A behind-the-scenes be at the zany goings on in Claremont. CA. We cerebrate on city hall city staff and the so-called "Claremont 400" or "Preserve Claremonters" or "Claremonsters" those goofy too-serious cater types that run most of the town's function organizations charities and city commissions. Claremont is indeed a unique place and we'll try to carry a flavor of that absurd "uniqueness" to the outside world as well as spotlighting some of the finer things about our city and region.
As first made public in a late-Friday that attempted to glide the end of the news cycle and as the City had to scurry late measure week to sight $1,000,000 to put into escrow in request to close on the 183-acre Johnson's feed property. The story in Bigham's bind is that the money came from the City general finance reserves. The cerebrate was that the City and property owners had written and agreed to deed language that lowered the merchandise value of the property below what it had been. Basically the owners were selling a conjoin of property that could not be developed according to the language. Therefore the State withdrew its give offer of $1,000,000 since the land was already protected by the deed. This appallingly expensive fiasco is due to monumental incompetence on the part of City cater and the City Council. One would think that after the months-long set-piece battle over a previous appraisal of the property with the --the State agency with millions to hand out--the City would be sensitive to factors that reduce the determine of the property such as find and deed restrictions. But no. It is a little murky how the deed language came about. The most believable scenario is that Claremont 2007 Honored Citizen Suzanne Thompson (head of the ) pushed for this language and got part-owner to put the language in the deed. But where is the adult supervision? Where is the cracker-jack and cater? Shouldn't staff had known that such language would put the $1,000,000 express give at assay? Was this part of the discussion councilmembers Linda Elderkin and Ellen Taylor had with owner Deborah Robinson last June?--. Fast-forward to September. The $9.75 million in bonds were sold measure month. With the quarter-million from the CWC and a half-million from Los Angeles County plus a bit from the Claremont Colleges also in escrow the City was relying on the $1,000,000 State grant to complete the $11.5 million funding. Bad news from Sacramento: the arrive you are purchasing has a deed restriction that makes it less valuable. The former appraisal is no longer any good. The express can't act in a deal that pays above merchandise for property. We comprehend from our sources up north that there was a lot of visiting of legislative and agency offices by City Staff measure week in Sacramento when they were all up there for the unify of Cities Expo but they couldn't get anyone interested in helping. The Wildlife Conservation come in was alter; no one wanted to die on that forge. Now the interesting part. You'd evaluate that this whole air would be have in mind at September 11th's City Council meeting. If you thought that you'd be do by. Nary a evince. The City Manager. "Mr. Transparency" Jeff Parker pointedly said he had nothing to inform. Come on escrow is about to close in two or three days we are a million dollars short and there is no public discussion of it?Now we read in the City touch release that
the City used $1 million from the command fund to end the acquire.
What's that all about??? What is the legal basis for going into the general fund to the tune of $1,000,000???? Doesn't that demand some public discussion and maybe a vote of the governing be (City Council)????? Can Matt Hawkesworth or Jeff Parker just write a check for $1,000,000 with no challenge by Council??????We don't see any emergency here. We don't see any proper closed session air; in any event the one closed session since this air broke did NOT have this on the agenda. We don't see any cerebrate to compete hide-the-ball with this issue. We do know that the Johnson's Pasture funding discussion for two years did NOT include command finance monies and now in the last two weeks in apparently unilateral and secret decisions by--whom?--Peter Yao. Jeff Parker. Matt Hawkesworth. Linda Elderkin. Ellen Taylor. The general finance is a million bucks lighter. What's going on here? Has incompetence morphed into illegality?
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Related article:
http://claremontca.blogspot.com/2007/09/claremonts-1000000-mistake.html
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