'WELCOME BACK" john sebastian

I was consulted (along with many other local residents) by the author of the following college paper and thought it might interest the readers of this blog. The person that wrote this is a non-traditional student (older) at Lakeland Community College and lives here in Painesville.
The Professor graded this paper out as an A+
This was not using the 50% policy but a real college grading system.



Urban Poverty Close to Home


I’ve chosen Painesville as an example of how past and present misguided policies can have catastrophic results for a community that was once vital.
The City of Painesville is the fourth largest and oldest community in Lake County, Ohio. It is the county seat and the location of most of the local, state and federal services available in the immediate area (JFS, county jail, OSU Extension Office, Lake County Courthouse, Juvenile Justice Center and Detention, County Auditor, Board of Elections, County Health Dept., Social Security Administration, VA Satellite Clinic, Republican Headquarters, County Commissioners Office, County Recorder’s Office). The 2000 Census shows a population of 17, 503 people and is the most ethnically diverse community in Lake County. It has its own school district that is comprised of three elementary, one middle and one high school with a total enrollment of 3044 pupils. It is also the home of Lake Erie College; a private liberal arts school that has an enrollment of over 1300 students and is known for its world-renowned equestrian program. Painesville does have public transportation, although limited. Painesville has its own electric power plant which provides affordable power to residents and businesses alike. It has a combination of older home stock and new individual homes and developments, numerous apartment buildings as well as several low-income public housing complexes. Painesville is also home to two half-way houses, a battered women’s shelter and a homeless shelter. It has a beautiful historic district that it is justifiably proud of. All of this is packed into a 6.7 square mile location just two and half miles south of Lake Erie and near the Mentor Marsh Nature Preserve, Headlands State Park and beach in Fairport Harbor.
Sounds like a little something for everyone, right? There’s a few things missing though and some of the pieces of the puzzle just do not add up. I’ll start by examining some of the pieces.

Ethnic Mix:
PVL LAKE USA
White 77.0 95.4 75.1
Black 12.9 2.0 12.3
Latino 12.9 1.7 12.5
Painesville’s figures are very close to national averages but when you compare them to the county as a whole you see that the ethnic make-up is much different than the surrounding communities. The Latino community is large and growing due to Painesville’s proximity to a very large nursery industry due east. Both the black and Hispanic communities have been congregated into Painesville rather than dispersed throughout the county. Certainly some of this is by choice and some is due directly to structural policies that may or may not be beneficial.

HOME OWNERSHIP:
PVL LAKE USA
Own 52.1 77.5 66.2
Rent 47.9 22.5 33.8
Vacant 5.9 4.1 9.0
These figures show an even bigger disparity between Painesville residents and not only the rest of the county but the nation as a whole. Lake County enjoys a very high percentage of home ownership, well above the national average. Painesville is well below national figures. Although these numbers may not seem too bad on their face, when a city is located in the midst of seeming prosperity and when the numbers show such a big difference then the differences are glaring to both the Painesville residents themselves and to surrounding communities. High levels of rental properties translate into lower property values, lower tax revenues and a lower quality of life. This was not always the case in Painesville but is one result of a gradual down-hill spiral.

EDUCATION:
PVL LAKE USA
High School Diploma:
74.0 86.4 80.4
4 Year Degree or Higher:
12.4 21.5 24.4
These are figures for residents (not students, that will be addressed separately) and reflect the community in another negative light as compared to Lake County and nationally. Residents are overall less-educated and this depresses earnings which causes a host of other problems. There is less money for investment. Residents hold jobs that require less (or no) training, tending to seasonal trades or the service sector. These are the jobs that are cut or eliminated first in an economic downturn. Less income and less job security increase stresses on people already in a marginal situation. I also looked at resident ages and there is no real statistical basis for considering anomalies such as a larger than average elderly or young population (those that would not have necessarily started or finished high school as a matter of course).

CITY SCHOOLS:
Painesville City schools fail almost every benchmark established for good education. Locally the Painesville schools graduate an abysmal 74.7% of their students. All the other local school districts I examined had at least a 90% graduation rate which is also the minimum level the state of Ohio deems acceptable (see appendix I). Data from the State of Ohio report card show that out of 30 indicators measured, Painesville City schools have achieved only 7 as of the last complete school year (2008-09) and that was an improvement (see appendix II). The other schools used as comparison were all in the 20s. Demographics for the Painesville schools show the following:
School Demographics:
2930 Daily Enrollment
19.2 % Black
34.7 % Hispanic
32.4 % White
72.1 % are considered economically disadvantaged.
50% Grading Policy
These numbers stand alone in Lake County. Other available data shows that Painesville City teachers are educationally qualified and the school system itself spends a more than adequate amount of money per student (over $12,000. per pupil, see appendix III). I believe that this school system has not taken into consideration that a large number of its students speak English as a second language nor consider the problems of poverty that three-fourths of the student body must deal with. Many credible studies have shown that students showing these characteristics frequently suffer from lack of health care, poor nutrition, lack parental motivation and support, no place to study, and often must care for siblings. Many Painesville high school students are themselves parents. (I was unable to come up with statistical numbers for this claim other than anecdotal information, but consider the sources credible as they include alumni and present students). The 50% grading policy has been effect for several years. It essentially guarantees a student will pass with little or no effort on his/her part. Good students are penalized under this system; their initiative is not rewarded and many colleges do not recognize this policy and refuse admission to deserving students as a result. The only thing this policy is good for is keeping marginal students from quitting and thus assuring that funding will continue. It rewards poor behavior and most definitely sends the message that almost nothing is required in order to get ahead.

OTHER PIECES:
Painesville was an early and eager advocate of urban renewal. The New Market Mall was built with much hope but destroyed a large part of the unique character of historical downtown.
Painesville has been a victim hard hit by the global economy as well. Its economic decline can be traced back to the 1970s when Diamond Alkali (Diamond Shamrock) was bought out and then relocated to Texas. Their legacy was a brownfield that is slated for development….some 30 years later and at an exorbitant cost. Another big employer was the Industrial Rayon Corporation which moved overseas in the early
1980s after spending several years phasing out of the area. Other large and stable employers, such as Towmotor and Caterpillar are long gone. The loss of all of these good-paying jobs hurt Painesville more than the rest of Lake County because of its relatively uneducated workforce. Nothing replaced these jobs, starting the economic decline.
The recent loss of the Lake Hospital System to a new location outside the city has taken a large income producer out of the mix. Even though Painesville has entered into a JEDD (Joint Economic Development District) agreement with Concord in order to keep a share of the income tax generated, the agreement exempts administration (high salaries) from Painesville’s share. The hospital employees spent a lot of money locally (parking, lunches, patronizing local merchants) and the hospital itself has replaced many local merchant services with others located elsewhere. The local flower shops are a good example of this. The debate on what will replace the building has been acrimonious and no satisfactory compromise has been reached. Nothing that has been proposed can make up for the loss of prestige. The loss of the hospital itself may have been inevitable, but there was a window in time where an alternate solution could have been reached. Losing that medical facility was a body-blow to Painesville’s status and economy.
The immigration situation in Painesville is a good example of what we (should) have already learned from history. Immigrants come to work and start a new life. They are willing to work for lower wages and live in substandard housing until such a time as they are able to move on (and up). In the meantime, they are resented for their mere presence. They further reduce an already tight job market and use services that have become more expensive to provide. They strain an infrastructure that is already creaking under structural and cultural problems. Add to that the issue of potential illegal status and you have now set the business community against government. Painesville is already struggling under a stigma of sorts and then attach the dubious status of ‘sanctuary city’ and everyone is hurt. There is no cohesive local plan that tries to realistically reconcile the realities of a large influx of immigrants with the needs of a declining city.
MY CONCLUSIONS:
The City of Painesville has to quit being schizophrenic. She cannot be all things to everyone. She has to decide what she is and where she wants to go and then capitalize on it. These are some of the things I would emphasize immediately.
First and foremost, no city can hope to recover without superior schools. It is apparent that what they have been doing is not working. It is time to raise standards by whatever means necessary. Painesville now possesses brand-new school settings and they should put them to good use. Those buildings should be used after school hours and during the summer; night classes and adult education for example. The present administration (or a new one with a fresh outlook) should take a hard look at other school systems that turned themselves around and then emulate them wherever possible. Better-quality schools would attract new residents, people with the understanding and desire to see their children achieve, and success feeds on itself. People buy houses when they select an area based on quality education. They invest themselves emotionally and financially in the community when so motivated.
Painesville has the services and industrial space to attract and retain business. One area I would suggest they investigate is green technology. This is here to stay and there is much investment money available and to be made in this industry. Painesville could be a leader in fostering a ‘green’ culture and business climate. There has been some talk about Painesville participating in some activities with other entities along these lines but they should take the initiative. This would provide a desperately needed economic boost.
Inevitably Painesville will be forced to come up with some kind of solution to the immigration situation. This is something that they should be pro-active about. Band-aid solutions or solutions that only placate a segment of the population are counter-productive and short-sighted. Many of the long-time residents of Painesville are only second or third-generation immigrants themselves. They only wish that the laws already on the books be enforced uniformly, whether it is immigration, home inspection, criminal or even traffic.
Although I am no fan of the present city administration it is primarily because of its inconsistency. They have made some grievous financial errors and show a strong tendency to go outside for expensive expertise that is available in their back yard. I would like to see city government be more transparent and engage local citizens more, not just the business community that has its own agenda. I would like to see them learn from previous administrations as to what does or does not work.
Painesville needs a modern community center, one with a public pool and kitchen facilities. This is an amenity that any upscale community possesses and would be another big attraction to potential home buyers.
Painesville has a few glaring eyesores in an otherwise pretty town. The old Steele Mansion on Mentor Avenue and the old Holiday Inn located right downtown both need to be demolished. The city also needs to do whatever it takes to push through and finish cleaning up from the flood of 2006.
Painesville is not Mentor with malls and homogeneous citizens. It is not Willowick, a bedroom community. It is not rural Perry or Madison. It is not Kirtland with their half-acre lots. Painesville is an historic college town.
CONCLUSION:
Painesville has been a victim of some of the structural issues of the past and present with (un)intentional consequences. Federal policies encouraging suburbanization resulted in neighboring communities growing at her expense. Even though State Route 2 is now old news it took away a great deal of traffic that used to go right through downtown. New Route 44 did the same. Globalization eliminated many good jobs. Painesville is also the victim of cultural forces. Because of her much larger black population she has suffered as a community from racism and discrimination. Large black (and now Hispanic as well) minorities brought with them the lack of political or economic power needed for Painesville to be able to hold her own when surrounded by largely homogeneous wealthier communities. A gradual slip in the quality of local education exacerbated the problems of falling home ownership and the accompanying problems associated with poverty. Painesville is unique in that she has many big city problems while not being located in an inner-ring suburb. I believe that we will see more of this as many of our older big cities continue to deteriorate and their problems migrate behind the suburbanites that fled in the 50s and 60s. I also believe that Painesville does not have to be an inevitable victim of urban decay since the ground she is covering today is fairly new. We really do not have enough data to predict how cities like Painesville will fare in the future because this kind of urban evolution is comparatively recent. Although I have a vested interest in seeing Painesville turn around, objectively speaking it will be a good lesson for many other small towns in similar circumstances to watch unfold. The choices Painesville makes will have a larger social impact than on just her local citizenry. I sincerely hope that Painesville will evolve into a lesson in how things can be done successfully rather than an example in failed policies and short-sighted leaders.