The other night, I received a phone call from someone that was questioning a post that I had posted on my other site prior to the primary election. I had thought and for the most part hoped that the issue had died.
Well, it is back and I agreed to the person that I would post this to clear things up. In the original post, I wasn't clear and my message was very poor. I was discussing the incumbants and the connection of one of them to Ben Ganther. Well, it could have been assumed that I was referring to Bryan Bain. Not true or the case. Mr. Bain did not nor has he ever had a connection to Ganther.
My point was to connect Ganther to Scheuermann. She was the incumbant that has taken money from Ben Ganther during her 2005 campaign for council. She has previously denied the contribution, even as late as Wed. night to Dan Rylance. Well, on Thursday, I went to City Hall and looked at the campaign finance reports for Scheuermann for Council and found that on January 8, 2005, Ben Ganther donated $100 to the campaign.
I had previously apologized to Mr. Bain for my post then and I will again here. He was not meant to be connected and should not be now.
I hope this clarifies things...
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Council Meeting 3/13
After watching last nights council meeting (yes, I still watch from home) I was wondering about the approval of the DAG for the old Mercy Hospital building. While I agree that the building is an eyesore, I am not sure that I agree with the approval of another $2.7 million for it's renovation. My instinct would have been to lay it over for 2 weeks so that more of the questions could be answered. There was obvious confusion with the terms of the money and how it would be paid out. Those questions, I feel, were left unanswered. Today, I learned that the group that is taking over the property was part of the original group that was working with Ganther from the start of this project. This information was conveniently left out of the information that the council was using to approve the resolutions last night. Now, the questions are begging to be asked; Was this intentional by Jackson Kinney to not include the connection? Would this have changed the outcome of the vote? Would it have prompted the council to lay it over for more information to be presented? And now that this information is coming out, will it be brought back to reverse the decision? I guess we will wait and see. I would keep an eye on the ONW for additional information. They will probably run a story in the next couple of days. Update: The article can be found here.
I was also curious about the "no bid" for equipment again (survey department). This has started to be a pattern to buy equipment without taking bids. Granted, they were speaking the truth when they said that this company was the only supplier in this region. There are others, but Sheboygan is closest.
The rest of the meeting was quick and otherwise painless. I was intrigued by a post that I saw earlier today on the ONW Election thread. It was from a poster only known as "chzhead", he asked; "With the increased number of executive sessions that have focused on the performance of the City Manager, one could be led to assume that his performance is lacking.
Do you as a potential council member feel that the clause in his contract to terminate his employment should be exercised?
Why or why not?"
That is a good question. I only wished I had come up with it first. One reply has already been made by Mr. Bain and he has deferred the answer until the executive sessions are no longer a restriction. Good decision and answer. I would imagine Ms. Scheuermann will have a similar response but perhaps this will spark some debate with the challengers to see where they stand in regards to the city manager. Even more so since Mr. Kinney seems to have put the council in an uncomfortable position yet again.
What is your take? Sound off.
I was also curious about the "no bid" for equipment again (survey department). This has started to be a pattern to buy equipment without taking bids. Granted, they were speaking the truth when they said that this company was the only supplier in this region. There are others, but Sheboygan is closest.
The rest of the meeting was quick and otherwise painless. I was intrigued by a post that I saw earlier today on the ONW Election thread. It was from a poster only known as "chzhead", he asked; "With the increased number of executive sessions that have focused on the performance of the City Manager, one could be led to assume that his performance is lacking.
Do you as a potential council member feel that the clause in his contract to terminate his employment should be exercised?
Why or why not?"
That is a good question. I only wished I had come up with it first. One reply has already been made by Mr. Bain and he has deferred the answer until the executive sessions are no longer a restriction. Good decision and answer. I would imagine Ms. Scheuermann will have a similar response but perhaps this will spark some debate with the challengers to see where they stand in regards to the city manager. Even more so since Mr. Kinney seems to have put the council in an uncomfortable position yet again.
What is your take? Sound off.
Thursday, March 8, 2007
LWV Forum
Well, after giving it a day to sink in, I will comment on last nights LWV forum. In case you missed it, the replay times are listed at OCAT online.
I was intrigued by the email question regarding the police department consolidation. Most of the candidates dodged the question and a couple even cited state laws that don't exist as a reason against doing it. I find it to be an idea worth exploring because of logistics and money.
I was also surprised to see a proxy for Scheuermann. I remember last year when a candidate was not able to attend, a proxy was not used. She should have used a better proxy because the message was lost by the reader.
Mr. Cornell certainly is saying the right things, although I am still skeptical of his message because it contradicts what he told me when he took out papers. He is a strong candidate that will have good support on election day.
Ms. King again failed on answering questions. Much of what she said was talking around the issue or about something else entirely. I really have to wonder how much she really knows about the city. I heard something last night about the Democratic Party is planning for her to use the council as a spring board for her to run against Carol Roessler. I doubt that can be confirmed but I can bet it will be denied. With the amount of money she is willing to spend for a council seat, it really makes you wonder what the real motivation is.
Mr. Nielsen was better in this forum than the last one. His answers were more on topic and he seemed less nervous for this one. He came in about a minute or two before the cameras rolled but seemed pretty collected. Maybe that is the secret, not having to anticipate when you arrive early.
And finally Tony Palmeri. His approach was more subdued than the primary forum. I feel that this style was appealing and he was educated on the issues. He was to the point and his message is definitely something I agree with. (on a side note I would like to congratulate him and the others of the "Five Rivers Five" on the recognition they received today.) Tony has my support for what it is worth.
At this point I am going to make an early prediction on the finishing order. This may be premature but I am no longer a candidate and perhaps have become irrelevant anyway, but here goes;
1. Bain
2. Palmeri
3. Cornell
4. King
5. Scheuermann
6. Nielsen
The possibility exists that King can overtake Cornell if she plays her cards right and spends that war chest that she has collected. It is tough to beat a high dollar campaign.
It is still early and a lot can change. April 3rd is still a month away.
I was intrigued by the email question regarding the police department consolidation. Most of the candidates dodged the question and a couple even cited state laws that don't exist as a reason against doing it. I find it to be an idea worth exploring because of logistics and money.
I was also surprised to see a proxy for Scheuermann. I remember last year when a candidate was not able to attend, a proxy was not used. She should have used a better proxy because the message was lost by the reader.
Mr. Cornell certainly is saying the right things, although I am still skeptical of his message because it contradicts what he told me when he took out papers. He is a strong candidate that will have good support on election day.
Ms. King again failed on answering questions. Much of what she said was talking around the issue or about something else entirely. I really have to wonder how much she really knows about the city. I heard something last night about the Democratic Party is planning for her to use the council as a spring board for her to run against Carol Roessler. I doubt that can be confirmed but I can bet it will be denied. With the amount of money she is willing to spend for a council seat, it really makes you wonder what the real motivation is.
Mr. Nielsen was better in this forum than the last one. His answers were more on topic and he seemed less nervous for this one. He came in about a minute or two before the cameras rolled but seemed pretty collected. Maybe that is the secret, not having to anticipate when you arrive early.
And finally Tony Palmeri. His approach was more subdued than the primary forum. I feel that this style was appealing and he was educated on the issues. He was to the point and his message is definitely something I agree with. (on a side note I would like to congratulate him and the others of the "Five Rivers Five" on the recognition they received today.) Tony has my support for what it is worth.
At this point I am going to make an early prediction on the finishing order. This may be premature but I am no longer a candidate and perhaps have become irrelevant anyway, but here goes;
1. Bain
2. Palmeri
3. Cornell
4. King
5. Scheuermann
6. Nielsen
The possibility exists that King can overtake Cornell if she plays her cards right and spends that war chest that she has collected. It is tough to beat a high dollar campaign.
It is still early and a lot can change. April 3rd is still a month away.
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Downtown- "Call for Action"
Yesterday I read an article on Oshkosh News about the Downtown that caught my attention. In this article, there were a couple of business owners that are wanting the city to "take action" on a plan to improve the downtown. I was shocked at what they are saying. Don't they realize the millions of dollars that have already been invested on what they are calling "piddly things"? I guess it goes to show that no matter what has or will be done, it will not be good enough to satisfy them. Here is a news flash for those who haven't realized it yet... Downtowns are dead or dying all over the country. The "urban sprawl" has taken over America and the development has moved to the outskirts of cities. Not wanting to single any business out, I need to point out that WalMart focuses on highway developments. They want high volume of traffic and now that most larger cities have "bypasses" that will go around the city to increase safety and decrease travel times, the downtowns will suffer. The two business owners in this article are wanting the council to make downtown Oshkosh a tourist destination. My question is, why is it the councils responsibility to ensure their success? Each business needs to do their own advertising and not rely on the city to boost business. There have been significant measures taken in the past few years to improve the downtown (Leach, Grand, Oprah House Square, 100 block, etc). When will it be enough? Just how much should the taxpayers have to pay to ensure that downtown businesses are successful and not expect them to contribute? Yes, the city should improve the city owned property but the individual businesses should be responsible to improve their own areas and advertising.
The candidates are doing a good job responding to this challenge. They are saying what they think will get them elected. It doesn't matter in the long run though. They can only do what the budget will allow them to do and the money just isn't there. Has anyone been to downtown Appleton lately? There are several empty store fronts again now that the smoking ban has started to put bars out of business. Be careful what you wish for, you may get it. All those comparisons stopped when Appleton started to struggle and now we have switched to Princeton. It is apples and oranges, we need to focus on what WILL work for Oshkosh. What that may be is anyones guess.
Any solutions? Remember, money is limited.
The candidates are doing a good job responding to this challenge. They are saying what they think will get them elected. It doesn't matter in the long run though. They can only do what the budget will allow them to do and the money just isn't there. Has anyone been to downtown Appleton lately? There are several empty store fronts again now that the smoking ban has started to put bars out of business. Be careful what you wish for, you may get it. All those comparisons stopped when Appleton started to struggle and now we have switched to Princeton. It is apples and oranges, we need to focus on what WILL work for Oshkosh. What that may be is anyones guess.
Any solutions? Remember, money is limited.
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