Mayor orders spending restrictions, including hiring freeze, travel cuts

OK mr. mayor,,,,,,,,

Seeing metro goverment is so broke lets stop having parties for river boats or other non priority items. Lets stop buying land and giving it to the cordish company to develope within 17 years. Lets stop using personal legal council for the goverment attorney and start using the County Attorney. Lets get rid of some of the waste in your department, your talking heads and their staff, and lighten up the payroll on your end. How about your overpaid private security and the cars they drive.....can you do without them?

This can go on further but we know that there is alot of waste in your department but you won't do anything about it. You could also tap into your rainy day fund of 15 to 20 million $$$ to assist in this storm.

To the guys who are emailing the department on how they are willing to pay more for their take home cars, lets not give up too much too soon. I live out of county and pay the money for take home just in case I want to drive somewhere after work within Jefferson County. I will not pay more for something I cannot use. Yes, I know and will give up the car when the time comes but if they are willing to raise it why didn't they lower it when gas prices came down. This is just another way to get money from us that we got in our raise. Remember some of our raise is tied into the sinking fund so with that going south and paying for the use of the car we are going backwards again. Just keep letting him $hit on us whenever he wants to and it will only get worse.

It may not meet all of the city's "needs", but jerry could stop all of the law suits that have been filed in objection to contract violations and just honor those contracts as is. If he would just allow a deal to be a deal, and not revoke some portion of signed contracts, suits wouldn't follow. He has consistently fought with employees over contracts that he negotiated in good faith and that have his signature at the bottom. Apparently, his signature is no more valuable than his word. jerry, in "desparate" times, try something desparate. Do the right thing!

Let's see, does anyone think we need granite curbs throughout downtown? How about 4 deputy mayors who do what exactly?Then there is the gifting of city owned porperty valued at 17 million to the Cordish group who will proclaim they are operating at a loss to avoid sharing profits with the city. The development of the riverfront that draws revenue from...uh....Coke machines! Maybe we could give some more contracts to companies with the HIGHEST bids to finish the downtown arena because they have ties to this corrupt administration.Maybe the Police department has another helicopter we could sell, hell he doesn't want them doing police work anyway. That could get messy. Come on Louisville it's time to be "patriotic" and give king jerry more of your hard earned money so he can afford to leave HIS legacy on our town. What about the lawsuits that the city pays to fight their own employees after breaching our contracts. As long as this community buys Jerry's explanation that our situation is realley President Bush's fault and continues to give him their vote we will live in banana republic. Our Mayor for life has made a living running our city into the ground. Isn't it about time we sent him packing! With even a hint of fiscal conservatism we could have avoided this shortfall. Let's save our city and get rid of Jerry!!Ughhh, I could go on and on, but, what's the use. Good night.

The only place you can beat Jerry is at the poles on election day. Get OUT, GET INTERESTED, AND WORK FOR THE BEST IN THE NEXT ELECTION, it's the only way it can be done.

Is George Rodman nuts?????? hey bud you work for LMPD now??? Your supposed to gain more benefits every year not give them away as soon as you get them. ie...pay raise court pay etc...Do the friggin math and figure out how big of a raise we actually got after deducting the fuel surcharge.and insurance preminum increase . Now i know why LPD guys were so disgruntled. Lets just go back to a walking beat and georgie boy can be my walking partner. Or we can give the city whatever they want to drive their car.. The police dont need no friggin cars Get a clue!!!!!!!

People should post their comments here not on the departments e-mail. As stated there our 30 to 60 dollar a month fuel fee should stop now that gas prices are down again. You want an idea on costs why not charge the prisoners a fuel fee? The jail charges a fee. If we pay a take home payment then we should be able to have an assistance fee. 911 services are charged to the tax payer, EMS charges their patients. Why can't the police and the fire depts charge a fee. I have to pay water, garbage, utilities, etc. all services that are run under the city's approval and all are services that are needed. The public service jobs are also needed so they should come with a fee.

the mayor has said the cuts wont effect public safety. well after he takes the cars away from us, that means less visabilty or omni presence to the criminals. not to mention the 1200 or so officers who will stop doing police work because morale will be so low through out the department.so lets evaluate this mayor.........YEAH IT WILL EFFECT PUBLIC SAFETY, VERY MUCH SO

I GUESS WHEN DISTRICT DETECTIVE RODMAN "TALKED" TO HIS FELLOW DETECTIVES ABOUT PAYING MORE$$$ HE SHOULD HAVE NOTED ALSO HE IS "BLESSED" WITH MAKING PLENTY OF OVER TIME EACH WEEKTO MAKE UP THE DIFFERENCE.

Quite simply regarding the take home cars. Off duty officers on their personal time do thousand and thousands of Police actions a year while in their Police car, and I am not talking about while working an off duty job, but off on personal time in their Police car. Car accidents, robberies, wrecks, shootings, stabbing, stranded motorist, 911 hangups and the list goes on. I was a Police Officer in another city where we didn't have take home cars. YOU NEVER SAW A POLICE CAR!!!!

I want the Mayor to realize that Officers Off duty save thousands of On Duty Officer man hours each year by canceling them on runs. The Dept is already way understaffed, including the 18 vacancies alone on the beats in the 7th Div. I don't believe the Mayor fully realizes how much of a presence, deterrence, and free work he gets from officer off duty on their own time helping out on duty officers. You will never see a police car if we are to only to drive them on duty and to and from work, and the consequences of that are staggering. I have been there, done that in a large Metro City with over 1000 officers where the murder rate is 120 and the crime rate compared to Louisville is off the charts. He needs to be prepared for a rise in crime with this foolish idea.

Gas is 1.90 a gallon, we are already paying $30.00 a month and a couple thousand in City taxes. The City and citzens will be losing a huge asset if Officer's can only drive to and from work, training and court and after all that driving, he will not be saving much money in the big scheme of things.

I HAVE ONE IDEA TO SAVE MONEY. CUT OUT ALL THE BS RUNS MADE THAT COULD HAVE BEEN MADE VIA PHONE. LMPD NEEDS TO EVALUATE THE SEND AN OFFICER TO EVERY CALL FOR SERVICE. I ASK HOW MANY BEAT OFFICERS MAKE "BS" RUNS A SHIFT? THIS WOULD SAVE LOTS OF TIME AND $$$.

DO NOT make 2 car runs by yourself!!!!! I'll check and advise should never be heard on the radio.If you stop to help someone OFF DUTY (when is that exactly) put in for overtime..you cannot be denied...why worry about making your chain of command mad? You are doing your job!

Tell him he can cut more of our money if he allows the drug money and property to go to the police dept instead of the mayor fund (what is that anyway). Most money and items aren't seized because of that...I saw some small town police dept with an electric finger print checking machine they bought with drug seized money. We have major interstates running through Louisville guarantee there is drug money coming through

Where's the F.O.P. on this......anyone.......hello.........looks like it's just us and the crickets. AGAIN! And I don't want to hear how our F.O.P. reps are having "meetings" to discuss the issues with the Mayor's administration. I'm talking about getting VOCAL. Our F.O.P should be on the TV selling our mebers and the good that we do on a frequent basis. Come on! Get your mugs on the TV and tell the public how Jerry has afronted our membership and how that relates to them in the loss of services. Explain how by destryoing morale he has hanicapped productivity. Take some of those dues that we pay and hire a PR firm if your not willing or able. As our founding fathers said in our decleration of independence, and I paraphrase..... those in power wiho have the ability to fight for those without power and ability have the responsibility to fight! Earn your keep or join Jerry in the unemployment line!

I will tell you how the Mayor in his infinite wisdom ruined the city. He had a lopsided vision of Louisville becoming the Mecca of corporate America for large corporations throughout the country. He went out of state (as reported in the Courier Journal) to seek white collar yuppies and tried to convince them to come and relocate to Louisville. He is trying to get these same white collars here with enticements like 4th Street Live, a new arena and with other concrete pet projects he sees fit to put Downtown. Unfortunately, the entry level, pencil pushing, computer data entry jobs are the first to go when a major Corporation needs to cut back, as with Citicorp. What the Mayor failed to realize is that it is the industrial worker who is the back bone of a community. I drove down 12th Street to Broadway from the Southend the other day to take a juvenile home and could not believe the number of abandoned warehouses, vacant factories, closed businesses and lots for sale there were? it genuinely looked like a ghost town. Its no wonder the City?s occupational taxes are way down... you can?t collect an occupational tax from an empty plant and the Mayor has to take the blame as the man in charge for running those businesses out of town or for at least not doing enough to keep them here. I?m not offering to pay one red cent for an increase in anything because of the Mayor?s lack of foresight. Mr. Mayor, do you want to see whats to blame for the financial mess the City of Louisville is in? Look in the mirror.

I wonder if he will layoff any of his immediate staff?? Does he really need a spokesperson or can''t we hear what he has to say from the man himself? I wonder if he will sell his city issued car and TARC it to work and meetings as an example of how HE is sacrificing for the good of Louisville?

Well, do you think the metro council (all part time empoyees / non-essential) will take a cut in pay, will their assistants be laid off, will the mayor lay off his armed security team (with unlimited OT)? NO....and why because the people of the city are too stupid to change things. Last night the mayor and all the liberals who respresent the south end on the council had a meeting at PRP. People stand there and ******** but they need to remember they are the pnes who keep putting those people back in office. Council woman Welch said that the center city project would HOPEFULLY create jobs.....what jobs? More minimum wage dishwashers like fourth street. Not one business on fourth street has made a profit, so what do these morons do...want to build more. Until the media can see this guy and his stooges for what they are nothing will change. Our department duplicates more paperwork than you can possbily imagine. How about this, do away with the rank of major, lieutenants can run a division. Let's not hire any deputy mayor's son's roomate as a summer intern (first ever paid intern). Let's cut back to one lt. col, let's start keeping money that we seize in the police department, as stated by law and not given to the mayor. I am sure we well continue to be good stewards of the public's money................by the way did you get you Light Up Louisville assignment!

I believe this another of Jerrys fudging the numbers. We need an audit of his numbers because you can't believe anything that he says or signs. Least we forget the last time that he fudged numbers about the budget. We are in such a dire need to cut but unessential projects continue. We need a miracle from the media to put all of his waste of tax money to put the nail in this jerks coffin.

I'm so tired of the name Jerry Abramson, I could puke. As a citizen of this city, I will say this. Your time here in louisville is up. through in the towel and retire. Enjoy life some place else. How did you end up in louisville anyway? did you get lost. Every time I see you on the t.v. I turn the channel. Jerry you bore ME!

Please stop bagging on the Mayor!!! I own a small hat company that he has been going to for years. If you get this man to leave I will go out of business. You see, making one of his hats takes over a month to do, I have to bring in all of my employees to help, and it uses up all of the material for one hat. I've also heard some of the barbers complaining.

Quit spending money on cutting down stupid trees to give the city light up Louisville. Quit spending all this extra money on your rose garden out by your office. Make common since choices and quit wasting money on stuff the city does not have to have. I think a lot more people would rather have a job, then a $5000 Christmas tree for the city. Quit trying to be mayor for life and pleasing everyone and do what people really need and want; That is THIER JOBS.

UNPHUCKING REAL!!!!!! Now the city is going to stop paying the Firefighters their State Incentive pay! Mayor Abramson you are the biggest ******** EVER!

test

Welcome to Possibility City!!!!

Jane Driskoll, the city CFO ,is not even a CPA! When need an audit and we need one now.....the council better wake up orthis is going to haunt you too! Is it true that Jerry's sister in law worked for him at $117K a year but screwed up and they had to hire someone else for $117K but still pay the sister in law the same money in a lower ranking position? Just curious.

"the city needs to cut back on things, main one should be police take home cars" lmpd officers should have a take home car to take to work and take home and park, not making $25 hr working off duty, and using it to take the family place to place, and officers should slow down a bit cause flying up and down streets for no reason dont help.

LMPD officers makes $35,000 and court pay = around $42,000+ a year. " BUY YOUR OWN CAR"

or nothing else should be like the Sheriffs Office must be a Sgt. or above to get a take home car.

JUST TAX MONEY IN THE TRASH.......

It is finally time for the people of Louisville to see the mayor for what he really is. His overspending, lack recognition for signed contracts, and expectation of more sacrifice from those on the front lines shows that he does not care at all about the well being of this community. If he were so concerned, he would stop the pet projects that he has going to ensure that Police, Fire, and EMS have everything they need. Anyone who feels differently is only asking for a disaster to blow up in their face. God for bid, a school shooting, or something of that magnitude should take place and Officers aren't able to respond quickly enough because they have to drive across town to get a car and their gear. THIS MAYOR HAS GOT TO GO! WILL SOMEONE WITH SOME SENSE PUT TOGETHER A CAMPAIGN AND SEND "MAYOR FOR LIFE" TO THE WOODSHED!! He has proven to be as bad for this city and Bush has been for the country. OUT WITH JERRY!!!!

I am not a stranger to the struggles of our police, fire, and EMS when it comes to the budget axe. As a former Police Officer of 11 years, I have seen my fair share of budget cuts and personnel layoffs in a vane attemp to trim the budget. In 1982 I myself became a victim of the budgetary axe when I was given the boot without any notice. I decided at that time I would never put my family in a similar situation and I left law enforcement for good.

I hope the Mayor wakes up and realizes that by cutting our fire, police, and EMS services, he is compounding the problem we already face. With the gloomy economic siuation destined to get worsr, crime is only going to get worse. People are going to be out of work, out of their homes, and out of money and many of the unemployed are going todo almost anything to survive, feed themselves and their families, and support their drug habit(s). Who are we going to call when this happens. The answer is simple. We don't need to cut these vital services, we need to increase them or at a minimum; maintain them at the current levels and tighten our belts for a rough ride.

I hope the mayor realizes he wasn't too popular to begin with, but this idiotic move on his part might just make him one of the most disliked government officials since Richard Nixon.

What is wrong with this picture the Mayor is presenting? Why are we cutting our safety nets, such as police, fire and EMS. Louisville is a wonderful city the way it is. I understand the attempt to grow, but so much is not moving, out of state restaurants and bars are closing, 4th street live will not live and then they propose to enlarge with the Cordish deal, the museum and the ARENA? I think the Mayor should pay for his car, and he needs 1 assistant Deputy Mayor not 5 at salaries of over $100,000. each...Mayor you have made this happen YOU!

it's cold and flu season. Cant stop you, cant stop you.

why worry about this anyway. our homes are protected . we have guns and ba--s. we have police friends. Let everyone else fend for themselves maybe the old fat mayor and washed up ,old, fat soft brass can save them.