Showing posts with label Scandal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scandal. Show all posts

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Shocking MU contract settles City Hall debt-- 10/30/09



1)  SHOCKING MU CONTRACT:  Settles City Hall debt
2)  NEW NON-PROFIT:  Seeks city money to hire director
3)  CITY COMMISSION:  Questions water quality
4)  "TIGER" JOHN CLEEK:  National advocate for scholarships
5)  STAN KROENKE:  At City Hall hog trough Monday night
6)  FINAL NUMBERS IN:  For Roots and Blues Fest
7)  HEAR YE!  HEAR YE!  Local Announcements
8)  HOUSING NEWS:  From Bank of Missouri's Tom Stone
 
 

SHOCKING MU CONTRACT:  Settles City Hall debt
Part 3 of an investigative series
 
COLUMBIA, 10/30/09 (Beat Bytes) -- On September 24, 2009, with neither the advise nor consent of the Columbia City Council, public works director John Glascock entered into a formal agreement with University of Missouri facilities director Gary Ward, following a meeting between city and campus officials on July 14, 2008 -- one month before Glascock would submit a $1.1 million sewer rate hike for approval to the city council. 
 
Years of underbilling for sewer service at MU was costing the city nearly $1.2 million annually by estimates of sewer maintenance superintendent Bill Weitkemper, a career city employee who uncovered city-wide underbilling in March 2006.  The MU contract gradually ramps up payments, starting at $60,000/year ($5,000/month) and increasing by that same amount for 10 years, finally reaching $600,000/year.   The contract is unclear about how the past underbilling is collected, if ever, and never approaches $1.2 million yearly. 
 
A letter confirming the deal reveals the true nature of the astonishing oversight, raising the University's sewer rate over 1,000 times!   "Dear John [Glascock]," writes Ward.  "The University of Missouri...agreed to increase the sanitary sewer basic monthly service charge from $4.35 to $5,000.00 per month."
 
That's right:  From $4.35 to $5,000 per month! 
 
The flabbergasting MU/Glascock contract also departed substantially from protocol in which the City Council reviews and approves virtually every city-related deal or project, as one look at any given council agenda attests:  http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/cfforms/agenda/agendadetail.cfm?&UID=264
 
At this Monday's meeting, for instance, council members will be considering just such an agreement with MU, this one related to solid waste: 
 
Why Glascock and city manager Bill Watkins chose to withhold the MU sewer agreement from public scrutiny speaks volumes about how it came to be in the first place.  It also raises questions about why Glascock and Watkins have prodded the council to raise sewer rates while pushing the public to vote for multi-million dollar sewer bond issues absent knowledge about this critical and ongoing shortfall. 
 
Business as usual?
 
In a November 2007 report entitled "City of Columbia Sewer Utility Billing Irregularities and Recommendations," Weitkemper referenced a play from the good ol' boys handbook.  Identifying the University of Missouri as the "single largest source" of uncollected sewer revenue, Weitkemper wrote, "Apparently many years ago, someone with the City made some type of unwritten agreement with someone at the University, and the University has only ever been charged a single basic sewage service rate."
 
The unwritten agreement violated city law and cost ratepayers a fortune.  "It is my understanding that recently the University has agreed to pay the City an additional $1.2 million per year in sewer revenue," Weitkemper continued. 
 
That was in November 2007.  It wasn't until September 2009 that Glascock revealed the real deal, which is nowhere near an additional $1.2 million annually. 
 
Gross underestimates, "special" agreements
 
In a detailed September 2008 email to city manager Watkins, Weitkemper complained that in an employee award citation, his supervisor Terry Hennkens lopped nearly 4,000 underbilled premises from 6,000 identified in an internal audit. 

"My bonus recommendation stated that my suggestion resulted in an additional 2,328 units being billed [for sewer]," Weitkemper wrote.  "That is not even close.  I told Terry that this number was not correct before it was published in the City Insider [an employee newsletter].  Apparently he feels he can do whatever he chooses."
 
Then, citing his largest find, Weitkemper dropped the MU bombshell.
 
"I had indicated in March 2006 that the University of Missouri, Columbia (UMC) was not being billed properly.  I was told then that there was a 'special' agreement with UMC that allowed them to only pay a single base sewer charge.  I asked for a copy of this 'special' agreement.  Apparently, it never existed." 
 
That was on September 2.  On September 16, 2008 the Columbia City Council approved the $1.1 million sewer rate hike, with no knowledge of the ongoing billing problems; no knowledge of the unwritten agreements; and under the false impression that they'd heard everything during commentary from a public equally in the dark.
 
 
 
 
NEW NON-PROFIT:  Seeks city money to hire director
 
COLUMBIA, 10/30/09 (Beat Bytes) -- Cynics, start your engines. 
 
In this era of budgets so tight city employees are shouldering cuts and city services aren't happening, supporters of a new
"community foundation" will seek $40,000.00 from the Columbia City Council this Monday night to hire an "Executive
Director."   City Hall would employ the as-yet-unnamed foundation's director, and in a miraculous move, city staff "have identified funding which could be used to hire a person for the balance of 2010," according to a city council report on the issue.
 
Community foundations are non-profit organizations that accept donations to better the community.  But with a surfeit of non-profit groups clamoring for a pie city officials claim is shrinking, support for this latest group seems untimely.  "With city support, an Executive Director should be hired quickly," the staff report for Monday's council meeting reads.  "Funding for operating expenses are needed.  A board of directors will need to be identified...of 12 to 18 persons, all prominent in the community."
 
Backed by local VIPs like accountant Bob Gerding and Columbia Tribune managing editor Jim Robertson, the community foundation's proposal reads like so many other non-profits, with talk of marketing brochures, leading citizens, directors, staffers, and money, money, money.
 
Too bad all that money, time, and effort can't go directly to the people -- or existing non-profits -- who need it now.  How about a group of leading citizens going through our more impoverished neighborhoods, fixing, cleaning, and doing, rather than planning, meeting, and marketing?   
 
DETAILS HERE:
 
 
CITY COMMISSION:  Questions water quality

COLUMBIA, 10/30/09 (Beat Bytes) -- City Hall's top voice on environmental issues, the Energy and Environment Commission, is raising questions about a plan to drill a new water well in the McBaine bottoms, a wetlands area that may be collecting trace contaminants: herbicides, pesticides, and other harmful materials that could leach into the groundwater.  
 
"Based on many years of data from the US Geological Survey; Missouri Department of Natural Resources; and the City of Columbia, the proposed location for alluvial well 16 is questionable from a water quality standpoint," board members explained in a letter to the Columbia City Council for its Monday, Nov. 2 meeting. 
 
Citing numerous unanswered questions, commission members are recommending city staff review different locations for the well and wait for the results of a new water treatment study. 
 
DETAILS HERE:

 
"TIGER" JOHN CLEEK:  National advocate for college scholarships
 
COLUMBIA, 10/30/09 (Beat Bytes) -- Supporting the loyal customers who helped make his rent-to-own furniture chain a household name in mid-Missouri, John Cleek recently spoke up for college scholarships as president of the Association of Progressive Rental Organizations, a national trade organization that has spent seven years building a trust fund to award scholarships nationwide. 
 
"The rent to own industry's commitment to education and scholarship funds is a testament to the industry's growth and establishment as a vital industry and contributor to the economy," said Cleek, best known in Columbia as a major University of Missouri booster.  "The rent to own industry is here to help our future with the most powerful contribution to our children through education scholarships."
 
Cleek became a franchisee of Aaron's, a nationwide rent-to-own chain, in 2008. 
 
RELATED:
 
 
STAN KROENKE:  At City Hall hog trough Monday night
 
COLUMBIA, 10/30/09 (Beat Bytes) -- Billionaire developer Stan Kroenke -- who enjoys some of the region's lowest taxes on some of its most expensive properties and projects -- will be visiting the City Hall trough Monday night to accept two payments totalling nearly $200,000.
 
Represented by his usual phalanx of lawyers, TDDs, and pseudonyms, Kroenke's Conley Road Transportation Development District and Broadway Crossings II, LLC will be convincing us all that the $180,000.00 we'll be spending on Trimble Road utility improvements -- adjacent to one of Kroenke's tracts -- is for our own good. 
 
The words "City will reimburse TDD for the costs incurred by the TDD" which appear in the contract seem absurd, as the TDD is really John and Jane Q. Shopper, paying a higher tax on any retail goods they purchase at said TDD-funded retail establishments.   
 
"TDD shall complete the improvements on Trimble Road," should therefore read, "Future shoppers shall complete...."
 
In other Kroenke related business, the council will pay Kroenke's THF Grindstone Plaza Development $20,190.00 for an easement to repair a pump station.  THF, for those who don't know, stands for "To Have Fun" -- with your money in many cases.   Too bad Mr. Kroenke can't simply donate the easement, given everything he takes out of here. 
 
Ahh, where to have fun with all that taxpayer money?  The soccer field, of course!  Mr. Kroenke just increased his stake in the UK soccer team Arsenal, taking him to the verge of a complete takeover and knocking out a rival Russian billionaire:   
 
 
RELATED:
 

FINAL NUMBERS IN:  For Roots and Blues Fest
 
COLUMBIA, 10/30/09 (Beat Bytes) -- Presenting a check to City Hall for services rendered during this year's Roots and Blues Fest, Thumper Entertainment has released a full accounting of ticket sales which includes a list of "Festival VIPs" topped by noted dermatologist and HSBM (husband of school board member) Dr. John Despain. 
 
This year's festival grossed $168,170.00 through the sale of 11,523 tickets.   Promoters also comped another 2,243 tickets, for a total of 13,766 ticketed attendees, according to a statement on file with the city. 
 
DETAILS HERE:
 

HEAR YE!  HEAR YE!  Local Announcements
 
The Columbia planning and zoning commission will meet November 5, 2009– 7:00 P.M. DANIEL BOONE BUILDING, CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS, 4TH FLOOR.  On the agenda is a request to rezone by Grindstone Investments to rezone agricultural land to commercial land of property located on the southwest corner of Heller and Rogers Roads, containing approximately 116 acres. 
 
4th Ward councilman and mayoral candidate Jerry Wade will hold coffeehouse office hours this Saturday, October 31.  The 3:00p – 5:00p Oct. 31 at the Rendezvous Coffeehouse, 3304 Broadway Business Park Ct., on the south side of West Broadway, west of HyVee.
 
3rd Ward councilman Karl Skala has kicked off his re-election campaign.  "I want to continue to help make our neighborhoods safer, improve our roads and city services, develop more thoughtful city planning, and create a more responsive city government," Skala says.  Skala will not hold office hours tomorrow as previously scheduled, but will resume his regular Sven's Kafe office hours NOVEMBER 21, 2009.   For more information, contact: 
Karl Skala
Columbia Third Ward City Councilman
573-474-2195
 
Columbia Missourian columnist David Rosman invites readers to check out his new commentary blog, devoted to a different set of issues than his long-running Missourian column:
 
The City of Columbia's meeting calendar for the week ending November 6 is now available on the City's website at
http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/Neighborhoods/Neighborhood_Associations/documents/CityCalendar_2009_11-06.pdf
 
 
HOUSING NEWS:  From Bank of Missouri's Tom Stone
 
"THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS..." Or so the famous saying goes. And when it comes to really understanding the various reports and events unfolding in the economy, it's important to take a look at the details - not just the headlines. Here's what you need to know.
 
On the inflation front, the Producer Price Index, which measures wholesale inflation, unexpectedly fell due to a drop in energy prices. While that seems like good news on the surface, keep in mind that next month's number could climb higher again, as oil and natural gas have both been on a tear higher lately.
 
In housing news, Housing Starts and Building Permits both came in a bit below expectations, but this may be a sign that builders are exercising some caution - particularly in the face of the $8,000 tax credit for first time homebuyers that is presently set to expire on November 30th. 
 
Existing Home Sales came in better than expected - and a whopping 45% of those homes were sold to first time homebuyers - rushing to move in on that credit. Recent studies have shown that many who qualify for this tax credit aren't even aware of it...so please let me know if you or someone you know needs more information - the clock is ticking!
 
Additionally, the level of existing homes inventory shrunk to a 7.8 month supply, down from a recent high of 10.1 months in April.
 
Tom Stone
The Bank of Missouri
Asst. Vice President
Office:  573-874-4700
Cell:  573-489-4059
www.bankofmissouri.com
tstone@bankofmissouri.com

 
Mike Martin
Blogitor in Chief
The Columbia Heart Beat
http://columbiaheartbeat.blogspot.com

CIRCULATION:  5,216

Visit us on: 
Twitter:  http://twitter.com/BeatByte
Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=582262428
Written by No comments:
Labels: ,

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

SEWER STINK: Scandal swamps City Hall



1)  SEWER STINK:  Scandal swamps City Hall
2)  SULLIVAN DECLARES:  For Columbia mayor
3)  FIRST TIME HONOR:  MU hosts minority medical student conference
4)  COLUMBIA COLLEGE:  Named top military-friendly school 
5)  MASSIVE METH BUST:  Rocks Centralia
6)  MIZZOU ENGINEERS:  Make blast-resistant glass
7)  HEAR YE!  HEAR YE!   Boone County Republicans Chili Supper This Friday

SEWER STINK:  Scandal swamps City Hall

COLUMBIA, 10/21/09 (Beat Bytes) -- A 150-page soap opera starring personality conflicts, inappropriate job duties, and financial confusion that has cost Columbia residents millions of dollars.

That's one way to describe documents about a so-called "sewer billing scandal" released to the Columbia Heart Beat through a City of Columbia Freedom of Information Act request.  The documents -- mostly internal memoranda and emails -- cover three years in the beleaguered life of city sewer maintenance superintendent Bill Weitkemper, a 34-year public works employee who became alarmed when he discovered a strange and costly situation in 2006:   Thousands of sewer users weren't being billed; City Hall was violating the law; and the public -- through higher rates and bond issues -- was picking up the tab. 

IN THE DARK

"Bill -- I know you well enough to not take your note as some sort of threat, but I must tell you it reads that way." 

That's Columbia City manager William Watkins, responding in an email to Weitkemper last August, shortly before city council members adopted the 2008-09 budget.   After two years of trying to right the sewer underbilling problem, Weitkemper had finally worked his way to the top of the command chain.  He was reminding Watkins of some wisdom from their former boss, city manager Ray Beck.

"I remember what Mr. Beck told me many times about making a decision," Weitkemper wrote.  "Always ask yourself, how would this look to the public?  Would the public support this decision." 

Weitkemper's concerns -- that the city council would adopt yet another budget ignorant of the decades-long problem -- seem justified.  Worries about how the public might view the problem on the cusp of a major funding vote had come up before.  The idea seems to have been:  keep public and council in the dark, so as not to upset the budget cart. 

"I've been thinking about what you said about not wanting to take the chance of upsetting voters before the sewer bond election," Weitkemper wrote in Jan. 5, 2007 email to Public Works operations manager Mary Ellen Lea.  "This billing issue could turn out to be a critical issue for that election.  The city must be very careful to be completely open with the public."

But kept in the dark, voters approved the $77 million bond issue in April 2008.  A bond is a loan, to be repaid through utility rate increases in future years.  But if all sewer users were paying their fair share, those rates needn't rise nearly as much as they have. 

WATER IN, SEWER OUT

Imagine a 100-unit apartment complex with one big water main supplying the whole place.  Each apartment has a shower/bathtub, toilet, bathroom and kitchen sinks -- four sewer lines each. 

One big water line in; 400 sewer lines out.  Now imagine City Hall, which controls the sewer utility, has for years only billed the apartment complex on the basis of the one water line, violating a city law that says you have to bill each individual sewer user.   Imagine the problem multiplied, to some 6,000 unbilled sewer lines across the city.  Now multiply that by several decades and tremendous growth. 

It's a big number, and City Hall's failure to collect it has cost us all in the form of higher utility rates that only keep going up.

A sewer billing problem can be fixed, and city officials have taken action, including a 2007 audit that proved Weitkemper was correct.   But the harder fix lies in a dysfunctional management culture that automatically assumes the public and our representatives -- the city council -- are too stupid to understand the way city government works. 

"City administrators call us 'The Tourists,'" a former councilman once told me.  He had heard some staffers talking about this concept in the hallway.  "Tourists are dumber than locals, and always come and go."   

Smart as they are, city administrators are encouraged to interpret the laws council passes before they follow them. 

You read that right.  Department directors at City Hall routinely interpret the law -- like little Supreme Court justices -- before they implement it.  City law is clear about how to bill for sewer charges; what hasn't been clear is how individual department chiefs have been interpreting the ordinance over the past several decades, with each new leader adding a new level of confusion and disarray. 

"I believe the method of charging for basic sewer service has been dependent on interpretations of the ordinance by Finance and UAB people," wrote Weitkemper's supervisor, Terry Hennkens, in a 4/27/2006 email. 

"I plan to tell Bill [Watkins] that these things cannot be fixed through operations, they are billing problems," wrote Mary Ellen Lea in a 12/20/2007 email to Hennkens.  "We can help with interpretation of ordinances, but we should not be the ones trying to fix billing problems."

"Does user mean dwelling unit?  Can we relate the base fee to the meters?  Still don't think this clarifies when and how we apply the base fee," city finance director Lori Fleming emailed public works director John Glascock on 9/30/2009, fully three years after Weitkemper first broached the problem.

Add clashing personalities, miscommunications, and conflicting management styles, and the mess has metastasized.  It's a mess we'll be covering in detail, in this Fall investigative series.


COLUMBIA, 10/21/09 (Beat Bytes) -- Planning advocate Sid Sullivan, who ran an unsuccessful primary campaign against southern Boone County commissioner Karen Miller last year, has formally declared his intention to seek the office of Columbia mayor.  Sullivan joins 4th ward councilman Jerry Wade and Eastside Tavern owner Sal Nuccio for the upcoming April 2010 election. 

Citing the need to tackle a broad array of citywide issues, Sullivan told the Columbia Heart Beat he wants to be "a mayor for all the people."   City Hall's focus on parks and trails "has been great," Sullivan said, "but we need to work on the basics, like crime, roads, and growth.  These are issues for everyone."

Sullivan's supporters are gathering signatures for Friday, the official petition opening day, when candidates can first deliver their nomination petitions to City Hall.   Mayoral candidates need at least 100 signatures; council candidates need 50.  For more information, read Section 122. Nominations by Petition in the Columbia city charter:

Students who want to work on campaigns and folks who want to sign petitions can contact the three candidates as follows: 

Sid Sullivan
573-234-2374

Jerry Wade
(573) 447-0064 

Sal Nuccio
(573) 256-1500




FIRST TIME HONOR:  MU hosts minority medical student conference

COLUMBIA, 10/21/09 (Beat Bytes) --  For the first time ever, the University of Missouri School of Medicine is hosting an annual conference for the Student National Medical Association, the nation's oldest and largest independent, student-run organization for medical students of color.  Boasting some 8,000 medical students, pre-medical students, residents and physicians SNMA was established in 1964 by medical students from Howard University School of Medicine and Meharry Medical College, both traditional black colleges.

"SNMA is dedicated both to ensuring culturally sensitive medical education and services, as well as increasing the number of African-American, Latino and other students of color entering and completing medical school," says a note on the organization's website.  The conference kicks off October 30th and runs through November 1st, 2009.

RELATED: 

COLUMBIA COLLEGE:  Named top military-friendly school

COLUMBIA, 10//21/09 (CCIS) --  G.I. Jobs magazine has named Columbia College a top school for educating former military members.  The magazine ranked the college in the top 15 percent of all schools nationwide based on military-friendly policies which include the Yellow Ribbon Program, a matching servicemembers' tuition program

READ ALL ABOUT IT!

http://www.ccis.edu/newsroom/index.asp?story=860

MASSIVE METH BUST:  Rocks Centralia 


CENTRALIA, 10/21/09 (Fireside-Guard) --  In Columbia, bikes, pedestrians, and wheelchairs have been on recent city council agendas.  But in northern Boone neighbor Centralia, a new state law which enables municipalities to legalize golf carts on city streets was brought up to that city's Board of Aldermen and shelved for later discussion, according to the Centralia Fireside-Guard.

Also in the news:  A massive methamphetamine bust earlier this month.  Centralia Police officers arrested five people at a duplex, ending a months-long investigation.  Officers also found an active meth lab, five miles west of Centralia in rural Audrain County. The Boone County Sheriff's Department assisted. 

"This was a lab capable of easily making an ounce of pure meth every 24 hours," Centralia Police chief Larry Dudgeon told the Fireside Guard, noting that waste products posed an environmental hazard.   Among those arrested: Jebadiah Romine, 28, for distribution, possession, and maintaining a drug house within 1,200 feet of Chester Boren Middle School and Chance Elementary School.

READ ALL ABOUT IT!


COLUMBIA, 10/21/09 (MU News) --  Blast-resistant glass that Mizzou engineering researchers are developing may substantially reduce collateral damage from exploding bombs and natural disasters. 

With a $250,000 U.S. Department of Homeland Security grant, Sanjeev Khanna, a mechanical and aerospace engineering associate professor, and Zhen Chen, a civil and environmental engineering professor, have developed thinner and less expensive blast-resistant glass.  They tested the glass this spring by exploding a small bomb within five feet.  The glass panel withstood the blast.

Ultra-thin glass fibers embedded in plastic give the glass its strength.   Only about 25 microns thick -- half the thickness of a human hair -- the glass fibers literally have no room for defects that could lead to cracking. 

The Mizzou blast-resistant glass is less than a half inch thick and would cost a fraction of what such glass currently costs, Khanna said.  For instance, it could protect residential windows from hurricanes, flying debris, or earthquakes.

READ ALL ABOUT IT!

HEAR YE!  HEAR YE!   Boone County Republicans Chili Supper

Longtime local radio talk show host Tom Bradley will host/emcee the Boone County Republicans Annual Chili Supper
this Friday, October 23rd, at the Elks Lodge in Columbia (4747 E. Elk Park Drive).   Dinner starts at 6 P.M., Program begins at 7:15 P.M. 

Children's Playroom Will Be Open During the Event

Confirmed Speakers include
- Kevin Jackson, conservative author, blogger, and radio host; wrote "The BIG Black Lie", http://theblacksphere.net/
- Keynote: Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer, 9th Congressional District*
- Congressman Roy Blunt, 7th Congressional District*, candidate for U.S. Senate
- State Sen. Kurt Schaefer, 19th State Senatorial District
- State Sen. Chuck Purgason, 33rd State Senatorial District, candidate for U.S. Senate
- State Representative Allen Icet, candidate for Missouri Auditor

*Plan to attend but are dependent on House of Representatives' schedule. Other speakers TBA.

Tickets: $12.00/person in advance; $15/person at the door; Children 3 and under free. Make checks payable to Columbia Pachyderm Club.  Tickets are also available for purchase at The Columbia Pachyderm Club meetings on Fridays at Noon at Jack's Gourmet Restaurant on Business Loop 70 (across from Westlake's at Old Hwy. 63).

You can also contact Jerry at 573-489-0106 or via e-mail at Jerrya814@centurytel.net,or at centralmoyrs@gmail.com

Directions to the Elks Lodge of Columbia:

- From Hwy. 63, go East, follow East Broadway/Route WW East approximately 1.5 miles, just past Cedar Ridge School (at street light), turn right onto E. Elk Park Drive.
- Then merge left to access Lodge parking

If you cannot make it, but would still like to support the Columbia Pachyderm Club, please send your non tax-deductible donation to:

Columbia Pachyderm Club
PO Box 30642
Columbia, MO 65205




Missouri United Methodist Church Youth Missions & The Center for Women’s Ministries is hosting a home-made cinnamon rolls fundraiser on October 24, from 8:30 a.m. onward.   The church is located at 204 South Ninth Street (across from Shakespeare’s).  Contact the YOUTH GROUP at (573)-443-3111. 

 
MORE INFORMATION about tonight's CPS Band Curriculum meeting is at these links:




Mike Martin
Blogitor in Chief
The Columbia Heart Beat
http://columbiaheartbeat.blogspot.com

CIRCULATION:  5,216

Visit us on: 
Twitter:  http://twitter.com/BeatByte
Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=582262428
Written by No comments:
Labels: ,

Thursday, August 13, 2009

BEAT BYTES: Emails Reveal City Hall's Mystery Lobbyist

News Briefs from The Columbia Heart Beat

1) Emails reveal City Hall's mystery Lobbyist
 2) Celebrated female pastor leaves local Episcopal Church
3) National dental magazine features MU "painless dentistry" invention
4) Alexander Ave. gets overdue speed bumps
5) Cops bust punks robbing historic neighborhood
6) Old Southwest neighbors fret over green belt sale
7) WEEKEND: Children's Maestro Ed Hanson to sing Sinatra
 8) ANNOUNCEMENTS: Gerry helps Jerry tackle muscular dystrophy
 9) Housing News from Bank of Missouri's Tom Stone
10) Readers Write: About the Health Dept. and Farmers Markets

1) Emails reveal City Hall's mystery Lobbyist
Last Part of A Simmering Summer Heart Beat Exclusive Report

COLUMBIA, 8/13/09 (Beat Byte) -- When last we visited, our intrepid cabal of uptown schemers had -- with nary a word from the lowly masses (i.e. the Columbia City Council) -- laid out a scathingly brilliant downtown redevelopment plan that included a humongous new multimillion-dollar parking garage (for a town with "tight budgets" that says it LOVES bicycles); and plenty of hanging flowers for flittering butterflies.

In on the action: Columbia city manager Bill Watkins; Columbia Daily Tribune publisher Hank "The Butterfly" Waters; former St. Louis mayor Vince Schoemehl; assistant city manager Tony St. Romaine; and a mysterious figure known only as "The Lobbyist," or "Lobbyist 601."

They all appear repeatedly in a series of public-private emails released to Columbia Citizens Listserv founder Traci Wilson-Kleekamp under a Freedom of Information request. Here's a sampling, mostly from "The Publisher":

"Meanwhile, the lobbyist and I wll discuss possible plans to slip away to St. L. for a social outing,"

"...when we know our city schedule, we'll know how to plan some misbehavior with the lobbyist."

"That would be you and Bill and the lobbyist and girls we might pick up for dinner."

Almost in lock step with the tiny group's big plans, City Hall legislation followed. Particularly revealing: One email that appears to seal the fate of at least one TIF -- the Tiger Hotel.

"Tony: I hope I didn't create any 'disturbance in the force' on Thursday," Schoemehl emailed St. Romaine on Valentine's Day 2009, referring to a public meeting in which Schoemehl addressed a local audience.

"I spoke with Hank on Friday and stressed that I thought every effort should be made to avoid making 'the perfect the enemy of the good,'" Schoemehl continued. "The hotel project is essential and I'd hate to see it slowed down too long by discussion over how to do this better. If this hotel project were going to be done without extraordinary assistance from the City, it would have happened by now. I tried to reach Bill [Watkins] by phone to let him know that I spoke with Hank...could you let him know this?"

Of course, Vince. Anything for the former mayor of St. Louis.

If one thing sticks out about the Tiger Hotel TIF, it's that the hotel's most redeeming quality--its historic appeal--is rarely, if ever, mentioned. The one true social good that could come of TIF legislation -- historic preservation -- is thereby lost, in a discussion that seems mostly motivated by insiders' insiders, who get what they want because of who they are, rather than what they have to offer.

How else are we to interpret publisher Waters' note to Bill Watkins that he should restrict whom he invites to these important -- and frequent discussions? How else are we to interpret all those notes about "the right people," from a guardian of the people's right to know, no less?

Mr. St. Romaine responded to Schoemehl on Feb. 16. "I do appreciate your tempered remarks in light of the audience. I downloaded the Chicago TIF Encyclopedia this weekend and have started to read it, along with the Shoup book you mentioned, The High Cost of Free Parking."

Finally, in an email cc'd to lobbyist601@, the Butterfly lets it slip.

"As you can see, Schlemeier is in on this deal. Terry is an old friend of Vince's," Hank Waters says.

Terry Schlemeier -- the mystery man -- is a prominent state lobbyist who lives in Columbia. Why this group -- which includes two highly-paid public servants -- can't refer to him by name with respect to such a large and public issue is beyond me.

You might say it only adds insult to mystery.


2) Celebrated female pastor leaves local Episcopal Church

COLUMBIA, 8/13/09 (Beat Byte) -- When she was installed as Calvary Episcopal Church's first female director -- or rector -- in its 153 year history last Fall, the Rev. Paula Robinson was celebrated as a breath of fresh perspective in a mostly male Church hierarchy, at least at the local level.

Columbia Home and Lifestyle magazine called it "breaking through the stained glass ceiling."

The Missourian called Robinson's voice "spirited and lyrical"; her parishioners pleased that she would "best fit the role of pastor for their church" after a long selection/succession process that examined a number of applicants.

Although Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori heads the Episcopal Church nationwide, and its hierarchy includes members of the gay community, locally the Episcopal religion is more conservative and traditional. With her fiery Irish brogue and commanding presence crowned by a closely-cropped coif of white hair, Paula Robinson had an almost angelic quality -- an angel with seniority and substance, as it were, come to deliver some measure of change from on High.

(Think Rosalind Russell, in her fabulous role as Mother Superior in the "Trouble with Angels" movies).

But after a decidedly short tenure, Reverend Robinson left Calvary this month for a new assignment nearer her European home. The parting appears to have been both sweet -- and sorrowful. In an open letter to parishioners and the community, Robinson called her tenure in Columbia joyful and troubled -- the best, and worst, of times.

It was her description of the worst of those times that caught many readers off guard. Though not specific, Robinson described being troubled by disloyalty, feuding, and resistance among members of her flock. She seemed palpably hurt, her choice of words curt, to the point, but painfully telling.

It was an odd way to say goodbye and an even odder way to leave a message -- if indeed it was a message she intended.

"Tell us Lord, oh how we should change, and what displeases you."

But like so many men and women of the Cloth before her -- apostles, disciples, and prophets alike -- Robinson chose to leave that question open. The message was incomplete.

Time will only tell what fruit that choice may bear.

RELATED:

http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2008/10/17/paula-robinson-calvary-epsicopals-first-female-rector-and-more

http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2008/09/24/calvary-episcopal-held-service-officially-instate-new-rector

http://www.columbiahl.com/2008/11/breaking-through-the-stained-glass-ceiling

[Ed. Note: My family and I are members of the Calvary Episcopal Church].


3) National dental magazine features MU "painless dentistry" invention

COLUMBIA, 8/13/09 (Beat Byte) -- Painless dentistry?

That -- and more durable fillings -- are the promises of a new dental tool that drills and prepares teeth using the stuff of stars and the Northern Lights -- a fourth state of matter called "plasma" (after liquid, solid, and gas).

An invention of MU aerospace engineers Qingsong Yu and Hao Li, the "plasma brush" made it into the July 2009 issue of AGD Impact, the magazine of the national Academy of General Dentistry, the only organization exclusively dedicated to serving the needs and interests of the general dentist and the world's second largest dental association.

“Application of plasma treatment in dental restoration procedures will effectively disinfect cavity-causing bacteria, reduce the use of the painful and destructive drilling currently practiced in dental clinics, and consequently save healthy dental tissues,” says Yu, an assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the University of Missouri-Columbia (UMC). “It also improves the bonding strength of restoration composites and prolongs the restoration life. Furthermore, it requires no complicated or expensive equipment.”

Calling the technology “novel,” University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry assistant professor Timothy Kosinski, DDS, MAGD, says it could “play a prominent role in all of our dental practices.”

READ THE ENTIRE STORY AT:

From Distant Stars to Dental Chairs
Plasmas May Promise Pain-free and Durable Restorations
By Mike Martin


4) Alexander Ave. gets overdue speed bumps

COLUMBIA, 8/13/09 (Beat Byte) -- Residents of Alexander Avenue in Columbia's central city are rejoicing.

After a 5-year battle -- about twice as long as it took to get that giant downtown parking garage approved -- new speed bumps were installed yesterday by public works crews braving scorching August heat.

So dogged and determined was the bump drive that resident Cherith Moore -- who presented a petition to City Hall -- was featured in a July 4th Columbia Missourian article celebrating her role as a paragon of freedom. From the Missourian:

"With Sturtz's guidance, Moore and about 10 other residents were able to write their formal request to the council for traffic control measures such as speed humps and a 20 mph limit. Moore was able to have it signed by more than 90 percent of the 43 households on the street."

RELATED


5) Cops bust punks robbing historic neighborhood

COLUMBIA, 8/13/09 (Beat Byte) -- There's nothing like a good bust to get the old rancor up and nothing like neighborhood listservs to keep an eye on law and order. Last week, after roving scofflaws broke into several cars during the wee hours of the morning in the venerable Old Southwest, CPD officers went into action, rounding them up after watchful neighbors called.

Before the capture, the Old Southwest listserv buzzed about the ongoing thefts. Some sample posts:

"This morning I was missing change from my car and noticed the car door may have been slightly ajar. So, this now begins to make sense. Thanks for the heads up."

"I noticed a black backpack under my river birch tree this morning and assumed it was thrown there after some sort of thievery. I called the police to report. Also, I did see patrol officers, at least 2, shining their spotlights around 3 am this morning along Maupin drive (between Lindell and Greenwood)."

"I just wanted to give you a heads up -- last night, B. was driving down Maupin at 1:45 a.m. and he saw a teenage boy running from the driveway of the guy who lives in the two-story red brick house. When B. looked again, he saw a couple of other kids running down the street. Last Friday night sometime, someone stole some items from B.'s unlocked car in our driveway. My Explorer, of course, was responsibly locked, so no trouble there!"

Responsibly LOCKED? Not a good idea, according to Blue Note owner Richard King.

"I hate to say this but breaking into cars in Old Southwest is pretty common," King wrote. "I have had my car ransacked several times in the almost 20 years that I have been in the neighborhood. I treat it like they do in NYC -- I never lock for fear of them breaking in and I leave nothing of value in the car."

6) Old Southwest neighbors fret over green belt sale

COLUMBIA, 8/13/09 (Beat Byte) -- Another email alert on the Old Southwest Neighborhood listserv -- this time about the potential loss of a valuable 3-acre greenbelt near South Garth and Lathrop Streets -- prompted a stampede of responses expressing interest and concern.

"The Smarr family is listing 2.9 acres for sale, which is zoned R3, for multi-family housing. This is the quiet wooded area that was slated for the Garth Trail extension," wrote listserv member Holly Lickos.

At over $900,000, the real estate listing, Lickos said, includes "photos of the Married Student Apartment complex on Providence, which is evidently being presented to potential buyers as the kind of thing they could consider building."

Very quickly thereafter, nearby resident Lise Saffran planned a meeting at her home last week. Nearly a dozen concerned emails followed.

"I know Dave and I are interested as, I'm quite certain, are neighbors with young children on the last block of Garth. I think its a good idea to involve the neighborhood associations ASAP," wrote resident Chris Marshall.

"Please count me in the neighborhood endeavor to prevent purchase of this property for development of apartments," wrote resident Catherine Parke.

"This is a quiet residential area without sidewalks and full of children playing. We are hoping that the sellers will allow the neighbors time to explore a buy-out (perhaps toward putting in a Stewart park like area) but at minimum, we are
determined that no new development should provide a safety hazard to the current neighbors," Lickos concluded.


7) WEEKEND: Children's Maestro Ed Hanson to sing Sinatra

COLUMBIA, 8/13/09 (Beat Byte) -- Widely beloved music director and teacher Ed Hanson has mov ed onto brighter -- and bluer things since his retirement from Columbia Public Schools last year. Highlighting his new career: touring the country as an actor and bringing Ol' Blue Eyes back to life in a tribute to Frank Sinatra this Friday, 9 PM at the Vault Speakeasy, 23 S. 8th St. in The Basement of the Historic Tiger Hotel.

Here's what those in the know are saying: "With a resume of over 22 Sinatra covers, a grand piano, a special appearance by Marylin Monroe, and the atmosphere and drink specials that make VAULT the "Bees Knees", you CANNOT MISS this show."


8) ANNOUNCEMENTS: Gerry helps Jerry tackle muscular dystrophy

TODAY is the day Gerry Blaise is going behind bars to help Jerry's Kids© and MDA. To be released on good behavior I have to raise bail and I still need your help!

All you have to do is click here:

to make a secure, online donation before 08/13/09. Your donation will help families living in our community and help guarantee me an early release. Every little bit helps, even a small donation is GREATLY APPRECIATED!

Gerry Blaise

This Saturday, August 15, I will be at the Rendezvous Coffeehouse from 10:30a to 12:00n to talk to anyone who would like to visit with me. The Rendezvous Coffeehouse is at 3304 Broadway Business Park Ct., which is on the south side of West Broadway west of HyVee.

Jerry Wade
4th Ward Council Representative

Missouri Federation of Young Republicans
2009 State Convention
Where: Les Bourgeois Vineyards and Winery, Rocheport, Missouri
When: Saturday, August 22nd, starting at 9 A.M.

Scheduled speakers:
Keynote speaker: Apostle Claver Kamau-Imani, founder and chairman of http://www.RagingElephants.org. He is the host of The Christian Politician Radio Show, heard on KCHN 1050 AM, in Houston, Texas. He also is the founder and senior pastor of the Corinthian Christian Empowerment Center (CCEC) in Houston. Currently, Apostle Claver is a member of the Republican Party, and sits on the board of directors for the Greater Houston Pachyderm Club.

Other speakers include:
- Representative Therese Sander, 22nd District
- Ed Martin, former chief of staff to Gov. Blunt and possible candidate for U.S. Congress in Missouri's 3rd Congressional District (eastern Missouri)
- Lloyd Smith, executive director of the Missouri Republican Party

Other activities will include:
- Statewide officer elections and appointments
- Grassroots training
- Networking with current and future leaders of the Missouri GOP

Registration is $50, which includes breakfast, lunch and afternoon snack. Event will end at approximately 5 P.M. Registration forms can be found at http://www.missouriyr.com.

More information about the convention

Mike Zweifel
Missouri Federation of Young Republicans
zweifelmr@hotmail.com
573-808-2947


9) Housing News from Bank of Missouri's Tom Stone

Hard to believe that school is starting for most in about a week. My oldest girl will start Kindergarten. Makes you wonder where time goes. Speaking of time, we have an action packed week of news. Last week we saw signs of the economy making improvement, lower unemployment and better housing numbers.

This maybe a sign the we are starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel but it may just mean that some are starting to lose their unemployment benefits and are no longer counted in the employment numbers. I do want to stay positive and believe there are some signs of life.

Click here to view newsletter


Tom Stone
The Bank of Missouri
Asst. Vice President
573-874-4700
573-489-4059
www.bankofmissouri.com
tstone@bankofmissouri.com

10) Readers Write: About the Health Dept. and Farmers Markets

Regarding the Boone County Journal story Another Pie in the Face of Boone County Government, local farmers write:

I would wholeheartedly agree that the Health Dept is asinine in their strictness, especially on farmers markets. I have been to markets all over the country, and nowhere have I encountered such foolishness as our local regulations and their scattershot enforcement.

Take a look at their sampling regulations (from the same publication linked above):

All fruits and vegetables must be rinsed thoroughly in clean water. Melons must be rinsed in a chlorine solution of 50 – 100 ppm prior to slicing.

Fruits and vegetable sample servings must be protected from contamination at all times.

Sampling of processed foods requiring preparation at the site must comply with mobile concession requirements or temporary food event rules.

Sampling of jams, jellies, salsa and other similar foods may be allowed if limited preparation is required. An example might be a vendor putting a dab of jelly on a cracker, serving it to a customer on a napkin.

Not included in that is the requirement that you have a sealed jug of water, like a sports cooler (but not with a push-button spout!) and a catch bucket, and any samples set out must be covered with a screen of some sort. Now, what shopper at a farmers market wants their fresh cherry tomato sample sloshed in chlorine first?

No one has died at the multitude of markets where a farmer can just slice you off a piece of cheese, fruit, vegetable, or whatever. The customer is perfectly capable of determining whether that fresh sample (or the farmers hand) is clean. I know many farmers who think the Heath Dept is nuts and way too uptight for their own or anyone’s good.

But they’re so powerful that few people challenge them.
-- Not nuts about the Health Department


If that's really what happened, the Health Department is potentially contradicting state law and their own publications, while certainly being meddlesome.

I am a farmer and vendor at local farmers markets. In Missouri, you can sell many baked goods and other somewhat processed foods NOT prepared in a commercial kitchen, if they are clearly labeled as such. Here is the relevant passage, taken from the physical handout I received from the Health Dept. last year (I believe these are sourced in state law):

Certain non-potentially hazardous processed foods including, but not limited to: breads, cookies, fruit pies, jams, jellies, fruit butters, honey, sorghum, cracked nuts, packaged spices and spice mixes, dry cookie, cake, bread and soup mixes. The following requirements must be met:

the seller is the individual actually producing the food
the seller sells only to the end consumer
all food items are labeled with the name and address of the processor, the common name of the food, all ingredients in the food, and a statement that the product is prepared in a kitchen that is not subject to inspection by the Department of Health and Senior Services
the sales booth has a sign stating that the food is not subject to inspection by the DHSS
The Health Department has the final authority in determining whether a food item can be sold under these regulations.

You can find this on the web at:
http://tiny.cc/lLyqT

Now, given that they claim to have final authority, they can technically be right in this.

But they allow all sorts of other baked goods to be sold at various markets under the above rules, so I don’t know why they’re picking on Cathy Salter. If nothing else, maybe she doesn’t know about the rule and didn’t label it properly. -- Trying to help


Hi Mike -- The Columbia Heart Beat is great! Valuable service to readers, and you have a great feel for writing in the investigative reporting style. Have you considered teaching a course in electronic journalism? Thanks for your good work. PS Enjoyed your science reporting that you recently pointed us to.
-- John McCormick, Columbia
Written by 1 comment:
Labels: ,

Monday, March 16, 2009

BEAT BYTE: Eminent Domain may have best silver lining of all

BEAT BYTES: News Briefs from the Columbia Heartbeat
______

1) Eminent Domain may have Silver Lining made of Gold
2) 6th Ward Council Candidate Rod Robison answers our survey
3) Columbia School District "slumdog flyer" irks local leader
4) STREET SQUAWK: Inside Columbia magazine relocates;
Visioning chair Jeff Williams leaving Columbia
______

1) Eminent Domain may have Silver Lining made of Gold

COLUMBIA, 3/16/09 (Beat Byte) -- Great news for the two downtown Columbia property owners in the way of the beast nobody likes: eminent domain. For the condemned, condemnation aka eminent domain may have the most enviable silver lining of all: a property sale entirely free of Federal and State income taxes.

"Do you realize that with just the 'threat' of Eminent Domain, the sale becomes tax free? It does not actually have to go through the entire eminent domain process," wrote a Columbia Heart Beat reader who said he was formerly employed by the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) Land Acquisition unit.

Iowa City-based CPA Joe Kristan, of Roth & Company, P.C., clarifies the issue on his Tax Update blog.

"Section 1033 of the federal tax code allows sellers to avoid gain on property sold 'under threat or imminence' of condemnation, as long as they re-invest the proceeds no more than two years after the year in which the sale is made," Kristan writes. "It's not necessary for the city to actually institute condemnation proceedings; just a credible threat triggers the tax break."

In effect, condemnation gives the seller of any property the same income tax break we used to receive on the sale of our primary residence: buy another house in two years, and the sale was tax free. Congress eliminated this proviso in 1997.

The US Tax Court clarifies the eminent domain tax break even further, describing a scenario similar to what's going on with the three parcels in the sights of the State Historical Society of Missouri -- Bengals Bar and Grill; US Cleaners; and a duplex.

"A 'threat of condemnation' exists if (1) the body threatening condemnation possesses the power of eminent domain, (2) the property owner is told by an official of the threatening body that condemnation will be sought unless the owner negotiates a sale or exchange of the property, and (3) the information conveyed to the owner gives the owner reasonable grounds to believe that the threat was authorized and likely to be carried out unless a sale or exchange is arranged."

"A whiff of a threat of condemnation can make a sale tax-free to a buyer who is willing to reinvest in other property," Kristan continues. "A seller and buyer can more or less arrange a condemnation 'threat' with the city to qualify a property for Section 1033."

The former Conservation Dept. employee said his office routinely turned away so-called "arranged condemnations."

"We often had folks that wanted the MDC to 'threaten' eminent domain prior to a sale so they could avoid taxes," he writes. "Although MDC had such powers, they would not do it."

The seller tax break may also be great news for the City of Columbia, which can save the $250,000 it was planning to spend from the Convention and Visitor's Bureau fund to accomodate the museum land sale (maybe spend that on the Blind Boone Home, still languishing after all these years).

Bottom line: Condemnation is a taxpayer's best friend! But knowing this, will everybody now be saying, "I want My Eminent Domain?"

RELATED:
http://www.rothcpa.com/archives/001641.php
http://straylight.law.cornell.edu/uscode/26/usc_sec_26_00001033----000-.html


2) The One-Size-Fits-All Columbia Candidate Survey -- 6th Ward Council

Welcome to the third annual One-Size-Fits-All Candidate Survey, where city council and school board candidates answer questions about issues that affect not just one, but BOTH organizations. 6th Ward city council candidate Rod Robison answers; incumbent councilwoman Barbara Hoppe is currently in Detroit visiting her mother, 93, at the hospital. A letter from husband Mike Sleadd is below.

Other than Michelle Pruitt and Sam Phillips, no school board candidates responded to this part of the survey.

Adding Judges and Landlords to The Criminal Justice Equation

Gatehouse Apartments, at 2401 W. Broadway, has been featured in over a dozen news stories on rising crime in Columbia. Two weeks ago, Gatehouse Apartments resident Eric Kegler Lambert, 21, out on bond for a forgery violation two weeks earlier, was arrested again for probation and parole violations.

Lambert's had breaks by the bushel. In 2005, he faced 1st degree burglary and armed criminal action charges, later plea-bargained to 2nd degree burglary. After a stretch of -- not jail time but "home detention" at 1322 Raleigh Drive -- Boone County Judge Ellen Roper suspended Lambert's five-year prison sentence and placed him on probation. But after Lambert failed to show up for drug rehab at Reality House, Roper revoked his probation and reinstated his 5-year prison sentence.

That was in October 2006. It's February 2009, and for some reason, Eric Kegler Lambert is living, not at the Big House, but at Gatehouse.

The earlier story of 802 Wilkes Blvd:
http://archive.columbiatribune.com/2008/nov/20081130news001.asp
http://columbiaheartbeat.blogspot.com/2008/10/of-criminals-and-landlords-who-rent-to.html

and felonious shooter Malcolm Redmon:
http://archive.columbiatribune.com/2008/oct/20081028news007.asp
http://archive.columbiatribune.com/2007/oct/20071013news004.asp

are more violent and troubling illustrations of the role our courts and landlords should be playing to keep dangerous repeat offenders off the streets, away from our children, and out of our neighborhoods.

6th WARD CITY COUNCIL

QUESTION 1 -- What role do you think our courts should play in our struggle with crime? What role do you think local landlords should play in our struggle with crime? How can police be expected to cope if courts and landlords -- if the entire community for that matter -- doesn't also partake in the process?

ROD ROBISON
www.rodsixthward.com

Obviously, the courts play a crucial role in crime prevention. The problem, as I see it, is that there are different agencies dealing with different aspects of crime. The police apprehend alleged criminals, the court system tries, convicts and determines sentencing, then the Department of Corrections or Probation and Parole Department enforce the punishment.

It appears, from your case studies that people are falling through the cracks.

My top priority for the sixth ward comes down on the side of apprehension and prevention. I want to fully fund the Columbia Police Department in their endeavors to crack down on violent crime and property crimes in our neighborhoods.


QUESTION 2 -- If a judge sentences an offender to "home detention" and a landlord is willing to rent to that offender, aren't our neighborhoods in danger of becoming substitute jails? What impact do you think the presence of criminal offenders has on a neighborhood and especially, the children in it?

ROD ROBISON

While it may seem to many Columbia residents that landlords have a duty to make sure their tenants are law-abiding, coming up with a mechanism to ensure compliance would be difficult. And I’m not sure its even legal.

Property owners, like landlords, have to follow certain protocols when leasing or renting to prospective tenants and a criminal background check is not required. Also, if a landlord leases to someone without a criminal record, then that person breaks the law, it doesn’t void the lease.


QUESTION 3 -- What can you, as a newly-elected school board member or city council person, do to encourage our judges, prosecutors, and landlords to reduce crime and keep violent offenders off the street?

ROD ROBISON

As the sixth ward city council member, I would first acquaint myself with all the stakeholders in the process.

Perhaps setting up a community task force, made up of judges, probation and parole officials, landlords, educators, youth group leaders, etc. would lead to a better understanding of the problem and how to solve it.

FROM BARBARA HOPPE AND MIKE SLEADD

Barbara is currently in Detroit visiting her gravely ill mother at the hospital. Her mother is 93 and in very serious condition and is not expected to live long. She hopes to be back in Columbia for the League of Women Voters forum on Thursday.

Barbara is likely to be away a good bit of this time. Her mother's illness combined with her regular job and the demands of being on the council will keep her from participating in much of the necessary door-to-door campaigning. I am also doubting that she will be able to answer this survey at this time, but perhaps can make a contribution at a later date.

Thank you very much,

Mike Sleadd

LATEST CANDIDATE NEWS:

Council candidates weigh in on parks, funding


3) Columbia School District "slumdog flyer" irks local leader

COLUMBIA, 3/16/09 (Beat Byte) -- "Are you a Columbia School District Slumdog?"

League of Women voters leader and multi-board commission member Elaine Blodgett tells the Columbia Heart Beat she was surprised to find a flyer with this header under her windshield wiper in a downtown parking garage. The flyer was on every other car she saw as well. It read as follows:

"Slumdogs of the Columbia school attendance area. Your children are being cheated. Slumdog homeowners and landlords-your property values are being lowered by elitist school officials who conspire with developers, builders and other elitists to enhance property values in some area of Columbia at the expense of other areas and schools."

The flyer's gist: Columbia Public Schools is not distributing resources evenly (but the county assessor isn't collecting property taxes evenly either, so what do we expect?)

Referring to "The Privileged Crescent of Elementary Schools (where influence talks and slumdogs walk. The crème de la crème of Columbia Schools.) " the flyer includes small paragraphs arranged in a crescent shape from the upper right hand of the page to the bottom left with boxes including Paxton Keeley Elementary, Fairview Elementary, Mill Creek Elementary, Rockbridge High School, Rockbridge Elementary.

With few or no trailers, "the elite use these schools. Compare to Derby Ridge which has 14 trailers," the flyer instructs.

The flyer includes a test:

"Slumdog Test: How do you know if you are a Columbia slumdog?????"

"Do you live north of I-70? Do you live eat of College Ave? Does your child’s elementary school have more than two or three trailers? Are your children not allowed to go to their neighborhood school, but shipped off to another old and over crowded school?

"If you call a realtor will he she tell you your home is worth a lot less because the school district has let your neighborhood school run down and be seriously overcrowded. You are a Columbia slumdog. Your children are not given equal possibilities in which to learn because of over crowded and poor facilities.

"All Columbia schools are o.k., however, some are unfairly and purposely a lot better than others!! You o.k.’d a 60 million dollar bond. Where did it go????"

The flyer concludes with these suggestions:

"Don’t ok a penny more unless it will be spent equally and wisely and openly!!"

Call Superintendent Ritter (numbers etc follow. Tell him to shape up his elitist management team- very elitist Doctors of Education. If there is one principle all Americans should believe in it is that all children should be given the equal opportunity to live up to their God given abilities!

Don’t let your children be treated like Slumdogs."

4) STREET SQUAWK: Inside Columbia relocates; Local leader Williams leaving

COLUMBIA, 3/16/09 (Beat Byte) -- A sleek new ebony sign at the old Reece/Nichols real estate offices at 301 W. Broadway now says Inside Columbia Magazine.

Sources tell the Heart Beat that publisher Fred Parry was "moving in some boxes yesterday."


City of Columbia visioning committee and police oversight commission co-chair Jeffrey Williams is leaving Columbia for a job with the Ewing Kaufman Foundation in Kansas City. Co-workers said goodbye to Williams, an expert in late 19th and early 20th century American literature, at a going away party Friday at Flat Branch Brewery.

"Dr. Jeffrey R. Williams has accepted a position as Vice President for Higher Education with Kauffman Scholars in Kansas City. Kauffman Scholars is a comprehensive college preparatory program funded by the Kauffman Foundation," read a university release. "In this new role, he will be responsible for creating and directing the Collegiate Academy and the support services needed by the Scholars to succeed academically and socially and for developing and maintaining effective relationships with college administrators on the various campuses."

Williams is presently a professor in the University of Missouri Dept. of English.

RELATED:
http://english.missouri.edu/people/profile.php?person=williamsjeffrey
http://www.kauffmanscholars.org/

-- Mike Martin for the Columbia Heart Beat
Written by No comments:
Labels: ,

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Are Developer Property Tax Breaks Breaking Boone County?

Are Developer Property Tax Breaks Breaking Boone County?
The Columbia Business Times

Presenting what he called “the facts pertaining to property tax valuations” for the Columbia Business Times this month, Boone County assessor Tom Schauwecker (pictured) wrote about a “133-acre vacant tract of land located on the southeast corner of Nifong Boulevard and Sinclair Road, across from Mill Creek Elementary." He noted that the land was zoned “agricultural,” but left out several other important facts.

The owner, a prominent real estate developer, paid around $1.9 million for the property ten years ago. In a Deed of Trust on file with Boone County, a “General Development Plan” assigns a “Per Acre Release Payment” for subdivision purposes of $19,950/acre, valuing the tract in 1998 somewhere north of $2.5 million.

Today, power, water, sewer, cable, and gas lines stud the property and it has a fire hydrant on the corner. Though neighbors say the parcel hasn’t been farmed in years, the assessor says it’s farmland and so qualifies for low, low property taxes.

Under Missouri law (RSMo 137.016 and 137.119), working farmland is taxed far lower than commercial or residential land.

But the key word is “working” and zoning doesn't count. To qualify for the tax break, the law is clear: The land must be actively farmed, or its “highest and best use” must be agricultural. Land zoned “agricultural” that isn’t farmed and has a “higher and better” use doesn’t qualify, caveats affirmed many times, most recently in 2004, when developer Northtown Village challenged Jasper County Assessor Tom Davis before the Missouri State Tax Commission.

Nonetheless, the owner of that 133-acre parcel—who long ago decided that its highest and best use was development—paid less in property taxes on it last year than he donated to Mr. Schauwecker’s re-election campaign: $275.04.

Prime property, paltry taxes

All around Columbia and Boone County, in fact, prime development property produces paltry property taxes, zoned agricultural—or not.

An 18.2-acre residentially zoned tract in Thornbrook complete with cul-de-sac netted $50.86 in property taxes on an assessed value of $865.00 last year. A 12,600 square foot commercially-zoned lot on Bernadette Drive and Fairview Road netted local governments just $14.89 on an assessed value of $260.00. Eleven residentially zoned acres on Walcox Drive netted schools, roads, and libraries just $283.00.

Vacant land isn’t the only campaign donor/real estate developer-owned property that qualifies for such big breaks. Mr. Schauwecker appraised a four-bedroom, four-bath, 2,373 square foot duplex built in 1999 for just $739 last year.

That’s right: seven hundred and thirty nine dollars.

City v. County

As if Columbia and Boone County need something else to bicker about, the county assessor and city planners often conflict on land use and zoning, another factor driving low, low taxes on development land.

For instance, the assessor says that parcels in a subdivision off Scott Blvd. are farmland, while Columbia zoned them R-1 several years ago, for residential single-family homes. Individual lots in the subdivision—many with foundations—are on sale for $49,000.00 and up. But Mr. Schauwecker says they’re worth only $8,600 each.

At controversial Cross Creek, amidst neighbor-developer scuffles and City Council brouhahas, city planners zoned 28 acres "planned commercial," or CP. But Mr. Schauwecker insists that the acreage remains a bucolic farm, and taxed its owners accordingly: $40.57.

Cost to Schools

The owners of a prominent Columbia retail center have been advertising their last vacant tract For Sale, a planned commercial or CP-zoned 1.4 acres. “Suitable for retail, restaurant, or office” according to the ad, adjacent neighbors include some of the nation’s best-known eateries. The 1.4-acre tract’s list price: $1,228,392.

Using a phrase Mr. Schauwecker has repeated many times to the media—"Tell me how much you’d sell it for, and that’s what I’ll say it’s worth"—a wily buyer would write up an offer and attach the assessor’s appraisal: Mr. Schauwecker says the $1.2 million parcel is worth only $182,950—and that it’s “farmland,” of course.

For Boone County’s public schools, libraries, cities, and roads, the difference between the assessor’s appraisal and the developer’s price amounts to a property tax loss of $22,100.49, or the difference between what the developer now pays—$1,307.35 —and what he would pay if the parcel were valued closer to its list price: $23,407.84.

More Than Equal

Under the law, all landowners should be treated equally. But in Boone County, some landowners are clearly more equal than others.

Take a 0.23-acre vacant lot in a low-income central city Columbia neighborhood that yielded $89.38 in property taxes last year, while 77.2 acres along I-70—335 times more land—brought in $83.35. Mathematically, that works out to a property tax rate 1,480 times higher for the central city parcel.

A prominent developer owns the I-70 tract and I own the central city lot. Though I didn't donate to his re-election campaign, whatever explanation, whatever spin Mr. Schauwecker puts on the law cannot explain, morally, ethically, legally, or in any other way, why he taxes my land nearly 1,500 times greater than the developer’s land.

Nor can he adequately explain a $739 duplex; farmland in the middle of a strip mall; or a $275 tax bill on choice acreage that’s probably worth $10 million today.

Dickens famously said, “The law is a ass.” But it’s not that much of an ass, despite our assessor’s assessments.

-- Mike Martin for the Columbia Business Times

RELATED:

Campaign finance reports: Tom Schauwecker

http://www.mec.mo.gov/CampaignFinanceReports/CFFilerPDFs/FullRepor/FullReport.aspx?CDRCP_id=11788&MyYear=2008
http://www.mec.mo.gov/Scanned/PDF/2008/57908.pdf
http://www.mec.mo.gov/Scanned/PDF/2008/58306.pdf
http://www.mec.mo.gov/Scanned/PDF/2008/58258.pdf

The facts pertaining to property tax valuations in Boone County
by Tom Schauwecker for the Columbia Business Times
Written by 14 comments:
Labels: , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)