Community meetings

Letter to the Editor: Area garage praised by out-of-state traveler caught in a pinch

<p>Upon taking charge of Luzerne County&#8217;s largest city last week, new Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George characterized himself as a &#8220;beat cop.&#8221;</p><p>That&#8217;s a sweet sentiment from the city&#8217;s former police chief, echoing a tone he set during the campaign as a political newcomer with only the noblest of goals: making the community safer. But, frankly, campaign season should have ended two months ago.</p><p>It&#8217;s time to adopt the tone and tactics of a politician &#8211; in the purest sense of the word &#8211; by communicating effectively with city employees and constituents, building coalitions, pushing for priority issues and tactfully managing operations. In short, leading.</p><p>The $64,000 question for city stakeholders, from South Main Street merchants to Miners Mills neighborhood residents, is whether the 64-year-old George will be up to the task. The Democrat&#8217;s lackluster performance at a fall candidates forum had some people imploring departing Mayor Tom Leighton, also a Democrat, to mount an eleventh-hour, write-in campaign.</p><p>Much to his credit, George, has since made only shrewd public moves. The one-term city councilman opted to forego any fancy inaugural celebration. &#8220;Now is not the time for a party in Wilkes-Barre,&#8221; he said. He also flatly rejected rumors that he&#8217;ll repopulate City Hall with a recycled cast of characters who worked there under a prior administration. In fact, his choices for top posts, announced last Thursday, included a few surprising retentions and one historic appointment &#8211; the naming of Lt. Marcella Lendacky as the first woman to serve as the city&#8217;s police chief.</p><p>Oh, and Mayor George also shaved certain administrators&#8217; salaries, including his own. His $2,000 pay cut puts his yearly salary at $82,779.</p><p>For City Hall observers, all those decisions can be viewed as good signals. As George and fellow city residents fully recognize, however, Wilkes-Barre faces big challenges for the foreseeable future.</p><p>Certain streets, including major thoroughfares, are in deplorable shape. Gaping holes still exist in a much-improved downtown business district. The city&#8217;s $51.5 million budget for this year might contain pie-in-the-sky projections, perhaps calling for revision. Blighted properties reduce the desirability of neighborhoods. Crime &#8211; and perceptions about the city&#8217;s trajectory &#8211; discourage some visitation and potential investment. Public cynicism, fueled by the area&#8217;s public corruption scandals, lingers.</p><p>George can apply lessons he learned during years on the beat (stay vigilant, it&#8217;s easier to keep the peace by making connections than making threats, know when to duck) to be an extremely effective mayor.</p><p>But he certainly is a &#8220;beat cop&#8221; no more.</p><p>He&#8217;s in control.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George, seen here at the city&#8217;s 2015 Christmas parade, purports to being more &#8216;beat cop&#8217; than politician. However, he will need to exercise lots of political savvy in the next few years to help Wilkes-Barre overcome its many challenges. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/web1_TonyGeorge.jpg</photo0><caption0>Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George, seen here at the city&#8217;s 2015 Christmas parade, purports to being more &#8216;beat cop&#8217; than politician. However, he will need to exercise lots of political savvy in the next few years to help Wilkes-Barre overcome its many challenges. </caption0><photoCredit0>Times Leader file photo | Sean McKeag </photoCredit0></div></div>

Our Opinion: Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George purports to be ‘beat cop,’ but city counting on a savvy leader