Gangs of Spin City

Friday, October 21, 2005

Gangs of Spin City

This is a sequel to the "Gangs of NY" movie. It is renamed "Gangs of Spin City". It will be a documentary of happenings in and around our fair City, which used to be called Lake Havasu City.

The movie will review past, current and future events.

Past events will include construction of the Aquatic Center, which the people were against, but the council did it anyway.

Another episode will show how a council doubled the irrigation and drainage tax to raise two million dollars to construct some streets. They, of course, left the tax doubled after the money was raised.

Another council increased the irrigation and drainage tax 37% to purchase Kingman's water rights for three million dollars, and left the tax increased after the money was spent.

Prior to the voting for our current sewer program, I wrote a letter to the editor of our local newspaper, Today's News-Herald. I included these two tax increases and stated, "Do you want to trust these people with $463,000,000 of our money? The editor deleted these two items from the letter. Questioning him, he told me the city staff would not verify my figures.

Then, there was the chip seal controversy. The people hated chip seal for obvious reasons, but one councilman told me, "We have a chip seal report. We don't care what the people want. We are going to use chip seal." The report he referred to was prepared by the City Staff, and was filled with garbage.

And, can anyone drive our streets today, and say they are acceptable? Take a drive on Swanson, Mesquite, Jamaica, or, for that matter, any street in the City. And, now the city staff has directed the contractors to replace torn up sewer streets with asphalt over dirt-a future maintenance nightmare. I was told by one if the engineers from the City they could not afford to replace the streets properly and continue the sewer program. Does this make sense to anyone in their right mind?

The sewer program deserves a movie of its own. There was, and is now, too much spin, lies, half truths, etc. to be included in this sequel. Has anyone shown proof that septic tanks are affecting our ground water and the Lake? I don't think so-just more spin.

We can expect a vociferous crowd at next Tuesdays council meeting. The audience will be stacked with people not confused by facts, but, only interested in their own pocketbooks. There will be hurrahs and clapping for anyone favoring approval to continue the sewer program. But, pity any bravehearts that say a word against, and they will be booed, and after the meeting, better get out in a hurry.

Some people say the sewer program brought an undesirable element into the City. It certainly isn't the quiet place it used to be. The wild and heavy traffic reminds one of a big city. Prices of most items are higher here than in Phoenix.

Anyway, does the City Council have the guts to do the right thing and stop this out-of-hand sewer program? I think so.

More of Spin City

"COUNCIL URGED TO STAY COURSE"
This was the beginning of an October 19, 2005 Herald article concerning the possibility of discontinuing the current sewer program. The city staff and a consultant advised the council, at the Wednesday evening study session that the staff and former council put the City into a no-choice position.

The cosultant explained that it would be in the City's best financial interest to continue the $463 million dollar program, which has been updated to $500 million dollars.

First of all, how much confidence can we have in any estimate from a staff that got us into a position from which they claim we cannot escape? And, how much confidence can we have at all in this staff on anything?

Secondly, If the council decided to cancel the project, there would always be a way to accomplish that. If the staff and consultant refuse to solve the problem, get a new staff and new consultant.
There is always an answer.

Since before the sewer bond election, the staff and former council wanted this passed. They would say and do anything to accomplish this. Of course, they got a lot of help from the realtors and contractors, who would benefit financially at the expense of the people.

I urge the council, if they want to do the right thing, and discontinue this fiasco, there must be a way out. Don't give up by accepting advice from this city staff.

When I was a contractor, I did not put up with employees who were continually negative. I fired them. Tere was always a solution to every problem!

SPEAKING OF STREETS

We should award a prize to the director and staff of the Department of Public Works. At least for over 16 years that I have lived in this fair City, the treatment of streets has been consistent.

They have succeeded utilizing hot rubber seal over cracks, black paint, chip seal and slurry seal to maintain and keep our streets rough, noisy, and ugly. They have not during this time strayed from this apparent goal of theirs.

But then, when you think it can't get any worse, these so- called engineers condone tearing up all of our streets-arterials, collectors, and residential- to install a sewerage system. In the first place, no proof has ever been displayed that would warrant sewers throughout the entire City. And, in the second place, they are replacing the streets with asphalt over dirt, which is in itself idiotic and a future maintenance nightmare. But, they don't have any worries. We will pay for it, not City staff.

Tearing up our streets is so far out, I am as amazed at this as I would be to see an alien spacecraft land on McCulloch Blvd. in front of McCulloch Realty. By the way, by alien I refer to from another planet, not from our southern border.

I urge our new City Council to not get swayed by pressure from the enemy. Let's make the necessary changes we voted for.

Spin City

I wrote a letter to the editor recently relating my observations about the October 13, 2005 council meeting. The council had intended to take action against the city manager, but was intimidated by a hostile, rambunctious audience opposed to the recall, and, of course, opposed firing the manager.

I have never met the manager and have nothing against him personally. However, he has done nothing to make me aplaud him. Our streets are still horrible-the worst streets of any I have seen outside of Mexico. The money-sucking sewer program, the worst disaster this City has thus far experienced, goes on as if it were required to make our water clean (as stipulated by our benevolent realtors). And, thirdly, our budget has spiralled, upward, out of control.

I anticipate that the likes of the Oct. 13th council audience will fight this new council on every issue, as the ACLU is trying to destroy our traditions and sovereignty.

We must stand behind our new council and encourage them to remember that they were elected by an overwelming majority, in spite of oppostion by our local newspaper, television station, and the radio program "Speak Out".

I was amused by the commentator of Speak Out during their Thursday show. He commended the new council on their action to table the decision concerning firing the manager. He then gave praise to the manager. This was in contrast to his continual Jackson bashing campaign.

The overwhelming majority of Lake Havasu Citizens voted for the new council to change things. Please do not be intimidated by the special interest groups and their friends.