Friday, March 24, 2006

One Danged Fine Editorial



Weber County Forum offers a hearty tip of the hat to the Standard-Examiner, for a danged fine editorial appearing in this morning's edition. Don Porter hammers some of the points our readers have argued here on this blog, and raises some interesting new issues as well. It's a relatively short article, so we'll incorporate it in full, for the benefit of those who don't have a hard-copy subscription:

The Mayor's Secret Plan

Midway through his second term as Ogden's mayor, Matthew Godfrey still has a lot to learn about consensus building.

No rational observer, we believe, could honestly accuse him of not wanting good things for his city. But he's so clumsy in the way he goes about making things happen that he invariably undercuts whatever public support he might otherwise have achieved.

His latest belly-flop-in-the-making is a hush-hush deal with Malan's basin owner Chris Peterson. Peterson has for the better part of a year teased about releasing plans for a west-facing four-season resort above Weber State University and the Mt. Ogden Golf Course, but whatever details there are have never been made public.

Fine. As others have noted, nobody elected Peterson to public office, and he can remain as cryptic and mysterious as he likes for as long as he wants to.

Godfrey, however, is an elected public official, beholden to the public. He's been quite open about his yearning for an intra-city gondola running between the Intermodal Transportation Hub and Weber State University. But lately he's retreated back into the mists, holding private meetings with other public officials, private business leaders and people he imagines to be opinion leaders inthe community.

It's been said that he's offering details of a plan that may or may not include the sale of the golf course to Peterson to help finance the gondola, and trading or buying land with Weber State University to facilitate Peterson's plans for luxury homes in the area.

Most distressing, though, was Godfrey's attempt to meet out of public view to brief members of the City Council on the whole gondola-golf course-Weber State scenario. He aparently wasn't paying attention to the Ogden School Board's carefully arranged closed meetings to discuss the public's business concerning a bond election.

Also troubling was Godfrey's recent trip to Italy and Austria with Peterson, where he accepted lodging and meals from gondola manufacturers. He didn't tell members of the City COuncil -- or at least not all of them -- beforehand.

We're on record supporting the notion of a privately financed gondola -- emphasis on the "privately financed" part. Others are, too, but the mayor's behavior of late is a legitimate cause for concern.

Godfrey hasn't asked for our opinion, but we'll give it to him anyway -- in public, where he should be dealing.

  • Before he left, he should have notified members of the City Council about his overseas trip. He should have solicited their support, and asked if they had questions or information he could retrieve from the gondola manufacturers. Then they might have supported a fact-finding trip, and encouraged him to use city funds to pay for his trip. Now, having accepted food and lodging from the gondola manufacturers, if one of them ever gets the contract to build Ogden's equipment, conflict-of-interest concerns could surface.
  • secrecy equals suspicion. Only talking to monied movers and shakers, and other Ogden elites, gives weight to oft-stated public fears that his plan is designed primarily to enrich those already blessed with wealth.
  • When discussing the sale of public land -- especially the vast acreage of a city golf course on the east bench -- it would seem prudent to put that land on the public auction block, where it goes to the highest bidder. (Ask the Weber County Commission about that one.)
  • There is also the question of selling off a public recreation asset like Mt. Ogden Golf Course. What about the trails and public access around the course? Will access be preserved?
The mayor may have answers to thse questions. But since he's keeping them so close to his vest, and not sharing them with the City Council in a public meeting, Ogdenites are left to speculate. And that, mayor Godfrey, is not the way to build support for your bold vision of Ogden's future.
    We gotta hand it to our old pal Don Porter on this one. We score this editorial a direct hit -- right between the eyes. Grondahl scores a clear bulls-eye too, wethinks. Porter and Grondahl -- quite the tag team, we say!

    And what say our gentle readers about all this?

    34 comments:

    Anonymous said...

    Can we be sure that the Standard-Examiner wasn't taken over during the last 24 hours by outsiders?

    The is the first common sense editorial they have printed in years.

    I hope the editors get positive response so they will have the courage to write another.

    The guest editorial also hit the nail on the head about the problems of the Grand Old Party.

    May be some things do finally change for the better if we just hope long enough.

    Anonymous said...

    You, RZ, have read more into it than, I think, it merits. I read the editorial as offering Hizzonah a tutorial on how better to achieve his ends: building the damn gondola/gondola boondoggle and selling off Mt. Ogden Park for the benefit of his multi-millionaire cronies.

    Anonymous said...

    I thought it was a great editorial!! It voiced concerns that many of us have had for a long time.

    I find it incredible that Chris Peterson has not made a presentation to the Ogden City Council yet!! People all over town have, in their clubs and organizations, listened to one proposal or another, some say from him, and yet our city council/RDA board has not received any information about these projects at all and he has not appeared before them. Public money has been spent on trips and studies for four years or so, and yet this has never been officially recognized as a project!

    Now that city properties are allegedly involved, this is even worse. Rumor has it that a formal proposal is in the offing, but I am thinking that this may be too late. This way of doing business is absolutely fine in the private sector, but, as Porter says, the Mayor is not in the private sector. He is a public official, and as such owes us more than secret meetings, cultivation of certain monied people, and an obvious effort to make an end run around the public, at whose discretion, after all, he holds his position.

    Anonymous said...

    Dian:

    A query. Does sale of Mt.Ogden Park require Council approval? I seem to recall some months ago there was a discussion about the Mayor's ability to sell city owned water rights, and it seems, as I recall, that he had the authority to do it without Council approval.

    What about Mt. Ogden Park? Would he need Council approval or not to sell that? I don't know. Asking.

    Anonymous said...

    I have one thing to say about these "secret" meetings for the "Elite" of Ogden. Although I am sure that some in the higher tax bracket were invited. I know several people I wouldn't consider "elite" or all that influencial in the community that were invited to attend because they express interest in what happens in the community. I wonder how many bloggers on this sight have actually tried to contact anyone to get into said "secret" meetings.

    Anonymous said...

    >>>I wonder how many bloggers on this sight have actually tried to contact anyone to get into said "secret" meetings.

    You're serious, right?

    Who, praytell, do we contact to get invited to a secret meeting?

    Anonymous said...

    Here is some Utah State Code on it, Curmudgeon. I would think that it would apply to this situation, and if it does, it doesn't look like he can, although I remember the debate you were referring to also:

    10-8-1.   Control of finances and property.
         The boards of commissioners and city councils of cities shall have the power to control the finances and property of the corporation.


    and...

    10-8-2.   Appropriations -- Acquisition and disposal of property -- Municipal authority -- Corporate purpose -- Procedure -- Notice of intent to acquire real property.
         (1) (a) A municipal legislative body may:
         (i) appropriate money for corporate purposes only;
         (ii) provide for payment of debts and expenses of the corporation;
         (iii) subject to Subsections (4) and (5), purchase, receive, hold, sell, lease, convey, and dispose of real and personal property for the benefit of the municipality, whether the property is within or without the municipality's corporate boundaries;...


    The mayor is the administrative body, the council is the legislative body. According to this, it is the council who has control over municipal property. I can't think of anywhere else that powers could be given to a mayor which would supercede this, but that's not saying there isn't one.

    I'm looking at the Utah State Code here, Title 10, which deals with municipalities. There is much more on this, especially procedurally when it comes to public land use, too.

    Main Page of Utah Code

    RudiZink said...

    "Curmudgeon said...
    You, RZ, have read more into it than, I think, it merits."

    In the context of the normally Godfrey-fawning editorial tone of the Godfrey House Propaganda Organ, Curmudgeon, today's editorial was an uninhibited and merciless Godfrey bitch-slapping, AFIC. It's all relative, as my hero Einstein said.

    I called Don Porter this afternoon, and personally complimented him on today's editorial, BTW. He was a bit sheepish, but I think he appreciated the feedback.

    One of these days even the Suits from Sandusky will slap themselves in the forehead and realize that if they're going to pander (and sell paper and ink)...

    they should pander to their readership, who are the citizen-voters of Ogden City and environs...

    Anonymous said...

    althepal-

    I am checking into it. I will let you know. By the way...have you tried to contact someone and been unsuccesful?

    Anonymous said...

    also...Why is the Standard Examiner refered to as a neocon, biased newspaper when you don't like what is being said. How can a neocon, biased publication now publish "One Danged Fine Editorial"?

    ARCritic said...

    Even a blind squirle finds a nut sometimes.

    Anonymous said...

    Dian:
    Thank you.

    Anonymous said...

    I thought the editorial was a winner also. Grondahl's cartoon is a keeper!
    Something is going on at the SE. Ed Allen was identified as the mayor's father-in-law by the editors the other day at the end of Allen's letter. I haven't seen that happen before.
    Do you think Don and the guys read this blog for 'news that's fit to print'?
    What ever has happened, I applaud Don Porter and the editorial staff.
    I saw on the news today that the American public is returning to movies of the past when they weren't mired in sex, vulgarity, violence, depravity, etc. This happens every couple decades or so.
    We humans just get sick of wallowing in muck, and come up for clean air.
    Perhaps the SE just took a deep breath and said, 'hey! this being out in the open ain't bad!'
    Breathe in, breathe out, Don. Give us more.

    Anonymous said...

    Charlie Trentleman did a good piece this week commenting on the secret way Godfrey conducts city business behind closed doors with one or two council members at a time. Kudos are also due him for starting this ball rolling. Glad to see Don Porter got on board and maybe listened to what people were saying. They are fed up with the Mayor's shenanigans. It is time the Mayor started conducting Ogden City business in the open!

    Any one ever considered that Chris Peterson isn't on the up-and-up with this resort thing? Someone has hinted that he doesn't intend to build a resort in Malan's Basin, because it wouldn't make it. Some of that theory makes sense. That could be the reason we have seen no plans, it takes a lot of money to have architects draw up plans. Also, it sure would take a lot of people riding the gondola to enjoy a beautiful ride and get a cup of coffee with a breath-taking view to make a buck. The rumor has it that Chris has faked the resort plans, and wants only to get his hands on the land above WSU and the Mt. Ogden Golf Course, so he can make a fortune by building million dollar estates with a private golf course. Yes, dear friends, as soon as those homes in that gated community are built, the golf course would be privatized, and of course, there would be a charge to access the trails and trail heads within that gated area.

    These are only rumors, but they come from people who claim to know Chris Peterson pretty well.

    I'd be more impressed with the SE and the Suits of Sandusky if they did some investigative reporting for a change instead of writing what the Mayor tells them to write.
    They could start with the mysterious (try getting the police report) Shupe-Williams fire. There are too many unexplained factors to be an innocent fire by transients trying to keep warm.

    I remember the day when the SE used to do investigative reporting. It was somewhat worth reading back then.

    Anonymous said...

    After the neighborhood GOP meeting Tuesday night I had a chance to get acquainted with Nate Pierce.

    After having served Ogden City for 5 1/2 years he is a storehouse of information.

    One bit of information he had is that the Mt. Ogden Golf Course owes Ogden City over a million dollars which has to be repaid if the course is sold.

    Mr. Pierce came across as actually wanting to solve some of Weber County's problems regarding the sewer mess and enormous debt and pending lawsuits.

    Have a conversation since he is trying to get the GOP nomination to run for the Weber County Commission and see what you think.

    If you talk to him now and he gets elected then you can hold his feet to the fire.

    I also urge Don Porter and the Standard to interview Mr. Pierce regarding the events that have led up to Ogden's current financial situation since he can speak from personal knowledge.

    No one else who has been on that scene from the inside seems to be as open with comments as he is.

    ArmySarge said...

    As usual, I am not familiar with the law BUT - if and city land is to be sold, doesn't it have to be available to anyone?

    Anonymous said...

    Ms. Littrell:

    I wonder if perhaps the proposed sale of Mt. Ogden park to a private party for the purpose of carving it up into house lots in a gated community is a matter on which Ogden's two political parties might unite?

    I wonder if perhaps both the Weber County Republican and Democratic conventions [coming up fast] adopted resolutions opposing the sale as poor public policy, it might have some significant impact? Do you think the move is opposed by enough people in both parties to make this a plausible idea?

    What do you think?

    Anonymous said...

    My goodness! There are so many 'coincidences' occuring in Ogden these days. Whilst the globe trotting mayor was away, some 'mice' may have been at play. With matches??
    2.5 million insurance bucks on the Shupe building, and, can you believe it???? 2.5 million bucks now available for Ernest! Those old fire gods sure do come in and rain fortune at the darndest time, don't they?
    My opinion about Chris Peterson, Godfrey and his legacy gondola is that IF Peterson really is interested in the darn thing, he would've started construction up the canyon ON HIS OWN NICKEL BY NOW...as His Highness has assured us rabble. I think Peterson understands Godfrey's insatiable ego and has deftly stroked it about Matt's grandiose plans in order to grab Mt. Ogden Golf Course for HIS personal gain. Mattie is so blinded by his own ambition he can be flattered and manipulated by a wealthy wheeler dealer who knows how to dangle "legacy" carrots in front of Godfrey's glazed eyes.
    Well, the rabble are aroused....the rumblings are even coming from the Standard Examiner! Littrell is right about a good journalist has a story to run with here.
    I hope the City Council will do their duty and take necessary legal steps to unseat this pitiful little dictator and his sycophants before they can 'give away the farm' along with Mt. Ogden Golf Course. CAVE People: Citizens Against Vile Enserfment.

    Anonymous said...

    Does anyone know when the fire investigators are going to release their findings about the Shupe bldg fire??
    Or, is the mayor's arm long enough to reach from the 9th floor to put a gag on the fire investigators?

    ARCritic said...

    So who started the fire up in the valley?

    Maybe it was one of the county commissioners, or maybe even one of the candidtates?

    You people really crack me up.

    Did you hear about the fire at the Riverdale city offices? I heard that it was a conspiricy by the mayor and council to destroy records of secret deals made with WalMart and the developers.

    ARCritic said...

    Did anyone see THIS ARTICLE?

    Anonymous said...
    This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
    ARCritic said...

    Sorry about that, I am still working on those HTML tags. Let's try again.

    This article about Walmart.

    Anonymous said...

    Curt, I think you've given the beleagured citizens a way to be effective against this emperor who doesn't have a visible belly button.....must be an alien, because he sure ain't a good Ogdenite.

    However, here we've been praising Don Porter and Trentleham for bringing into the light the mayor's 'secret' dealings with Peterson and 'influential community laders.' And, now I think that may just have been a (drum roll here, please)ruse for the little numb nuts to have his commentary published this morning!
    I wouldn't put it past the slavish SE to have planned this all along. Can't you hear the conversation in the back room?''Well, the stuff is hitting the fan, Matt. The masses are grumbling about your trip to Europe, eating and sleeping on the nickel of those gondola makers, being grape juiced and dined, taking Peterson along and meeting with wealthy people all over town. You won't shut up about that damned gondola for cryin' out loud, when we've told you it was going to hit you in the face. People are saying some nasty things about the Shupe-Williams fire too! You're in deep doodles here, Mattie boy. So, here's the deal (secret too)....we'll have Charlie write a little puff piece about secret stuff, and then Don will write an editorial the gullibles will love and praise. Then, when we've got them all calmed down and lulled into placency, YOU can write a commentary...we'll ghost write it for you, if you like. We know you're busy behind closed doors these days."....So, fellow gullibles, it may have gone down like that. Who's to say?
    Insurance money in the amount Ernest needs.. Of course, the same amount the Hispanic Center needs also, but, hey, where will the influential people want to be?
    Oh, there's trouble in Ogden City, and it starts with G!

    Anonymous said...

    I found out that there is a new word in ogden city. It is CAGE. Citizens Against Godfrey's Endevors. so lets go cage the little bubble boy. oh! the standard already did that. good job.

    Anonymous said...

    Hizzonah, Mayor Godfrey, is in the wrong job. He should be writing monolgues for John Stewart of "The Daily Show." Hizonnah's piece in this morning's [Sunday] SE is a hoot and a half. I recommend it to you all.

    There haven't been any secret meetings, he assures us. They just havent' been public, and he can't tell us what was said at them. But, he insists, they were in no way secret.

    He goes on to complain that there are many rumors about what Mr. Peterson's plans involve, and these rumors contain false information, being spread with malicious intent, by those who oppose the plans Mr. Peterson and the Mayor can't tell us about. Hizzonah would love to correct these false rumors, but of course he's not allowed to tell us what the real plans are because they can only be discussed at the meetings that aren't secret but that the can't talk about.

    No. I am not making this up.

    Then he ends with the usual Lift Ogden line, provided to him by his handlers, that anyone who opooses his particular vision for Ogden's future is against all progress, against everything, in fact, and for nothing. Those over at Smart Growth Ogden don't really exist. There is no other vision but they Mayor's, see? I mean, after all, remember the negative, against-everything nay-sayers who warned that the Mayor's plan to "improve" the Ogden Summer Festival would in fact kill it? And the mayor forged ahead, and the Matthew Godfrey Improved Ogden Summer Festival ran for one year, didn't draw flies, and the Ogden Summer Festival was never held again. With a record like that, surely we all see that the only possible reason for disagreeing with Hizzonah's plans must be a desire to run Ogden into the ground, and an implacable antipathy to all progress. Surely you all see that, right?

    Those who think differently than the Mayor must be wrong and they too would understand why if only he could tell them what is being discussed at the not-secret meetings that he's not allowed to talk about.

    I am teling you, folks, John Stewart and "The Daily Show" pay big money for people who can write stuff that good.

    Anonymous said...

    Curt, are you advocating that, because a citizen or a group of citizens could maybe file a lawsuit to stop Godfrey's quest, that the City Counci do the same? Or, if not, how do you porpose the City Council to "legally" stop the Mayor? I'm not sure, but doesn't there have to be a consensus about these things? Are ALL of the council members thinking along the lines that you do? Would iniating an action such as this fragment the council even more than it appears to be?

    Some appear to be on a crusade to stop the Mayor regardless of what it is he does. Is everything so despicable as you come across, just because the Mayor's behind it?

    What about process? Are there no ordnances, etc. in place that eh council can use, if they decide, that will ensure a just process and end? I think these things are in place and the council would be better advantaged to use those instead of some "uprising" that all the members most likely wouldn't support. Then, you only birth chaos, etc., and nothing gets accomplished. You might be well advised to look for ways that are in place that can help to rectify this unrest, rather than, as you seem to do, advocating the overthrow of the Ogden City Government by unscrupulous means.

    Anonymous said...

    Curmudgeon:-

    Unfortunately,

    Your idea of having both political parties unite against proposed Ogden City plans could not be done in the Weber County Conventions because not everyone attending would be residents of Ogden.

    They could, however, introduce and pass resolutions re Weber County's sewer problems and debts in the rural areas of the County.

    Weber County has its financial and legal problems very similar to Ogden City.

    Anonymous said...

    It seems to me that if in fact the mayor has comitted acts that are, or could be illegal, that the city council should in fact intitiate an investigatiion with the Attorney General. Does the city council seeking the truth mean that they are being derisive? I don't hardly think so.

    It certainly seems suspicious that the old council ordered an independent legal opinion letter on this highly suspicious Reid affair, then apparently killed the letter before it became public.

    Anonymous said...

    Another View, "are you advocating that, because a citizen or a group of citizens could maybe file a lawsuit to stop Godfrey's quest, that the City Counci do the same?"
    No, No! Just trying to goad the Council into being more united and stronger in the positions they take. Even among the three new members, it appears that they're not always united. It makes one wonder how much will ever be accomplished though.

    "Or, if not, how do you porpose the City Council to "legally" stop the Mayor? I'm not sure, but doesn't there have to be a consensus about these things? Are ALL of the council members thinking along the lines that you do? Would iniating an action such as this fragment the council even more than it appears to be?"
    Good questions, and as I stated above, I don't think that they will ever have a consensus, especially dealing with the Mayor, which is frustrating to us citizens, who can only watch and maybe put our two cents in at Council meetings.

    "Some appear to be on a crusade to stop the Mayor regardless of what it is he does. Is everything so despicable as you come across, just because the Mayor's behind it?"
    I think you have adopted the perception that the Mayor wants people to have of some of the Council members. As I've talked with them, that is not the perception that I get. I feel that ALL of the Council members want what is best for Ogden and they want progress and growth and for the city to be busy and bustling again.

    "What about process? Are there no ordnances, etc. in place that eh council can use, if they decide, that will ensure a just process and end? I think these things are in place and the council would be better advantaged to use those instead of some 'uprising' that all the members most likely wouldn't support. Then, you only birth chaos, etc., and nothing gets accomplished. You might be well advised to look for ways that are in place that can help to rectify this unrest, rather than, as you seem to do, advocating the overthrow of the Ogden City Government by unscrupulous means."

    Another View, you misunderstood my intent. As far as processes and ordinances the City has in place, I'm ignorant. I haven't taken much interest in what City government was doing until the last few years. But I do have some opinions about the means by which Godfrey does business. I'm not against everything he does -- I think it's great that the city is starting to see new business starting on Historic 25th St., and the success that Earnshaw has had with the sale of the condos he will build. I sincerely hope the rec center is a huge success. I would rather see the city support, if needs be financially, and develop the Hispanic center that was proposed for Monroe to Quincy and 24th to 25th Streets than a gondola from downtown to WSU. I believe that there are other ways to rejuvenate Ogden than solely depending on tourism brought to Ogden by the gondola. What happens to the gondola in a few years when the novelty wears off? Will we be stuck with an albatros and ugly support beams going down the middle of Harrison?

    I would never encourage anyone to do anything that wasn't kosher, and for you to think that is absurd. Yes, I am upset that Godfrey wants to sell the Mt. Ogden Golf Course to Chris Peterson and to sell the Marshall White Center to the Salvation Army, and it seems that all the negotiations and details have been worked out before the Mayor sees fit to even reveal his plans to the Council and to hell with the general public. You only matter in Ogden if you're a rich, influential businessman. Sorry, that isn't the way you win friends and influence people. I was just reading about Mikhail Gorbachev, and there was a quote by him on leadership, that I couldn't help but measure the Mayor by: "If a person is not capable of decision-making, developing associations, or bringing people together -- they are not leaders." As far as I am concerned, Godfrey struck out on two of the three points. He has managed to split the city in half with the way he handled the PR for the rec center, and now he's continuing the division with the Marshall White Center and Mt. Ogden Golf course and his beloved gondola! What kind of Mayor divides his city? He does not try to win the general public over, but rather calls them names, such as "cave people" and "the same old crowd of naysayers" to intimidate them. I, personally, don't know the Mayor, so I am not saying that he is a bad person, but rather his methods of achieving his goals are and need to be overhauled.

    I really don't see how the Council can effect a change, unless somehow they are able to enlighten the Mayor about human nature and human relationships -- maybe give Dale Carnegie's book to him, but then that doesn't mean that he will read it and try the concepts presented. No guarantee! You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink.

    Hope this long narrative enlightens you, another view, as to my true intent.

    Anonymous said...

    Just read your post, thomas luke, (took a long time to write the above post) your comments are well-taken and appreciated. I would love to see the Council initiate an investigation, if they can determine there is cause, with the AG. You are absolutely right about the letter the old Council requested from an outside legal source about the Stuart Reid severance pay. What didn't they want the public to see/know? Where is that letter now? How many of the old Council saw or had knowledge of what that letter contained? How do we get the Council to initiate an investigation?

    Anonymous said...

    I think each of us should contact our representative on the Council and let them know we want the Council to demand that letter's contents be made public. After all, Reid is running for Senate and the public has a right to know what went on between him and the mayor!
    Reid needs to be upfront with the voters. The Council needs to use its authority to demand that letter. The Council also needs to put the brakes on the runaway Godfrey train.
    Surely, the three new members and possibly Wicks and Garcia aren't pandering to Godfrey????

    Anonymous said...

    Well, bloggerite....you sure have done a great job in rallying the folks, haven't you? Are you the little emperor's PR man? Your venom is pure Filiaga, but your english is a tad better.
    The emperor sure has been bringing the community together by letting us all in on his grandiose plans. In case you didn't know it , the mayor could have invited the U.S. arm of the gondola maker right here to beautiful downtown Ogden! And, Matt could've fed HIM on Historic 25th St.....would have been lots cheaper, and Matt wouldn't be looking at some serious charges in the offing of, perhaps, being bought off?
    Why don't you try exploiting some real good in Ogden? Now there's an interesting name for a website! Only thing is, you clowns don't have any good to report. Just sleaziness, sneakiness, and suspicious activity from your 'legacy' seeking kid mayor.
    CAVES: Citizens advocating virtually everything sensible.

    Anonymous said...

    Bloggerite:
    Are you the foul mouthed kid that Sharon took down a peg or two?

    Your dad and mommy should have put a bar of soap in your mouth and a switch to your behind on a regular basis.

    Please grow up...you are an embarrassment to them, I'm sure.

    Oh, andhaveaniceday,'kay?

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