First there was a wrap-up party at the Bank Street Community Garden. The party marks the end of the garden’s design and construction. It was also intended to thank Kara Smith and Rachel Ence, the interns who contributed so much to make the project a reality. See our previous post with video.

After the wrap-up party, Bradford held it’s first celebration of National Night Out in the Family Video parking lot on West Washington Street. The City of Bradford Police Department provided children’s fingerprinting ID kits, safety information, and gave tours of the City’s Emergency Response Team van. The local D.A.R.T. (Diving And Recovery Team) were also there to explain their operations. McKean County CARE for Children was on hand with safety information and SAFE Kids McKean County handouts.

Project Pride Manager Linda Campongiani explains the concept behind Bradford’s National Night Out:

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For the past week, the story has been circulating that a Bradford, PA business had received a citation from the City for flags that extended into the roadway. A photo from the local newspaper, the Bradford Era, shows the business owner standing amidst a display of American flags in front of his building.

Bradford City Mayor Tom Riel has stated that tne citation has nothing to do with the American flag, or patriotism. The issue is obstructing a City right-of-way.

Today the Mayor revealed that when the citation was issued there were “six or seven white flags with lettering, that sat much lower to the ground”, that were not evident when the Era photograph was taken. Riel said that the display in the Era photo weren’t placed there until after the citation was issued.
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Bradford City Council held it’s regular meeting Tuesday night.

John Kohler was given the Key To The City Of Bradford. Sara Andrews, Director of the OECD, gave a presentation outlining some of Kohler’s contributions. Andrews told the audience, “Ten years ago nobody was investing in Main Street. The City had bought three buildings. We felt there was a need to renovate and encourage investment. John was one of those investors who really stepped up. Not only did he purchase and renovate several downtown buildings, but he actually went out and recruited businesses to occupy them”. It was also noted several of Kohler’s projects resulted in retaining businesses in the area, citing the three acre warehouse he built for Graham Packaging.

During the public comment portion of the meeting one resident raised privacy concerns. She complained that a neighbor had mounted a camera pointed at her house. Bradford City Police Chief Mike Close offered to talk to her after the meeting. Later a police spokesman stated that no charges could be filed in the matter. “The circumstances of each complaint are different. In this case it appears that no criminal law is being broken”.

The large upswing in still and video camera use, and the ease of publishing on the Internet has created a great deal of debate. Most laws that address the subject are civil, not criminal laws. Most of these laws hinge on the individual’s expectation of privacy. Columnist Andrew Kantor recently wrote this editorial on the subject in USAToday.

What do you think? Click here to send us your comments.

Lights, camera, action! Little Chicago will stay in Bradford.

Related Links:

FilmInPA.com

Bradford City Council met Tuesday, 6/24/08. As expected, the City’s dog ordinance was amended to require a person walking their dog to have some means of cleaning up after their pet.

Council also approved a $200,000 loan to Zito Media for their on-going fiber optic project. This phase will continue work to include Bradford in the “fiber ring”. Jim Rigas and Steve Zwerin of Zito Media explained what the project involves.

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Bradford Mayor Tom Riel spoke Tuesday at a conference attended by Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell, educators, and elected officials from across the state. The conference discussed plans to enact a school funding formula law that invests at least $2.6 billion over the next six years to help close the school funding shortfall identified in the legislature’s Costing-Out Report.

Riel told the conference, “Failure to act has real economic costs. As a locally elected official, I understand that if the state refuses to live up to its responsibility, then the burden falls to local taxpayers – which in turn hinders our economic growth. The best strategy for long-term property tax relief is for the state to increase funding for our schools.”

At the podium Riel also stressed how important it is for the General Assembly to cooperate to find a solution to the funding shortfall.

Related:

GOVERNOR RENDELL’S 2008-09 EDUCATION PROPOSED BUDGET

The Bradford City Report for March 2008 has been published. This contains the City’s March budget report as well as departmental budget summaries as presented to City Counsel.

Find all 2008 City Reports here.

Open government is a foundation of our democracy. In the spirit of open government, Bradford-Online.com has obtained the City’s monthly Revenues & Expenditures reports. The reports include departmental summaries of City departments and detailed budget, revenue, and expenditure information. We plan to publish each month’s report as they become available.

Click here to view the available reports.

The line item detail can be daunting at first glance when you open these reports. Keep in mind that these are the same reports the Mayor and City Council members receive. These reports are great tools for better understanding of how the City works.

If you have questions about the numbers, plan on attending a City Council meeting and asking questions. City Council holds regular meetings the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of each month at 7:30pm on the 3rd floor of City Hall on Kennedy Street.

These departmental summaries and budget reports are issued monthly to Bradford’s Mayor and City Council members. Starting in January 2008 Bradford-Online.com will post these detailed reports in PDF format each month. They can be viewed with the free Adobe Reader.

This is public information and can also be obtained from City Hall, but copying charges apply.

Bradford City Reports:

• January 2008 - Budget Report
• January 2008 - Departmental Summaries
• February 2008 - Budget Report
• February 2008 - Departmental Summaries
• March 2008 - Bradford City Report

Local news sources are reporting the Tom Riel has defeated Bob Onuffer in the Bradford Mayoral race. The vote was reported as 785-527 in Riel’s favor.

Both men are Bradford City Council members. Onuffer still has two years on his current term. Riel will resign his position and Council will appoint a replacement.

Riel congratulated his opponent on running a clean race, saying that is “something to be proud of”.

This year’s race marked a milestone. It is the first time local political candidates have issued statements to an Internet publication, Bradford-Online.com, as part of their campaigns. Both statements can be found in our community forum, TalkAboutBradford.com.

Congratulations to Tom Riel!

In the race for McKean County Commissioner, former Commissioner Al Pingie from Bradford, has been re-elected. Pingie and other Commissioners lost a previous race to the three member “New Directions Team”. Clifford Lane, the last member of the team, garnered the lowest vote count and will leave office at the end of this term.

Congratulations to Al Pingie!

The races are over. We look forward to seeing cooperation in our local government to move the City and County forward.

Additional details here:

WESB.com
Bradfordera.com

Bradford’s Full-time Mayor

In a nut shell, I’m a family man. I’ve been married to my wonderful wife for 29 years. I have 5 children and 8 grandchildren and I enjoy being involved in their activities as they relate to the community. I am currently serving on Bradford City Council as DPW director. I am also a member of the advisory committee for the Elm Street Revitalization Project and recently became a member of the Kiwanis Club of Bradford. I am active in my local church as a Bible study leader. I also recently retired from Dresser Piping Specialties, where I worked for over 30 years. I’ve been a resident of Bradford for 50 years, I have a heart to see this beautiful city prosper and grow to its true potential.

Would you like to have a voice in how your city is run and be a part of putting government back into the hands of the people?

It is time for the people to take back the government and stop electing people who refuse to listen to them. It takes all of us to run Bradford, not just a few who are lucky enough to be in positions of authority. We all need to get involved in the decision-making process. To paraphrase John F. Kennedy, “Ask not what Bradford can do for you, ask what you can do for Bradford.”

If I am elected mayor, I will be visible, available, and approachable. I will be a public servant who will have time for any of our citizens, regardless of their status, to voice their concerns, complaints, or ideas.

I will govern with the people, not over them. I will spend time in the mayor’s office on a regular basis; hours will be posted so anyone can come at a time suitable to them.

If you want to help take back our city for the people, then please vote for Bob Onuffer on November 6, 2007. Let us work together to make a better and brighter future for Bradford.

As mayor I will be overseeing the police department, working with the chief and spending time on all shifts with the officers. My objective will be to understand their needs and the difficulties they encounter.

I will also continue to be involved with the OECD, not only with city developments, but also working with surrounding municipalities. I’m a firm believer in continuing the Council of Governments to improve the cooperation of all the local governments. Along with that, the “Master Plan Development” is long overdue and needs our full support for the future growth of the Bradford area

Like you, I am tired of government officials who are more concerned about their own agenda and not the ones of the people they are supposed to be working for.

I will be working for and with the people of Bradford to make this a better place for all of us to work, shop, do business, and live. We are responsible for the future of our city.

Bob Onuffer
Bradford, PA

Phone: 814-362-6371
Email: nonuffer@atlanticbb.net