Tt post sat apr 30 2016 - b

Apr 29, 2016 - Toledo Blade Editorial - Down a rat hole

Toledo City Council has approved $50,000 for computer consultants to work on the city’s accounting software system.

The city’s information technology director, Dave Scherting has said that the Hicks-Hudson administration is considering dumping the city’s accounting software system and replacing it with a computer system that needs less maintenance.

The city spent about $16 million to buy a financial software system called SAP that it now may scrap.

The explanation City Council was given? “Trying to find people to work on it doesn’t fit our budget,” Mr. Scherting said.

It sure doesn’t. Consultants fees in excess of $7 million does make maintaining SAP one expensive venture.

We’re starting to talk real money here, folks: Your money. It’s money that Mayor Paula Hicks-Hudson, or her IT minions, apparently think it’s time to throw out the windows of One Government Center.

Sometimes, it's best to cut losses and switch directions. But I wonder who or what was behind the initial decision years ago to spend so much money.

Regardless, I'm sure that the city learned an important financial lesson, and it will never repeat the mistake.

The Blade editorial board has taken an interesting tone this spring. More from the April 29 editorial:

Voters have to laugh to keep from crying.

We are the true saps.

Repeating:

We are the True Saps!

Blade editorial:

Remember the 1/​4 percent income tax increase voters soundly rejected? If approved, that tax would have raised $16.6 million for streets.

Now the mayor wants to scrap a computer system that cost taxpayers $16 million to build because the city can’t find employees to run it.

It is cruelly ironic that the numbers align.

No wonder taxpayers are refusing to give city officials more of their money to spend. They don’t want another $16 million to go down a rat hole.

I think that we have experienced numerous financial rat holes over the years. One was called the Erie Street Sinkhole (Market).