Issues

As a county commissioner, my focus will be on the citizens of Hamilton County, not my political or corporate ambitions. For too long, the county commission has been controlled as a private business. Too much of our public business is being conducted behind closed doors. By the time our commissioners vote on issues involving our money, the actual decision has already been made.

The current commissioners have proven they cannot be trusted to make decisions with the citizens' best interest in mind. The most outrageous example is the Bengals' stadium contract. The commissioners gave half of our prime downtown riverfront to a team that will play just ten home games per year. In addition, the county guaranteed the Bengals a minimum of 50,000 seats per game for two years. In other words, it doesn't matter how poorly the team might play, we, the taxpayers, are responsible for covering the cost of any unsold seats!

And that's not all. The commissioners have tied the reconstruction of Fort Washington Way and surrounding roads to the completion of the Paul Brown Stadium. If the stadium is not completed by August of the year 2000, the citizens will pay a penalty while the Bengals play free-of-charge in Cinergy Field!

As a county commissioner, I will bring citizens to the table of county government. I intend to initiate a "commissioners' night in" at locations around the county to enable as many citizens as possible to participate in county government. Whenever necessary, I will make house calls to get afirst-hand understanding of the issues facing our citizens.

Have you noticed all the trash along the highways throughout Hamilton County? It's everywhere: I-75, I-74, I-71, I-275 and the Ronald Reagan Cross County Highway. The problem is especially prevelant along entrance and exit ramps. Fast food containers, old newspapers, paper bags and beer bottles are piling up, but they're not be picked up. What kind of impression do you think visitors have of Hamilton County as they drive through our area and see this kind of trash?

Currently, there is no coordinated countywide program to keep our highways clean. I intend to change that.

We should use more jail inmates to pick up trash. As a county commissioner, I will work with the Sheriff's Department and municipalities throughout the county to use non-violent offenders to keep our public property clean. I will also work to organize a volunteer and corporate sponsorship program to fund professional litter crews.

Since its inception, the E-Check program has not improved Hamilton County's air quality. There is no need for the the program. It is an inconvenience and a waste of time and money for motorists. It serves no purpose other than to make millions of dollars for the company that operates the program. Even the proponents of E-Check admit the vast majority of automobiles pass the emissions test. If most cars in Hamilton County are not emitting unacceptable levels of exhaust, then why is there a need to test them?

The county commissioners have no legislative authority, and cannot, by themselves, do anything about E-Check. But as a commissioner, I will use my position to lobby state and federal lawmakers to eliminate E-Check and implement policies that will have a real, not a perceived, impact on the quality of the air we breathe.

The citizens of Hamilton County have gone through years of planning and studies aimed at improving mass transportation. However, our highways are still clogged as commuters drive too many cars to work. Metro offers bus schedules and routes that are convenient for citizens in the City of Cincinnati, but many people in the suburbs still find it easier to drive their cars to work.

Light rail-commuter rail is the answer. The I-71 Corridor Committee recommended light rail. The OKI Eastern Corridor Study seems to be leaning toward commuter rail. To quote a cliche, it is time to fish or cut bait. We have wasted enough time and money studying and discussing ways to improve public transportation. As a county commissioner, I will work to implement a light rail-commuter rail system in Hamilton County within the next five years.

The old saying, "Out of sight, out of mind" seems to apply to Hamilton County's sewer system. While century-old tunnels crumble beneath the streets of Cincinnati, sewers are non-existent in many other areas of Hamilton County.

One of the reasons important sewer projects are put on hold is bureacracy. It is not practical for the Metropolitan Sewer District to be controlled by two different governments. Currently, MSD is owned by Hamilton County and managed by the City of Cincinnati. The MSD director is responsible to both the city manager and the county administrator. This is absurd. One cannot serve two masters.

The sewer system crosses city and township boundaries. It is far too complex and interconnected for individual governments to manage. Therefore, I believe it makes sense for Hamilton County to manage all aspects of MSD. Negotiations to that end should begin as soon as possible with the City. This would be contingent on keeping the jobs and standards of civil service employment at MSD.

We must solve the flooding problems on Cincinnati's west side which are a direct result of deteriorating sewers. We must redesign our sanitary sewers to prevent them from spilling into our streams whenever the separate storm sewer system overflows. And we must find a rational and cost-effective way to decide where sewers will be constructed in western Hamilton County.

This is all about the issues. If you have an issue you are concerned with please let me know. Email me at hyland@marilynhyland.org.