FIREWORKS RETURN TO BURN IN GRAND TERRACE THIS YEAR: Little League discussion on fireworks, council votes to lease site to TNT for $1.00 cuz general fund makes no money--only CRA.
Vote w/Miller Abstaining to extend for one year, do ballot measure--with designated high fire zones not able to have fireworks.
( Gramps Says: The 1.00 lease is to protect the City from Liability. Governments often lease property out for the fair market value who are we kidding here? Try to have a ballot that says not in my back yard but my neighbors house is fine. Try to enforce a partial ban with zones like this. They will make it harder for enforcement. Again, if it isn't safe in a green wide open lawn type city park it is not safe anywhere in Grand Terrace. Chickens.)
Act Two: Council rehash for city council meeting of budget shortfall. Suggestion was made they could just get rid of any future CRA obligations and return land/money to CRA. They do not get it! They think there must be a CRA and DEBT to finance the City.
Act Three: Public Comment: Former City Manager Tom Schwab attacked Council Member Walt Stanckiewitz. Schwab said Walt Stanckiewitzed voted for CRA advances to the General Fund. Schwab then issued a challenge to to Stanckiewitz see if he can balance a general fund budget taking CRA Fund Advances.
Walt Stanckiewitz responds to the challenge saying, yeah he will and what you (Tom Schwab) did was wrong.
Then Deb Hurst got up w/petition supporting Miller and asked council to sign and brought up all their bad deeds. (See Below)
Sylvia Robles said the City Council/CRA is a legislative body that has the power to, get rid or reduce CRA and return property tax $$$ to general fund where they can support things like little league.
Council Member Lee Ann Garcia did not understand the separation between the City General Fund and the RDA. She said debt is wonderful... Robles made it clear that Debt is not good under any scenario. But this economic fact went right over the heads of the Council / RDA Members Heads. LeAnn ranted about how borrowing from the RDA brings more money in from the government. Bea just repeats what LeeAnn says. It is so annoying. They take everything they hear from staff as the gospel. Schwab got up and defended the same position. Walt wanted to know specifically why the decisions of the past years were to borrow from RDA. Nobody could answer. There are no specific answers. The attorney says it was to put in the general fund. Citizens wanted to know why it is that they don’t report it as debt if they borrow from themselves to give to themselves, isn’t that debt.
(More money from other Government Funds are Liabilities and require performance and contribution of matching funds. In a good city these matching funds come from the General Fund not CRA DEBT. This dependence on skimming funds off of Government Funds and Debt Bonds demonstrates the inability of Schwab to stay within the resouces of the city ever expanding the debt and paying himself more and more every contract.)
Council Member Bea Cortes said if the 3 speakers had been at the workshop they would have known what was going on.
(Gramps Adds: Council Members calling a Workshop at 4:00 preclude Public Participation as Most of the Public have to work for a LIVING. Calling a meeting when the public can't attend and then not having Ch 3 broad cast the "Regular Meeting" should be considered a fraud upon the Brown Act 10 fold. The Workshop Materials and Record should be available prior to the Council Meeting or ASAP.)
((((((((((((((0))))))))))
Dear Grand PaTerrace,
I got up to speak tonight in support of Jim Miller. Below is a petition that is being signed in support of Jim. You and your readers can sign a copy of this petition at La Pasta Restaurant. If anyone wants a copy of this to gather signatures, have them contact me for a copy. .
Petition to Have Councilman Jim Miller's Charges Dismissed
We, the people, present this petition in support of City Councilman Jim Miller. We believe the district Attorney has had sufficient time to review the case against Jim Miller and believe the allegation's to be unfair and unjust to our community and the Miller Family.
At no time has the ownership of The City News been hidden from our community or City Officials. We believe The City News to be a wonderful communication tool and an asset to our community as a public service that provides community information.
We, the undersigned, are concerned citizens who urge the District Attorney to dismiss the charges brought against our City Official Jim Miller, we believe in his integrity and honor.
Print your name Sign your name
((((((((((((((((((((0))))))))))))))))))))))))))
Paww Thinks:A Judge should not make a decision based on a petition but the law. Public support like this should only be used after conviction in the sentencing phase or for a pardon. You may be doing Jim more harm than good with this effort. An effort like this could be thought of as tampering with Justice.
A petition requesting that the charges against Bea Cortes and Ramos for not charging her could go the the Grand Jury and that would be a proper action in our Justice System.
A petition requesting the Grand Jury do a full audit of GT Finances and Steve Berry and Tom Schwab in relation to Window Tinting Fraud and Cover UP... would be within the proper function of the Justice System.
