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Mr. Kraft noted that he was in the Loop both Friday and Saturday night and said that on <br />Saturday it was worse than last summer. He said that last year the Council came <br />together quickly to pass an ordinance on curfew that seemed to work and felt the <br />Council now could quickly come together to pass any ordinance proposed this year. Mr. <br />Kraft said the auditors came to University City last week and some members of the <br />Council were present. He found the audit informative and welcomed the audit <br />recommendations that make sure taxpayer’s money is handled more responsibly. Mr. <br />Kraft agreed with Mr. Schweich response, “What we want is for people to look at the <br />recommendations, implement the recommendations and make the City better.” He also <br />supported the recommendation that Council comes together to address the problems <br />outlined in the report. Mr. Kraft was only going to address three of the items in the <br />report for this meeting. He said the first would be the 1.5 million dollar uncollected <br />delinquent trash bills. Mr. Kraft said that the City first needs some reliable data in order <br />to make reasonable decisions. He said he would suggest it be divided into two parts: <br />current collections, policies and second long- term delinquent accounts. Mr. Kraft said <br />there needs to be a stated policy to describe what are a delinquent account and the <br />procedures in place as to how they will be handled. He said it has been suggested that <br />unpaid trash bills be treated like unpaid parking tickets and violators would be subject to <br />housing court procedures. On long-term delinquencies the City needs to make sure that <br />liens have been filed, service is terminated unless there is an active payment plan in <br />place and then pursue payment perhaps through an outside collection agency or selling <br />the debt. He noted that these were suggestions however the State Auditor has made it <br />clear that whatever the City is currently doing is not working. Mr. Kraft said audit issue <br />number two is the cost of legal services. He said especially egregious was the <br />$146,000 cost for legal fees incurred because of failure to notify the insurance company <br />in a timely fashion. Mr. Kraft said audit issue number three was the surprise of the Loop <br />parking garage never being mentioned by the City’s internal auditors never mentioning <br />the potential problems with the contract and management of the garage. Mr. Kraft said <br />with the issues he just mentioned, trash, legal costs and the parking structure he <br />welcomes ideas from staff, citizens and other Council members. He said he would <br />comment on the other financial issues in future meetings. Mr. Kraft asked his <br />colleagues to work together to solve the problems identified in the State Audit. <br /> <br />Mayor Welsch said in reference to the Loop, she has met with Mayor Frances Slay, <br />County Executive Charles Dooley, Wellston Mayor Linda Whitfield, Vinita Park James <br />McGee, and Clayton Mayor Linda Goldstein and discussed what they can do working <br />together to deal with the large crowds of youths who are moving throughout the <br />community. She said that no one was willing to step up to work with University City and <br />that is why she has included youth in her Mayor’s task force. The task force is doing an <br />asset inventory to try to find out what is available for the youth of University City and the <br />youth of the region so they have something to do. The task force will also do a need <br />survey throughout the community to find out what the youth want, need and desire for <br />the leaders to do for them. This task force will come back with a recommendation with <br />how to move forward. That will not solve this problem as it has to be solved on a <br />regional basis. Mayor Welsch continued to ask anyone with any idea to contact their <br />City Representatives and the City Manager and the City leadership will continue to try to <br />get others in the region to work with them. Mayor Welsch assured that the City will be <br />dealing with it here anyway they can within the law, within the budget and within the <br />City’s staffing concerns. She said this Council is committed to solving this problem as it <br />has been going on for three years. Mayor Welsch said that the police tell them that <br />every year the situation changes so the City will have to be flexible as to how it handles <br />it this year and next year but we have to acknowledge that we have to deal with the <br />youth and lack of recreational opportunities on a region wide basis. <br /> <br />