TOLEDO – While not everyone can make a council meeting, some did manage to hear from their council member in a more intimate setting.
At the Reynolds Corners Branch Library last Thursday, July 9, District One Toledo City Council Member John Hobbs III held another one of his constituent town halls, joined by At-Large Council Member George Sarantou. While attendance was low, as one of the four attendees acknowledged, that doesn’t mean there was a shortage of issues to be discussed. During the hour-long forum, Hobbs & Sarantou heard from residents about matters ranging from trash pickup to neighborhoods.
But before he began taking questions from constituents, the Toledo Free Press spoke with Council Member Hobbs one-on-one about something that’s garnered attention beyond usual City Council watchers. One week ago, members agreed to vote — during today’s 4 p.m. council meeting at One Government Center — on whether to put a ballot measure before Toledo voters. The measure in question? A 0.25 percent income tax to fund public safety services.
So, in other words, Council voted to have a vote on whether Toledoans will see the income tax proposal on the ballot. Speaking to the TFP, Hobbs sought to ensure it was understood by all that no new tax was approved last Tuesday.
“I want to make sure everybody understands, make this clear: Council has not imposed a tax on our citizens. We have not,” said Hobbs. “What we have done is we’re going to vote this coming Tuesday [today, July 14], and the vote will be whether or not that issue goes on the ballot this fall — so the citizens can decide if they want to have a public safety tax.”
Asked about the origins of the proposal, he told the TFP that “this comes from Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz and this comes from his office, the 22nd floor.” Hobbs said, as a result of state and federal funding cuts, the mayor viewed the tax as a means by which the city could close a budget gap. While a city spokesperson said Friday the mayor was unavailable for comment, Hobbs said the proposed tax would close about $25 million of a $49 million budget gap.
To read the legislation members will be voting on this afternoon, click here.
The Free Press also spoke with an attendee of last Thursday’s town hall, who said she hadn’t yet formulated her thoughts on the income tax proposal, but appreciated having an opportunity to hear from her council member one-on-one.
“He answered the questions that I came to hear,” said Shelley Coleman, who found out about the event from an email.
On the proposed income tax ballot measure, Coleman said she “really had not thought too much about that until he [Council Member Hobbs] brought it up.”
While not staking her position on the public safety income tax, Coleman says she’d “like to see our youth in more activities,” in addition to more of a police presence.
Despite seemingly ubiquitous fears about crime, Toledo continues to see a reduction in various types of it since COVID-19 drove numbers up — a trend observed in cities across the country. During a press conference last Thursday, officials released mid-year crime statistics, which showed homicides, robberies, and thefts from motor vehicles down by 25 percent, 16.9 percent, and 21 percent, respectively.
RELATED: Also under the microscope, as it pertains to public safety, is the Toledo Police Department itself. In particular, the department’s use of technology that some see as a violation of privacy. For more on that, read TFP Reporter Stephen Zenner’s story from June 24 surrounding camera surveillance.
