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Old 01-07-2014, 11:14 AM
 
1,067 posts, read 1,445,877 times
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I met Otis Rolley when he was a planner with no public aspirations of running for mayor. I supported his campaign and voted for Otis. He may have sounded like a Republican to some, really more Libertarian to my ears. Otis wants to make a positive impact and address glaring, but surmountable issues that prior mayors swept under the rug. Cut property taxes and audit government to spur reinvestment - anything short of that is the usual shell game of city gov cozying up to developers who are only interested in ROI, not civic wealth and health. I thought that Otis' prior experience elsewhere was a plus - the Baltimore bubble is too insular and too small.

Honestly, after MOM and SRB, Sheila Dixon may be a great 2nd chance mayor - she loves the city and with her dirty past, can't go any further than mayor. This town needs someone to love it, warts and all, yet guide it to the light, no matter where they are from. The days of nepotism, machines, dynastys needs to end.
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Old 01-07-2014, 11:18 AM
 
1,114 posts, read 1,477,742 times
Reputation: 735
Quote:
Originally Posted by Infinite_heights77 View Post
"1) he was running against a scion of an established Baltimore political family who already had an unbeatable, well-funded machine in place (her father and his friends helped her immensely), and 2) his views were not the policies of a typical democratic politician."

*The Rawlings Family is well established and steeped inside city government and politics. And the way electoral politics are run in Baltimore, it's all about popularity and who's who.
Exactly. Name recognition, low voter turnout and bashing the 'out of towner' was the perfect storm for the current mayor. She didn't have to do much more. I think Dixon could have been more effective and successful if it was not for her little 'indictment problem', lol.
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Old 01-07-2014, 11:23 AM
 
219 posts, read 403,590 times
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I see two things that will make the next election more exciting, and potentially more transformative, than the last:

1. The city's changing demographics that I pointed out in one of my last posts.

2. The realignment of the city's mayoral election cycle with the presidential election (Baltimore election: Next city election to be 2016 - Baltimore Sun). Before this change city elections were held in off years and so the ballots weren't cast at the same time as either the gubernatorial or presidential elections. Now when residents go to vote for president they'll also have to vote for mayor as well. This should dramatically improve voter turnout for city elections.
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Old 01-07-2014, 11:35 AM
 
1,114 posts, read 1,477,742 times
Reputation: 735
Quote:
Originally Posted by baltplanner View Post
As demographics continue to shift within the city, new cohorts will begin to have significant political pull. In Baltimore the fastest growing segments of the population are millennials that grew up outside of the city and Asian and Hispanic immigrants. Given the relatively low voter turn out during the last election (26%), a mobilized group of transplants that really wants to see fundamental changes could significantly improve the chances of a transformative outsider like Otis Rolley. We need to get mobilized before the next election to have our voices heard! Its time to take down the the "old boys club" that seems to be ineffectually running Baltimore City politics. (What’s holding Baltimore back? Political leadership, survey respondents say | Baltimore Brew)
This is the key. People not from here who are living and investing here will be what saves Baltimore. These new residents will elect people who want to progress and move forward and fill these gaps and holes. Cause it's not working this way.
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Old 01-07-2014, 11:38 AM
 
1,114 posts, read 1,477,742 times
Reputation: 735
Quote:
Originally Posted by dogpark View Post
I met Otis Rolley when he was a planner with no public aspirations of running for mayor. I supported his campaign and voted for Otis. He may have sounded like a Republican to some, really more Libertarian to my ears. Otis wants to make a positive impact and address glaring, but surmountable issues that prior mayors swept under the rug. Cut property taxes and audit government to spur reinvestment - anything short of that is the usual shell game of city gov cozying up to developers who are only interested in ROI, not civic wealth and health. I thought that Otis' prior experience elsewhere was a plus - the Baltimore bubble is too insular and too small.

Honestly, after MOM and SRB, Sheila Dixon may be a great 2nd chance mayor - she loves the city and with her dirty past, can't go any further than mayor. This town needs someone to love it, warts and all, yet guide it to the light, no matter where they are from. The days of nepotism, machines, dynastys needs to end.
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Old 01-07-2014, 11:45 AM
 
1,114 posts, read 1,477,742 times
Reputation: 735
Anthony Williams did this for DC as an outsider and balanced the budge as the CFO during Barry's last term before being the mayor. The city was in financial hell and under control by the Financial Review Board. Once he balanced the budget the FRB seceded and he had a lot of political power and he cleaned house of the 'waste' in the DC government. It took that bold move to turn the city to a 300 million deficit to a 185 or million dollar surplus. Bold thinking and movement works.
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Old 01-07-2014, 11:58 AM
 
1,067 posts, read 1,445,877 times
Reputation: 677
Quote:
Originally Posted by choccity View Post
Anthony Williams did this for DC as an outsider and balanced the budge as the CFO during Barry's last term before being the mayor. The city was in financial hell and under control by the Financial Review Board. Once he balanced the budget the FRB seceded and he had a lot of political power and he cleaned house of the 'waste' in the DC government. It took that bold move to turn the city to a 300 million deficit to a 185 or million dollar surplus. Bold thinking and movement works.
Yes, absolutely - both Baltimore and the state of MD need new, bold thinking. I'm as altruistic as the next person and would love to help people, but where is the money going to come from? Spur reinvestment by lowering barriers to it and pdemonstrating fiscal intelligence and the city and state will surge. High taxes, fees etc chase folks away, especially when the nearest neighbors tax and fee significantly less (counties vs city, VA vs MD). The current trend is a guaranteed ticket downward.
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Old 01-07-2014, 01:10 PM
 
1,114 posts, read 1,477,742 times
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Balance the budget, sustain a balanced budget, start reducing property taxes and eliminating some of the other ridiculous taxes. This will show income and might spur more outside interest to invest and spend money. No one wants to make long term investments in a city that can't keep it's house clean. The usual suspects of crime, poverty, drugs and public education will improve once this happens. Someone in government has to have this vision or the people have to force this change. I know this sounds simplistic but what else is there to do?
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Old 01-07-2014, 04:04 PM
 
8,144 posts, read 13,204,792 times
Reputation: 2529
Quote:
Originally Posted by baltplanner View Post
I see two things that will make the next election more exciting, and potentially more transformative, than the last:

1. The city's changing demographics that I pointed out in one of my last posts.

2. The realignment of the city's mayoral election cycle with the presidential election (Baltimore election: Next city election to be 2016 - Baltimore Sun). Before this change city elections were held in off years and so the ballots weren't cast at the same time as either the gubernatorial or presidential elections. Now when residents go to vote for president they'll also have to vote for mayor as well. This should dramatically improve voter turnout for city elections.

I see a combination of things happening.. The two things you just mentioned.. and then someone, i.e. Sheila Dixon becoming Mayor for reasons that dogpark and I have referenced...A politico with nowhere else to go that has a general love for the City.. Now here is the key.. Dixon needs to recognize her shortcoming and hire/appoint good "bureaucrats" to lead the major city agencies. They can be stolen( pardon the expression) from Cities that have done the things we need done and/or have proven track records in turning things around and removing dead wood. IF she does that and uses her 'bmo style' of personable grass roots down to earth woman of the people persona..backed up by a rock solid cabinet of people assigned to her top Agencies/Advisors.. she will be one of Baltimore's greatest Mayors and could lead the City on a come back. Balancing neighborhood interest/improvement and downtown business interest improvement doesnt have to be mutually exclusive. Often times the polticos make it so by catering too much to developers and ignoring the neighborhoods or visa versa. To add insult to injury fill their key posts with dead wood, political hacks and friends who do nothing but rape the position and thus the City and stockpile their ill gotten gains until their benefactor Mayor leaves.. then they leave too..

Maybe.. just Maybe Dixon sees this as an opportunity to get "newcommers" in her camp while enfranchising existing residents.. I think she was moving in that direction before her slip up.. She had increased recycling, reduced trash pick up and redirected crews to clean alleys and streets, she was paving streets, and started to look at making some reforms via the new IG along with booting the Police Commish Hamm and installing Bealfield... and focusing on real quality of life and neighborhood issues. Development like the Uplands and Orchard Ridge.. were in their infancy as well.. So hopefully she will come back.. assuming she does.. and push for the reforms that SRB and MOM didnt.. I see her as the best candidate right now..

Overtime as the City improves.. I see it openning up more to an "outsider" candidate but by that time Dixon will be ready retire to move on and would have hopefully done some good work to set the stage for a more open political system/process....
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Old 01-07-2014, 05:44 PM
 
1,114 posts, read 1,477,742 times
Reputation: 735
I think Dixon has a job to finish. But, can she win, is she electable, does she want the job? I met Dixon, like her, she's personable and I think she has the right vision. I think even the current mayors hard line supporters are a little disappointed in her leadership. Baltimore seems to be a platform, step(on) stone for higher profile jobs and the like by it's past electorates.
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