Twelve months of Taylor

[MichaelC]

From Tulsa World

quote:One year ago this week, Tulsa elected Kathy Taylor to be its new mayor.

The past 12 months have been tiring with all the late nights and early mornings, she said Sunday before speaking at a breakfast for Temple Israel's Brotherhood service group.

Taylor had already attended a few other weekend community events.

She said she expected the harried schedule since the day early last year when she suddenly changed her mind and decided to run for mayor.

She called her husband and cut a check for the cost to run.

The chaos started. First it was running for mayor. Now it's being the mayor.

"I'm not very balanced right now, and that would be the truth," Taylor said over a plate of eggs and half an "everything" bagel.

"I knew the first 12 to 18 months would be like this. In another six months, I hope to have a more balanced schedule."

Taylor's friends don't see her nearly as much. Her family has sacrificed time with her and also a certain amount of privacy.

Still, she said, the past year has brought together her husband, daughter, stepdaughter and grandchildren "in an amazing way."

Taylor then went to the lectern

to speak to about 75 people at the temple.

She outlined the three pillars of her leadership -- education, public safety, economic development -- and what she and her staff have done, and have yet to do, in each.

Education: Taylor lauded the watershed announcement of Tulsa Community College's Tulsa Achieves scholarship, which will pay up to 100 percent of tuition and mandatory fees for Tulsa County high school graduates.

But Oklahoma still has one of the highest dropout rates in the country and incarcerates women at a rate greater than other states, she noted.

Public safety: Taylor stood by her decision to look outside the department for a new Tulsa police chief, although that is being challenged by the three internal applicants.

Crime in Tulsa has dropped overall by 4.4 percent, but Taylor said it's skyrocketed within a few ZIP codes of the city.

Economic development: Taylor said development downtown and along the Arkansas River would struggle without an improved mass transit system.

She supports the proposed relocation of City Hall to One Technology Center downtown. Taylor said the move would save the city money in energy costs and also clear the current City Hall site for a convention hotel.

Asked about development along the Arkansas River, Taylor said her priority is water.

"If we're going to have a river, it has to have water in it," she said.

Beautification of the river and installation of trails is the next goal, along with finding mixed-use commercial development for the area, she said.

David Nierenberg, the vice president of the Brotherhood's board, said that although Taylor is not Jewish, she was invited to Temple Israel in the interest of interfaith community building.

[inteller]

quote:Originally posted by MichaelC

From Tulsa World

quote:One year ago this week, Tulsa elected Kathy Taylor to be its new mayor.

The past 12 months have been tiring with all the late nights and early mornings, she said Sunday before speaking at a breakfast for Temple Israel's Brotherhood service group.

Taylor had already attended a few other weekend community events.

She said she expected the harried schedule since the day early last year when she suddenly changed her mind and decided to run for mayor.

She called her husband and cut a check for the cost to run.

The chaos started. First it was running for mayor. Now it's being the mayor.

"I'm not very balanced right now, and that would be the truth," Taylor said over a plate of eggs and half an "everything" bagel.

"I knew the first 12 to 18 months would be like this. In another six months, I hope to have a more balanced schedule."

Taylor's friends don't see her nearly as much. Her family has sacrificed time with her and also a certain amount of privacy.

Still, she said, the past year has brought together her husband, daughter, stepdaughter and grandchildren "in an amazing way."

Taylor then went to the lectern

to speak to about 75 people at the temple.

She outlined the three pillars of her leadership -- education, public safety, economic development -- and what she and her staff have done, and have yet to do, in each.

Education: Taylor lauded the watershed announcement of Tulsa Community College's Tulsa Achieves scholarship, which will pay up to 100 percent of tuition and mandatory fees for Tulsa County high school graduates.

But Oklahoma still has one of the highest dropout rates in the country and incarcerates women at a rate greater than other states, she noted.

Public safety: Taylor stood by her decision to look outside the department for a new Tulsa police chief, although that is being challenged by the three internal applicants.

Crime in Tulsa has dropped overall by 4.4 percent, but Taylor said it's skyrocketed within a few ZIP codes of the city.

Economic development: Taylor said development downtown and along the Arkansas River would struggle without an improved mass transit system.

She supports the proposed relocation of City Hall to One Technology Center downtown. Taylor said the move would save the city money in energy costs and also clear the current City Hall site for a convention hotel.

Asked about development along the Arkansas River, Taylor said her priority is water.

"If we're going to have a river, it has to have water in it," she said.

Beautification of the river and installation of trails is the next goal, along with finding mixed-use commercial development for the area, she said.

David Nierenberg, the vice president of the Brotherhood's board, said that although Taylor is not Jewish, she was invited to Temple Israel in the interest of interfaith community building.

Balanced?  Well that's JUST KRAZY!!!!!!

[TheArtist]

...said over a plate of eggs and half an "everything" bagel.


I am absolutely aghast! They didn't even tell us what she was wearing![:O]  Amateurs.

[USRufnex]

"If we're going to have a river, it has to have water in it," she said.

'atta girl... take a stand!  [8D]

/sarcasm

[Conan71]

She outlined the three pillars of her leadership -- education, public safety, economic development -- and what she and her staff have done, and have yet to do, in each.

Education: Taylor lauded the watershed announcement of Tulsa Community College's Tulsa Achieves scholarship, which will pay up to 100 percent of tuition and mandatory fees for Tulsa County high school graduates.

She had nothing to do with this, but if she wants to take credit, go ahead Kathy.

But Oklahoma still has one of the highest dropout rates in the country and incarcerates women at a rate greater than other states, she noted.

Let's see, you are not the Gov.  Talk about your own record.

Public safety: Taylor stood by her decision to look outside the department for a new Tulsa police chief, although that is being challenged by the three internal applicants.

Standing by her decision to defy the city charter, great work Kathy.

Crime in Tulsa has dropped overall by 4.4 percent, but Taylor said it's skyrocketed within a few ZIP codes of the city.

Again, tell us what you personally did to put that dent in crime?

Economic development: Taylor said development downtown and along the Arkansas River would struggle without an improved mass transit system.

Excuses, excuses, excuses.  The average Tulsan refuses to use mass transit.  How about getting Himilfarb out on the road to actively recruit quality employers.

She supports the proposed relocation of City Hall to One Technology Center downtown. Taylor said the move would save the city money in energy costs and also clear the current City Hall site for a convention hotel.

Blah, blah, blah, boondoggle

Asked about development along the Arkansas River, Taylor said her priority is water.

"If we're going to have a river, it has to have water in it," she said.

My God, she sure is a smart kookie

Beautification of the river and installation of trails is the next goal, along with finding mixed-use commercial development for the area, she said.

What are those pea gravel and asphalt thingies between the roadway and the river called?

David Nierenberg, the vice president of the Brotherhood's board, said that although Taylor is not Jewish, she was invited to Temple Israel in the interest of interfaith community building.

I hope she didn't ask for bacon or sausage

Yes, she might actually be as incompetent as Mayor Lessfortunate.  Let's just hope next election someone presents themself as a far better candidate, not an acceptible alternative to the existing administration.

[RecycleMichael]

Conan...are you announcing your candidacy?

[rwarn17588]

I think she's done OK.

At least she doesn't have that  head-in-the-clouds obliviousness and if-I-ignore-it-maybe-it'll-go-away leadership of her predecessor.

As for the crime drop last year, she and the police did institute Operation Bullet Trap, which was effective. LaFortune sat around and did nothing last year when crime surged on his watch.

Tulsa's a strongly Republican town. But even it will jump the fence politically if the leadership is bad enough. The mayoral election was proof.

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by recyclemichael

Conan...are you announcing your candidacy?

No, I'd never pass muster with the Utica Square crowd.  Besides I like to sleep at night.[]

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by rwarn17588

I think she's done OK.

At least she doesn't have that  head-in-the-clouds obliviousness and if-I-ignore-it-maybe-it'll-go-away leadership of her predecessor.

As for the crime drop last year, she and the police did institute Operation Bullet Trap, which was effective. LaFortune sat around and did nothing last year when crime surged on his watch.

Tulsa's a strongly Republican town. But even it will jump the fence politically if the leadership is bad enough. The mayoral election was proof.

But you ARE basically saying she's done "OK" and not "great" or "good".

I think we went from a piss-poor mayor to a mediocre mayor.  Tulsa deserves better than mediocre.  I think they are both incompetent, and Ms. Taylor got to where she is via patronage.  She talks a lot, but I have yet to see any real progress in her administration except in using my city water bill to raise revenue.  

LaFortune showed signs of political retardation when he suspended the police chief just prior to the election.  He's the perfect example of someone using their name to get to a position they are not at all suited for.

[rwarn17588]

I think OK as "good," although the jury's still out. Remember how LaFortune did OK for two years, then his administration went straight off a cliff? I'll take OK, especially when it comes to government.

I think "great" is darned near impossible, short of drawing a dozen Fortune 500 companies to town.

So she wasn't a "great" candidate. You go with the cards you're dealt. I wasn't about to vote for a bum hand like LaFortune for another four years. There are a few suckers people on this board who ripped into LaFortune for nearly all of his tenure, then did an about-face and supported him when they realized that a Democrat (horrors!) was likely to be elected. That was clearly a case of partisanship trumping common sense.

[RecycleMichael]

You guys know that I have a propensity to defend the current Mayor.

But I have followed city politics since the 70s when my mother was the city hall reporter for the Tulsa World. I have learned to judge politicians not with what they do in their first year, but their second.

Get a budget passed from scratch through the city council and then stay within those parameters for the whole year proves leadership to me.

[Conan71]

I thought Susan Savage was a very good mayor and did not have a problem voting for her, lots of Republicans did vote for her.  I voted for her, I voted for David Boren, and I voted for several Democrats in state offices this last year including Brad Henry and Gerri Askins.  I generally tend to vote the candidate and not the party.  Party-line voting makes as much sense to me as single-issue voting.

I did not vote for Ms. Taylor, I thought she was too much of a carpet-bagger outsider.  It was obvious to me with her deer-in-the-headlights look after being confronted with voting in two jurisdictions she'd been caught in a lie.  She did not offer a firm denial until after one of her toadies had been able to verify no evidence still existed to prove it.  Secondly, someone running for mayor of our city whilst claiming a homestead exemption in another city and state is a big no-no in my books.

I was willing to suffer four more years of Mayor Bill instead of handing the office to someone I didn't trust.  It was frustrating there weren't more capable candidates in the running.  Just like the DA's race, choose between Harris or Swab.  I had to pick the lesser of two evils.

So far, I don't think Ms. Taylor has done anything substantive.  I agree, RM, I do understand it takes more than a year to get through the transition and get all your agendas moving forward.  We'll see in another year if she's really that great a leader.

[shadows]

12 month as mayor with 36 to go?  

The mayor wants to find the best qualified police chief, in a costly search over the entire country.

Being we are in the specialist age where we seek the best qualified to run the city departments, relying on their education and experience as a necessity for employment, we seem to be coming up with amateurs filling our most important job of selecting personnel and operating the city.

Person that donate their time to performing a job has no obligation other than a status standing in playing the Tulsa Monopoly Board game that old Santa brought them for Christmas.  In the morning paper is well illustrated that on the annexing question the mayor is going back three spaces and drop it if the county will agree relinquish some of their responsibility .

If we do not have three qualified personal with the years of experience needed to be Chief of Police, we should also look at the qualifications of the mayors office and the amateurs, without degrees in Administration or experience that sit on the council.  

In this rapidly changing space age, in order to get educated persons with degrees in Administration we should consider raising the salary of full time councilors to $100,000 yearly but require they have proper credentials to perform the jobs in question.   They also would need to replace the department heads thus combining several jobs into one.   We should also include the office of mayor.

These changes would insure equal protection for all the classes of citizens we have in the city.   On the bottom line it would save millions of the working poor tax monies.

We are in the high speed area of fast moving events being driven by seemly amateurs.   Is it not time to enter the expressways?      

[Wilbur]

I'll have to say anyone would be an improvement over Bill LaFortune, who I had great hopes for.  Who I believe a lot of people had great hopes for.  But he demonstrated to too many people he did not have what it took to run this city.  He was far too hands off.

Mayor Taylor is a lot like Susan Savage.  Very involved in a lot of projects.  Although, the dog catcher could look good following LaFortune.

I have some serious concerns with Taylor.  Her latest statement saying she is keeping the names of outside police chief candidates secret is disturbing.  Does this mean she, and only she, will be conducting the entire hiring process?  At least with past mayors, who made public the names of the candidates and there were community panels who assisted in the hiring process and made recommendations to past mayors.  Why do I believe she already has someone picked, and had them picked prior to this process starting.

And I can't blame only Taylor for my last point.  Many past mayors claimed poverty, right up to the point they found something they wanted to spend huge amounts of money on, then miraculously, found the money.  Can you say 'a new city hall?'

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by Wilbur

I'll have to say anyone would be an improvement over Bill LaFortune, who I had great hopes for.  Who I believe a lot of people had great hopes for.  But he demonstrated to too many people he did not have what it took to run this city.  He was far too hands off.

Mayor Taylor is a lot like Susan Savage.  Very involved in a lot of projects.  Although, the dog catcher could look good following LaFortune.

I have some serious concerns with Taylor.  Her latest statement saying she is keeping the names of outside police chief candidates secret is disturbing.  Does this mean she, and only she, will be conducting the entire hiring process?  At least with past mayors, who made public the names of the candidates and there were community panels who assisted in the hiring process and made recommendations to past mayors.  Why do I believe she already has someone picked, and had them picked prior to this process starting.

And I can't blame only Taylor for my last point.  Many past mayors claimed poverty, right up to the point they found something they wanted to spend huge amounts of money on, then miraculously, found the money.  Can you say 'a new city hall?'

Wilbur, what is the opinion amongst the rank and file officers at TPD over this?

"Outsider" to me means we have to pay someone more money to come to Tulsa in the first place.  Someone who is not in tune with the culture of our police department.

Kathy's an outsider so I guess it's irrelevant to her that many Tulsans would be more comfortable having someone who made his bones on the local PD be promoted, rather than another of her cronies put in as chief.  I think it stinks.