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Jeff King's avatar

The problem with opinions is that they often lack counter-evidence; they should be supported with more than emotion. You claimed:

--- "His legacy as Mayor of Hillsdale will be very positive, and for good reason (the opinion of a noisy Facebook minority aside). Unlike the other candidates, he knows the particular things that trouble the people of Hillsdale and Hillsdale County."

Did we forget about his run for state representative in 2020, after already serving on the council/mayor for over six years at that point? His fourth-place finish out of four? The fact that all four candidates were from Hillsdale County? That he placed dead last in every single precinct in Branch County and only got a few first-place finishes in Hillsdale County? That the third-place winner bested him by 200 votes? And that the third-place winner was a twenty-something unemployed lawyer at the time who hadn't yet passed the bar?

But yes, he absolutely learned from that and has made a real effort to be a populist candidate, embracing issues that get his name in the news, even if he personally doesn't agree with them. Yet the city's poverty level spiked under his watch, and division and partisan political infighting have been the hallmark of his second term, despite the position being non-partisan.

Let's not forget all the promises he broke and the gross violations of the city charter, such as appointing non-residents to the BPU board, dropping the pilot effort towards the college, and suspiciously receiving an endorsement from the college shortly after that.

And what do you know of legacy? Herb Hines is legacy. You were in high school and not living in town when Stockford first took office, whereas I followed his career from the start, having donated to his campaigns multiple times, including his 2020 state rep run. He was on track even after the 2022 mayoral reelection... until one thing happened. Andrew Fink decided not to run for reelection, which moved Stockford's timetable up. I do believe he, along with Mr. Paladino, was serious about the pilot effort with the college, yet that quickly got dropped. The unity he had made with all citizens, which earned him an endorsement from the County Democrats for his mayoral election, was cast aside for his political career.

He could have had that legacy, but he sold out his community for years, if not decades, because he wanted higher office.

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Jeff King's avatar

---"The Keefer House Hotel project..."

Impressive... you used the "K" word.

But sadly it was just a foil to attack Corecoyle, another example of goverment largess. The Keefer too had a deadline.... September 2020... three months before the Corecoyle deadline. Which you failed to mention.

https://hillsdalecollegian.com/2019/04/council-approves-opra-keefer-house/

---"Mayor Adam Stockford said the Keefer House, LLC submitted its application for the rehabilitation project to start July 2019, with a projected end date of Sept. 2020."

See that is the thing, because of the past connections to the college, a donor and the mayor's "Keefer legacy", you, the press and council go light on the Keefer.

Yet it is just as bad, if not worse, the Corecoyle.

I realize you students hate free market capitalism, but the goverment has no place picking winners and losers. Yet, the type of Keynesian economics (you didn't skip Gary's classes did you?) that is being practiced here is ass backwards. Service jobs just move money around, where as manufacturing jobs are a far better candidate for goverment intervention, because they bring money into the county where as the Keefer and service jobs, mostly just move money around in the county.

Now, don't take that as a invitation I support it, just a reflection on the ignorance of the Mayor and city council. ETA? Seriously? Take a look at the Kaskaskia hotel in Illinois, which I did. Never. Not a one of these F's, including Mayor Crony, even bothered to do any due diligence on CL enterprizes before awarding the contract. Myself, Hendee Joseph and others did, only to get dismissed. Yet here was are 6+ years later.

Don't get me wrong, good focused column but I'm going to keep pushing you to become good journalists.

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