It's Councilmember Sharpe not Sharp and why point out only the two third ward council members? There were 4 that voted against the measure.

Holston- Because the two third ward councilmen represent the ward where the majority of the crime takes place. Wake up Holston.

George, I don't believe Captain Jackson of the UCPD has taken a position on the Mayor's proposed policy and I think it's a bit dishonest to construe her input to the Mayor on the proposed policy as an endorsement.

This is not the first time that someone has likened Councilmembers Sharpe, Price, Carr, and Crow to Republicans in Washington. This suggestion is beyond foolish. These four council members are the epitome of the diversity that is University City and they represent constituents in all three wards. This council has gotten a lot done in the last six months; but yet again, when the Mayor doesn't get her way, those who voted differently are branded as obstructionists. Its become tiresome and predictable.

The suggestion that these four council members are "obstructing executive leadership" is a farce and would lead one to believe that the Mayor has some type of executive authority and/or administration. The Mayor is one council member who has the same authority as the other six. In University City, the only executive leadership is the City Manager who is tasked with running the city and executing the policies set by city council. Then Councilmember Welsch explains how UCity works: http://youtu.be/XxQVqLiPiLU

Thanks Jeff for the explanation. I am a Republican, and believe that partisan politics have no place in a Charter local government. It puts mud in the water where clarity is necessary to execute solutions.

Jeff, my comment about Captain Jackson was based on the Mayor's letter. http://universitycity.patch.com/articles/mayor-welsch-why-we-should-create-a-crime-task-force. I don't believe I misrepresented it. It says:

"After speaking with Captain Carol Jackson with the University City Police Department, and reviewing our conversation with Police Chief Charles Adams, I would like to propose the establishment of a Citizens’ Task Force on Crime Awareness and Prevention in University City.

(cont'd)

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The Mayor's letter goes on with an extensive discussion of her collaboration with Captain Jackson. I recommend you read it.

It all made sense to me, Jeff. You seem to rebut my comments here as if someone has charged you with never missing a one!

I understand the "weak mayor" government structure we have. I don't happen to think it's proven that effective. The Mayor is "just" a council member, but she represents all wards. Further, she has put forth a great deal of effort to go above and beyond that role, not in some fiendish power-grab, but in a genuine effort to improve the community. I could be wrong, but I believe the time and effort she puts in significantly exceeds that of the other Council members--and that of some past Mayors.

Leadership is not just that which is authorized by legal status but that which is exercised through actions. It is those actions I have seen repeatedly blocked, and for reasons that do not strike me as justified by anything other than political motives.

I have spoken to others about this task force news, and they are all baffled by why the Council wouldn't want to do this. As am I...

George, I made the comment having already read the Mayors Patch editoriaI; I believe that it is dishonest to construe Captain Jackson's input as an endorsement. I believe the Mayor's editorial absolutely suggests that her proposed policy was endorsed by the Captain. Your comment echoed that when you stated: "she (Cpt. Jackson) and the Mayor have put forth a sound rationale for a Task Force and a reasonable mission for it". I don't believe Cpt. Jackson did any such thing.

I'm not sure to which "actions" you refer that have been repeatedly blocked, though again, I appreciate the predictability of your labeling those with whom the Mayor disagrees as having "political motives". Just last month, the Council voted 6-1 (including all four of those pesky politically motivated obstructionists) to hire four additional police officers as part of a plan to address recent crime and restore police staffing levels. Why is there a need for a Task Force? Does the Mayor believe that the Captain's monthly Police Focus Groups are a failure?

As for "leadership", I think the embarrassing Mayor-of-the-Year write up from the RFT describing how Mayor "Welsch has turned to her blog From the Mayor's Desk to address (that is, scold) officials who aren't marching in step" aptly sums up her divisive leadership style: self-righteous intolerance.

Jeff: I never said "endorsement." The mayor's letter says: "Captain Jackson and I developed a number of possible points/focus areas for a citizens’ group which, if implemented, Captain Jackson said 'can only make my job easier.'” Call it what you like; I'd call it collaboration and approval. Do you have evidence the quoted statement is false? If so, what is it? If not, what's your problem?

As to actions repeatedly blocked, let's start with the Avant/logo fiasco, then rejection of task forces not approved by Council. I have a sense there are more, but that's what I had in mind.

As to hiring more cops, that's apples and oranges. It's a welcome, but predictable, response to crime. A task force would look at ways to supplement these efforts, which may not involve the net increase in taxpayer cost that hiring more cops entails. Cops can't be everywhere.

Bottom line: there were constructive suggestions to be explored, with input from the PD, and the burden is on those opposed to a Task Force to show good reason not to have one. I haven't heard it.

Rather, this fits a clear pattern of distaste for Task Forces. First, Council requires its approval for Task Forces, then first chance it gets, it rejects one. Maybe we should call it what it is and say 4 members of Council don't believe in Task Forces--at least not with Mayor Welsch. "Mayor of the Year" from RFT was "embarrassing"? To whom? Why? I thought it was a fine, deserved approval of a hard-working public servant....

George, I'm not going to get into parsing words with you. You first say you never said it was an "endorsement" and in the next sentence, you call it "approval". What I have said is that it is reasonable to take what the Mayor wrote in her Patch editorial and construe it as an endorsement of the proposed policy. I think this is both incorrect and inappropriate and the Mayor should not inject Capt. Jackson in the political policy arena.

Let's talk about political grandstanding. It is only Mayor Welsch, who uses this media platform not just to promote her agenda, but to attack her colleagues on the council. For example, take her editorial on the budget in which she attacked Mr. Crow and Ms. Carr for their positions on the budget, which she then voted for just day's later. This is not constructive, is uncivil, and is the height of political grandstanding and it's one of the primary reasons we have such a dysfunctional dynamic on the council. I suppose it's also important to note that the budget passed 7-0.

George, you point to only two issues that you say represent actions "repeatedly blocked". Nonsense. If you went to the council meetings regularly, you would know that the vast majority of votes are passed or rejected with significant consensus. Take the last council meeting, I think there were 7 or 8 unanimous votes taken and just 1 or 2 that were not.

Parsing words is exactly what you are doing Jeff. Either the Mayor misquoted Capt. Jackson or not. Call it what you will. It's a true or false question, not a multiple choice vocabulary one. Apparently you have no evidence it was misquoted. So that leaves us with one of the people in the best position to know what is needed and possible in the way of citizen involvement in community policing having made specific, concrete suggestions, and others rejecting or ignoring them. Them's the facts, Jeff.

I don't doubt that increased resident involvement and input and greater citizen education would make the police department's job easier, this is achieved every month by citizens who attend the monthly Police Focus Group meetings. The Police Focus Group is a grassroots effort and has been for years, but apparently the only grassroots efforts that are not "top down" are the ones proposed by the Ms. Welsch. If the Mayor wants to put her name on something and get behind it, rather than reinvent the wheel, she should work to make more people aware of these monthly Police Focus Group meetings.

Apparently, Jeff concedes he has no evidence the quote is inaccurate. It is possible that a Task Force would include people who do not choose to attend Police Focus Groups, perhaps including out of distrust of police. It is also possible that different subjects would be discussed, as a Task Force initiated by Mayor Welsch is likely to have a specific charge of points to address. I believe her letter included some that probably don't get discussed at the existing meetings. As to grassroots vs. top-down, a task force has elements of both because it is responsive to a top-down "charge" yet includes a broad spectrum of citizen input.

George, the quotation speaks for itself: Captain Jackson was speaking to the concepts of increased involvement, education, and awareness making her job easier. It is the implementation of those concepts (which is already done through police focus groups) that make her job easier, not a task force. I believe the Mayor used Captain Jackson's words in an ambiguous way to give citizens the impression that her proposed task force was endorsed by the Captain; it's misleading, dishonest and puts the Captain in a difficult position of being in the political arena in the middle of the mayor's proposed policy.

This task force nonsense is transparently political much like the Mayor herself. We need work toward increasing awareness and participation in our monthly police focus groups and we need a Mayor who cares about substance more than image. If this were really about a grassroots effort, it certainly wouldn't have been conceived and promoted from the top-down.

Jeff: the lack of evidence that Carol Jackson was misquoted is duly noted. The only argument against this Task Force seems to be that it is duplicative and that the Mayor shouldn't be allowed to lead in this manner. If it is all volunteers, where is the harm in duplication? And would it really be 100% duplicative? Do the current groups actually address all the points the Mayor raised in her letter?

Come of it George, Capt. Jackson was quoted as stating only the following: "can only make my job easier". The rest of it was entirely framed by the Mayor in her editorial aimed at garnering support for her proposal. You can continue to try to litigate this all you want. You're asking questions to which there is no answer because the proposal for the task force was vague in its purpose and lacked that specific "charge" you spoke of. If the purpose is not clearly defined, and we already have our monthly citizen/police focus groups, the question is not whether there is harm in duplication, but rather why is there a need for it - beyond the apparent shameless political self-promotion through her editorials on this media outlet. Again, long on image, short on substance. Where's the beef?

I guess you can't read, Jeff. Following that quote are specific bullets, with a strong implication they represent "possible points/focus areas for a citizens’ group which, if implemented, Captain Jackson said 'can only make my job easier.'” including: "With increased resident input/involvement, Captain Jackson feels she/we can be successful in attracting more people to get involved in these programs. Captain Jackson said she welcomes more ideas on how to get people to “buy-in”. NOTE: In Captain Jackson’s opinion she should be doing home security audits constantly, but she is not"; "Per Captain Jackson, as part of this effort we can help residents understand how we are already implementing the COPS approach to policing, i.e. Community Oriented Policing Strategy"; and "Captain Jackson strongly recommends that when a task force is established that 'new' people be brought into the process, that we not already appoint the already-active 'regulars.' She believes we will benefit by hearing new voices in this discussion."

Where's your beef, Jeff? You still haven't provided a shred of evidence anything the Mayor said is false. Calling it "shameless political self-promotion" "long on image, short on substance" is nonsense. It reads to all but the most obstinately and reflexively anti-Mayor citizen as an earnest effort at community improvement, responsive to a real issue.

Yes, George, I can't read. Your thoughtfulness is only exceeded by your charm.

Thanks for the compliment, Jeff. I have been rewarded for thoughtfulness my whole life, as a student and a professional; charm I tend to be less sure of. So I appreciate the contribution to my self esteem. If my charm exceeds my thoughtfulness, it's pretty good...