IS IT TRUE JUNE 18, 2015

1. If mayor Winnecke refuses to update the Council – Council has every right and indeed duty – to stop the flow of money to this convention motel project. This is simply a bad plan – that thankfully is congealing – effectively clogging the flow of revenues. …

   • Do you really think the executive should appear at every summons sent to him by the legislature? Is that how you want to run the state and country, also?

     • How about meetings where millions of dollars of taxpayers money is being considered? Do you think he has an obligation to discuss this and answer any questions council members might have? We have a bicameral system here in Evansville,do we not? Are we to assume that the 9 elected council members are bound to rubber stamp everything the executive hands them? I do not think the voting public sees it that way.

       The reckless spending that has taken place in this city, at least since 2004, is in danger of taking the city into municipal bankruptcy. There is no existing tax base available that is capable of meeting the debt service run up by this irresponsible government spending.

       • The executive, or, mayor,is not part of a bicameral system, which is two houses of representation, such as the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, of which the executive, or, President, is not a part of.

         I don’t disagree with Evansville not having had a good executive for the past almost 12 years, but not understanding the legal and constitutional privileges and responsibilities of your elected officials isn’t acceptable if you wish to improve the status quo.

         • Are you making an argument that the common council members do not have a right or a responsibility to vote no on funding projects they feel are not in the city’s best interest, or might create an untenable financial burden on the city.

           I must admit I have never read Evansville’s charter and do not really know if it provides for a strong or a weak mayor. Regardless, common sense dictates that if your spending exceeds your income, you are headed for trouble.

           Bicameral was a poor choice of words, but the point I was trying to make is that the common council is not bound to vote in the affirmative for everything passed down by the mayor.

         • One wonders just how many revisions Evansville’s charter has undergone since 1847, and if the current charter resembles the original in intent.

         • http://www.sbsun.com/government-and-politics/20140318/san-bernardino-city-charter-reform-committee-approved

     • My dear Dis . .

       You are correct . . .however, if that particular Executive has been dicken around with a major project costing the taxpayers millions having several anticipated ground breakings . . . the size and quality in question and together with questionable funding sources, you bet your darn life he should be in front of the people. He does not called press conferences for questions for our community . . . he is not the messiah of Evansville!!

       • . . .the grapevine in the ERC says that the specifications of the ever shrinking hotel will be significantly different from the original representations . . .so what might we expect? No indoor swimming pool, No UV windows, No rooftop bar/lounge, No complete central air conditioning system, (instead, in room HVAC units) No up=scale restaurant, much like the Courtyard in Ft. Wayne, reduction in the number of rooms going from 254 to 240 . . . only an increase in guarantees to Rick Huffman going from $7.5 million to $9.9 million . . .

     • –This is a small community, –and not the State or the Country,–When the Mayor wants to reach into the pocket of every taxpayer (while the City has ongoing cash flow problems,-a negative $20 Million),– to fund a private developer in a public -private partnership that has the Public treasury funding a private developer’s questionable plans for a Motel concept that leaves the Community without any equity position,—–then Yes, said Mayor owes an explanation to Somebody,–that Somebody is Our representatives charged by the responsibilities of their office –to look out for the Community’s best interests. Would you prefer to give the Mayor a blank check? Abandon the Checks and Balances built into our system of Government?
       The Mayor is granted–Office– by the Citizens,– NOT a Crown.

       • Yep.

     • Tell that to your overzealous US Senators and US Congressman of the GOP party who want to investigate anything and every thing that Obama’s administration does. So bug off Disaffected. They Mayor should be required to attend the meeting and answer questions because if he does not the Council should revoke the bond money and put the Mayor and his cohorts in sneal activities though the ringer.

       • So, you want our form of government overthrown, then. Driving by the Purdue campus isn’t the same as graduating from Purdue, you understand, don’t you?

         • Actually YOU are the one that mentioned over throwing the Government NOT me. So that tells me and everyone else that you think about thinks like over throwing the government a lot. Shame on you. I don’t have to worry about Purdue anymore unless they are playing IU in a basketball game. But then again we whooped IU the last two times so I don’t have to worry about that. I already graduated from Purdue once and don’t need to do that again. And you can drive by it as often as you like but that still won’t get you admitted to that university. Snicker.

   • Based on the major decline in the Downtown Building Fund also known as the TIF, according to the published financial reports from April 30, 2014 to 2014 . . .5 Million is gone . . .the fund is under one Million . . .and the very concerning element in the mix? What happens to the downtown commercial real estate values should one particular entity belly’s up? And as such the TIF income follows?

     • Correction . . .April 30, 2014 compared to April 30, 2015 . . .

2. –Was this refusal a,— “I don’t Wanna”, or a middle finger salute to the Council?

   • Since when does LW ever refuse a chance to exercise those former-weatherman pipes ? It is neither an ‘I don’t Wanna’, nor is it flipping the Bird. The reality is this project is NOT a go, and it’s getting hyped up for the election.
     Remember 2014 ? We were told for months and months it was a go, and then Big Bob Jones stands up and says ‘no can do, the naming rights value is too few ” ! I wonder if Merle Haggard could write a song about the Ghost Hotel ?

   • It’s a middle finger to the taxpayers of Evansville.

   • My bet is the middle finger salute . . . can you hear Sinister Schaefer saying, ” who in the hell does Adams think he is” . . .

3. I am glad they got the Love In for Bosse Field completed. It is just an old, old ballpark. The restrooms are always in very poor shape and stink. Not to mention they charge $ 7.50 for a 22-oz. Amber Bock. No thanks ! I really wish Russ Lloyd had had the conviction to see that new ballpark through to completion . . . .if Evansville had a new ballpark with an ‘A’ or Double ‘A’ level affiliation, that would be a lot better than having replaced Roberts with the Fraud Center. Think about it: tear down the 1957-built facility; and leave the 1915-built one standing. Too many people confuse fond memories with current realities. The Frontier League is bush league all the way, the 100 hall of famers who played there the past 100 years notwithstanding.

4. ‘… informed by Mayor Lloyd Winnecke that he was declining the invitation from the City Council to appear at their meeting to clarify the Hotel Project and to deliver an update on the project?’

   â–ºIf there’s trouble getting the information there is probably trouble with the information. ◀︎

   The long term trouble with this guy being mayor is he’s setting the bar so extremely low that future mayors might think they can act as he has and it’s alright.

   He’ll string this failed hotel project along until he sees if he has succeeded in packing the council. He has very competent hotel developers right here in Evansville, it is understandable if they don’t want to get involved with him. I don’t think Winnecke and Huffman could build a Lego Hotel and if they could it wouldn’t be over 2 stories, both false, and wouldn’t have a bar. Mrs. Butterworth couldn’t help our Pancaked Hilton now.

   • Remember Huffman is the guy when asked for his business plan pounded his chest and said, “I’m the business plan” Hollywood could not write the script any better . . . Oh, just informed that Louisville is building a 30 story hotel downtown . . . guess what their subsidy is? . . .5 MILLION, but we all know that it cost more to build in Evansville . . .

   • “â–ºIf there’s trouble getting the information there is probably trouble with the information. ◀︎”

     Well said my friend.

5. Dr. Adams is way too late. Downtown Evansville Double Tree Hotel construction started with shovels in the dirt on March 10, 2014. The Double Tree Hotel will be opening in the fall of 2015. All of this in on the internet so it has to be true.

   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiS_gemFVwY

   • This should be a campaign commercial for the upcoming Mayoral Elections in the City of Evansville, IN. Showing the Mayor for the fraud that he is. And Steve Shafer is the one going around giving out the Hard Hats. Ha Ha. Not one of those hard hats are big enough to fit over his big head. :()

6. Bob Jones and Mayor Winnecke should take most of the blame for this fiasco, but Dan Adams and the rest of the city council are partially to blame also. They NEVER should approved funding for this without the money being in an escrow account or getting an irrevocable letter of credit or SOMETHING in writing saying the money was there.

   I’m referring to the private sector $11.5M or whatever that was supposed to come from a Real Estate Investment Trust(REIT) that Bob Jones was going to raise via the investment arm of ONB. The night of the CC vote both Jones and Winnecke gave the entire city an the council the impression that the money had already been raised from private investors who were falling over themselves to get in on this wonderful deal(snicker).
   (Jones knew the Hotel deal was about to cave in so he tried to rush in as a white knight to save Winneck’s a** er career but hey that’s another story)

   Well hopefully the CC and the City learned that impression don’t me jack squat.

   Anyway as we now know Jones and Winnecke were making a big time bluff, hoping to raise the $11.5M later, on the come. When the REIT funding fell flat on its face Jones and Marsh Abel cooked up the Centre naming rights scheme of which there was never any open bidding.

   Anywho I SERIOUSLY doubt the money is there now for this smaller, lower cost? version of the hotel.

   Not a dime, for this until all the money is in the various accounts, not a dime.

   • The Centre naming rights for millions of dollars was actually a very smart move by the County Commissioners. Before no income, now guaranteed income for simple ONB signage.

7. Typically, a sitting Mayor plans organizes and directs major public projects for completion during the election cycle.

   The reality is that nothing has come to fruition, including the downtown hotel, McCurdy renovation, medical school, dog park, etc. At the end of the day, the Mayor has nothing to hang his hat on except the illusion these projects will begin next year with ground breaking photo ops strategically planned one month out from the election.

   Given the city is running is bleeding to the tune of $20 million, it is for the best these projects are delayed until the city can get back on an even keel.

8. There again is Mayor Winnecke giving the finger to the taxpayers and refusing to explain the hotel. This should be an impeachable act. Who ever heard of this nonsense? This mayor may be the worst in modern history. If he had s decent chief of staff he would be getting better advice.

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