Dumkes Interested In Green Development

Yesterday developer Andy Dumke sent this encouraging email to Paul Esslinger and me:

Hey guys –

I think you both had some valid concerns that I am in the process of addressing.

1. I have asked Shopko this morning for a sworn affidavit that there are no kick-outs or early termination rights in their Koeller Street lease.

2 I am working with the architect to see what it would take to make this a Lead certified building as well as researching what Energy Star Compliant all entails. I would love to build the office buildings, apartments/condos in a Lead program as well. I may have more control over those building than the Shopko project but I will try. As I find out more details I will keep you informed.

3. If there are other concerns that come up on either project along the way feel free to let me know as they are things I may not be thinking of myself. I still have some control until the lease is actually signed with Shopko so please come forward sooner than later on Shopko issues.

_____
If any T2T readers have any advice as to the request for concerns in item #3, please let me know ASAP (235-1116 or tony@tonypalmeri.com or this blog space)

In response to #2, I did provide Andy with information about the Wisconsin Green Building Alliance and how to reach its Executive Director Susan Loomans. I hope the Dumkes do make a sincere and rigorous effort to build green. Heck, it would save them money in the long run.

I'm thankful that the Dumkes are receptive to feedback, but what's very discouraging and extremely frustrating is the fact that the majority of our council and our development staff does not seem to understand and/or appreciate that green building and other items (e.g., length of assistance, amount of tax deferral, etc.) can and should be negotiated before a council says yes to a TIF. The city of Madison actually has a TIF Coordinator (Joe Gromacki) whose major job is to negotiate TIF terms. Take a look at his presentation in Milwaukee on TIF case studies to get a glimpse at how Madison approaches TIF--notice especially the active negotiation that goes on to get a better deal for the taxpayers. Quite the contrast with the way we handle TIF negotiations here; which is to say there really aren't any meaningful negotiations that take place.

So it's great that the Dumkes are open to suggestions and I hope we get a better development as a result. But it is too bad that we are reduced to hope (the faith based development model again) that the developers do these things rather than mandate them as an element of negotiation. We CAN do the latter. Yes, we can.

Wisconsin Ave. Bridge Opening Nov. 6

From the Wisconsin DOT

For more information, contact:

Kim Rudat, Regional Communications Manager

kim.rudat@dot.state.wi.us, (920) 492-5743

Wisconsin Avenue bridge opening November 6

(Green Bay) (Green Bay) The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) NE Region office at Green Bay is announcing the Wisconsin Street bridge in Oshkosh Is tentatively scheduled to be open by the end of the day on Thursday, November 6.

Additionally, the new center lanes of Ohio Street are also scheduled to be open in mid- November. The outside lanes will then open following the completion of finishing work on the adjacent sidewalk and landscaping. All the work is weather dependant.

The $23 million project, begun in September 2006, replaces the current Wisconsin Street span with a four-lane lift bridge with pedestrian and bicycle access.

Larry the Cable Guy Development

To no one's surprise, the City Council last night approved the "transfer" of the Waterfront project from Akcess to Oshkosh River Development. At the one "public forum" held after Akcess backed out, lots of sharp questions were raised about the development. No serious alternatives to office buildings were presented or even allowed to be discussed in a meaningful way, and the response to all dissent has been that we simply need to "get something done." Apparently we need to get something done because prior councils and administrations managed to get us in a $6 million hole that will start to come due in 2010 or thereabouts. The hole could reach $10 million.

When I ran for office I said that a problem around here is our "faith based" model of economic development. That is, for example, we can get into a $6 million hole on the assumption (i.e. faith) that developers not only will gleefully propose projects to help us fill that hole, but that the public will also like and/or have use for what they propose. Even when the public makes it clear that they don't want river office space, have no use for river office space, would prefer to see a strategy for filling the swath of empty office space we already have, and want more citizen supported development on the river--we (i.e. the Council and administration) continue to insist that office space is what they DO want.

Mr. Rohloff has been quite clear in explaining this phenomenon. Even though the public might not clearly want or have a need for a project, we need to "get something done." Apparently that is what people are telling him. This is in huge contrast to what I hear in town; people want to know how we got $6 million--potentially $10 million-- in the hole and yet no one has been held accountable.

All I've asked for is a genuine, honest attempt to find out what the public will support and get excited about as regards waterfront development. Even the LDR consultants from earlier this decade argued that redevelopment projects can only succeed if the public is engaged and brought on board at the beginning of projects.

So what we're left with is the Larry the Cable Guy model of development. It doesn't really matter if projects are supported, and we have no responsibity to investigate alternatives. Rather, we just need to "Git er done!!!" We CAN do better than this, and it DOESN'T have to be this way.

Joint Meeting Of Sustainability Focused Groups

The Energy Coalition For A Sustainable Fox Valley (ECOS-FV) "is a coalition of non-profit organizations, businesses, governments and citizens that plans with and advocates for the Fox Valley region, for a future that is locally self-reliant and that sustains the regional and global environment." From the Coalition's latest blog post, announcing a Nov. 6 joint meeting of sustainability focused groups in the Valley:

Invitations have been extended to 14 sustainability groups and their membership located from Green Bay to Fond Du Lac, including Formal City Boards, as well as Professional and Citizen Centered Groups.

This Meeting is free and open to the public

Co-hosts: UW-Fox Valley and ECOS-FV
Where: UW-Fox Valley, room 1346
When: November 6th, 2008
Time: 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM

Purpose of Meeting

As organizations focused on sustainability here in the Valley, this joint gathering is being held to help us to better understand the goals of each organization and determine where we can work together in mutual benefit! For the public at large, this meeting is an opportunity to learn more about the activities of the broad movement that exists here in the Fox Valley.

Each organization will provide a 5 minute introduction of their group's sustainability mission, membership, meeting location, as well as their current and projected activities.

The rest of the meeting will be used for a guided general discussion about opportunities and questions that the assembled group may develop from what they hear and see.

This meeting is being held in lieu of our normal November ECOS meeting at the Menasha Public Library!

We hope to see you there! Please feel free to contact either Joy Perry (UW- Fox Valley @ joy.perry@uwc.edu and 920-832-2653), or Roger Kanitz (ECOS- FV @ rkanitz@new.rr.com and 920-722-6438)

Sustainably Yours... Joy Perry (UW-Fox Valley) and Roger Kanitz (ECOS-FV)
_
Oshkosh City Councilors won't be able to attend that meeting due to a city budget workshop being held at the same time, but I do hope some of the Energy & Advisory Board members can attend.

Ron H. on sustainability and the new north side school

Ron Hardy, member of the Environment and Energy Board, has an excellent blog today on the Northwestern site concerning plans for a new north side school. The piece can also be found at the Main St. Oshkosh site.

The piece identifies the four sustainability planks of the "Natural Step" program:
1. Use less fossil fuels
2. Use less chemicals
3. Preserve existing green space and eco-systems
4. People should be able to meet their needs

Applied to the proposal to build a new school on Ryf Road, Ron concludes:

"Although a new elementary school could be built at this location with the latest in environmental building technology, passive solar power, geothermal heating, LEED certification and more, the location of the school fails every sustainability test. "

I think Ron would make an excellent school board candidate.

"You feel violated and attacked. You take it personally"

By far the highlight of Tuesday's City Council meeting was Near East Neighborhood resident Linda Harvot's citizen statement. Scroll to the 51 minute mark of the meeting to see it. Ms. Harvot is a life long resident of Oshkosh who, with her husband, purchased the east side home from her parents 14 years ago. The parents had lived there for more than 40 years.

Ms. Harvot describes how her original excitement for the near east plan was removed as she experienced what is described in the speech as a very citizen unfriendly method of implementation. She asked us to imagine what it would feel like if we got a letter and pictures of our home, with warnings of possible daily fines if suggested repairs aren't made. She said "you feel violated and attacked. You take it personally."

Here's a quote from the speech that I plan to share with my students:

"When you're in fear and when you're frustrated, you have two choices: you can either be paralyzed, or you can be propelled to make a difference. And I feel propelled to make a difference so that other people hearing me tonight might be inspired to come forward and speak out."

Neighborhood revitalization is too important to be undermined by perceived acts of disrespect and bullying from municipal officials. At the September 11 meeting of the Council, Mayor Tower said that he would be working with staff on a revamped citizen task force or steering committee idea to determine what has and has not worked with the near east plan. Let's hope that the end result is,at the least, to make the implementation more citizen friendly.

Seeking Opinions On Three Items

Well, it looks like the Plan Commission is okay with a Shopko TIF and they don't want Near East Neighborhood citizens to have the ability to appeal to the Common Council on a building plan denial. Tonight there will be a forum at the Senior Center on riverfront development. I'm seeking citizen input on three items:

1. Do you support the idea of a TIF for Shopko?

2. Do you believe Near East neighborhood citizens should have the right to appeal to the Common Council in the event of a building plan denial at the Plan Commission?

3. Should the Common Council accept the Dumke proposal for the waterfront?

You can post opinions here, email me at tpalmeri@ci.oshkosh.wi.us or tony@tonypalmeri.com or call me at 920-235-1116. Note: Anonymous, hostile comments really are not helpful to anyone.

Obama, McCain and Role Reversal

First, it's now become crystal clear that absent any third party participation in the presidential debates, what we're left with is a snooze fest that does little more than repeat back stump speech platitudes. The one exception last night was McCain's proposal to have the feds purchase mortgages, something that would be blaring across the front pages of the corporate media today if Obama had called for it.

Having said all of that, the dominant feeling I get when watching McCain v. Obama is one of role reversal. Given McCain's age and life experience, you'd think that he would be the calm, measured, "wise" candidate. You'd think Obama, youthful and insecure about lack of experience, would be intimidated by his older, wiser opponent and overcompensate with a tense, rapid delivery filled with excess schmoozing and deference.

Instead we are seeing just the opposite. Obama the 47 year old is coming off as the calm, wise, nuanced candidate while McCain often appears as if he is trying to impress the prom judges with energy bursts. Maybe that's been Palin's influence on him. Or maybe he's sensitive to critiques about his age and is trying to overcompensate with excess walking around the stage. Who knows. It's kind of fascinating to watch. If I were advising McCain I'd tell him to "chill out" in the last debate.

If the election this year does turn on the issue of who has the best temperament to lead us through these troubled times, I don't see how Obama can lose. But we are still in the Rove era, and so by November 4th it is conceivable that the election will have nothing to do with temperament.

Right On Andrew

This Andrew Sullivan blog post should be published verbatim in the editorial pages of every American newspaper tomorrow morning:

Until governor Sarah Palin gives a full press conference, it seems to me that the cable news outlets should stop running her stump speeches in full on television. The deal is: candidates get to broadcast their message if the press get to question them thoroughly. That's how real democracy works - give and take. What the Palin-McCain campaign wants is all give and no take: an indirect propaganda filter and the outrageous precedent of no press conferences in presidential campaigns. This is an assault on democracy. It is closer to Russian or Georgian democracy than American. If cable news continues to enable this chilling process, they will become complicit.

Enough.

Blue v. White Collar Compensation

Today I learned in the paper that John Fitzpatrick will get a 6.3% salary increase (from $101,116.34 to $107,527.94) as he becomes assistant city manager. Nothing against John, who is a good guy and valuable member of city staff, but it's interesting to place these kinds of white collar raises in the context of how we handle represented city workers' compensation.

Last year a majority of the common council voted to go to arbitration with the city's unions (except for the police, who had already settled with the city) even though there was a minor difference between what the city was offering and what the unions were asking for. I believe the city was offering the unions 2.75% wage increases for 2008 and 2009 in return for higher health insurance premiums. If I recall correctly, the unions were willing to settle for lower raises in return for keeping the insurance premiums low. The city's offer, if I recall correctly, would have meant lower take-home pay.

The city lost all arbitration hearings except for the one involving the firefighters union. Instead of using city staff to negotiate contracts, the city contracted out for a negotiator. The city ended up spending over $190,000 for this service.

Mr. Fitzpatrick certainly deserves higher compensation for taking on additional work. I don't think anyone would disagree with that. On the other hand, 6.3% administrative raises make it very difficult for the city to credibly ask represented workers to settle for miniscule or no increases in salary or benefits even in these tough economic times. Indeed, I found it ironic, watching Eye on Oshkosh last night, to hear Mr. Rohloff lament that arbitrators don't consider a city's ability to pay as they decide whether to side with the city administration or the unions. Does the city have the ability to pay administrative raises? I guess so.

I think during this year's budget hearings we are going to have to take a serious look at the practice of contracting out for negotiators. I haven't had the time to research how negotiations are conducted in other city's across the valley,but I'd find it hard to believe that spending over $190,000 is common practice.

Oh, and for what it's worth: Green Bay's Mayor makes $76,535 and his chief of staff clocks in at $63,251. By way of comparison, Oshkosh now has a $130,000 CEO and $107,000 assistant.

John Fitzpatrick Named Assistant City Manager

City Manager Mark Rohloff has just informed the Mayor and City Council (see the letter below) that he is designating Director of Administrative Services John Fitzpatrick as Assistant City Manager. As most of you will recall, John served as acting City Manager after the retirement of Dick Wollangk and was widely praised for his performance.

From the tone of the letter, it appears as if Mr. Rohloff plans to ask Mr. Fitzpatrick to perform duties that a Deputy Mayor might perform in a strong mayor form of government. The team of Rohloff/Fitzpatrick will never have to face the voters, but I guess they will have to keep at least four city councilors happy. That's democracy in Oshkosh.

Here's Mr. Rohloff's letter:

I am pleased to announce that I am designating Director of Administrative Services John Fitzpatrick as Assistant City Manager. As a result of this appointment, Mr. Fitzpatrick's title will be "Assistant City Manager/Director of Administrative Services". As you may be aware, Section 2-22 of the city's Municipal Code, provides that the City Manager may designate a person to perform the duties of City Manager during a temporary absence or disability of the City Manager. I believe that for an organization the size of Oshkosh, the designation of an Assistant City Manager goes beyond simply designating somone for purposes of absence or disability. My goal is to utilize Mr. Fitzpatrick's skills to assist me in both community and organizational outreach. With the many initiatives that I am proposing on the horizon, including customer service, communications, sustainability, economic development and financial issues, I believe that an Assistant City Manager will enable me to reach out and address all of these areas in a more timely fashion.

I will be updating the organizational chart to reflect this new title for Mr. Fitzpatrick. However, the organizational chart will not change in that all department heads will continue to report directly to me. Mr. Fitzpatrick will serve as my official representative when I am unable to attend meetings or otherwise provide input. I spoke with department heads at this week's staff meeting and they understand the purpose of this position.

I wanted to make the City Council aware of this appointment so that you can anticipate that this will be included in the formal organizational structure in the 2009 budget. I believe that Mr. Fitzpatrick's nearly ten years of service as Personnel Director and Director of Administrative Services, along with his service as Acting City Manager, makes him an appropriate choice to be my Assistant City Manager. I hope you will join me in congratulating John on his additional duties and responsibilities. If you have any questions regarding this appointment, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Need Financial Assistance? Change Your Name To Chrysler

Today President Bush signed a massive spending bill into law, part of which "sets aside $7.5 billion in taxpayer funds needed to guarantee $25 billion in low-interest loans to help General Motors Corp, Ford Motor Co and Chrysler LLC produce more fuel-efficient cars and trucks." Wall Street's woes managed to keep this off the radar screen for most Americans.

The big three auto makers made two arguments in support of the loans. First, that the loans are necessary to prevent job cuts. Our experience in Wisconsin demonstrates that auto makers are more than willing to take the money and cut jobs anyway. In 2004 the Doyle Administration handed over $10 million dollars in incentives to keep GM in Janesville. The grants required GM to keep over 3,000 workers at the Janesville plant until 2010, but as of last month less than half of that number were employed there. In mid-September Governor Doyle and other politicians traveled to Detroit and Washington to beg GM to keep the plant open.

The more fascinating argument is that the loans are needed to help the industry meet federal directives to produce more fuel efficient cars. In essence, Detroit accused Washington of creating an "unfunded mandate" to produce cars that get good gas mileage. When's the last time local governments--or small businesses--received a massive, low-interest federal loan to meet a mandate? Doesn't happen.

After the feds bailed out Lee Iacocca's Chrysler in 1980, Tom Paxton wrote a great song called "I am changing my name to Chrysler." Arlo Guthrie recorded a cover of it in the 80s. Enjoy.

Dr. Doom and our subprime financial system

Here's what NYU economist Nouriel Roubini says about the plan that was (thankfully) rejected by the Congress yesterday:

. . . the Treasury plan is a disgrace: a bailout of reckless bankers, lenders and investors that provides little direct debt relief to borrowers and financially stressed households and that will come at a very high cost to the US taxpayer. And the plan does nothing to resolve the severe stress in money markets and interbank markets that are now close to a systemic meltdown. It is pathetic that Congress did not consult any of the many professional economists that have presented - many on the RGE Monitor Finance blog forum - alternative plans that were more fair and efficient and less costly ways to resolve this crisis. This is again a case of privatizing the gains and socializing the losses; a bailout and socialism for the rich, the well-connected and Wall Street. And it is a scandal that even Congressional Democrats have fallen for this Treasury scam that does little to resolve the debt burden of millions of distressed home owners.

Why should we listen to Dr. Roubini? Because "Dr. Doom" predicted all of this chaos more than two years ago. As noted in a New York Times profile:

On Sept. 7, 2006, Nouriel Roubini, an economics professor at New York University, stood before an audience of economists at the International Monetary Fund and announced that a crisis was brewing. In the coming months and years, he warned, the United States was likely to face a once-in-a-lifetime housing bust, an oil shock, sharply declining consumer confidence and, ultimately, a deep recession. He laid out a bleak sequence of events: homeowners defaulting on mortgages, trillions of dollars of mortgage-backed securities unraveling worldwide and the global financial system shuddering to a halt. These developments, he went on, could cripple or destroy hedge funds, investment banks and other major financial institutions like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Here's a money quote (pun intended) from the NYT piece:

But most important, in Roubini’s opinion, is to realize that the problem is deeper than the housing crisis. “Reckless people have deluded themselves that this was a subprime crisis,” he told me. “But we have problems with credit-card debt, student-loan debt, auto loans, commercial real estate loans, home-equity loans, corporate debt and loans that financed leveraged buyouts.” All of these forms of debt, he argues, suffer from some or all of the same traits that first surfaced in the housing market: shoddy underwriting, securitization, negligence on the part of the credit-rating agencies and lax government oversight. “We have a subprime financial system,” he said, “not a subprime mortgage market.”

Media Rants: A Truth Serum Debate

The piece below will appear in the October edition of The Scene. I wrote it about a week before last Friday's first debate between Obama and McCain. After watching that debate, I'm thinking that forcing the candidates to swallow some truth serum (the theme of the media rant) maybe isn't that bad of an idea.--TP

A Truth Serum Debate

Media Rants

By Tony Palmeri

By the time you read this, Barack Obama and John McCain will have completed their first debate. Since God (i.e. the Commission on Presidential Debates) decreed no third party candidate participation, expect few surprises.

For mainstream media, the debates represent exercises not in dissecting differences in policy positions, but in praying that a participant says something so bizarre, ignorant, and/or stupid that two weeks of media time can be spent begging for clarification or apologies. Consequently, candidates play it safe, hope their opponent stumbles, and prepare a clever quip for the highlight reel.

Imagine if the candidates could be compelled to speak the truth? Suppose McCain and Obama swallowed truth serum before a debate. They get asked about the financial crisis and Iraq.

Moderator: Senator McCain, isn’t it true that your closest economic advisor played a key role in creating the conditions leading to Wall Street’s financial train wreck?

McCain: Yes. In fact, when Treasury Secretary Paulson said “This is a humbling, humbling time for the United States of America,” my first thought was that it's actually a humbling time for my friend and chief economic counselor Phil Gramm. While a US Senator from Texas, Phil got the Senate to pass the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act repealing prohibitions on banks being involved in the insurance and investments businesses.

Moderator: But Senator Obama, didn’t Democratic President Bill Clinton sign that bill?

Obama: Yes that’s true.

McCain: Excuse me, I finally start to tell the truth and you interrupt me?

Moderator: Sorry, continue!

McCain: Phil was the driving force behind the Commodity Futures Modernization Act, the major deregulation maneuver that led to Enron and the current travesties. Bankers never had a better friend than Phil Gramm.

Moderator: Senator Obama, you’re not exactly being advised by angels either, right?

Obama: True. I don’t care for the Clintons, but two of Bill’s former Treasury Secretaries, Bob Rubin and Larry Summers, enjoy my full confidence. They eagerly supported the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. They liked to call it the “Financial Services Modernization Act,” in part to make sure the Republicans didn’t get full credit. They retain credibility in the finance sector, which is one of the reasons I’ve raised more money than Senator McCain from the major Wall St. houses.

And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that Rubin and Summers joined President Clinton in enthusiastic support of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. That legislation allowed a few media giants to control vast markets and avoid public accountability.

Moderator: Hardly sounds like a “change we can believe in” team. Thank goodness you guys drank the truth serum. Let’s move to Iraq. Senator Obama, do you honestly believe that the surge has, as you said, “succeeded beyond our wildest dreams?”

Obama: No, that statement was me engaging in the “okey doke” bamboozling I’ve accused my opponents of. Look, the truth is that the establishment press crucifies anti-war candidates, so I’ve had to “update” my views on Iraq to stay on their good side. Does that represent a sell-out of the anti-war Democratic base that got me the nomination? Sure, but realistically where else can those voters go? With all due respect to John, he’s never going to be the peacenik candidate.

Moderator: Senator McCain, what about that surge?

McCain: First, let me say that I haven’t felt this liberated since leaving the Hanoi Hilton. The truth serum seems to be interacting with the six or so other medications I’m on so that I feel like a genuine straight talk express.

So here’s some straight talk on the surge. The reason we’ve seen a reduction in violence in Iraq has nothing to do with sending additional troops there. I think my nemeses over at the New York Times actually have this one right. They say: “Although the ‘surge’ is often described as the turning point that led to lower violence, a number of American officers contend the Awakening that began well before the surge in 2006 in Anbar Province and continued in Baghdad last year was the most significant reason for the decline. In some places, American casualties plunged within weeks of the Sunnis joining with American forces.”

We pay members of the Awakening movement about $300 per month not to shoot at us. To borrow a term from the green movement, paying off the Iraqi resistance is not “sustainable.” Ultimately we will have to admit that the Iraqis do not want us there, we cannot afford to be there, and our presence there is the chief reason for the violence in the country. But tomorrow I’ll forget I ever said that, so if I get elected expect more violence. Maybe even bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran.

Moderator: We’ve got one minute of truth left. I understand you both want to read a joint statement?

Obama and McCain: We each want to be president, but we also believe that Americans should vote their conscience. We urge citizens to take closer looks at the candidacies of Cynthia McKinney, Ralph Nader, and Bob Barr. In fact if you threaten to vote for them, you’ll show us that you have an election exit strategy and you will force us to address the real needs of Americans. That’s the truth.

Leach Advisory Board Needed

Everyone knows that the Northwestern has been down on Parks Director Tom Stephany for quite some time now, but I think today's hissy fit editorial did little to contribute to a meaningful community discourse about the best way to guarantee public control and use of a venue that they (the public) are paying for.

The motivation for the paper's angst over this matter is revealed in this sentence: "A city councilor and professor of small business known for couching criticism looked startled that Stephany came to the podium Tuesday largely empty, a laughably tiny $3,000 marketing budget plan to show off Oshkosh's $6 million diamond on the Fox River. His best strategy to market the venue was to create a tri-fold brochure."

Hmmm . . . seems like that "laughably tiny $3,000 marketing budget plan" represents little coin for buying Gannett advertising.

I don't think anyone on the Council has been more critical of Mr. Stephany than me, but the very fact that the parks department will manage the Leach in 2009 means that the facility will for the first time be accessible by the general public. Now that the facility is no longer held hostage by PMI's unreasonable rates, citizen groups for the first time will be able to use the facility for very little cost. That's what I thought the Leach family had in mind when they gave us the facility as a gift. And while no one was awed by Mr. Stephany's presentation on Tuesday night, the fact is that the 2009 event agenda appears to represent more activity for one summer than PMI gave us in three. Let's hope the paper's gripe with Stephany doesn't result in downtalking the events or discouraging people from utilizing the facility. Citizens should see 2009 as an open window for the Leach that privatization forces will try to shut before we even get a chance to enjoy the breeze.

What's frightening about today's editorial is that it seems to send out a signal that the paper is willing to use Stephany as a convenient whipping boy to back up a privatization agenda: "At some point, it's time to lean on the business connections and marketing savvy of a professional promoter to leverage this jewel of a public venue and mix in top-notch, bigger-ticket acts."

Sorry, but we've just been through three years of "business connections and marketing savvy of a professional promoter." The result? Community groups had the facility stolen from them while promises of "cha ching" economic impact gave way to infrequent, sparsely attended, too expensive concerts. And community groups were told the facility was off limits unless they could come up with hundreds (in some cases thousands) of dollars.

There are real concerns about Mr. Stephany's ability to manage the facility. But even if there were no concerns, it still makes sense to create a Leach Advisory Board to work with and monitor the parks department's Leach management performance in 2009. Absent such a group, there is a very real possibility that the Northwestern and others hostile to the idea of public management of the facility will create conditions in which the Council next year will face enormous pressure to once again sign over the facility to a "professional promoter."

For obvious reasons, private management of the Leach will result in higher citizen costs to use the facility. Therefore, the debate over the next year ought not be over the benefits of public vs. private management, but over what kind of public management we want. We've already been through three years of private management, and the experience should have been a wake-up call. Perhaps a Leach Advisory Board could help give the idea of public management a fighting chance.

Last Night's Council Meeting

Some people believe the 2007-2008 Common Council is one of the best in recent memory. Others think we are one of the worst. I thought last night's city council meeting was a good example of why strong arguments could be made for either side.

"Best":
*A thorough discussion of a gentleman's claim that he was being assessed unfairly for a road construction project. Staff were prodded to explain why the policy in place makes sense. Though the gentleman did not get the resolution he was looking for, and though we could not get 4 votes to delay a decision on his assessment, the quality of the deliberation succeeded in showing strong arguments on all sides. It's much less painful to "lose" a vote when the prevailing side is well argued and coherent.
*I thought the workshop discussion with Tom Stephany regarding the Parks Department's proposal to manage the Leach Amphitheater for 2009 was informative and worthwhile. Just about every member of the council asked some important questions, and even though the hour was late we did not seem to rush through the exercise just to get done.
*Citizen Statements: A gentleman from the Near East neighborhood, who had a bad experience with staff and ended up getting fined even though he made the changes asked of him, came to speak. Just the fact that he felt empowered to come tell his story, in spite of real or imagined fears of retaliation, is in my judgment a good thing. Most councilors get confronted with lots of heresay stories about people being treated badly by this or that department. But until people actually speak out on the record, it is very difficult to do anything.

"Worst"
*We approved new ambulance rates (I was part of the 6-1 majority), but we completely dropped any discussion of how increased rates affect those least able to pay. We gave lip service to that topic at the August workshop, and it did turn out to be just that: lip service. The painful reality is that this council or city government in general does not have in place any coherent anti-poverty program, nor do we seem particularly interested in developing one. We are all responsible for that; I am not trying to blame anyone.
*By a 6-1 vote (I was the lone dissenter), we voted to dissolve the Cable Television Advisory Commission. That means we now have in place no citizen empowered committee or commission to oversee a citizen resource. Perhaps my citing of the Oshkosh Northwestern editorial actually hurt the case for maintaining the commission or rewriting its mission. Who knows. I do think this was one of our "worst" moments because I could not locate a single compelling argument for disbanding the commission. Minds appeared to be made up before we got there.
*The discussion of how to proceed with riverfront development really was one of our low points, almost shamefully so. "Public input" on what to do with the riverfront will consist of one public meeting on October 8 at the seniors center. I'm not making that up. Five years, two failed and impractical proposals, countless hours of staff time, and you get one meeting on October 8th to hash things out. Talk about backwater town values. Aren't we better than that?

The new city manager claimed to want to "educate" the public about how the city's debt obligations in the area make certain developments more preferable than others. Then when I asked the manager to educate me as to how an office building proposal can succeed given the failure of Akcess, the city attorney said my question was outside of the meeting notice.

That's all for now.

Waterfront: Community Input and New RFP Needed

On Tuesday, during Council Member Statements, Announcements, and Discussion, I will call for community input regarding waterfront development and call for staff to prepare a new request for proposals. My preference is not to have an item like this in council member statements, but the rapid pace of events in the last week provides few alternative options.

As I understand matters, here is where we are: The Akcess group has backed out of the waterfront project and endorsed Oshkosh River Development (ORD) to take over. The Redevelopment Authority (RDA) met last Wednesday to approve the transfer from Akcess to ORD, but instead laid over the matter when councilor Esslinger claimed that another developer was interested in putting forth a proposal. Apparently that developer will make him or herself known on Tuesday.

As I've noted previously, the Akcess withdrawal provides us with an opportunity to slow down and try to get a sense of what the taxpaying public actually wants on the riverfront. Rather than move straight to another office building proposal, let's take some time (via survey, focus groups, online polls, etc.) to find out what are the most favored options for development. After receiving that feedback, let's then have staff construct a new request for proposals.

Please email all of the members of the Council to let us know what you think should be done at this point.

Great New Restaurant In Oshkosh

No, not Becket's--though they have lots of potential.

The great new restaurant is Josef's Caspian Kitchen (242 Wisconsin Ave.). From the menu: "Josef . . . owner of Gyros Kabob in Appleton WI welcomes you. Continuing the tradition started at his original Soldier's Square location . . . Josef is now serving the same delicious food at the Caspian Kitchen . . . with some new additions and some old favorites."

And delicious it is! We had an order of hummus, which was glorious in taste and texture. I was literally licking every last bit out of the cup. The dolmas (stuffed grape leaves filled with rice, ground beef, yellow peas, herbs and onion--served with a side yogurt) were so fresh and satisfying that they alone were worth the visit.

For the main entree we shared an order of chicken kabob & rice. The marinated, white chicken pieces were so tender that they seemed to melt in the mouth.

I wasn't especially cranky walking into the place, but after eating I actually felt more calm and upbeat. Great food can do that.

The prices are extrememly reasonable--the large order of hummus, two dolmas, and the chicken kabob came in at $17.50.

Caspian Kitchen is not a fast food place, so you have to wait a bit longer as the the food is prepared. That's great, because no food is just sitting under a warmer waiting to be served. The inside is small and feels somewhat like a cafeteria (they bring the food to your table but there are no waiters and waitresses per se), and I wish they would turn the lighting down a bit, but it is an intimate environment with comfortable tables and chairs. Definitely a good place to have lunch or dinner with a relationship partner, coworker, or anyone else.

So check it out. I don't think you will be disappointed.

Message to RDA: Community Input and RFP Needed

As noted in today's Northwestern, the Redevelopment Authority (RDA) meets today at 4 p.m. to consider a proposal from Oshkosh River Development LLC to take over from Akcess. Partners in the proposal are brothers Andy and Art Dumke and the managers of Discovery Properties.

My teaching responsibilities will not allow me to go to the RDA meeting. If I did attend, here's what I would say:

Now that Akcess has officially withdrawn from the redevelopment area, we have an opportunity do what should have been done years ago: find out what kinds of developments are desired and will be supported by the public at-large. If nothing else, the Akcess period showed us that proposals for office space generate neither community enthusiasm nor tenant interest. To bring forward another office space proposal--and to add to it a requirement that taxpayers foot the bill for transient docks--is a difficult proposal to sell.

And as a simple matter of fairness, we owe other potential developers the opportunity to put in a proposal. To transfer the land from Akcess to ORD without allowing any other proposals will be perceived as more of the same kind of old-boy politics that gave us the 100 block, Five Rivers, and other fiascos. We will succeed only in building more cynicism and suspicion about the way economic development gets done in Oshkosh. Let's take a deep breath, find out what the community wants and will support, and after receiving that feedback put out a new request for proposals.

Come See "Toxic Sludge Is Good For You"

On Tuesday night (9/16), from 6:30 - 8:00 p.m. at the Women's Center in the lower level of the UW Oshkosh Center for Equity and Diversity (717 W. Irving Ave.) professor Bob Hinrichs of the UW Oshkosh Department of Communication and I will be co-facilitating a screening of the Media Education Foundation film "Toxic Sludge is Good For You." The screening is part of the UW Oshkosh Women's Center Election Education Series, and is cosponsored by the American Democracy Project, the College Democrats, and the College Republicans.

Narrated by Democracy Now's Amy Goodman, the film is based on John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton's book Toxic Sludge is Good For You: Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry (Common Courage Press, 1995). Steeped in appreciation of small-d democratic values, the authors don't have a solution for the mass scale bamboozlement that has become the modern PR industry. But they do say this:

In truth, any such solution is likely itself to be part of the problem, because real democracy must be the common work and invention of all of us, acting together. The solutions we do possess are partial: first, learn to recognize the influence of PR in your life; second, seek out alternative sources of information; third become personally involved in local efforts to directly address important issues at the community level. (p. 204).

Perhaps coming to the screening and having a discussion afterwards would be a good start to that local effort. There will even be free soda and popcorn, and that's no PR pitch :-).