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Story about sports complex built in Santa Rosa with private money – $18 million, self supporting

26 Dec

 I was looking through the Santa Rosa Press Democrat when I found this interesting article posted below.  It makes CARD’s plans for their aquatic center look like a $28 million joke.

CARD wants to put a bond on our homes to pay for a $28 million swimming pool with a roof and stands, to be used mostly for private swim clubs. CARD has already acknowledged, this aquatic center will never be self-supporting, and everybody on the board knows the first bond is only the beginning.

This $18 million center in Santa Rosa will house various sports activities, as well as commercial businesses who will help foot the bills. They will even have meeting rooms for groups.  

As far as I can find, this center is being built entirely with private money. If you can find otherwise, pipe up. 

It’s compared to a similar facility in San Jose which I have actually seen – the Silver Creek Sports Complex. The North Valley Hockey Club has attended many tournaments at this facility, it’s very nice – indoor soccer, hockey, and gymnastics, with a big restaurant right in the middle. Converted from an unused warehouse, that building also houses commercial businesses. It’s in a nice area accessible by bike trail, which doubles as a pedestrian nature trail.

CARD’s plan is for an aquatic center, period. As far as I can tell, no big sponsors have stepped forward, and CARD isn’t recruiting the big corporations like WalMart or Pepsi who offer grants for projects like this. The CARD board has no imagination beyond attaching our homes, for a center the consultant reports will probably be used by less than 15 percent of our town.

When North Valley Hockey came to the city of Chico and the CARD board to ask for such a center as they have since built in Hamilton City,  they were turned away. CARD told them it would be too much competition for Cal Skate, which does not even have a proper hockey rink. Trying to schedule all the groups who wanted to use Cal Skate was getting difficult as well.  I have also sat in conversations with groups like Skatepark Solutions and the group who built the pump track – both were told they must do significant fundraising on their own. You can see on old agendas, CARD has not maintained the skate park properly for a couple of years now – Tom Lando and Michael Worley have both said the community needs to show more support for that facility. The aquatic center people have been given inappropriate  favoritism, anybody with eyes can see that.

Ann Willman, CARD director, has made no bones about her kid being on the swim team.  That’s the kind of ego-centric leadership we have at CARD.  They act as though the aquatic center is a done deal, they just have to figure out a way to put the cost onto the taxpayers, like a booger.

Another thing I notice, this facility in Santa Rosa does not include a swimming pool. Why not? Because, let’s face it, nobody wants to use indoor pools. They’re skanky. In California we swim outside, that’s a no-brainer except for pussies who need heated water. 

Read below, and let us know what you think.

http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/4887157-181/18-million-sports-entertainment-complex?ref=most&artslide=2#

$18 million sports, entertainment complex breaks ground in Santa Rosa

by Bill Swindell
The Press Democrat | December 7, 2015
The project, dubbed Epicenter by its developers, will transform an old wine warehouse on Coffey Lane into a 130,000-square-foot destination for athletes and gamers of all stripes. Developers said it will include three indoor soccer fields, a fitness club, bowling center, laser tag, trampoline playground and a sports bar with a 50-foot video wall.

“It’s one of the few sports and entertainment facilities in the country. … There’s very few that are combined,” said Andrew Rowley, chief executive officer of Sports City, which will be the largest tenant at the complex.

“It’s got some panache to it,” Rowley said after a groundbreaking ceremony for the project Monday.

Rowley’s company will operate the three soccer fields and one basketball/multipurpose court, which are slated to open in April. The new fields will be used as well for other sports such as lacrosse — which is growing in popularity — flag football and volleyball.

“Both our youth and adult leagues and children’s programs continue to grow so having additional indoor field and court space is great for the community, but the real benefits of the additional space is that it allows us to provide better league game times,” Rowley said.

While the soccer and other sports leagues will be a big attraction, Epicenter will house a cluster of businesses expected to draw an estimated 1 million visitors a year, including repeat customers, said Joe Lourdeaux, vice president of the company, which is made up of local investors. All tenants should be moved in by next summer.

The only similar facility in Northern California is the Silver Creek Sportsplex in San Jose, though that does not have the range of entertainment options as the one planned for Santa Rosa.

The goal is to have “cross pollination” among customers so they will visit different areas, Lourdeaux said.

For example, a mother may want to drop her children off at Rockin’ Jump, a trampoline playground, while she exercises at the Anytime Fitness sports club. An adult soccer team finishing its game might want to go to the Victory House restaurant and sports lounge for post-game beers. The latter facility will have a 50-foot video wall and more than 75 flat-screen televisions for sports viewing for events such as the World Cup and NFL games.

More than 300 parking spaces will be allocated for the project, which will also include a pizzeria and a Starbucks, Lourdeaux said.

“We will make this fun for everyone,” said Lourdeaux, who also serves on the board of directors for the Edgewood Cos., a Lake Tahoe development company. His father, Wally, was an investor at the marina at Lake Sonoma.

“We want to put the family back into family entertainment; to build a place where you can have your kid’s birthday party, your own retirement party, date night, bring your kids during the day and your co-workers during the night,” he added.

The developers purchased the warehouse from Woodstock Properties, an affiliate of the Charles M. Schulz family. Woodstock was extremely helpful in helping to get the project off the ground, Lourdeaux said.

“They graciously held on to this (property) for almost a year until we got everything in place,” Lourdeaux said. Jean Schulz, the widow of cartoonist Charles Schulz, is an investor in Sonoma Media Investments, which owns The Press Democrat.
The building, constructed in the 1960s, used to be wine storage facility. The remodeled facility will have solar panels, LED lighting, energy efficient mechanical systems and a natural cooling system.

 Other tenants will include a retail sports shop; a facility to house parties, meetings and banquet rooms; and an upscale bowling center that will house 12 lanes with an additional VIP suite with four lanes that can be rented for parties and events.

There will an area for high-tech games, including a theater motion ride utilizing similar technology to the popular Star Tours ride at Disneyland.

When fully opened, Epicenter and its tenants will employ over 250 people, the developers said. AXIA Architects and Wright Contracting are leading the design and construction teams, while Bank of America is the financing partner for the project.

 The project will allow Sports City to expand from its current pair of soccer facilities, one off Piner Road in Santa Rosa and the other outside Cotati off Stony Point Road.

The Cotati site will remain in operation going forward while the Piner Road one will close. The latter suffered with a lack of parking and showers as well as not being climate controlled, which can be difficult for summer league players in the sweltering heat.

You can reach Staff Writer Bill Swindell at 521-5223 or bill.swindell@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @BillSwindell.

Who would have known Feaster was so well connected? Well, that’s the way things work around here – you scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours!

21 Dec

What do we know about Paradise police officer Patrick Feaster? 

We’ve seen the films – I tried not to watch, but they’ve played it again and again – the body of a living human being being rolled over by a car and left like a mannequin in the road. A head pops out of the top of the car like a jack-in-the-box, jolts violently, and disappears back into the car. 

Something that bugs the hell out of me is that Feaster never once bends over the woman’s body. I mean, she might have been alive still, needed somebody to say something, comfort her a little. I can’t believe he acts as though she’s not even there. 

It’s a snuff movie, I can’t believe Ch 12 and 7 would just play it again and again. We need to see it? I don’t need to see it – I already know, you don’t want to mess with Paradise police. Ask Robert Funk, whose arm was almost twisted off by Paradise police officer Robert “RJ” Pickering.  Mr. Funk was celebrating his own birthday with friends at his Paradise eatery, when he had to use the bathroom out back. Pickering saw him and said he thought Funk was a prowler. He yanked open the bathroom door and forced Funk out of the bathroom, grabbing his arm and twisting it behind his back as Mr. Funk protested he was the property owner.  I thought that was also incompetence on Pickering’s part. Funk had owned a well-known eatery for years. In a town that size, the cops should know people.  Mr. Funk ended up with a dislocated arm and a pantsfull of his own excrement. He sued the city and won an undisclosed amount, but I just saw RJ in a news piece about a month ago, acting like a spokesman for Paradise PD.

I’ve known little RJ since he was a child, and if anybody had asked me, I could have told them he’s got a suitcase full of problems. But nobody asked me. They really need to do further background checks on these people before they give them the authority to maim, kill or just plain humiliate people.  They should also have to live in the town where they serve, so people know them too.

Patrick Feaster also apparently grew up around here. In fact, he’s very well connected. His dad is with Chico School District – I remembered his name, he’s one of the salaries that adds to the cost of educating your kid, but adds nothing to your kid’s education. But young Feaster has a more well-known relative – former Butte County Supervisor Jane Dolan.

http://m.krcrtv.com/officer-patrick-feaster-wins-madd-award-for-efforts-arrest-drunk-drivers/37022600

This story above is apparently from last year. There is speculation among the comments included in the link that Feaster is getting special treatment, and also that he is too zealous about getting drunk drivers because of the award. I wonder myself – if he saw these folks exit the bar, having been kicked out for being intoxicated and rowdy, why did he let them get in the car? Why didn’t he flash that red light right on the spot? I wonder – did Thomas see the cop car behind him, and lose control of the car? 

And what about the person(s) at the bar, who, knowing Thomas was intoxicated, let him leave in a car? Don’t bars have some responsibility? You’re not supposed to serve an intoxicated person.  It takes some booze for a guy to get that drunk. 

This whole sad affair leaves a lot of questions about how the county deals with their own personnel. We need more outside, non-affiliated oversight here. Butte County is starting to resemble Hazzard County, and Ramsey is starting to look like Boss Hogg. 

UPDATE: This has made a national splash –

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/outrage-police-shooting-drunk-driver-paradise-california-officer-patrick-feaster/

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2015/12/14/california_officer_shoots_suspected_drunk_driver_in_dashcam_video.html

http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/national-international/Northern-California-Police-Shooting-Patrick-Feaster-DUI-Suspect-362426641.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/officer-shot-dui-suspect-charges_566b31a9e4b0fccee16e924f

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/mistakenly-shot-suspect-not-charged-article-1.2464035

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-california-officer-shooting-20151219-story.html

 

 

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There’s a revolving door on the jailhouse at O-ville

20 Dec

You know I hate being negative all the time, it’s nice to have something positive to talk about once in a while. But, I’m a skeptic, it’s hard not to wonder – how long will a good thing last?

Just as I was working myself to a state of total paranoia about crimes in my hood, I see Chico PD has been ARRESTING CREEPS!

From this morning’s Enterprise Record:

“The Chico Police Department made arrest in three separate incidents Thursday night that included burglary and possession of a stolen gun.”

The first arrestee was pulled over for a vehicle code violation early Thursday evening at West First and Walnut. Chico PD officers  also found the man in possession of loaded stolen gun and crank.  The gun had been reported stolen here in town previously this year.

A local man who grew up in Red Bluff and describes himself as “self-employed in Chico”, this guy was just arrested in January of this year for a similar violation – possession of a firearm by a felon, as well as “receiving stolen property not exceed [sic] $950″

Boek was booked into Butte County jail on a variety of weapon and drug charges.”

My question being, why were the charges in January dismissed? 

Why doesn’t the ER ever do the simple homework I just did on this guy – I entered his name here:

http://www.buttecourt.ca.gov/online_index/Search.cfm

I really don’t know if the ER is incompetent or they are just trying to protect the police and DA’s office.

Another repeat offender was picked up later that same night in the same neighborhood as he was “riding a bicycle away from a vehicle with a broken window”  This man was found in possession of bolt cutters – considered a “burglary tool” in the code – and stolen credit cards and “electronics.” 

I’m glad these cops are paying attention, this is just what we need – but this guy was just arrested a month and a half ago for the roughly the same thing – possession of “burglary tools” and drugs – “opiods” – I’m going to guess those had been stolen.

This man was held for just over a month without ever making a plea, and then was for some reason released “o/r” – on his own recognizance – on December 9. He was picked up again just Thursday night, and booked back into jail on Friday, the 18, just over a week after he was released back onto the streets to endanger lives and steal from people.

I must offer my congratulations to his lawyer, a former tenant of mine, Saul Henson.

Thursday night was a busy night for Chico PD! You have to wonder, aren’t there any crimes committed the rest of the week? 

“Police took a report of two residential burglaries Thursday night on the 700 block of Eastwood Avenue and the 1000 block of Cypress Street, both near Ninth Street.

The residents were sleeping during the burglaries, according to a press release. In one incident, a resident woke up and saw a suspect in his bedroom.

The suspect fled in one of the victim’s vehicles. At about 2 a. m. Friday, an officer saw the stolen vehicle on Warner Street near West Second Avenue, according to the release.

Officers pulled over the vehicle and arrested Shilo Squires, 19, of Gridley.

Squires was identified as the subject who was seen in one of the homes. Most of the property from the residential burglaries was in the vehicle, the release said.

Squires was booked into Butte County jail on charges of burglary, possession of stolen property, and possession of a stolen vehicle.”

This is a sad story. Shilo Squires is a kid from Gridley. He has been in trouble in Chico since April of this year, caught driving a car without a license. 

In August he was charged twice in 5 days – first for receiving stolen property. This first case is confusing – actually arrested in July, he was allowed off on his own recognizance. He was rearrested and charged in August, bailed out at $10,000. 

Three days later he was cited for being in the park “after hours.” He was not held, but given a $508 ticket and a court date of September 17 to dispute it. He neither showed nor paid the fine.

Squires had jumped bail by November, the DA issued another warrant for his arrest. He was caught burglarizing these people mentioned above – broke into their house while they were sleeping –  December 18. 

Squires had received “o/r” on his previous charges even though he had prior charges in Butte County, he received bail even though he’d failed to appear several times and warrants had to be re-issued for his arrest. And now they catch him in the act of new crimes.

I can’t help but wonder what the hell is going on at Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey’s office. Here we are, hiring new cops, paying outrageous salaries and benefits for our hired guns, but when they take the perps to O-ville, they encounter a revolving door.

Furthermore we have this situation with Mad Dog Feaster – yes, I’d like to see Mike Ramsey recalled, so we don’t have to pay his frigging pension.

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Nextdoor: Interesting conversation with a woman who claims to be “homeless”

19 Dec

I’ve been stuck in the house the last few days with a cold. Been doing a lot of reading.  Yesterday I read an interesting conversation on the social network site for neighbors, Nextdoor.

A woman has been trying for a couple of months now to start a productive conversation on “Solutions to Homelessness.” I welcome a good conversation on this topic, and wonder why we haven’t had one. I see it goes rude pretty fast.

In October, the woman started the conversation with, “I am starting a new thread because the last thread on homelessness was getting ridiculous! If you care to comment on this thread please give us REASONABLE solutions that would help the homelessness in our community.”

I wondered, how did the previous conversation go off track?

The October thread seemed to be moving along well. Various neighbors chimed in with their feelings about the umbrella that is “homelessness”, their compassion for these people and their frustration. Councilwoman Reneatte Fillmer talked about various agencies that work with “homeless” and “mentally ill” and encourages neighbors to donate to those agencies that need the most help. Other neighbors retorted politely but firmly that these agencies are bringing more “homeless” and “mentally ill” to our area from outside, and we need to make Chico “less hospitable” to these folks.

Then the thread quieted down, and no more remarks were made until yesterday, when a woman named “Teena” wandered into the conversation and began attacking neighbors who expressed any kind of negativity toward “homeless.”  I don’t know if she’s genuine or an actor having a riot of a time, but she seems familiar.

Here’s the most recent message she posted – other messages were directed at other posters, by name, rude, hostile and ugly.

 
Oh if yr. referring 2 me, I will reply on what I read. And speak my feelings Just like ya people speak yrs. So ya have no room 2 tell me what 2 do. I am very much “CIVIL”. And guess what I finally got heard I got 10 comments back (WOW) & I will ” REPLY”. I am not mean but I & my HOMELESS FRIENDS are very tired of the Community Shit. They know nothing about all of us. Just what they see & assume it’s all the homeless. Yes we are not perfect. But ya people are not down town or anywhere else seeing what I see all hours of the NITE, cause yr. All tucked in yr. Nice warm beds. Do ya people forget what town ya live in? College, ya people have no idea what they do? I watch!!! So back off some

 

I feel I recognize Teena – she’s snarled at me as I’ve entered the grocery store or rode my bike through the park, she’s gibbered at me in the post office annex when I’ve tried to retrieve my mail, she’s accosted me in the parking lot of various retail centers, telling me I should give her some money because I enjoy the luxury of owning a car.

One day I sat in our car at Safeway, waiting for my husband to come out of the store, watching a disheveled woman meandering the parking lot, seemingly a drunken, random path, sometimes she’d stumble, her legs did not seem so sure.  Except, she was walking very close to and examining various cars, looking inside, eyeballing the doors. I sat watching, waiting to see if she would enter any of the cars, but she disappeared. Was that “Teena”?

In the above post she reminds us, the college students get wild Downtown at night. Some people, myself included, believe the rash of tire slashings has been done by young people, who either live in Chico or come into town to party. Those of us old folks know it’s not just college students, but college age people in general, most of them living in a traditional home and many of them gainfully employed. Yeah, they come Downtown to get drunk, and drunks are not very nice. That’s a separate problem, and I don’t think the city or county is getting a handle on that either.

The problem with these self-described “homeless” is they want to act like that 24-7. They don’t pay bills, they expect to be treated like back-door cousins. They are overwhelming public services meant for local people. They are sending whole parts of town into blight.  They are a black hole on our economy. The use the word “homeless” like a shield. 

As of this morning posters are starting to get angry that this woman is allowed on their private message board. If I could be sure she was genuine, I’d say, “let her blow her mouth.” If she’s for real, she’s her own worse enemy.

I’m happy to see a conversation where people are being honest about their feelings toward this army of the night. I’m glad to see more people express how I feel – things the county and city are doing are actually attracting bad people here, people who think we not only must tolerate their bad behavior but put them up with lodging. We’re supposed to be cheerful and jolly when they growl at our young children, or make obscene threats because we didn’t treat them to their liking.  More and more I see ranters – people who just wander and yell at nobody in particular  – if I acted like that at a city council meeting, I’m afraid Chris Constantin would taser me.

Most Nextdoor posters have expressed a desire to help these people, but “enough is enough,” and “there’s only so much room at the inn...”

I  think it’s interesting that Reanette Fillmer tells us we need to give money to various agencies that deal with these people. Butte County CAO Paul Hahn reported, with Fillmer sitting right across the table from him, that Butte County already spends over half the budget on homeless, mentally ill, and families with dependent children.

Fillmer is a Cal PERS employee. Her interest is funding Cal PERS. Cal PERS is in a deep amount of trouble, having lost another round on the stock market, they are demanding more money from public entities. Council member Randall Stone explains what this will mean to Chico on his Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/ElectStone/posts/794348484026885

I know, Stone is pandering for 2016, just read the article.

Remember, Cal PERS not only owes all those pensions to all those retirees, they  also get salaries, benefits and pensions for themselves. Their salaries are comparable to those in Bell, California, and they pay NOTHING toward their benefits and pensions. Are you getting the picture?

Perpetuating the influx of homeless into this area perpetuates half the county budget Folks. Behavioral Health Director Adrian Kittrell has the highest salary in Butte County – about $269,000/year, out of which he pays NOTHING for his $82,000 benefits/pension package.  And he has the nerve to say he  can’t afford to do outreach. He’s just a stuffed suit who moves between the seat of his car and meeting room chairs. 

I am wary to chime in on the Nextdoor conversation –  whenever I start talking about public compensation around here, somebodies get their nose out and that’s the end of the conversation.  But, I’ll try to keep an eye on it. 

 

 

 

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Newsbits: CARD hosts public aquatic center meeting tonight; Council votes to apply for “Intervenor” status in Cal Water rate case

16 Dec

I am staying home this week, because I’m tired of having this dam-ned cold. I’m going to beat it, but that means house arrest with a heating pad and the ginormous size bottle of generic aspirin.

I won’t be able to attend the public meeting CARD has scheduled tonight, but I did get some news from Director Ann Willmann.

Dear Juanita, 

There were 29  people that signed in at the first public workshop. The reports provided by the consultants are the notes from the meeting. There is a sheet included with comments from attendees. There were only a few comments as most of them came through the interactive process that was reported through the documents provided. There will be a final report to the board of directors in early 2016 that will include the information gathered through these workshops. 

 In regards to the upcoming meeting notice, there is a notice on our home page of our website with a large picture. Additional advertising took place via a PSA to other news agencies, an email newsletter to our current customers as well as an email to past attendees. Our goal is to have public participation in the process and I appreciate your feedback regarding available documents. In the near future back up documents will be posted on our website as part of future agenda packets. I have requested the addition of the Shapiro Pool info to the feasibility page.

 Thank you, Ann

I believe the reports she’s talking about have been loaded on the website, I have not had time to check.

I didn’t make it to last night’s council meeting, but watched online. The item regarding the Cal Water rate increase came up after 9:30, and went so fast I wasn’t sure what I heard. I listened to it again today, and I think they voted to apply for “Intervenor” status. This whole thing is worse than trigonometry class – you’re afraid to ask a question because it might just get more confusing.

It sounded at first like council attorney Vince Ewing was recommending “Party” status, saying there was really no difference between “Party” and “Intervenor,” that they are used “interchangeably” in the rules. Then he seems to shift, recommending “Intervenor” status. That’s what Sorensen must have heard too, cause that was the motion I heard – “Intervenor” status. That passed  unanimously.

Merry Christmas Council, I was afraid you were going to load my stocking full of horse puckey again this year.

Ewing also recommended the city file for legal/attorney fees to be paid by the CPUC. See, I told you this guy was way more qualified than me to be doing this kind of work. He is a bright young man with oodles of expensive schooling and he looks really sharp in that suit.

And now, I will leave you for my Max Fleischer cartoons and a cup of hot lemonade.

Chico PD hires 5 new officers, promotes 4 – is this going to solve our crime problem?

16 Dec

 I don’t know if you’ve been “Nextdoor” – a social website for neighbors that was introduced into Chico a few months ago. I signed up, despite a pain-in-the-ass process for which I was first asked to give my social security number or my credit card number but finally opted for a post card sent to my house to “prove” my residency.

I went along with it because I was hoping for a sort of bulletin board about crime in our neighborhoods. I expected the classified ads, the greetings, and now I find there are exclusive neighbor groups who are allowed to pick and choose who they let in regardless of address. But, I have also found some people use it to inform each other of criminal activity. I’ve noticed this type of post is increasing. 

Lately people have reported stuff like home deliveries being stolen or opened and rifled through, cars are being broken into and items stolen, and one man’s back yard shed was jimmied. These crimes have all been reported within a mile of my house. 

The pivotal weakness is that not very many of my neighbors, or anybody for that matter,  have signed onto Nextdoor, so I know there’s stuff going on that’s not appearing on the site. My husband and I used to keep up a chatter with our nearby neighbors, but our hood has changed alot over 15 years.  Lately a lot of my neighbors have moved, new people have appeared who I don’t know. One neighbor who signed onto Nextdoor has since moved, a new woman lives in her house, but the previous neighbor is still registered at the old house. This kind of website needs a good monitor. The monitor I contacted never responded to me. 

But, I see enough to know, crime is steadily increasing in Chico, and the new cops they’ve hired over the last year and the raises and promotions they’ve given have not changed anything. 

In today’s Enterprise Record, I read, “Five new Chico police officers were sworn in and four officers received promotions during a ceremony Tuesday at the Chico Fire Training Center.”

I guess there’s some good news – “The new officers — Jeremy Gagnebin, Jamie McElhinney, Trey Reid, Francisco Salinas and Miranda Wallace — graduated from the Butte College Law Enforcement Academy and will now undergo roughly six months of field training, Chico Police Chief Mike O’Brien said”  – this means, they will pay 50 percent of their own benefits and pension. I don’t think that’s enough but it’s better than the 12 percent most cops pay. 

“O’Brien also announced the promotions of Sgt. Jeramie Struthers, Lt. Matt Madden, Lt. Rob Merrifield and Deputy Chief Dave Britt.”  I’ll lay down a five spot right now – Merrifield is spiking – he’s getting a raise now so he can retire soon at a higher pension. 

And this is very telling – “O’Brien’s promotions of Madden, Merrifield and Britt were the first of his tenure as the city’s chief of police, he said, adding that when he stepped into the role six months ago he had to replace half of his command staff.  ‘I had to tap some very specific individuals on the shoulder to come serve at a very difficult time,’  he said, noting strained relations between the Police Department and community, as well as historically low staffing. ‘And each of them answered that call. In that six-month period they have all performed extraordinarily well.’  The Chico Police Department, O’Brien said, is still hiring. The department is authorized to fill 92 sworn positions. About 88 of those are currently filled.

So, O’Brien is aware the public is very pissed off, that’s good. But low staffing? They always say that. They hire more but crime just keeps increasing. They pay themselves too well, according to that front page article run in the ER recently, and I’ve checked – they get paid on a par with San Francisco PD. Been to San Francisco lately? Been shot/mugged/carjacked? Here we have petty crimes committed by a population of scum bags who are allowed to camp illegally in our parks, sit/lie/and beg on our sidewalks, harass our merchants, all despite the creation of endless ordinances designed to give the cops more excuses not to bust any of these people. 

On Nextdoor Chico PD officer Paul Ratto announced they again rousted the permanent illegal camp along the creek and under the bridge at Humboldt and Cypress. 

“Target Officers encounter repeat encampments under the bridge at Cypress Ave. / Humboldt Ave. The Target Team is in an education phase of the new ordinance (9.20.050 CMC) prohibiting subjects from storing personal property in Chico’s waterways. Today, three subjects were contacted and two were arrested on outstanding warrants. Warnings were given regarding the ordinance. Also on scene was Stairways Program Manager Michael Madieros. Sometimes in these situations subjects with mental health or substance abuse issues are identified and can be rapidly housed. Through the Stairways Program these subjects are given a place were their needs and met and treatment can begin.”

Two of them had arrest warrants, the third was illegally camping – why can’t that person be cited or arrested? They hand him over to Michael Madieros – a guy who has made a tidy living for himself because he is willing to deal with these people when the cops don’t want to be bothered. Stairways is part of Butte County Behavioral Health. County Admin Officer Paul Hahn recently reported over half the county’s budget goes to “helping” the homeless and mentally ill. I have no idea what Madieros is paid, but there’s a pack of them down there getting salaries, benefits and pension for continuing to enable and encourage dysfunctional behavior. It just perpetuates their salaries, they don’t care about the consequences this practice is having on the rest of the functional community.

What in the world are we doing, catering to these people, and paying the police more and more money to stand by “meeting their needs”?  O’Brien compliments himself  – “During the past six months, he added, the city has been able to stem the flow of officers leaving the Police Department, which is something O’Brien has attributed to competitive salaries and a “sense of hope” brought on by the leadership of the department’s command staff.”

Yeah, “competitive salaries,” competitive to huge cities with outrageous crime problems.  I don’t see any hope down there – I see a train headed for a picnic blanket. 

UPDATE 12/8/16 – Rob Merrifield retires at his spiked pay rate, Item 1.7:

http://chico-ca.granicus.com/GeneratedAgendaViewer.php?view_id=2&clip_id=649

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Sewer fund in trouble because of developer fee deferrals, transfers to salaries/benefits/pensions – Constantin says we have to raise fees now to avoid big fee increase in future?

3 Dec

Chico Assistant City Manager Chris Constantin assured a group of $taff, council members, and a few members of the public that our sewer treatment plant is in great shape – in the same breath he mentioned a sewage spill at Chico airport. What?  

Constantin was walking a fine line at yesterday’s Finance Committee meeting, trying to assure us that there was no imminent danger, but we better make a plan anyway, so we don’t have any more situations like the above (very quickly mentioned) spill. Not only do we need to maintain our sewer plant, but we need to plan for future hook-ups. He says 20 percent of incorporated Chico is not on sewer, and we need to plan to accommodate those households. I don’t know whether he expects people to hook up voluntarily, or if he is urging some sort of mandate, but he does not seem to think our gazillion dollar poopy ponds will be able to handle it.

He says we need some sort of regular fee increase schedule to avoid big increases in future. 

Yeah, I know – he says this was a concern before we even discussed hooking Paradise to our system. But the council went ahead and told Paradise to “look into it.”  “Look into it” meaning tens of thousands in consulting fees, but whatever, it’s not their money.

Constantin mentioned “nitrates”, as if that is the main concern in getting people to hook up to Chico sewer.

My mom gave me these. She used to go to a lot of these meeting too.

My mom gave me these. She used to go to a lot of these meetings too.

Constantin’s daddy must have been a glass maker, cause I can see right through that guy. It is NOT about the nitrates. That’s the excuse they used to get that grant to run all those lines into certain neighborhoods in town, higher density neighborhoods where they SPECULATE nitrates would be high. They have no proof, no report, nothing that says nitrates are polluting our drinking water. They do have plenty of paperwork involving the old dry cleaning establishments and gas stations around town, but those lawsuits ended up in the turnip patch.

Again people, it’s the Pension Deficit.

I have a stack of financial reports next to me – I’m not an accountant, these spread sheets look like something you’d find in the bathroom after a KISS! concert. I’ll tell you one thing I know – parentheses around numbers mean “shortfall”, “deficit”, – FUND EMPTY and still being used. There are parentheses all over our budget reports, enclosing figures in the hundred thousands and even millions. Millions of dollar of deficit in these funds, and where did it go?

You got to follow those walnut shells People, you’re getting kinda slack. $taff has learned to spin the wheel on us, move money from one pile to another so fast we can’t keep track. In fact, I think council can barely hold on themselves.

Yes, we’re in trouble. Chico is going to become a very expensive town to live in – I know, that’s already happened with the price of homes, which carries up the price of everything else with it. We need to start thinking, not only about all the tax campaigns that are rolling at us, but who we will support for council in 2016. We’ve got a mess on that dais. We have four spend-thrift “fiscal conservatives“, and then we have three liberals who don’t seem to have a clue either. They all spend other people’s money like it grows on trees.

Sheesh! 

The other thing we need to think about is, do we want to go all the way and make Chico Taxpayers a PAC? Right now it’s a registered  website, a discussion  site, but we can go all the way and  register it a PAC – that is what we need to get any respect out of the county recorder so she’ll give us the registered  voters’ list. She says only PAC’s can have the list, that’s her rule. This whole thing is pretty stacked against “grass roots” involvement. If we want to make an impact in 2016, we might want to think about it.

 

 

 

 

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Cal Water being generous with ratepayers’ money

29 Nov

From today’s Enterprise Record:

Water provider brings blessings to families

On behalf of the families who are living and changing their lives at our Esplanade House Program, the Community Action Agency would like to express its appreciation to California Water Service for its generous donation of $3,000. Because of their commitment to community, our families get the opportunity to receive holiday food baskets.

Many of our families have been separated from their extended families during the holiday season. The joy brought by simply providing a holiday meal is immense. Our families are amazing as they work to overcome poverty, addiction and mental health issues while increasing their self- sufficiency and bonding with their children.

Thanks again to Cal Water for blessing our families over the holidays.

— Thomas Tenorio, Chico

Tom Tenorio is with Esplanade House. As much as I feel we need Esplanade House, I have not liked the management for a long time. I think they squander money on salaries that could get more families in, but that’s difficult to assess since they don’t post their salaries and they get very defensive when you ask.

I’ve seen Tenorio at meetings. At the Local Governments Committee meeting he made a little speech that didn’t say anything, just made the meeting longer, about what a great community we live in.

Does he have any idea what he’s talking about? Does he realize, that $3,000 came out of our bills? Does he pay his own water bill? Does he have any idea what the Esplanade House pays for water?  Does he think for 30 seconds what water rates are doing to families right now? The utility companies are impoverishing whole communities to pay pensions for people who make salaries in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. 

Having met Tenorio on various occasions, I’d say, he’s carrying a bowl of jello between his ears.  He’s another one of those snout-nosed trough dwellers who gets a salary for “caring” about the poor, but doesn’t have any concern for the people who pay for all this generosity until they end up on the street. 

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28 Nov
Here's a good tip for a Winter cold - throw some lemon sections in a cup, add a teaspoon of honey and some hot water.

Here’s a good tip for a Winter cold – throw some lemon sections in a cup, add a teaspoon of honey and some hot water.

 I am stuck inside with a cold today so thought I might go over this “Fair Healthcare Pricing Act of 2016.” 

http://www.oag.ca.gov/system/files/initiatives/pdfs/15-0101%20%28Affordable%20Healthcare%29.pdf

I’m not a lawyer, but this is mostly plain English. A little repetitive – gotta cover all the bases. I see a limit of 25 percent profit over “costs” and a demand for refunds to patients who are found to pay more than 25 percent over “costs”. The operative word here being, “costs.”  We have to trust the hospital to tell us the true cost of their services?

What I like about this bill is “Public Availability of Charge Setting Methodology.” 

“Public Availability of Charge Setting Methodology. (a) Within 210 days of the end of a hospital’s fiscal year ending on or after January 1, 2018, a hospital shall report the following information to the department: (1) Total patient care expenses; (2) Total private payer patient care expenses: (3) Actual qualifying losses: (4) Qualifying expenses: (5) Reasonable and allowable costs in each of the categories set forth in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (k) of Section 1339.616; (6) Qualifying reimbursements; (7) Revenues received in each of the categories reflected n paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subdivision (l) of Section 1339.616; (8) Total charges; and (9) Any refund made pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 1339.611. (b) The department shall make the information provided pursuant to subdivision (a) available to the public upon request.”

Now we already have the Patient’s Bill of Rights, which is supposed to be posted in plain sight of any patient who is brought into the hospital. It says, among other things, you can ask what the services are going to cost you – their price – and they have to tell you. That’s how I found out a room at Enloe was about $7,500/day when my husband was sick. I wondered, at what they pay nurses these days, how they could justify that.

 

I found out, prices are already available on the State of California website:

http://www.oshpd.ca.gov/Chargemaster/default.aspx

The Chargemaster is a list of services and prices charged at a hospital. Just type in “Enloe” and you will find information dating back to 2005. Don’t be intimidated – I was confused as to the descriptions given the various services. I just had to look until I saw something I understood. “Boarder” or “Room” obviously refers to a room charge, with different charges for different levels of care.  A “CCU” or “Critical Care Unit” – is listed at $12,883. That’s per day. And that does not include a lot of stuff – read on – some of these charges are per minute.

I did see an item I recognized – a special kind of baby bottle called a Haberman Feeder. The nipple is made to mimic the function of the human nipple, and is supposed to be easier for new babies, particularly those born with any kind of mouth issues or general weakness, to get their nourishment. They also claim to keep babies from swallowing too much air and suffering colic.  I found these bottles on line, priced between $27 and $36. Playtex has similar bottles and sells “starter kits” with five bottles each for about $22.

The hospital charges $66 for one Haberman Feeder.  That’s almost 100 percent mark-up – more if you get the sale price, or say, buy them by gross, like Enloe does. And why not Playtex? Playtex has been making these specialty bottles since before I was born, and offers all kinds of choices ranging in price. Why the spendier bottle, and why nearly 100 percent mark-up? 

This is why we need some legislation to control the prices hospitals are charging. I’ll have to finish reading the whole measure, but so far I like what I’m seeing. 

 

 

 

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City of Chico discusses filing for ‘Party’ status in Cal Water rate increase case; let’s encourage them to go all the way and file for ‘Intervenor’ status

25 Nov

The agenda for next week’s city council meeting (Dec. 1) includes a proposal for the city to file for “Party Status” in the rate increase case filed by Cal Water last July.  Here is an excerpt from the report:

California Water Service Company (Application No. 15-07-015) California Water Service Company (“Cal Water”) filed an application with the California Public Utilities Commission to increase rates and consolidate the Chico district into a proposed “Northern Region.” This memorandum seeks City Council authority to become a party in the pending application.

Cal Water provides water service to the City and its residents. Cal Water is requesting water rate increases for years 2017, 2018 and 2019. The proposed increases are 19.1%, 1.6%, and 2.8% respectively.

The proposed rate increases would impose a significant burden on the City, as a customer of Cal Water. The rate increases would also impose an undue hardship on City residents. As a Cal Water customer and on behalf of its residents residing in the Chico district, the City has an interest in minimizing the proposed rate increases.

In addition, Cal Water is seeking to consolidate its Chico, Oroville, Marysville and Willows districts as the proposed “Northern Region.” The proposed consolidation affects City and its residents because the City is one of the districts to be consolidated. If consolidation is granted, Cal Water requests rate increases of 20.3%, 1.7% and 2.4% for years 2017,2018 and 2019 respectively, for the combined Chico and Oroville districts within the Northern Region. lf consolidation is granted, the City, as well as Oroville residents, will shoulder an even higher burden than that which is requested in Cal Water’s general rate increase.

Although Butte County has joined as a party, the City’s specific interests are not adequately represented. The City’s participation will be relevant and beneficial to the proceeding.

CONCLUSION / RECOMMENDATION It is recommended the City Council direct staff to file a Motion of City of Chico to Become a Party

“Party Status,” unfortunately, just means the city, along with the county, are on the notice list of events in the eventual raising of our rates. In order to make a formal protest, they must file as “Intervenors,” but I can’t seem to convince them of that.

Please write to council and the supervisors and ask them to take that further step. Be nice – you get more flies with honey than vinegar. 

Chico City council can be reached by way of the clerk’s website – 

http://www.chico.ca.us/city_council/home_page.asp

Third District Supervisor Maureen Kirk was the first one to respond to my request, she went through a really onerous and ridiculous filing system to get on the Party List right away. Then she asked the board to do so.  She even went to a Chico city council meeting and sat there waiting through a long agenda to make a case for the city to do something.  I sat at home in my snuggies that night, yelling “Go Maureen! Yeeeee-haw!” into my computer screen.  

The CPUC rep that contacted Supervisor Kirk even admitted it would be good to have a lawyer’s assistance in filing the paperwork. I don’t even know if an individual can file for Intervenor status, that’s really a job for the entire board of supervisors. 

Reach them here: 

http://www.buttecounty.net/boardofsupervisors/Home.aspx

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