IS IT TRUE: March 29, 2012
IS IT TRUE: March 29, 2012
IS IT TRUE that Dunn Hospitality is putting up another hotel on Evansville’s east side?…that this time the brand will be a Courtyard Marriot and that it will add 120 rooms to the mix for Evansville to play host to tourists and business people?…that Dunn Hospitality is doing this without getting any money or incentive from the City of Evansville to do so?…that we wonder how much these additional 120 rooms will affect the work in progress that is also known as the $40,000 Hunden study to tell Mayor Winnecke and the Evansville Redevelopment Commission how many rooms are needed in downtown Evansville?…that private hospitality providers like Dunn Hospitality seem to have been looking at the Evansville market for a long time and seem to have determined that Hunden’s answer should be “not enough to make it worth doing†from an investment perspective?…that we will be quite interested to see just how many rooms Hunden deems there is a need for and more importantly how much the City of Evansville will have to pay to get any worthy developer/operator to jump into this fray?
IS IT TRUE that on page 64 of the 2009 City of Evansville Audit under the heading “Audit Results and Comments†the following critique is made?
“The cash balance of the General Fund, General Obligation Loan Fund, Park Bond and Interest Retirement Fund, Police Pension Fund, Redevelopment Bond Retirement Fund, Community Development Block Grant Fund, Home Investment Trust Fund, Continuum Care Fund, Emergency Shelter Grant Fund, Accounts Payable Fund, Payroll Checking Account Fund, and Hospitalization Fund were overdrawn in 2009.
The cash balance of any fund may not be reduced below zero. Routinely overdrawn funds could
be an indicator of serious financial problems which should be investigated by the governmental unit.
(Accounting and Uniform Compliance Guidelines Manual for Cities and Towns, Chapter 7)â€
And that the following critique is also enunciated:
“The Water Utility did not pay to the City the amount due in lieu of taxes for the year 2009. The amount due was $702,956.
IC 8-1.5-3-8(g) states in part: “. . . the commission shall approve rates and charges sufficient to compensate the municipality for taxes that would be due the municipality on the utility property were it privately owned.” In Cause No. 43190 the Utility Regulatory Commission established a payment in lieu of taxes amount of $702,956 for the year 2009.â€
Finally the following conclusions were made regarding compliance monitoring:
“The City had insufficient controls to monitor compliance with OMB Circular A-87, “Cost Principles
for State, Local, and Indian Tribal Governments,” concerning allocation of salaries to be paid from federal grants. The salaries paid to most of the Department of Metropolitan Development Employees were
charged to the Community Development Block Grant for work performed that was not documented to
meet allowability criteria for activities permitted under the grant.
Governmental units should have internal controls in effect which provide reasonable assurance
regarding the reliability of financial information and records, effectiveness and efficiency of operations,proper execution of management’s objectives, and compliance with laws and regulations. Among other things, segregation of duties, safeguarding controls over cash and all other assets and all forms of information processing are necessary for proper internal control. (Accounting and Uniform Compliance Guidelines Manual for Cities and Towns, Chapter 7)â€
IS IT TRUE that all of this occurred under the leadership of former Mayor Weinzapfel at a time that Evansville was in the process of spending $127 Million on an arena and were fined by the EPA for spilling raw sewage into the Ohio River?…that the name on the door may have changed but now in 2012 with Mayor Winnecke’s hand on the wheel of the good ship Evansville that we are loaning $4.8 Million to an unproven start-up company with untested executives and no protected intellectual property?…that we are doing this at a time that it is alleged that Evansville can’t afford to repair or replace a fire truck?…that we wonder just how long the people of this city will continue to tolerate such things?…that a clue to that answer lies in the high probability that Charles Manson could be elected to at least 6 of the seats on the Evansville City Council if he ran as a Democrat?…that it is time to start thinking?
Juror for USI Juried Student Art Exhibition chooses 181 works
The juror for the 42nd annual USI Juried Student Art Exhibition, to be held April 1-29, is John Begley, a Louisville artist, curator, and gallery director, and founding director of the New Harmony Gallery of Contemporary Art.
Begley selected 181 works of art created in the past year from over 425 works submitted by USI students for inclusion in the show. He currently heads the University of Louisville’s Hite Art Institute galleries and leads its Critical and Curatorial Studies program.
The opening reception for the 42nd annual Juried Student Art Exhibition will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, April 1, at the McCutchan Art Center/Pace Galleries, with the awards ceremony at 3 p.m.
Over $7800 in merit awards, scholarships, and purchase awards, generously donated by area business and individuals, will be announced at that time. The public is welcome to attend the reception and view the exhibition.
The McCutchan Art Center/ Pace Galleries, located in the lower level of the Liberal Arts Center, is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Begley juried the exhibit on March 21, and presented a lecture that evening titled, “Seeing Influence: Stephen Pace and Anne Cooper Dobbins,” in Kleymeyer Hall in the lower level of the Liberal Arts Center.
His talk was based on a recent exhibit of artwork by Stephen Pace from the USI Art Collection, and the work of Anne Cooper Dobbins, Begley’s student, that he curated at the Hite Institute. He also made remarks about his selections for this year’s exhibit at that time.
Begley holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of New Mexico and a Master of Fine Arts degree from Indiana University. He served as director of the Louisville Visual Art Association for 18 years.
The recipient of the Louis Comfort Tiffany and Getty Museum Management Institute Fellowships, Begley oversaw the growth of the Louisville Visual Art Association to a multi-function exhibition, education, and advocacy art center. He also has been an active advocate for the visual arts in Louisville, the state of Kentucky, and the region.
He has produced hundreds of exhibitions, including shows that have toured the American Midwest and South, Scotland, Germany, France, and Taiwan.
Begley also maintains an active studio practice in drawing, printmaking, book arts, installation, and intermedia combinations that examine the nature of seeing, making, and thinking about the world of art.
Library programs focus on alternative diets
More and more people are adopting alternative diets, like vegan and gluten-free, for a variety of reasons. If you’re new to these lifestyles, the Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library is offering two programs that you’ll want to mark on your calendar.
On Monday, April 2 at 6:30 pm, North Park Branch will present a program on gluten-free living. If you or someone you know has recently been diagnosed with Celiac Disease, or if you’re simply interested in learning more about living gluten-free and your dietary options, Beth Young, a registered dietician, will share information about gluten-free diets. For more information, please call 428-8237.
If you’ve adopted, or are considering adopting, a vegan diet, Red Bank Branch will present a program on vegan baking on Thursday, April 5 at 6:30 pm. Learn about ingredient options and finding vegan ingredients and recipes. Please reserve your spot at this program by calling 428-8205, or register online at evpl.org.
Mayor Winnecke announced Travelling Town Hall Event
OFFICE OF THE MAYOR
LLOYD WINNECKE
March 28, 2012 Contact: Ella Johnson-Watson
For Immediate Release 812-436-4965
St. James West UMC to Host March Traveling City Hall Meeting Tonight
EVANSVILLE, IN – Mayor Lloyd Winnecke will host the monthly Traveling City Hall meetings tonight, March 28th, at 5:30 p.m. at St. James West United Methodist Church, 3111 Hillcrest Terrace. The meeting will begin with a presentation on the Guns & Hoses charity boxing match between the Evansville police officers and firefighters. The event will be on April 21st at the Ford Center.
Traveling City Hall is an opportunity for residents to meet one-on-one with the mayor and various city department heads to ask questions or simply discuss the status of our community. While the Traveling City Hall meetings are held at different locations in neighborhoods throughout the city, all residents are invited to attend any session.
The next Traveling City Hall meeting will be on Wednesday, April 25th, at McCollough Library, 5115 Washington Ave.
Robertson Released Following Arrest for Theft
News Release
Update on Kyrri Robertson Robbery Arrest
SUMMARY
Evansville Police have dismissed the Robbery and Battery charges against Kyrri Robertson. The arrest stemmed from allegations made by Alyssa Hines and Kenzie Mills.
Investigators followed up on additional information gathered from witnesses that came forward after Robertson’s arrest.
Police now believe Hines and Mills were unsatisfied with narcotics they had purchased from Robertson and were upset that he would not return their $300. Robertson will be released from jail today and the robbery and battery charges will be dropped.
There are pending charges on Hines and Mills for false reporting of a crime. (Class A Misdemeanor)
There is an on-going investigation concerning the narcotics sale involving Robertson, Hines, and Mills.
IS IT TRUE: March 28, 2012
IS IT TRUE: March 28, 2012
IS IT TRUE that we have been reading a bit on the total electrical power generation capacity of the United States with an eye toward figuring out just how much of an impact that the step down generators that Earthcare Energy will hopefully be making in Evansville can make?…that the Wall Street Journal reported today that the total net generation of electricity in the USA is roughly 4 Trillion kilowatts (4,000,000,000,000,000 Watts)?…that the report written by Concurrent Technologies for the Air Force Research Lab states that the total 100% capacity of all of the power available from step down generation at an 80% efficiency is 53.7 GW (53,700,000,000,000 Watts)?…that at a market penetration of 100% operating at 80% net efficiency (not going to happen) the total impact on the capacity of the grid is 1.3%?…that it would seem that some of the grandiose claims that have been made may not stand up to vetting of the market with realistic penetration probabilities either?
IS IT TRUE that changing the subject that the Indiana brown bats, the retired pigeon brigade, the rats, and the rat snakes that have been leading the Occupy McCurdy movement for years now had a handful of human visitors yesterday?…that the CCO boots on the ground guy observed 6 EPD cruisers in the McCurdy parking lot yesterday trying to root out some wayward humans who had gained access to the building?…that every day that the McCurdy sits there with nothing going on is a day that the final cost to refurbish it increase?…that we are also wondering what is going on with the Riverhouse next door that would not even auction for $375,000 last year but did have an interested party in November?…that the McCurdy is still on record as being owned by none other than City Centre Properties and that the taxes still are not paid?…that another tax installment is looming and will be due on May 10, 2012?
IS IT TRUE that for those of you who may have been watching or having a curiosity about the Supreme Court review of the constitutionality of Obamacare some of the play by play of the questioning by the justices is beginning to be published?…that in an article today called “A Constitutional Awakening†it was reported that the Obama administration lawyers are getting roughed up by the three justices thought to be on the fence and thus the real decision makers?…that Justice Antonin Kennedy asked “can you create commerce in order to regulate itâ€?…that the only argument by the Obama Administration this far is that health care is “unique†and therefore exempt from the constitution?…that Justice Samuel Alioto sort of mocked that argument in equating forcing Americans to buy health insurance to forcing them to buy a burial policy since we are all going to die anyway and that would be a way of distributing the cost of burial to everyone?…that it is looking like we will not have to vote out Obamacare because as asserted it will likely be struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court?
IS T TRUE that several of our readers have asked if we could get our hands on a group picture of the management core of Earthcare Energy?…that no one seems to have seen a picture with Mr. Ken Haney the founder and chairman standing with CEO Stephen Geldmacher and president Erwin Washington?…that we agree that it would be appropriate for the people of Evansville to start to get familiar with these gentlemen so we can wish them good fortune when we see them around town?…that as they said in “The Hunger Gamesâ€, “may the odds be forever in your favorâ€?
KONY 2012, Invisible Children coming to USI
The Office of Housing and Residence Life is hosting a showing of the documentary film “KONY 2012” at 9 p.m. Monday, April 9, in Forum I in the Wright Administration Building.
Invisible Children is a youth-based organization trying to put an end to a decades-long conflict in Central Africa where a rebel army has been attacking innocent civilians and abducting children.
There also will be a question and answer period with the Invisible Children Roadies and a Ugandan who has first-hand experience with the organization.
The event is free and open to the public. Donations will be accepted and there will be merchandise available for purchase. Refreshments will be served.