After reading the May 3 edition of the Butler Eagle, I just wonder how connected the current elected city officials, as well as those running for city offices, are with city residents?

I am sure all are interested in the stability and welfare of the city, but why would open forums to discuss city issues be held in a non-city location?

What is wrong with the Armstrong building, schools, church buildings, the Elks building, etc.?

Those running for the mayoral and city council positions held their debates at Butler County Community College, which is in Butler Township.

Was it because of the stature of the location? Was it because the candidates were anticipating large crowds of interested individuals?

Or, was it because of the free parking?

I am not a city resident but am very interested in the welfare of the city. I look at Slippery Rock, Saxonburg and other small towns that are not blessed with the traffic flow that Butler has and wonder how those towns can look so inviting while Butler looks so distressed and just plain dumpy.

Those who are running should roll up their sleeves and get out among city residents - and not just those who live in the "nice" section of town in the "nice" houses.

Instead, candidates should meet with people of the Island neighborhood, South Side and West End residents, and people who reside in apartment buildings or apartments in otherwise private homes.

Candidates should go back to the grass-roots campaign efforts of knocking on doors and really listening to the views of residents and business people. Many of them have good ideas on how to turn our city around.

We must retake control of our city, one neighborhood at a time. We must drive out the drugs through tough and swift punishment.

We must hold those accountable who house our criminals in low-rent housing. If their properties continue to support that criminal activity, they must be held accountable for the detriment to our community.

We must stop surrounding counties from dumping their problem residents in our backyard. We must get creative in increasing the cash flow in our city and stop wasting money moving parking meters around.

There must be more discussion about keeping the businesses we have and making our city a place where businesses want to locate.

We must stop focusing on Pullman Center; all you are doing is pulling businesses from our city streets and relocating them to a place that many within our city cannot reach.

The city's focus should be on bringing in small industrial companies in that Pullman location, as it was originally intended, through tax-relief incentives.

Just as everything else is going up, if the city needs to increase taxes for the betterment of the community, then city leaders must have the courage to do so and stand up for what is in the best interests of the city. They must stop worrying about how to please everybody.

I have no control about my school taxes going up and might groan just like everybody else, but I am proud to see that our school district has attempted to keep our buildings and staffing at a level that is required to meet the community's needs.

People who are elected must meet the needs of the community, even though many of those decisions, to get to that point, might not be easy.

Elected officials and candidates must get out and listen to what the people are saying.