A round of applause for Third Ward City Commissioner James White speaking out on the dam of red ink that is about to burst within the City government. White told constituents last week that the City is in a financial meltdown. All the assurance that City Manager Kurt Kimball, architect of the current fiscal chaos, could say to the contrary is that receivership is not imminent. Instead he noted somewhat incoherently that: "[Bankruptcy] may be a few years out, but not inconceivable."
White insists, "The city is broke and we're scared to death downtown." Well, there's no question that "broke" is the word when you don't have the cash to pay $100-130 million in expenses over the next five years. Also, I can believe that a lot of people at City Hall fear being held responsible for this disaster. So, White is speaking the truth to us. Unfortunately, that truth has received a negative reception by a pair of commissioners who should know better, Rick Tormala and James Jendrasiak. Then again, not only did the City's finances tanked on their watch, they also presided over the City during its salad days when the means to prevent the meltdown existed. So maybe they are annoyed with White pointing out where their leadership has taken us.
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