Mayor Coleman - Please explain
From:
John Krenik
Date:
May 09 14:54 UTC
Short link
John Krenik
Highland Park, St. Paul, Minnesota
May 9, 2008
Mayor Christopher Coleman
390 City Hall
15 W. Kellogg Blvd.
Saint Paul, MN 55102
Dear Honorable Mayor Coleman,
As printed in the St. Paul Pioneer Press and Minneapolis Star Tribune, it seems
that the Department of Public Works for St. Paul has overspent their budget by
$4.2 million. This is on top of an already predicted $13.1 million shortfall
for the city for the next budget cycle.
It was also reported that in light of this gross mismanagement by the Director
of Public Works, Bruce Beese who also happens to have an accounting background,
that you have rewarded him with a $5,000.00 pay raise to bring his salary to
$115,000.00 per year. It is shocking to reward an individual who through his
gross mismanagement of his department cost the city of St. Paul $4.2 million.
Maintaining our roads is vital to maintaining the health of our city. These
are basic city services and by cutting back on basic preventative maintenance
for our roads is the wrong way for St. Paul to go. In the end it will be the
taxpayers of St. Paul who will pay a higher cost for the planned deferred
maintenance of our roads due to this department manager’s gross mismanagement.
Mayor Coleman you are clearly sending out the wrong message to other city
department managers by rewarding this manager with a $5,000.00 pay raise after
he overspent his budget by $4.2 million and this is just plain wrong. What
message are you sending to the citizens of St. Paul? It is their money that
was wasted.
To make up for this $4.2 million shortfall you have recommended to the city
council several service reductions across the city. You will also need to take
an additional $1.4 million out of the cash reserves for the city to make this
amended budget work. This reduction in cash reserves is in addition to the $6
million that you have already used for this years budget cycle. Because of
these cuts in citywide services (street maintenance and plowing) due to Mr.
Beese’s mismanagement, this will cost taxpayers millions of additional dollars
in the future because of this deferred maintenance. This is money our children
will have to pay for because of Mr. Beese’s mismanagement and your lack of
oversight.
Immediate actions:
1. I am calling for the immediate suspension of Public Works Director Bruce
Beese without pay and the possible termination of Mr. Beese’s employment for
gross mismanagement of his department.
2. I am calling for an immediate investigation as related to the gross
mismanagement and misuse of public funds by Mr. Beese. After this
investigation is completed and a full review of the actions taken by Mr. Beese
is complete, then I recommend possible termination for gross mismanagement of
city funds. Keeping this individual employed, as a director of a major city
department in light of his gross mismanagement of the people’s tax dollars is
appalling.
3. I am also calling for an immediate reversal of Mr. Beese’s pay raise in
light of the gross mismanagement of his department. Mr. Beese’s mismanagement
has cost the city of St. Paul dearly and our children will be paying for his
mismanagement for years to come.
Pat Harris, City Council Member from Ward 3 said it best, "You're putting us in
the position of doing service reductions because of systemic issues in
budgeting and cash flow maintenance." At the city council meeting this last
Wednesday, (link:
http://stpaul.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=37&clip_id=800 (Item 51,
Resolution 08-472), Council Member Dan Bostrom raised his great concern about
the reduction in sealcoating the streets on the new 10-year cycle instead of
the current 8-year cycle. The 8-year seal coating cycle was recommended by
public works to the city council as preventative maintenance intended to extend
the life span of the roadway. Now with a budget shortfall due to Mr. Beese’s
gross mismanagement of city funds suddenly experts from public works says this
8-year cycle is now not needed. Why? This change in preventative maintenance
does not meet the smell test.
Mayor Coleman, I call on you as mayor to be answerable to the taxpayers of St.
Paul and take swift action to remedy this public safety issue and budget issue.
I also call on you to remove Mr. Beese from the Department of Public Works due
to his gross mismanagement of his department. Rewarding Mr. Beese with a
$5,000.00 pay increase and keeping him employed after overspending his budget
by $4.2 million in city funds is intolerable and this pay raise needs to
rescinded immediately.
Sincerely,
John Krenik
Highland Park, St. Paul, Minnesota