LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Series ignores beautiful truth of Toledo

6/22/2014

Your series “The Ugly Truth about Toledo” ignores one thing: the beautiful truth about Toledo. Your June 15 article “Blight scars city; Residents, officials decry the mounting mess” virtually ignores all of the neighborhood stabilization programs and various agencies that are working to address blight left behind in the wake of the foreclosure epidemic.

Pointing out the problems is easy. However, our strength lies in our efforts to work together to have a collective impact that will restore the neighborhoods parcel by parcel, block by block.

Challenges of blight are not Toledo’s alone, nor does blight affect only the inner city. Predatory lending, the foreclosure crisis, and discriminatory practices in maintenance, securing, and marketing of real-estate owned properties have destroyed neighborhoods from the central city to the suburbs.

Despite this, partnerships aiming to tackle blight have flourished throughout Toledo. The Fair Housing Center is partnering with the Lucas County Land Bank and the Ability Center of Greater Toledo to offer home-improvement grants. Additionally, the Fair Housing Center operates a foreclosure prevention assistance program to help members of our community get back on track with their mortgages and property taxes.

Some of us refuse to simply ride what Mayor D. Michael Collins called an “urban death spiral” to the bottom. Instead, we choose to begin to climb out of decline, always reaching to bring up our brothers and sisters with us.

We are committed. We are a community. That is the beautiful truth.

MICHAEL MARSH

President and Chief Executive Officer

Toledo Fair Housing Center

North Superior Street

 

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By enforcing laws, city would improve

The report on blight in Toledo should be a wake-up call for city residents. There are housing codes that need to be enforced. Violations need to be addressed. There are laws against littering that need to be enforced.

If we city residents don’t take this problem seriously, property values will continue to drop. Toledo could become another Detroit if we do nothing,

WILLIAM POZNANSKI

Melvin Drive

 

Focus on blight is misplaced

On Father’s Day, instead of having uplifting stories of some of the great dads in Toledo, your front page featured blight. I am disappointed in you.

It’s no wonder that people are leaving this city. It’s no wonder there are not many businesses looking to come here that could create jobs. When the city’s main newspaper constantly prints negative stories about Toledo, who would want to live here?

I understand the need to report on the city’s blight, but did you have to do so on the front page on Father’s Day?

Can’t we have one day of showing our city and the people of our city in a positive way on the front page?

KIM ELLISON

Holman Road

 

Politicians play the blame game

Which is easier: fixing a problem or blaming someone for it? I guess that question has been answered by Mayor Collins.

If politicians would put as much effort into fixing things as they do blaming someone, something might get done.

CHARLIE LEININGER

107th Street