IS IT TRUE October 8, 2014

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IS IT TRUE the City County Observer web site design was under construction during the last several weeks? … we have encountered many technical problems with our old website over the last five months? …because of those issues we were forced to abandoned the old site and build a brand new user friendly website that’s better than ever?  …we are excited to be back on line with our same great content with a new modern user friendly layout?  …we want to thank  Jeremiah Claybrooks- Web Designer and WordPress Expert and Marilyn Cosby for the outstanding work they did in making this new theme design a reality?  …we still have some additional tweaking to be done to our new site over the next couple of weeks so please accept our apologies for any short interruptions?  …we want to thank the CCO “MOLE NATION” for your kind words and strong support during this most challenging time of transition?

IS IT TRUE that Tuesday’s meeting of the Evansville Redevelopment Commission came and went and there was no motion to extend the agreement to develop a downtown convention hotel and associated accessories with HCW of Branson, Missouri that had expired on September 30, 2014?…it is odd that the agreement was not extended as that technically means that the City of Evansville is now asserting that a $71.3 Million deal is going to start in a few weeks on a word of mouth agreement?…Mayoral Chief of Staff Steve Schaefer was very assertive that an agreement would be in place between HCW and Hunt Construction within weeks and that construction will start a few weeks after that?…that would put the first real work commencing after the election and before Thanksgiving which is not exactly a good time to start a big construction project in the Midwest?…in another odd statement Mr. Schaefer is also attributed with saying that “if the project does not start by winter, it is worth taking another look at things?”…we wonder if Mr. Schaefer realizes that the first day of Winter is only 73 days from now and only 30 days after his optimistic estimate of a real golden shovel event?…perhaps the City has finally gotten pragmatic about developer estimates after 2,300 days of waiting since the first overly optimistic announcement?…the Mole Nation thinks if this cat was really in the bag that the ERC would have worked like the dickens to get a new agreement in place yesterday?

IS IT TRUE Evansville City Councilwoman Stephanie Brinkerhoff-Riley introduced a very good point when she asked the question about whether or not the $20 Million handout was still needed as an incentive to get a hotel since the IU Medical School has announced a downtown location?…in a carefully worded and intentionally misleading response the attorney for the ERC opined that “the infrastructure needs have not lessened due to the IU Medical School’s announcement?”…the reality of the situation is that only part of the $20 Million handout is for infrastructure and that the IU Medical School should absolutely bring more business to the downtown hotel?…these things being true then the project should be worth more today than it was last year when the incentive was approved?…if the project is worth more, then the taxpayers of Evansville should be able to reduce the handout without compromising the projects financing?

IS IT TRUE since the word financing has been brought up, it goes without saying that there is still no tangible list of approvals of the financing and equity investments that are to finance this venture?…it is nearly a year since Mr. Huffman of HCW gave an interview to Evansville Living Magazine where he claimed to have a franchise agreement and all financing in place?…he even pointed to some bankers at the “false start golden shovel” event in March and claimed to have had the financing before he even had a franchise agreement or a design?…the probability that history will repeat itself grows by the day?…in all reality starting a building in November is not a very prudent step?…we are sure if the stars align this time that Mayor Winnecke will once again do his tomcat imitation and turn over some sand but the real construction effort will be delayed until March or April to accommodate the weather just as the weather was accommodated by postponing last January’s golden shovel even?

IS IT TRUE that the people of Evansville got some good news yesterday when Vectren announced that its expectation for gas bills for heating this Winter will be at about the same level as last year?…the cost of electricity to push that warm air into the house has of course risen slightly so expect bills that are just a touch more than last year?…we hope you all got a good raise to cover the rising expenses in energy, food, and other common expenses?

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38 COMMENTS

  2. I like the new layout, one little bug: the site jumps up and down on my phone a few lines at a time. I know with a new site it takes time to work the bugs out but just giving you a heads up.

  3. Editor,

    The C&P attributed the ‘take another look’ statement re: Hotel to SBR, not Schaefer.

  4. Hotel: City Council should pull the $ 20 Million subsidy. Let the hotel, with aid of IU Med., find its own way. Use the $ 20 Million to keep all those street lights on, right Mayor ? Also, fire the ERC attorney (someone please name names).

  5. If a convention hotel in Evansville has good potential for profit, the private sector will do the construction. If it isn’t potentially profitable, it shouldn’t be built. Period. My best guess is that building a convention hotel would simply be doubling down on our huge embarrassing mistake, the Ford Center. Hizzoner needs to get with Gov. Pence and work out a way to get land-based gaming for Tropicana. In return, Tropicana agrees to going smoke free. At the same time, the location of the Med School should get a second look. Maybe the locals should follow the Grand Rapids model and site it on the Medical Mile.
    It’s great to have CCO back. This old woman needs her morning coffee with CCO, so now things can go back to normal.

    • Yes, the city should follow the Grand Rapids model. Near as I can tell Grand Rapids did NOT pay for the school building, the school did.

  7. Claw the 20 million back from HCW, go with hat in hand to Dunn and ask him if he’s interested. Hard to see how he would be though, with the current roster of Funsters running the show. Evansville has been out of the convention business for years yet the Winnecke Mob seems intent on throwing money at trying to get something that has generally been dying for years. Brilliant.

    ‘Convention and meeting centers shouldn’t be judged, they now say, by how much business they bring to local hotels, restaurants, and local attractions. Instead, we should see them as helping to establish a tourism brand for their cities.’ ↴
    http://www.city-journal.org/2012/22_1_snd-convention-centers.html

    That’s it, the tainted hotel debacle will result in a hotel of sorts that will in turn result in a dandy ‘tourism brand’ for Evansville.

    Quit resisting the mandate to fix the sewers Winnecke. You weren’t hired to build things. We’ll leave that to the smart guys later on.

    • “Quit resisting the mandate to fix the sewers Winnecke. You weren’t hired to build things. We’ll leave that to the smart guys later on.”

      I’m thinking that the smart guys may be gals. The way I see it at the moment, the best candidates both parties can field in 2016 are women!

        • The standing tipping points as analytically observed really don’t change. Without the working solution to the Combined Sewers, the old Water distribution systems and High cost utilities infrastructure neither the Hotel or the Medical school project looks viable without increased project cost. Those are presently unsustainable by the projected geophysical footprints infrastructure demands.
          The logistical throughput of your downtown fails any attempt at this centuries accessibility standards to start, or remain successful with any venue of that environmental footprints actual size profile.
          You have to fix the sewers, you must have commercial throughput for any increased future logistical value.
          Its simply not the most viable location for either project, the other actual developing and evolving metro gateways, are. It is time someone there faces the facts and accepts it. Or, ready yourselves and set the preparations for increased cost due completion. After that the infrastructure will continue to deplete the profitable usability aspects forward, so add cost to evolve that along with the operational growth factoring.

  8. If it’s true the hotel project is proceeding on a “handshake” deal, is it legal?

  9. Get rid of the big guy with moustache photos in between the article and the comments.

  10. Welcome back! Your new website came just in time, I was getting ready to go to Amazon to buy for a saddle for one of the rainbow-colored unicorns that, according to the C&P, roam freely in E’ville. A cold splash of reality, a cup of coffee and your new site have put me back on Earth.

  11. IIT that Wendy Mac failed to show up for the Posey County Chamber Candidates night?

    Maybe we should start a “Where in the world is Wendy Mac” contest.

    Of course Wendy has never shown up for women, teachers or working people even
    though she repeatedly claims she is for them so why should we expect anything less from her.

    She also mails out copies of handwritten notes to teachers in her district proclaiming just how much
    she really, really supports teachers and then goes to Indy and votes to take away their rights. Nice huh

    She also supports home schooling so the dullards in her district can teach creationism and global warming denial.

    • Thanks for the “Where in the World is Wendy Mac” contest suggestion. I needed a smile.

      As Long as Wendy can double-dip, collecting taxpayer dollars as an EVSC administrator who brags she delegates her work to her staff, and also as a state legislator, she will continue to enjoy her power-trip. The EVSC is using her as a lobbyist to push programs that shovel more dollars down their private rat hole at the expense of our children’s education.

      The only way to bring it to a halt is to be found in the voting booth.

    • It’s funny that I’ve seen her at two public events in the past two weeks and you’re suggesting that she’s MIA? She was one of the candidates at UNOE’s Candidate Night and she was one of the women on hand for Stepping Up’s luncheon that featured several local women in government including Suzanne Crouch, Gail Riecken, Holli Sullivan and several other local women that are on next month’s ballot. Miss one event and suddenly you’re MIA?

  12. I’m still trying to figure out how the C&P survived these past few days with the CCO down. Where else did they go to copy someone else’s ideas?

    I’m deeply troubled that the CCO is falling for SBR’s grandstanding here, there, everywhere. All of it is blatantly obvious. I can’t believe there are people telling me she’s actually going to try to run for mayor. This woman shouldn’t be within a hundred miles radius of a public office of any kind. The Dems better wake up before it’s this vs Winnecke- a recipe for disaster.

    • Would like MORE grandstanding from Stephanie, just on different topics. She needs to revisit the 2012 City Audit and the $ 29 Million opening-balance adjustments. She got that right. Time to harvest the benefits of her correct move in taping the exit conference, by demanding a 2011 Audit be conducted.

        • Yes, she went on a booze fueled tirade, but her heart is in the right place. It’s only city council for Evanstucky, not the white house. I’m ok with a drunk on the city council as long as she’s fighting the good ole boy network.

      • He’s mad at her because she doesn’t support his efforts to save two houses that are beyond salvation.

        • First of all, I assume you’re talking about the houses on West Michigan and the fact that you have now become a yack back for her without even getting the whole story just proves how pointless it is to even respond to you on here. Aside from the fact that there’s probably about a 100% chance you’ve never been in either house, you don’t have a clue about either of those houses, the gresham house, echo, or anything else in Jacobsville, much less having to deal with this over and over before you even dive into the cemeteries and roberts among many other things that I’m not even going to argue with you on here.. Enough is enough. And I could careless what some internet big talk thinks about any of this. You talk and type on here but you’re never in the middle of any of this trying to get something productive done. You just want to whine and complain just to whine and complain.

          And I don’t think it’s proper of you to badmouth any money being spent on any house when you’ve had your own history. You shouldn’t point a finger at me Laura when three are pointing back at you.

    • So, suddenly, informing the public of situations they need to know about is “grandstanding”, Jordan? If that is the case, you’ve done your share of grandstanding yourself, don’t you agree?

    • I really thought you were better than to refer to any human as “this”, Jordan.

    • IF SBR runs for anything, the other party will beat her like a drum, voters will turn tail, might even change a few straight ticket voters to the dark side…yet that will allow her a few more targets of threats…

  13. So a ” drunk” was able to recognize EarthScam and 10’s of millions more of tax payer money for a convention hotel is a waste. Evansville needs more drinks on council then.

    • There are at least a couple. The others are just more concerned with their own interests than they are in good public policy, and they are not making any effort to deal with their challenges, either.

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