Amid talk of furloughs, Slay preps for State of the City address
Slay at his swearing-in last month
ST. LOUIS — Less than a month after taking his third term, Mayor Francis Slay may provide more details of his administration’s plans for the near future in his annual State of the City address on Friday.
And city employees might not like what they hear.
Slay — along with Comptroller Darlene Green and Board of Aldermen President Lewis Reed — are taking unpaid furloughs, and are asking other City Hall employees to do the same.
The mayor’s speech tomorrow at 10 a.m. will be in front of the Board of Aldermen, who will have to approve any furlough plans in the upcoming budget.
However, aldermen might be cool to Slay’s request if it means cutting back on city services — or even taking a furlough themselves.
Slay’s address may also expand on his plans to put more city government online, and the contentious smoking ban proposal, which so far has received only luke warm support at City Hall.
Illinois casinos in 2008 were down 20 percent due the smoking ban but during 2008 Missouri casinos were up 5 percent and St. Louis casinos were up 13 percent. If St. Louis City is broke, why give away that economic advantage?
The Illinois Licensed Beverage Association says bars across Illinois are down due to the smoking ban and bars along the Missouri border are down up to 70 percent. University of Wisconsin economists Dr. Chad Cotti and Dr. Scott Adams have found that smoking bans always cut bar employment where imposed, sometimes up to 16 percent. Why do that to St. Louis mom and pop bars now?
http://www.wpri.org/WIInterest/Vol15no2/Cot15.2.pdf
I hope Bill keeps smoking…soon we won’t have to hear his nonsense any longer!
What will he do about families leaving the city in droves? Bus in more yuppies?
Jobs down, murders up. Should be a short speech.
Yawn!! Please wake us when it’s over.