TALES FROM THE (ISSUE 58) CAMPAIGN TRAIL

There are 2 groups in Highland Heights campaigning for and against the
GetGo rezoning issue, Issue 58.

Developer Lance Osborne founded the pro-GetGo political action committee (PAC)---humorously titled “Citizens For Improving Highland Heights”.
The treasurer for that group is Osborne’s leasing agent, Steve Passov.

That PAC must have some pretty big bucks to spend.
So far it has mailed out 2 glossy, oversized full-color postcards to Highland Heights residents. Between the color reproductions and the postage, that’s quite an expensive proposition.

The postcards include illustrations of portions of Osborne’s proposed development.  They are quite pretty----colorful and bright with soothing sky blue backgrounds.
Catalano’s, on the other hand, is depicted using a dark and blurry black and white photograph, slugged “Current Conditions”.

Get the subliminal message?

Catalano’s: dark, brooding and bad.
Osborne’s development: bright, happy and good.

The postcards show many things, but so far they have not shown the 16
pump mega GetGo gas station that is the crowning jewel of Osborne’s
development plan---and the raison d’etre for Issue 58.

Why show reality when pitching a dream, right?

 
On the opposite side of Issue 58 is “Residents Against GetGo,” a PAC
organized by Councilman-at-large Ed Hargate. A Radford Drive resident
serves as that group’s treasurer.

Since “Residents Against GetGo” is an actual citizens’ group, it has a
much smaller operating budget.
Instead of mailing out glossy color postcards, resident volunteers have been fanning out throughout the city, delivering black and white flyers to residents’ homes on foot.

Which brings me to this tale, told to me by one “Residents Against GetGo” volunteer.

THE VOLUNTEER'S STORY

The volunteer was distributing flyers along Wilson Mills Road. She didn’t have her glasses on---she didn’t need them for the outdoor work she was doing.

She noticed a large black SUV slowing down, apparently watching her---which didn’t worry her, but kind of made her nervous all the same.

The SUV made another pass as the volunteer walked her route.
Strange, she thought. I wonder what’s up.

The volunteer stopped to talk to a friend---she figured she visited for 25 minutes or so---and, wouldn’t you know it, shortly after she got back outside she saw the black SUV again.
This time the SUV pulled into the park entrance and stopped.

Confused, the volunteer tried to make sense of it all.
Suddenly it struck her----it must be one of her son’s friends.

“Tommy,” she shouted, spreading her arms wide to give the approaching
male figure a hug.
She got a nice hug and a friendly response back.
“What are doing?” Tommy asked.
The volunteer launched into an explanation…but then suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

Peering closer, she realized that the stranger was no Tommy.
 “You’re not Tommy!” she exclaimed.
No, the stranger admitted, my name is Lance.

It wasn’t just any Lance, it was the Lance. Lance Osborne.

When he found out what she was doing, Osborne pointed his finger and
warned the volunteer---in what she felt was an attempt to intimidate her:

 “There better not be anything false in that literature or you’ll be liable.”

The volunteer told Osborne that there were no lies and that the “Residents Against GetGo”  flyer told the truth about his development plan.
She walked away as he continued to harangue her.

Way to win over residents, Lance.

CLARIFICATION

In a recent letter to the editor I wrote that Mayor Scott Coleman got the cold shoulder from Giant Eagle when he floated the idea of relocating the Cuyahoga County Library to the Catalano’s property.

My source for that statement was someone familiar with both the city and the library.
That source recently clarified the timing of the discussion.

According to that source, library representatives unsuccessfully attempted to discuss the Catalano’s property with Giant Eagle and sought assistance from city insiders in that effort.
It was too late to turn the tide by the time the mayor got involved.

So. bottom line, it apparently was the library, not the mayor, who received the cold shoulder from Giant Eagle.

Different party. Same result.