Fighting crime

Mayor Louras just announced that the city will discuss the development of a "comprehensive and holistic" crime reduction strategy at tonight's public forum at the Howe Center. The plan:

...a task force made up of municipal officials will identify short, mid, and long-term objectives and goals designed to combat drug-related crimes and ultimately result in drastically improving the quality of life in our City neighborhoods.

Look for the discussion at the meeting, which is scheduled for 7 p.m., in tomorrow's Rutland Herald.

Click the link for the full text of the announcement:

Download Public safety strategic plan1

Overheard on Wales Street

"Was there a big music party?"

"No -- haven't you seen them all over the place. That's what that big event was over the weekend."

"Right, but what's it for?"

-two bypassers contemplating the Rutland Herald's heart (which has a sheet-music motif) from The heARTs of Rutland.

Grim thought for the week

I read this list of ways to tell if your city is dying and was uncomfortable with how many would appear to apply to Rutland.

Our population declined from 17,292 in the 2000 census to 16,495 in the 2010. Now, that's not nearly as bad as the loss the article describes in Detroit, but what kind of a standard is "not as bad as Detroit?"

Median age rose over the same period from 39.3 years to 42.9 years.

On the upside, I can't think of any "signature" buildings that are vacant.

An open letter to all Vermont politicians

Dear everyone holding elected office in Vermont, now and in the future,

When you decide to have some sort of event that will involve speeches or remarks or whatever you want to call them, and when you actually want the people at said event, be they media or members of the general public, to be able to hear the speeches or remarks or whatever you want to call them, then, for the love of Mike, don't hold the event outdoors right next to a busy road!

First it was Gov. Shumlin signing the "rivers bill" next to Route 7. The only time the roar of passing trucks died down was during the physical signing part of the ceremony, when nobody was talking. Today it was Rep. Welch holding a press conference on a veterans' initiative outside Awesome Graphics.

So, please, can we not do this in the future?

Thanks,

Gordon

P.S. - Despite the din of passing cars, a story on the latter event, which showcased a business development program Welch intends to take national, will appear in tomorrow's Rutland Herald.

 

Choices, choices

Tomorrow's paper will carry a fairly lengthy, by our current standards, story on tonight's committee meeting regarding the future of the city water system.

The discussion at the meeting was sprawling, and while tomorrow's story will offer a reasonable summation of the key points, there were several areas of discussion that did not make the cut.

So, look to tomorrow's paper for the pros and cons of the two proposals before the city. Look to next week's column for information on how the decision-making process will proceed, the eagerness of the EPA to see a new system in place in Rutland and the sometimes heated diversion into just where the city should get its water from.

Bracing for a long meeting

Board President David Allaire said he anticipates tonight's meeting going two to three hours, so I may not be there to the end as I am pledged (PLEDGED! I say!) to get the result of any vote on the solar project into tomorrow's paper.

It seemed clear that Alderman Charles Romeo's concerns were spoken to at last week's committee meeting, and equally clear that Alderman Gary Donahue's were not. We'll see where everyone else falls.

Where the Irene Fund Went

Here is the final report of the committee overseeing Rutland's Tropical Storm Irene Relief Fund:

Download City of Rutland Tropical Storm Irene Relief Committee Final Report1

Look for more on how the committee made it's decision in the Monday print edition of Writing on the Hall.

Reporting on the report

Are you wondering where the city report is? I am, my editor is and Alderman Sean Sargeant is. Sargeant put the question to Mayor Louras Monday night.

"I wish I could give you an exact time frame," Louras replied. "Alls I can say is it's in final draft. ... I've been saying weeks for months now."

Louras has previously said the annual report has fallen victim to the amount of FEMA paperwork in front of him and that all the information that goes in the report is available from one place or another in City Hall.

Getting Googled

Whoever runs the unofficial @RutlandCity Twitter account appears to have spotted the Google Street View car driving around Rutland.

Certain portions of Rutland were already available on Google Street View, but still not on my street, as of just now. I'll have to check back tomorrow.

Since the newsroom was stumped, can anybody say where in the city this is?

Art and Government

This piece at samefacts.com, itself a commentary on a New York Times discussion, is the most thoughtful and mature writing on the relationship of government and the arts I have ever read. Portions of it bring to mind local discussions of the arts as economic drivers:

Furthermore, trying to build a local economy on an arts program confronts the all-or-any problem. Any rustbelt factory can convert to making windmills, but most, can’t. Artists flock, for the most part to Richard Florida’s creative-class-friendly places, but almost always in concentrations of which relatively few can supply all of national demand .  Northhampton, Mass, and Beacon, NY, and Marfa, Texas can build an economy or rescue a failing one with art.   But most struggling towns and cities cannot; indeed, only a few can (though that doesn’t mean the others have to go without art). Here I differ with Kelly’s post; encouraging a lively local arts life can’t depend on attracting artists to live and work everywhere; for most places it has to have to do with engagement with art, and encouraging a lot of local amateur participation.

I recommend reading the whole post, which also touches on teaching and subsidizing art.