IS IT TRUE? June 30, 2011 Special Evening Edition: Another FOIA

IS IT TRUE that the banks are closed and that there has been no deal announced regarding closing the loan to consummate the development contract for a downtown Convention Hotel to be built to serve the new Arena and the Centre?…that we are now at square one holding the bag for a process that just did not deliver?…that we will be interested to see the real content of the forthcoming RFP to try to get something going again with the hotel project?…that we are concerned that the time allocated to respond will not bring spark the interest of any developer other than the rebirth of Woodruff Hospitality LLC or the group(s) that somehow could not find a way to work together from within Woodruff Hospitality LLC as it exists until midnight tonight?

IS IT TRUE that there is a trench being dug to connect the new Arena to the Civic Center so that the anticipated bandwidth needed to serve 11,000 cell phones, iPhones, iPads, etc. in the Arena are actually functional?…that John Kish did stand before the Evansville City Council and state that there was no cost to the taxpayers of Louisville to get their $2 Million oversight corrected and that there would not be any cost to the taxpayers of Evansville to establish bandwidth either?…that in the spirit of that statement we would like to know what budget from what company or department are paying to dig this trench and to establish the fiber connection to the server bank in the basement of the Civic Center?

IS IT TRUE that the City County Observer has once again been forced by stonewalling and complacency to file a Freedom of Information Act Request with the City of Evansville to get our hands on the real situation with respect to the premium seating in the Arena?…that the text of the latest FOIA is as follows?…that we expect to see whatever exists or does not exists within 21 days of today? Stay Tuned!!

June 30, 2011

Office of the Mayor of Evansville Indiana, the Evansville Department of Metropolitan Development, and the Evansville Redevelopment Commission

RECORDS REQUEST

Dear Records Request Officer:

Pursuant to the state open records act, I request access to and copies of any contracts, agreements, and correspondence between VenuWorks/the Evansville Redevelopment Commission/City of Evansville pertaining to the sale, lease, or rental of all preferred seating, skyboxes, loge seats, or other seating other than general admission seating in the new Evansville Arena.

Furthermore according to the state open records act, I request copies of any contracts, agreements, and correspondence between VenuWorks and the Evansville Redevelopment Commission/City of Evansville pertaining to recommendations and/or approval of any items whatsoever that are delineated in Exhibit A of the Contract for Pre-Opening Consulting services or succeeding agreements between VenuWorks and the Evansville Redevelopment Commission/City of Evansville.

I agree to pay up to $50 to cover the cost of copying the document.

If my request is denied in whole or part, I ask that you justify all deletions by reference to specific exemptions of the act.

Thank you for your assistance.

Sincerely,

Joe J Wallace

Joe Wallace, Editor
City County Observer

OZONE ALERT

EFFECTIVE: Friday, July 1, 2011

The Evansville Environmental Protection Agency and the Vanderburgh County Health Department have issued an OZONE ALERT for Friday, July 1, 2011. Ambient concentrations may reach or exceed the level of the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS). This should be the final Alert for this 2-day episode.

The current ozone NAAQS was set by the U.S. E.P.A. in 2008 at an 8-hour average of 76 ppb. 8-hour average ozone levels between 76 to 95 ppb are considered to be unhealthy for sensitive groups such as children and active adults, and people with respiratory diseases like asthma.

Air Quality Index Ozone 8-hr average
Good 0-59 ppb
Moderate 60-75 ppb
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups 76-95 ppb
Unhealthy 96-115 ppb
Very Unhealthy 116-374 ppb

Within a few hours or days, exposure to higher levels of ozone can cause lung and throat irritation, shortness of breath, increase the frequency of asthma attacks and aggravate respiratory diseases such as asthma, emphysema and bronchitis. Children, active adults, and people with respiratory diseases should limit prolonged outdoor exertion especially between 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. when ozone levels are highest.

OPEN BURNING is prohibited on Ozone Alerts days.

To do your share to protect air quality and reduce pollution levels:
• USE PUBLIC TRANSIT – RIDE METS FREE ON OZONE ALERT DAYS!
• CONSERVE ENERGY of all kinds – turn off lights, reduce air conditioner use, etc.
• Limit your driving. Avoid unnecessary vehicle idling.
• Park and go inside instead of using drive-through windows, especially if there are long lines.
• Postpone fueling your vehicle until after 6:00 p.m.
• Consider using electric or manually operated lawn equipment. If you use gasoline-powered lawn and garden equipment, stop working at 10:00 a.m. and / or postpone work until after 6:00 p.m.
• Limit the use of solvents, parts cleaning fluids, paint thinners and chemicals. Replace lids when finished.
• Postpone painting or use water-based paints instead of oil-based paints.

IS IT TRUE that it is now the day of reckoning for the development agreement between the Evansville Redevelopment Commission and Woodruff Hospitality LLC?…For all practical purposes if Woodruff Hospitality LLC does not close the financing today the ERC is back to square one and will be issuing a Request For Proposal at their next meeting on July 5th?…that they have stated that the deadline to respond to the forthcoming RFP will be July 19th?…that there are only two potential bidders for this RFP and that those two potential bidders are the separated shareholders of Woodruff Hospitality LLC?…that this seems to be a self limiting plan on the part of the ERC?…that this process would have a better probability of success in attracting new outside interest if the forthcoming RFP has a response date closer to Labor Day?

IS IT TRUE that back in January that Woodruff Hospitality LLC was talking about a construction cycle of 18 months?…that John Kish, arena project manager is on record as stating that even with the best case of a mid July closing of a finance package that a Spring 2012 opening will be on schedule?…that Spring of 2012 will end about 11 months from the best case response date of July 19th?…that Mr. Kish must be assuming that the construction project cycle will be reduced by 7 months just because it is convenient to be that way?…that is a real stretch for a guy who has managed the Arena project pretty much according to the original schedule?…that Mr. Kish must not be familiar with the old adage that “2 women can not birth a baby in 4 1/2 months”?…that some things have a gestation period that is best not altered by much?…that maybe with this kind of paradigm that we are heading for a “premature hotel”?…that there seems to be a whole lot of running out the clock going on in and around the Civic Center these days?

IS IT TRUE that the reader’s questions keep coming in regarding the INSIDER DEALS that seem to have happened with the sales of Skyboxes and Loge Seating in the Evansville Arena?…that there is quite an outrage within our readership of people who can afford and would have had an interest in the available options?…that doing INSIDER DEALS for premium seating smacks of arrogance and preferential treatment?…that these kinds of INSIDER DEALS are just too common in the governance of the City of Evansville?…that these kinds of deals that award premium seats preferentially to hand-picked people not only under prices the seating but creates a state of an aristocracy or even an oligarchy in a city that claims to be inclusive?…that the Evansville aristocracy seems to have been given deals on premium seating that is paid for with public money and that the public never had any opportunity to purchase this seating?…that this is about as honest and transparent as concert promoters taking all of the best seats to an event and fencing them on Stubhub.com for more than the face value?

IS IT TRUE that the temporary contract with VenuWorks mandates ERC approval for long term contracts?…that no such contracts have been approved in a public meeting?…that this business by virtue of the Indiana Sunshine Laws should be conducted in public?…that the City County Observer has asked nicely for copies of any seating contracts for the new Arena?…that we have waited three days and have not received anything?…that the ball was tossed to Mr. Kish?…that we shall be filing another Freedom of Information Act request this week?…that it is ludicrous that we have to resort to such tactics to force transparency from the management of the Arena project?

IS IT TRUE that it was absolutely refreshing to see a real time pair of position papers released by the two candidates for Mayor of Evansville yesterday?…that in this case they agreed albeit for different reasons that the proposal from the ECTA for 12 tennis courts at Wesselman Park should not receive public funding or public land?…that we look forward to more situations where position papers are needed?…that the topics screaming for position papers are the Executive Inn Dilemma, the McCurdy, the EPA compliant CSO plan, reforming our City Parks, the local Economy, execution of any plans, and staffing in the Civic Center?…that the for the majority of June the candidates have been strangely silent?…that we were beginning to fear PARALYSIS BY ANALYSIS may have been setting in?…that the time to start disclosing plans is now?

The Vanderburgh County smokefree air ordinance goes into effect this Friday, July 1. If you are going out to eat this weekend, please consider visiting any of the six locations that are going smokefree and tell the owner or manager that you appreciate the smokefree atmosphere. Casey Williams will be providing entertainment from 6-9 p.m. on Friday at the Hornet’s Nest.

Nisbet Inn
Becky Harl, Owner
6701 Nisbet Road
Haubstadt, IN 47639-9222

Hornet’s Nest
Derek Ungethiem, Owner
11845 Petersburg Road
Evansville, IN 47725-8354

Show Me’s West
Tyler Francis, General Manager
5501 Pearl Drive
Evansville, IN 47712

American Legion Post 8
Harold Pfender, Commander
6001 New Harmony Road
Evansville, IN 47720-2547

New Frontier
Vicki Schmitt and John Backes, Owners
12945 SR HWY 57
Evansville, IN 58836-7619

St. Joe Inn
Darlene Young, Owner
9515 St. Wendel Road
Evansville, IN 47720-8142

Have a great holiday weekend!

IS IT TRUE? – 2 June 30, 2011 Overpriced Housing

IS IT TRUE that this fall the Project Hope will be seeking bids to build 40 homes for low income families in the Front Door Pride area?…that the budget for these 40 homes is approximately $9.5 Million?…that this works out to nearly $240,000 each?…that as has been established by the unsold inventory of Front Door Pride homes the market value for homes that cost the government $240,000 to build have a market value of only about $130,000 each?…that this project has a solution to the difficulty in finding low income people who want to buy such houses and can qualify for the loans needed?…that these 40 house will be sold on 15 year lease/purchase agreements?…that the lease amounts are not even half of what the payment would be for $240,000 homes?…that as noble and kind as it is to encourage home ownership among low income people that losing over $100,000 per house will flat out waste at least $4 Million of taxpayer money?…that it does not matter to some people because this program is funded by federal dollars?….THAT WASTING FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MONEY IS WASTING YOUR MONEY?

IS IT TRUE that this program of putting renters into homes that are substantially the same as the existing Front Door Pride homes will DEVALUE these home further?…that Evansville and especially the FDP area has a 50 year history of population losses?…that new houses are not needed in a shrinking population?…that there are plenty of houses for sale in other areas of Evansville at market values of less than $240,000 that are much larger and in safer neighborhoods than these are?…that this area of town is also completely served by combined sewers that are under EPA order to be upgraded?…that many of these homes are destined for vacant lots and abandoned homes?…that vacant lots and abandoned homes to not have a need to go to the bathroom?…that adding structures and people to this area will further stress an already condemned sewer system?…that maybe a better solution would be to just pay market value for homes elsewhere are let the CSO served areas depopulate?

IS IT TRUE that if government housing programs had even a shred of practicality for valuation metrics that things like this would never happen?…that the old safe house that is slated for 32 apartments to be refurbished for you guessed it $240,000 each makes these 40 houses look like a blue light special?…that the kind of apartments that are slated to be refurbished can be bought on the open market for less than $20,000 per apartment?…that anytime you hear the words FREE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MONEY that you can bet that there will be massive waste involved?…that Evansville should actually set an example for the rest of the country and visibly turn wasteful projects away?…that every city anywhere in America that accepts federal money to pay 2x, 5x, or even 10x current market rates is an enabler to the runaway national debt?…that this exercise in nothing down overpriced housing backed by the federal government is quite responsible for the meltdown in the housing markets that we are experiencing in this country?…that the government seems to be the only entity that did not learn its lesson?

IS IT TRUE that housing is not the only area of the federal government that is practicing wasteful spending?…that some estimates opine that government spending could be cut by 50% across the board without most regular citizens missing a thing?…that with $500 hammers, $240,000 apartments in Evansville, and Million dollar missiles that is believable?

A Reminder of a Development Agreement that actually resulted in a Hotel

Link to the Agreement:

Fort Wayne Hotel Agreement

Perhaps Evansville could learn the Vetting and financing processes from Fort Wayne

Excerpts:

“The $110 million redevelopment effort, called Harrison Square, so far includes the ballpark, a brand-new Marriott Courtyard hotel and a 900-space parking garage; and skywalks to connect the Marriott and an existing Hilton hotel to the expanded Grand Wayne Convention Center, which will host the 2012 state Democratic convention.”

“But the Harrison, a 100,000-square-foot structure that will also have space for retail stores and offices, has been stalled by the recession and the inability to get financing. On June 13, a little more than two years after it was supposed to be finished, Mayor Tom C. Henry announced a private-public partnership that will finance the $18 million building.”

“Last Sept. 1, the 250-room Marriott Courtyard hotel and a 900-space parking garage opened, both of them overlooking Parkview Field. The $30 million undertaking by White Lodging, a Merrillville, Ind. real estate firm specializing in hotels, more than doubled the number of hotel rooms within walking distance of the convention center. The mayor and Mr. Richard like to boast that the Indiana State Democratic Convention has scheduled its 2012 convention in Fort Wayne because there are finally enough rooms to accommodate 2,000 convention-goers.”

Link to Full Article

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/29/realestate/commercial/an-indiana-town-lures-renters-with-ballpark-views.html?src=recg

Sheriff’s Message 06292011

Starting tomorrow morning the editor of the City County Observer, Joe Wallace will be joining the guest list of prominent Evansville attorney Les Shively on his weekly radio show “Live with Les Shively”. Each week Shively reports on local news including guest call ins from 8 – 9 am on NewsTalk 1280 WGBF interjecting his own well thought out and always sharp opinions.

The City County Observer has risen in three short years to have the most read exclusively online local news content in the Tri-State and furthermore has recently risen to hold the #2 position locally for global internet pageviews closely following the Evansville Courier and Press. The CCO is a privately held online advocate for good public policy, endorses no candidates, and specializes in pushing the envelope for disclosing stories that others may conveniently ignore.

Both Counselor Shively and Mr. Wallace are pleased to make this announcement and are looking forward to engaging the Evansville community with news of local government.

CCO passes WFIE in critical metric of internet traffic

The global internet traffic ranking service Alexa figure have placed the City County Observer into the 2nd local position for the percentage of global pageviews. The local media market rankings as of June 29, 2011 are as follows:

% of Global Pageviews (x100,000)

Courierpress.com: 15

City-CountyObserver.com 6

14Wfie.com: 5

news25.us: 1

tristatehomepage.com: 1 WTVW