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Do IT this week: Layering
SOS leader says it probably has more than enough signatures to put Akron issue on ballot
By Carl Chancellor
Beacon Journal
Published on Friday, Jul 18, 2008
With the ball back in their court, Citizens to Save Our Sewers and Water on Thursday resubmitted their petitions seeking a November vote on a proposal to lease Akron's sewers and other public utilities.
''We now have 157 petitions and 5,615 signatures. That's more than we had last time,'' said Willie Smith, president of Save Our Sewers (SOS), a coalition of union members and concerned citizens seeking to amend the city's charter to require that any action to sell, lease or transfer a public utility be approved by voters.
Last week, the group turned in 149 petitions to the clerk of Akron City Council, only to be informed that the documents hadn't been submitted in the proper form.
In a letter to SOS, Akron Law Director Max Rothal said that each petition needed a separate, signed and notarized affidavit attesting that the circulator followed the law in collecting signatures.
Smith said the city was being petty and obstructionist by not accepting the petitions initially.
However, Rothal suggested that SOS had intentionally filed petitions that weren't in the proper form, hoping to generate publicity.
The law director said that on at least three occasions in past years, petitions that haven't complied with the city charter have been submitted to the clerk of council by some of the ''same individuals'' involved with SOS.
''The fact that the same people keep making the same mistakes leaves one to wonder if the improper filings were done intentionally,'' Rothal said.
If enough signatures on the petitions are valid — Smith is confident SOS has double the 2,339 required — the organization's proposed charter amendment could be on the November ballot, along with an amendment being pushed by Mayor Don Plusquellic that also deals with the lease of the city's sewers.
On Tuesday the mayor said he wants residents to vote on his plan to lease the sewer system to raise cash for ''working-class'' Akron students to attend the University of Akron.
At times, the sparring between the mayor and SOS has been testy.
Plusquellic has characterized SOS as a bunch of ''naysayers'' who are out to ''kill our effort to provide scholarships'' for Akron's high school graduates.
Jack Sombati, a member of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and of SOS, said he is offended by the mayor's attempts to ''Swift boat'' — a reference to attack ads aired during the 2004 presidential campaign — the organization and its backers.
''We feel the mayor's scholarships are very honorable,'' Sombati said. ''Unions have always been a proponent of higher education and free education. Where we differ with the mayor is on how he wants to fund those scholarships.''
Sombati also took offense with what he contended was the mayor's attempt to mislead voters.
''I call his proposal a 'fool you' initiative. He is trying to confuse the voters,'' said Sombati, who contended that the mayor has flip-flopped on a number of elements of the sewer deal.
As example, he said the mayor talked about selling the sewers before deciding to lease them. In addition, Sombati said Plusquellic has never been clear on how much money would be raised for scholarships and who would be eligible to get them.
''The mayor needs to come clean and be open with citizens,'' Sombati said.
Plusquellic has said he plans to spell out how the system would be operated and maintained under a lease. He said his proposal would cap sewer rates and specify that revenue — anticipated to be at least $200 million — would be used only to fund the scholarship program.
To uncover additional information about the sewer proposal, AFSCME, which represents 128 sewer department workers, filed a public records request with the city Thursday afternoon.
Rothal acknowledged the receipt of the request and said the city needs time to review it.
Plusquellic also said earlier this week that he looks forward to the opportunity to debate the lease proposal and let the voters decide its fate.
''If he wants a debate, we will debate,'' Smith said. ''But it has to be at a place of our choosing and we will establish the ground rules.''
Carl Chancellor can be reached at 330-996-3725 or cchancellor@thebeaconjournal.com.
With the ball back in their court, Citizens to Save Our Sewers and Water on Thursday resubmitted their petitions seeking a November vote on a proposal to lease Akron's sewers and other public utilities.
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