IS IT TRUE? December 27, 2011
IS IT TRUE that today the City of Evansville and the Department of Metropolitan Development are in violation of the 30 day time period to respond to a request under the Freedom of Information Act?…that this particular request dealt with the so called FREE Johnson Controls project that would cost $51 Million except that it saves so much money that it is FREE?…that what we want to understand from this contract is exactly what the cash flows are expected to be from this project that is advertised as being FREE and what FREE really means when the dollar amount of $51 Million is still be slung around?…that we really would like to see graphically where the cash flow goes and what the sources are to be assured that the City of Evansville is not getting bamboozled once again by snake oil of our own making?
IS IT TRUE that the signal strength of the internet access points will not be sufficient to penetrate walls and will not compete with either of the local internet suppliers?…that adding this weak and uncompetitive service is also touted to bring greater Evansville’s national internet ranking from its present 368th out of 370 into the top 90?…that this is just pure speculative hogwash and when asked how the calculation was made local leaders did not even know?…that maybe this whole $51 Million deal may turn out to be FREE and CASHFLOW NEUTRAL but we doubt it?…that what is really insulting is the claim that it will raise our ranking in the internet world without competing with the two providers that have us in 368th and expecting us to believe that we will rise to the top 90?…there is no basis whatsoever for that claim to have been made and the folks that made the claim know it?…that this makes about as much sense as an NBA team signing a 50 year old that can’t jump or shoot (can’t compete) to play point guard and claim that his presence with take them from the cellar to a playoff contender?
IS IT TRUE that there are only 5 days remaining until for the first time since January 1, 2004 that the Weinzapfel Administration is not in charge of the governance of the City of Evansville?…that these 5 days represent the last opportunity for this admitted opportunist to chart the spending course of the City of Evansville for as far into the future as executive orders and special meetings of elected officials like the Evansville Redevelopment Commission and the Evansville City Council will allow him to?…that even at this late time in the stages of this administration it will take diligence to stop last minute spending of a very bold proportion?…that on Wednesday one more such spending commitment is coming before the ERC for consideration?
IS IT TRUE that Big Rivers Electric and Henderson Power and Light are finally starting to own up to what they will be spending to comply with the EPA regulations that are looming down the pike?…that yes these are the same ones that Vectren has already made the investments to get in front of that ran the rates up on this side of the money saving bridge?…that Big Rivers was reported today to be saying that they will be investing about $100 Million and that will translate into only about a 2% increase to the ratepayers?…that we tend to believe the $100 Million number but are pretty skeptical about the 2% increase?…that we expect the increase to be much more than 2%?
Here’s an example of one of Johnson Controls implementations of city-wide WiFi.
http://www.muniwireless.com/2011/09/07/hollywood-fl-muni-wi-fi-network-a-flop/
and this….
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/08/28/2376806/hollywoods-wi-fi-not-working-but.html
JMHO
Great links Blanger. It looks like the Hollywood solution did not compete with local internet providers either.
LOL….but JC did pay back a little over $900k of the $16m for a non-working system…sweet!
JMHO
These are the kinds of details that we are hoping to learn about. Does Evansville have to pay the $51 Million up front and then be paid back by savings or JC refunds if the savings do not happen? If so, where does the $51 Million come from? This may be an okay deal but the absence of details in the cash flow department make it look fishy.
More food for thought….
http://www.northlandsnewscenter.com/news/local/Duluth-Officials-Claim-Johnson-Controls-Fails-To-Live-Up-To-62-Million-Agreement-102371239.html
http://www.heraldonline.com/2011/10/09/3432480/how-uscs-green-dream-became-a.html
http://wattsupwiththat.com/2011/10/09/green-fail-foia-shows-dangerous-university-biomass-power-plant-frought-with-problems-closures-explosion/
It would seem a common theme for JCI to proclaim that their projects will be cost saving, profitable, money making, maybe they are just on the cutting edge of technology and have a high failure rate….then again cities seem to be drawn to the promise of something free.
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To answer your question….it’s my understanding that the city pays the $51m up front but where the money is actually coming from is anybody’s guess.
JMHO
Blanger, excellent research below. I expect you have vetted this far more than the current administration. This is exactly the type of pig in a poke that the current administration would sign up for.
JB….
Any dummy with a keyboard and internet connection could do the same, and I might have spent a total of 10 min poking around with Google.
JMHO
Hollywood Florida’s population is close to 141,000, while Evansville’s is 117,000.
Three years ago Hollywood borrowed $16.Million to fund the WiFi system. Evansville is bouncing around a figure of $51.Million.
Explanation needed!!
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I’m a bit skeptical of the $100 million figure at Big Rivers also, Vectren’s scrubber at Culley power plant came in under budget at $104 million in 1994 dollars and they have since added an SCR (huge catalytic converter) and a baghouse to remove mercury, arsenic and other heavy metals that an electrostatic precipitator won’t catch. Total bill at Culley alone was somewhere over $300 million.
Yeah, but Big Rivers is across the money saving bridge. Vectren expenses are inflated by greed and corruption.
actually Vectren does the big projects pretty well, it’s the daily stuff like coal costs where they get you
CCO: File a complaint with the Public Records Access Office for the State of Indiana. They will rule whether the document requested is a “public record” (a no brainer decision). If the Public Records Access Office rules in CCO’s favor, they will make a formal request to DMD to release the document. If DMD still refuses, CCO can file a suit to get the information (and many lawyers take these cases on contingency given the certainty of prevailing). Hard ball time.
That is indeed the logical next step.
The Indiana Public Access Counselor may also issue a ruling in reference to the deliberate withholding of the information in violation of state law. On one occasion, prior to the creation of the CCO, a complaint was filed and a ruling was issued against Bob Yeager, Asst. Sup., and Pat Shoulders, representing the EVSC, for deliberately refusing to release information in a timely manner. Copies of the complaint and ruling were given to the C&P, supporters of the “Sunshine Law”, who gave it plenty of column inches, beginning on the front page of the “Local” section.
The negative publicity eliminated a repetition of that behavior during that administration. Hopefully, the Public Access laws will be given some real teeth in the near future.
Tom Barnett & DMD stonewalling again? I don’t believe it.
NoMoDoh:
Glad you brought up the “given some teeth in the near future”. I believe that proposed legislation would impose civil fines on elected officials who fail to comply with the open records laws. I too would like to see that come into being. AG Zoeller is the cheerleader for this one, I think it has a decent shot.
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