The Pottsville man who infamously got called out for his unpaid trash bill earlier this month says he’s “shocked but not surprised” by the actions taken by some members of City Council.
At the January meeting of Pottsville City Council, Scott Price was in the middle of critiquing the way the City government is managing its finances and police department. He followed criticisms offered by Laura Kryzanowski, a regularly outspoken citizen. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, Mayor Mark Atkinson and then Councilwoman Dottie Botto brought up how much Kryzanowski and Price owed on their garbage bills and property taxes.
Specifically, Atkinson said Price owed $1,100 on his trash bill and that $900 of it was in collections.
This unexpected reaction from City Council shocked some in attendance at the meeting and garnered a lot of reactions from those watching a livestream of the session online.
This past week, Price told The Canary, “I was shocked that the Mayor was trying to humiliate a woman in her 70s.”
Further, he called the actions of City Council “shameful.”
“I would never do that to the citizens of Pottsville. There’s a right way to do it and a wrong way to do it. I think they’re aware that the city is hurting and they’re in defense mode,” Price said.
He added that he’s got a thick skin so he could take the flak he got from Atkinson and Botto but that, according to him, doesn’t make what they did right.
“You’re the Mayor,” Price said. “If your only rebuttal to a tough question is public shaming, should you be in a leadership role?
“I think that shows what type of person he is and what type of leadership we have in this city,” Price added.
Price said he believes the City government is looking down on its citizens by taking the path they took at this month’s meeting. He said they’re out of touch.
“Have you ever asked why their bills are behind instead of trying to publicly shame people? Why aren’t you trying to understand the plight people are going through,” he asked of Pottsville officials. “Why aren’t you trying to understand the struggles?”
Regarding that overdue trash bill, Price said he paid it after getting called out publicly. He said he went to City Hall on Jan. 15 and paid off the outstanding balance and paid for the upcoming year in advance.
As for the reason the bill got behind, Price said he moved out of the area in 2019 and had a career that took him to multiple states. He said all his other bills are paid up, water, sewer and that his property taxes are rolled into his mortgage payment.
“The garbage was a bill that slipped through the cracks,” Price said.
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