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December 08, 2007 ===========================================
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~ Guest Editorial by Concerned City Employees ~ 60 Scottsdale Employees Speak Loudly Editors Note: This is a very sad but true commentary concerning the continuing mismanagement of our suffering city. It's too bad the morale among employees has been allowed to drop to this level by incompetent management and some elected officials who apparently couldn't care less. We received the letter below addressed to the Mayor and Council anonymously and felt it necessary to print it here in the Scottsdale Activist to allow the employees to make a full public plea to our 15,000+ readers (at last count for this week) and to honor those employees who had the guts to write such an expressive, direct letter so the public could see what is really going on behind the scenes. (Editor Notes continued below the letter)============================================================= December 5, 2007 Mayor and members of the council, This letter represents frustration and dismay at the current level of low morale and actions of our city manager. It’s been almost three months since Jan and her exec. team of favorites lynched Jeff Fisher, an employee who was the typical helpful, honest and open employee that anyone would want working for them or have as a boss. Yet, Jan and her team continue to undermine the Values that many of us uphold and strive to embody every day. It has been painfully obvious that Jan couldn’t care less about these City values that we all so embrace and believe in. This is not a rah, rah Jeff Fisher letter, we all know what really happened and what a joke it was to fire him, and of course we all hope he gets what he is deserved. Frank Gray and Mike Clacks explanation was shameful! Too bad all he really wanted was to be treated with Decency and Respect, but those concepts have been long disappeared since Dolan has been here. We as employees attend conferences and meetings with other city government officials who all talk about the sad state of affairs in Scottsdale, it’s embarrassing to say you work for Scottsdale; we no longer talk to professionals who want to work in Scottsdale. They all laugh and ask why does it continue? We encounter citizens, developers, retailers, and winter visitors everyday and continue to fend off questions, inquiries and innuendo; all the while you, as elected representatives, continue to ignore what’s really happening to our city. We are where the rubber meets the road, we are your front line ambassador's, we send the message about Scottsdale. So our question to you as Mayor and council members is what are you going to do? Continue to hide your heads in the sand and say "we don’t get involved in personnel matters" and continue to support the laughing stock of city managers? Or get involved? Ask questions, initiate discussions without Dolan retaliation, send a message that the current tactics and protocol of handling employee issues will no longer be tolerated. Discontinue the glaring double standards of employee relations…. One employee gets caught with her hand in the cookie jar giving contracts to her sister and she gets early retirement, one employee MIGHT, MAY or POSSIBLY is involved in whistle blowing and you fire him on his 20th anniversary! One employee embarrasses the City at Indian casinos and gets resignation, a HR GM runs half her department away and is a direct clone of Jan and she gets severance and a sweet deal! There are tons of other examples of resignation and severances, when they should have been fired. Even the employees who were in good standing leave a great career with the City for other municipalities due to Jan's reign of terror. What a terrible double standard you all support, that exists and is evident everyday. Mayor Manross, as this group came together to discuss writing this letter; we realized we all live in Scottsdale, vote in Scottsdale and will do everything we can to discuss candidly the state of affairs in Scottsdale to everyone we encounter on a daily basis. You are running for reelection and our numbers are large and strong. It’s time employees started expressing their voice and thoughts on the current regime. We are directors, managers, supervisors, lead staff, and front line staff, we are employees of long tenure and recently hired employees, and we are a voice. It’s time you listen to the staff that makes this City great and not your over paid flash in the pan executives that will simply pull up their stakes when the going gets tough and move on to the next town or City. We have a stake in this community and we intend to make a lasting difference. This is not a letter of threats but simply stating the obvious, something you all should get involved in. As you know we cannot sign this letter, and chose to email it from a remote location NOT using our City assigned P/C’s, as Jan and Neal will attempt to discover who is involved and trump up some BS to get us fired or reprimanded. That culture they have created alone should tell you what’s really happening when an employee cannot use the open door policy of the city discuss a "un discussable" for fear of retaliation which is illegal, yet happens all the time. We look forward to positive change and some action from our elected officials. Signed, 60 (FTE) employees who are fed up. =============================================================== Editors Note Continued: The above employee letter explains graphically why we are losing so many excellent employees. It also emphasizes why we are accepting less than stellar, qualified applicants which we are accustomed to hiring for jobs that used to have extremely high requirements. Who would want to work under such unhealthy, unsatisfying, questionable and stealthy work conditions? You may well rightfully ask "Why wouldn’t the employees sign their names?" That answer is rather obvious; Storm Troopers Jan, Neal Shearer, and Frank Gray, under Jan’s direct orders, would have their heads tomorrow with some trumpeted up charges just to get rid of them just as they have flushed Jeff Fisher , Doug Flack, and others down the drain. Remember the term "Sick City" to describe the city's low morale by an independent firm that researched the "health" of Scottsdale government? Their professional opinion was based upon employee sick days and certain tell-tale ailments. Isn't it very suspect that this "City Health Inventory" has mysteriously disappeared from sight never to see the light of day again or even admitted as having ever been commissioned? Concerning flawed credentials and much lower level of qualifications: shall we go down the list starting with Michael Clack who claims to hold a current CBO Certification (Certified Building Official) but hasn’t been able to produce a current one to date as requested by the Scottsdale Activist over a week ago? How about the many Job Requirements from HR that have been reduced to asking for just menial experience and less than acceptable education due a World Class city such as Scottsdale? Can we reference "Field Manager" requirements in Code Enforcement as another striking example? How about those who are supposed to have passed certain certification tests to receive certain accreditation certificates and credentials, and still haven’t as required by city rules and regulations? If they have, we have not received confirmation of those as requested either. We sincerely hope and pray that the employee’s words herein are heard and listened to by the Mayor and Council as requested, but we doubt that will ever happen due to the administrations continued practice of secrecy and subversion. These less than stellar actions are well documented by the massive failures, outlandish and unwarranted spending, ridiculous heights, densities and helter-skelter designs allowed, and apparent illegal actions and questionable ethics practiced by the current administration; Facts we have. Half-truths, outright lies, platitudes and pontifications all belong to and are practiced regularly by the secretive and subversive Manross-Dolan administration. It should also be strongly noted here that the Council Minority (Lane, Nelssen & Littlefield) knows full well that what the employees are speaking of and asking for here is very true, very fair, and very much needed but the elusive 4th vote on the City Council will only apparently come when the voters turn out those in the Council Majority who are blind to the real needs of the city (Manross, Drake, and McCullagh), and elect those who hold the health and prosperity of Scottsdale as their highest goals by putting aside their egos, legacies, secrecy, special promises, and greed which permeates the current administration to the core. We also think it is very telling that there haven't been any line level employee letters or quotes in any local media complementing or in support of the Current Administration for anything that has happened over the last 5 years. Can you think of any? ~Council Corner By Councilman Bob Littlefield Recently several letters have appeared in the local papers arguing that the only way to "revitalize" the southern part of our city is to hand out subsidies and height and density increases to developers. Unfortunately, some of these letters have made claims that are simply not true. Several of the letter writers claimed that the city has given out subsidies in North Scottsdale while ignoring the southern part of our city. The reality is exactly the opposite. In the five years that I have been on the City Council the biggest subsides we have awarded have been on McDowell Road – the ASU Foundation subsidy (120M of your taxpayer dollars) and the $300K/year given to the car dealers to subsidize their marketing. Last year we actually turned down a request for a $52M subsidy for a shopping center north of Loop 101. The claim that the city is passing out subsidies in North Scottsdale while ignoring the southern part of our city is not only factually wrong, it is a blatant attempt to "divide and conquer" by pitting residents from different parts of Scottsdale against each other. We all, from all parts of our community, have a common goal in protecting our quality of life and we must work together to be successful. Only the special interests who want to dip their sticky fingers into the taxpayer’s wallet benefit from this "south versus north" division. I do not blame the supporters of subsidies for wanting to forget about the ASU Foundation and car dealer handouts, because these two are the poster children for what is wrong with subsidies and why they fail to "revitalize" the areas they are supposed to help. The supporters of these handouts claimed that they would "save" South Scottsdale. However, the ASU Foundation deal took 42 acres (of prize commercial property) off of the tax rolls and made those acres unavailable for the sales-tax-generating retail that the residents made it clear that they wanted on that site. Instead the neighbors got an office building of mediocre design, with bait-and-switch apartments added on after the fact. This subsidy actually resulted in less retail in South Scottsdale, nor more! As for the car dealers advertising subsidy, with at least one and perhaps as many as four of the McDowell Motor Mile dealers preparing to move to Mesa Riverview, that was clearly a waste of taxpayer’s money. Just as Councilman Lane and I predicted when we voted against these two pieces of corporate welfare, they enriched favored special interests while doing nothing to help the residents of the neighborhoods that they were supposed to "save." Another letter writer repeated the line from the developer playbook that "if we are to preserve our open space, some height and density is necessary." This is a false choice. Where is it written that the citizens of Scottsdale are obligated to accommodate unlimited population growth? The truth is that we have a right to decide how (and how much) our community is going to grow and to elect leaders who will implement the type and amount of growth that the citizens want. We do not have to choose between sprawl and overcrowding, we can (and should) reject both, in all parts of our community. High density, highly subsidized projects that overtax our infrastructure, clog our roads, deplete our treasury, and diminish the quality of life for the current residents are not the answer for any part of Scottsdale, north, central or south. Councilman Bob Littlefield For all intent and purposes, we have paid 1.2 million in our tax dollars to HDR and Charlie Hales of Portland Oregon to be told we WILL walk and ride our bikes to the tune of a forced 24% reduction of roadway capacity with large increases in roundabouts and traffic calming devices in temperatures, climate and city design totally foreign to Portland Oregon and HDR. This signals to us, Welcome Light Rail, like it or not, public vote or not. According to what we're told, those changes will cost us another 500 million. You've got to be kidding me! A 1993 survey flatly stated that Scottsdale Residents WILL NOT give up their cars, PERIOD, and the residents feel no differently now. If this city council passes this ridiculous plan this coming Tuesday, those voting for it need to be tarred, feathered and thrown into the middle of Scottsdale and Indian School Roads on July 4th as part of the holiday festivities to see how they react to heat and walking, even in the shade! Most of those on the council that will vote for this plan haven't been in the sun walking or riding a bike for more than 5 minutes in the last ten years by the pallor of their faces, arms, and the tops of their heads. We need to try and stop this Manross Steam Roller Tuesday but probably won't because Mary, Jan and their cozy friends never listen to the residents anyway, but we can try. This entire process concerning the transportation issue should be up to the voters as promised by Mayor Manross, not decided by some council majority numbskulls who don't know up from down and only care about their precious legacies, citizens be damned, and who never allowed it to be heard by the Neighborhood Enhancement Committee! Our next chance will come during the next election. Watch who votes for this nonsense, then throw their sorry butts out in the September elections. A new council majority can modify or eliminate this plan at will with proper justification which is largely in evidence already as we speak. You don’t really have to look too closely at the recent wave of departures of city employees to see that there is a definite and very noticeably clear double standard at City Hall. If you are a suspected "whistleblower" (protected under Federal Law) exposing documentable wrongdoing within the city government, you can expect to be fired on trumpeted up charges just before your retirement benefits vest or even sooner, without any due process. If you are caught red-handed violating the ethics code or being somewhere other than where your job demands you be, but are part of the in-crowd you will be allowed to retire with all of your benefits intact. Why doesn’t the City Council do something about these injustices you ask? Simple you say, just do it! Ah, but hold on a minute: Manross and Dolan along with their legal lapdog city attorney Robberson in tow will whine and wail incessantly that Scottsdale’s City Charter contains a clause that prohibits Council members from getting directly involved in the hiring and firing of rank-and-file city employees. The purpose of this clause was to protect city employees from political interference while they perform their jobs. Obviously it’s working well…. Or is it? Doesn’t it seem like Manross has dictated to Jan Dolan that she wants all the Drinkwater Era employees gone because of their strong work ethic, strong wills, future vision, and honesty? What a better way to do it than turn your back, close your eyes, and plug your ears as to what’s happening to those employees? Remember the "Three Monkeys"? Scottsdale apparently owns all three, lock, stock & barrel. This clause DOES NOT mean that the Council is powerless to fix morale and personnel problems. It actually means that the City Council CAN and MUST do so by holding the City Manager (for whom the vast majority of city employees work) accountable for the obvious and massive morale and personnel problems among city employees which have been escalating in double digit percentages ever since Jan Dolan arrived on the scene. Three of the Council members (Lane, Littlefield and Nelssen) have made it clear that they are very willing to question the City Manager about her policies and discipline her or even terminate her if she does not fix these morale and personnel problems post haste. Unfortunately, the Council Majority (Drake, Ecton, Manross and McCullagh) have talked a good story about the problems admitting that Dolan is very possibly the problem. But, when it’s time to take a vote, those four council members have shown that they are happy to wimp out by allowing the City Manager do whatever she wants with zero consequences or accountability, backed up by their legal lapdog City Attorney Robberson.. These four council members and the city attorney are politically tied to the City Manager and will never force her to fix the morale and personnel problems among city employees. Manross would be at a total loss and considerably more ineffective than she already is if she didn’t have Dolan in place as City Manager to do her dirty work and make most of the bogus decisions for her. Remember that three of them (Drake, Manross and McCullagh) are up for re-election in 2008. The only way that these problems will get fixed is if we vote Manross, Drake and McCullagh out of office and replace them with new, intuitive and knowledgeable Council members and a new Mayor. These new council members will need to have publicly shown an ongoing open interest in the city and share a future vision of superiority and excellence for Scottsdale and who really care about ethics, fairness, openness, and honesty in dealing with the rank-and-file employees through an honorable city manager who make our city work. The rank and file city employees deserve much better than they are receiving under Manross, Drake, and McCullagh who coddle Dolan, Gray, Shearer, and Robberson, and it’s up to the voters to give them back their self esteem, confidence and the ability to do their jobs as only they know how by voting to fix the system. We know it’s early in the process, but we need to remind all of you that it’s YOUR VOTE AT THE NEXT ELECTION that will make the necessary changes possible .~ Signs: How Scottsdale Deals With Them It seems that the current city staff and administration are picking and choosing what signs to change and why. It also seems that many of these decision are very political in nature rather than realistic and of significant effort to balance the scale legally as well as protecting and helping all concerned. We have small shops downtown and in strip centers who desperately need "A" board signs to advertise their wares and services: Illegal They also need signs that show their hours at night using neon or other electronic signs: illegal unless they are placed 36" behind the glass and no larger than a certain size. Yet there is a huge 60+ foot by 8 feet high lighted billboard style sign under Nordstrom on the south side of Camelback that advertises "Verrado" in the far west Valley. What??? Isn't Verrado owned by DMB and Associates? Political? We think another favor definitely fulfilled here, don't you?. We have Realtor Open House "A" board style signs popping up everywhere by the hundreds and are far too numerous for the entire Code Enforcement staff if they all worked on the weekend to control. "One Issue" Incumbent Councilman Ron McCullagh forced the political sign regulation and their basic elimination which will be found unconstitutional within a few short years as will Photo Radar which already is illegal in a score of states and increasing. Of course that will happen in non-election years so politicians don't get burned.
Has anyone thought about what we would do if a building owner decided to rent or sell space for a sign of a non-related business not located on that owners property? We didn't think so. Signage is the lifeblood of any business and should be treated accordingly while still maintaining the decor and distinctively clean look of Scottsdale. Mesa Riverview Shopping Center has done an excellent job with signage while Tempe Market Place looks gaudy and crass in comparison. We certainly wouldn't want the electric bill of the Tempe Market Place. Have any of their neighbors complained yet about light pollution? Hopefully, with a new Scottsdale City Council majority and new management in place after the next election, we can get down to business and fix the problems and curtail out of control spending caused and perpetrated on the unsuspecting public and business owners by the out of touch and very politically motivated current administration. ~ The Levity & Frivolity Continues It absolutely amazes and is also very humorous how Lisa Haskell changes her spots like a chameleon with each new article she writes for the local newspapers. She has gone from Rabid Activist Attacker to tongue in cheek disapproval of the fights we have been fighting while finding a new way to say the same things we have been saying for years. She consistently rails against the "Dreaded Activists", yet has taken up their causes which they have fought for over a number of years. It also amazes us how many times she gets her "stuff" printed while we get next to nothing printed, especially in the Scottsdale Republic. That's OK though because she has picked the same fights as we have but in a different way with a different approach. We welcome Lisa to the fight, even if she denies that she sees things the way we do, which is betrayed by her writings. Welcome aboard Lisa.......... I think. ~ Open Letter to Neal Shearer, Part 3 To date, Pat Dodds of the City Public Liaison and Public Affairs Office has not supplied us with any information requested which he promised in last weeks letter back to the Scottsdale Activist. I'm beginning to think that we will never see those documents because frankly, they probably have never and don't exist even now!! This perfectly exemplifies what the City Employees are complaining about and asking for help to stop. ~ Scottsdale Area Chamber Out of Step Definition: Chambers of Commerce A chamber of commerce is a voluntary association whose membership is comprised of companies, civic leaders, and individual business people. Its members seek to promote the interests of business, typically in a broad-based way. Isn't it interesting that rather than concentrating non-stop on getting quality businesses for Los Arcos Crossings or SkySong, or finding new businesses or enterprises to fill the quickly vacating "Motor Mile" businesses, Rick Kidder and company have stuck their noses into the Airpark and West World situations miles away from their long and continuing real problems? The reason is very simple! the Scottsdale Area Chamber is Jealous!! Someone is doing things much better than they are and doing it quietly without fanfare, chest-puffing and pontification. The North Scottsdale Chamber is very task oriented and is working hard but quietly to make things better in the north for BOTH businesses and the public at large which is exactly what the Scottsdale Area Chamber should be doing in the south but hasn't and won't for lack of expertise and ability. It is obvious that the Scottsdale Area chamber is politically motivated and has totally lost touch with their true purpose while the North Scottsdale Chamber isn't political and in fact that is why they decided to come into existence: Politics was killing the definition of and the reason why any Chamber of Commerce was established in the first place. We salute the North Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce for working behind the scenes for the sole benefit of the businesses, the city, and citizens of the area in which they work, not the out of touch politicians nor the greedy movers and shakers who control the Scottsdale Area Chamber as well as many members of the current administration. ~A "Preserve America Community"?? Excuse us, We thought we saw an Award from the First Lady, Laura Bush for Scottsdale being a "Preserve America Community". We're glad for the award but how did we earn such an honor? It's rather apparent that the current administration has done absolutely nothing to promote the preservation of historic areas such as the Cattle Track Historic Area where they allowed two ugly, 24 foot above ground water tanks to service mainly Paradise Valley customers, or the older areas in the city which are being mowed down by greedy developers assembling properties, then letting them deteriorate into slum-like conditions. Then, with the city's help, they can claim they are cleaning up the slums by building height and density against current zoning. Preserve Scottsdale? Nope, Not by this sorry excuse for an administration: newer, bigger, higher, denser is their cry of late, to hell with the infrastructure and other primary concerns of the residents who will end up paying a hefty tax bill for this nonsense. ~Letters to the Editor letters@scottsdaleactivist.com ~ Manross Campaign: Outright Lies It was brought to our attention this morning, that if
you Google "Scottsdale Coalition" and hit the "I am feeling lucky"
button you will be taken right to the web site of the re-election
campaign of Mayor Mary Manross, giving the appearance that our
organization has endorsed her re-election. OR if you Google "Search" you
will be taken to a page that provided a link to that site as the first
item on the page. ========================================================== "Googling" the Scottsdale Coalition this morning a friend has brought to our attention the fact that first item that comes up is "Scottsdale for Manross 2004," which takes you right to "Scottsdale for Manross 2008." When you get there, it appears that the Scottsdale Coalition has endorsed Manross for Mayor in 2008. The Scottsdale Coalition has not endorsed any candidates, ever. Not in 2004 and certainly not in 2008. What individual members do with their votes when given pertinent information is up to them. We trust that truth and integrity will win out. If one is willing to compromise their ethics in the way that Mayor Manross’s campaign has done, why would one consider ethics to be important in any other arena that person deals with? Whoever is running the Mayor’s re-election campaign needs to step forward and provide open discussion on this issue. We simply repeat: The Scottsdale Coalition has not endorsed Mary Manross for Mayor, now or ever. Nancy Ann Cantor =================================================================== We have sent a letter to the news media with a statement of the same and it is attached to this email. We have sent a complaint to the Secretary of State's office regarding this being a violation of election campaign law. It reads as follows: On Saturday, December 8, 2007, it was brought to our
attention that when the name of our community activist organization is
typed into Google, it takes you either directly to the re-election
campaign site for Scottsdale Mayor Mary Manross or to a link that takes
you to the same site. In both cases it gives the appearance that the
Scottsdale Coalition endorses the re-election of Mayor Manross. Not only is this a false statement of association, we feel that it is very misleading to potential voters. We would like this stopped immediately. Your help in this matter would be greatly appreciated. Sincerely, Remember what happened to Downtown when the city council slapped a "blighted" designation on it? That's right--nothing. Well, just so you know, the same thing currently applies to "blighted" south Scottsdale. Here's why: I own an old house within a stone's throw of the ill-conceived SkySong abomination. There are some things I'd like to do to it to take advantage of today's technology. Things like adding exterior insulation--so the block walls can become beneficial thermal storage units--and converting to double-paned windows and replacing exterior doors. The pool decking is looking a little beat up, too. But, I am not lifting one finger to make any improvements at all. The reason is I remember Bob Littlefield's cryptic warning: "The city has plans for south Scottsdale, they just don't include you." My house is in a cul-de-sac with nine others. I can easily imagine those ten modest homes being demolished and replaced with maybe 40 condos--upscale condos, of course, condos I couldn't afford to live in. Forty tax-paying units replacing ten modest, comfortable, well built tax-paying homes? I'm sure that makes perfect sense to city bean counters. So why should I pour more money into a property that will sooner or later be demolished? If I can envision condos here surely developers already have. With the proximity to SkySong, I'm convinced it will happen--and there will be nothing I can do to stop it. So I do nothing. I suspect I'm not alone in my thinking and for that reason the only homes down here being seriously refurbished are those owned by speculators hoping for an over-market sale. After 40 years I don't relish the thought of moving so somebody--please--prove I'm wrong. Sad, long time resident Living in the Land of Oz by Michael Merrill Yep you got it. On Tuesday, we found out that apparently there is a special group of people in the City, visiting the City, working in the City, and using the wrong restrooms of the City. They felt that in the Emerald City of Oz, they needed special laws to protect them. Worse yet was the fact that our Council also thought it would show "leadership" to give special rights to a select few people while the rest of us endure with things like civil rights, the fair employment act, the Americans With Disabilities Act, Hate Crime Laws, and even our own Emerald City policy guidelines. So, let me get this right, and try to understand this, as in all these laws we already have, the perception is that if the laws do not specifically state the words "based on sexual orientation or gender identity" whomever is discriminated against has no right or recourse? Yep, I understand that the above acts like fair employment, housing, and the disabilities acts as they all state it is based on Race, Color, Religion, Sex, National Origin, Age or Disability and I guess, since it does not include the above words, it means they have no legal standing against discrimination? What about the Civil Liberties of people who live in the United States and their legal recourse to sue someone for discrimination? Well, the problem seems to be that many courts will not hear cases based on sexual orientation because it is not specifically named in those Acts we passed long ago. Legally, without that language identifying these people, it could be realistically stated that they do not have any rights to discrimination laws. The thing I think I do not like about this particular issue is that the addition of gender identity will indeed open the City to some real problems. The federal government is now considering a measure to add sexual orientation to the laws definition; they are clearly unwilling to add gender identity. While I am okay to some degree with the sexual orientation part I see the gender identity issue as being a problem that only the City taxpayers are going to bear the brunt of in the form of legal problems. Let’s just thank our lucky stars that the Mayor of the Emerald City did not want to extend the laws outside of the City’s empire. However, it should show well in her re-election bid in 2008 with the GLBT, as she can now try to claim she is not the shrew we all know she is. Again, from people saying they are fiscally conservative with our money, this was approved with no explanation from the staff as to the issue of "minimal cost for the City to implement". I prefer that the City put that minimal cost out to the public and let us decide if the rest of the employers in the City, the ones who pay taxes, consider it a minimal cost. I also liked the comment from Beanie Boy about letting the voters decide as there is already a scheduled election coming up and it would not cost us anymore to place the question on the ballot. Then again we all know how well the supposed leaders of Oz took to that thought. Okay, I read today that now, national experts along with none other than ASU, have predicted that the housing market in the State of Oz is in much worse condition than previously thought. I laughed until I passed out thinking that it has taken these people all this time to figure out what I have been saying for months, now just about our little section of the state. "One of the regions major forecasts stops short of calling for a recession, but projects fewer housing permits issued and slower growth in retail sales, jobs and commercial construction projects." Valley economist Elliot Pollack stated, "There is no quick fix. We have a long way to go. Boy, it’s a mess." It seems all these great wizards were caught off guard as they predicted a 17.7 percent decline in housing permits and then were surprised to see the number was more around a 30 percent drop. So what does that mean for the great Emerald City? I am not really sure as the media and the City Council seem to think that we are immune to the problem. What we will probably see over the next year is more of our incoming revenues decline dramatically and the City fighting to try to maintain the debt they have continued to rack up over the last 4 years over objections from both the taxpayers and the City of OZ financial guru. Like I said before, this issue, with the housing downturn due to the sub-prime loans and billions lost in credit and mortgages, is just starting to dawn on some people and it is going to get worse well before it is going to get better. With all of that stuff, we have approved, so stupidly, without planning that it is going to take longer and be more expensive for the taxpayers who are going to be responsible for paying to fix all those mistakes. It is going to be an interesting upcoming "budget session" this time, I will guarantee you that one. Okay, again I got another laugh this week from an old friend who I have spoken about before. My friend has come down with the "Manross runs" which is along the same lines as Montezuma’s Revenge. He has been unsuccessful in stopping the Manross Campaign, extolling how great she is (the Manross newsletter). When I got home today I wondered what else I could write about when I got this e-mail, enjoy: -----Original Message----- What do I have to do to "unsubscribe" to this misinformation about a Mayor that should be run out of office.....let alone campaign for re-election? I have pushed the "unsubscribe" button at the end of this email with no success! Please remove me from your database and don't waste my time pandering for a vote! You will not get it from me or anyone else I come in contact with! Your time in office has been disgraceful to us citizens of Scottsdale and the best thing you and Jan Dolan can do for us it to leave office and go off and enjoy each others company someplace where your actions don't negatively affect as many people as your time in office has. "Proven Leader".....you've got to be kidding! Take a look at South Scottsdale. Take a look at the Hualapai Water Facility mistakes. Take a look at mid-way up the west side of the beautiful McDowell Mountains that you have allowed to be torn up for multi-million dollar homes for the sake of that development company (three initials) that you seem to be in bed with! Please....just go away for the sake of all Scottsdale residents. Respectfully, =========================================================== ----- Original Message ----- From: Mary Manross Subject: Mayor Manross Launches Powerful Campaign Website: www.marymanross.com
=========================================================== Well, as you can see two things happened over the period of time we last spoke of this. My friend still cannot get rid of the Mayor and the Mayor is so out of touch she cannot realize that many residents in the Emerald City are fed up with her, and strongly desire a change in her perception of the resident’s quality of life as opposed to "her" view of what it should be. You really need to check out her web site if you want a good laugh and proof she is out of touch with the City. Our Mayor better get with her attorney and find out if she was required to place a disclaimer from her Political Action Committee on this e-mail, as I believe she is deadly close to getting a formal complaint filed for violations of election laws. Funny things happen in this City my friend’s, and again, another miracle occurred in resolution of an issue of many years. At the last "Three Ring Circus" meeting, the City staff came up with a solution to our "flooding up north" in less in a few months (after I presume many years of debate or just shear ignorance). Again, just the same as the residents of Chaparral Road waited for nearly a decade for resolution to traffic in their area, and the same as the Indian Bend wash bridge (as well as so many other issues that have gone unresolved in the Manross era), we finally have action on the flooding issue. The greatly heralded recommendation, from the supposed leaders and City staff, was to do something we should have done years ago as it would have only made common sense to any idiot. We probably wasted countless man ours to come up with this plan of action. We are going to hire 2 experts to go over all of our drainage plans and we are going to hire 2 inspectors who will inspect our washes and do things like code enforcement does. It amazes me how long it took and how much effort had to be put in on this issue that has been around for years in which staff sat on their asses and did nothing to prevent this by enacting these kinds of safeguards years ago. Instead the City staff, in the Manross/Dolan era, has sat around and watched people’s homes flood and wash down the street, as well as watch those who became stranded after the roads into their communities flooded. They did nothing until the press reported the issue and the residents where pitching fits with the City over lack of giving a poop. Now, as the perfect example of not giving a crap about your quality of life, they are debating what to do with the 80 acres of land by West World (we haven’t even paid for it yet). Even after we obtained the land we originally wanted, we only bought this land as a backup, intending to sell it if all went well with the other parcel. The residents of the area already made it clear that they prefer the City sell the land, but yet the supposed City leaders are already running off at the mouth about what they would like to do with the land against taxpayer and surrounding community wishes. Fact is we were all given the slippery shaft by the City, yet again, as to what they said they were going to do and why, just to turn around and snub their nose at the taxpayers and residents. I mean really, do you think they give a crap what you think since they already purchased the land with municipal bonds? Still think I am kidding? Than re-read the words that appeared in the Oz Repugnant regarding West World, and tell me that if the Wicked Witch and people like Buckaroo Betty and Ron, "the flaming PaToot," McCullough get re-elected their intent over the next 4 years will indeed be to expand the park into your back yards in some fashion or another. Read this one first and look at the Mayors comments and tell me I am lying. http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/SREditorials/12003 http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/SREditorials/12092 Read this lower link as they discuss the future plans for the site, and tell me that those of you who live around the site are not screwed and your elected leaders, along with the Repugnant and the Scottsdale Area Chamber, as well as other City shills, already have plans for your area, just like the south and like airport Bob will tell you, "the City has a plan, it just does not include you." They are already well on their way to making the north just as good as the south. So which liar will you vote for in this next election? You now have proof around West World that the elected City leaders and Manross do not give a crap about what you want, it is what they want that matters? ~Another Architectural Nightmare Sorry Ned O’Hearn, I know how hard you have all worked on the Western Museum and for the 54 million you need to build this thing. But, you need to take back the design of the building as it is the ugliest thing I have ever seen proposed in this City. I mean really! I saw the pictures in the paper and the thing looks like a big box building with wooden slats covering one side. The thing looks just hideous and has no business being called a "Western Museum" and looks more like barn that fell in on one side. For 54 million dollars I would think that we could come up with a design that is not as obnoxious as the "4333" building and its space ship design. Please go back and get a new design, Ned, as this one is just too hideous to place in downtown. It is pretty much on par with the rest of the crap the DRB and the supposed leaders of this City have approved. By the way, has anyone seen the great design that went up on the northeastern corner of Camelback and Scottsdale road? It has recently been dubbed the Mayors castle (al la Marie Antoinette), check it out the next time you head down to smell the sewers. Michael Merrill
~
Council and Mayoral Candidates
Information
Any candidate is welcome to send us information as long as it concerns their position on issues and is kept as short and to the point as possible. We will not go out looking for candidate information, it's up to the candidate to supply us with the information at editor@scottsdaleactivist.com . We get enough diatribes from the Dias as it is. Pontification is discouraged, just the facts please. The Scottsdale Activist does not endorse candidates for election but will suggest options for Ballot measures. Please send information in MS Word format so it is easily added to the website. If we find we are getting too much information from any candidate, we will limit the amount posted by removing the oldest posting first. Just click on a candidates name to bring up information tendered to the Scottsdale Activist for public distribution. If there is information in the file, the name will be underlined. Click for: Biography, or Information Sheet
~ Lisa Borowsky ~ Joel Bramoweth ~ Suzanne Klapp ~Richard Mueller "My ardent desire is, and my aim has been...to comply strictly with all our engagements foreign and domestic; but to keep the United States free from political connections with every other Country. To see that they may be independent of all, and under the influence of none. In a word, I want an American character, that the powers of Europe may be convinced we act for ourselves and not for others; this, in my judgment, is the only way to be respected abroad and happy at home." -- George Washington (letter to Patrick Henry, 9 October 1775) "Americans are so enamored of equality, they would rather be equal in slavery than unequal in freedom." —Alexis de Tocqueville ~Shout and Spout ~ ~Judy Weiss’ backside should have kicked from here to the next galaxy for her clear unethical conduct yet she got early retirement and a nice departure package courtesy of Dolan. Why didn’t Jan just give her a ticker tape parade and erect a statue of her on the corner of Scottsdale Rd. and Camelback? Early retirement and a cushy package for doing the WRONG thing in Scottsdale? I guess you give what YOU will get eh, Jan? What a damned joke this place has become. Fisher fired and loses everything over a nondescript possible problem and Weiss gets her early retirement and whatever for violating the ethics code……… go figure. ~Our city leaders have continually been caught in their own lies, corruptive acts and blatant misgivings yet why, oh why are they all still employed? Apparently you must have at least an ounce of brains at the top to fire these bozos – says a lot about what our Mayor and current Council majority monkeys don't have doesn't it? ~ My wife and I have been Scottsdale residents only a short while but came from a corrupt town in the east. It didn't take long for us to see that Councilmen Nelssen and Littlefield are right on target and the others are as or more corrupt than those we left. We will be voting in the September election and will help elect those who will help Nelssen and Littlefield get the city back on course. ~ Michelle Aubert is totally correct. Sky Flop is a joke and we've been badly burned. Can we do anything to correct this grievous attack on the city's financial health? ~Rain, rain go away, sweep Manross, Drake, Ecton and McCullagh with you down the Indian Bend Wash to Mexico via Gila Bend and Yuma! ~ Glad someone had the (cajoñes) to tell it like it is with Technical Solutions. I keep sending you stuff about them but you said they could sue you without my name which unfortunately I cannot let you use for some very good reasons. Finally someone who can't lose anything pipes up and tells the truth. Thank you to Brandy Sipos and Tom Giller for having the (Cajoñes) to tell it like it really is and better yet, make it public. ~Thank you Activist for finding out the truth about the car dealerships on McDowell. Virginia Korte and Manross have been lying to us for years about that area – of course the dealerships would turn away a subsidy this year – they had already planned to move! ~ I love the writings of the "Monday Morning" quarterbacks who don't do a damned thing but criticize the activists for what they are trying to do to better the city. Maybe those whiners (want a little cheese with that Whine) and complainers need to get off their sorry butts and find out what's really going on instead of being like lemmings falling off a cliff at the whim of the mayor and her den of thieves. ~ Loved the idea of a "Green" Community where the "Motor Mile" is currently located, especially the retail, underground parking, solar stuff, etc. It is very plausible and very possible without subsidies if properly handled. But, we'll have to wait until after the election to get people who can put something like that together without mucking it up totally. ~I was so upset after reading the news that the Motor Mile on McDowell is soon to be no more. Can you blame the dealerships for wanting to relocate? What has the Chamber done for them? What has Manross done for them? If that ($#@%$) Manross tries to put one more freakin’ apartment complex, townhouse, or condo complex down here, I will personally fund a referendum opposing it! She has absolutely no clue what the area needs OR what she’s doing. ~ Virginia (I want a Hotel Subsidy) Korte fits her to a "T". We know that’s what she wants and that’s why she’s played so nicely with all the developers and the current administration. Hey Virginia: It’s over and it ain’t ever going to happen, give it up and go away. We’ve got your number including that of Kidder and the Area Chamber. ~ Forget about the stupid rapid transit stuff. The trolleys are super and versatile transportation, can be modernized as needed and fill all the needs of any transit needs that Scottsdale will ever have. Let's fund the needed routes and get on with it. The money can be found under "Traffic Calming" which is out of control anyway. ~The area where the dealerships are is perfect for retail. The south needs restaurants and retail. Why doesn’t someone know this? What the heck are our city planners doing besides kowtowing with Dolan and Gray and padding their billable hours at the bars? Where is the all important Chamber of Commerce and the City Economic Vitality group? What’s the matter? No kick backs for doing the right thing? ~ There has to be some way to stop the ASU SkySong project. I am going to research a legal way to get the damned lease rewritten or modified to be fair and equitable to the taxpayers and the city of Scottsdale. Currently, we are the laughing stock of the entire valley and are not getting ANYTHING that idiot Manross promised other than screwed royally. ~ Thank you so much for telling us about Riverview in Mesa. I was very angry knowing how the powers that be screwed us over by allowing this type of thing to leave Scottsdale, but on the other hand, having such a marvelous shopping area with great dining and shopping so close is wonderful. By the way, we won't go to Tempe Market Place because it looks so over the top loud and brassy. ~I get really tired of seeing the morons bash Councilman Littlefield in the newspaper. Littlefield is trying very hard to help Scottsdale better itself and it is painfully obvious that those people who attempt to discredit him are nothing more than shills for the establishment or their close political establishment allies. I applaud Bob and Tony for standing up for Scottsdale when no one else will. ~ Korte has wanted a subsidized hotel where Korte Chevrolet was for years. You guys finally flushed her out and made it public. Good going!! ~The level of corruption in this city is so unreal. Do the powers that be actually sleep at night knowing what they know about what’s secretly going on behind the scenes? What cold hearted freaks that Mayor and Dolan must be. ~I drove down Cactus Road the other day – those transportation clowns have built walls around the roundabouts and you can’t actually see anything that is oncoming – a traffic circle is just that – a circle – instead they have built a really bad accident waiting to happen. Hope the city is ready for more lawsuits. They are such idiots. ~Hey City of Scottsdale… put the street signs back up on 102nd and 104th streets so us citizens can actually see where to turn off when we go down Cactus Road! You have successfully achieved a generic roundabout look at the critical intersections but failed to replace the street signs. ~Is the City going to paint that wall along McDonald? It is an ugly gray brick sitting against the dated 80’s town homes in beige behind it. They built the wall then stopped, but the barriers are still up. When does the sidewalk go in? ~Mike Merrill’s Oz piece in the Activist is just great! I always look forward to reading it, grammar be damned – he hits the nail on the head every time anyway. Thanks Mike! ~In this the season of giving, I say we give, give, give a much needed gift to the City of Scottsdale…give Jan, Mary, Drake and McCullagh the hard and fast boot and start anew with talented, bright, people who will make a difference in Scottsdale. ~Those who come to Scottsdale for the fanfare and drinking are fly by night people. Let them spend their money here. They never actually stay long or even move here anyway. Dolan and her people have planned for the fly by nighters, not the citizens – sometimes I think they’d rather we be a mini-Vegas and not a place where one can raise a family! Citizens should be cautious when bars begin staying open longer, maybe even all night and Scottsdale allows changes to the open liquor laws. After all, isn’t Dolan’s goal 24-hour live/work/play? Is that what we want for Scottsdale? ~How do we get rid of Manross now? Can we impeach her? Maybe we could shame her into resigning, Opps forgot, she’s too stupid to be shamed, she knows no shame and has proven it over and over, remember the "Pink Taco" Fiasco? ~I saw Suzanne Klapp’s response to the Saturday Soundoff in the Republic – did she answer the wrong question? She doesn’t seem to have a clue what the sign ordinance is about – what was she saying anyhow? It was basically incomprehensible. Did someone at the Chamber help her with that one? Looks like it. Wow – she really doesn’t seem to know what is going on in Scottsdale.
~The Christmas Poem of Today?? T’was the month before Christmas When all through our land, Not a Christian was praying Nor taking a stand. Why the Politically Correct Police had taken away, The reason for Christmas - - no one could say. The children were told by their schools not to sing, About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things. It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say. December 25th is just a " Holiday ". Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it! CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-pod As Targets were hanging their trees upside down
it won't touch your ears. At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter not Happy Holidays ! CNSNews.com Commentary December 05, 2007 Listening to people like Lou Dobbs, John Edwards and
Mike Huckabee lamenting the plight of America's middle class and poor,
you'd have to conclude that things are going to hell in a handbasket.
According to them, there's wage stagnation, while the rich are getting
richer and the poor becoming poorer. There are a couple of updates that
tell quite a different story. Just click on the logos below to go to these websites.
Send our Brave Troops "Something from Home", Click on Links below.
Gathering of Eagles Website was launched 2/9/07. Click on the Logo above for more information on how they are protecting America's Memorials. ~ UPDATE!! A "Must See" for All Americans Every American should check out all of these websites to learn more about what the American population is about to have to deal with.
This is NOT for Children. I don't normally allow anything but Scottsdale information in the Scottsdale Activist but after receiving many emails about this and viewing it, I think that it's imperative that every adult at least look at what's offered here if for nothing more than their own education and to have everyone stop and think about the future of our country. Click on the link below, If you don't have Adobe Flash, install it from the bottom of the page that comes up after you click on the link above. You should be able to view all available links within the main page. The website below is of great interest as seen from a Lebanese point of view: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8fa9yKQeTY The website below gives some history of Terrorist attacks: http://patriotfiles.org/civilizationcalls.htm This website tell you what REALLY happened: http://www.terrorismawareness.org/what-really-happened ~ Arizona Tax Revolt
~ View Past City Council Meetings We can now access the city council meetings by clicking on the following link: http://scottsdale.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=3If you have any problems, check your firewall and other safety features which could block access to the city site.
~Continuing Light Rail Information
The Scottsdale Citizens Transportation Study Committee
invites you to view their website for more questions and answers at
www.norailforscottsdale.com
.
Simply click on the links below to get all the information you'll ever need concerning Light Rail.
If you have any questions about light rail, send them to editor@scottsdaleactivist.com and we'll get the answers to you as soon as we can.
~
For Continuing
Information on Photo Radar,
~Are Red-Light Cameras Fair to Drivers? These modern-day robocops make ticketing easier and can be huge moneymakers for local governments. But critics question their accuracy and fret over privacy issues. Click on the link below , then scroll down to read the article: http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Insurance/InsureYourCar/AreRedLightCamerasFairToDrivers.aspx
~ Scottsdale Legal Defense Fund The Scottsdale Activist is very pleased to announce an effort on the behalf of the residents and taxpayers of the city of Scottsdale to promote open, honest and accountable city government. The Scottsdale Legal Defense Fund (SLDF) has been created to take legal action to hold the City accountable when its actions are contrary to state law, the City Charter, City ordinances or the public interest. The most necessary ingredient to make the SLDF work will be confidential contributions from concerned Scottsdale citizens who are willing to help their community. By contributing, we can change the way City Hall does business and insure that our tax dollars will be spent wisely. No funds from the SLDF will or can be used for any political purpose.Contributions shall be kept confidential as
permissible by law and can be made in any Washington Mutual Bank to
account number 3114165786 for the Scottsdale Legal Defense Fund. Branch
locations are listed below. Contributions are not tax deductible. Washington Mutual Bank Locations at which contributions to the SLDF can be made are: 72nd & Shea
7337 E. Shea Blvd #120
480-609-8524 There are many other branches throughout the Valley.
Hello All, This seems to work well. Click on the link below to Check it out. Helpful hint! Just plug in your zip code and it tells you which gas stations have the cheapest prices (and the highest) on gas in your zip code area. It's updated every evening. Be a good neighbor and pass this along.
The Scottsdale Activist is published, and edited in Scottsdale AZ ~ 480-326-2475 |
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