... over at Leucadia Blog:
A week after inquiring, Barth has responded to the question of what she sees as negative consequences of Prop A. A week later, simply pointed me to the ballot arguments (to be posted later) without anymore explanation. Many, if not most, of the negative consequences in the ballot statement are questionable. I've requested a meeting with the Mayor to discuss the validity of the objections in the ballot argument. I'm hoping that meeting will be an open meeting that the public could attend.The council is reportedly planning to spend tens of thousands of our tax dollars on a propaganda campaign against the Right to Vote Initiative (likely unanimously, as dissent is frowned upon). If they are so confident in their position, how could they possibly be opposed to an open, public discussion?
The council is about to do exactly what Jerome's council did during Prop C. It was totally unfair to the voters and cost two dozen Encinitas activists a lot of personal time and personal money to correct the taxpayer funded misinformation.
ReplyDeleteMaggie went along with all the lies because she went along with staff.
The council is building up to an integrity crisis.
Shame on the Council, Vina, and Sabine for not disclosing that building heights can also be increased without a vote of the people. This is a different loophole from the 4/5 Council vote to increase density. Fess up, Council.
ReplyDeleteBarth, Muir, Gaspar, Bond, Stocks sold the use of the Hall property soccer fields to California State Soccer Association-South for $15,000 a year for 5 years.
ReplyDeleteI sure hope it was way more than that.... $15k a year is chicken feed.
ReplyDeleteThat's right - chicken feed. The taxpayers of Encinitas are stuck with the lease revenue bonds to the buy land and another $8 million to make it nice for the state soccer association.
ReplyDeleteThat is way low. Council better recheck the financial plan for the park and come up with some realistic revenue stream to help pay for this huge sports park, or Encinitas taxpayers are screwed.
ReplyDeleteThe formula should be easy to derive what the private associations should pay. You take the total cost for all the improvements including the surrounding street improvements and divide it amongst the various opportunities at the park.
Additionally, the City should install parking meters at the new park and make all people driving their cars to the park, help pay for building and maintaining the park.
That park is more like 70 to 80 million, when you look at all the costs.
ReplyDeleteCouncil needs to direct staff, to cut the budget and come back with scope reductions to cut the budget.
Also look at ways to minimize ongoing operational costs, like leasing it to the YMCA and letting them run it. Thats what we should do with the Community Center. Get our City out of the recreation department completely.
Looks like Sabine and Vina run Barter Town.
ReplyDeleteLook at Agenda Item #7 for this Wednesday's April 24 Council Meeting. Gus Vina is suggesting that Council fund up to $500,000 for the Special Election, which is $150,000 to $200K more than the Registrar of Voters has estimated as the actual cost of the Special Election, at $300K to $350K. There is some BS in the staff report as extra monies could be needed for "translation," etc. The cost of translations should be included in the Registrar of Voters estimate. The real reason that more money is needed is to pay for the cities so-called "impartial educational outreach" and "informational services," which is NOT impartial, accurate or supported by facts. Neither was Glenn Sabine's "impartial analysis" impartial. It closely mimics the Cities advocacy AGAINST the right to vote on upzoning initiative. Council can only advocate AGAINST in its ballot arguments. The City is violating Government Code by its partisanship by posting a so-called "independent" impact report, which has never claimed to be impartial, written by a law-firm with pro-development ties and a history of being pro development. The City has NOT posted the initiative itself, only the ballot arguments, the NOT impartial analysis by NOT impartial, not accurate conflicted City Attorney Glenn Sabine, and now planning to do FAQs that will most likely also not be impartial, accurate and fact based. The mailer, to be impartial, should also include the Right to Vote on Upzoning's webpage.
ReplyDeleteGus Vina is bad for Cities. He's experience is in finance with the State, Stockton and Sacramento. All Either Bankrupt or nearly bankrupt. Now he is working on his next victim- Encinitas.
DeleteWhy not? Its not his money and he is retiring in two years just like Kerry, Cotton, Watts, Muir, Murphy and the rest. All at pensions between $150,000 to $200,000 a year forever on the taxpayers tit.
At the last Council Meeting when asked about the City's financial condition, gus explained, "....there has never been a better time to borrow."
Need I say more. No real world finance experience and no real world budget experience. The guy is a clueless tool.
Where is our Mayor on all of this? Why hasn't she answered the questions? Quit playing both sides - IT MAKES YOU LOOK WEAK AND MAKES ME UPSET! Say what you believe and believe what you say.
ReplyDeleteAll of this dramatic decline of Encinitas is tied to fatal character flaws of those in power positions. In his way, Jerome was more fair because at least we knew up front what he stood for and could anticipate his actions. Our new council says one thing and does another. Muir and Gaspar clearly act for the building industry and other special interests who put them in office.
DeleteBarth was alone for many years and has a blind spot for her main friend--Gus Vina. Teresa, Gus is putting your job and your history of good deeds at risk! Your friend is ruining Encinitas, and you are letting him do it!
Lisa seems to think that she is smarter than the voters who put her in her position. Have a little humility, Lisa!
Tony, you are acting like a bully and some call you a dummy. You are also a traitor to those who put you in office. It was not the building industry that went door to door for you!
Sabine and Vina, our City should not be YOUR piggybank. Go find another city to raid! Problem is, nobody else would have you! Howevere, must you take down our entire city with your venal actions?
Gus Vina is bad for Cities. He's experience is in finance with the State, Stockton and Sacramento. All Either Bankrupt or nearly bankrupt. Now he is working on his next victim- Encinitas.
ReplyDeleteWhy not? Its not his money and he is retiring in two years just like Kerry, Cotton, Watts, Muir, Murphy and the rest. All at pensions between $150,000 to $200,000 a year forever on the taxpayers tit.
At the last Council Meeting when asked about the City's financial condition, gus explained, "....there has never been a better time to borrow."
Need I say more. No real world finance experience and no real world budget experience. The guy is a clueless tool.
While interest rates are low, unfunded pension liabilities and our debt service is high. I was rather shocked when Gus Vina said "there has never been a better time to borrow."
ReplyDeleteHe hasn't been around long enough to understand the dynamics of our City. He actually has a poor history of job performance, since Stockton went Bankrupt and he got a vote of no confidence in Sacramento. The committee that selected Vina, including Teresa Barth and Patrick Murphy (was Norby on that committee too?) did a poor job. Teresa Barth cannot admit her mistakes and so is doomed not to be able to learn from them.
The staff report for Agenda Item #7 for April 24, tomorrow night, indicates that Gus Vina, our CM, is asking for increases in certain budget items, which are not broken down, specifically, but including up to $500,000 for the Special Election, when the Registrar of Voters has estimated the cost would be from $300K to $350K. So Vina is asking for from $150K to $200 EXTRA, the staff report suggests for "Translation" and similar expenses:
ReplyDelete"The estimated costs received from the San Diego Registrar of Voters for the "Right to Vote" initiative is between $300,000 to $350,000. In addition, there will be other costs related to translation and publishing the Notice of Election. Staff is recommending a budget increase of up to $500,000 to cover costs for the Special Municipal Election to be held June 18,2013."
Will part of this increase be to pay for the impact report? We know that money will be budgeted for "educational outreach" and "informational services," including a mailer that will reference recipients to a SLANTED City webpage with FAQs, the Impact Report by a pro-development law firm, Rutan & Tucker, the NOT impartial analysis by Glen Sabine, and NO copy of the 9 page Initiative itself, although the "impact report" is 58 pages long!
The Council and the staff are spending our taxes like drunken sailors, yet they sell off valuable assets at slashed bargain prices--only to keep the money trickling in to offset the flood of money going out.
ReplyDeleteThese people are all morons who can't add!
The only thing that has changed is that this council ran on 'ethics' of self-determination of community character and willingness to make staff accountable. How can people so quickly forget their own campaign promises? This is beyond pathetic!
Their first act SHOULD have been to fire Gus Vina.
ReplyDeleteWe would be in a different place right now. Instead, this council is going to get fired.
Tony Kranz is afraid that Sabine will mentally brow beat him at council meetings, so he is compliant to Sabine's wishes.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Council needs to call a closed session without Vina and discuss all the issues surrounding the DEBT machine.
ReplyDeleteHe needs to be removed, or its time to remove council members in the next election.
Can we wait that long? Look how they have shackled us with new debt in just a few months!
DeleteThe stench of ignorance from most of these posts is pretty thick. Just like your heads.
DeleteNo one is omni present here. Your constant speculation that all is bad or wrong at city hall without ever providing any concrete facts or proof that there is something nefarious going on behind the green curtain is laughable.
Some comments about the city manager border on racism or at the very least seem very bigoted in tone.
If any of you can do a better job running this city, why don't you run for council?
What qualifies you to be a better city manager besides throwing stones at glass houses?
Ex-squeeze me?
DeleteWhat comments border on racism or seem bigoted?
First, the comments are focused on Vina's performance here and his history in a string of financial disasters (California, Stockton, Sacramento).
Second, what "race" do you think Vina is? He's about as white as white can be. If his European ancestors stopped by Mexico or Cuba on the way to California, that doesn't entitle him to victim status.
El presidente' Really? he's our city manager
ReplyDeletesmoking Cuban cigars. The man doesn't smoke ok
Gustavo. His name is Gus
There's more but does it matter.
They may be on older threads but the tone on Gus from some is definitely bigoted in my opinion.
Look em up there all over your blog.
By the way have any of you met him and talked with him?
The legal name on his quarter-million dollar pay and retirement package is Gustavo. In addition, he has set himself up like the head of a banana republic.
DeleteFinally, the one who makes the biggest deal about Gus being Hispanic is Teresa Barth. Regardless if he were royalty, nobody should be able to keep his job with this history of performance. He may report to the Council, (that was a joke) but we pay him. A lot of residents want to fire him before it is too late. Besides that, it is hard to argue that he is worth his pay.
Please back up this claim of "a lot of residents want to fire him". I would like to see such a list of haters posted with their real names.
DeleteTo claim that Encinitas is a banana republic and Gus is the dictator and not reporting to the council is ridiculous.
And again... Have any of you actually met the man and had a civil conversation with him about your accusations?
I think that I understand the point. Wikipedia defines a banana republic as:
DeleteIn economics, a banana republic is a country perated as a commercial enterprise for private profit, effected by a collusion between the State and favoured monopolies, in which the profit derived from the private exploitation of public lands is private property, while the debts incurred thereby are a public responsibility.
It seems that this town is run on a favored development monopoly at the expense of the rest of us who just want to live here in peace.
Can we assume that 'Lose Leucadian' is your true name?
10:08AM - An insider with knowledge of el presidente, huh? How many hours per week do you meet with him?
DeleteLook around. The roads are falling apart. The first hour of Wednesday's Council meeting had no agenda items, only presentations. Deja vu - back to the Council years of 2008-2012. Presentations prevent the public from asking questions; Council knows, the Mayor knows it, and the city manager certainly knows it.
Gustavo is a baaaad city manager.
ReplyDeleteI'm so confused......
ReplyDeleteVinnie Barbarino
The sooner he's gone the better.
ReplyDeleteSecond that and take the Council with him.
DeleteGus is a schmoozer to staff and council.
ReplyDeleteThey like him because he tells them they can keep getting their huge pay and pensions and there are no financial problems.
Gus is lying.
There's no pleasing some of you. Your own special interests do not trump the rest of the citizens who also have wants or needs in the community.
ReplyDeleteDo you represent all of the voting public in this town?
Were you elected by them?
Do you know or care that they have their own interests too and that Barth has to represent them also?
Always reminiscing about how it was better in the good old days while never offering a positive solution for going forward or answering a direct question when called on their own BS seems like sour grapes to me and a little hypocritical as well.
You hated Stocks and Cotton and now you wish you had them back.
Next you'll want Cameron and Miller back.
What a joke.
No one in their right mind would ever want Cameron back. She was the second worse following Stocks.
ReplyDelete