Svoboda’s Time Warner Vote Demonstrates Need for New Leadership

During Monday’s Council meeting, Jonathan Cook introduced a resolution calling for a Performance Evaluation of Time Warner Cable over the poor performance of the company’s DVR software, called Navigator. An estimated 35,000 Lincoln homes have a Time Warner Cable DVR box that does not work correctly.

“People are upset about Time Warner’s service and they should be,” Lincoln Mayoral candidate Chris Beutler said. Beutler’s Mayoral opponent, Ken Svoboda, voted against the Performance Evaluation that would hold the company accountable.

“I completely disagree with Svoboda’s vote. The next Mayor of Lincoln must lead. Ken Svoboda’s continued approach of sitting back and waiting is wrong for Lincoln. His vote against the Performance Evaluation clearly demonstrates the need for new leadership from outside city politics to take charge and insist on accountability,” Beutler said.

A majority of the Council disagreed with Svoboda and voted to do the right thing for Lincoln’s Time Warner customers. The resolution passed on a 4-3 vote.

“The City has an agreement with Time Warner that gives them an enormous competitive advantage. When an estimated 35,000 Lincoln homes are not receiving the service they paid for, then the Mayor and City Council must take charge.

“It is especially disappointing to hear Ken Svoboda talk about the need for performance in city government, and then vote against an effort to evaluate performance. I chaired a performance audit committee at the Legislature that helped save millions of taxpayer dollars and helped state government departments perform better.

“Last night’s vote suggests that my opponent will not be aggressive in implementing performance review and demanding accountability. I think this is a key difference between us.