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Thank you, enjoy your visit and come back ya' heah.
November 7, 2011
DEAR PAM
We realize that you have limited resources available for pursuing cost reduction projects, so we have decided to help you with draft letters. This will free you up for important things, like dealing with all the serious problems of the police and fire department pensions. Hope this helps you formulate your position to the Mayor.
NOTES
1. CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER?
When a couple owns a store, she is either the President or maybe the CEO or the Chief Financial Officer. This is not Enron. How about Chief Store Clerk, CSC. Does the CFO at Bert Fish clean the men’s room? We bet the one on Flagler does.
2. BARS FROM BLEACHERS
Hey, the Shadow hears that a local restaurant was told by the MDC that it could take 2X12 oak bleachers from the old high school building to build its bar.
Really. Who had the authority at the MDC to give away public property. Police Chief Pagano, please find out if this is true.
Mayor Barringer:
Gummey does what he wants to, AGAIN. He requested a postponement of the Home Builder’s case until Feb 20, 2012. Sorry, but I do not know anymore and it is not my call. Maybe we could get an award from the Florida League of Cities for the most delays in one case?
Now what about my raise? I have been watching your back and it's time you scratched mine!
PAM
1.POLICE UNION CONTRACT UNDER NEGOTIATIONS?
The police seem to be stopping the Mayor’s truck more and more. Have his driving skills eroded or are they trying to dull his negotiating skills?
2.THE EFFORT TO CREATE A NEW CRA
Wow, they really think we are stupid.
3. CHAIRMAN BRUNO, HOW ABOUT A JOB WITH THE SVAA.
Chairman Bruno, I wrote an ad for my sister's lemonade stand, so I think I can be the Director of the SVAA. Just give me a call.
NSB Norman Normal - catch me the Gnarly Surf Bar.
Thanks for Stopping By and You Are Visitor Number:
110711 - R2-111011-1130
The Shadow Runs Best Under Internet Explorer.
Date: 11/2/2011, 4:52 PM
Name: To All
Number:
What we have here in NSB with both the CRA and the SVAA is a small group of "local" grifters controlling a large amount of tax money and then giving that money away to their friends under the guise of a grant review process" that reviews Xeroxed copies of the same grant application over and over at both committees. The incumbents of these boards are also, in many cases, the recipients of their own grant process and in both cases some group of taxpayers were footing the bill.
And our elected City Commission, who must by law approve the grants of the CRA, refuses to police the mess claiming they are not in charge. Yet Mr. Otte holds a dual title of City Economic Director, thus is a City employee on both counts (CRA and City). This is mess and conspiracy is ripe for a federal RICO investigation (two or more people involved in a conspiracy to commit a crimes is the RICO definition). Forget FDLE as they are so inefficient it makes one wonder what they do every day except collect a pay check.
So taxpayers (CRA) and condo/hotel owners (SVAA) when will you start demanding accountability? In one case you must get around Otte and in the other you need to get around Carni; both are part of system and continue to funnel money to the good old gang.
So Judge Litt and Henry Frederick, lets’ put your mouth where the skeletons are and publish the antics of these grifters in detail. And while you are at it, send copies of your work to both the Governor and State Attorney General.
In some cases, these grifters are even more of a grifter than the Anglers Club and the MDC who are bad enough as they are? Let go folks and get rid of these idiots and the City Commissioners who support them.
THE SHADOW RESPONDS: The Shadow has no authority to convene a grand jury.
BLOGS: A STATEMENT BY THE SHADOW
The Shadow generally does not edit BLOGS. Very profane comments, even in only first letters, and attacks accusing anyone of a crime are deleted or reformed even when they are about public officials. Personal attacks upon the publisher that are devoid of content are deleted. But not always. Not all postings are essays on important subjects. Not all are fully cogent. On the real positive side, there are way more than 100,000 postings over the last few years and many are excellent tip offs as to funny goings on in Mayberry. Many also are excellent essays on relevant topics. Do our readers a favor and stop attacking the opposing political party as commies or reactionaries. The Shadow does edit for spelling.
What she filed is bereft of any real information as to her qualifications or experience. Little wonder that it was handled politically before the Personnel Office could proceed to vet it as a personnel matter.
The Shadow’s evaluation of what she filed falls way short of making a case that she should be hired. Make your own evaluation of her qualifications. Here is how we read her previous applications for appointment to the Board (Click Link to read 2008 , 2010 and 2011 applications):
FIRST note in the applications from 2008 and 2010 the references include Doug Hodson, Steve Dennis, and Robert Lott as you might suppose. Interesting how these people all hang together and flock to locations and groups where they can spend somebody else's money. SECONDLY, she was only the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the Fortis Group, which dissolved after less than a year and which had no Federal Tax Number (e.g., never registered with the IRS); she has never been the CFO of the Galleria Di Vetro that we can find as that corporation does not appear in Florida Secretary of State [Sunbiz.org] website; we did find her listed under another corporation, but only as CEO, Lotus Development, Inc. (Click LINK to read Sunbiz document). Her claimed “marketing” experience is with the Fortis Group on Flagler and the Flagler Hospitality Group. Not much experience to justify any advertising job, much less one for over $110,000 (not including a whopping $8000 + a month in health care benefits) in New Smyrna Beach where the median personal income is around $28,000. It does however go a long way to show experience in funding things for your friends, as the Flagler Hospitality Group was the recipient of extensive SVAA funding during her tenure on the board. So we have a woman who is set to supervise the vote for all of their stuff.
She also has been the Treasurer of the SVAA for quite some time and during that tenure, based on responses from the previous director Boyd, issued checks in advance of events in direct contravention to SVAA Board policy. This less than acceptable behavior does not suggest that she should be appointed to the chief job. The specific rule she violated is:
In addition, a report is required after the event, that evaluates the number of heads put in beds, before money is paid. According to Debra Boyd, before she was fired (or resigned depending on whose story you believe), no post event evaluation statement had ever been filed during her long tenure. And that in spite of Board requirement that one be received by the Board BEFORE ANY MONEY IS DISTRIBUTED.
As treasurer Nicole Carni would have approved everyone of these payouts, all of which were improper as none were in compliance with the established SVAA Board Rules. This is the very essence of fiduciary responsibility, for which the County Council is holding the bag.
Mr. Dinneen and Mr. Bruno, the ball is now in your court and the Shadow suggests you go back to the beginning and start over with a compliant and open application process that looks beyond Volusia County. In our opinion, Ms. Carni has done nothing to warrant appointment to the job except to take care of her friends.
2.THE COMMUNITY REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY: LOUSY MANAGMENT AND GIVING TAXPAYER MONEY TO YOUR FRIENDS. ABOLISH IT NOW.
The Shadow now sees the problem of the malfunctioning Community Redevelopment Agency as a refusal of the County Council to take any corrective action to end the greed of the CRA Board to supply money to their friends. The fact of the matter is that they are lining the pockets of their friends by increasing the bottom line of businesses they favor, particularly the Flagler Avenue bars. This at the expense of not only the City taxpayers but of those taxpayers in the County who give them half of the money. And the Shadow thought that the County Council was in place to protect the taxpayer.
Get real. The total of the subsidized functions on Flagler cost the taxpayers up to $70,000 in 2011 and more next year (and that does not include money from the SVAA headed by Nicole Carni, a Flagler Avenue merchant herself). Yet the CRA has no study of any kind that shows an increase in traffic on Flagler or more specifically “ a reduction of blight” as a result of any of their expenditures. The best they have for “data” is anecdotal claims by the same people who get the money and most of that would not meet the laugh test on the Howdy Doody show. And half of that is from County taxpayers. The County Council certainly has the authority to audit how its own money is spent.
Councilman Hayman requested such an audit and obviously could not command three other votes. The City objected, as one would expect, but it is a fellow tortfeasor. If the County Manager does not like the idea, ask the Governor to make the State’s Inspector General investigate. Certainly when you look at the list below, the Shadow hopes that at least four Council members will say enough is a enough and stop this fiasco dead in its tracks.
Henry Frederick clearly made a case for the problems associated with the Flagler Avenue bar hopping parties funded by the CRA. Here is a section of his story as it appeared on NSBNEW.NET with a link to the full story and videos:
Check this list:
A. Under the table they gave the CRA Director a $10,000 raise, claiming he has two jobs. Does anyone really believe that a City employee raking in $90,000 a year is doing two jobs and worth another $10,000. They do not even have the guts to admit it is nothing but a pay raise. Did your boss give you a 12% raise this year? Tony Otte got one!
Did one Commissioner object? Heck no; hello Mr. Hathaway, where were you on this issue?
B. Hire (contract paid for by the CRA) a chiropractor as a public relations employee for $60,000. A chiropractor!! The Shadow wonders who she knows high on the City payroll. This selection is so fishy that the County Council on this issue alone should order an investigation. Again, one half of this money is County money and the CRA just throws it away;
C. $300,000 for a seawall for Esther Street. They need to spend the money, but how about projects that are of some benefit to the taxpayer. We have suggested underground wiring. The next time you do not have electric service, think of Esther Street;
D. Give money to your friends which in no way decreases blight in the district. We could find a bunch, like Richford’s restaurant, the Gnarly Bar, or That’s Amore, but the grant to the Heath Health shop is the poster child. The outdoor eating pavilion is lovely, but that grant of taxpayer money has done nothing to eliminate blight. It just made a private piece of property more valuable;
E. Giving money to your friends as a profitable sideline. Chad Schilsky and That’s Amore represents a perfectly legal yet sleazy use of CRA money. Do they sell room deodorant by the barrel? A $20,000 grant for a $40,000 job and no-bid construction contract to Barringer Construction;
F. Paying money to advertise for charities not connected to the City, much less the CRA district. Try “Friends of Canaveral”. Last year $10,000, and with no evidence that it generated anything or was effective, $15,000 this year;
G. Grants to a private company of merchants on Flagler annually to spend on other businesses, such as the SEV Observer newspaper;
H. Claiming that the money spent for the fireworks display on New Year’s on Flagler in 2010 brought about 1200 rentals in town. Have you stopped laughing yet? And we thought they were snowbirds coming down for the winter. Stupid us, they drove a thousand miles maybe just to watch the fireworks and since it was late, stayed over for three or four months.
I. Spend all of the CRA print advertising money with the Observer or Hometown News. After all, someone has to support Mr. Lott.
As an aside, the Shadow does not believe that the Observer is a paper of general circulation as required in order to run government notices and ads. See the definition in the Mississippi Newspaper Association or Oklahoma Newspaper Association; its in the Florida law but we can find no definition here. This definition, in part says, that
If such a newspaper stops publishing for any period of time, it must then again be published for at least a year in order to requalify itself for these notices.
Since the Observer stopped publishing for a period last year, one can conclude that all of the legal notices published on behalf of the City from the date of stopping, through one year after starting up again, do not qualify under the law and none of the resulting actions associated with those notices may be legal. When queried, the City stated they had no intention of checking on whether the Observer was a newspaper of general circulation. The paper claimed to be one and that was good enough for the City.
J. Finally, the following email documents a presentation that was made to the County Council last Thursday. We will report later what they did.
1.THE COUNTY COUNCIL SHOULD RESCIND THE SOUTHEAST VOLUSIA ADVERTISING AUTHORITY BUDGET
Nicole Carni did not file an application for the position when requested by the County personnel office. Remember, the County Council , as a condition of passing the Southeast Volusia Advertising Authority budget, arranged for the County personnel office to set pay guidelines, provide an appropriate position description, and investigate the experience and reasonable pay scale for anyone seeking the position.
She filed the on-line “application” (Click LINK to see the application) after the job description was put in place . Keep in mind that at the time she filed the application, she was Director at a salary level of $85,000 by virtue of an improper SVAA vote at a workshop. That “vote” cut her pay back from $110,000, which had been previously approved by the SVAA Board in another absurd action. Interesting how reckless these bureaucrats are with taxpayer money. She was sent a statement of the position as created by the County personnel office and asked to at least file an on-line application.
Rule 7 of the SVAA rules provides: “No funds are awarded in advance of the event. Event sponsors must cover all expenses initially and submit event evaluation forms (see attached) for approval by New Smyrna Beach Visitors Bureau for reimbursement of approved funding.”
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Two young men in Halloween costumes standing on the sidewalk in front of the Om Bar on Flagler Avenue yell out "police brutality" as a cop car heads east toward the beach parking lot. Both are drinking beers purchased from inside the bar.
The ease of drinking on the sidewalks is a refrain throughout the night during the sparsely attended Monday night "Flagler Avenue Halloween New Smyrna Ween Creepy Crawl," sponsored by the Flagler Avenue Hospitality Group, with $6,500 in funding from the Community Redevelopment Agency.
A video shot by NSBNews.net shows adult Halloween revelers standing outside Flagler Avenue bars on the sidewalks drinking open containers of alcohol in violation of the law. Cell phone messages left for Mayor Adam Barringer, Vice Mayor And Commissioner Judy Reiker and Commissioners Jack Grasty and Lynne Plaskett were not returned to NSBNews.net.
Commissioner Jim Hathaway said this is not the type of event espoused by the city yet he, the mayor and fellow commissioners approved $64,000 in CRA funding at a Sept. 27 City Commission meeting under the "consent agenda" where public participation is not allowed.
Click Here for the rest of the Story : http://nsbnews.net/content/407509-cra-sponsored-street-festivals-flagler-avenue-sparsely-attended-even-booze
To County Council Members:
For those who were not in attendance at the 8:30 am public participation I am sending the attached, as the information I read from during my 3 minutes. For those who were in attended, thank you and you may possibly want to see the information I presented.
I am sure you can listen to the audio (as I will) in order to hear exactly what I said (as one never remembers "exactly" what one says). My purpose for speaking was two fold. First I asked that Volusia County Council take the initiative and be the first county in the State of Florida to take the initial steps to abolish the CRA's in the county. In 2009 $235,149,162 was given to the CRA's of Volusia County. Governor Brown of CA is working to abolish all CRA's in CA, as that money is desperately needed for other things as schools and services, just as it is in Volusia County and the State of Florida .
Second, I am asking that the Volusia County Council as the funding agency for the CRA request a state audit and investigation of the New Smyrna Beach CRA. I focused on NSB as it is very clear from their own master plan and mission statement, they have focused their attentions on economic development versus the Florida State Statute purpose of "redevelopment of slum and blighted areas".
They ignored the recommendation of the CRA Attorney Mark Hall, regarding the granting of public funds for advertising and promotion as such activities of all Flagler Avenue street festivals., even going so far as to advertising their
support and sponsorship of street "parties".
I was brief in my presentation as I feel an audit and investigation will either bring to the surface any wrong doings by both current and former CRA Board members and Director or will show that all actions by the current and former CRA Board members and Directors are within Florida Statute mandates. I also attached a copy of an email from the Dept of Economic Opportunity stating that the Senate President has been contacted regarding both Volusia and Brevard CRA's.
Please consider my request and I would appreciate your thoughts on this matter.
Sincerely,
Cherie Coccia
Next Friday is Veterans Day, and on the Eleventh Hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh Month, patriotic Americans will pause and say a silent thanks in their own way, for the American Veteran past and present. The day celebrates the sacrifice of every Veteran who has ever served and continues to serve our Country. The SHADOW joins with the rest of America in remembering their sacrifice. When you next see a Veteran in your travels, walk up, shake his or her hand, and just say
THANK YOU!!!
Date: 11/6/2011, 10:35 am
Name: 530
Who was stupid enough to vote for Alexander with her record, are you really surprised?
Date: 11/6/2011, 10:19 am
Name: SC High
Why does NSB have a Sports Complex with NO SPORTS most of the time? The place is always empty.
Heard the "stadium" has been condemned and must be demolished after the last Cudas football game this season.
Gee, who will pay for a new stadium in a City "park" that loses over a million a year (well, not really loses - we, the taxpayer, pay the difference, including Mr. Yancey's $80K). I wonder.
Make sure you get to the meetings of that Brain Trust the City has assembled to better utilize the Sports Complex. Same group that screwed it up for the past 20-years plus CM Pammy. Why hasn't the sole source "renter" (and friend of Liz) Red & Black/Purnell of the past decade made the SC a screaming success? O, my hopes are so high (NOT?).
Video from You Tube Not Maintaind in Archives
