From the BCCT.
How about school board?
3 Dems running for Morrisville mayor post;
no one from GOP filed for primary
Posted in News on Thursday, April 9th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
by Courier Times staff writer Danny Adler
Three Morrisville Democrats are vying for the Democratic ticket’s mayoral nomination this spring.
No Republicans have filed to run in the primary, including current Mayor Thomas Wisnosky, who said he’s not seeking re-election.
The Morrisville Democratic Club endorsed Patricia Schell, 59, who sat on borough council for 16 years in the 1980s and 1990s. The Democrats running against Schell are Councilwoman Rita Ledger, 48, who is serving her fourth year on council and sat on the zoning hearing board before that, and Graeme Thomson, 37, a computer technician who sits on historic Summerseat’s board of directors.
Friday, April 10, 2009
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5 comments:
"The Morrisville Democratic Club endorsed Patricia Schell, 59, who sat on borough council for 16 years in the 1980s and 1990s."
There's a joke in there somewhere, I just can't seem to find it!
I saw in the news today that Dave Arneson, one of the co-creators of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy game, passed away at the age of 61. That's a shame, and that's too young.
I'm enough of a geek to know D&D came with a 20-sided die, but did it come with a 3-sided die too?
I'm gonna need one by May 19.
Well, unless someone can compellingly persuade me why 1 of these 3 candidates is clearly the top choice for Mayor. Especially knowing that although the Mayor normally doesn't get a vote on council (unless as a tie-breaker, right?), they do oversee the Police Department. And they're supposed to be a "cheerleader" for Morrisville, and help enhance its image, and boost Morrisville as a place to live, work, and do business, and all that good stuff.
Who among them is best suited for this role? Somebody please tell me!
Some fairly insightful comments on this article......
4 Responses to “3 Dems running for Morrisville mayor post; no one from GOP filed for primary”
twisted Says:
April 11th, 2009 at 12:45 am
Here’s what I know about the three people running for Mayor in Morrisville Borough:
Rita Ledger: Rita Ledger for Mayor? Really? You may as well just give the position to Jane Burger directly. Everyone knows that Rita is Ms. Burger’s lapdog and will do whatever she wants. Is that really what we need? Isn’t she one of the ones who wants to build like 100 new houses in Morrisville instead of dealing with economic development issues. I don’t doubt that Ms. Ledger has a real desire to sit in the Mayor’s seat, but is that enough reason to put her there.
Graeme Thomson: Mr. Thomson seems to be a nice enough guy on the surface, but I’m wary of him. I believe he is also under Ms. Burger’s control. Its true that he is a member of the Summerseat board, but he has only been a member for one month, no campaigning there at all. He was put there by Sharon Hughes who also follows Ms. Burger. Maybe Mr. Thomson will be up for an award next.
Patricia Schell: Mrs. Schell is LOUD! Did I mention that Mrs. Schell is LOUD?! From what I’ve seen of her in town, once you get past the fact that she’s loud, she isn’t that bad. From what I’ve seen of her she seems genuinly committed to Morrisville and moving it forward. I remember her speaking during public comment about the Gateway project and even though she didn’t like the project in that spot, I remember that she put that aside and wanted to work toward a compromise. I do know that a few months ago Mrs. Schell became the manager at the Morrisville Senior Center and since then I have been getting email blasts like crazy about new things going on there. Maybe she can do for the town what she is doing for the Senior Center. She seems like the towns best shot out of the three.
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spinning Says:
April 11th, 2009 at 7:43 am
Good synopsis. And you’re probably right that Schell’s the best choice. But OMG, is this the best we can do? Beyond loud, I find her misguided and mean and, as is typical of Morrisville, loathe/resistant to change. I also hear that Graeme Thomson is a big Bill Hellmann (school board Pres.) fan - that’s a big strike against him for me. Is there anything in this town that Jane Burger doesn’t have her controlling little fingers in? We’ve got to try something else! An artificial Republican write-in candidate maybe?
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twisted Says:
April 11th, 2009 at 10:36 am
I believe that originally Jane Burger had only planned on running her puppy Rita Ledger for the Mayor’s seat. Then, when Pat Schell put her name into it, Mrs. Burger found Graeme Thomson to run and split the votes. He doesn’t seem too bright and has no idea what the Mayor’s seat is all about but someone put the bug in his ear and now he’s running. Vote splitting is commonly done in politics. Its win, win for Jane Burger since she controls both Ms. Ledger and Mr. Thomson. (I keep putting a “p” in his name and then correcting myself.) I would be concerned that at this point any Republican write-in for the Mayor’s seat is also the orchestration of Ms. Burger. The more vote splitters she can find the better it is for her. At least Pat Schell isn’t under Jane’s thumb. For the reasons above, I think I’m going with Mrs. Schell this time around and I encourage everyone else to do the same. I have no intention of voting for anyone who will allow Jane Burger to continue to control Morrisville in any way. I can see how Mrs. Schell would be considered resistant to change, considering she is one of those life time residents, like Sharon Hughes, but Mrs. Schell’s actions show that she is open to economic development and wants to move Morrisville forward in spite of people like Jane Burger. She will be a good PR person for Morrisville. She is doing wonders at the senior center and I believe she will do the same for Morrisville.
I agree that Graeme Thomson is in with the Hellmann group. Makes sense since the Jane Burger group and the Bill Hellmann group are the same group. Jane Burger is totally Bill Hellmann’s puppet master. There’s no way that man is smart enough to be thinking this stuff up on his own. Jane Burger has some sort of internal lacking that seems to be fueled by her ability to be the top dog in Morrisville. It may seem a bit extreme, but yes, I do believe every bad land deal, every bad ordinance, lawsuit, the smoke shops, the fireworks store, etc…. that has been Morrisville’s problem for the past 20 years has Jane Burger’s name on it and is her legacy. She has spent all of her years on council building herself up and tearing Morrisville down in the process to feed her internal monster. She has taken down many good people in the process. I will not be voting for anyone who is willing to follow her.
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reeling Says:
April 11th, 2009 at 11:15 am
Hellmann’s tells people NOT to invest in Morrisville. He said it more than once, so it’s not like he made a mistake the 1st time & didn’t mean it. He means it. It’s strong evidence Graeme Thomson is a Hellmann fan if Sharon Hughes plugged him into Summerseat to build his election resume. That’s a see-through tactic right out of the Marlys Mihok book – as a sitting school board member she just gave her school board candidate pal Ron Stout a phony crony award to attempt to make him look like he’s on the ball. He’s not. Hughes is a big Hellmann booster – she even defends him that he listens better when he’s talking to someone else, looking away, even sleeping. So if Thomson wins, we could have a Mayor & School Board Pres. who don’t want people investing in Morrisville. Wouldn’t that be something? As if the investments were already rolling in and we need to hammer home the message to take your money elsewhere. Why does Morrisville keep electing the same kind of people over and over again, or their patsies? Isn’t the definition of insanity doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result? How good has the result been, unless you smoke like a fiend, get frequent manicures, live in another state & can buy the good fireworks, like show-plans that gather dust, like furnace explosions and trailers at elementary schools, think debris laden dirt mounds are progress, and give good new businesses grief or the heave-ho before they even start?
I’m with you twisted. The Jane Burger era has to end. It won’t be pretty – she won’t go down easy. It’ll be like extracting a tangled octopus from a spider web. Step one – DO NOT re-elect her to council in the 3rd Ward – DO NOT vote for her on May 19th. No one needs to know which buttons you push behind that chintzy curtain.
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Similar article in today's BCCT.
Three Democrats eyeing mayor's seat
By: DANNY ADLER
Bucks County Courier Times
Three Morrisville Democrats are vying for their party's mayoral nomination this spring.
No Republicans, including incumbent Mayor Thomas Wisnosky, are running in the May 19 primary election.
The Morrisville Democratic Club endorsed Patricia Schell, 59, who sat on borough council for 16 years in the 1980s and 1990s. Running against her are four-year Councilwoman Rita Ledger, 48, who sat on the zoning hearing board before taking the council seat, and Graeme Thomson, 37, a computer technician who serves on historic Summerseat's board.
All three candidates for the $2,900-a-year at-large post stressed the need to strengthen Morrisville's economic base and attract development.
"The tax base is just so awkward in Morrisville" and a huge reason developers shy away from the borough, said Schell. The burden on taxpayers needs to be lowered, she added.
Ledger said she'd like to meet with state and county officials about how to attract new businesses if she becomes mayor. "Development needs to take place in Morrisville," she said.
Thomson said the first step is to keep businesses in the borough and encourage their growth. "I'd like to see businesses coming back into the borough," he said.
Morrisville, like other Pennsylvania boroughs, has a weak mayor's office. Among its duties, the mayor can administer oaths and affirmations, declare states of emergency, break tied votes among borough council and veto council legislation.
April 13, 2009 02:00 AM
I guess it is time for me to chime in and introduce myself.
I am running for mayor I decided to run for mayor the day our incumbent told the school board and citizens at a school board meeting something to the effect that he had spoken to 1000 people about the school issue. It is time for absentee mayor to end and to bring someone in to the position.
I moved to Morrisville, I decided to live here, because of the town and because of the people.
When I chose Morrisville for my home I worked in New York, it was certainly not because it was close to where I worked but I wanted a home where I could raise my family. I can’t think of any place better then Morrisville.
I worked for 12 years in "Advertising and Public Relations", I know better then any of the other candidates how to talk to business leaders, and I know how to show them what a great opportunity Morrisville is.
Morrisville has some hard times ahead if we do not select a business leader. The Calhoun Street Bridge is about to be shutdown for an extended period of time cutting seriously into the number of consumers coming in to Morrisville. To make matters worse PA has increased the taxes on tobacco, making it more expensive for people from New Jersey to here and buy cigarettes then buy them in NJ. I do not smoke and wish we had a better “draw” in Morrisville but at the moment it is the biggest “draw” we have for consumers. More people come to Morrisville to buy cigarettes then any other single item. While they are here people stop at some of our other business. Weather they buy a slice of pizza or a haircut every dollar they spend while they are here adds to our economy.
We need to take strong action to remind Morrisville residents of Morrisville, this is the prime time to do just that. With the cost of fuel on the rise again it is time for the town to learn how to shop local again. During the 2nd world war there were billboards all over reminding people to conserve fuel. That combined with letting people know what businesses and services we have will bring local consumers into our shops. As the shops do better in the area we will be able to meet with business owners and show them that stores in Morrisville can make profit, if you gave a business a tax free ride they will not move here if they do not think they can make profit. It will be a long process, bringing more business into Morrisville but together we can.
As for my being a puppet, life would be a lot simpler if I were. The only person who tells me what to do is my wife, and honestly even she is not completely happy with those results☺ I have always stood up for what I believe and will fight for what I think is right, and though I am willing to listen to other opinions, my decisions are my own not what I was told. I think about my words and actions before I speak or act, so I do not need handlers.
With the work and this campaign keeping me busy I can not promise to keep popping in to this blog, but I am a computer nerd both professionally and at home so this is as good of place as any to leave questions.
Even if you do not vote for me in May I hope you will get out and vote. I also hope you will support who ever is elected in November.
Think Green, Buy Local
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