Bellwether: The Political Evolution of Erie - Our Struggle

Season 1 Episode 21 | 28m 31sVideo has Closed Captions

Explore how the politics of Erie changed over the decades during Chronicles on WQLN.

Erie is often cited as a litmus test for the political outcomes of the nation. How did Erie earn this reputation and how have the politics of Erie changed over the decades? Chronicles is an immersive docuseries exploring the history of the Lake Erie region. Watch and learn as local history comes to life with engaging storytelling and powerful videography during Chronicles on WQLN PBS.

07/07/2023

Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback

Chronicles is a local public television program presented by WQLN

Bellwether: The Political Evolution of Erie - Our Struggle

Season 1 Episode 21 | 28m 31sVideo has Closed Captions

07/07/2023

Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback

Genre

History

Share This Video

Embed Video
Chronicles
Bellwether: The Political Evolution of Erie - Our Struggle
S1 Ep21
Fixed iFrame
Width: in pixelsHeight: in pixels
Responsive iFrame

How to Watch Chronicles

Chronicles is available to stream on pbs.org and the free PBS App, available on iPhone, Apple TV, Android TV, Android smartphones, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire Tablet, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, and Vizio.

Open in new tab

(upbeat music) - [Announcer] Springhill Senior Living in Erie, Pennsylvania, offering a wide range of maintenance-free apartments with balconies and patios, and garden homes designed to provide an active and engaging lifestyle, where residents can spend more time focusing on what they want to do, not what they have to do.

Springhill also includes a continuum of quality healthcare services for added peace of mind.

Learn more at springhillerie.org.

An equal opportunity housing provider.

Chronicles was made possible thanks to a community assets grant provided by the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority, Springhill Senior Living, support by the Department of Education, and the generous support of Thomas B. Hagan. [MUSIC] We've discussed some of the responsibilities our elected officials have. What are some of the more concerning What are some of the more concerning issues that our community faces? I would say that we have unprecedented amounts of fentanyl deaths. I would say that we have 50% of the people who live on the east side of Erie are under the age of 18. Every day we pick up the paper and we're seeing 14, 15, 16 year olds committing adult crimes. olds committing adult crimes. A 13 year old Erie teen killed by gunfire. He was just 14 years old on April 5th when he reportedly shot another Erie High School student. Who was 16 at the time of the crimes, receiving a combined sentence of 6 to 12 years. We've had shooters as young as 14, we've had homicide victims as young as 14. We have 44% child poverty rate in Erie County.

We are higher than the national average. The problems we have in Erie right now is our crime has really increased, especially during the pandemic.

And our police department had been downsized over the last 30 years or so pretty significantly.

And people will be surprised to hear this, but we have at least 15 incidents a day of home violence going on where the police have to respond to homes in Erie.

And some weeks, it's 20 or more a day that happened.

They heard some screams and gunshots coming out of this home in the early morning hours of Saturday. Some communities in the city are impacted by these violent crimes more than others. I ride my bike, I have a red-swin beach cruiser, and I ride it through some of the not so and I ride it through some of the not so desirable neighborhoods, desirable neighborhoods, according to our city planners. according to our city planners. So I ride through 7th, 8th, 9th, Wallace, Ash, Reed, and what I find over and what I find over there are some really, there are some really, really, really, really nice people. And really, really smart. And really, really smart. They're not stupid or slow, they're just poor, And they've been neglected. and they've been neglected. We do want to reduce crime pretty severely. We're hoping we can do that, We're hoping we can do that, and we can and we can also increase revenue so that we can keep some or all, if possible, of those police officers we added. I want to do that without increasing increasing what people have what people have to pay for real estate tax or income tax or other things like that. - But in this world, But in this world, nothing can be nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes. except death and taxes. Benjamin Franklin. Benjamin Franklin. - We basically run county government, We basically run county government, and we have the authority to tax, raise taxes, taxes, decrease taxes. decrease taxes. taxes, decrease taxes. County fees can be raised or lowered at our privilege. Erie has been in debt for - Erie has been in debt for the last, the last, I want to say, I want to say, at least 10 years that I've been paying attention actively. been paying attention actively. We continue to sell the debt down the line, and we aren't necessarily addressing that issue. It's just like a problem for tomorrow. You know, we're trying to find money to balance the rest of it to balance the rest of it every year. - We started this year's budget. We met with all the people in departments departments and their budgets, and their budgets, and then we put it together, and we were short $6 million And we were short $6 million after we had after we had had all those meetings, and we said, "We gotta cut that back.

" - You know, when I accepted the budget When I accepted the budget from the from the county executive last year, I gave them my word that I wouldn't raise taxes, and I had a marker. And I had a marker. We had sharpies, we had lots of paper, we had a lot of neatened discussions, and when we were done, we didn't raise taxes we didn't raise taxes because we were able to take it out of our rainy day fund and balance the budget. - These rainy day funds are also known as reserves. are also known as reserves. - One of the things that concerns me is we have very, very healthy reserve when I left office, which actually helps us to keep our ratings high, and in the end of the day, it's very good for the taxpayers it's very good for the taxpayers of Erie County. I get worried when I see a lot of expenditures happening that are digging into that reserve reserve because eventually because eventually they'll come back to really haunt us, and as a community, we'll be in much worse financial shape. worse financial shape. So, both the county and the city are operating at a deficit. The county is propping up its budget by taking money from its reserves, and the city is carrying a debt. So how can we improve our finances? Rebuilding the infrastructure of the housing stock in the city of Erie, that's one way of doing it. Creating economic zones in which are in partnership with the inner city and other places to bring communities, I mean bring businesses here that are sensitive to these issues and feel that they can be stakeholders too here, and they see a community that's fighting for itself and for its futures. Well, right now we have a lot of dated, dilapidated housing stock. Housing is a very big problem in our community. When I was being sworn in for my second term, I set a goal for the city, and it was that in seven and a half years, Erie will grow by 10,000 people.

The population of Erie will grow by 10,000 people. But with the current housing stock, I just don't see that as a realistic option. Our current residents are living below quality, habitable housing, so there's just been a lot of deferred maintenance. That's the word they like to use. For the last 20 to 40 years, people just continue to kick the can down the road and hope for a solution later. The problem is the solution isn't coming. We have to address these problems, or they're never going to be taken care of. But population But population numbers have been declining. How does that affect our budget? If we don't maintain our population, I mean, you even look at the city of Erie, dipping below 100,000 residents, that's dangerous for a lot of our funding. If you look and you move from a third-class city to a fourth-class city, from a third-class county to a fourth-class county, that's disastrous. A big percentage of our budget is state A big percentage of our budget is state funding that comes through the county to do the work that the state needs each county to do. If we move from three to four, we're talking hundreds of millions of dollars. And imagine losing hundreds of millions of dollars in local budgets in the city and the county. Now where are we?

It's hard now with the funding that we have. So what are you going to do?

Cut programs.

You cut services, which in turn hurt people.

It hurts families. You know, when you have only a little bit of money, and it's all spent before you even get it, what can you do to help the actual community? And we're hinging in that balance, and I don't think people realize how critical it is that we maintain our population. And, you know, this is going to be a totally non-Republican thing to say, but you've got to look at the value of immigration, legal immigration, for folks that want to come here. I mean, they're hungry business owners, they contribute to society. You know, looking at the programs that we can implement to help them with English for Second Languages, to boost that population, to diversify. That, to me, it is one process that we can undergo. We're lucky that we swear in about 500 We're lucky that we swear in about 500 new Americans a year at the federal courthouse. I go to every one of them.

There's 10 ceremonies a year where we're doing about 50, and I go there, I speak to them for a couple minutes, couple minutes, and then and then I take pictures with them after they're all sworn in and are now new Americans. I don't think there's a lot of cities anywhere in Erie that have that many new Americans coming in, and they are kind of like our predecessors. In Erie, most minorities are on the Lower In Erie, most minorities are on the Lower East Side, and most immigrants and refugees are on the Lower East Side as well. Lower East Side as well. Erie's immigrant community is invaluable, not just culturally, but also for the not just culturally, but also for the funding that we receive tied to the population. I'm first-generation American. I'm first-generation American.

My dad's Mexican, my mom's Puerto Rican, so I am making the way for my siblings to see that there's other opportunities, whether they're being out in the grapevines and being a housekeeper or, you know, a basic caregiver. you know, a basic caregiver. There's nothing wrong with those professions, but with notes, all you see, that's what you're expected. that's what you're expected. We've had multiple city council, African American male and female, city councilpersons, but at the county level, But at the county level, I'm one of one I'm one of one in 223-year history in county. I don't run because I am trans and queer. I don't run because I am trans and queer. I am a candidate who also happens to be trans and queer. happens to be trans and queer. [cheers and applause] So, I got involved because not enough people realized how important it is, and I would have loved to see someone like me up there when I was a young person, so that encouraged me to be that person for young people. So, I mean, let's talk about that. So, I mean, let's talk about that. Special interest politics, identity politics.

Let's elect this person so they'll be the first X. so they'll be the first X. Makes absolutely no sense, because, okay, would you go to a heart surgeon? would you go to a heart surgeon? Let's make this person a heart surgeon because they'll be the first X.

That's not the person I want doing my surgery. You know, let's get on that plane because this person's the first X.

It's not a plane I want to get on, because it really should be about policy, should be about experience, leadership and skill. experience, leadership and skill. [sighs] If I had a dollar for every time that I would hear things like, you know, gender politics no matter, or identity politics or why everything's broken, I would be able to fund every single one of my campaigns from now until I decided I don't want it to be political. The simple, root answer is everything is identity politics.

Everything is identity politics.

You cannot take identity out of politics. I either want to walk into the room, I either change the atmosphere in the room, or the atmosphere in the room changes me. So in 200 years, that meant that blacks haven't had representation. haven't had representation. For too often, and this has been a very big complaint from the communities of color, and I think a very-- and I think a very, a a complaint that has merit, and that is that people who look like me are making the decisions for them, rather than them being able to make the decisions for themselves. And that has happened not only near the And that has happened not only in Erie County, but across this nation forever, and I can't say what that community needs. That's why representation is critical. That's why representation is critical. It's not a DEI, it's not an affirmative action, it's genuine, true, sustainable democracy. sustainable democracy. We can all see the significant negative impact that deindustrialization has had on our community, deindustrialization has had on our community, but our elected officials but our elected officials have also had a part to play. Yeah, the single greatest mistake in my Yeah, the single greatest mistake in my lifetime was the missed opportunity when we lost Hammermill to develop the Hammermill site for the racetrack in the casino. I was involved in the drafting of the legislation. We made sure that the cities were going to be the primary beneficiaries. So it was important that we got that in city limits and we would have been in a great position for the future. Mark my words and mark them well. If we fail to pass this MTR thing tonight, to make the battle, and I'm going to talk about all this later when this is, but to make the battle, to get the income in here, get the earned income tax here, get the property tax here, get the $60 million of paychecks here and get the $10 million every year, which will allow the city to experience a renaissance that will allow us to get out of debt, it will allow us to put people to work, instead of despair. And even though it was a long time ago, when I talk about it, it's hard. It's emotional. And if we don't get it done tonight, I will not rest and not sleep to expose the gross miscalculation of this council and letting the city down to get it back on fiscal footing and moving forward. Because for all the skill that I thought I had, when I put it on the ballot, I had the votes the night before. But the newspaper is partly at fault here. The Three Times News is largely at fault, in my opinion. Reading all this crap in the paper of how we're treating this company, why would some other company want to come here? Well, they've created this narrative that we shouldn't give them a subsidy of which I supported. We would have had that subsidy paid back in five years and then every year we get a check. The city would get a check for close to 20 some million dollars every year. Our debt could have been retired, we could have started startups. The money would have been there to develop it into some magnet, a tourist mecca. We could have had docks out there. I'm proud to be a member of this body, but I will be ashamed of it. For the rest of my days, if it squanders this opportunity to give the working poor and the poor and this city a chance to succeed. But the most important thing we blew, if we had gotten it at the IP site, and then the employees would have had to have been housed, there would have been a complete renaissance in the housing infrastructure where Erie's poor primarily lives. And so, the city council voted. No. No, he wants to. Okay. No. No. No. No. No. No. We just blew it. Just blew it. And I vote yes despite this absolute absurd, ridiculous, backward council that's more worried about an editorial, more worried about who's talking on talk radio, and more worried about the reelection than the arm of the future of the city of New York. Who cares about what we have to pay back? The bottom line is, is that we would get $166 million. Tell me next year that we don't have a dime. We text this up because we weren't expansive in our thinking. And we thought small. And what anybody wants to say about me, go ahead and say it, because I am dead right on this issue. I mean, they're finally admitting it now, that they should have listened. And every time you drive in that Eastside, you should be sick. You should get sick, seeing how people have to live. And we had a moment in time that there could have been a wave to really be a renaissance for the Eastside. Even with the best intentions, opportunities get missed. I understand what Ann Murray says when he's disappointed and has carried sort of a burden about the casino, but in my opinion, you've got to let that go. You've got to let that go and know there's another day to create something different that's going to move things forward and find out what you can do and get it done. I think the bigger question here isn't so much about what could have been done, what should have been done. I would look at that and say, yes, it could have been better. The ballpark could have been down there. There's a lot of things that could have been down there. But at one point, you've got to remember what our bayfront looked like. It was an absolute industrial wasteland full of factories. Hardly anybody went down there, fisheries. It's not the bayfront that we know today. When I was a young kid, you didn't go down there. It was dangerous. Then one of the few places you could go outside of the immediate public dock area was the boat ramp where the waterworks is. And that was just a short drive. And it was a treacherous track going down the hill. Now you look at all the thousands of people, the hundreds of thousands of people that enjoy our bayfront year in and year out, all year round. To me, it's been an unqualified success. Did it take money?

Yes.

Did it take a lot of money?

Yes.

But then it was over time. So we have to look at what's today.

Well now here we are 20, 30 years later going, well we need a different direction because the roadway isn't kind of keeping up with the demand. You know we can always pivot.

We can always adapt and we can always change. But oftentimes you'll find in policy and in politics people are risk averse. And perhaps there's good reason why our elected officials approach policy with caution. You know, what we're doing today is going to change the direction of Erie County for the rest of our lives. We want to make changes that are going to stay in place and help the city for many, many years to come. I'd be tempted to even say longer than that, but I'll just keep it to 20 to 30 years right now. But a declining population isn't the only thing affecting our region's revenue. We are a non-profit plethora with an Erie County. And that dwindles your tax base when a lot of the buildings are, you know, we need the non-profits, but if we're not looking at why do we need the non-profits, if we're not addressing the reasons behind, we're gonna find us in this cycle, this repeating cycle, and we're gonna never have enough resources until we adjust and address correctly root causes, fundamental root causes, then we will forever not have enough resources. And I think that that is something that we have continuously fallen victim to. [ Music ] World people are much more independent and they feel that, you know, kind of like the original idea of America was, you're your own person, you take care of yourself and you'll do well. You have all kinds of opportunities, but your work ethic is what's going to determine where you go. Now, I'm not trying to say that the people in the city don't have work ethic, that's not my intent. But I think what you find in metropolitan areas like Erie or Pittsburgh or whatever, there are a lot more resources and you have some people, a higher percentage of individuals below the poverty line and they need assistance from the government. So they're going to look towards a liberal, more liberal line where their representatives are going to say, "Hey, we're going to do more things to help you.

" Where on the other side of the coin down in the rural areas, they're more likely to say, "I can do that, I'll fix it myself.

" And so their politicians that are trying to get them to vote for them is kind of like saying, "You know, you're an independent person, we're going to give you the freedom that you always wanted and you can make it, you know, and it's not so much what can I get?

" And therefore you won't have as many, I guess maybe you might say in the rural areas, the poverty level, I'm not sure if it's any lower or anything like that, but they just think about getting out of that situation a little bit differently. That's my opinion. Like I said, I'm originally from Meadville and Gary being a bigger town, a city, they have a lot more resources than Meadville does. But I don't know, I don't have much family left. I'm thankful that there is mission like the Superior City Mission and Salvation Army. They have good programs too. Uh, Erie, um, I like to say it has a lot of resources, uh, but my fault is I don't know what a lot of them are.

I'm learning where they are, but it takes time. I'm hoping and praying. That's all I can say. Can't get worse. It got to get better. I think that that is something that we have continuously fallen victim to. We tend to show up where the loudest voices are and get funding not based on data but based on connection, especially nepotism. So there I said it. I did. If you're not predicting the market demand in the areas in which it is, and we're not investing in the people, our kids and grandkids are gonna continue to leave. So I mean, to me, that's why I fought as hard as I did to realign the second tranche arba money is infrastructure and workforce development. All these other things are great. But those economic drivers, to your point, is you invest in the workforce, you're investing in people. That's upward economic mobility. That's people that are making a low wage are now making a middle-class income or better. You have to re-prioritize what government does and where it makes these investments. And you know, I'm willing to put up with, you know, a couple of nonprofits or however many it's gonna be that are gonna get their funding cut or reduced. That is the reality of the crisis that we face. The money should be prioritized in other areas. Most of the money that comes in through Erie County are passed through dollars through the state to fund many of those programs. But when we have discretionary money, we should be very discreet in spending it. We should not take that money and use it for other issues. And so that's gonna play out too. In fact, I'm in the process of asking our controller to audit Mr.

Davis in our planning and economic development department. When we look at how our charter is outlined, it makes it pretty clear what a county executive can and cannot do. A great deal of the power within the county, our county structure lies within our county council, right? They really do, the county executive can create a budget, but they cannot, like they're not the end all be all. That really does come down to county council. When you think about the budget and the importance of that, that means how many staff can you have? Where are we sending money? What are we funding? What are we not funding? What nonprofits are we funding? Where are we sending, you know, the aides or grants that are kind of coming in? But when we look at some of the abuse of power, what we've also seen, you know, under Mr. Brett Davis, is this belief that he can personally kick people off of boards or authorities that were appointed by specifically county council members. You have, well, Republicans, with Democrats, liberals, emphasizing not equality of opportunity, but equality of result, and having a government that is promoting equality of result at the expense of liberty. So they would say, Democrats are spending all kinds of money on social welfare. What this is doing is it's taking money out of the business and private sector. It's snuffing entrepreneurship. It's quashing social mobility. It is a threat to liberty. That would be the Republican, kind of mainstream Republican critique of liberalism. Liberals would say about conservatives is that, you know, their emphasis on liberty, right, at the expense of equality, what it does is you create a rigid class system in which you don't have social mobility and a liberal would say, well, how much liberty is there for a kid in Appalachia or in the inner city of Erie? You know, if they don't have access to high quality education and social mobility, how free are you? (soft music) (soft music) - Chronicles was made possible thanks to a community assets grant provided by the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority, Springhill Senior Living, support by the Department of Education and the generous support of Thomas B. Hagan. We question and learn.