Mayor Joe Ganim Wednesday afternoon delivered the annual state of the city address to the Bridgeport Regional Business Council. Grab a cup of joe, or beverage of your choice, and check out the video. CT Post coverage here.
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Ganim’s State Of City Address Ponders State Of State
As people all of over America were at events commemorating the 50th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim and 45 at one thing in common on this day, they made NO public comment about this being the 50th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. And Ganim thinks black voters are going to support him when he’s acting just like 45, the hell with Joe Ganim and 45.
Not true, Ron. His “State of the City” event before the Bridgeport Chamber of Commerce included a special recognition before the entire audience assembled of Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech.
Mickey Herbert, thanks but who heard it, just those in that room where he was really giving a campaign speech for governor in his State of the City address. For a candidate who got elected by black voters in Bridgeport and the fact that he will need a large turnout of black voters statewide especially from the big cities in the state Joe Ganim did a terrible job of showing respect to Martin Luther King Jr.
Classic Ganim maneuver: “It’s happening on my watch so I’ll take credit for it!”
Ever since new tax laws eliminated the real estate tax credit, the Poli Majestic Theater rehab has been in limbo.
A Bridgeport tax abatement would be a fine substitute but that would change the city’s revenue stream for a long time.
What Bridgeport needs is a $50 million bond award that enables Bridgeport to become part of the financing deal and provide the mezzanine financing that carries all the risk but makes for an attractive loan from all the major, local banks. Nice!
That’s how uptown development reaches liftoff velocity and where the Governor’s race gets in the way.
Mayor Ganim says he is pushing for Bridgeport priorities in these times, but continues his pattern for the third year in not being specific about those priorities with specific attention to metrics for which he can be accountable each year!! (The major metric that is not mentioned is the $1 Billion shaved from the Taxable Grand List.)
What are priorities, not the pie in the sky projects that may or may not see the light of day, much less the Taxable Grand List, that are important to the citizens of Connecticut’s largest City??
One priority affecting the youth are the schools where collaboration of the Ganim administration has not been observed with the hardworking and functioning education administration and BOE. What would that priority look like if the Mayor were serious?
Serious housing problems are not being attended to. How would that become a priority? Perhaps using the City hotline that is monitored by City Hall would build awareness of current problems with citizens afraid to speak up. And finally there is the corruption of boards and commissions to be filled with talented, independent minded, residents. Failure to keep that up to date leads to vacancies, or folks serving more than five years beyond term expiry. What type of honest accountability does that show?
Joe’s opening video says: “We said we’d do it. Now it’s getting done.” Funny that Ganim quotes his activist statement and delivers the message in the passive tense?? But accurate because Joe’s attention has been on the job becoming available in Hartford, rather than the hard work needed locally. Priorities, Joe? Annual accountability?? With credible numbers? Can you do the lifting? Time will tell.
Ganim is “phoning it in,” running his office from the road while hittting up various fat cats and their minions for campaign donations.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9a2B9AxXSmY
If my family purchased most of the adjacent property on the east side of the Congress Street bridge, and I had the power to fix that bridge with taxpayers money, Would that be a conflict of interest Mayor Ganim???
A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organizationis involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, in situations where serving one the interests could involve working against one of the other interests. Typically, this relates to situations when the personal interest of an individual or organization might adversely affect a duty owed to make decisions for the benefit of a third-party.
Pondering the state of the state? This was all sizzle, no steak.
Lamont, D’Agostino easily win straw polls at AFL-CIO convention
By Dan Haar Updated 6:48 pm, Friday, April 6, 2018
HARTFORD — It was just a straw poll of 216 AFL-CIO delegates, not a binding vote, not a union endorsement. But Democrat Ned Lamont of Greenwich trounced the rest of the field so strongly Friday that it’s hard not to read much into it.
Jonathan Harris, former state senator, West Hartford mayor and commissioner of consumer protection, 15 percent; Sean Connolly of East Hartford, former state veterans affairs commissioner, 11 percent; Former state Rep. and Secrerary of the State Susan Bysiewicz of Middletown, 11 percent; Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim, 6.6 percent.
The Bridgeport mayor talked about his hundreds of millions of dollars in pro-labor constructioin and redevelopment contracts, for example, but he was apparently hurt by perceptions he can’t win because of his felony conviction and prison term.
Ganim didn;t shy away from his criminal history. “I made some terrible mistakes, I broke the law. I learned from that,” he said in a slightly cracking voice. “I think I understand even more, the sanctity of not only the public trust, but the need for accountability and transparency in every level of government