About
Coleman Independent’s primary goal is to comment on what is happening (or not happening) at city council and economic development corporations where approximately twelve and a half million of our tax dollars are on the table each year. How this money is spent has the greatest impact on our lifestyle as citizens of Coleman. Coleman Independent will also provide access to sources of information for those who care to be informed as to applicable law. There is also a category for Commentary for strictly opinion pieces.
Coleman Independent is not meeting “coverage.” If anyone wants to know the blow by blow coverage of each agenda item at public meetings, they will need to attend the meetings or rely on the coverage presented in the Coleman Chronicle and Coleman News or listen to the City Manager’s interpretation on the radio. The EDCs have web sites, but so far there is nothing much there in the way of their projects and activities.
I personally feel we should all “man up” and realize that just talking a good story about how wonderful we all are or simply saying nothing isn’t working. I totally agree with the study done at the University of Kansas that is posted under Towns That Grow vs. Towns That Do Not Grow.
Anyone who wishes to contribute to the dialog can provide fact-based articles or commentary (either original or public domain) for posting under their name. Proper attribution will be required if not original. If you would like to be a Contributor, email CI at colemanindependent@verizon.net. Articles need not be what the contributor thinks I want to hear, but rather information that will provide cogent reflection on an issue that is somehow related to what can be done to improve Coleman’s present and Coleman’s future or their own op-ed opinion. Op-ed pieces are simply comments that have been fleshed out into a longer article.
Comments and op-ed may or may not be approved. Comments should either provide a fact-based correction to something that has been said or an expression of agreement or disagreement with something that has been said. Op-ed pieces should be commentary on something that is happening (or not happening) in town from your personal viewpoint.
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If these housekeeping rules are too constrictive for you, then you should think about starting your own blog.
Thank you.
Jo Ann Eddleman
Back in July 2011 the 4A sent a derogatory letter to the Mayor. (The vendetta letter) In this letter two bold statements were made. One, they, the 4A board had over 200 years of comined experience of ownership and operation of successful businesses. The other was that their sole effort is to see Coleman grow into more prosperous community.
Shortly there after,the 4A took up the majority of a council meeting to give them/us a production.( Very well produced at our expense I’m sure) It gave us a run down of the 4As outstand preformance in the last few years.Those efforts being the creation of 190 (debatable) jobs. These jobs came from new businesses of Windclean,LVI,Filtration Systems, Danek Bros. and Mountain Top Exploration. Each of these jobs come with a value of $25,000 of annual growth to the community.
Prior to that they brought in another 60 or so jobs with companies like Bodoodles, J&L sales, Cedar Furniture, Diamond B Manufacturing, BC Plastics and others. Where are they now? They did however bring in Pioneer L.C. which is still doing well and a true feather in the 4A hat. In closing the production the comment was made by the host speaker “Coleman did not have much of a carrot to dangle”.
In 1997 Stempel industries and Dal-tile left taking over 350 jobs. In 2005 or there about, Dry manufacturing after eating up the carrot the 4A dangled left also taking another 100 jobs. Then they refused to help a local business because of personality conficts and he moved his business to Eastland. Austin had personality conflicts with Micheal Dell also. I know there is no comparison between the two, but there again there is no comparison between Austin and Coleman either.
So with that said lets look at the real picture. I will even use their numbers for comparison.
490+- jobs lost at $25,000 =
205+- jobs gained at $25,000= $ 5,125,000
Annual loss to the community= and that is only part of the big picture.
Since 1997 the population of this community has declined by 670 people. (5379 to 4709) Using the same available statisics is per capita another of annual loss to the community.(670 x $13,425) We add that up and we have a whopping CAPITAL LOSS annually of $16,119,750
I don’t know about you but I don’t see the great business experience or the gain in profitiblity here. In the last two years alone the population has declined by close to 100 or more. There has been no gain in profit nor in stability.
This year the A team hired Mr.T at $3000 a month to be our BAIT man. He is being paid to LURE new manufacturing businesses to Coleman. To the best of my knowledge, he brought no new business here this year. He did however help negotiate, on our nickle, for an existing business here a merger that will create 5 or 6 jobs. On top of that we will be using our money to help them relocate to a larger facility. Who will fill these jobs? Most of the $25000 per job is already here. Even if every dime of that $150,000 annual gain is spent here retail, the greatest possible gain to the city is $3000 plus another $1500 to split between the A and B. Unless those jobs bring new residents here there is no other gain if any actual gain at all. Profit is what gained after the expenses are deducted. $4,500 – $36,000= . We lose again. Where is the great business leadership and the more profitable community?
Coleman has an agricultrial based history. It appears that it has forgotten the basics. To grow a carrot you must prepare the soil and plant seeds. Mr. T and the A team have been throwing seeds into the wind. They have not prepared the bed and actually planted seeds. It appears that the B team is following the same piper.
Something to large to comprehend is Coleman telling these pipers thank you and goodbye and start doing differently. We can’t afford anymore of what we have been doing and hoping for a different outcome. Vision 2000 went blind and now It’s time for operation “bootstrap” to come to an end.
Coleman is a Blues Quartet each singing in a different key. There is no rhythm.
Don’t know what happened to my numbers but they are this
jobs lost since 97 490x$25,000=
jobs gained since 97 205x$25,000= 5,125,000
leaving a loss of then population loss 670x$13,425= adding up to
Here you go:
Here you go:
490 jobs lost since ‘97 at $25,000 per job = $12,250,000
205 jobs gained since ’97 at $25,000 each= 5,125,000
Total annual wages lost to community = $ 7,125,000
Even if you stop right there, seven million plus smackers a year’ll buy a lot of donuts.
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Thanks for the reminder, Penni!
Frankly, I had totally forgotten about those particular posts. The figures are undoubtedly worse now, eight months and the loss of two major employers later.