Toledo council members debate Police Athletic League costs - ToledoNewsNow.com: News, Weather & Sports for Toledo, OH

A couple of Toledo City Council members are raising concerns about a measure calling for spending $250,000 of the Parkland Replacement Fund to install utility services at the Toledo Police Athletic League (PAL) building on Manhattan Blvd.

The city leases the building and the utilities were cut off to it when the former Leverette Junior High was torn down.

Councilman Tom Waniewski questioned the timing of the proposal because the city still has no long-term parks and recreation plan in place.

"Kids getting that exposure to our police officers is such a great asset, but can we do something more, can we leverage those dollars?" Waniewski asked. "What's in our park system now that we need to get figured out? Can that money be put to better use with a total recreation plan that I've been advocating for some time?"

And Councilman Mike Collins is skeptical about the city making a major investment in property it doesn't own.

"I support PAL," Collins said. "The question I have is the money's going to be used for a property we don't own now. We have it under lease."

Collins also believes there's a better source of funding to pay for the request.

"The Law Enforcement Trust is monies we seize when we do drug raids, we seize property, we seize cars and we sell them. Those monies would be wisely spent fostering the PAL program."

The measure to install the utility services has already received a first reading by council and could be approved at its next meeting on March 19.  

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