**PUBLIC COMMENTS POSTED TO FACEBOOK TODAY AND SHARED HERE WITH PERMISSION OF THE POSTERS.
Roy Keeler: “Mr. Flanders has utter contempt for the people of Pottstown. He blatently disregards authority, thumbs his nose at the chain of command and has nothing substantive in the way of accomplishments to show for his tenure as BM. His legacy as Police Chief was astronomically high crime and a department riddled with strife and mistrust except for a chosen few. He is grossly overpaid. I am astounded that his behavior is not only tolerated by the council but their failure to demand results and reign him in has created an out of control situation. This man thinks he is Julius Caesar and ruling by divine right. He acts as if he answers to no one. In 2.5 years he had been paid $300,000.00, based on $120,000.00 per year. How has Pottstown benefitted from his reign???????”
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Last weeks accusations that Borough Manager, Mark Flanders, violated PA Open Meetings Law and Authority bylaws has opened the flood gates on social media. Residents of Pottstown have long held beliefs that Mark Flanders lengthy history of secretiveness on the police force and, as Police Chief, was the best indicator of his future job performance as Borough Manager.
Long-term residents acknowledge that, Police Chief Flanders did not make the effort to engender trust and confidence from the community, quite the opposite. Inaccessible and non-communicative best sums up citizens, officers and other public employees recollections of Mark Flanders leadership style.
It is true that he surrounded himself with select officers (the golden boys) who demonstrated their loyalty to Flanders and often seemed indoctrinated in their measured communications with the press and the public. Much of what they said made no sense to thoughtful Pottstownians. But, along the way people learned to fear Mark Flanders and some of his officers and they were reluctant to say much, one way or the other, in public.
Incidentally, the DOJ states: “Arguably, fear reduction (making people feel safer) should be included among the explicit components of the modern police mission.” Here’s an insightful read on the topic<<clik
Not afraid to speak among themselves, people talk openly about their experiences of being “targeted” for retribution by the PPD. Trumped up charges with jail time and violations issued to victims are just a few of the experiences that law abiding residents discuss.
These incidents and experiences have led to suspicions, by many residents, that some officers are in collusion with drug dealers, prostitutes and other seedy opportunist, as one explanation for how criminals are often not held to the same letter of the law as law abiding citizens. There’s abundance in Pottstown, if you know how to tap it, including slum property owners who accept only cash for rent and deposits. <<A BIG RED FLAG
In fact, it is recently evidenced that a borough official engaged in providing protection to a friend who owns rental property in Pottstown, but that’s for another day.
From Facebook, Lee Rich comments: “Engaging with the community is not something you (Flanders) welcomed… I can attest to that. Approximately 2 years ago, after 6 years of unresolved neighbor issues; running low on options (and sanity), I requested a meeting with the Borough Manager. I was thwarted at the Secretary level. Conversely, I have been at (public) meetings during which Mr. Garner offered his assistance and cooperation. His offer was met with blank stare(s). My impression of Mr. Garner is, and has always been, one of genuine interest in what is best for Pottstown and its’ people. I have not one explanation for the disharmony and reluctance which makes reaching any goal difficult, if not impossible.”
Of all the atrocities that plague this community, the fire companies are NOT among them. The motives behind the consolidation remain unclear and never more so seriously in question as now. There is TANGIBLE loss, pain and suffering among homeowners and other good residents how can a fire company merger take precidence?
Another resident sums up their sentiments, (there are still some who fear Flanders):
Pottstown Homeowner At Large: “Sneeky, shady and untrustworthy aren’t the only words that come to mind, but they’re the only ones fit to post. I hope the good people of Pottstown see what’s going on here. And I suggest council put on their best Big Boy and Big Girl pants and prepare to act upon the will of the taxpaying public. You know, the folks who elected them and fund this guy’s paycheck.”
Any investigation that might ensue around the circumstances in the articles linked below will, hopefully, be comprehensive in nature. We can’t determine if crime (s) has been committed, that’s not our job. But, we DO KNOW that many things that go on here just don’t jive with reality – there is something very, very wrong in local government and it’s evidenced in the filthy, crime riddled conditions of this borough.
Paula K. Knudsen, director of government affairs/legislative counsel for the Pennsylvania News Media Association and an attorney who is an expert in Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Law said:
“Ultimately it’s up to a judge. And I think it would be interesting to call the Montgomery County District Attorney because the changes made to the Sunshine Law last year now empower the district attorney to prosecute those cases.”
What we can do as citizens is demand that our elected officials, starting with Council President, Stephen Toroney, stop making excuses and do some real work for this town. It was their decision to hire Mark Flanders for Borough Manager, (nobody seemed more delighted by the secrecy that shrouded that decision than Toroney), and it is THEIR responsibility to consider our best interests, not his or their own. Toroney has little time left “in service” to this community MAKE IT COUNT FOR SOMETHING.
Here’s a wake up call: the residents, public employees and former employees of Pottstown Borough are not apathetic or stupid.
Ditto for the Authority members whose responses to Mark Flanders email were far too cavalier and unconcerned with his intentions, let alone Chomnuks’ “tattle tale” speculations about who golfs with whom that were unprofessional and childish, imho.
http://www.pottsmerc.com/general-news/20150317/pottstown-charging-phillies-fire-company-for-water-use-because-of-bar
http://www.pottsmerc.com/government-and-politics/20150318/lawyer-pottstown-borough-authority-violated-open-meetings-law
http://www.pottsmerc.com/opinion/20150319/editorial-pottstown-borough-authority-produces-lesson-for-sunshine-week
http://www.pottsmerc.com/general-news/20150319/firehouse-policy-change-violated-pottstown-borough-authoritys-own-bylaws
http://pottstown.org/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=74
http://www.pottsmerc.com/general-news/20150320/pottstown-borough-authority-responds-to-charges-of-sunshine-law-violations
https://goldencockroach.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/ltr-to-flanders-strategic-plan-3-11-15.pdf
If you are on Facebook check out a new page: Voices for the Victimized in Pottostown <<clik
