This morning's Standard-Examiner reports that the Emerald City Council has retained Salt Lake Attorney H. Craig Hall, to represent the council's interests in connection with the "proposed" Peterson/Boss Godfrey landgrab. Mr. Hall is a partner in the firm Chapman and Cutler, LLC, and has substantial government experience in municipal law, as set forth in the thumbnail resume on his firm's website:
Craig Hall is a partner in Chapman and Cutler LLP's Salt Lake City office. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Hall held positions as City Attorney for South Salt Lake Corporation from 1998-2002; City Attorney for Murray City Corporation from 1977-1998 and Assistant City Attorney/Prosecutor for Murray City Corporation from 1975-1977. Mr. Hall has extensive experience in representing cities, towns and municipalities, including general operations, property acquisitions, planning and zoning, employee relations, municipal utilities (water, sewer and power) and police and fire departments.Mr. Hall also appears to have been somewhat entwined in the politics of our old Big-Government land-grabbing pals, the Utah League of Cities and Towns . He is credited as having been a "presenter" for the ULCT 2005 annual conference, and also apparently authored in 2002 a document entitled Eminent Domain Brochure, intended at the time to preserve the power of Big Government to seize Utah citizens' properties for the benefit of developers, and to "prevent the need for any eminent domain legislation."
Although it's a bit early in the game to predict the quality of representation that Mr. Hall will provide in connection with the Godfrey/Peterson scheme, we are not overjoyed at this point with the council's attorney selection. In a town (SLC) filled with real estate development lawyer expertise, it's not encouraging to know the council's chosen legal representative's experience is apparently founded on facilitating city administration-driven property acquistions.
As we learned from Tom Ellison's opening salvo in this matter, upcoming "negotiations" will be highly adversarial in nature.
We hope that Mr. Hall is up to the task of vigorously representing the interests of the taxpayers of Emerald City, and that he will not fall back to a city attorney mindset geared toward simply "making it all happen."
And what think our gentle readers about this?
18 comments:
The Council didn't do its 'due diligence' in the selection of an attorney. I wonder who suggested we just use 'Hall because he already represents us the RDA Board'?
Such narrow thinking. We already have DiCaria looking into any improper actions of Greiner and Godfrey in their suppression of free speech. Though we all agree that DiCaria is a 'good man and a professional'...he is still the WRONG man to investigate the GG fiasco.
The Council should have insisted on a SLC/Davis County AG to handle this. Someone or office totally disconnected from Ogden.
Now, the Council has once again failed to look at the whole picture, to do thier homework and see that Mr. Hall may be too close to this administration. The Council should have insisted on hiring a law firm from SLC that has the expertise and experience in deciphering Ellison's 'complex' documents.
I fear that the taxpayers are not going to get a fair shake.
Do you think that Glasmann in his NEW position as the guy who 'buys and sells ' land for the city, will use his 'considerable real estate experience' to lead Mr. Hall through the inticacies of the Peterson scheme?
Someone has ill-advised this Council. WHAT? Did they think they'd save money because Hall is already the RDA attorney?
You know Council...Hall can be replaced. Don't forget that criminals fire their attorneys all the time. I think a smart Council would do the same.
As much as I believe in the proclamation “For the people, by the people”, I somehow feel that it rings hollow today. Other than business owners that stand to profit from the Gondola and a few overzealous citizens, I have yet to meet anyone that wholeheartedly backs it, yet the administration looks like it will go down with the ship rather than change course. It seems that even if the public was completely against the Gondola, the Mayor and his ilk would pursue it regardless, because we just don’t see what’s good for us and he can. Even if the Gondola would solve all of Ogden’s problems, but the citizens don’t want it, isn’t the Mayor/Council obligated to acquiesce and look for other alternatives rather than stack the planning commission or hiring the likes of Craig Hall? Unfortunately, I think this thing is going to get worse before it gets better and we are all going to suffer because of it.
I agree with Concerned. It seems that what the people say and want is of no consequence to the Council, in most cases, and certainly the people are not considered by the administration.
It smacks of impropiety to hire Mr. Hall for something as important and complex as the "Peterson/Godfrey Proposal".
I'm concerned, Concerned, that Glassman will be involved in this whole scheme and that's the reason the mayor created this new positon just for him. I think Godfrey is going to use his shill, Bill, to huff and puff around Hall and Ellison and before we know it, our open spaces will be gone!
Does Godfrey ever do anything without an ulterior motive? Motives that get what he wants and to hell with the peons.
Flatter Bill and he'll give in every time.
I also think the Council should have hired an attorney with impeccable credentials, NO ties to Ogden, and all the smarts and experience to go toe to toe with Ellison and Peterson.
Can't the Council get rid of Hall, keep him on the RDA if they want..but let him go and hire somebody who does not even know Godfrey or Peterson?
I think that would be best for all around.
Well, seems to me it's a tad early to be piling on the Council on this, and on its atty. Couple of points:
a. There seems to be concerns that the Council-hired atty has been involved in real estate law in SLC, and involved in development projects, etc. Occurs to me, if I'm on the Council and I want somebody advising me on the ins and outs of the Peterson proposal, I want someone who's experienced in real estate and urban development law. I want someone who's been in the game. Whatever he's learned, I would expect, will now redound to the Council's benefit, since it is now his client.
b. I notice that the Mayor has arranged a transit "open house" for the 28th of September at Union Station, at which the public is invited to get involved and to ask questions of City representatives, Wasatch Regional Council representatives and [presumably?] others who have information regarding the best transit options for Ogden. First, I'm glad to see the Mayor has now adopted SmartGrowthOgden's advice to citizens, that they "get involved" and "ask questions." And as someone pointed out to me today [I hadn't noticed it], in focusing the meeting on transit options for Ogden [gondola or streetcar, asks the ad for the meeting], the Mayor seems, at last, to have accepted the argument of Smart Growth Ogden and others that the key matter in considering gondola vs. streetcar is which will best serve the transit needs of Ogden. Not the needs of one-time touists or developers of not-yet-existing resorts, but the transit needs of Ogden and its residents first. The City's framing the question that way in its ad for the open house is a kind of progress, que no?
[By the way, in light of the Mayor's adopting SmartGrowthOgden's call to citizens that they get involved and ask questions, I understand some people have offered to deliver an SGO lawn sign to his home or office. He has, I am told, not replied. Can't imagine why....]
On the other hand, I certainly understand the suspicion that is now rampant in Ogden regarding any moves by the Mayor involving the gondola, streetcar or Peterson proposals. And, sadly, Mr. Glassman's recent actions have inevitably raised [perhaps unfairly] concerns about whether the Council members serve primarily the public interest or their own. [As I said, I think the concerns may be unfair with respect to the rest of the Council, but it's undeniable that Mr. Glassman's actions have raised those concerns in a generic sort of way, about all the members.] He campaigned on a platform opposing Ogden's expanding involvement in public-owned real estate developments championed by the Godfrey administration, and his sudden conversion to Godfreyism, and his resigning in less than a year to take a job managing Ogden's real estate investments for the Godfrey administration cannot help but raise such questions in the minds of such of the public who have watched Mr. Glassmans short, strange journey. That is, I think, perhaps, the saddest outcome of Mr. Glassman's resignation to take a job in the Godfrey administration.
Affected by the kind of skepticism that Mr. Glassman's actions and the Mayor's preference for disingenousness inevitably foster, I worried some when I came to the new Council atty's statement that he intended to "work closely" with the City Atty and with Mr. Peterson's atty. Was that merely lawyerly boilerplate or something significant? I have no idea. I wish it didn't concern me. But Mr. Godfrey's actions this past year, and Mr. Glassman's recent ones have, I'm afraid, given my skepticism a booster shot.
Still, it's early days. And, to be fair, I'm reluctant to draw any conclusions about someone, like the new Council atty, before he's fairly begun the job, or about the Council's wisdom and/or motives in retaining him. The Council was wise, I think, to get independent legal advice in this matter and from someone who works for [and is paid by] them, not the City administration.
So let's give it some time. I understand the prevailing skepticism, and I'd be fudging if I said I didn't share a good part of it. But he's just been hired. Let's give the man, and the Council, a chance here. I think they've earned at least that. They have, this new Council, not proven themselves so far to be a rubber stamp Council for the Administration. They've exercised independent judgement on several matters, and have acted in ways contrary to the administration's wishes. Skepticism is called for here, I agree. But not cynicism. The man's just been hired. Let's see how things develop before loading up on him, and on the Council that hired him.
I'd just like to second what Curmudgeon said about the Council's criteria for choosing an attorney. The first priority should be to get someone who knows the business of municipal law and real estate. Hall obviously does. His experience working on both the public and private sides of such development issues is also a plus. It's common for attorneys to move back and forth between jobs representing one side and the other on issues. (Many criminal defense lawyers have also worked as prosecutors, and vice versa. The lead attorney for the enviro lawsuit against Legacy Highway had previously worked for the federal government, defending against such suits.) The first professional obligation of an attorney is to the client, whoever that happens to be. Attorneys who honor this obligation often get criticized for being amoral (kinda like Werner von Braun), but that's how our legal system works.
Stop eminent domain.
Let me remind all. It was Republicans that used eminent domain here in Ogden City and Weber County. It was Democrats that fought against eminent domain for private development.
Those tax and spend democrats haven’t been a majority power in Utah since 1974. However, Utah enjoys the title of one of the highest taxed States in the union so who really are the tax and spend political party? Democrats believed that we must pay for things as we go. Not like those “Spend and Barrow” into unbelievable national debt.
Republicans that wants to live life it’s fullest and expect our children to pick up their tab for their wastefulness, and their indiscressions. Giving tax breaks while the nation has a record nation deficit. It call “Bribing the electorate” to get gain of political offices.
Writing blank checks to corporations like Haliburton
Utah being the Strongest Republican state in the nation also has one of the highest bankruptcy rates in the nation, also the highest credit card debt in the nation. As Republicans I am sure that this is something that we must all be proud of as Utahans. Not to mention that we are one of the most likely states to be come victims of pyramid schemes and other “shady get rich quick business schemes.”
While we are one of the strongest Republican states in the nation. Most Republicans in other states have a disliking to the Republican Mormons, because a lot of them are prideful and self righteous. One may argue that is what the essence of that political party is from George Bush down to our local leaders including Mayor Matthew Godfrey. They are defiant to the other branches of government when is comes recognizing their authority. Refusing to answer subpoenas of congress. Disobeying court ruling on domestic wire taping, Ect.
George Bush has the record of any president for violations of law which our Republican Congress and Senate refuses to hold hearing on.
It is no wonder that they have earn the title of “The Culture of Corruption”.
It is no wonder why this type of corruption has taken place. Is because they hide behind Religion, They hide behind the constitution, they hide behind the flag. They hide behind feel good issues like flag burning, Gun rights, abortion, gay marriages.
They have forgotten that most of these issues have already been decided in the courts by judges that were appointed by leaders of their own political party.
However, they will never talk about the real issues that are facing our country. Like “Slave wages” known and “Minimum wage.”
Less people are covered with health care insurance; most companies have gotten rid of their pension plans.
And private pension funds have been raided and allowed to be legally looted by cooperate officers like in Enron.
Their involvement with crooked lobbyist. They enjoy taking money from the American Worker and shelling out to wealthy business men; calling it Economic Development. They are Robin Hood in reverse.
They lied, to get us into a war. They lied about the war. Then blame it on the Liberal New media.
They allowed abuse and inhuman treatment in the war prisons. They with full knowledge have violated the Geneva Convention Treaty on war that we as a nation has signed off as law and promised to uphold. Which is also the law of this land.
They are the ones that were responsible for deregulations of the Saving and Loans which caused that industry collapse which ended up with many of crooked people to become rich without a legal process to go after those crooks, which ended up costing the United States Government over one half a trillion dollars bail out. Did I mention that Neal Bush was involved with that!
Friends this is only the tip of the Iceberg.
For the life of me. I can not see, or understand how a good member of any religious faith belong to, or with, associated with this or endorsement of this “Culture of Corruption” and still have a clear conscience!
To: stop republicans--
Quit labeling people who opposed eminent domain as either Democrats or Republicans.
Both political parties have dedicated persons determined to take over private property from one landowner to give to another private party for so-called redevelopment. And usually with a government subsidy to the party that is getting the seized property.
Being a Democrat or a Republican has nothing to do with this doctrine that has been instilled in most elected officials.
The practice should properly be called League of City-ism. It is anti-constitutionism.
Dan S and Curm,
Yes, Mr. Hall is certainly well -schooled in real estate and municipal law, but my point is that there are other attorneys equally as good as Mr. Hall.
There are so many things going on in Ogden that smack of impropiety, (eg) the MAYOR asking DiCaria to come over and see if he and Jon have been bad boys. Now, that wasn't a smart move, IMHO, but one of disengenuousness by the king of disen....
The investigative office should not be any that even know Godfrey or Greiner! Then no matter what the verdict is we could be satisfied that the investigative office was not in collusion with Godfrey. That does not suggest that Mr. DiCaria wouldn't be above board, but he KNOWS Godfrey and Jon Greiner..am sure he attends the same luncheons, dinners, social functions, etc. Too close to them...and he should have refused the mayor's summons.
For the same reason, Mr. Hall is too close to this administration. He IS the RDA attorney. Just puts on a different hat. I'll concede that he's knowledgable, experienced....
However, just like DiCaria, he's the WRONG man for the job.
I think the Council should go to SLC or even St George and find another smart real estate attorney who does not know Godfrey, Patterson or any street in Ogden. He needs to come in clean and look at the documents and arguments without any bias or knowledge beforehand.
Mr. Hall argued against eminent domain legislation!! RED FLAG.
stop republicans said... I think you had better check the facts. The legislation to rein in eminent domain was led by a R E P U B L I C A N!
Armysarge I like you and respect you.
However, Eminent domain in Ogden City and Weber County was lead by the Republicans. Not one Republican County Commissioner spoke against it; neither did they introduce an ordinance to stop it. Need I remind you it is Republicans that use our tax money to lobbyists so they can continue this corrupt practice?
Thank You for serving our Country. I really do mean that and so do all Democrats!
Linked article moved by Administrator to Main Article
Was anyone able to download Mr. Hall's Eminent Domain brochure from the linked website? I tried twice and received 404's. It would have been interesting to read.
I view the portion of Mr. Hall's duties that involve "working closely" with the City Attorney and Mr. Ellison as being irregular, to say the least. The inference one draws from this is that he will be actively working with them while they are formulating the proposal. And for us to be hiring someone to help an entity bring a proposal to us also implies that we are in favor of that proposal, does it not?
The only official stance that the Council has communicated to the public on this project is one of neutrality, yet having this aforesaid close relationship between these attorneys is not particularly a neutral act.
Whatever could they be doing? Usually in a negotiation, when attorneys from each side meet, it is for the express purpose of having both sides come to an agreement concerning a previously decided course of action. In a merger, for instance, the attorneys get involved when both sides have decided they are amenable to the merger, and the attorneys then get together to hammer out the details, checking constantly with their clients to see what is acceptable and what is not. n our case, there is no previously decided course of action. There has been no official action by this city to move ahead with this project. It is still, as they say, "in the conceptual stages." And while Peterson is still in the process of formulating his proposal, the Council's attorney will be working with Peterson's and we will be paying for it???
I do hope not. When Peterson and his attorney have hammered out a proposal on their own it is more than appropriate for our Council to have an impartial, unbiased attorney who is acting in the Council's best interests to go over it. But I think it highly improper for such an individual to be "working closely" with them during the planning process of this proposal when the action to which it pertains has not been officially approved.
You're a trusting soul, Dan. That much I'll say for you. Well-mannered too.
I'll give you an A-plus for trusting and well-mannered. For street-smarts and common snse you get an F.
Perhaps you haven't noticed. The little Mayor of us all is waging total war on all his own citizens, you included. He intends to have his way with us, regardless of what we want.
He's even quit talking about the "mandate" he supposedly got in 2003, when he beat the clueless pantywaste challenger Garcia.
He's using every dirty trick in the book now. He's going to have his way.
Get out of your ivory tower and show a little common sense. Attorney Hall is an obvious ringer.
I'll ask you. Is Craig Hall the attorney you'd hire to represent the Ogden City Council, if you had any choice in the matter?
Loved the Werner von Braun anecdote by the way. It was a funny distraction. Usually you're a lot more logical though.
I can't find a link to Bill Hansen...what am I supposed to look for? Thank you
how many of you know that mr. hal has few more contract with other cities beside the one with ogden city, he is nothing more than a gold digger and the city council just gave him some more gold.
This is a very sad and dangerous situation for Ogden.
The only defense we have against the voracious ego appetites of the Little Lord and his circle of empty suits is the City Council.
The city council also sits as the board of directors of the RDA. I assume from the press that this new council lawyer has been the Ogden RDA lawyer for some time now.
The RDA is and has been run at the exclusive discretion of its Executive Director. The Executive Director controls all the affairs of the RDA. All the RDA projects are of his chosing. The RDA board merely votes for or against the proposals put before it. They do not thoroughly investigate, analyse or pray over any given issue where millions of dollars of public money are at stake. They have historicaly been a passive rubber stamp for this run away RDA train with the little mad man at the controls. The results has been this incredible string of mega million dollar losers like the American Can Bldg, 25th Street Condo's, law suits, etc.
The RDA Director and his staff, including the attorney, control the RDA and its board of directors through control over all information flowing to or from them. Remember, that board is also the Ogden City Council. The RDA Executive Director and Major Domo pulling the levers behind the curtain is none other than the Littlest Lord Hisself.
If this attorney has any tenure at all on the RDA board then it means that he plays well with the other Godfreyites. It means that he is properly subservient to the Little Lord. It means that he is a TEAM PLAYER for the Godfrey vision.
Now this very same lawyer is hired to represent the only body that stands between us and the squandering of $50 to $100 in public money by this very same Lord that he is a good compliant team member of!
I am sure that this Attorney Hall is a fine upstanding and law abiding guy. I am also sure he is loyal to his clients. BUT, by the very nature of this Gondola Deal enjoying the full and energenic support of Godfrey, the Council and the Mayor are on opposite sides of this goof ball but colossal proposal. Any way you cut it this is an adversarial relationship, or it should be in a healthy city government. (Course in a healthy city government we wouldn't have our Mayor pimping for a developer buddy of his)
This is a blatant example of conflict of interest on the part of this attorney.
How can he possibly be loyal to both sides? The answer is that he can't. This is why the courts are so strick on this very type of situation. If this gondola monster was in a court of law instead of a court of public opinion, this scam would not be allowed.
I believe this lawyer is a ringer put in place by the Little Lord, probably with the full concurance and assistance of a compliant and clueless council. Good people all (With the exception of the Godfreyite Twins), but clueless. Easy prey for people like those in the hiarchy of the Godfreyite movement. This lawyer is the new shephard that will show the council the legal way to let the Little Lord plunder the public treasury to fullfill his grandios dreams of glory and to enrich his buddy.
With this guy guiding the council there is no possible way the council can fullfill its role in a healthy democracy. There is no way they will ever be given the option to be true legislators, fact finders, and protectors of the treasury.
It is clear to me that the citizens of Ogden must come together and defend themselves from this maddness. If we can hold on for fourteen months this horrid and arrogant administration will be history and Ogden can once again emerge from the shadows.
When the history of this whole sorry affair is written 50 years from now, Mr. Hall will be known as the Godfreyites "Trojan Horse" in the great Gondola war.
Are we, the tax payers and citizens of Ogden, going to lose that war?
Anyone with a lick of sense can see the impropiety of having Mr. Hall represent the Council in this Godfrey/Peterson scheme. The guy is too close to the administration and he is not a disinterested party in any way.
Council, stop listening to Cook. Go to St George and hire an impeccably credentialed and experienced real estate attorney who does not know Godfrey, Peterson, Ellison nor has he/she set foot in Ogden!
This way, the citizens do not have to wonder about collusion with the administration and very interested parties to the Peterson Plan.
I can't fathom why Garcia, as Chair, allowed the Council to be snookered once again by THE most interested party..Godfrey himself.
Geez, doesn't anyone in the city bldg ever say.."Hey! This stinks!"??
Just like the mnayor asking DiCaria to check out his and Jon's 'alleged' naughtiness. Puhleeze...there is nothing clean or correct about the mayor's actions. When will this Council smarten up?
DiCaria should have said, "No thanks. Get the UT Att'y Gen'l's office to look into this. We don't want any hint of collusion."
Unless Jon and Matt are found guilty as heck on suppression of free speech, improperly running that plate, etc....most citizens will always believe Matt won at a dirty game.
Now comes Mr. Hall, whom no one is accusing of being dishonest. But, he's the WRONG atty.
This smells worse than the dog food factory on a hot day in an East wind.
Nearly everyone on this site is upset. So, who will speak up at the council meeting? Who will speak up about Chapman? Since we can't vote on important issues, then our only recourse is to email and speak at the podium. I suggest we all do both. And, while you're emailing, encourage Garcia to serve the people's interests by placing comments FIRST on the agenda. To leave comments til last, effectively silences the people.
What a sorry system.
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