Last spring I did a couple of posts about the airport lawsuit – still in progress – and the other day I got a comment from a person who seems to be in the know about the situation. I don’t know who this person is, or if their information is reliable, but it is interesting, I’ll say that.
From “frequent flyer”:
Just a few facts as I understand them to augment your story:
1. Jay’s budget is hardly unlimited, and apparently the city can outspend him. I don’t personally know his finances, but this really stings. He also is paying one lawyer; the city has many fighting him.
2. Northgate Aviation used to reside in his building and left suddenly. However, that’s just business. It’s what happened after they left that went off the rails.
3. When Northgate moved into the hangar next door, I heard they did so without any permits. They eventually received permits I believe, although I heard it took two years.
4. When the city gave Northgate the lease on the hangar, they included the ramp space in front of Jay’s (privately owned) building, a building which according to the city can only be used for aviation-related business. Mr. Jay cannot park a plane in front of his aviation-only building, and to make sure no one else does, Northgate parks their fuel trucks in front of his building. This is like buying a house and finding out that the city gave the driveway access to your neighbor. BTW, Mr. Jay’s primary business is selling airplanes. Ever see a used car lot without any cars? Totally weird. Anyway, the lease should have been rewritten IMO, but has not been. It is a 30 year lease I believe.
5. Tycoons and small business folks alike visit FBOs, and I stand side by side with these guys when buying fuel. Some of us need 80 gallons, some need 2000, but we’re all treated like royalty. To give you an idea of the service differential between Chico and the rest of the world , Sacramento International’s Jet Center is like Nordstroms, Northgate Aviation is like buying a Gyro at the Thursday Night Market. Not swank. It’s embarrassing and frankly, if I were a corporate exec, I’d tell my pilots to get some fuel in Oroville at $1/gallon savings, fly to Sac and have a nap, and pick me up at 4pm. The worse part is not knowing is someone is going to show up. I’ve called for fuel at 6pm (they’re open 7am-7pm) and have been arbitrarily told that fuel stops at 6pm. Seriously? Then there was the guy who found out he couldn’t buy fuel on Thanksgiving. That’s not how pilots roll. We land, we need fuel, as we often carry just enough to get from point a to point b….weight considerations and all.
6. Apparently the City/Airport manager told Mrs. Maria Rock in a private email that was accidentally CC’d to someone else involved with the case that an exclusive deal to run the FBO could not be assured, but he did assure that no one else would be able to have an FBO. That’s actually illegal, since the city has accepted federal funding which specifically states that the city cannot limit competition. In other words it is not up to the city to determine who operates an FBO, as it is meant to be a capitalist, Darwinian Free-For-All. Could Chico support 2, 3, or 4 FBOs? Who knows, but it’s not up to the city to determine the fate of the service providers. Let me be perfectly clear: The city has no jurisdiction over who can open and run an FBO. If they don’t pay rent, that’s another story, but insofar as the application and approval process is concerned, it’s winner take all, may the best man win, and all that rut.
7. Finally, and this is just plain annoying, Mr. Jay registered the name Chico Jet Center on 11/19/2007, and the Rock’s did so on 1/7/2008 4 times: One for Chris, one for Maria, and twice for Northgate Aviation Inc as Northgate Aviation Chico Jet Center. Part of the lawsuit I believe (really I’m not sure but I’ve heard this come up) is a cease and desist order barring the use of the name. The problem is that Dan Jay was denied a “Jet Center” and the name will eventually wind up with whomever uses it the most.
Wow, what an earful of mismanagement. I’ve talked to other people who fly fairly often out of Chico airport, and they tell me the same thing about the fueling station – Gomer and Goober could do a better job, apparently.
A friend of mine told me even the commercial commuter jet has problems with the fueling station – a commute flight he was on was held up because the employee at the fueling station had fueled the plane incorrectly, dangerously so. The pilot had to get out of the plane and wander the FBO area, looking for the attendant. When the employee couldn’t fix it, the pilot had to sit on the tarmac running the engines until half the fuel was “burned off,” then re-fuel correctly. That’s absolutely unacceptable as far as I’m concerned.
In past the airport has been managed by Dave Burkland, city mangler. Now we have a new city mangler, with a new contract. I’m not sure what’s going on at the airport these days, but I bet Ann Schwab knows.
See, Maria and Chris Rock, the owners of Northgate Aviation, are Big Dicks in the Democratic party. When I did a casual google search, besides contributions to the Democratic party and Democrats like John Edwards, I came up with a $250 contribution from Maria Rock to Ann Schwab’s 2008 campaign. That may sound like peanuts, but it was one of Schwab’s biggest individual contributions. And, as I scanned the contributions reports, I found there are many ways to contribute to various organizations and keep your name completely out of it. I’m guessing the Rocks are heavy hitters among the local liberals.
But here’s the real reason. Money might get you some attention, but you better be ready for the push and shove of politics too. People like the Rocks who open their checkbooks for politicians always expect something in return. And Maria Rock apparently gets what she wants, not so much with her checkbook as her nasty temperament. I talked to two different people who don’t know each other, but know Maria and Chris Rock, and both used the same word to describe Maria Rock – “bitch.” One said, “horrible bitch,” and the other one used “awful bitch.” I was shocked, neither of these people use profanity with me, but wow, they sure called Maria Rock a bitch. All I did was ask them what they know about it, and that’s what they said, Maria Rock is a bitch. She makes phone calls that could skin a cat, and will confront people and humiliate them right in front of others.
So that’s why Ann Schwab is allowing this lawsuit to parole along – she’s afraid of Maria Rock. Our mayor, toothless hound dog, lackey to the rich. Thanks for nothing, Ann.
Chico Taxpayers Association 
I heard the other day that the grand jury is soliciting the public for gummit shinanigans to investigate. You can go to their Web site and get a form.
Juanita, you must know of a hundred things to investigate. What do you think of getting the grand jury involved in these things?
I think you ought to head up the grand jury.
I used to think the Grand Jury was a big deal too – I was raised on “Perry Mason” and all those Jack Webb cop shows. The Grand Jury was always like the cavalry, they’d come in and put the whammy on graft and corruption! Hoo-rah!
but in reality, here anyway, they are just a bunch of John and Jane Q. Simpletons, usually retirees or rich people who can devote a LOT of time to the meetings, all over the county, whatever day or time of the week. They don’t have any kind of expertise – well, my husband knows everything about flooring, and they asked him to serve, but he couldn’t afford to take the time off work, so they lost his insights on adhesive polymers. None of them are lawyers, and they don’t even consult lawyers. When I and quite a number of other local citizens asked them to investigate the matter of the school bond that was supposed to build a third high school but was determined by the school board to be spent however they saw fit, the Grand Jury came back saying it was perfectly okay. They didn’t consult any lawyer, they just asked the school district if it was okay, and the school district said it was. Case closed. Puppet court is out of session.
I sure appreciate the compliment, but if I had a grand jury, it would be conducted at night by torchlight, and it would involve hot tar, feathers and a rail.
Well, the timer’s going off – to the clothesline Batmom!
more than you ever wanted to know about “Queen” Maria Rock
http://www.mariarock.healdsburg.net/arg.htm#co
She’s married to Chris Rock? That’s hillarious.
Did you see the News Review rag this week?
They had the drunkard Flyn Goloff or whatever she is called now do a hatched job on Toby.
And of course Bobby Speer was pimping for tax increases again.
For a free paper it sure is over priced.
I sure don’t envy Chris Rock, I’ll tell you that! I bet he’s so pussywhipped he has to ask for permission to fart.
Yes, I saw Goloff’s letter, and all I can say is, they are pretty freaked about Schindelbeck, aren’t they?
Meanwhile, no discussion about any real issues. They are hiding our financial situation from the public. Toby tried to bring that out in to the open, get the discussion going, and Goloff is always the first one to freak out. She’s always saying the public isn’t qualified to discuss anything. As far as she’s concerned, everything should happen behind closed doors. Like her elective surgery, that we paid for.
When Toby first starting asking about the numbers and then asked that they follow the law and produce that report as they are supposed to, I knew they would come after him.
How do you think this election will play out? I think the conservatives are running too many candidates. They should consolidate around two candidates besides Evans. Any more and they dillute their votes and lessen the chance of getting a majority on the council. And now is there best chance with Hokum and weasel Walker not running.
I can see Evans winning but it’s hard for me to see how they pickup two more seats. Although I will be the first to admit I don’t have any inside information about local politics.
I am very tired of these 5-2 votes. And next year the Schwabster is set to outlaw or tax or force retailers to charge 5 cents or more for a grocery bag. And who knows what other nonsense her Agenda 21 task force will come up with.
And then there’s Tommy Lando’s sales tax increase waiting in the wings.
Unless these Schwabistas get voted out I guess all this has to pass before people finally wake up and get angry enough to do something about it.
Yeah, Mary’s nasty little missive just confirms what we’ve all suspected – they expect Toby to win.
I’m not supporting or voting for Evans because he won’t tell us what he knows about Lando’s plans, and I fully expect him to support Lando in his bid for a sales tax increase. Bob is a trojan horse.
I don’t like Morgan because he’s been flip with me when I’ve asked him a legitimate question about structural overtime in the “public safety” contracts – I would not be surprised if he’s never even read a contract. He doesn’t understand what’s going on with the budget, either – he thinks it was necessary to close Station 5. He’s going to be a rubberstamp for the cops and fire.
Coolidge came on strong with his news bit about Measure J, but he dropped the ball shortly thereafter and has failed to pick it up again.
I’d be depressed about this election, but I’m a Giant’s fan, and that makes me an almost moronic optimist. We’ll see what happens! Thanks for hanging in there with me Joseph.
Let us not forget daughter Alicia Rock, Assistant Attorney for the city of Chico, is the daughter of Chris and Maria Rock. She may have nothing whatsoever to do with this lawsuit, but the Yiddish proverb you used before about stinking fish comes to mind. I just don’t know which end of this this is the head!
Two other notes: I spoke to a gentleman at the airshow a couple of weeks ago who was on the airport commission which had approved Dan Jay’s request to open a competing FBO. I don’t know who voted against Dan Jay’s request to open a business in Chico, but I do know that the city was so furious with this approval that they went against the wishes of the airport commission. Of course, that’s against the rules, so they fired most if not all of the airport commission members to circumvent that ruling. end of story.
Also, the lawsuit is set for trial near the end of this month or next. I was told by Dan Jay himself that they’re expecting this thing to last 21 business or court days. All I could think of was how much it was costing the city (Mr. Jay is aghast at how much they’re spending to fight him) and how much it’ll cost Mr. Jay.
What’s really a shame is that the airport is one of the gateways to Chico, and should be treated as such. Instead, it’s an eyesore, downer and embarrassment. No wonder no one wants to stop here because it’s just not an enjoyable experience.
Thanks for coming back Frequent Flyer, I sure appreciate your insights, and keeping this conversation going. I think the mismanagement out there is a huge part of our financial problem.
I agree with your previous post about commercial service too after I thought about it.
That’s been in the back of my mind, too. That these “conservatives” will do nothing about the huge pension issue and just give the cops and firefighters what they want.
The taxpayers will probably take it in the shorts no matter which side gets the majority, just like at the national level of politics.
And you are right. Evans may very well support Landos tax increase. Who knows, maybe Sorensen will to now that Lando helped him get that job.
If that’s the case there really is no one in Chico politics who gives a damn about the taxpayers.
Yeah, Sorensen’s weak protest over Measure J was just for looks – I don’t think he’d mind if J passed. I certainly don’t believe he lays awake at night worrying about low-income people like he said in his argument against. He sure as heck hasn’t campaigned against it. I guess he’s too busy hooking his snout up over in Biggs.
The “tiered” system they’ve worked out with the cops and fire is just a set up for guaranteed promotions and step raises. What ever happened to employee evaluations?
A friend of mine who works at the county for less than $50,000 a year tells me county workers have slowly been “weaned” onto paying their entire “employee contribution.” Wow! She says, the county just informed them, a couple of percent at a time, that they would be paying more. They were not asked for their permission. Why can’t the city do that?
A friend of mine who works at Chico State for around $40,000/year just got told her position is being eliminated to save money. Her boss told her there’s another position available, but she has to take a class there at the college to qualify for it, at her own expense. And, the new position pays $2,000 a year LESS. When Tom Lando was our city manager, he went to college at the city’s expense, at OUR expense, and then retired a few years later at over $100,000 a year.
You’re right. The conservatives don’t care about this stuff any more than the liberals. The best we can hope for is to get as even a split as we can, and try to shake up the power block every few years, change the guard, knowhatimean? For years we had a conservative block, and believe me, they got as drunk on their power trip as these idiots. They were on their way to paving our town over with overpriced subdivisions just as surely as the liberals. We had to stop their machine. But now we have fallen into the liberal machine, and it’s time to throw a wrench in that too.
And while all that is going on this city continues to disentegrate.
Have you noticed how the streets are falling apart. The street the Oxford Suites is on is full of potholes and there are many, many more throughout Chico but no one ever seems to say anything.
Oh man, those are beyond potholes – I would call those ROAD HAZARDS. They’ll void the warranty on your Big-O’s!
Our town looks depressed and bummed out too. I know, the day Cal Water told us our rates were going up “30-40 percent”, I noticed yards started dying all over town.
Some people have money to do all kinds of fancy low-water stuff – my yard and many of my neighbors’ are just DEAD. When I get the dough mine will be rock and YUCCA. I’ll have to blog my yuccas, I’m real happy with them. But the other day, I saw some folks with bigger yuccas, and I must admit, I felt yucca envy.
WRT the commercial service to LAX, and frankly just improving the airport in general, I don’t think the city should have to spend a dime. If another FBO came in, and we added an avionics shop (had one….the city told him to move into Northgate or get out of town…), a paint shop, and turboprop/turbine engine services, more people would spend their money in town. Maybe a restaurant could be supported, who knows.
If the city has to offer a one year discount on a lease to get someone to come in, I’m all for it, but there’s really no reason to spend money sprucing up the airport, they just need to get out of the way. And that’s the most frustrating part: They’re simply getting in the way of individuals who want to make a difference.
Now, if they want to limit certain types of growth, that’s somewhat understandable, but this is looking more like holding down others to protect a friend.For $250? Really? Must be something else going on here.
I agree, and I think they need a full-time dedicated manager at the airport. Right now it is “one of the city manager’s hats,” as if just any administrator could run an airport. Dave Burkland didn’t know what he was supposed to do out there, so he just didn’t manage it. Now we have a new guy, Brian Nakamura, from the city of Hemet. Hemet has an airport, but I don’t know who is responsible for running it or how well-managed it is – their website sure doesn’t show me much. But, I happen to know the story of Nakamura’s sudden departure from Hemet, where he left the city council standing agape, and I’m not counting on him for much of anything but a big pension in a few years – his average stay with a city is three years.
Yeah, $250, that we know of. That’s how cheap it is to buy city council here. Jon Luvass is sitting on the planning commission today because he gave Maureen Kirk $950 in an election. I’m guessing the Rocks are good for a lot more, but you have to know where to look. Ann’s public fundraisers are always taco wagon cheapies – the real money gets laid down at private dinners. I’m guessing the Rocks can throw some pretty nice parties out there in Butte Valley.
But you see, the more you conserve, the more Cal Water wants to raise your rates.
With people cutting back they can’t cover their fixed costs according to their propaganda.
So your damned if you conserve or if you don’t.
I know, I’m so pissed about it. I have to go out and water my landscaping today before this little hot spell we’re having kills off what I have left.
Remember, in Star Wars – Luke Skywalker’s family were moisture farmers. There’s something to that. I’m going to do some research.
There’s a street off East Lassen by the Espanade close to where the Rice Bowl is. It’s Mefford Way and the street is really chewed up. Looks like something you’d see in a 3rd world country.
You can even see how bad it is on google maps but it’s worse now.
There are a bunch of streets like that within the city limits so what is the city council doing? Talking about annexing Chapman Town. And probably the same way Hitler annexed Austria or Stalin annexed the Baltics.
try the neighborhood behind the MacDonalds at East Ave and the freeway – it’s bordered by the freeway – yeah, third world, that’s what it looks like.