & Zack Matheny Dine Together

Dianne Bellamy-Small, Goldie Wells and Zack Matheny dined with the homeless recently and listened to a discussion about “the need for a day center, the lack of jobs for people with criminal records, and issues with service providers that receive government funding.”  Read more over at Chosen Fast.

Resident Says “Memo Supports Wray” but Misses the Boat

From today’s Letters to the Editor section of the News & Record,

“The recently published black book memo throws new light on the entire David Wray issue in terms of when and why.

This book appears to have been justified and not racist. Are we to believe that the investigators couldn’t find the memo? Was this a deliberate witch hunt and execution? Perhaps.

Mitch Johnson should soon issue a public apology to Wray.

Frank Freeman
Greensboro”

I should remind Frank and everyone else that according to Mitchell Johnson the issue was that Wray lied about the existence of the black book.  “His decision to resign was an assumption on his part was based on what he thought I was going to do,” said Johnson.  At this point it does appear that he did lie to me.”

Resident Calls Civil Rights Museum “Black Eye for City”

From today’s Letters to the Editor section from the News & Record,

“Ten years ago as a new Greensboro resident, I was excited to learn that the Woolworth building was being restored as a museum. Over the past 10 years, I’ve watched the revitalization of the downtown area including a new ballpark, the Center City Park, the Children’s Museum and a new downtown library. And yet, the Woolworth building still sits, unfinished. It’s not only sad, it’s a real black eye for this city.

I agree with a recent writer who suggested that we make this a bicentennial project and finally get it done.

As we celebrate Greensboro’s proud heritage, we can no longer ignore this very important part of our history.

Nancy Probst
Greensboro”

Yvonne Johnson Discusses Issues Facing Black Youth

Mayor Yvonne Johnson spoke at Saint James Presbyterian Church on Sunday. Her short speech allowed her to discuss issues facing today’s black youth. Some of the highlights from her visit are below.

- Johnson’s speech touched on issues including citizen involvement, scholastic achievement gaps, crime and economic opportunity.
- She said she would like to see the new superintendent implement sensitivity and racism awareness training.
- She would like to see the council work more closely with county commissioners to help reach some goals. She plans to meet with county officials to discuss a joint meeting of the two governing boards. (N&R)

You can read more about her visit to the church here.

City Manager Charged by Council to Address Issues

The council voted 7-2 (Rakestraw and Wade against) to direct the city manager to address the following issues: Issues in the fire department, Parks and Recreation Department and the communications department; reorganize the manager’s office; have clear, consistent communication with the council; work on his delegation skills. (N&R)

As Council Fights Homicides Rise

During the past several days we have watched city council members play politics via the local media outlets.  While the games were played and alliances were formed in regards to the City Manager two Greensboro residents died (Over the course of two days) and both incidents are currently being treated as homicide by the Greensboro Police Department.

Has the recent rise in negative publicity for the City Manager taken attention away from what really matters… the citizens of Greensboro?

Council Members Dine with the Homeless

From Michelle at Chosen Fast, “Greensboro Mayor Yvonne Johnson and City Council members Goldie Wells and Dianne Bellamy-Small, and members of the Community Resource Board joined us at Grace Community Church for the weekly Wednesday Community Fellowship dinner this week. There were around 200 guests at the dinner, most of them homeless, and many unsheltered.”  Read more here.

Resident Speaks Out on Mitchell Johnson & Mary Rakestraw

From the Letters to the Editor section of today’s News & Record,

“Having read the articles (Feb. 8 and 9) in regard to City Manager Mitchell Johnson, there should be only one solution. The solution is a relatively simple one and has been used previously: Simply lock City Manager Mitchell Johnson out of his office.

Additionally, the article on Feb. 9 has Robbie Perkins saying of Councilwoman Mary Rakestraw: “She is trying to fire the manager on a trumped-up charge.’ “

Ah, sounds familiar. Isn’t that the same action that was taken against former police Chief David Wray?”

Clarification Note: This interview with M. Johnson reminds everyone that David Wray resigned. Johnson said he would have likely eventually fired Wray because he lied about the black book’s existence.

Another Greensboro who supports Johnson wrote in sharing his thoughts on Mary Rakestraw,

“Mary Rakestraw has, once again, shown herself to be shallow and petty. This newspaper quotes her, in reference to our city manager as saying, “I’m not waiting any longer. I’m not listening to any more reasons or explanations or rationales. Enough is enough.”

She acts as if, somewhere in the past, she actually had an open mind. Not only was her mind made up, she even walked door to door telling people she was going to get rid of Mitch Johnson! This is the same Rakestraw who made callow comments about Sheriff BJ Barnes, trying to link him to Deputy County Manager Ed Pons’ death!

Taking all of that into consideration, Mary Rakestraw has no business throwing stones at anyone. Maybe next time, she’ll get all the facts.

God bless our city manager.”

Question: Regardless of your thoughts on David Wray or how much you love Mitchell Johnson, should the Greensboro City Manager (No matter who it is) be receiving as much negative attention (Or attention at all) that our current manager is getting?