In our never ending effort to keep our readers abreast of interesting public Emerald City events, we highlight this morning's Standard-Examiner story, providing info on today's Tea Party protests, which are set for three Utah locations, including Ogden. Here's the lede:
OGDEN -- Utahns upset with excessive government spending, massive bailouts and high taxes plan to come out in force today to protest.For those readers who'd like to check out the Ogden event, here are the particulars:
Thousands of so-called "Tea Party" events have been scheduled around the nation, with most planned by members of the Libertarian Party.
Several will also be held throughout Utah, including Ogden.
The demonstrations are a play on the Boston Tea Party protest in 1773, when Americans tossed loads of tea into Boston Harbor to protest the British tax on imported tea.
Jason Hodge, who helped organize the Ogden event, said he hopes Utahns of all political affiliations will attend.
The scheduling of the Ogden event on the City Hall south lawn seems particularly propitious to us. We urge everyone to attend, pitchforks and torches in hand, to shake your fists at the big spenders in the Municipal Building ninth floor throne room. It's not that we're urging the hijacking of Mr. Hodge's event, but clearly the lumpencitizens of Emerald City have a very special case to plead.Any readers who attend this event are of course invited to report back here.
12 comments:
Well, sometime during the course of the day yesterday, the new City website went up. My first impression is it's a new marketing tool for Gary Neilson.
I was relieved to find that we're not as of yet advertizing a velodrome.
It was rather odd that many activities outside of town are highlighted and have their own link, but other City owned amenities like golf courses and tennis are clumped together and much harder to negotiate.
Well, Jeez, Bill, if you make Ogden City golf courses easy to find on the website, more people might come in from out of town to play them. Can't have that, now, can we?
Welcome to the New Ogden City Website!
A good, timely example of reckless spending is the planned 1.25 million gallon water tank above the Bonneville shoreline in the vicinity of Strong's Canyon. This tank is not needed to serve any existing customers but might be needed for new development of the east bench in the indeterminate future.
In this case it's not taxes, though. It's the higher water rates we're all paying. My total Ogden City utility bill is now approximately twice what it was when Godfrey took office.
If you work it out, each current Ogden City water customer will pay about $50 (on average) for this new water tank.
Dan:
Agreed.
Here's what I was thinking to myself as I ran along the (hopefully temporary) ruins of the former Mt Ogden Exercise Trail on Monday.
Was the 36th Street tank recommended by the Water Horizons consultants?
If not, then why did Ogden City waste money on a report which was not to be followed?
Looking back at the Water Horizons information published by the City Council, there is NO mention of a 36th street water tank. However, 46th street is definitely mentioned.
City Council - I realize it's too late to stop this travesty, but how about taking the funding out of the Mayor's budget and getting the City to work on the 46th street tank and improvements.
Ogden Lover, lying little matty was, in porker terms, declaring himself all in, with the water tank switcharoo. The big convergance so to speak.
The mandate to the skipper and the handpicked golf course committee to move the clubhouse which would require a complete redesign of the course and facilitate condos and the hotel which consultants doing the feasability study were told would be the base of a gondola currently going thru approval. The last little element would be, for those that went to the streetcar meetings, the proposed routing up 36th and around skyline dr. No wonder there were no minutes of the first stake holder meeting available. They were probably told that hotel, condos, resort golf course and a gondola were all under approval and that they needed to consider this into their research. They were probably shown the work taking place on the water project to emphasize the deception.
Just a thought.
Bill,
I attended today's stakeholder meeting (except for the first half hour or so) and I'm pleased to report that there was no mention of the proposed condos and hotel at the top of 36th. It's true that the long list of possible alignments does include an option that goes up 36th and around the WSU campus. But today they reviewed the criteria for screening and narrowing the range of alternatives, and based on those criteria, I think it's unlikely that this long loop around campus will survive--due to its high cost and increased travel time. One of the criteria is the number of high-density "activity centers" served. The consultant read off a pretty long list of existing activity centers and asked participants to add others to the list, but again, nobody mentioned the proposed development above 36th.
In general, I would say this process is going pretty well so far. It sounds like the consultants will give fair consideration to all the alternatives on this first pass. The various stakeholders, of course, will have their differing opinions and prejudices. It's clear that UDOT is unhappy about the prospect of having dedicated lanes for transit on their highways, but they grudgingly conceded that the problems can be solved and there are no fatal flaws.
In another two weeks we should know a lot more about how the alignment alternatives are stacking up against the evaluation criteria.
Dan:
What if there's another "typographical error" and the construction plans for the streetcar specify "36th Street" instead of "26th Street" and they misspell "streetcar" as "gondola"?
It could happen.
So did anyone else gag reading Mayor Godfreys' comments at the Tea Party in the Standard Examiner this am? Talk about the pot calling the kettle black! Among them "I join with you in the plea for responsible government" How about starting in your own nest Mayor G.
Follow-up on Mar. 28 post. General Growth Properties Inc. (owner of Newgate Mall) filed for bankruptcy. Article in today's Salt Lake Tribune.
Republicans have been tea bagging us in this state for over 28 years.
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