kingstonian,
this is exactly why i am concerned.
contractors doing as they please.
a bankrupt city unable to manage its own roads.
no legal permits.
and everyone denies responsibility.

this is why we need change.

change in legislature within the city.

i would like the board of alderman to review this latest incident and propose something along the following....

any and all work done by any contractor, utility or private, must have applied for and received a permit to do said work.

when applying for said permit, a secondary "road closure" permit be applied for.
this permit requires an "off-duty" police officer to REMAIN at the road closure THE ENTIRE TIME; all overtime paid for by the contractor, payable to the officer and his union (for his entitled benefits, etc...)

a member of kingston department of public works INSPECTS ALL WORK, prior, during and after completion.

the city itself, either approves the work or makes the contractor fix it immediately.

of course, only licensed and bonded companies will be allowed to do the work; therefor should there be an issue, the city could simply revoke the bond and shut the company down and receive legal compensation.

this makes sense.

contractors running amock doing as they please for anyone willing to pay bottom dollar is not how this country was built, and it won't make things better.

government is of, for & by the people.
it is time they heard our voice and EFFECTED CHANGE!

kingston common council....
the ball is in your court now.
most of you are choosing to run for mayor.
step up, show kingston you care.
change the laws.
do something.

after all, you have the courage to regulate my free speech by trying to telling me what i cannot do on my own property, you try and regulate animals, you change recycling to a schedule no one yet understands and you are planning to taking yard waste removal away from me; all while raising my taxes.

now is the time!
ACT!

i walked past the address where the private contractor dug the road up this morning.
the contractor did a TERRIBLE job repaving; with what appeared to be "fill"....not black top.

likewise i was informed that although the contractor did have a permit to do the work, he VIOLATED the permit by not notifying DPW and having them present prior to the work and at the commencement of the work, as per the permit.

isn't it ironic? contractors do as they wish, with no repercussions.

who runs this city?
who really represents "US"?
who interests are being governed?

anytime you ask the question, all you get are excuses. budget this, manpower that, overtime this. yet no one offers solutions.

life is not fair.
violation of a permit is violation. there is no gray area. this is black and white.

was the work ceased?
was the contractor fined?
was the bond revoked?
did the city file an injunction against the companies responsible for the destruction?
is the city levying daily fines onto the contractor for failing to repair what he broke?
has the city ceased the construction of the house that is responsible for destroying a public street?
has the home-owner been notified of the damages "he" committed, by agents of his property?

again,
all we hear are excuses. followed by a tax-hike.

i've had enough.

change starts with acceptance.
acceptance that the system is inherently broken.
that those in charge of fixing it and monitoring it, are themselves broken.
that the only good that can come of the norm is to rid ourselves of the status quo.
that real change comes from thinking outside of the box.
that we must stand up and rid ourselves of the politics as usual, and create a government of the people, for the people, by the people.

since when are excuses permissible?
since when is failure an option?
since when are mistakes allowable?
since when are violations not enforceable?
since when is ignorance tolerated?

this is only one incident.
yet this is truly indicative of the real operation of the government of the city of kingston. this truly represents the top down leadership of our city.

all i ask is that every civil servant of this city, elected or employed, do their job; and do it quietly and efficiently, do it with a smile on their faces, do it saying "thank you".

if that is too much to ask, then they should be terminated. as there are hundreds of people living here in this city, that would do the job with pride and honor and serve the city well; not coming up with excuses.

fix the broken wheel; or face the realization that the wheel will be removed!

you should see the road now.
even worse.
nothing has been done to fix it.
total disgrace.
they just put gravel on the hole....no black top.
no fixing it to how it was.

just dig a hole without the proper authorities involved and violate your permit and get away with it.

way to drop the ball kingston, AGAIN!

So what's the status, Coppertop? Any action?

Personally, I think your attacks on the city are misplaced. But to each his own. This is not a city website - this is a community website. The overstretched city with decreading tax revenue due to the recession must prioritize. If you walk in with the attitude you present here, you quickly end up at the bottom on the pile. Just my humble opinion.

Here's a suggestion - sue the contractor! If they violated their permit, you might have a pretty good case. You might even be willing to find a lawyer who will take it on and take payment through winning the case. Suing the city is a waste of our tax dollars as far as I'm concerned.

Keep us updated.