New Haven Independent

Posted by: boboe | April 27, 2009 9:55 AM

Ralph Ferrucci
Yoy serious about running...you have to let the people know what your issues are...senior centers ok but bigger issues need to be addressed.
To much corruption going on with this admininistration....police .fireman.. shool officials...as they said when Obama was running ..TIME FOR A CHANGE...GOOD LUCK RALPH

Posted by: visitor | April 27, 2009 11:14 AM

what an interesting platform. i understand the need for more than 2 parties, but the Green Party is only hurting themselves when they run someone like this.

Posted by: ignornaceisbliss | April 27, 2009 3:55 PM

If Ralph would get his ass off the barstool and actually do some work, he would understand that you cannot have it both ways. Don't tell me you want low taxes but cannot understand why the city is reducing some services. Have you taken the time to understand that those senior centers provided duplicative and underused services and that every senior will be provide with free transportation to attend one of the senior centers that are staying open?

Posted by: robn | April 28, 2009 8:13 AM

Mr.Ferrucci,

The question on everyone's mind is, how do you reconcile budget cutting (i.e. lowering property taxes) with keeping city services? What is your plan? Is it posted somewhere?

Posted by: jawbone | April 28, 2009 11:08 AM

Someone needs to tell Ralph that the age of detached irony is over. We got some problems around here that need to be solved.
Nobody's gonna vote for a guy running his campaign out of Rudy's Bar & Grill. C'mon.

Posted by: eddie | April 28, 2009 12:04 PM

Go Ralph.

To those of you cutting him down ... well, maybe he's not a perfect candidate. Maybe the Green Party isn't what it should be. Maybe his platform needs a little more substance.

But give the guy credit. Ralph puts himself out there, he knocks on doors, he learns the issues and he devotes himself body and soul to his campaigns.

At least he's doing something, instead of sitting on his ass complaining like the rest of us.

Posted by: City Hall Watch | April 28, 2009 4:40 PM

Robn:
The answer to your question is you don't reconcile the two - cutting taxes and keeping city services. Some city services will be cut in order to bring the size and scope of city services back in line with our ability to pay. Closing the senior centers is actually a partial answer; quit escalating our debt service is another - it takes more than $60 million a year to service our debt; get rid of all the assistant principals at Cross; close the damn windows so that air and heat don't escape; fire the BOE education security guy that drives around in his truck all weekend doing god knows what; cut LCI is half and make it only do code enforcement calls; move tax collection and all fine payments on line including ability to pay and trim those workforces accordingly; close the development office except for one person - Chrissy B - most of this work is being done by the new development corporation; end payments to cops who wear their own clothes to work; change pension rules so that base pay is used to calculate pensions, not overtime; trim the BOE central office by 50% - lot of head banging, not a lot of accountability;...

Posted by: Tom Burns | April 28, 2009 5:11 PM

City Hall,
Why don't you run? Really. Tom

Posted by: Ralph Ferrucci | April 28, 2009 5:34 PM

I welcome everyones comments and questions.

Let me start by saying I am not running a campaign out of Rudy's. I was not there to do an interview with the Independent. I was there for a memorial service for a very dear friend of mine when I bumped into Melissa who asked me if I was running.

I would have rather have done this interview on another day at another location but Melissa wanted me to talk about my campaign and I was not going to avoid her or lie to her.

With that said, I am running under the Independent Party, not the Green Party.

As for how do we cut taxes and not not cut needed services. I would look to cut the Pilot Pen and Tweed before closing senior centers.

I would also look into having an outside team of investigators looking into corruption of all city offices. This city needs a government that is not corrupt and transparent.

We also need a government that does not bend over backwards for Yale giving them evrything they want. Yale and New Haven should be a partnernship. That it is not and has not been under DeStefano or Daniels.

I run a business. The Independent and the Register both say I drive a truck for Pepperidge Farm, it is more than that. I am an Independent Franchise owner for Pepperidge Farm, not an employee. I do not spend $80,000 a year to $50,000 a year.

We need to lower spending to what we can afford to bring in. By afford I mean that many tax payers are just barely able to pay their taxes. We need to lower taxes to where it is affordable and build the budget around that.

There will be some cuts. The Pilot Pen and Tweed should come before Homeless shelters and senior centers.

My issues will be available within the next week or two at voteferrucci.org

If you have any questions you can email me at ralphferrucci@sbcglobal.net or call me at 203-865-7203 (H) or 203-430-9342 (C)
Ralph Ferrucci

Posted by: Exiled Italian Shill | April 29, 2009 8:49 AM

same-old, same-old. who's next to jump in Rick Elser? Now that Matos is leaving city hall will Fernandez grow a pair and run? where is Toni Harp or Toni Walker? why not Charlie Pilsbury as a green? Ralph is a nice kid but this is tired story that doesn't warrant the time devoted to writing it or me even blogging on it. shame on me.

Posted by: Bruce | April 29, 2009 9:39 AM

Someone has to step up. I'm tired of seeing uncontested elections. Competition is essential for a properly functioning democracy. Good for you, Ralph.

Posted by: disgusted | June 25, 2009 3:42 PM

To City Hall...please think about running. Your ideas are what people are begging for and Someone/Anyone, PLEASE address the ridiculous ID cards that make New Haven the "criminal haven" it's become.

Posted by: Ellis Copeland | August 7, 2009 4:55 PM

Ralph-- you can always count on my vote. I've voted for you every time you've run, starting with the Guilty Party. I think you're nuttier than a Snicker's Bar but you'd be a major improvement to what we've got now.