Beware of Toledo Police (Columbus, Cleveland: 2009, houses, unemployment)

[Rocket 1]

Please be advised when living or visiting Toledo. The police now have ticket / Arrest benchmarks (quotas) to meet on a monthly basis (for performance evaluations). So you may now not get off with just a warning.

Just one more reason why people are leaving Toledo in droves. Also just wondering what the Mayor is trying to do to the city?

[Desdemona123]

Originally Posted by Rocket 1

Please be advised when living or visiting Toledo. The police now have ticket / Arrest benchmarks (quotas) to meet on a monthly basis (for performance evaluations). So you may now not get off with just a warning.

Just one more reason why people are leaving Toledo in droves. Also just wondering what the Mayor is trying to do to the city?

Finkbeiner has always been a nut....even before he was re-elected this time (I have always been amazed at that)....but I have to wonder, how do you know if Toledo police have quotas/benchmarks?

[proud to be American]

I've got the solution to this problem.....Don't speed!

[ttownrobin]

SEE more positive and negative regarding Mayor Carty Finkbeiner, of Toledo in this thread: "What's Toledo Really Like?" If you step back and see the changes that have taken place in Toledo, BOTH times that Carty was elected Mayor (note: elected TWICE), and picture it BEFORE he ever was, you can see much more positive than negative. Toledo's taxes are the biggest negative, though. And now the budget cuts, including the FREEZE on the new Police inductees training classes for the next TWO YEARS (till 2009)...At least he's doing something to help the city though, unlike our last Mayor, Ford, who was a very nice man but all I can remember HE did was manage to change the Cherry Street Bridge's name to the Martin Luther King Bridge. (Don't get me started again on all that.)
I still like Toledo, I just wish I were rich and could take advantage of all that Toledo offers in the way of entertainment..
Anyway, HAVE A NICE DAY!!

[Jashrema]

I don't think that's anything new...my ex was a cop and we were together almost 20 years ago...and they had quotas then. It wasn't written down or anything, but as an officer, you knew you should have "this many" tickets and such in a certain period of time. I think that probably holds true at any department....not that anyone would ever admit it!

[phoenixxphyre]

sure there are some cops who will bust you for five miles over, and there are others who won't ticket for anything under 12 and still make their quota--and if you're doing 12 or over (hell usually even if you're doing five over) you know you're speeding.

[lydunn]

People are leaving Toledo because there is nothing to do there

[GoRockets]

I think Toledo has a lot going on for a small city. I have lived here my entire life, earned my BA and MA from the University of Toledo, and work in the Toledo Public Schools. This past year, we have gone to the art musuem several times for different exhibits, the zoo, the glass pavilion, botanical gardens, up to detroit to the casinos, maumee bay beach, levis commons shopping many times, westfield shopping, to the valentine theatre, comedy club, ethnic festivals, golfing, Pearson Park, DC Ranch, Wildwood Park, the Mud Hens games, to Cedar Point, fishing, Ottawa Park (ice skating), and alot more I'm not thinking of. There are also alot of places for children to enjoy themselves, Chuckie Cheese, Major Magics, Discovery Zone, Cosi, and the downtown library has acitvities for children every week.
As in any city, if you want something to do you have to get off of the couch and find things to do. You can do just about anything in Toledo, and inexpensively. We go out to eat once every week. There are so many restaurants in and around Toledo that we could keep up the same rate and never eat out at the same place twice. We went to the Outback last night, but El Camino is a family owned Mexican restaurants with great margaritas and delicious food (Douglas & Sylvania, and on Woodville Rd. in Oregon). There are bars for the younger 20's crowd near the university and bars for the 30's crowd on Sylvania Ave (club soda, six pack). There are dance clubs downtown (Eclipse and Emporium) with a mostly younger crowd. The restaurants at the docks on the east side of the river are a good place to eat, drink, and have a good time (although the MLK bridge is under construction right now and it makes it a little harder to get there).
If you prefer the country club crowd there is The Toledo Club, many Yacht Club, the Shriners, Brandywine Country Club, and many others around Toledo. There are Seniors center in and around Toledo and the libraries host events all of the time (easter egg hunts, crafts, book readings, etc.). In the summer, the kids can jon the summer reading club and earn prizes for reading books. There is a boys scout camp near toledo and Camp Libbey Girl Scout Camp within driving distance of Toledo (I went there for two weeks every summer when I was a kid). The YMCAs host splash (free swimming lesson) for kids every summer, and Y memberships will get you discounted rates on all sorts of great classes and activities for the family and yourself (yoga, kickboxing, kids slumber parties, family fun nights).
For those who love to shop (like myself) there are lots of places to blow your money efficiently. I like to shop at Westfield Mall which was recently renovated and has tons of new stores, Levis Commons in Perrysburg (Anne Taylor, Bombay, Books-a-Million), and a new mall is being built in Maumee. Of course if your really looking to blow your wad, the malls in Detroit are just 45 min. up I-75, where you can shop your heart out and find anything you really didn't need.
I think my favorite thing about Toledo is the ethnic diversity and festivals. In the summer we hit-up every ethnic festival possible and get great food and imported goods for the house, art, jewelry, etc. The Hungarian Festival, German-American Festival, Latino, and Polish-American Festivals are favorites. There are also Irish-American and African-American festivals by the river in late summer/early fall. If you want to drive a little out of the city there is an AppleButter Festival with all sorts of good food and crafts and a Strawberry festival. Also, the Lucas County Fair is always a good time. The Lucas County rec center hosts art exhibitors in craft shows periodocally throughout the year. Shipshawana is an Amish town not far from Toledo that is fun for a day of shopping. Also, staying on the lake at MarbleHead there is a beach, shopping, fishing, and park not far from Toledo. Sandusky also has a new water park. Cincinnatti, Columbus, Detroit, Ann Arbor and Cleveland are all within reasonable day (45min - 2hrs) driving distance and have endless numbers of things to do and places to visit.

[lastonestanding]

Ok, I've lived in New York, LA, Virginia, North Carolina, Atlanta, Orlando, Chicago, and I've visited many other areas including Washington DC, St. Louis, and other great and not so great areas. And by the way I'm from Toledo and due to Toledo Police trying to arrest me and put me in jail, I would be somewhere else right now. Actually in a few months I will be leaving back down south just like most individuals up here in the Midwest. There are very little opportunities and for those who love Toledo so much maybe its because they never been through anything and they must be quite comfortable in their houses in Ottawa Hills or in the Old Orchard neighborhoods. I can say the only thing that stands out in Toledo is the cost of living. Toledo is one of the cheapest places that I've lived in or been to with the exception of Flint, MI. There is a reason for that. However where there are strengths, there are also weaknesses. Unemployment is high and there are very little well paying jobs here. I have a BA in Mass Communications and I've been unemployed for over a year. I'm constantly harassed by police as well as individuals I know,also I can't wear certain color clothing in my neighborhood nor can I wear my hat a certain way, due to gang violence, and on top of that I'M BORED. Not everybody wants to go to the zoo to see some animals and driving to Detroit, Cedar Point, or Navy Pier in Chicago? Have you seen the gas prices lately? I live near the historic Englewood section of Toledo (which is funny I've lived in the historic Englewood section of Chicago and both areas suffer from the same problem). Thats the Detroit Oakwood section near Smith Park. Overall just like the initial posting, (and I will add to that), Beware of Toledo Police, Beware of Carty Finkbeiner, and mainly Beware of Toledo.

[GoRockets]

Originally Posted by Rocket 1

Please be advised when living or visiting Toledo. The police now have ticket / Arrest benchmarks (quotas) to meet on a monthly basis (for performance evaluations). So you may now not get off with just a warning.

Just one more reason why people are leaving Toledo in droves. Also just wondering what the Mayor is trying to do to the city?

Yes, darn those police trying to catch speeders. Why must they do their job? And the mayor! The biggest bridge construction in the history of the state, new marina district, and the renovation of downtown! What is he thinking...