Download this page in PDF formatI am sure many have heard the news that on Tuesday, February 26, 2013 the city council voted in a closed session to pursue legal litigation against the State of California. This litigation is a result of Project Phoenix being denied by the State on numerous occasions over the last two years.
Some questions come to mind about this event of Tuesday night. The first question is why was a discussion had in closed session by the council, the city manager, and the city attorney without any public comments or input at all? Why would our elected leaders, the city council, allow the expenditure of $200,000.00 of tax dollars without any input from the public?
To be sure we will hear that the $200,000.00 is not money that is coming out of the General Fund. We will be told that the $200,000.00 is part of the “tax increment” as if “tax increment” money is not real money.
But that is another story for another day. Suffice it to say that this $200,000.00 that is going to be spent for attorney fees should have been going to the Morongo Unified School District, Copper Mountain College, and The High Desert Medical Center to name a few. However, it will not and we will continue to hear how the hospital is in the red, the college is in the red, and the school district is in the red but not one of those agencies will take a stand to fight for their part of that $200,000.00.
The second question is why has our council not publicly announced the cost in tax dollars to date that Project Phoenix has cost? That would be a question each of you may want to ask your particular councilmember whom you think will actually provide you an answer to be sure not all of them will nor will all of them actually know the cost.
With that in mind I will provide each of us with the cost to date as was supplied to me by the city attorney.
Total expenditures to date for Project Phoenix have been $377,321.10. We can now add another $200,000.00 to that number and we all can see that we are now at over 1/2 of a million dollars and nothing has been built or bought.
I as well as others had some assurances from three councilmembers that they would not authorize any further expenditures for Project Phoenix if the December 2012 trip to Sacramento came back empty handed. Well that December trip came back empty handed with yet another rejection letter from the State.
Here we are two months later and what me and others now have are empty promises from three elected officials.
I can remember when our city was not run like this – can you?
Well put Steve, much better than the job I did.
Ask a question or seek public records from city hall and it’s turned over to Rutan & Tucker. Last time Dan sought public records he got nothing; the city got a huge bill in attorney fees.
As I see it, it’s a total waste of taxpayers money. They should have let the public have input, but once again you have city government out-of-control on another spending spree and wasting taxpayers money. In my opinion this lawsuit is going nowhere. The city could done much better by spending the money on the people of Twentynine Palms instead of giving it to attorneys.
My own medical conditions, and a death in the family caused me to move away from 29 Palms. I have none the less been following the ever present lack of respect towards the citizens of the City, by the Council. After following the circus, sorry I meant the Councils handling of their Project Phoenix, I have a suggestion. If it is allowed by law, and if possible, can a citizens group (hint) find an attorney who will help on a pro-Bono basis and challenge the cities actions? Who in fact does the Council represent? by their present actions I would say themselves and their close friends. With the present state of affairs both locally and nationally, I cannot believe that elected officials would decide to throw $200K up in the air with the hope of catching more than that when it falls to earth. Sacramento has said NO, several times. My impression is that the Kids (council) haven’t got it yet. Like a young child the parent must remind the child not to touch the hot surface, and either the child learns or gets burned. The children are going to get burnt before they learn their lesson on this one.
God bless you all
Thanks michaelv.
Two Possible Scenario in Federal Court:
If Rutan & Tucker sue in Federal Court (assuming they can even obtain federal jurisdiction), should this suit be ‘protracted’ like many federal suits what to do when the $200 grand runs out WHEN the city looses?
Of course R & T wins either way.
Then what? An appeal in Federal Court? No way is $200K is going to fund this fiasco. WE are talkin’ freaking huge sums of money for appeals in federal court and huge amount of time.
Where is this cash coming from? Remember the city council signed a retainer agreement with R & T that their legal fees are spiked wherever the deal with rda/bond funds.
Has the secretive, cloistered and sedated councilmembers even thought that far ahead?
Meantime, the city can’t fund or help find the 29 Palms Fire Department (while the water board continues to struggle in its quest for funding to protect residents), the city can blow — as a starter — $200,000.00 to sue the state with money that initially was to be used winding down the old rda.
Now the city wants to wind it up!
Joel, Jim, Dan, Jay where are your’re freaking heads at? Let me guess… .