Wednesday, January 28, 2009

In Good Hands?

Concerned Citizen writes:

On Dec. 2, I called the Greenville Water Plant to report that raw sewage was backing up into my downstairs bathroom. City workers came by that afternoon and checked the sewer line at the south end of the street, but they did not let me know anything.

A few days later I reported to the water plant again that raw sewage was still coming into my downstairs bathroom. Workers came out again and told me to call a plumber. Plumbers came by, opened the manhole by the street at the end of my driveway, and showed me that the city sewer line is clogged or has collapsed north of my property, causing the raw sewage to overflow and back up into my house.

To make a long story short, city workers have been here; representatives from the Health Department have been here; Brad Jones has been here; plumbers have been here; Lee Owen has tried several times to help - and still nothing has been repaired. The plumbers did dig a trench in my front yard and left my clean-out valve open so that raw sewage will no longer come into my house.

The city workers and Brad Jones all admit that this is a city problem, but they have no idea when the sewer line will be repaired. In the meantime I have paid my plumber $433.35 for digging an unsightly (but necessary) trench in my front yard. The city should reimburse me for this expense since the obstruction is in the city sewer line north of my house, but Brad Jones tells me that the city probably will not reimburse me.

In mid-January I asked Brad again when the repairs will be made to the sewer line on my street. He admitted that he has no idea. He went on to say that there are many jobs on the list before this one.

Something tells me that this job will be like so many other projects in Greenville - the downtown improvements, the Bass renovation, the city street repairs, etc., etc., etc.

Something tells me, you're right! The really sad fact is that while residential streets and sewers are in total disrepair, we can still find money for the downtown "road to nowhere." The residential sections of Washington avenue (from DRMC to Hwy 82) are horrendous. This section is designated as our "historical" district for which tax payers pay dearly and yet the avenue is almost impassable.

Look at Bowman Boulevard. For the total costs of "patching" that street over the past ten years, it should be paved in gold. Instead, it is a roller coaster of bumps and ruts. The city has been working on Main Extended for 3 years and every time they patch a section, water starts oozing from from another and there are still several open "craters" that will jar your teeth.

If the past election has taught us a new buzz-word, it is "transparency". We should demand to know how our road and property taxes are being spent. Go down to City Hall and ask for a copy of a line-item budgetary expenditure report for 2008. Keep track of how many people you have to ask for this report as well as the number of excuses you get of why that information is "not currently available".

Actually, it would be a very good question for the Mayor herself during her weekly open forum visits with the residents. "Transparency" in our city and county governments is not something we will see in our lifetime.

Forthright

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I would suggest getting some cheap pvc pipe and piping your sewage to the street. (prob not legal) But get the smell away from your house and in the streets for the rest of the neighbors to complain about and call the city. Bug Brad!! He can get it done. Even tho he is a weird dude!! Opps But he a good guy!!

Anonymous said...

The writer should not have lumped the Bass restoration project in with the rest of her complaints---that is a separate issue from the city's responsibilities. The Bass project is, in fact, moving along very well under competent leadership. While it would be ideal if the city would get behind the project with funding and manpower, the funds for this project are being raised through grants and private donations---a drive which is led by the Bass Foundation under the direction of Executive Director Kathryn Lewis and President Joe Nash. Look forward to good things happening at Bass.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

8:57 AM---why would you want to post something like that on here? Yes, it was made by a black man as a parody, but to post it here is divisive. I don't believe it was posted in the spirit that the comedian intended. It has no place in a forum where the spirit and focus should that of rebuilding a community.

Anonymous said...

Greenville does not have the money to even maintain what it has. My gosh they cannot even get the street lights burning and that does not even cost them. I watched a water leak behind CVS pharmacy for 3 weeks (shooting in the air leak) and it was still shooting today. The beat goes on my friends. Get out and call your friends and family and lets put Hudson and Gines back in office so we can continue down the road of destruction
Grant Money Free Money go get it Mayor but just remember this city was not built with hand me out money.People on Govt assistance have no idea how to make a living because the majority are content with that monthly check or that earned income check or that stimulus money that is suppose to be coming.Greenville was built by hard working people who paid taxes and had their priorties in place.
As i have said before 32% of the Greenville population pays 100% of the taxes.
Do you know that several companys have come to visit Greenville in the past few weeks and never made contact with our Mayor. Hmmm ! They like the potential but are not comfortable with the present leadership. Hmmmmm ! Boy does that send a message! Well let me ride down washington Ave and see how many new stores are being renovated since the street has been overlayed. I know if i don't get down there quick they may all be rented out and moved into.The Nice Avenue to Jim's Cafe. Boy Boy Boy.

Anonymous said...

*Do you know that several companys have come to visit Greenville in the past few weeks and never made contact with our Mayor. Hmmm ! They like the potential but are not comfortable with the present leadership*

If they came in the past few weeks, they NEVER contacted her! Between her trips to Germany and Spain in November, trips to DC in December and January, and who knows where else?? She is nearly NEVER in her office!

She had in the paper that she had an open door time set up for her to be available to the public on Wednesday of every week for 2-3 hours for public concerns and complaints.

Yesterday, was Wednesday, the first of these days to come, guess who was not in her office all day??? DUH!!!

Maybe that was these companies problem, they could never find her and gave up!!!!

Anonymous said...

http://www.ddtonline.com/articles/2009/01/29/news/news1.txt

Projects proposed for stimulus package

GREENVILLE -Local officials are working toward a Feb. 19 deadline to prepare plans and bids ready submission to the federal government for a portion of the $825 billion economic recovery stimulus package proposed by President Barack Obama.
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Ray Humphreys, CEO of Delta Regional Medical Center, said the hospital has a master plan for land purchased several years ago. The property is on Colorado Street south of Lowe's, which is on Mississippi 1.
“The primary purpose of that purchase was to find a location for a new hospital when we have the funds to build that,” Humphreys said. “The 180-acre campus would also have room for and has plans for other facilities to be on that campus.”

Humphreys said the facilities could include doctors' offices, a cancer center and various medical support businesses.

“Those businesses like to locate near hospitals. What we want to do is go ahead and do something that will cause that development to start,” said Humphreys. “We can't build a new hospital right now, but let's go ahead and get an entrance road in there with underground utilities in place so that people can go ahead and start developing their facilities on that campus. We want to make it developmen ready.”

Although DRMC has been involved in a $6 million renovation for the past couple of years, the hospital is 55 years old and does not offer the kind of facilities necessary to attract some doctors practicing in specialties, he said.

“This community needs a modern, new health care center so that we can address the needs in this area more adequately,” he said, adding that Mississippi leads the nation in incidences of many health problems, such as diabetes and hypertension.

"We've got to have the facilities from which to operate to attract doctors,” said Humphreys.

Humphreys said DRMC has had talks with University Medical Center and William Carey College about the School of Osteopathic Medicine they are developing to use the hospital as a residency and a training program.

“We need to do those kinds of things,” he said. “It's kind of hard to attract medical specialists if you have old, out-of-date facilities. It doesn't give them the ability to practice the kind of medicine that they were trained to do.”

Anonymous said...

My response is more of a question. For all the millions spent on DRMC why is it out of date??????

No, I do not want a new hospital on the south end of town....why??

For one, my taxes are stretched to the limit, as it is in this city. The last thing we need are more taxes through the city and county to pay for this new hospital.

Second? Let's see, go to any city, not just Greenville, and where ever that hospital is located you can bet the worst part of town is nearby. Most welfare recipients and all of the low income follow hospitals as to where they want to live because of convenience to get free medical attention when needed. The closer they are the less need of transportation or the cheaper it is for them to get there.

I honestly am not trying to be racist, this applies to whites or blacks.....be honest and you will see what I am talking about. Most hospitals were built years ago, the neighborhoods then were usually upscale and high class. Now those same neighborhoods are run down and the original owners are long gone.

Think of Jackson, the VA Center, Univ. Med Center....all dangerous areas to be visiting loved ones in the hospital.

So, please, fix up, update the DRMC and keep the crime rate where it is without it expanding more to the south, thanks but no thanks!