By Curmudgeon
SL Trib has a story up on the planned burn of 40 houses in the Leshemville Slum with some interesting detail that bears on some of the discussion on the topic that's appeared here on Weber County Forum:
• Ogden plans to torch dozens of housesFrom the story:
** In mid-June, the state Division of Air Quality (DAQ) signed off on Mathieu’s proposal if asbestos removal happened first....
** However, some physicians are raising serious concerns about what the fires could do to the environment and public health.... Ogden Family Practitioner Peter Clemens... disputed the idea that every bit of asbestos could be removed from the older structures, many built in an era when the cancer-causing material was part of faucets, plumbing and heating ducts.
** Said Brian Moench, president of Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment: “If their intent is to save money by lighting these things on fire, it doesn’t make sense.”
Note: the story contains not a word about Ogden recouping the cost of burning/demolition from the property owners though the SE earlier reported the Administration expected Ogden to recoup the full demolition costs --- eventually --- from them.
Update 8/12/10 5:00 p.m.: The Deseret News is all over this story too, this afternoon:
• Ogden burn plan has some residents, air quality advocates hot under the collar
24 comments:
The Salt Lake Tribune and KSL have done stories about this proposed burn, but where is our local rag's position and fact finding coverage? Nowhere. They have to get Godfrey's okee-dokee before they go out on a limb and inform us all as to the doings of the secretive Ogden administration. Another half a million pissed down the drain that could be done for so much less. I guess that what you get from someone that doesn't know what they're doing down there. Make the check payable to "DUMB ASSES" care of Ogden City.
Read the article. Since when does Godfrey support anything the Ogden Firefighters need or want? He is using them and City resources to bail him and his criminal buddy Gadi out of trouble at the tax payer’s expense.
The show will go on even though the Council has not approved the funding.
And when is the BDO cash cow going to run out, it seems that he has hawked the revenues coming from BDO to the hilt, for items it was not intended for. It was intended for infrastructure.
One other thing. This reminds me of another former Mayor who wnated to have a train wreck in ogden years ago.
Godfrey is a joke and an embarrassment to Ogden.
Waste a waste of money; the whole project from conception to investor-bail out.
And this guy wants how many million more, to start how many new projects, with how many still languishing?
The Standard ran several articles on the "to be burned houses" of Leshemville. Also an editorial. There's no Tribune scoop here, Onewhoknows (not much, apparently).
Can the Council stop the Mayor? The voters tossed out Godfrey antagonist Garcia, Stevenson ran unopposed, and Gouchner won in a landslide, giving Godfrey at least 3 of 7 votes in favor of his initiatives and agenda. Van Hoover seems to be rolling over, Wicks is really silent ever since she turned over the Chair and decided to give County politics a try, and Doug S seems to be the only councilmember who looks at whether or not an issue is good for the people and then votes that way. The Blair kid seems to be sitting on the back burner and not making any waves about anything.
Interesting mix.
Again, it seems that Godfrey has things under control.
Regarding the Gadi & Matthew Godfrey relationship. Gadi is "butch", and Godfrey is his "bitch".
Nuff said.
Any questions?
KSL aired a piece on this last night
Ogden officials disagree on idea to burn abandoned homes
From the DN story:
The Ogden City Council has yet to sign off on the project, which would require the allocation of more than a half-million dollars.
Two things worth noting:
(a) The DN story, like the SLT story, and unlike the earlier SE story, says nothing about city plans to get reimbursed for the costs from the owners of the property.
(b) Some one posted a note on WCF a while back, reporting that crews were already at work on the homes, presumably removing asbestos from the building. If that's so, and the Council has not approved the demolition by any means yet, where's the money coming from for the asbestos removal before the Council allocated funds for it? The original poster asked that question. Seems like a good one to me.
Maybe the SE, which has done more thorough reporting on the funding for the demolitions/burnings than the DN or SLT, could ferret out the answer to that question for its readers.
Curm
Crews are in those houses removing asbestos. I asked is the city paying for this, and I am not happy to note they the Mayors is pushing forward with this even though the Council has not yet bought on.
I have some insider info that the Mayor will do as he pleases and to hell with the Council, rob more money from BDO cash cow to pay for it. But when is the cash cow going to run out, and who’s getting the money from the burning of theses buildings? I know the amount of debris will be considerable less when burned, so why is the price tag only 100 k less than traditional demo?
And will the city be reimbursed?
And will the project be another empty field for years to come as is the first stage that has only one occupant, that being Bingham Bike Shop and a small restaurant.
I don't think the fire department allows the burning of painted wood, especially lead based painted wood, in back yard fire pits.
The houses should be deconstructed.
The Fire Department will do what ever the little Emperor tells them to do, you need to remember that Chief Mathieu is a double dipping at will employee. Who else could dream this crap up but an idiot little man.
Dont get me wrong the Firefighters would love to get some live burn training, but this is nothing more than Godfrey doing his criminal buddy and himself a huge favor at the taxpayers expense.
Meanwhile, Godfrey and the Gang quietly put pieces in place, building precedent and buying support, to bulldoze the bench and build Petersen's McMansions..
For a year or two I've been reading postings on this blog that complain about the vacant structures that make up "Leshemville." I agree, this is a travesty and it should be rectified asap. And now there's a chance to do away with 40 some houses and all I read is negative comments about that. It's damned if they do and damned if they don't.
Does anyone know what the hell they are talking about here? Burn 'em! Tear 'em down! Demolish 'em! Just get rid of these dangerous eyesores and you guys quit your bitching.
The objective is to rid the area of this garbage so knock off all of the gripping that is basically aimed at something Godfrey is planning to do. If the CC listened to you clowns complain, those empty, trashed out, dangerous buildings would be there for years to come. Damn, ya can't have it both ways. Let's get rid of this crap, move on, and get started building out the River Project.
Or is your gripping more important than the REAL issue?
Do Something:
If you've been reading WCF, you haven't been reading it very carefully. That the Leshamville slum is a public hazard and needs to be demolished and removed has been obvious for a long time, and WCF posters have been calling for action to achieve that for a long time, particularly since the SE blew the whistle on the matter in long piece and editorial on the mess well over a year ago.
However, it matters how it is done. There seem to be serious questions about the wisdom of torching the 40 buildings, questions raised by doctors about the public health [regarding the toxicity of the pollution created]. I have to breath that stuff. So does my family. If the doctors' concerns are substantive, this is no small matter. And I'd note that the SE, the SL Trib, the DN and now SL TV news shows are all taking the doctors' claims seriously.
And there's the question of who is, in the end, going to pick up the bill for the demolition, however it's done. Half a million dollars plus ain't chopped liver, as we used to say in the Brooklyn of my youth. If you've been reading WCF, you'll have noticed many posters here, for nearly two years, calling on the city to enforce its property code requirements against the owners of the properties --- Mr. Lesham and his associates. If you or I allowed property to become dangerously run down, and we refused after due notice from the city to take care of the matter, the city would do the work and bill us for it. That has not happened in the case of Friend of Matt Lesham and his associates.
Yes, it all needs to come down, now, though probably not by a mass burning. And yes, the city will have to do it since Mr. Lesham and associates have not, and evidently will not. But it doesn't strike me as pointless naysaying to insist that the property owners, in the end, foot the bill for creating the dangerous mess the city now has to clean up for them. As WCF posters have been asking now for a couple of years.
I think Curm's innocent misspelling of Leshem (Lesham) is brilliant.
I have one suggestion you could break it up and make it even more fitting for the individual holding it- Le Sham
Main Entry: sham
Pronunciation: \ˈsham\
Function: noun
Etymology: perhaps from English dial. sham shame, alteration of English shame
Date: 1677
1 : a trick that deludes : hoax
2 : cheap falseness : hypocrisy
3 : an ornamental covering for a pillow
4 : an imitation or counterfeit purporting to be genuine
5 : a person who shams
Pretty accurate eh?
You may not know this, but Le Sham loves rivers.
Instead of posting trite drivel in the internet, maybe Le Sham should worry about taking care of HIS properties. Namely demolishing the public nuisances on his own dime and without spewing pollutants in the air we breathe.
a va mais qui est tu
Most excellent observation and lesson.
And Kudos to Curm.
This won't be the first time that fire has solved a problem for the Godfreyites. The torch seems to be one of their old stand by's. Where is Scott Brown these days anyway?
Ah, Ah Va Mais and Asthma, I wish I could claim credit for it. But it was, as Ah Va Mais noted, inadvertent. Sigh....
Did we forget that the Mayor used City resources to help Gadi strong arm people into selling the properties in Leshemville, and now the Mayor wants to use city resources to help the criminal out by demolishing those same properties?
you who: you have "insider info that the Mayor will do as he pleases and to hell with the Council?" Where you been? It is public knowledge this is his SOP/MO for quite some time now ...
*****
Bruce Butts: Miri is in charge, Gadi is the whipping boy and Godfrey is holding the leash ...
*****
just sayin
BB
Biker Babe
You just need to trust me, I know from a meeting that was held the other day that I was in attendance, if I reveal my connection, I blow my information highway.
The little Boy-Mayor is finally going down. Facts proving Godfrey is not what he appears to some will surface and stop him in his tracks for a quest of a fourth term. If he was smart, he'd announce his 12 years of tenure is over and soon. The ball's in his court. We will see if his own arrogance and greed for power will prevail and cause his own self-destruction. It's going to be interesting to watch, stay tuned.
"goin down"
I am afraid you might be indulging yourself with such a fanciful wish.
Godfrey isn't going anywhere unless some decent and capable citizen steps forth and throws his or her hat in the ring. Godfrey is a punk for sure, but he is an astute politician who knows how to get elected. (problem is he aint worth jack shit at governing)
He hasn't had a worthy opponent worth a bucket of warm spit in the past elections, and until he does he will most likely get re-elected again.
What I want to know is who will oversee these burnings? Who will make sure Godfrey removes all the asbestos from the homes? Godfrey doesn't give a rat's a$$ about it. I personally think he's already burned down inconvenient structures in Ogden. So this does not surprise me.
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