Schools are service providers not job providers

Background: Rev. Wendell Anthony declares "If Detroiters are not retained or hired at every level, all hell is going to break loose" in reference to the $500.5 million to be spent on school construction projects in Detroit. DPS is obligated to get the best deal regardless of where the labor comes from. If a company in Farmington Hills can build it better and cheaper than a company in Detroit, the FH company is the one that should be chosen. Having worked on the $1.5 billion bond program that Anthony and others accuse of overspending, I know for a fact that hundreds of thousands of dollars were wasted on labor and other resources to track how much time was spent by Detroiters on the various construction projects. All for the sole purpose of appeasing economically illiterate power mongers.

Right from the start, Rev. Wendell Anthony, a member of the Detroit Public Schools' Bond Advisory and Fiscal Responsibility Committee, has set the stage for the wasteful spending on new school construction projects. By mandating that Detroiters are first in line for jobs, he has abandoned his responsibility which morally obligates him to be a good steward of taxpayer funds.

For too long, the school district has looked at itself as a job provider rather than a service provider. Anthony and the committee have one responsibility – secure the best quality construction at the best price available regardless of residence.

[Letter to the Editor - The Detroit News. Published 02/02/2010.]