Drugs and Taxes

As you probably know by now, the Police Department dropped warrants on 30 street-level drug dealers this week. Also, Councilor Dean Tran is advocating for a tax cut for homeowners and businesses.

First, the Tran proposal. Tran has been an advocate of returning tax money to property tax payers since the got into office. He has always been very upfront and very honest in that he sees that as a top priority, and that he'll do whatever he can to make that happen.

However, Tran said this week money shouldn't be placed in free cash or stabilization, and instead returned to taxpayers. It's not a crazy idea, but is this the time?

The municipal finance geeks say a community's stabilization fund should equal 10 percent of the annual budget. I'm no economist (of course), but that seems very high, and pretty much unattainable for most communities. Hell, Leominster isn't even at that level. Fitchburg, in the meantime, is just over 1 percent.

That stabilization figure plays into bond ratings and all that stuff, and is supposed to be around for when times get bad. Sure, times are bad now, but you get the drift.

Here's the rub: Is the stabilization fund a luxury, or a necessity, like other parts of the budget? I'd say a stabilization fund of the above-mentioned 10 percent is a luxury. I think a realistic stabilization fund of several million dollars is a necessity (imagine if the city had a good stabilization fund before now. Could the library have stayed open? Could contracts and raises be settled?).

Complicating the thinking here is the relatively small discount of $5. It's the point that counts perhaps (and if you make that argument Tran here, shouldn't it apply to Wong's pay cut proposal?), but at this point, I'm willing to pay $5 for the prospect of some fiscal stability.

As for the drug sweep, it's good news that 30 drug dealers were targeted. The better news is that Police Chief Robert DeMoura is pushing other city departments to smother the buildings they live in with any building infraction they can find.

Pride reporter Karen Mann hit Wednesday's press conference, and when she was filling me in, I muttered "He didn't just steal from the Lowell playbook, he just took a copy with him." Karen said DeMoura has admitted as much.

When I worked in Lowell, these efforts were big deals. The city manager, the chief (maybe even DeMoura, for all I remember), the Building Department, the Board of Health, the Fire Department, and some others all stomped down the street, taking notes, writing tickets when possible, and later sending out letters. I tagged along as they pointed out what was wrong and what they were going to do about it. I took some time -- a year or more -- but I'd drive those side streets later and it was obvious things improved dramatically.

DeMoura noted that change won't come overnight, that it takes time for the landlords to get the message and get their act together. But hopefully city departments make it a priority and help the PD out on this one. It would be huge for some neighborhoods if this was done the right way and got the potential impact that is there.

About the Police Chief

I glanced at the headline this morning, and thought, "Jeez, suspect #1 rolled over pretty fast." Yesterday's headline had me muttering, "Chief DeMoura gets his man."

Thinking about it a little bit, I'm kind of wondering where folks stand on new police chief Robert DeMoura. Sure, it's only been three or four months, and I would say any grade other than "incomplete" would be folly, but I'm sensing there's an overall feeling that people are warming up to him.

I'm not going to dig back into comments from early this year, but overwhelmingly the reaction around here was very negative to DeMoura's hiring. Since then, it's been pretty quiet. If anything, there's been some spotty "Gee, the chief is doing a pretty good job" comments here and there.

I'll say this: I liked him before he got the job, and I like him now. He has been, from I've seen, everywhere. Just about every event I've been to, I've seen him. And inevitably, he ends up talking a person or a couple. I don't eavesdrop, but he seems to listen and pay attention to what people are saying.

So, what's the current mood of the populace on DeMoura? It's been less than six months, so I don't think it's time for ultimate decisions, but in terms of a snapshot, better than expected? Worse? About what you thought (and is that good or bad)?

'We Had Moved On'

So says police union chief Ron L'Ecuyer in today's Telegram on the heels of yesterday's hub-bub regarding the police no-show at Sunday's swearing-in for Chief Robert DeMoura.

It wasn't a good day for the police union yesterday (and it continues on the Sentinel's editorial page today). They were generally roasted here, and at the S&E forum under their story yesterday. I'd guess comments were running about 75-25 against the no-show, and it wasn't always pretty.

L'Ecuyer says it wasn't intentional. I'll leave that to the eye of the beholder. But I will say that yesterday, as I had a few times in the last few months, I asked for someone, anyone, involved in the union to say something about moving on. Finally, yesterday, after about three months of chaos, it finally happened. That is good news.

L'Ecuyer and DeMoura said all the right things yesterday, and apparently met for about 45 minutes. Hopefully this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. That said, both L'Ecuyer and DeMoura are talking raises, which seems like maybe a high-stakes game when the mayor is talking a $1 million cut in that department. If DeMoura can make it happen, you'd have to think he'd win that department over pretty fast.

When Does It End?

I know, I know, I owe a post on the new chief business. I'll get to it eventually. It's a little more cumbersome than I first thought.

Anyway, while we're here, a few thoughts (OK, a lot of lengthy thoughts) on yesterday's disappointing disappearing act by the PD at Police Chief Robert DeMoura's swearing-in.

When does this end? When my 4-year-old (5 tomorrow, but you get the point) pouts "It's not fair," we generally laugh or ignore her. But this isn't funny, and it can't be ignored any more. And yes, I'm purposefully comparing the police union to a bunch of 4- and 5-year-olds.

If you didn't hear -- the rumor mill was blazing about this late last week, so it wasn't a big shocker -- police officers took a pass on yesterday's swearing-in. Just the latest in the union's pity party over DeMoura being chosen. At some point, one of two things are going to happen. The union is going to get over it and move on. Or it won't, and the people they work for are going to suffer for it, if they aren't already.

The union has a number of gripes with the city, some valid, some not. In most cases, the gripes focus on how horrible Lisa Wong is, which is mostly not valid. If you need a refresher, skim through the many, many comments on the Police Department from Receivership and others. That should get you up to date. Let's review:

The department needs new cruisers. This is a valid need. The cruiser money has been cut in the last two budgets, and you'd have to think it's not coming this time around. Sadly, the city is in financial straights. It has nothing to do with being anti-police or anti-police union. Can Wong and DeMoura find money for cars in this upcoming budget (with the $5 million hole in it)? I think the union and the officers understand the situation. This is becoming more and more of a priority, but I'm not sure it's going to be taken care of this year, sadly.

The officers desevere a raise. Heck, who doesn't? And yes, the union raise situation is a very messy one. And yes, it's a valid demand in a vacuum, but not in the current economic environment. But you know what, it's not really Wong or DeMoura's fault. And by "not really," I should say, "not their fault at all." It's one of the many messes they inherit. But the union also has to realize that they got hooked up a little bit last year when the dispatchers were let go. Also, the current financial situation creates this potential quandry: Raises, but layoffs. Or, more likely, raises, but even more layoffs. My perception has always been that unions in general prefer raises, even in the face of layoffs. I don't know if that's the case here. But considering the current financial situation, the cries for a raise probably won't go too far with the public. Especially a public that seems to be fighting its own economic hardships. But maybe that's just me. The police union got hosed on raises. But you can't remake the past. You can only deal with the present, and it's not a present that seems very bright-looking on this point. The union is right to complain on this one, but there may not be very much it can do on it, either.

DeMoura is the chief. Completely not valid. Take off "Fitchburg" in Paul Bozicas' resume and "Lowell" in DeMoura's, and replace them with "Smallville" and "Tinytown." Most people would agree that DeMoura was the better candidate. I hate to crank on Bozicas even a little bit, because he's a good guy and would be a good chief, but I'm still waiting for someone from to argue that Bozicas was the better candidate, not just that he's the local guy.

I'm also still waiting for someone to say "We're moving on." Hell, I'd take, "We're disappointed, but we're moving on." At this point, "We're bitterly disappointed and think Wong and DeMoura are Mrs. And Mr. Evil, but we're moving on," would be OK. Yesterday most certainly wasn't that day, apparently. Instead of taking the high road, the union continues to drag this out. I'd love to be a fly on the wall in the PD today, although it will probably be about as uncomfortable as Michael Scott's condo (if you saw last week's "The Office," you know exactly what I'm talking about). Despite the no-show, DeMoura is still showing up for work today.

Here's, now, the question. Up to yesterday, it was OK to write the union's stance off as sour grapes, and maybe the need for a little time to get over and move on. But, clearly, they are not moving on, and probably don't plan on moving on anytime soon.

Which is OK, I guess, but the professional and responsible move would have been to show up. The union, like Wong and DeMoura, work for the taxpayers of the city. We elected Wong, who in doing what she thought was right for the city, picked DeMoura. The union has acted throughout as if the chief works for it, not the city. Now, the union has made its professionalism and responsibility while on the job open to question. After this latest move, how can you automatically assume officers are going to work today with an open mind and a focus on working for citizens, when they clearly have self-created a distraction that they aren't getting over? This is a situation it created over the last few months.

DeMoura has a mandate to make the city safer, but does he have the tools and manpower dedicated to that mandate, or a union that only wants to make him miserable and set him up for failure? It's more than a political question, it's one that gets to the very heart of the safety of the 40,000 people that live in this city. It's sad and unfortunate that the union has forced it to be asked.

A Community Note

I was going to sit down and write for a post a letter to Robert DeMoura, talking about the city and what he should know as he settles into the job of police chief. As you may have heard, he doesn't live here, so he might not know the city too well.

Instead of just spouting off aimlessly like always, I figure I'll see if I can spout off with some local knowledge behind me. So, hit the comment button below, and add your two cents. It can be something good about the city, it can be something not so good. It can be something PD-specific, it can be something general. Hell, it can be where to get a good ice cream cone on hot days.

I'll tap out this little slice of local knowledge probably Friday. So you've got some time to mull things over and include your say. I don't guarantee your submission will make the final cut, and I don't guarantee that I won't get zero usable feedback and will just end up spouting off aimlessly like always. But if you want to play in our little game here, click the comment button and go to town. Let's see how this goes. And to make sure the final product is somewhat interesting, I won't be putting these comments up for viewing until after the post shows up on Friday. Gotta keep you interested to the end, right?

So, there you go. Join me, won't you?

DeMoura Speaks

A question-and-answer with prospective police chief Robert DeMoura is available at the Fitchburg Pride website. It includes his thoughts on plans for the department (nothing too new if you've been following this), and his thoughts on coming into the department as an outsider ("Truly, I am no outsider, I am a police officer.")