A Look Inside Issue Four

In the video below, Bill Hughes considers the legal issues the city of Kent’s police department may face in its current facility, and discusses how the people of Kent feel about the issue. In her story, Angel Mack reports the opposing views, for and against the new tax that could pay for a new police station in Kent.

[rpavideo caption=”TV2 Reporter Bill Hughes takes a look at how the people of Kent view the new tax.”]RPA_05_Hughes_issuefour[/rpavideo]

A new tax for a new police station

 By Angel Mack

KENT, OHIO — On Tuesday, voters in Kent will decide whether they want to see a 0.25 percent earned income tax increase in the city. If Issue 4 passes, the tax will pay to build a new facility for the Kent Police Department and expire when the payments are complete.

The building where the department is currently located was built in 1924 and has been renovated and added on to for decades. City Manager Dave Ruller said the building costs approximately 12 times more to maintain than other city-owned buildings.

“We’re kind of just reaching that point where it just doesn’t make sense for the city to throw good money after that,” Ruller said.

The tax

Ruller explained that the city administrators chose an earned income tax, as opposed to a property tax, because the city put so much money into creating new jobs downtown. It’s time, he said, to “put those [jobs] to work.”

“I think there’s probably a better way than going through the income tax. I understand the facility they have there is in sad shape, but I think there has to be a better way to go about it,” said Mike Vavra, a volunteer with the Portage County TEA Party, located in Kent.

Marcus Campbell, senior political science major and president of the College Republicans at Kent State, expressed a similar concern for Issue 4, stating that the city lost some of its income from property taxes when it sold land to the university.

“The only reason why I would think about supporting Issue 4 is to, I guess, not take allocations from other places that we need,” said Campbell, who is registered to vote in Kent. “… I agree they need the new police station, I just disagree with how they went about it.”

The College Democrats and the Democratic Party of Portage County were not available for comment.

The police station

Members of the police department, like Chief Michelle Lee and Lt. Jim Prusha, have said the layout of the facility is ineffecient for the officers and staff. Prusha described the building during a tour as “a maze.”

[pullquote]“If we were to build a new jail today, it would look a lot different than what we have.”

—Lt. Jim Prusha[/pullquote]

The officers are also concerned for the state of the jail that, with metal bars, cramped space and only one bunk for youths or women, who must be kept separately from other prisoners, is not meeting the state’s standards.

“The jail, when it was built, met the standards of that day, for a jail, but the standards for jails have increased over the years, so it doesn’t meet today’s standards,” Prusha said. “If we were to build a new jail today, it would look a lot different than what we have.”

Tim Smith, a professor emeritus in the College of Communication and Information and an attorney at the Smith & Son Law office in Kent, said the likelihood of the city being sued by an unhappy prisoner probably is not substantial since prisoners are not usually housed there for more than a night. However, he said, that doesn’t mean the department doesn’t need to modernize its facilities.

“The building is woefully out of date, undersized, it doesn’t have the facilities that they need, and they’re trying desperately to improve the service that they provide by having a better over-all police station, not just simply the jail,” Smith said.

He also said that a larger, better jail, where the officers could hold prisoners for a longer amount of time, might be more economical. In agreement to this, Prusha said transporting prisoners to the county jail is inefficient, costing the department time and money.

Alex Barba, an artist at Rubber City Tattoo, across the street from the police station, where the new station could be built, said he would vote in favor of the issue if he lived in Kent, and he expects it to pass on Tuesday.

“I have friends that work across the street,” Barba said. “Like, the police officers. I have a friendship with a few of them, and they have told me, like, ‘Dude, this place sucks.’ And I don’t want them to lose their jobs, you know, but with my business, I could move it, if I have to. … Put me where you need me to go, but I want it in a good location, and I’ll be happy. Wash my hands.”

If Issue 4 does pass, the temporary tax increase will take effect in 2014, generate approximately $1.3 million annually and expire in about 25 years, when payments are complete.