IS IT TRUE? January 4, 2011 Topic: CVB

IS IT TRUE that the Evansville Convention and Visitors Bureau had a Christmas party at Biaggi’s restaurant?…that they spent over $3,000 on dinner and DRINKS?….that the Opus One at $250 per bottle was flowing freely and that lesser bottles at only $85 each filled the gap after the pallets were exhausted? …that you already knew about those things from yesterday but that the next stuff is new?

IS IT TRUE that this is not the first time that the board of directors of the Evansville Convention and Visitors Bureau has thrown a Bacchanalian Festival with the taxpayers of Evansville picking up the tab?….that it is not even the most expensive festival of gluttony that this particular board has thrown?….that Mole #29 tells us that at the 2009 Bacchanalian self love fest that this board spent closer to $4,000?….that (sarcasm coming) we should all congratulate them on cutting their glutton fest budget by 25% from $4,000 to $3,000 in respect for the Great Recession?

IS IT TRUE that this is the same board that pushed every way possible to spend $18 Million on 8 baseball fields with much of that money slated to bail out the City of Evansville for the demolition of Roberts Stadium and deferred maintenance?….that in studying little league baseball fields that there was travel involved to cities that have such parks in operation?…that Nashville is one of the cities that was visited?….that local governments typically have stringent procedures in place to control travel expenses and to tell officials whether to fly or drive?

IS IT TRUE that there are no commercial flights available from Evansville to Nashville?…that Nashville is less than a 3 hour drive?….that in order to have a look at a little league baseball park in Nashville that some members of our volunteer board of directors (the same board that just treated themselves to a $3,079 dinner), chose to travel to Nashville on a chartered private plane?

IS IT TRUE that people with long term involvement tell us that this type of party has been an annual tradition for nearly 25 years?….that this single dinner exceeds the average wage for a month in the City of Evansville?….that this not only shows poor judgment but callous disregard for the taxpayers money?

IS IT TRUE that the City County Observer reiterates our call for the board members in attendance to tender their resignations immediately?….that if they refuse to do so or continue to rationalize to the media that their actions were not excessive that the public entities that appointed them remove them for cause according to Indiana Statute IC6-9-2.5-2.

IS IT TRUE that once again a “Time of Reckoning” has been presented to the governance of Vanderburgh County and to the Mayor of Evansville?…that the decisions that are made at times like this are defining decisions?….that political mischief may have just helped create the anything goes atmosphere that seems to have manifested itself in the ECVB board over the past year?….that it is up to the political entities of the county and the Mayor to clean the mess that last year’s meddling helped to create?