First I went to the McCurdy and talked to guy working on the McCurdy. He was joking saying he was the first person to begin the renovations. He was just working on the awnings but said that in about 2 weeks there are going to be about 20 people arriving on the site to begin renovations. He said his grandfather worked on the building back in 1917 when it was first built. He said
they are going to put condos/lofts in there with a grand ballroom at the bottom.
Pictures of Work Getting Done
IS IT TRUE August 17, 2012
IS IT TRUE that a couple of CCO Moles have received messages and emails were sent out today announcing a fund raiser for Republican candidate for the Indiana Senate, Vanetta Becker at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW)?…the pledge of the new head of the Vanderburgh County Democrat Party Chairman Jack McNeely to put a stop to this sort of stuff seems to have worked for a month or two and now the local Democrats are at each other’s throats and living in a most un-Democrat way once again?…that even the United Mine Workers Union (UMWA) whose very existence has been threatened by the Obama Administration has stopped short of having a fund raiser for Mitt Romney in a union headquarters?…that the Democrats of SW Indiana have devolved into the most devolved in-fighting group in the entire country?…in spite of that the CCO will go out on a limb and predict that the UMWA will be forced by its membership to endorse the Romney campaign for president of the United States?
IS IT TRUE that the outstanding employees of the EVSC will not be getting a pay raise for 2013?…that the reason is because school board members spent hundreds of millions of dollars on capital projects over the last several years and now there is nothing left in the till to give raises to the employees?
IS IT TRUE we know the fate of Roberts Stadium but are wondering what plans the EVSC School Board has for the now vacant old North High School complex located on Diamond Avenue? …we wonder how much it cost the EVSC system per month to secure this multi-million dollar piece of property?
IS IT TRUE that the commercial customers of the monopoly known as the Evansville Water and Sewer Department generates about 70% to 75% of total income for the Evansville Utilities Department?
IS IT TRUE that Mayor Winnecke is recruiting for Saturday’s Fitness in the Park at Garvin Park from 8-10 am?…this will be the fourth month for Fitness in the Park?…Amy Lutzel will be leading a group from the bandstand near the Garvin Park fountain on a walk along the Pigeon Creek Greenway?…the walk is for people of all fitness levels?… this is mentioned this because it is not on the flyers sent out today by the Mayor’s office?…there will also be a healthy foods cooking demonstration by personal chef Cheryl Mochau?…other activities will include a KidFit Program, plus Zumba and advanced Zumba classes?
IS IT TRUE the pictures of the advances dilapidation taking place at the abandoned McCurdy Hotel has elicited more calls and emails of disgust by the readers of the CCO that nearly anything that has ever been published by this website?…there were also many calls and emails of disgust over the salary adjustments recommended by the Winnecke Administration for a group of only 8 people relative to the entire non union staff of the City of Evansville?…the Golden 10 is now the Golden 8?…the most expressed opinion is that the City of Evansville is low on money, has squandered the future, and that most of the people of Evansville have not seen a 3% raise in years and that there is no reason for a broke city to be handing out 3% across the board increases at all?…the consensus of the people of Evansville on this issue is that the most appropriate raise is a big fat ZERO?
IS IT TRUE that a City of Evansville department head tendered his resignation yesterday at the demand of Mayor Winnecke?…that Brad Mills has served many years in two positions and now he will be seeking employment elsewhere?…the word on the street is that he is alleged to have balked at some back door deals put forward by both of the most recent administrations?…the CCO wishes Mr. Mills well as he will eventually come to appreciate the day he made the decision to leave the employment of a ship that appears to be sinking?
IS IT TRUE that one of the large sources of revenue from the TIF District that was budgeted to pay the note on the Ford Center was the invisible downtown Convention Hotel?…we are safe to assume that there will be no incremental funds coming from the invisible hotel?…we would like to know just how many alternative sourced dollars will be needed in 2013 to make the payments on the Ford Center?
VANDERBURGH COUNTY FELONY CHARGES
This feature is sponsored by Chris Walsh For Vanderburgh County Clerk. Chris Walsh is a veteran county administrator that strongly supports our local law enforcement professionals . Chris is a candidate that possess a non-partisan attitude with a consumer friendly demeanor. Chris also stands against unification of city and county governments.
This ad paid for by the committiee to elect Walsh Clerk,
Evansville, IN – Below is a list of felony cases that were filed by the Vanderburgh County Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday, August 15, 2012.
Ryan Hardin Criminal Trespass – Class A Misdemeanor
(Enhanced to a Class D Felony due to Prior Convictions)
George Smith Domestic Battery – Class A Misdemeanor
(Enhanced to a Class D Felony due to Prior Convictions)
Interference with the Reporting of a Crime – Class A Misdemeanor
Teresa Oldham Theft – Class D Felony
Evans West Theft – Class D Felony
Larry Wilson Operating a Motor Vehicle After Forfeiture of License for Life – Class C Felony
Scott Wilson Theft – Class D Felony (Habitual Offender Enhancement)
For further information on the cases listed above, or any pending case, please contact Carly Settles at 812.435.5688 or via e-mail at csettles@vanderburghgov.org.
Under Indiana law, all criminal defendants are considered to be innocent until proven guilty by a court of law.
SENTENCE CHART
Class Range
Murder 45-65 Years
Class A Felony 20-50 Years
Class B Felony 6-20 Years
Class C Felony 2-8 Years
Class D Felony ½ – 3 Years
Class A Misdemeanor 0-1 Year
The two tracking polls with the best results for predicting presidential contests now have three days of data after the selection of Paul Ryan as the running mate for Mitt Romney in their calculation and and both polls are indicating that the Romney/Ryan ticket is opening a lead on Obama/Biden nationally. The Rasmussen Tracking poll today shows Romney with a 45% – 44% lead over President Obama while Gallup’s Tracking poll shows Romney maintaining a lead of 47% – 45%.
The average of these two polls is now showing the Romney/Ryan campaign with 46% and the Obama/Biden at 44.5%.
The average approval rate for President Obama is now negative 4.5% meaning that 4.5% more of those polled disapprove of the Presidents job performance than approve of it. The average approval rating for the President was 46.0% and the average disapproval was 50.5%. Both items were unchanged from yesterday but for the first time the Gallup Poll reported a disapproval rating of 50% for President Obama.
Electoral college polls all still show President Obama with a lead over Romney on the basis of having strong leads in the big city dominated states of California, New York, and Illinois. The current safe electoral counts for President Obama and Mitt Romney are 201 and 181 respectively with 156 electors considered to be either toss ups or within the margin of error. The gap for Obama in the toss up states of Wisconsin, Iowa, Virginia, & Florida have closed to be within one percent with Obama still clinging to a lead in Wisconsin and the other states all now barely in Romney’s camp.
In an examination of all polls published after August 13th and applying them to the elector count, if the election were held today and the most recent polls are accurate Romney would win the presidency over Obama by an electoral vote of 282 – 256
IS IT TRUE August 16, 2012 Part 2
IS IT TRUE that Mayor Winnecke has submitted a budget to the City Council that has the salary increases for the “Golden 10†included?…the budget also includes a 3% across the board raise for City of Evansville employees in 2013?…this caused a bit of an uproar at the Council meeting last night as a motion by Dr. Dan Adams to limit increases to 3% for all ended in a tie with John Friend, Dan McGinn, Jonathan Weaver, and Council President Connie Robinson?…the vote was 4 – 4 as Conor O’Daniel was absent?…this is an interesting quagmire for the City Council to deal with as across the board increases almost always result in the best employees leaving and the worst staying forever?…that all people may be created equal but they surely do not perform equally?…to appease the bad at the expense of the good guarantees long term mediocrity or worse?…Jack Welch, the legendary CEO of General Electric to it the other direction by firing the bottom 10% of performers every year?…while Jack ran GE it became the most valuable company on earth?…since his departure GE has softened up and fallen in value by over 60%?…that maybe the City Council should consider capping the cumulative raise pool at 3% to reflect the City’s ability to absorb higher salaries but leave the distribution of these raises up to department heads?…this does not necessarily mean that the “Golden 10†are really golden or even top performers but it does create the freedom for city management to identify and incentivize top performers even if there are more than 10 of them?…it also give the City the ability to send a strong message of NO RAISE to marginal and poor performers?
IS IT TRUE that maybe the reality of the situation is that the City of Evansville can’t afford any raises at all at this time?…that a true leader would transmit that information in a way that most top performers would stay and in a way that the poor performers would be forced out?
IS IT TRUE that Mayor Winnecke has also decided to move forward with a so called jobs plan that includes much of the Johnson Controls Contract that he is rebranding as a Smart City Initiative?…the Mayor claims that his Smart City Initiative will create 170 jobs and that it is an evolution in progress from the Weinzapfel Administration?…that it is an accepted fact that every job created by government requires the taxes from 7 private sector jobs to support it?…using this math that the 170 jobs that will supposedly be created by the Mayor’s Smart City plan will require 1,200 new private sector jobs of the type that actually pays taxes to support this spending?…we must ask the question, where are those 1,200 jobs coming from when things like the Champion Labs move their headquarters out of Evansville and their manufacturing out of the Tri-State altogether?…that an expansion of government in a contracting economy is a formula followed by Greece, Spain, France, and Ireland?…that Mayor Winnecke and former Mayor Weinzapfel must have attended the Barack Obama School of Economics when it comes to having any concept of reality when it comes to balancing government and private spending?
IS IT TRUE that it has come to our attention that the McCurdy Hotel is becoming a target for graffiti and is rapidly deteriorating without being secured?…the Vanderburgh County Assessor’s website still reports that City Centre Properties LLC of Carmel, IN owns the McCurdy and that the taxes are more than a year into delinquency?…that it seems as though the age old practice of DEMOLITION BY NEGLECT is being utilized on the McCurdy?…there is local precedent and expertise in the practice of getting something on the list for the wrecking ball by neglecting to maintain?…the old Skora Building and Roberts Stadium are two recent examples of DEMOLITION BY NEGLECT?…in the case of Roberts that this practice was orchestrated by the government of the City of Evansville but in the case of the McCurdy it just seems to be happening on its own?…that the historical society should be looking into why the McCurdy is being DEMOLISHED BY NEGLECT and do everything in their power to reverse this travesty?
IS IT TRUE August 16, 2012
IS IT TRUE buried in the meeting in which it was decided that Roberts Stadium had to be on the receiving end of the wrecking ball by May 1, 2013 was a couple of adjustments to the refurbishment efforts of the Gresham House?…that the CCO fully supports the refurbishment of the Gresham House to honor the first US serviceman killed in WWI?…when such things are done it is most favorable to return the homes to the most like they were at the time the honorable deed was done?…that in the case of the Gresham House the City of Evansville is discussing moving some of the “most valuable†antiques to the Evansville Museum?…this does violate the spirit of authenticity that should be driving the refurbishment of the Gresham House?…the reason behind such a move may be driven to keep the things of value from being stolen as the crime in Evansville has been rising and unoccupied homes are frequently targeted for theft of valuable things including air conditioner parts and aluminum siding?…it is a sad reflection on Evansville if the antiques in the Gresham House have to be moved to protect them from thieves?…that maybe this refurbishment needs one more change order for a security system to be installed?
IS IT TRUE that after yesterday’s announcement regarding the discovery of an original piece by Pablo Picasso in storage at the Evansville Museum we sort of wonder if the museum has what it takes to protect and display things of very high value?…it has been disclosed that the Evansville Museum has an original and unique piece of art by Picasso that was donated many years ago that has been in permanent storage and never displayed to the public?…some original Picasso pieces have brought over $100 Million at auction?…there is not yet an estimate on the Evansville Picasso but it will certainly be in the millions?…the current plans are to sell this piece of art to a museum that has “the wealth to display and preserve it correctlyâ€?…that selling such a piece may be a gut reaction to a bean counter but to an appreciator of art this is enough to make one want to vomit?
IS IT TRUE that rare art has consistently been one of the highest appreciating investments even in a recession?…big museums like the Met, the Getty, or several others with jump at the chance to buy this at auction but also routinely enter into long term lease agreements for important pieces of art?…the cash stream from a lease on this Picasso could be bonded to complete the upgrades to the Evansville Museum while keeping the wealth of an original Picasso under local ownership?…seeing a Picasso with a plaque on it stating “owned by the Evansville Indiana Museum†may even promote some tourism to Evansville by people of means?…it seems that even our museum can’t seem to manage wealth so soon the proceeds from the sale of this appreciating asset will be traded for a depreciating asset?…the Museum had better keep its guard up if it gets its hands on $100 Million because local elected officials will be wearing the town out trying to find a way to get their hands on that money?
IS IT TRUE that Olympic champion and the world’s fastest man Usain Bolt was asked at the Olympics why he does not race in England more often?…Bolt candidly answered that he tax laws in England are why he will never ever race there?…the tax laws were lifted for the Olympics or many potential Olympians would have refused to compete?…that England taxes the worldwide earnings of athletes in a proportional manner if these athletes compete in England?…in the case of Mr. Bolt who gets paid appearance fees of $250,000 per race but has an endorsement contract worth $7 Million with Nike, running in England would make is Nike earnings subject to British taxes on roughly $1 Million that would cost him just over $500,000 in taxes to earn $250,000 that would in turn trigger another $125,000 in taxes?…that running one race in England would cost Bolt over $500,000 and that this idiotic tax policy costs the people of England the ability to see the fastest man on earth and costs the British government the taxes that could collect on gate receipts, concessions, and travel which would certainly exceed $500,000?…the British tax policies after 236 years are still designed in a way that the world’s best talent will not work there?…the United States, that was formed to escape the British government should take notice of what Britain’s insane tax policy has done for competition on their soil?
