Editorial
Two letters to the editor: It is time for change / Look no further than handling of budget when electing Fall River’s next mayor
During the recent budget session that transpired for all city residents to witness, the current mayor clearly showed lack of compassion towards the taxpayers and citizens. His budget
included wasteful spending and unnecessary pay raises that violated city salary ordinances. He said, “We’re looking at it and we will get the budget back to them. We have some work to do obviously.” That work was counting days on a calendar, not working to create a balanced budget. After warning him about utilizing one-time federal money to finance his “ambush” budget, the mayor did not think about the potential consequences at the time and still proceeded to jam it down the throat of Fall River citizens. Does that sound like he made YOU a priority?
The mayor’s handling of “his” ambush budget will become an even bigger problem for the citizens of Fall River shortly! Just recently the Department of Revenue advised our city that one-time federal money (ARPA) CANNOT be used to balance that budget! In addition, Coogan and his financial team have been told to recalculate their loss of revenue accordingly. The budget deficit will equate to be in the MILLIONS because of Paul Coogan’s reckless and irresponsible financial mismanagement with federal dollars. The city must balance its budget or DOR will not certify the city’s tax rate, and that will mean NO money for the second half of the year.
This dire situation facing our city now was discussed by City Councilors Michelle Dionne, Shawn Cadime, and City Council President Cliff Ponte. The pending financial issues facing our city will impact the citizens’ pocketbooks for years to come! Those issues are going to require planning, critical thinking, and financial acumen to overcome positively for taxpayers.
The city will need a decisive leader, someone who won’t shy away from the issues no matter their difficulty. When it comes to financial issues, the irrational, incompetent, and callous disregard for working class citizens displayed by Paul Coogan, showed clearly, he is not making YOU a priority! Paul Coogan is willing to mortgage the city for one more term. I will not vote to give him that chance!
Nelson Vasquez
Fall River
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Kimberly Souza
October 7, 2021 at 12:53 am
Politics itself is a whirlwind, and I’m strong in my opinion and vote goes to Cliff Ponte. I’ve seen what has been done and what can be. I stand by my decision.
Twitwanger
October 7, 2021 at 2:09 pm
When Rome fell it had a long period where the electorate kept changing leadership because nothing ever changed. Looks familiar, history repeats itself and the people fail to make real change. But don’t worry because with the introduction of electronic voting machines you will be spoonfed the strongest poison available. I sure do love the taste of fluoride in this Fall River “drinking” water. I’m going back to sleep now!