This morning's Standard-Examiner is a virtual cornucopia of Weber County Forum-relevant material. Four articles caught our attention this a.m.:
Utah real estate is booming, according to this Jeff Demoss headline story, notwithstanding the complete absence of Utah urban gondolas. What a surprise! Perhaps one of our resident Gondola Cult readers will write in, and explain this inexplicable turn of events.
After a three-month vacancy in the Emerald City Human Resources Department directorship office, a very well-qualified replacement has been retained by the city, according to this Scott Schwebke article. Our advice to Ms. Choate: Be sure to peruse Scott Brown's personnel file for your own safety. But whatever you do, don't take it home. Boss Godfrey is just a mite touchy about that; and we wouldn't want to see our new Human Resources Director get burned.
Charlie Trentelman, a true Emerald City journalistic icon, provides a fine Std-Ex column today, reporting on a pleasant and recent dining experience at St. Anne's Shelter. How a genuine humanitarian like Mr. Trentelman stays in the employ of the Standard-Examiner remains a mystery to us. His inability to look down his nose at the unfortunates in our society must surely drive the effete publisher from Sanduskey (and some of the Std-Ex editors) completely nuts.
And for a glimpse of a truly world-class letter to the editor, don't miss this one from Emerald City's own David Smith, who makes the anti-Godfrey case with a remarkable economy of words. A Weber County Forum Tip O' the Hat to Mr. Smith, for boiling down the whole Boss Godfrey problem in a mere six short paragraphs.
Let's hear it, gentle readers.
We eagerly await a flurry of comments from you, under an array of newly-created and clever psuedonyms.
43 comments:
Jeeze Dave, why dontcha tell us how you really feel?
More to the point, why don't you take it to the voters this November and kick Mr. S's butt out of office?
You belong on the council not in the peanut gallery.
Your new lead story, Rudi, is evidence yet again of why Ogdenites ought to subscribe to the home town paper. Ogden needs a thriving home town paper, and however annoyed we may get at the SE over this item, or that coverage, or the other editorial, most of the time it provides good value.
Of course, it would do that, provide good value, if all you got for your half buck was Trentelman's latest column. When I read his this morning, I recall thinking that those volunteers down there at St. Anne's and the people who run the center behind them were a part of Ogden, a facet of the city, that it's very good to be reminded of now and then. People who do the right thing because... well, because it's the right thing to do. With no questions asked, no reward expected beyond knowing they were doing the right thing. Like feeding children who come in because they are hungry, and without asking them if their parents are citizens or have green cards or are the sort of people "we" want in reviving downtown Ogden. "There are hungry people coming in. We're going to feed them. Next question?"
Sometimes, sometimes, I get downright gooey proud of this slightly down-at-the-heels but picking itself up off the canvas again blue collar town I moved to. Reading Trentelman's column this morning was one of those times.
DAVE DAVE HE'S OUR MAN
FOR THE COUNCIL HE'S OUR GUY
DAVE DAVE.. RUN RUN.. WIN YOU CAN
SAY TO BRANDON..GO BYE BYE!
"Choate replaces former Human Resources Manager Dean Martinez, who was fired in December for dishonesty and misappropriation of city records after he took home the confidential personnel file of Business Development Manager Scott Brown."
Shouldn't that be "alleged dishonesty etc..." I thought that Dean Martinez was suing Ogden over this? Once again, the Godfrey party line is presented as proven fact by Scott Schwebke and the SE.
Ogden:
Nice catch. I think you're right. It should have been "alleged." Though I suspect it went in as it did as a result of careless composition by the reporter followed by sloppy copy editing by an editor who should have caught it, rather than as the result of a deliberate news-room policy to slant the story the Administration's way.
An insightful letter, Ogden Citizen's Rights Seem Threatened, was buried in yesterday's Flowers & Darts.
Dangit, Curm! WHY must you always give your two sided, this 'n that take on everything?
The SE editors should know better than to let an "alleged" be omitted from a story.
Please don't stick up for every numbskull you encounter in person or in print!
In response to Rudi's recent poll on who is the most embarrasing mayor in Utah, Rocky -vs- PeeWee, I put forth a "who said the stupid quote" Quiz:
Who Said it:
"Honestly, I think we should just trust our leader in every decision he makes and should just support that, you know, and be faithfull in what happens!"
Was it:
#1 - The Real estate hustler lady to the council about the mayor?
#2 - Brittany Spears about the President and Iraq war?
#3 - Bob and Curt Geiger about the mayor on the all Godfrey all the time channel?
Why it's me, obviously.
WCF enhanced Google result
OL-
Martinez, who was fired in December for what his superiors described as dishonesty and theft of city property.
That is from the Pro-Godfrey SL Trib.
Carl:
Of course they should have caught it. Which is what I said. It was a mistake, an error. A reporter and an editor got careless. The SE publishes in effect nearly a book's worth of text every day. Of course occasional errors will get through. Reporters and editors will miss stuff, as I said. The only point I was making was that it would be wrong [as in "inaccurate"] to attribute nefarious design and evil intent to every error that creeps into the SE news columns.
I read a lot of papers. The SE does not seem to me to have an error rate appreciably different than that of other daily papers. So, they muffed one. But it was, I think, a mistake, not by design.
Why, I've been known to make an error myself now and then. [No, reallly, I have. Honest.]
Well, I'M never wrong....I thot i was, once...but I was mistaken.
Curm: Scott Schwebke has exhibited a pattern of often printing as fact whatever the Godfrey administration tells him. He doesn't do it all the time, and when a reader points it out to him, he usually corrects it next chance he gets. But he does this a lot more often than most reporters, so I think it's safe to conclude that he has a general tendency to be more trusting of the administration (and perhaps other authorities) than a good reporter should. He just isn't in the habit of thinking critically about what the administration tells him, or of inserting words like "allegedly". Moreover, some of the blame for this pattern must fall on whoever edits his articles.
I agree that overall, the error rate of the Standard-Examiner isn't much different from that of other daily papers. That's because the bad habits of particular reporters get lost in the noise when you look at the paper as a whole. As for the overall length of what the S-E publishes every day, if you take out what they don't write themselves (AP articles, syndicated columns, advertisements), there's not a lot left. I've often been tempted to count words and compare the total amount of material (broken down by type) in the S-E to other papers like the Trib. I don't think the S-E would come out looking too good in such a comparison.
Dan:
I would not argue with your conclusion that Mr. Schwebke accepts "information" from authority more uncritically than he should. His reluctance to question authority, his lack of curiousity with respect to pronouncements from those in authority, is something I've criticized here on numerous occasions. I suspect, though, that it would be the same if the Mayor were not Matthew Godfrey. It would be the same regardless of who was Mayor. And so I don't see in his tendency a bias in favor of Godfrey's POV particularly. And, as I noted above, on the gaffe today, the editor dropped the ball as well.
As for the percentage of original text vs wire service text in the SE: interesting question. Maybe after the term is over I'll haul out the ruler and measure the column inches in each category over a couple of issues and see how it comes out.
Curm.
Hath not the Mayor in excange for ther old 600k building blessed SE with a several million doller building at BDO ?.
1-900- "DA" This is one of the reasons you see them giving away SE at the supper markets. When offerd to recive a free coppy of the SE it is "alleged" 99% say NO THANKS.
Vote Neil Hansen for Mayor.
The reason us cops can't earn a reasonable living is; because of politicians like Godfrey. Shelling out our hard earned tax dollars to his rich business buddies and all these so called, "consultants.” Which in reality are fired cronies of his administration. Its time to get a government that supports cops.
I know Neil Hansen and seen his support in action. He's our man for Mayor.
Mini-report on last nights Council meeting." The Amen chorus line misses cue." Last night had to be one of the shortest Council meetings in recent memory. Prior to the start, I had noticed Curt Geiger greeting a few people as they entered the room, I knew these were this weeks designated hitters, ready to continue the orchestrated march to the podium, sing the praises of the Mayor, and plug the gondola. As the meeting proceeded I observed groups of them engaged in conversations, paying little, if any, attention to the proceedings. When the public comment time was called as per the agenda,which I noticed most had in thier hands, nobody moved, so the agenda just continued on. Before they knew it, the meeting was over in record time. One group of them sitting directly in front of me that contained Sue Wilkerson, were very upset and wondering what happened to the public comment portion, I informed them that it had been called,and when nobody approached the podium, they moved on. Oh the outrage, Sue Wilkerson had tizzy going, I could not hold back, infact I chuckled all the way home. Still brings humor this morning.
Bill C:
Thanks. Shortest Council meeting on record, or almost, and I missed it. Damn. My timing never was that good.
So Ms. Wilkerson was there to testify yet again to the virtues of making public policy without facts on the basis of blind faith? And Choirmaster C. Geiger was there to conduct the chorus, yet again? Doubtless, Mr. Spain had kept his promise and sent an emissary from Provident Partners to say over again what he'd said the previous week. Presumably someone other than Ms. Wilkerson, who is also associated as a realtor with Provident Partners, or so the public record suggests.
I have to wonder: is turning the Public Comments time at Council meetings into a Campaign Speeches Venue for Mayor Godfrey a wise and prudent use of the Council's time? Somehow, I doubt it. Particularly if the same realtors send representatives from the same companies to say the same things to the Council in public comment again and again and again.
Other than extending already long Council meetings most weeks so that they are even longer, I'm hard put to see the point, unless it's to try by repetition [same message, same singers singing the same songs from the Godfrey/Geiger/Gondola Songbook] to create the impression of a tidal wave of public support for the Mayor's [and Mr. Peterson's] "vision"... whatever that might be at the moment. Neither of them is talking.
Groups representing people with different ideas about Ogden's future, people who don't think "blind faith" in the absence of "all the facts" is a sound basis on which to make public policy decisions, could send orchestrated teams of speakers to repeat a different message for the Council each week over and over. But I see little point to doing that... unless it begins to look like Council members are taking the weekly performances of the Ogden Realtors Benevolent Association and Absentee Owners Promotional Group Lip Synching Chorus as indicators of broad public opinion. In which case the rest of us will, I suppose, have to start sending teams of non-Realtors who don't think buying Ogden homes to sell to absentee landords in other states is something the Council should encourage, who think having all the facts and acting after due deliberation on the evidence is the right model for a Council to follow instead of "blind faith" gambling with public revenues, public land and the public trust. But I hope that won't be necessary.
And I hope the LO Amen Chorus will realize that Public Comment time at Council meetings should not be used as a platform for campaign speeches.
But we shall see....
It's almost Easter. I wonder if Herr Godfrey will ask the Amen Choir to gather his followers into the ampitheater for their rendition of the Hallelujah Chorus?
Curm (re Standard-Examiner): I never meaned to imply that Schwebke or his editors are especially biased in favor of this particular mayor and his administration. I strongly suspect that the bias is in favor of all authority figures (and against the lumpencitizens).
To do a fair comparison of the Standard-Examiner to other papers, I think it would be best to sum up article lengths over a whole week's worth of issues. Not a huge project, but enough trouble that I've never bothered. Go for it, Curm!
Bill: Thanks for the report on the Council meeting. I note that the Council approved the hearing for April 10 on the rezone of Lesham's property, and that Montgomery claims he has no knowledge of any intent to make this a redevelopment area. Let's keep an eye on this one.
Does anybody else find it ironic that Ms. Wilkerson has touted the fact that her neighborhood (Jefferson Avenue Historic District area) has gone from 90% renter-occupied housing to 90% owner-occupied, and that it is a marvelous thing (which it is). Yet, she and others are out there selling homes in Ogden's nice neighborhoods to out-of-towners so they can be turned into renter-occupied properties. To me, this is just more of the non-sense. Yet, it does and will have a lasting negative impact on Ogden's neighborhoods.
Thanks for the mini-report, Bill. Once again, the Amen Chorus pays attention only to its own agenda.
And an aside to Dan:
I think you nailed it. The Std-Ex is not so much fixated on the wonderfulness of Boss Godfrey in particular. Rather it is predisposed to favor strong executives in government, and to disfavor the checks and balances designed into the American political system by strong legislatures, and activist citizens.
In addition, Standard-Examiner policy is reputed within the newspaper industry to be excessively responsive to its advertizers. The bean-counters call the shots at the Std-Ex. Thus the demonstrated tendency to avoid controversial editorial stands, and to avoid rocking the boat.
G-Train Wilkerson -- such an erudite, well-spoken, intelligent and articulate gondola freak -- is full of it. Her block on Jefferson between 25th and 26th, east and west, may now be 90% owner-occupied, but the entire "neighborhood" is still well weighted toward the renter majority. And these Arizona real estate speculation clowns are ruining the east bench: every property that's taken from single-family ownership to out-of-state-owned income property desperately hurts our neighborhood. Provident bought up two very nice homes near me after being on the market less than a week.
And, after reading the Trib piece about Descente, I have the following to offer relative to the "eloquence" of Curt Geiger:
THE SKI IS BEAUTIFUL BLUE.
Rudi: I would add that I don't think the bias we're discussing applies to every reporter at the Standard-Examiner. Unfortunately, some of the best that they've had (John Wright and Cathy McKitrick) are now gone. I had some interesting conversations with Wright before he left. He was savvy enough to see through Godfrey after only a short time on the beat, and from then on he treated just about every claim with the appropriate skepticism. (I hasten to add that based on what he told me, his departure from the Ogden City beat was a personal decision, not one from higher up.) McKitrick went further, and did extended articles on things like the impacts of the proposed River Project on the citizens. Those were the days...
Do not trust Montgomery or the Mayor.
The area on Wall Avenue just South and to the West of this new rezoning proposal was zoned manufacturing, too, until Ogden wanted to use eminent domain to seize it for the Wal-mart fiasco.
This area does not have to be rezoned to keep salvage companies from coming back to Wall Avenue which is what Montgomery is saying.
Ogden can just deny a business license like they do everybody else that Ogden considers "unfit" for the Mayor's master plan for the elite.
Just to keep the record current,
my request for financials and 990 tax returns submitted to John Patterson as the Registered Agent for the Ogden Community Foundation is still being stonewalled.
He no longer deals directly with me. He had his secretary call that he had turned my request over to his board.
This board is himself, Chair Mark
Johnson, Mayor Matt Godfrey. Bank of Utah Frank Browning, and David Harmer.
The mailing address of the Ogden Community Foundation is the Mayor's office but their position is that they are not a part of Ogden City government so that they do not have to respond to GRAMA requests.
Since the Riverside Technology Foundation (Da Vinci School) deeded their American Can property to the Ogden Community Foundation at the end of 2006 to be the Foundation supposedly selling the School property I guess I might also be hesitant for the facts to come out for the public.
Someone needs to do a research paper on the Da Vinci School property:
(Weber County Recorder Abstract of Title serial Number 03-040-0004)
(Prior Serial Number 03-016-0017)
since the abstract shows that the owner is now the defunct Ameriquest
Mortgage Securities, Inc., a sub-prime lender, of Orange, CA.
My question is why hasn't the Governor's Office on Economic Development recovered the $900,000.00 grant given by Utah IAF to Ogden for the purchase of the American Can Building?
I have read the terms of that grant very carefully.
Ogden has been in violation since December 2004 but the Office of Economic Development has looked the other way.
Could it be because David Harmer signed the grant for the State of Utah in 2004 but he is presently on Ogden's RDA payroll as a high paid employee?
I am also incensed that the Governor's Office of Economic Development awarded $8 million in tax-rebate incentives to the Amer Sports for relocating to Ogden.
Amer Sports is not creating hundreds of jobs. Present plans are for the creation of 120 to 130 jobs in Ogden with a few at a repair center at BDO.
Amer Sports is not buying anything in Ogden. They are supposedly going to rent space in the old American Can Building which has now been sold to a Steamboat Springs developer.
Ogden's RDA agenda never changes but the debts just keep getting bigger and bigger.
Way to go David Smith! I just reread the letter you wrote, way to hit it right on.
Also, A little bit off topic, but here is some transit related information that the American Planning Association just sent to me via email (in regards to a couple of bills that are being explored by Congress). Transit ridership topped 10 billion trips per year for the first time in 49 years and public transit use is up 30 percent since 1995. That's more than double the growth rate of the U.S. population (12 percent) and higher than the growth rate for vehicle miles traveled on U.S. roads (24 percent) during that same period.
After riding the bus for the past couple of years I would say that the trend is similar in Weber County and Utah in general. Is there any movement with the streetcar option in Ogden? Is it on Ogden's radar, is it currently being explored/pursued? Anybody know?
Jill:
Certainly isn't being explored, pursued by the Mayor's office, which seems still to be trying to shift transit funding to a Washington Blvd corridor rather than the downtown to WSU/McKay Dee "trolley" corridor the Wasatch Front Regional Council study recommended. That downtown WSU/McKay Dee Corridor, of course, pretty much duplicates the route Hizzonah wants reserved for the 35 to 50 million dollar city built and owned non-transit tourist ride the Mayor wants there instead. [The Mayor no longer even pretends the gondola is a mass transit project, at least not in public, nor did the OGden-Weber Chamber of Commerce in its transportation presentation to the City Council some weeks ago.]
The Planning Commission endorsed the downtown/WSU trolley corridor two years ago, but the Mayor has sat on the recommendation ever since, trying it seems to protect the route for his tourist ride.
I appreciate the things said in my regard here today, and I’d like to make a few comments.
First, while I appreciate the many who have encouraged me to run for city council or for mayor, I will not be able to do so. It’s important to recognize that, because we have many good people who indeed can run. For reasons not worth getting into now, I feel it’s safe to say that the seats currently held by Rick Saften and Brandon Stephenson are wide open. So if you live in either of those areas (see map info below) and have ever thought about running, now is the time! You’ll never have a better chance, and you’ll never be more appreciated for doing so.
Remember that Rick Saftsen is Ward 4 (SE Ogden) and Brandon Stephenson is Ward 2 (Northern Ogden). If you live in these areas and would like to serve on the council (and it’s a paying position) now is the time to run. These two seats are the best bets for new candidates. The other seats already have good incumbents as far as I know.
To see a map of the municipal wards, click on he following link. Especially note if you are in Ward 2 or 4 and can therefore run!
Municipal Wards Map
Second, while this WCF blog provides a service so great that one hesitates to ask for more, here I go: I wonder if you could post a link to the city map above on your front page with a continuous banner requesting candidates for these two openings (as well as mayor if you choose.) It would be so much better to simply have good people on the council who can be trusted, than to have to monitor and attend council meetings as we have to do now. This blog could serve as a tool to find and support those candidates. Securing good council members and a good mayor are far better than the sum total of all other efforts we might seek to undertake for the good of our favorite city.
I'm sorry to commit the sin of threadjacking,but I just returned from the city recorders office with some interesting information. Apparently there is one more meeting we must start watching closely, the mayora administrative review meeting. I have a copy of the agenda,the item is a $2,000,000.00 HUD loan with a lien on the new Munincipal Justice Court Building. Rec Center running way over budget? Where was the news story?How far over budget can this thing go? Funny with all the mayorial enthusiasm going around this got missed.
With R&O having an open ended, non bid, contract there is no such thing as going over budget.
Neither contract with R&O or Boyer gives either one any incentive to save the tax payers of Ogden any money.
These contracts are very one sided and gives every advantage to the companies to the detriment of the citizens.
These one way contracts were negotiated on our behalf by our fabulous Development staff and their brilliant leader. Names of shame associated with these disasterous contracts are: Godfrey, Reid, Harmer, Brown and Paterson. Thanks a lot guys.
Bill C.
Let me make sure I understand this right: Ogden City is trying to mortgage the new Justice Court building to HUD to raise another $2,000,000 for the rec center development? Has this happened yet? Have we in fact mortgaged a city court building to build a wind tunnel? Or is this something that is in the works and has not yet happened? I'm a little shaky on the time frame.
What's a Mayor's Administrative Review meeting? Is it a public meeting or one in executive session? Anyone know?
What's the difference in extolling the Mayor's virtues during Public Comments and berating him during Public Comments? Ya can't have it both ways. If Geigers want to lead the praise, why not. Beech and her gang sure do lead the criticism.
And Dave Smith CAN'T run for the CC? Bull....he just doesn't want to. And Bill C. doesn't live here, so that leaves him out. I think both Brandon and Rick are safe bets to retaqin their seats but the At-large might go another way.
Curm, my understanding is that it has been done, wind tunnels would be concidered the most valuable component of little matt'y monument to his ego (you recall, no developer would buy the property and build a rec center,too risky). The mayors administrative review meeting, is open to the public,held once a month,unless a special circumstance exists,the case with this issue. It is not subject to the same open meetings requirements,on the document I have the only reference to posting,or announcement requirement is, notice must be posted in two places within the city limits.(NICE) There are no 24 hr. notice provisions,or any of the requirements contained in the open meetings laws. Thats how the lady at the recorders office explained it. Might add that she said nobody has ever inquired before.
Reader, I must have been posting while you were, thank you for the inspiration, as you can see,I have been pretty busy since our last discourse. Nice to hear from you.
Don't get out much, do you reader?
You plainly exist in the Boss Godfrey echo chamber.
Boss Godfrey is a dead man walking, politically.
And Safsten and Stephenson are also history.
It doesn't matter how many $100s of thousands these twerps raise for the next election.
They're deader than a doornail, just like Burdett,Larsen, Mosher and Jorgensen the last go round.
There's too much baggage to bear for Godfrey and his gophers now.
The people of Ogden will drain the swamp in November.
Reader, regarding your post, won'it be funny when the number of campain volunteers (from outside and within the city) Quadruples the voter turn out. I have promised an army of volunteers to candidates that support our position. I hope you don't think like Custer.
Reader:
The difference is this. Mr. Spain and the LO Chorus have made it plain they intend to have representatives, several of them, testifying at every Council Session in public comments. Mr. Spain said he'd have someone from his office at every meeting to extol the Mayor's vision. Orchestrated, repetitive testimony by representatives of the same companies, sometimes the same people, week after week.
Not, you will note, to testify on anything before the Council [No Peterson Proposal in sight, no gondola proposals in sight.] Just to extol the Mayor's vision, whatever it might be at the moment. He's not saying, nor is Mr. Peterson.
As I recall from the meetings I've been at, Ms. Beech, when she speaks, and she does not all the time, speaks to a matter before the council or about to come before it, or she asks action on something from the city. It's not generic Godfrey bashing, while the testimony of Ms. Wilkerson and Mr. Spain and Co. was generic Godfrey praising.
Hey, they're free to do it, week after week week, if they like. But it seems to me to be a waste of the Council's time. The idea that C. Geiger and company need the public comment segment to parade people who think their way before the Mayor and Council in order to be heard is laughable. Geiger and Co. practically live in the Mayor's office already. So it seems to me all this amounts to is campaign rhetoric, stumping for the Mayor, same people, same song, over and over. If that's what they want to do, they're free to do it. I think it serves little purpose.
But if Mr. Spain of Provident Partners wants to delegate one of his employees to visit the Council every week and testify in favor of increasing the number of absentee landords in Ogden's established single family owner-occupied neighborhoods in the name of supporting Mayor Godfrey's "vision," he's perfectly free to do so. Wouldn't dream of trying to convince him to stop.
I find it humorous that "Reader" lamely attempts to make hay of the fact that Bill C. doesn't live in Ogden.
I suppose the same dismissal of opinions could be made of all the Letters to the Editor extolling Godfrey's divine vision from residents of South Weber.
Bill supports Ogden in many ways. You won't meet a more stand-up guy. I'm proud to know him. And and at opposing sides of a battle where logic and reasoning prevail, Reader I'm afraid, as they say, you've brought a (dull) butterknife to a gunfight.
(Curm, please excuse my use of violent imagery to illustrate my point.)
Reader sounds a lot like Rupert the 'Producer' without the fairy overtones.
Could be those with the initials BG? Or Prissy? The faded redhead?
Who knows for sure what is coming out of the woodwork for Godfrey.
It will be hard to the geigers to run a campaign when the canidate is staying at the crow-bar hotel.
Take a look at these cartoon collections, one from Bob Geiger, of all people.
The Left Coaster
Residents of the Mt. Ogden Community:
The current draft of the Mt. Ogden Community Plan is posted here. Please read it and submit your comments to the Planning Commission, or attend the hearing this coming Wednesday, April 4.
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