S Warren Neighborhood Association
Concerned Citizens join our free Association. Help us help each other.
Contact us at wecare@macombhistory.us
The purpose is to help each other.
We support neighborhood watch groups to help protect each other. Please report any crime activity both to the police and us so that we can warn our members. This is why email works best. We do not have the staff or manpower to knock on doors.
Meeting Third Tuesdays at South Side Grill 9 Mile at Warner 7:30
See crime alerts at http://macombhistory.us/miscitems/nw.html
We become aware of problems and find solutions.
South Warren Facts (from SEMCG and city-data.com)
19% of S Warren residents are over age 60 and dependent on Social Security
24% of our population are children
In Poverty 23%
Of Female headed families with children 37.5% are in poverty.
Unemployment rate in South Warren is 20%
People on fixed low income due to disability 10%
38% of homeowners are below water meaning they are in big trouble. There are about 300 foreclosed homes in South Warren Others are about to lose theirs.
The total residential vacancy rate has more than doubled in 2008 and has not bottomed out
In 2008, the median wage and salary income in the region was only $31,400.
In summary over half of south Warren residents are hurting, and many unemployed.
We address local or state government with our concerns.
We don't like to be negative but we want to bring to your attention things that affect you.
City Officials have closed all of our libraries except Civic Center. This is robbing our neighborhood children. The problem is that they are only giving Busch and Burnette 5% each of the library staffing budget while wasting over two million dollars on overpaid excessive staff at Civic Center and Miller. There is no need to close our neighborhood libraries. Help us stop these closings Join our free South Warren Neighborhood Association now contact us at wecare@macombhistory.us
We sent the Library Commission the following letter on April 20, 2010
Plan To Keep All Branches Open
To Warren Library Commission:
Do you have the courage to do what is right for our children? The South Warren neighborhood Association strongly requests that you keep the Busch and Burnette Branches open. These are needed by our citizens. We have examined the 2010 budget and find it is possible to keep them open. There is no need to close them.
1 Put a temporary halt to purchases of videos and everything not absolutely necessary.
2 Busch and Burnette only require two persons to run them plus one part time. Run these without a supervisor. Reduce hours if necessary.
Consider that In South Warren (Following from SEMCG) 19% of the residents are Age 60 up, 24% of our population are children, 15-22.7% of the population is now below the poverty level, The Unemployment rate 20% (city-data.com) 10% are disabled.
Consider over 300 homes have been foreclosed in S Warren and that the under 50% left the median wage and salary income was $31,400 and falling. So it is very fair to ask that higher paid folks give a little. Since union contracts expire June 30, 2010. Insist on temporary concessions from all supervisors and higher paid staff. (Granted you are not the ones to do this but the city bargainer can.)
There are five people who cost the library about $100,000 per person. That is excessive during this depression. Ask for temporary concessions from all supervisory staff and the library director. If they do not concede do not rehire them. Ask for concessions from higher paid staff if necessary. (Better to have a job than no job.) Note the benefits packages the supervisors and director get put them about $100,000 per year. If you don't believe this look at the budget. (see page 2 exactly from City 2010 budget)
Taxpayers are not going to vote for a millage to line pockets of overpaid directors and supervisors. But if we can show that cuts have been made there is hope for a millage.
Don't buy this nonsense that we have to have high priced masters degree librarians and x number of supervisors and a library director just because the State of Michigan would like that. These are tough times and they are not going to close our libraries down if we don't meet their high demands until this economic crisis is over. Don't cave in to this dictatorial government nonsense. These neighborhood libraries don't need this. What our children and citizens need in the south side is to keep those little neighborhood libraries open. The state funds are going to be cut anyway.
Cut back on staffing and hours is necessary at all libraries. Cut children's librarian if necessary. It is better to have libraries without a dedicated children's librarian than to not have libraries.
Cut down on all unnecessary spending.
If you look at the budget you will see that it is possible to keep all branches open and most staff jobs with consessions.
Remember serving the citizens by having libraries open is our real mission not lining the pockets of a few supervisors and having a single showcase library which in effect really cheats our children and citizens in the South Side out of library services.
You don't want to be forever known as the Library Commission who destroyed our libraries and robbed our children.
Sincerely, South Warren Neighborhood Association
Library Budget Adopted By Council for 2010 exactly as it is on page 182
LIBRARY No. Rate
Library Director 1 $ 92,175 plus benefits (over$100,000)
Branch Library Supervisor 4 73,483 plus benefits (over$100,000)
Branch Librarian 3 59,421
Senior Library Assistant - Special Services 1 27.45/hr.
Library Technician 6 50,802
Senior Clerk 1 53,689
Permanent Part-time Employees:
Library Pages 200,000
Assistant Librarians (Substitutes) 90,000
Overtime 8,000
Total Personnel 16
(a) Wage rates are based on Local 1250, Local 412 Unit 35 and Local 1917 contracts that expire 6/30/09.
SPECIAL REVENUE FUND REQUESTED AND APPROVED page 183
LIBRARY FY 2010 SPECIAL REVENUE FUND Adopted EXPENDITURES: By Council
Personnel Services:
Appointed Official $ 92,551
Permanent Employees 891,403
Permanent Part-time Employees - Pages 290,000
Overtime 8,000
Shift Premium 8,000
Employee Benefits:
Education Allowance 12,000
Social Security 104,059
Employee Insurance 218,174
Retiree Health Insurance 352,638
Longevity 37,251
Retirement Fund 416,729
Cost of Living 3,454
Uniforms 190
Auto Allowance 3,600 - -
Legal Services 2,480
Total Employee Benefits 1,160,575 If you divide that by 16 you get average per employee of $72,535.94
This is excessive
Office Supplies 30,000
Other Services and Charges:
Copy Machine Expense 12,000
Contractual Services 8,500
Cooperative Services 150,000
Library Cooperative-Indirect Aid 45,000
Postage 3,750
Video Cassettes and Tapes 14,000
Library Circulating Materials 21,000
Periodicals 17,000
Telephone 13,000
Mileage 1,500
Auto Expense 2,000
Training & Workshops 500
Book Binding 200
Public Utilities 242,000
Repairs & Maintenance 18,000
Warren is also Reducing Fire Coverage in South Warren This is putting Lives at risk.
Warren is cutting Fire Service and appears to be cutting Police Service to South Warren. We have had increasing crime in South Warren. And why are South Warren Residents and businesses being harassed by Warren City Police and Inspectors?
New Map of Warren
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Warren |
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696
Sub Warren
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Sub Warren is the area of the old Warren south of 696 which is having its Libraries, and Community Center, closed
and Fire Service, Police service and other City services cut and having its residents harassed by Police and City Inspectors.
We don't like being negative but Sub Warren is having all of its Libraries taken away,
Fire House #1 located at Federal and 9 Mile Road is shutting down Ladder Engine #1
The Owen Jax Community Center is to be closed.
We have several cases of police are going thru S Warren harassing senior citizens and homeowners who are taxpayers with petty harassments when they open your gate and go walking in your back yard looking for any imperfection then issuing tickets and insisting on expensive building permits even for such petty things as they don't like the paint job on your house.
Other examples:
Gutter has a leaking joint and inspector says you have to get a building permit (over $100 just to caulk it)
firewood not up 18 inches
an old tire setting at back of house
Garden vegetables and Corn are more than 6” high
Not allowed to have a rabbit or chicken in a cage in back yard even though no neighbor has complained.
Senior citizen was hit from behind damaging his car and sending him to the hospital on Sunday. Had his car towed to his house until could find repair shop Monday, and make arrangements for repair. Released from hospital Monday to find city had towed his car to an expensive impound lot less than 24 hours from accident time and costing senior citizen hundreds of dollars. (He would have had car repair shop pick up car that same day.)
Another citizen reports was selling car in driveway whose license just expired (by two days) buyer coming over but police towed car to impound lot.
My hired help sitting in my back yard eating a slice of pizza arrested for trespassing but when I tried to say he works for me to clean up my back yard the police officer told me to shut up and they cuffed my laborer and put him in jail for 30 days for trespassing when he was not. Then the court forced an attorney on him who insisted he plead guilty when he objected he was told to shut up. Then the court ordered him to pay $250 dollars to the attorney who had forced him to now have a criminal record. This really happened. Look at case of Curt Manhart
Not allowed to rent a goat to cut grass in back yard thus saving environment from noise and fumes from gasoline mower.
Senior Citizen finally finds classic car and has it towed to his long driveway far off of the street. Car needs engine so he is making arrangements to get an engine. No neighbors object to his one classic car. Police open his fence gate and go to the back of the driveway where his one and only classic car is and since car has no plates yet they have his car towed. No neighbors complained, no one objected to him having his dream car in his back driveway. This was not blight. This man was in a war defending our country and has several medals. This is harassment.
Meanwhile our South Warren neighborhoods are beginning to suffer a crime spree. It seems to us that it would be more productive for the police to spend more time preventing crime than harassing our taxpaying residents.
And South Warren Business Owners are being harassed. Example Big Boy and car dealers are allowed to have waving banners up for weeks but little struggling Brothers Restaurant couldn't have a little string of triangular wavers at its front door. They were threatened with a stiff fine. And Brothers is struggling for survival because all other businesses in that strip mall have been harassed out of business or otherwised closed.
General Distributors called the police to report their sign on their building had been stolen then they later found out that the city had paid someone to dismount their sign and was billing them for that. The sign was not defective and posed no safety risk and was attached to their building. The city's complaint was that it was a little too big according to the code. But the business owner was not given sufficient time to modify it.
Again and again we hear from business owners who are harassed by city inspectors. Of course if there is a health and or safety concern that should be addressed. But business owners in South Warren are reporting petty harassments and if they don't comply they face multi hundred dollar fines. I have heard several South Warren business owners say that they would move out of Warren if they could to cities who are more considerate of struggling business owners.
We are building an information base on where to get supplies, or services at lower cost. If you are a local business and would like more business and would offer a small discount to local residents contact us.
We can hopefully help create a better place to live.
We can help keep you better informed on local issues.
If you are interested in possibly joining our group send an email to swwna@macombhistory.us
Everyone who is interested in helping or getting information is welcome to join regardless of address.
We are happy to both assist and welcome members of the Lincoln Neighborhood Association. We salute this organization for the fine work they do to help Warren residents. See their web page http://www.lincolnneighborhoodassociation.org/
We are not at the point they are because we do not at this time have volunteers to do repairs or grass cutting..
Meetings are held by prior agreement of the group. At this time we have no scheduled meetings but rather carry on email discussions. There are also no dues.
Discussions are easier, faster, more convenient and timely held by email as that fits everyone's schedule. This is better during heat, cold, bad weather, during mosquito season and during flu outbreaks. Better for those with children as no babysitter needed. This saves on gas and time. Also restrooms in the parks are often locked. No cash outlay needed if local restaurant is used as we must buy something to use it.
For those who don't have email you can use the library computer and log on to yahoo.com or mail.com or webmail.aol.com/ or do a search on free email accounts. You can sign up for a free email account. Then you will be able to participate in our discussions and receive information. Email discussions are more timely, save time, gas, best during bad weather, heat, cold and best of all fits everyone's schedule.
We have just started Facebook.com/Warrenites also for discussions but some members prefer just email.