The Escondido Councilmembers Respond…well, some of ’em… Last Sunday I noted the SDUT editorial chastising Escondido as a poster city on Kelo abuse, and invited the city council to let me know what, exactly, they were thinking. Emails of my post were dispatched to each of them.
Two, thus far, have responded. Coincidentally, Marie Waldron and Ed Gallo were the two votes against the taking…no response from Mayor Lori Holt Pfeiler or Councilmen Ron Newman and Sam Abed. Here’s what the anti-Kelo minority had to say:
Barry: Marie and I were the 2 dissenting votes. My exact comment at the Council meeting was that "this is much like the Kelo decision". The owners of the Lowe’s project property are working to purchase the taco shop and hopefully an agreement will be reached shortly. -Ed Gallo
Barry: Of course I voted NO. And you are correct that the UT is not ever going to give me credit for anything. -Marie Waldron
Marie also pointed out a North County Times article with more facts on the issue.
Thanks to the two councilmembers for a response. The offer is still open to the others. I hope that Ed is correct in that Lowe’s is still working to purchase the Ruedas family property, although let’s face it. Negotiation is always easier under the already approved threat of condemnation.
Here are the council’s email addresses, if you feel like weighing in.
New Majority Expanding to San Diego…. I’m sure there will be much more written on this, considering the caustic start of the OC unit a few years ago (see Mike Spence’s update from three weeks back). It appears the SD version of NM had a kick-off luncheon last week (I wasn’t invited, but sometime us East County folks are forgotten, or considered….well, crackers). Here’s some of the letter, forwarded to me by an invitee:
We are happy to report that the New Majority – San Diego Chapter is off and running! Please take a look at the information presented below.
The New Majority is a socially inclusive, fiscally conservative Republican group that has had demonstrable success in broadening the Party base and upgrading the quality of candidates for office. You may find additional information at www.thenewmajority.com.
The San Diego chapter of The New Majority will follow the same highly successful model that has been developed in Orange County and L.A.
If you are interested in hearing more about The New Majority, please join us at the luncheon…Our program will include remarks from Congressmen Darrell Issa and Brian Bilbray regarding recent legislative matters and what we might expect out of Washington for the remainder of this year.
Experience in Orange County and L.A. has shown that the organization attracts a diverse group –roughly 70% of whom were not previously active in the Republican Party. This group typically includes many business leaders who enjoy the social interaction (spouses automatically become full members as well), and appreciate the opportunity to bring business-like accountability not only to the identification and selection of candidates for support, but also to other important functions like voter registration and turnout.
Importantly, the organization’s collective funding capability speaks much louder than most contributions made individually. Further, many The New Majority members appreciate the "cover" provided by The New Majority against the inundation of campaign contribution requests. Saying that one gives through The New Majority sends the clear message that contribution requests will be objectively considered by the membership, based on a thorough vetting of the candidate or proposal. Of course, members retain the right to contribute directly to candidates or issues as they wish.
We could discuss much more about The New Majority and the potential it offers the Republican Party in California. Suffice to say, it is a proven, practical and well-conceived organization that complements the Party, and improves the process by which Republicans spend their time and money on election matters.
Best regards,
Kelly Burt
Mick Pattinson
Joel Reed
Doug Manchester
Some big hitters. Suffice it to say that I and others will be interested in not only how the local affiliate fares, but also how it will work with the GOP…and how it will differ from or compete with the Lincoln Club.
SD City Reform Update… Detailed stuff, as always, from Carl DeMaio and the Performance Institute:
I’m passing along the August edition of the San Diego City Reform Update to keep you in the loop on the latest developments in the effort to reform our city government and restore its financial health. You may want to tune into the City Hall hearings next week—where (we hope) the long-delayed audit report is finally going to be presented to the public by Kroll, Inc. You can access Council hearings online at www.sandiego.gov/citytv/.
In February 2005 when Kroll was first hired, the then-City Manager and Council hailed the hiring of these consultants as the big “breakthrough” that would get the City’s audits completed by late summer 2005. At the time the Council and their consultants claimed the work could be done for $250,000. We rejected that rosy scenario outright at the time, and noted Kroll would be paid “an absurd amount of money.” How absurd? Kroll by last count has been paid over $20 million for its report! We’ll send out the link to their pricey report once we get it…since you did pay for it!
Carl DeMaio
See the PI’s Reform Update newsletter here.