Sunday, the Janesville Gazette posted their "news" report on the results from the city of Janesville's "You Cut" city services survey the city instituted online a few months ago.
Certainly there can be a multitude of ways to interpret the results, but several elements of the article, for whatever reason, did not match up with the budget scorecard table posted along with the story. Nevermind that the survey's awkwardly composed questions and mixed parameters were vague enough to keep even the most educated participants guessing.
Also, the direction of the opening remarks and first impressions from the assistant city manager about the survey indicate the city (or the newspaper) appears to be erroneously scoring the library high for cuts. In my view, the survey table showed that the library received a fairly neutral public response for budget changes compared to other facilities and services while recreational facilities and programming combined to score the highest percentile for a reduction in taxes and services, received less attention in the "report."
Whatever one can conclude from the article and the confusing survey results, two questions deserve to be asked: Are city officials and the newspaper driving the results in some predetermined direction? And, can the results from such a confusingly posed if not dysfunctional survey be trusted at all?
Showing posts with label Janesville Administration. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Janesville Administration. Show all posts
Monday, September 20, 2010
Monday, June 14, 2010
City's Bridge Strategy: Spin And Stimulus
There was an amusing article in the Janesville Gazette over the weekend about the shoddy looking Jackson St. bridge in Janesville potentially qualifying for federal stimulus funds.
Over the years, the city received many complaints from residents about the city's relative inaction to address the bridge's obvious safety and appearance problems. The city's response was typically "not to worry," that the decay was merely "cosmetic" and that the bridge was structurally sound. So many complaints since then that a "special" committee was set up just to disseminate information about the city's bridge strategy.
Bridgehunter Jackson St. Bridge Slideshow and other interesting information.
JG Excerpt:Why not just say the bridge was built in 1918 and for the past decade and more, it was left to deteriorate into it's current condition ...on purpose. Here's the proof.
The deteriorating bridge was built in 1918, and nearby residents such as Bill McCoy have advocated for years to improve the bridge.
JG Excerpt:Of course it's not that the bridge "aged enough" to qualify for federal replacement funds since they don't reward funds based on age. More accurately the bridge couldn't age in just two short years to qualify for federal replacement funding unless it was allowed to "deteriorate" over the previous ten.
The state requires all bridges in the city be inspected every two years. The bridge received a rating of 43 out of 100 after its recent inspection, Weber said. That means the bridge has aged enough since its inspection two years ago—when it received a rating of 55.7—to qualify for the federal funds, he said.
Transportation.Org Excerpt:Left unreported in the article is the the fact that earlier ratings including the (2008) 55.7 rating qualified the bridge for rehabilitation funds years ago. But city officials never bothered to apply. Apparently, they didn't want anyone to think they were ignoring the bridge.
A bridge’s sufficiency rating affects its eligibility for federal funding for maintenance, rehabilitation, or replacement. For bridges to qualify for federal replacement funds, they must have a rating of 50 or below. To qualify for federal rehabilitation funding, a bridge must have a sufficiency rating of 80 or below.
Over the years, the city received many complaints from residents about the city's relative inaction to address the bridge's obvious safety and appearance problems. The city's response was typically "not to worry," that the decay was merely "cosmetic" and that the bridge was structurally sound. So many complaints since then that a "special" committee was set up just to disseminate information about the city's bridge strategy.
JG Excerpt:Why in the world would anyone ever think THAT?
The committee’s purpose is to help dispel misinformation about the bridge, Weber said. “People were stating we were ignoring the need to address this bridge,” he said.
Bridgehunter Jackson St. Bridge Slideshow and other interesting information.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Ice Arena Donors Want Something In Return
In case you hadn't noticed, 2010 started off with a bang of controversy in Janesville when the Gazette decided to partner with and carry the water for several individuals wishing to destabilize the Rock County coroners office. Their mission seems to have morphed now from personal complaints into a campaign to wrest the coroner's office away from the voters. We'll have to keep a close watch on that one.
On an entirely different issue and without pause, the group of self-described community "donors," who earlier made a commitment to raise $1.5 million to "donate" to the construction of a new city ice arena in Janesville appear to be backpedaling their generosity. On the Janesville city agenda for Monday evening is a proposal to sell city intellectual property, namely "naming rights," with proceeds of the sale going towards the special interest group's capital promise for a new ice arena.
First off is the fact they are SELLING city property. That goes without saying.
Naming and advertising rights are intellectual property rights owned by the taxpayers. Besides, Janesville taxpayers have already out-bid everyone else for the naming rights when the council put the taxpayers on the hook for $2.5 million and city land worth about $1 million for the project. Now, unless the private group would like to purchase the rights to buy down the taxpayers $2.5 million commitment, that's different. But that's not the case according to the memo.
But even if the city were to entertain the idea of selling naming rights, why would we need a salesman or a middleman? Remember these folks are supposed to be "community donors," not agents in a sale's transaction for someone else's property. The bottom line here is somebody in the administration is either completely off their rocker to even jokingly entertain the donor's request OR they are in the tank with them instead of defending taxpayers interests. Right now I think it's a little of both. The city management and council's job is not to be looking out after anybody's interests but ours.
The main point to my position is; should the city decide to sell naming rights to the ice arena, the proceeds should be used to pay down the taxpayers commitment or the operational expenses - NOT used to make good on a private party's charitable promise.
Second is the assuming characterization and short shrift given from both, the city administration and newspaper, about the naming rights give-away. For the newspaper to merely regurgitate the naming rights portion of the memorandum and attempt to pass it off without the obvious question or clarification in such an assuming way is proof enough of a complicit and failed watchdog media. The paper has a long history of turning on and off the information spigot at will to serve their own socio-political agenda.
In a most simple rule of common sense we try to teach children, the naming rights proposal violates the most basic fundamentals of possession. It is theft by deception and to have city management agree in principle with the request is a double-troubling kick in the face. That the donor group label has been supplanted by Janesville Youth Hockey seems like a ploy to deflate any opposition. If the donor group cannot make good on its promise to collect $1.5 million on their own account, they should just say so and call it quits.
Janesville taxpayers and residents will likely ignore all of this as they have done in the past. But make no mistake, we are the ones getting screwed if this request moves forward. So you might as well get used to it, grab your ankles and hang on.
On an entirely different issue and without pause, the group of self-described community "donors," who earlier made a commitment to raise $1.5 million to "donate" to the construction of a new city ice arena in Janesville appear to be backpedaling their generosity. On the Janesville city agenda for Monday evening is a proposal to sell city intellectual property, namely "naming rights," with proceeds of the sale going towards the special interest group's capital promise for a new ice arena.
City Agenda Excerpt:As usual, the ice arena memorandum for Monday's council agenda is written like a better Gazette article, where citizens are left guessing on their own to figure out what's really going on here and what's at stake. Nowhere in the memo was any mention of who is the recipient of the sale proceeds from the city property. The focus of the proposal is instead placed on moving the new ice arena to a different site than earlier proposed. The memo does however drop the hint that the sale will enhance the donor groups efforts. With that we must assume that the sale of publicly owned rights is meant to paydown the private donor's commitment to the ice arena. With Janesville city government's long history of coddling wealthy insiders, we should fear the worst here.
...approve authorizing the selling of naming rights of the building for an amount not less than $500,000 and the two sheets of ice for not less than $250,000 each and that the naming rights would need to have final approval of the City Manager.
First off is the fact they are SELLING city property. That goes without saying.
Naming and advertising rights are intellectual property rights owned by the taxpayers. Besides, Janesville taxpayers have already out-bid everyone else for the naming rights when the council put the taxpayers on the hook for $2.5 million and city land worth about $1 million for the project. Now, unless the private group would like to purchase the rights to buy down the taxpayers $2.5 million commitment, that's different. But that's not the case according to the memo.But even if the city were to entertain the idea of selling naming rights, why would we need a salesman or a middleman? Remember these folks are supposed to be "community donors," not agents in a sale's transaction for someone else's property. The bottom line here is somebody in the administration is either completely off their rocker to even jokingly entertain the donor's request OR they are in the tank with them instead of defending taxpayers interests. Right now I think it's a little of both. The city management and council's job is not to be looking out after anybody's interests but ours.
The main point to my position is; should the city decide to sell naming rights to the ice arena, the proceeds should be used to pay down the taxpayers commitment or the operational expenses - NOT used to make good on a private party's charitable promise.
Second is the assuming characterization and short shrift given from both, the city administration and newspaper, about the naming rights give-away. For the newspaper to merely regurgitate the naming rights portion of the memorandum and attempt to pass it off without the obvious question or clarification in such an assuming way is proof enough of a complicit and failed watchdog media. The paper has a long history of turning on and off the information spigot at will to serve their own socio-political agenda.
In a most simple rule of common sense we try to teach children, the naming rights proposal violates the most basic fundamentals of possession. It is theft by deception and to have city management agree in principle with the request is a double-troubling kick in the face. That the donor group label has been supplanted by Janesville Youth Hockey seems like a ploy to deflate any opposition. If the donor group cannot make good on its promise to collect $1.5 million on their own account, they should just say so and call it quits.
Janesville taxpayers and residents will likely ignore all of this as they have done in the past. But make no mistake, we are the ones getting screwed if this request moves forward. So you might as well get used to it, grab your ankles and hang on.
Sunday, January 03, 2010
Local Media - 2009 Year In Review
The following is a list of (independent) observations made on local stories and editorials that I believed were designed to intentionally shape and direct public opinion towards the socio-political stance held by the local media monopoly, the Janesville Gazette and their affiliates.
* January -- Self-investigation by city of potential internal scandal good enough for government watchdog.
* January -- Gazette does its part to foist junior hockey team onto taxpayers.
* January -- Newspaper Stifles Sustainability Opinion On The Web.
* January -- Newspaper De-Emphasized City Council Endorsement Of Political Group.
* January -- Newspaper features Wal-Mart in buy "local" campaign.
* January -- What is the Gazette's editorial position on same-sex marriage?
And that's just January!! So I thought, why bother with the rest of the year? It only gets more painfully redundant. Instead I've decided to finish this post off with what I consider to be the three most under-reported local news events of the year.
Coming in at number three was the newspaper's jokingly lightweight response to blunt statements made by one of their own affiliates, talk radio host Stan Milam, towards the Janesville City Council. Milam repeatedly attempted to intimidate members by warning them of the dire consequences they should expect if any vote against the newspaper's "council meeting time change" request. Had anyone outside of the Gazette loop made those threatening comments against local officials, the newspaper would have made it the dirt of the town and would have demanded a public explanation, apology or complete retraction. With Stan Milam, they did not.
Number Two -- When the Janesville city council endorsed the ideologically driven legislative agenda of the politically active private business group "Forward Janesville," the full Gazette report on this massive special interest breach into non-partisan local government amounted to an incomplete sentence. Again, had the city council endorsed the legislative agenda of WEAC or any one of the local labor unions, there would have been hell to pay. This obvious double-standard by the laughably self-described "government watchdog" exposed the newspaper for what it really is - a right-wing lapdog and partisan tool.
Simply for the public endangerment aspect, the number one under-reported local event for 2009 in my book was the newspaper's lack of initiative and absence of any investigative reporting surrounding the intent and possible deception in public statements by the director of Janesville's water utility about the city's inability to deliver safe water to 20,000 residents. The Gazette's follow-up articles regarding the city administration's presentational farce were extremely weak and protectionist in tone. The newspaper's "exclusives" on this matter amounted to little more than simple question and answer regurgitation.
* January -- Self-investigation by city of potential internal scandal good enough for government watchdog.
* January -- Gazette does its part to foist junior hockey team onto taxpayers.
* January -- Newspaper Stifles Sustainability Opinion On The Web.
* January -- Newspaper De-Emphasized City Council Endorsement Of Political Group.
* January -- Newspaper features Wal-Mart in buy "local" campaign.
* January -- What is the Gazette's editorial position on same-sex marriage?
And that's just January!! So I thought, why bother with the rest of the year? It only gets more painfully redundant. Instead I've decided to finish this post off with what I consider to be the three most under-reported local news events of the year.
Coming in at number three was the newspaper's jokingly lightweight response to blunt statements made by one of their own affiliates, talk radio host Stan Milam, towards the Janesville City Council. Milam repeatedly attempted to intimidate members by warning them of the dire consequences they should expect if any vote against the newspaper's "council meeting time change" request. Had anyone outside of the Gazette loop made those threatening comments against local officials, the newspaper would have made it the dirt of the town and would have demanded a public explanation, apology or complete retraction. With Stan Milam, they did not.
Number Two -- When the Janesville city council endorsed the ideologically driven legislative agenda of the politically active private business group "Forward Janesville," the full Gazette report on this massive special interest breach into non-partisan local government amounted to an incomplete sentence. Again, had the city council endorsed the legislative agenda of WEAC or any one of the local labor unions, there would have been hell to pay. This obvious double-standard by the laughably self-described "government watchdog" exposed the newspaper for what it really is - a right-wing lapdog and partisan tool.
Simply for the public endangerment aspect, the number one under-reported local event for 2009 in my book was the newspaper's lack of initiative and absence of any investigative reporting surrounding the intent and possible deception in public statements by the director of Janesville's water utility about the city's inability to deliver safe water to 20,000 residents. The Gazette's follow-up articles regarding the city administration's presentational farce were extremely weak and protectionist in tone. The newspaper's "exclusives" on this matter amounted to little more than simple question and answer regurgitation.
Monday, May 04, 2009
Janesville Power Brokers Continue To Clique
Among the pages archived here at Rock Netroots Commentary, you can find several dozen ethically questionable incidents carried out by Janesville city government over the past several years that have been literally swept under the carpet by its revisionist compliant media associate. Some of the most egregious examples of recent include a run-up to socialize the business expenses of a politically connected local investment group with a property tax-free facility and a fishy city contract. A non-partisan city council endorsing the legislative agenda of a politically active special interest group, and a deceptive if not outright dishonest presentation from the city administration during a council meeting on a decision to build a water tower on the city’s NE side.
Had these shenanigans occurred in any other town, they would have been scandalous high publicity events. On a few very rare occasions when Janesville media or city officials seemingly addressed obvious grievances, they simply apply straw man tactics to undermine civic reformers or demonize the messenger as a negative malcontent with an axe to grind. Yet strangely enough, the Janesville Gazette oftentimes has no problem pointing blame and running up criticism at officials of government outside of the local power-broking clique. On most occasions, the Janesville scandal is just simply ignored.
But the Gazette has the scoop on the donut eating contest in Walworth County!
King Daley of Chicago only wishes he had it this easy.
The First 100 Days Of Inheritance
Had these shenanigans occurred in any other town, they would have been scandalous high publicity events. On a few very rare occasions when Janesville media or city officials seemingly addressed obvious grievances, they simply apply straw man tactics to undermine civic reformers or demonize the messenger as a negative malcontent with an axe to grind. Yet strangely enough, the Janesville Gazette oftentimes has no problem pointing blame and running up criticism at officials of government outside of the local power-broking clique. On most occasions, the Janesville scandal is just simply ignored.
But the Gazette has the scoop on the donut eating contest in Walworth County!
King Daley of Chicago only wishes he had it this easy.
The First 100 Days Of Inheritance
Notable Quotes Excerpt:
"When the Obama administration crashes and burns, with approval ratings that fall through the floor, political scientists can trace its demise to its first hundred days." — Dick Morris, Fox Political Commentator explaining why the obstacles and problems left by Bush are plenty enough to take down even the best of presidents.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Big Pipes Not So Big Afterall
After all the projects the city of Janesville has toyed with over the years, ranging from new public swimming pools to underpass tunnels to skate parks to bridge repair to you-name-it, one would think the respective city departments would have been ordered to prepare preliminary and historical reports for future reference.
As more information trickles out about the city’s lack of shovel-ready projects to claim a piece of the nation's economic stimulus pie, now comes word that the water supply to a large section of some of the newer residential growth areas in Janesville is inadequate. The city is requesting another water tower be built to service those customers.
It was only two years ago when the Janesville Administration ramrodded Janesville’s first water tower through the council for the far northwest quadrant of the city. That tower was needed to service the Hendricks country club residential development's higher altitude and special terrain conditions. The city, no doubt at the request of the owner/developer, opted to socialize the expense of this impact on the backs of all Janesville water users by burying the $2.7 million cost into our water bills. The PSC rubberstamped their approval.
Back then, I suggested that special needs of encumbered private land should come at the expense of the landowner, that beyond the normal trenching and laying of water pipes and sewer, the water tower should have been paid for through a special assessment on each parcel it is designed to serve – much like sidewalks. Many disagreed. The same can be said today for the water tower now proposed for the northeast corner.
The views posted on this web page are the independent perspective and opinion of the author.
As more information trickles out about the city’s lack of shovel-ready projects to claim a piece of the nation's economic stimulus pie, now comes word that the water supply to a large section of some of the newer residential growth areas in Janesville is inadequate. The city is requesting another water tower be built to service those customers.
It was only two years ago when the Janesville Administration ramrodded Janesville’s first water tower through the council for the far northwest quadrant of the city. That tower was needed to service the Hendricks country club residential development's higher altitude and special terrain conditions. The city, no doubt at the request of the owner/developer, opted to socialize the expense of this impact on the backs of all Janesville water users by burying the $2.7 million cost into our water bills. The PSC rubberstamped their approval.
Back then, I suggested that special needs of encumbered private land should come at the expense of the landowner, that beyond the normal trenching and laying of water pipes and sewer, the water tower should have been paid for through a special assessment on each parcel it is designed to serve – much like sidewalks. Many disagreed. The same can be said today for the water tower now proposed for the northeast corner.
JG Excerpt:Granted, this development is now established, but should that exclude it from the fiscal burden of it's current reality (low pressure) resulting from developer error? Whether it is a matter of poor planning, inadequate infrastructure or a lack of growth impact fees and charges on all of these new developments, once again the City Administration will socialize the losses incurred and all Janesville water users will be made to foot the bill.
Dan Lynch of the water department said everything north of Interstate 90/39 experiences low water pressure even when a small water main breaks. A tower is needed regardless of city growth, he said.
The views posted on this web page are the independent perspective and opinion of the author.
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