Bell release challenges Wilkowski’s development claims
This in via e-mail from the Bell for Mayor campaign:
“Truth Squad” joins Bell to challenge Wilkowski economic development claims
Two former mayors are joining Mike Bell to provide facts that refute exaggerated claims made by Keith Wilkowski about his economic development experience.
Louie Bauer, Jr., former Rossford mayor, and Harry Barlos, former Maumee mayor, are discussing the issues at Bell Headquarters today.
“Keith Wilkowski claims he put together economic development deals creating thousands of private sector jobs. But although he keeps pushing his economic development credentials, the facts show just the opposite,” Mr. Bell said.
“This is consistent with the Wilkowski campaign of diversion and double talk which takes credit for the accomplishments of others and ignores serious failures in his resume.”
Members of today’s “Truth Squad” are addressing three specific Wilkowski claims:
Wilkowski Claim #1: “I put in place a creative plan that brought Burlington Air Express (now BAX Global) to the airport along with 1,000 jobs.”
The “Truth Squad” says that Wilkowski was barely involved in the Burlington project.
Instead, it was a project driven by the Port Authority, City of Toledo, and Lucas County Engineer.
In 212 pages of documents and news clips contained in the Local History archives at the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library, Wilkowski’s name appears just once. Further, Burlington came to Toledo 26 years ago – a long time to claim as a success
story.
Wilkowski Claim #2: “I came up with the plan for Toledo to create Joint Economic Zones with our neighbors in Maumee, Rossford and Monclova Township.”
Mr. Barlos said that he and former President of Toledo City Council Gene Cook “came up” with the Monclova JEDZ concept in 1988. Progress continued with Former Toledo Mayor John McHugh in 1990 – both well before Wilkowski worked for the City. Wilkowski presided over the final legal paperwork.
Mr. Bauer worked with Mayor McHugh on the Rossford JEDZ in 1991, and then assigned the legal work to Wilkowski.
Wilkowski Claim #3: He was “only the lawyer” in one of the most colossal business failures in Northwest Ohio history – the planned $48 million entertainment complex planned to contain an arena in Rossford.
Mr. Bauer says Wilkowski was a lead advisor to the City of Rossford project team. The failed deal ultimately lost $18 million in taxpayer money, union pension funds, and private investment.
If Wilkowski had been successful, the new arena would not have been in downtown Toledo but in Rossford today. The shell of the partially-built amphitheater still stands in the Crossroads of America.
“Toledo residents deserve a mayor who is open and straightforward with them. This is particularly important as they consider who has the experience to run a large and complex city during challenging economic times,” Mr. Bell said.
“Mr. Wilkowski has made his economic development experience a centerpiece of his campaign, it is legitimate to question whether he really has delivered like he claims,” he said.
Mr. Bell is running for Mayor as an independent. He has 17 years experience as fire chief managing a department of 500 people and a $50 million budget – with measurable success. He also was selected by Governor Strickland to run the State Fire Marshal office for the last two years.
While I am a passionate reader of the Glass City Jungle, I have avoided the temptation, and most opportunities to comment on postings.
However, as someone who for better or worse, has been involved in many public policy economic development issues going back to the purchase by Toledo of the land in Monclova Township let me say that Keith Wilkowski has had a consistent and productive role in furthering regional economic development.
I am reminded of the negotiations that finally broke the stalemate between Maumee, Monclova and Toledo on developing the city’s land and sharing in it’s costs and benefits. It was Keith Wilkowski who, along with Sheila McAdams, set the stage for successful negotiations and worked diligently going back and forth from room to room to get the principals to come to a cost / tax sharing agreement.
The fact that his name only appeared once in a series of articles only points to his understanding of the professional role he was playing at that time, not to the depth and value of his work.
Keith understands economic development, is passionate about the city of Toledo’s future, and knows that regional cooperation is critical to the economic success of all of Northwest Ohio.
On the issue of economic development alone, he is the most qualified and experienced candidate for Mayor of the City of Toledo.
He deserves to be elected…..and that’s the truth!
Rep. Peter Ujvagi
October 30th, 2009 at 3:33 pmThanks Peter, the first two points have been out there for a bit now by others, I think you addressed that well.
The third point contains some irony, Keith Wilkowski was working for Rossford, it was his job to do what benefited Rossford so it seems odd to try to use that against him. If he can’t take credit for the “success” then if all things were equal, which of course in politics they never are, he can’t be blamed for the “failure” of it.
October 30th, 2009 at 4:25 pmAs I said in another post, it seems peculiar that Mr. Bell is critisizing Mr. Wilkowski’s claims when Mr. Bell, to my knowledge, has no economic development experiences himself. If Mr. Bell had said that Mr. Wilkowski had no experinece in running a 500 personnel fire department, I would probably give some crediability that claim. Us voters can clearly see what is going on here, and, it doesn’t help Mr. Bell. Election day comes down to this. The voters can vote for someone who is popular or someone who has got the juice. Keith Wilkowski has the juice.
October 31st, 2009 at 3:50 pm