IS IT TRUE February 26, 2013

49

The Mole #??
The Mole #??

IS IT TRUE in yet another move taken from the playbook of the Bolsheviks who led the Russian revolution the City of Evansville is now considering a resolution to force landlords to “partner” with them?…the first step of this so called partnering involves registering one’s rental properties (within the City of Evansville only) with local government and paying a fee for the partnering privilege?…this little move is nothing more than gentrification with the cover story of partnering with government?…Evansville according to former DMD Director Tom Barnett already has 10,000 residences that need over $100,000 in repairs each to be habitable?…this undesirable situation has become known as Barnett’s Billion Dollar Dilemma for the amount of money needed to fix these properties up?…there is not a one of these properties that will have a value that exceeds the cost of repairs?…many of these houses were abandoned because of low values and excessive permitting regulations?…the insanity of a forced partnership between the City of Evansville and landlords who own properties within it is about as desirable to the landlords as an arranged marriage between a pretty young lady and Attila the Hun?…this utterly communistic move will add to the blight as more and more landlords flee the Evansville market to more friendly locations with their investment dollars?…if the Evansville City Council moves forward with this look for an acceleration of the Detroitization of Evansville?…the “projects” as the great society public housing has come to be known have done way more damage to American cities than they have good?…such places have been a hotbed of gang activity and have hastened the degradation of family life among the poor?…if you like South Chicago, the Bronx, Gary, Detroit, and the USSR you are sure to love life in Evansville under the thumb of the politburo know as local government?

IS IT TRUE Casino Aztar is about to have a new name?…in keeping with the ownership of “the boat” as Aztar is informally known the new name shall be Tropicana Evansville?…with all of the improvements to the hotel, the addition of the walk bridge, and the opening of “The District” a change of branding is in order and the nationally recognized name of Tropicana is a good move for “the boat”?…this branding move is a strong indicator that more improvements could well be on the way down at the riverfront?

IS IT TRUE that the Mole Nation has been telling us for months that the shiny new Ford Center is already falling into the arms of neglect?…we have gotten complaints of dirty nasty bathrooms, broken accessories, and even a few who compared the hygiene of the Ford Center to the final days of Roberts Stadium when intentional neglect was in full practice?…the neglect of this $127 Million facility that is losing money is not surprising but is profoundly disappointing?…it would be easy to say “what should we expect from a City that doesn’t mow it’s parks and has let every public facility it owns degrade into dilapidation”?…the neglect of the Ford Center is the place to draw the line on neglect?…for this to be an issue 18 months into the operation is a disgrace and embarrassment to every living person in Evansville?…we really wonder how forcing partnerships between landlords and the “City that Never Sweeps” could work when the City does not even have the pride to take care of what it already owns?…perhaps the forced partnership arrangement should be between the City of Evansville and itself with the members being Ford Center, Mesker Amphitheatre, the Victory, the streets, the sewers, and all of the dilapidated houses already owned by the City of Evansville?…taking cleaning and management lessons from the City of Evansville makes about as much sense as taking them from Pigpen from the Charlie Brown comics?

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

49 COMMENTS

  2. The four CPA’s did not present CPA documentation last night (Russ, John, the two State Board auditors) so it’s safe to assume that all of them are lying too about having one.

  3. I would encourage anyone that witnesses cases of maintenance neglect at the Ford Center to take pictures (camera phones should make this very easy these days) and send the photos to the CCO. You could try sending them the the C&P, other media outlets (TV) and city government officials too, but I bet you will get no response.

    • What items are prohibited at the Ford Center?

      Cameras/Video Cameras

      Video Recorders, Tape Recorders and Digital Cameras with recording capabilities are prohibited any time during an event. The Ford Center reserves the right to examine and prohibit use of any cameras that its personnel deems unacceptable.

      Any tripod or other photography equipment may not be used or placed in any area of the building without a building issued media credential.

      ___

      • Prohibiting them and having someone present to physically prevent you from snapping a picture are two completely different things.

  4. Big thanks to Joe and the rest of the staff at CCO for standing against the forced landlord licensing scheme. It’s just this type of stance against government coercion that leads me back here for my news day after day.

    • I agree with you Brag that the CCO is really a great thing for standing up against unneeded government programs.

      Why in the heck isn’t the alledged Republican Courier and Press doing the same?

      • “Republican” Courier and Press?? Where have you been living before recently moving to this area? The Courier and Press is the willing left wing mouthpiece for the Democratic progressives. The Courier appears out to submarine Mr. Garrett’s independent reconciliation of the City finances while under Democratic control. They publish glowing articles on Obama. The Courier is much closer to Chavez/Al Gore/Pelosi types than to liberal Republicans like Senator Lugar.

    • The last thing the CCO needs is an endorsement from Linzy. They, like anyone else, need Linzy about as much as they need cancer.

  5. My favorite is the headline “Firearms issue will define Sheriff’s race”..BY Brad Linzy..
    It would be more accurate if it said FOR Brad Linzy..But hey..this is a news site, right?

    • Elitists and statists like Jordan Baer LOVE gentrification. They ignore all the historical evidence where other cities have tried these same schemes in various ways to achieve this goal and the results are a flight of capital investment, a concentration of crime, a higher division of classes, destruction of organic urban culture in favor of government-approved, sterile whitewash, and ultimately a failure of government meeting its debt obligations from all the excess spending and taxation.

      • Wow, what BIG words for a
        guy who sells guitars for a living.Thank goodness Goggle is within your reach all day. That way you can share all its vast knowledge with the readers of the CCO. Thanks

        • Google didn’t tell me Jordan was an elitist and statist, he did in his philosophical stances.

        • It is Google you moron. It is a good modern day learning tool. First you learn to spell it and then you can try using it.

          • He can’t spell it correctly because he isn’t familiar with it. No one needs google to tell us Brad Linzy and whoever you are have too much time on your hands. If Brad’s brain capacity was the size of his free time, the whole site wouldn’t be annoyed every single day we come on here having to deal with his third grade rants.

          • Thanks for correcting my misspelled word. Wow, now I can learn from Brad Linzy’s teacher. Mrs. Google.

          • Troll Patrol, WinneckeThePooh, et al… You seem to be unable to comprehend how someone can have assimilated thought processes based on years of critical reading and education – both from traditional books and electronic media sources. It’s like the guy with the “magic light” must be some kind of a sorcerer. I can see you all now like the apes in “2001: A Space Odyssey” poking the monolith with sticks yelping, “what is this witchcraft!?” …except in monkey voices.

            It would also seem that you are one stage away from declaring Google “a tool of the devil” and come at me with pitchforks to burn me at the stake and throw personal computers on a pyre.

            Indeed, how dare I have thoughts and express those thoughts when they are contrary to yours or are critical of authorities – both in and out of uniforms.

            A well rounded education is essential. I suggest you read and educate yourselves and stop being so comfortable and congratulatory in your dimwittedness.

        • Brad is the CCO’s version of della. He loves it when people complain about him; he knows he is getting attention while having to do nothing but sit at a keyboard.

          • The keyboard is mightier than the sword, folks. There are people who bring down autocratic governments with these things. Just ask the Egyptians.

          • And for the record, these keyboard thingambobbers are used for more than bringing things or other people down. They are used to build things up. Like good neighborhoods that are not being plagued with bad rental properties and absentee landlords that only care about making a profit.
            You only care about things when you feel like you are “fighting the man”. There are times when questions are good. But when someone, say you, is only interested in asking questions so they can display their book learnin’ and their skills at Goes Into’s, then the questions are just jabs at the doer by the I can’t.
            And FYI, “Goes Into’s” are a “Jethro Bodine” comment since you seem to love the internet and TV so much. Youtube it.

      • Take a stroll in the neighborhoods around my fire station some time to check out the ‘organic urban culture’. I don’t recommend you do so after dark. Admire all the buildings slated for demolition. If you’re feeling really adventurous, poke your head into one of those building and chat it up with the folks cooking meth or crapping in the corners. Wear rubber boots and a respirator.

        Better yet, visit with some of the folks who rent the houses that are not much better than the ones on the tear down list. You’ll notice that many of them have a very low IQ or so many substance abuse problems they can barely carry on a conversation, much less hold a job. Try not to step on the unneutered pit bulls because it makes them angry (the pit bulls, not the residents – – they could care less)!

        What are your suggestions for making these areas of town better? I’m seriously interested in hearing them, and mean that with absolutely no sarcasm.

        • Suggestions? He is too busy being a keyboard commando and telling everyone how bad things are. He is saving us from ourselves, we are just too uneducated to realize it.For all the big words he likes to impress us with, the word “suggestion” is foreign to him. That would imply being part of the solution. That is not his style. If he was to act on an issue, he could be criticized for the outcome. He is so desperate to tell us how bad things are, when there is not an article that’s proves his theories, he writes one himself and then comments on it.

        • Delta, You’ve really described two different problems there, an economic one and a social one with a possible economic correlation. The answer for the economic side of it is easier than the social one and it really lies in two words…capital investment.

          Is it likely that investment will come to these areas of Evansville, IN in this economy? No, particularly not unless local government begins to show a commitment to the outside world that they understand and wish to follow free market principles and be a place that invites capital investment with LOW TAXES across the board, few, if any restrictions on commerce and free enterprise, and a local government that lives and spends within its means and does not meddle in private business.

          The problems of homelessness and drug abuse are social ills that will exist no matter what a City of this size does to curb them. The best that can be done for them is to try to treat them with compassion and get more churches and private charities involved.

          The difference between someone like me and people who want to use government coercion to achieve some grand plan they’ve hatched is that I can admit that I do not know better than the invisible hand of a free market how to solve these problems of poverty. The same cannot be said of those on the opposite end of the philosophical spectrum. They will throw every hair-brained “solution” up to and including the kitchen sink at these problems and only ever make them worse.

          • Well, I appreciate the reply. There is obviously no one-sized fits all answer.

            On the topic of ‘capital investment’… When a dirtbag landlord buys a distressed house and then attempts to squeeze every last dime out of it before letting the taxpayers pay for its demolition, I think it’s safe to say that is not the type of capital investment that helps a community. Yes, initial capital was invested. Yes, the absolute minimum of capital is reinvested into that property to keep it barely standing. But no reasonable person would argue that an investment was made in the community. I know that ‘community’ is a bad word in some circles, but we certainly both agree that actions which benefit a very few often have inordinately negative impacts on the community. That’s an unfortunate byproduct of captalism and the human condition, I suppose. Taking advantage of the ignorant, the chronically ill, the under or unemployed, the addicted and the weak usually makes wonderful financial sense if you can stomach it. It’s rarely even illegal.

            I think getting more churches and private charities involved is a great idea, but none of those entities are exactly swimming in cash these days. So, we continue to have a decaying urban center, and if the only answer is private captial investment, then it’s pretty safe to assume that investment is either not forthcoming OR it is investment only as Webster defines it, with no real benefit to anybody but the individual doing the ‘investing’.

            I continue to see what I see on a daily basis. The neighborhoods of Evansville are slowly burning down, or being torn down, or falling down from neglect. The residents are getting older, and poorer, and less able to take care of themselves. I know you say a ‘slum’ is just another word for a ‘home’, but I really don’t think you have a good understanding of just how shocking some (most) of these properties are or what the day to day life of these Evansville citizens is like. It’s hard for me to wrap my head around some days, and I’m nose-deep in it every shift I work. The thought that there is no solution to this problem is depressing, to say the least.

          • Delta, I need to try to respond to this entire reply… There is a lot to consider here, and you’re right, none of it is particularly easy. Allow me to start here:

            “On the topic of ‘capital investment’… When a dirtbag landlord buys a distressed house and then attempts to squeeze every last dime out of it before letting the taxpayers pay for its demolition, I think it’s safe to say that is not the type of capital investment that helps a community.”

            I think the first reaction most people would have would be to agree with your statement here, however, any investment of capital is better than NO investment of capital. This is where you just have to have faith in the invisible hand and the workings of the free enterprise system… The minimalist investor you describe is far more desirable than no investor, let me assure you. The person who chooses to do business with such an investor is choosing his or her best option given their situation and resources. This, at least in theory although I recognize there will be exceptions here, should allow these people an important stepping stone upward in the economy as they (hopefully) work and save to better themselves. Without this important niche investor, these people would either be homeless or living in public housing, neither of which solves the problem.

            ” Taking advantage of the ignorant, the chronically ill, the under or unemployed, the addicted and the weak usually makes wonderful financial sense if you can stomach it. It’s rarely even illegal.”

            One man’s shark is another man’s savior. Even the payday loan sharks and pawn shops have a niche to play in an economy. In the end, we are all responsible for the outcomes of our dumb decisions. If I spend my last lone dollar on a shot of heroin or a bag of weed, that is MY stupid mistake, and who are you to tell me I shouldn’t pay for that stupidity and lack of preparedness by having to hock my stereo system? It’s really like we’re just discussing simple cause and effect logic here. Morality plays no part in this. It is the old Proverb “you reap what you sow” in action.

            I get that this can be depressing… I have been insisting for 5 years we’re in a Second Great Depression. One thing is absolutely, positively for certain…government cannot tax and spend our way out of it. It is mathematically impossible. It goes against every economic law to think it can be done. The ONLY thing that can get us out of it is a return to productivity and creativity through a careful use of savings (capital) and investment. That is it. That really is the only answer to these problems. It should be the job of governments at ALL LEVELS to simply get the hell out of the F-N way.

  7. Speaking of the Ford Center, I think it should be noted that attendance at Icemen games is on the rise despite the 2nd to worst record in the ECHL (and the concerts are doing well from what I’m hearing as well) while the Aces have now mathematically clinched the worst season attendance total in their ENTIRE Div I history dating back to the 1977-78 season despite being competitive in the MVC. So yes, the Aces have no business playing downtown.

    This speaks volumes to the fact that when you build a new facility you have to have the right people making the right decisions from an entire city view, not just a one facility or one organization view or else you will end up hurting both your new facility as well as wasting unnecessary money ($8 mil) on doing nothing with your old facility.

    I can’t stress enough just how good of a job both Sandie Aaron of SMG and Scott Schoenike of Venuworks have done especially when you consider the hands that they have been dealt forceably. Scott has had to deal with the city pitting arena against arena and now he’s having to deal with the infamous Building Authority. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy.

    • I would like to see the proof that the Aces have the worst attendance record since 1978.

      • Absolutely….

        I obtained all data from the NCAA’s official website which ironically traces Div I all the way back to the same exact season that the Aces moved up to Div I:(http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/connect/public/NCAA/Resources/Stats/M+Basketball/Attendance/index.html)

        I broke it all down in a post earlier on my blog…

        http://rememberrobertsstadium.blogspot.com/2013/01/why-im-no-longer-aces-fan-numbers-dont.html

        But if you don’t want to read the entire post here is the Aces attendance season by season with NCAA rank in parenthesis (notice they made it all the way up to 30th in the nation in 1993 which was the third season after the renovation to Roberts)…

        UE 2012 5135 ( 102 fans out of Top 100)
        2011 4,910 (614 fans out of Top 100)
        UE 2010 4,832 (579 fans out of Top 100)
        UE 2009 5,863 (94th)
        UE 2008 5,486 (265 fans out of Top 100)
        UE 2007 5,494 (99th)
        UE 2006 6,025 (88th)
        UE 2005 6,318 (85th)
        UE 2004 6,618 (82nd)
        UE 2003 6,671 (80th)
        UE 2002 5,822 (95th)
        UE 2001 7,148 (72)
        UE 2000 8,337 (55th)
        UE 1999 8,587 (53rd)
        UE 1998 8,177 (55th)
        UE 1997 8,348 (56th)
        UE 1996 10,457 (40th)
        UE 1995 10,489 (37th)
        UE 1994 10,230 (38th)
        UE 1993 11,740 (30th)
        UE 1992 10,198 (36th)
        UE 1991 10,784 (32nd)
        UE 1990 9,648 (45th)
        UE 1989 9,280 (45th)
        UE 1988 9,122 (43rd)
        UE 1987 7,923 (54th)
        UE 1986 6,516 (76th)
        UE 1985 6,245 (78th)
        UE 1984 7,975 (52nd)
        UE 1983 8,434 (45th)
        UE 1982 10,001 (32nd)
        UE 1981 8,431 (44th)
        UE 1980 7,735 (54th)
        UE 1979 8,015 (48th)
        UE 1978 5,095 (86th)

      • This years attendance breaks down game by game as the following (source: boxscore data at gopurpleaces.com)…

        USI 7358
        Illinois Springfield 4753
        Buffalo 3572
        Yale 4112
        Western Ill 4431
        Alabama A&M 3510
        Miami (OH) 3481
        Murray St. 6302
        Alabama State 4116
        Oakland City 3254
        Missouri State 3721
        Southern Illinois 6032
        Wichita State 5485
        Bradley 4183
        Northern Iowa 3681
        Drake 4210
        Creighton 6838
        Illinois St. 4116

        First of all, the NCAA doesn’t count exhibition games so we must throw out the USI and Ill-Springfield games (UE would still have the worst attendance season with them though).

        Once we do that we have a grand total of 71,044 fans at 16 games. 71,044 divided by 16 equals 4,440.25 fans. To get to the worst season at Roberts which was 2010 when only 4832 fans showed up (the arena was a lame duck by then) the Aces would need to have a total of 82,144 fans on the season (17 games times 4,832). Take 82,144 fans minus the 71,044 fans that have already showed up and you get 11,100 fans left. Since the Ford Center only seats 9,480 fans, the Aces have mathematically clinched the WORST season attendance total in their entire Div I history.

        Please note: I do not bask in the fact that the Aces are going down hill. I simply bring this up because I want it to be known and made very clear to those who have the notion that “every sport in the city should be crammed into the Ford Center” are in fact hurting the Ford Center as well as having already destroyed a paid off and perfectly healthy and iconic Roberts Stadium due to a false sense of competition.

        When a city makes the noble and progressive decision to build a new arena, they need to make sure they put the right people in power who will make the right decisions for ALL organizations and all city assets involved. When you put your blinders on and don’t listen to qualified people like Sandie Aaron from SMG and Scott Schoenike from Venuworks, you end up with an $8 mil dog park with a Ford Center that is losing money because it’s having to host events that don’t belong there while pushing out events that do.

      • For some odd reason the first part of my post broke off. This is what should be ahead of this post…

        Absolutely,

        I obtained all of my data from the NCAA’s official website which ironically started counting attendance the year UE became Div I

        http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/connect/public/NCAA/Resources/Stats/M+Basketball/Attendance/index.html

        I made a post about the attendance last month which can be viewed here…

        http://rememberrobertsstadium.blogspot.com/2013/01/why-im-no-longer-aces-fan-numbers-dont.html

        But if you don’t want to view the post here is UE’s attendance year by year with national ranking in parenthesis (notice that UE got as high as 30th in the nation 3 years after Roberts was renovated!)…

        UE 2012 5,135 (102 fans out of Top 100)
        UE 2011 4,910 (614 fans out of Top 100)
        UE 2010 4,832 (579 fans out of Top 100)
        UE 2009 5,863 (94th)
        UE 2008 5,486 (265 fans out of Top 100)
        UE 2007 5,494 (99th)
        UE 2006 6,025 (88th)
        UE 2005 6,318 (85th)
        UE 2004 6,618 (82nd)
        UE 2003 6,671 (80th)
        UE 2002 5,822 (95th)
        UE 2001 7,148 (72)
        UE 2000 8,337 (55th)
        UE 1999 8,587 (53rd)
        UE 1998 8,177 (55th)
        UE 1997 8,348 (56th)
        UE 1996 10,457 (40th)
        UE 1995 10,489 (37th)
        UE 1994 10,230 (38th)
        UE 1993 11,740 (30th)
        UE 1992 10,198 (36th)
        UE 1991 10,784 (32nd)
        UE 1990 9,648 (45th)
        UE 1989 9,280 (45th)
        UE 1988 9,122 (43rd)
        UE 1987 7,923 (54th)
        UE 1986 6,516 (76th)
        UE 1985 6,245 (78th)
        UE 1984 7,975 (52nd)
        UE 1983 8,434 (45th)
        UE 1982 10,001 (32nd)
        UE 1981 8,431 (44th)
        UE 1980 7,735 (54th)
        UE 1979 8,015 (48th)
        UE 1978 5,095 (86th)

  8. These homes were abandoned because for years, Evansville didn’t enforce zoning code and they turned a blind eye to slumlords so it was profitable to buy a house for $15,0000 and charge $400 a month for rent until it got so bad that nobody would live in it.

    A lot of these slumlords have probably never been anywhere near Evansville, they just bought the house because they knew they could turn some money and if they didn’t they would chalk it up to a loss.

    As far as caring about the neighbors or the people who live in Evansville, there was and is no concern.

Comments are closed.