No trash talk, please

I had a brief and eye-opening conversation with a Filsinger supporter earlier today.

She told me that I was wrong to sully the reputation of someone who had "done so much for the community." She said all the volunteer hours the councilman had put in, not only for the city, but while serving the fair board, should count for something.

She told me that she had called the city manager and let him know how angry she felt, and that the radio station was wrong in making a big deal about the situation.

I told her that I thought everyone should be treated equally, and that while I appreciated Mr. Filsinger contributions, it didn't excuse him from having to follow city ordinances.

She said the only reason he was being singled out is because he is a councilman.

I said that perhaps if a high-profile person such as a councilman was forced to comply with the ordinances, other people might feel more obligated to comply as well.

Then she ended the conversation because she said she was too angry to argue with me, giving me the "talk-to-the-hand" treatment as she walked away.

Interestingly, she couldn't deny the violations had occurred, only argue that no one should be talking about it and making Mr. Filsinger look bad.

I say if Mr. Filsinger hadn't ignored the letters asking him to bring the properties into compliance, or better yet, had not violated any city ordinances in the first place, there wouldn't be anything to talk about.

I beg your pardon?

It is really difficult to believe that someone actually wrote the following asinine argument regarding Mr. Marvin Filsinger's situation.

"Our anger regarding citations should be directed at the board who issued the citations for not following up, and the city attorney for not doing anything about it, and for the city manager for not hiring an attorney to do anything about it."

The PRT board identified properties that were in violation of city ordinances. They sent letters asking the property owner to bring the properties into compliance. We should be angry at them?

The attorney was required by law to recuse himself. Had he not disclosed the conflict of interest and stayed on the case, he would have been guilty of a criminal act. We should be angry at him?

The city manager went to the Mayor and asked for his help. If the city manager had hired a special prosecutor, we would hear from Mr. Filsinger's camp that Mr. Person was on a witch hunt, and that he was trying to undermine the council. He attempted to handle the situation without taking legal action and saving the cost of hiring outside counsel. We should be angry at him?

Let me see if I can make this clear.

The PRT board would not have had to send any letters about the ordinance violations if there had not been any ordinance violations. The city attorney would not have had to recuse himself because of a conflict of interest if there had not been any ordinance violations. The city manager would not have had to ask for the mayor's help if there had not been any ordinance violations.

I think we know who we should be angry with and why.

A picture is worth a thousand words

Here are a few pictures I took today of Councilman Marvin Filsinger’s property south of the fairground. I just want to emphasize that the property violations are not something as simple as a couple of cars or some knee-high weeds. Ask yourself if you think this problem should be ignored.

Please, when you go to the fairgrounds Tuesday to vote, take time to drive by the southern edge of the fairgrounds and judge for yourself. Please do it before you vote.

Here are some excerpts from the City of Sidney Code of Conduct for Elected Officials.

“They shall support the...the City of Sidney Municipal Code...laws pertaining to the city ordinances...”

“Members must work for the common good of the people of Sidney and not for any private or personal interest. The members will assure fair and equal treatment of all persons, claims and transactions..”

“Alleged violations or misconduct by Council members should be reported to the Mayor for investigation.”

Here are a few excerpts from city ordinance 1343

Garbage and Refuse Collection and Disposal

“No person shall dump, deposit or otherwise dispose of any solid waste, hazardous waste, building rubbish, demolition debris, commercial or industrial waste, infectious waste or offensive or obnoxious substances within the corporate limits of the City upon any ground, premises or place other than a landfill or disposal facility licensed by the State of Nebraska or other State regulatory authority for the disposal of specific waste.

“SOLID WASTE: The term "solid waste" shall mean all putrescible and nonputrescible wastes, whether in solid or liquid form, and includes garbage, building rubbish, ashes, refuse, fill dirt, sewage sludge, acceptable commercial and industrial wastes, demolition debris and all used construction materials, discarded automobile and other types of vehicle body parts or portions thereof, machinery or parts thereof, discarded home or industrial appliances, iron, steel and other old or metal scrap material, manure, human excrement, vegetable or animal solid and semi-solid waste, infectious waste, yard waste, dead animals or parts thereof, and other discarded solid materials.

“BUILDING RUBBISH: The term "building rubbish" shall mean all discarded or unwanted material or waste material from the construction, remodeling and repair operations on houses, commercial buildings and other structures including, but not limited to, excavated earth, stones, brick, plaster, lumber, concrete and waste parts occasioned by installations and repairs.”

PENALTY

Whoever violates or fails to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter shall be fined not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each offense. A separate offense shall be deemed committed each day during or on which a violation or noncompliance occurs or continues.

Quid Pro Quo?

Friendships aside, why would the mayor deny having a meeting with the city manager regarding Marvin Filsinger’s property violations? (I should mention that when I spoke to Mayor Dave Weiderspon yesterday he did not deny knowing about the violations themselves, as he said council members are routinely given property violation reports.)

It is only the meeting with the city manager that he denies.

Okay, there are two schools of thought, and neither leaves the mayor in very good light.

First, let’s say he did have the meeting (as it was documented at city hall) but he actually forgot about it. Do you want someone who would forget about such a meeting serving as your mayor?

Second, let’s say he figures that if he says he doesn’t remember the meeting, people will not hold him accountable for the violations. And won’t hold him accountable for not upholding the city council code of conduct. And won’t ask why he would put his friendship with Mr. Filsinger above his duty to the rest of the citizens of Sidney.

Maybe it’s because Mr. Filsinger was instrumental in blocking a land annexation proposal brought before council.

The land is that owned by Mr. Weiderspon, the property where White Bluff Vet Hospital is located, was in that proposal.

That land is not in city limits. The property to the south, Mudhead Ship and Pack, is in city limits. So are the housing developments to the west. The land directly to the north, the pasture land that is Verde Lane Dam, that is not in city limits, but is owned by the city.

Because the mayor’s land is attached by the thinest margin to the dam site, I would guess the land to be 20 to 30 yards wide where it meets with that property, than the land can legally remain as outside the city limits.

Note that I said it is legal. I don’t believe it is ethical.

In March of 2007, an ordinance came before council that proposed annexing the Saddle Club area, the Verde Lane Dam site, the Mayor’s land, and property near the airport being developed by Greg Huck.

Mr. Filsinger first worked to have the single ordinance written as three separate ordinances to be considered at the next meeting. (This was ostensibly to separate the mayor’s property from other land that many people stood in support of annexing.)

At the next meeting, when the ordinance containing the mayor’s land and the Verde Lane Dam site was discussed, Mr. Filsinger actively argued against it. He implied it would cost the city money because infrastructure would have to be provided to the dam site. That argument was shown to not hold water because the city could deny any requests that were not financially feasible and it was improbable that anyone other than the city would ever own the dam site.

The statement by city officials for the best reason to annex the property was that it would square up the boundaries of the city.

Unfortunately, no one bothered to stand up and state the facts about annexing the mayor’s land. With a property valuation of more than $250,000, the city would stand to collect more than $12,000 a year (at our present levy) in property taxes. The city would also be the beneficiary of the city sales tax the mayor would be required to collect on goods and services at the clinic, potentially tens of thousands of dollars.

Mr. Filsinger actually said that annexing the property didn’t “make a whole lot of sense.”

The citizens of Sidney should be aware that not having the land annexed cost them a whole lot of cents.

Maybe because Mr. Filsinger worked to keep the mayor’s tax bill at a minimum the Mayor developed amnesia about the meeting with the city manager.

You know, when you lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas. Then it’s really nice having someone to scratch your back if you agree to scratch his.

He Ain't Heavy, He's My BFF

Once again, Council Filsinger was the only candidate that did not participate in the forum hosted by the paper and radio.

I was extremely disappointed as I had some questions for him.

First, I wanted to ask him about the multitude of property complaints that have been logged with the city about his residence, his business at 23rd and Illinois and the property he owns just south of the fairgrounds.

According to documents I have, the reasons for the complaints were “Multiple vehicle concerns - encroaching on property, licensing?? General appearance in residential neighborhoods; general appearance of area. Are they in compliance with zoning?”

This is what is listed under the results heading “Staff felt ineffective in dealing with issue due to multiple previous complaints and potential ethical and legal conflicts - referred to Mayor who will handle complaint”

In checking with the city, no official answer was ever forthcoming from Mr. Filsinger or from the Mayor resolving the complaints.

I called Mayor Weiderspon this morning, and he told me that he did not “recall” any one-on-one conversation with the city manager about it.

I asked him three different ways, three times.

It has been part of the public record regarding these complaints for months, yet the mayor is now attempting to deny he knew about it?

Like they say on that Saturday Night Live skit, “Really !?! Really!?!”

Perhaps he should have documented the meeting like the city manager did.

Only Five of the 'Sidney Six' Answer Questionare

The following questions (in bold) were asked by the newspaper of each city council candidate. For those who don't get the paper, I thought I would post my answers here.

Interestingly, Mr. Filsinger did not participate in the questionare. Once again, he seems unable or unwilling to answer to the voters.

Hope to see all of you at the forum tomorrow.

1 )Recently, at the insistence of two Sidney residents, the Sidney City Council reviewed its decision to not move forward with the construction of sidewalk bulb-outs in Sidney's Historic Downtown District. As a result, an approved construction bid included the construction of 6-foot bulb-outs. Were you or are you in favor of bulb-out construction, and why or why not?

I am in favor of the bulb-out curbs because of the safety measures they provide. Many people don’t realize the far right-hand lane in the downtown district is a parking lane only, not a turning lane. It is technically illegal to pull into the far right lane to turn right. (It is legal to turn right on red, but only from the same lane you would use to go forward.) Once the bulb-out curbs are installed, people will be blocked from using the parking lane as a turning lane by the bulb-outs. The result is that pedestrians have a shorter distance from curb to curb when crossing the street, and have a better vantage point to see oncoming traffic. The added bonus of adding a bit of landscaping to beautify the corners makes them appealing as well.

I think the larger problem the bulb-out issue exposed was that while the council had approved the plans for the project several times, some members were surprised when the first bulb-outs were installed. The city had held three public hearings while formulating the plans, had a multitude of public meetings, and encouraged input from the public for more than a year. The plans – approved by council after a detailed presentation at a council meeting – were on display at city hall for several months, and yet, when the first bulb-outs went in the opposition was raised and the council suddenly wanted to revisit those plans. It would appear that the council members who objected so late in the game had either not paid attention to the plans, or lacked the vision to see the plans carried out.

In addition, the engineer for the project recommended the bulb-outs be at least 8-foot to provide highly effective safety measures, and said he wouldn’t recommend going smaller. After listening to his expert opinion, the council approved the smaller size anyway.

I find it very disappointing that all the public input and the expert opinion of the engineer was disregarded, resulting in council compromising not only the effectiveness of the bulb-outs, but also greatly decreasing the landscaping options because of the smaller size.

2 ) A hot button topic at the beginning of the year involved the local form of government, which is classified as city council/manager. Discussion on the subject involved a review of this type and other types of government for Sidney. What is your stance on the current form of government and why?

The hot button topic was that three of our council members – Mr. Filsinger, Mr. Van Vleet, and Mayor Weiderspon – expressed interest in separating the position of city manager from the economic development director position. During the Jan. 26 meeting, I asked Councilman Filsinger if he supported cutting the city manager position, and he said he was interested in making expenditure cuts, but did not say he was interested in changing the form of government here.

I think the anonymous newsletters circulated around town fueled a lot of speculation as to the motivations of our council members in attempting to separate the positions. In the long run, there was strong public support for the city manager serving the dual role and the effort was dropped.

Additionally, if a change were to be made from our form of government it could only be done after a vote by the people. Council does not have the authority to do so.

3 ) Sidney has made it a habit to seek out federal and state funding to match its local investment in construction, street and other projects. This is done by seeking out grants and low-interest loans, some of which may have “ strings attached,” meaning certain requirements must be met in order to receive funding. What is your view of this practice, and why are you for or against federal and state supplemental funds?

Sidney is in the unique position of having high property values and a property tax level lower than the legal limit. The Nebraska state aid program (funded by our taxes) was built upon the premise of providing property tax relief, and has had significant impact in doing so statewide. However, because our property tax levy is no where close to the legal limit, Sidney does not qualify for this aid. The state takes the position that if we needed additional funds to complete projects, we could simply raise the levy.

That means the only way our community has to recoup any of the state and federal taxes we pay through sales taxes and income taxes is to apply for the grants and zero or low interest loans.

Prime examples would be the waste water treatment plant and the water project that could not have been completed without such grants unless the rate payers of Sidney would have footed the bill - to the tune of more than $6 million. We had no choice, we were required by law to provide the services.

I don’t believe that people in Sidney want to pay property tax, sales tax, income tax and all sorts of miscellaneous fees and taxes and have nothing to show for it.

We may not always like the way the funds are administered, but should work to change the rules, not eliminate the funding.

In addition, I think the opposition to using such funds comes from the perception that projects are chosen because grant or loan money is available, as opposed to the project being chosen on the merits. I think those perceptions are largely false, but promoting honest, open discussions during planning meetings and council meetings with lots of community input could eliminate such concerns.

4 ) What other issues do you feel should be a priority for the council, and what issues would become a priority for you if elected?

At one of the recent budget workshops, I watched as council listened to presentations by city department heads. There was very little discussion about what was presented, and they seemed satisfied with the explanations as to the requests. The problem came after the workshop, when the meeting had been adjourned. I watched as three council members started discussing the numbers. Before long they were asking questions of a few public officials that were still in council chambers.

While it might seem that the conversation was innocent, in reality they were improperly conducting the business of the workshop and the conversation should not have taken place.

I have watched as council members have passed notes to each other during meetings instead of participating in the conversation. That is not transparency.

This type of behavior has fueled rumors about personal agendas and preferential treatment, and the level of trust in the council has been eroded.

If elected to council, my first priority will be to promote open discussions during the meetings and to hold everyone to the same standards.

All of us as candidates want to see a resolution of the sales tax refund issue, to provide good streets and infrastructure, to promote a healthy business climate and still be able to fund the amenities that make Sidney a thriving community. I hope to make the process one the people have confidence in as well.

Three Strikes Means You're Out

Before the primary election this spring, our local radio and newspaper hosted a forum for citizens to get to know the city council candidates. Incumbent Marvin Filsinger was the only candidate who did not attend and participate in that forum.

On Sept. 8, 2009, when the city council met to approve the final budget for the 2009-10 fiscal year, Councilman Marvin Filsinger was absent from the meeting.

This past Sept. 14, when council met to approve the final budget for the 2010-11 fiscal year, Councilman Marvin Filsinger was absent from the meeting.

One has to wonder if Mr. Filsinger has too much on his plate to fully serve the constituents of this community when he is unable or unwilling to attend such important sessions.

This election is the opportunity for the community to elect someone who is committed to participating not only in the council sessions but also in community events, someone who is willing to be transparent about their opinions and willing to engage in honest debate.

I would appreciate your vote, and if elected, will strive to be fully engaged in all council business. After all, they say the first and most important step in accomplishing anything is to show up for the job.

Friday the 13th

I was reminded today, quite rudely, that not everyone in the world – or in Sidney – is willing to be part of a polite conversation. A fellow blogger wrote a post about the unsigned pamphlets being distributed in our community. She wrote "Recalling Bob Van Vleet because of an anonymous letter should have each and every sitting councilman / future concilman (sic) concerned."

I posted a comment that pointed out it was Mr. Van Vleet's "Letter to the Editor" that instigated the mention of recall at Tuesday's council meeting, and that it was the councilman himself who brought it up.
The responses to my post would not have made it onto any Web site with a filter for adult language and content, and were downright disturbing for the personal attacks they included.

I should have known, it being Friday the 13th, that something was going to happen. And then I read my horoscope :

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). You have a loyal friend and supporter. And when you rush in naively, trusting the world to behave by your code of ethics, this person will watch your back and stand guard over your heart.
I found out I have many good friends and supporters who are standing guard over my heart and watching my back.

I want to say thank you to each of them, it means great deal.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it...or not

The following is a letter to the editor I sent to the paper in response to one written by councilman Bob Van Vleet.

Ogallala is currently advertising for a economic development coordinator, and the salary starts at $57,203 and ranges to $81,471 based on experience.

Alliance recently advertised for a city manager with the salary range of $83,000 to $100,000. The Lexington city manager earns $96,000, the Kearney city manager earns $155,167 and the city administrator of Gothenburg (population 3,619) makes up to $75,000.

Gary Person, serving in the dual role as Sidney City Manager and Cheyenne County Economic Development Director earns a salary of just less than $97,000, of which $20,000 is paid from the Cheyenne County Keno proceeds. In other words, the city is only responsible for paying $77,000 of his salary.

At the Jan. 12 city council meeting, Councilman Bob Van Vleet made a motion to change the language of City Ordinance 1206 that reads in part “The Director of the (Economic Development) Department shall be the City Manager or a person designated by him or her with the approval of Council.”

Van Vleet proposed the word “shall” be changed to the word “may,” giving the council the option to have the city manager and economic development director positions split into two jobs instead of the dual position held by Person.

At the time he made the motion, Van Vleet said “We have the best economic development person in the state of Nebraska and maybe the Midwest. I don’t see why we waste his time and talents on street sweeping, garbage collection and other mundane duties. I just think it would be more efficient to divide those two jobs.”

(The video excerpt of this is available on YouTube and can be found by searching for Sidney City Council.)

Now, in a letter to the editor published last Saturday, Van Vleet writes of Person “I think he would be a good city manager if he would do it full-time and let the chamber take care of economic development.”

I am confused Mr. Van Vleet. Why would we want the best economic development person in the Midwest to abandon the position for the sake of managing the city when he seems to be handling both roles very well and at a bargain price?

I am reminded of those scenes from courtroom dramas on television where the lawyer asks “Were you telling the truth then or are you telling the truth now?”

Campanology

At last night’s city council meeting, council member Bob Van Vleet referred to a news story out of Bell, California – a community that discovered that its city officials and city council members were making hundreds of thousands of dollars for those jobs.

While I am not quite sure what point he was making by bringing up the story, I looked it up to see what he was talking about. I was curious how such a thing could happen without the people of the community realizing it.

In a story from The Associated Press, I found the explanation, and give you the excerpt (in bold) from the story here.

“In Bell, however, not many people really paid attention. The city of mostly small homes is like many American cities and towns: No newspaper covers them regularly, and the citizens spend what little free time they have with family and recreation.

“A few who kept tabs on City Hall said they were suspicious because the officials were secretive, brusque and quick to act without explaining themselves.”

I guess it’s a good thing we are keeping tabs on our city council, and are asking the council members to explain themselves when they make decisions that affect us all.

The budget workshops to set the 2010-11 budget will start at 6:30 p.m. on Monday Aug. 2 and Tuesday Aug. 3 at City Hall. If needed, the work may continue on Wednesday.

These workshops are open to the public, and are the real meat-and-potatoes work of the council, when many difficult decisions are made.

Let’s keep tabs by attending these meetings and being a part of the process.

Otherwise, we might get our “Bell” rung.

Bulb-Out Blow Up

A couple of points from our last city council meeting regarding bulb-out corners.

First, I have to say I like the bulb-out corners.

I saw the concept of the bulb-outs in several meetings over the past few years as the plan for downtown revitalization was being developed. Lots of people asked lots of questions about the corners during that phase of the project. Many community volunteers were involved in these meetings, and city officials repeatedly asked (practically begged) for public input into the design.

Like I said, I liked the concept, simply because of the way it looked. The engineers for the project talked about the safety aspects, and explained they were not merely for beautification.

I checked into the idea, and found many studies that touted the benefits of bulb-outs. They are designed to “calm” traffic, forcing the drivers in the area to slow down, pay attention and stay in their lanes. They also increase the safety of each pedestrian crosswalk, because they shorten the curb-to-curb length for anyone crossing the street without reducing the width of any traffic lane.

That made me like them even more.

No one in any of the meetings I attended ever objected to the concept.

During the development of plans, the city council received regular updates about the design. The council approved that design.

The other side of the story : Bulb-outs are expensive to build.

The additional curb and concrete, as well as labor-intensive layout, make the design more expensive than the basic legally-required ramp-cut corner the city could install. We could eliminate the bulb-outs and save lots of money.

So, at the meeting Tuesday evening, the bulb-outs were once again up for discussion.

Two wheelchair-bound residents spoke to council about the safety issue and said the bulb-outs were very desirable from their point of view. They both said the sidewalks and crosswalks in downtown could use improvement and that maneuvering thru Sidney’s downtown in a wheelchair has several challenges.

Both said that one of the greatest challenges is that drivers in the downtown area don’t yield the right-of-way and often use the far right lanes as turning lanes. (This happens to be illegal in Sidney, in case you didn’t know.) When drivers use the far right for turning, it forces anyone needing to cross that street to use extra caution when stepping from the curb. (Because we are a right-turn-on-red state, we can legally turn but only from the correct driving lane.)

So an added bonus from the bulb-outs would be that drivers couldn’t drive to the right of the car stopped ahead of them to turn right, because the bulb-out would block their path.

The engineer for the project, Don Dye, told the council 8-foot bulb-outs are highly effective and that is the smallest size he would recommend.

Council questioned him about a 6-foot or 4-foot version, and Dye said anything smaller than 6-foot would not be effective at all.

I called Mr. Dye this morning and questioned him about the effectiveness of the different sizes. He told me that he does not recommend going smaller than 8-foot, but the 6-foot version does provide some benefits to pedestrians. (Dye is an expert on traffic behavior and pavement management. To check his credentials, go to http://www.mcschaff.net/index2.php )

So, there are two questions.

First question, Do we build the bulb-out curbs or not? If the project is to have any real affect on the look of downtown, I say yes. I like the way the bulb-outs look and I think they would enhance the historic district.

Second question, What size do we build?

My vote is for the 8-foot size. The cost savings between the 6-foot or 8-foot versions will probably be minimal, and if we are going to build them, let’s make sure that they are highly effective and not just somewhat effective.

Food for thought. Whatever this council decides is what the historic downtown district will have for curbs and crosswalks for the next 20 to 30 years.

If, however, a small savings is enough to persuade council to sacrifice the safety of the pedestrians, I say scrap the bulb-outs altogether, and save all the money.

If we have nothing but the legally required ADA compliant curbs, there will be no sense of false security and we will just have to wait 20 to 30 years for additional safety measures and any beautification efforts to be installed.

Good Night!

Wow. If you want to give someone a civics lesson about every vote counting, you can direct them to this city council race.

Today, after all the early and provisional ballots were counted, I did advance as one of the "Sidney Six", by the slimmest possible of margins, one single vote.

I am humbled and honored to still be a candidate for our city council.

I will end this post as I did the last: Stay tuned!

Thank you and...good night?

First, I want to thank all of you who supported my bid for council. I really appreciate the votes! Also, much thanks to those who let me put up signs, I'll be around soon to collect them.

I just spoke to the clerk's office, and have been told that any early and absentee votes cast on Friday and Monday have not been counted yet, so the final counts will change. Currently, Zane Hall has 16 votes more than I do to advance as one of the Sidney Six. The canvassing board will be counting the 250-plus ballots Thursday afternoon, starting at 2 p.m.

While I am not holding my breath, I am optimistic about the circumstances.

Stay tuned!

The final countdown

Only a few more days until the primary election is complete. Only a few more days to decide which six candidates for the city council will be on the ballot in November.
I hope that I will be one of the “Sidney Six,” and ultimately, hope to show you my knowledge of the issues is worth your vote in November.
After the primary I will be dropping my link to KSID’s Web site, at least for a while.
(If I do advance to the November ballot, I will link this site again when the election is closer.)
In the meantime, please bookmark the page and share the address with anyone who is interested.
If I do not advance in the election, I will continue to be an interested observer and will continue writing about local issues.

Let's talk taxes

Thank you again to KSID and the Sun-Telegraph for sponsoring the candidate forum Monday evening.
It was great to have an opportunity to meet with the other candidates and talk about some of the issues facing our community.

One issue we didn’t really have a chance to discuss was property taxes, and I want to say a bit about it now.
If you own a home in Sidney with a tax valuation of $100,000, you pay about $2,300 in property taxes.
How much of that goes to the city? About $420.
That’s right, $420. A little more than half or about $1,200 goes to the school district and the rest goes to the county (about $500), WNCC, NRD, ESU, airport and the historical society.
Yes.
Your $420 is what pays for the police department, fire department equipment and training, the library, the swimming pool, the parks, the golf course, the streets, the snow removal and countless other city services.
I repeat, $420.
And yes, a few departments collect some sort of fees to help offset the expenses such as the golf course and swimming pool, but these services are available only because they are subsidized by your tax dollars.

Well, that’s not quite the whole story of course, because the city also collects sales tax to pay for these services.
There is a one-cent sales tax that was approved by the voters in 1980 that amounts to about $1.3 million. The voters also passed an additional half-cent tax in 1988 to fund community and economic development. (Details are in an earlier post regarding economic development money)

The city collects almost twice as much in sales tax per year as it does in property tax.

So, the city is much more dependent upon the sales tax than the property tax. But, the state created a program to attract businesses and create jobs, and when businesses prove they have qualified, they can ask for the sales taxes they’ve paid to be returned.
So, the city has been refunding lots of the sales tax.
That’s what all the uproar is about.
If you want your property taxes to remain at $420 (or less) and still have street repairs, a police department, fire department equipment and training, the library, the swimming pool, the parks, the golf course, the streets, the snow removal and countless other city services, then we need to be able to spend the sales tax dollars on these services.

Second hand news

Saturday Night Live got it right this weekend when, during the Weekend Update segment, we were introduced to Anthony Crispino, a Second-Hand News Correspondent.
It reminded me of the local rumor mill... “Hey, did you hear? So-and-so said such-and-such...”
One thing I always enjoyed about attending regular meetings of political subdivisions is that you see and hear the real story.
I recently discussed the school bond issue with someone who told me all about how additional fees and costs incurred and the school district wasted a lot of money while putting the plans together.
I was at all those meetings when finances were discussed and disclosed and knew the extra fees and charges were non-existent. I told him exactly what I had witnessed and verified with the financial disclosure statements.
That wasn’t good enough for my friend, however, because he had “heard” from several other people that the money was wasted.
I doubt any of the people who he “heard” it from attended all the meetings and asked as many questions as I did, but if you hear something enough, I guess it becomes true.
That’s what I heard, anyway.

The misunderstood budget "crisis"

In response to my post about the economic development funds, I was asked the following question:
"That's cool and all but is there really a budget deficit and if so how should we deal with it?"

This is my reply.

I’m glad you put that in the form of a question, because it seems lots of folks don’t understand that we are not in a revenue crisis at this moment.

The $650,000 revenue shortfall was anticipated by city management when the budgets were proposed so the department heads were given strict instructions to trim everything possible.

We knew we weren’t going to get the money, so it had to be cut from the budget.

It was hoped that the legislation proposed by Sen. Ken Schilz would pass and the city would be given about $350,000 back. As we now know, that did not happen, but more cities in the eastern half of the state are starting to see shortfalls they did not anticipate and so this is likely to be addressed next session.

Remember when the radio and newspaper said that city council would need to raise our property taxes by something like 25 percent to cover the budgets? That was if the budget was passed as originally proposed without the cuts. That’s how the budget process works. Each department puts together a proposal of what they would really like to have, and then usually settles for what they need to have, or at least what they need to have the most.
The thing to remember if that we shouldn’t have to make these cuts year after year when the taxes we pay are as high as they are.
(And if the rules aren’t changed, we will have the same situation next year.)

Just think, if the state program is changed, we could see a reduction in our taxes without any reduction in services.

That would be nice, wouldn’t it?

Our Economic Development Money

Sidney’s total sales tax burden is 1.5 cents.
In 1980, the voters passed a one-cent sales tax with the intention of providing property tax relief.
In 1988, the voters approved an additional half-cent sales tax for the Community & Economic Development Plan. To more clearly define the use of the funds, the voters - in 1997 and then again in 2007 - approved setting aside half of this half cents to the Job Creation Plan. (These votes approved a 10-year plan each time, so the current plan is through 2017.)

While these funds were created using a half cent and quarter cent as a base, the funds must be clearly defined by the city using a dollar amount. The Job Creation fund totals $300,000 a year and the Community & Economic Development Fund is set at $350,000.

For the Job Creation fund, $50,000 per year is allocated for improvements to the north side by the Northside Neighborhood Development Association and city council. The residents of that area are surveyed and asked to participate in town hall meetings to decide how the funds will be spent. Another $50,000 of this fund is allocated per year for downtown revitalization projects and is managed by the Sidney Historic Preservation Board. This board is a certified local government and is regulated by state law.
These processes have always been held in a public forum, and the public is encouraged to attend any and all meetings.
The remainder ($200,000) is allowed for providing financial assistance to qualifying businesses or to fund tourism-related activities.
There is a 14-page document available from the economic development office that clearly explains what type of program or project qualifies, what type of financial assistance is available, how applications are processed, and how the administrators of the plan are required to update city council on the status of ongoing projects.
It also outlines how funds can be invested when there aren’t any qualified applicants, and clearly states that after any continuous five full-budget years it is shown that less than 50 percent of the funds are spent or committed to programs or projects, the measure will be placed on the next regular election ballot to see if the voters continue to support the plan.

Of the $350,00 in the Community & Economic Development Fund, the following allocations are given:
$120,000 to the Community Center/Recreational Services
$55,000 to Economic Development
$66,576 for ambulance services
$15,000 to the Cheyenne County Chamber of Commerce
$10,000 for the fireworks display
$4,000 to Memorial Gardens
$79,424 to subsidize the swimming pool operation.

Any questions? I'll be happy to do more research. Drop me an e-mail at tamaranelsen@gmail.com

Happy Tax Day

I want to clarify statements I've made about local sales tax dollars being used to fund the state's economic development program.

No one is breaking the rules and there are not any "bad guys." The local companies that have qualified for sales tax refunds have been entitled to those refunds because the law says so.
In fact, if a qualifying company did not take advantage of the opportunity to legally recoup hundreds of thousands of dollars spent while creating jobs, we would probably see it as foolishly wasting the opportunity. Why wouldn't any business owner, large or small, want to use any means available to grow and prosper?
It is similar to each of us claiming every possible deduction as we prepare our own returns. We are legally entitled to do so.

Sidney was one of the first communities in the state to understand that funding economic development was a good thing. Locally, we have voter-approved programs to do just that. In 1988, and again in 2007, the voters said yes, they wanted a strong community and economic development plan and were willing to pay for it.
Meanwhile, the state of Nebraska wanted to do what it could to offer incentives to business to relocate to our state or to expand and create jobs. So, the Employment and Investment Growth Act, LB775, was passed and the state decided that the best grease for the wheels was city sales tax dollars.
LB 775 seemed harmless enough. If an employer spent money on goods and services that resulted in the creation of jobs, then it could qualify to ask for the sales tax on those goods and services to be refunded.

If the city had been aware of the magnitude of some purchases that would be made and the sale 'tax returns' that would be claimed, we could have prepared. Instead, LB775 gave qualifying companies several years to ask for the returns, and sometimes a company might delay in asking for the returns until it best suited its own needs. Again, as individual tax payers, we often do the same thing, deciding on certain purchases or making certain decisions based on the tax repercussions.
It's all well and good when the companies creating the jobs are small and the city budgets are large, but when the companies are large and the city budgets are small, the flaw in LB775 become apparent. It is not that job creation or expansion is bad, but the rules of the game aren't fair.

So, we should do whatever possible to change the rules.
Then it can be a happy tax day.

Question from an e-mail

A reader sent this question : "What do you think the present problems on the council are? How would you work to resolve these problems?"

I think the largest problem the city council has is that despite working long and hard to balance the budget without increasing the tax levy, the current rules allow the state to fund economic development with our local sales tax.
We count on that sales tax to pay for what we have budgeted locally, so even though the budget was accepted, if revenues fall short, we've got problems.
Some background.
In 1987, the state legislature enacted the Employment and Investment Growth Act, LB 775. The goal of the bill was to reward companies for creating jobs in Nebraska. This was to be done by refunding the sales tax that companies paid when they purchased goods or property that resulted in job growth. An example would be if a company purchased lumber from a city business to construct an office complex and the end result was new jobs at that complex, the company could apply to have the sales tax it paid on the lumber refunded.
Sounds good on paper, but when a very, very large company spends several hundreds of thousands of dollars in a small town, it can have an extremely negative effect. The city often is collecting sales tax for point-of-delivery items, without any sales being made from local companies.

Long story short, if the rules are not changed, Sidney won't regain control of how local sales tax dollars are allocated.

How would I work to resolve this issue? As the present council and city manager have shown, working with our state senator and attempting to change the rules through legislation is the only recourse we have.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease, so I would continue to turn up the volume on this issue, and could devote more time and energy to this mission than any other candidate.

Taking a Stand

As a news reporter in this community, I have worked hard to be an objective observer, to get the facts right, to see the issues from both sides and to be clear and concise in my telling of the events.
Journalists understand the subtle ways in which they can influence – or attempt to influence – the reader. Words paint pictures, and sometimes a writer doesn't see the personal bias filtering into the work. It can be a continual struggle for a legitimate news reporter to stick to the facts and only the facts.
Now, having thrown my hat (complete with my press credentials still stuck in the band) into the ring for this city council race, I confess the idea of taking a stand on public matters is a bit daunting.
Don't get me wrong, my friends and family can tell you that I am not short on having opinions, but when it comes to taking a public stand on public issues, this is on–the–campaign–trail learning.
I still intend to listen carefully, and get the facts right. I intend to know my source, and trust yet verify.
It will probably sound at times like I am trying to stay on the fence, but it will be because I haven't decided which pasture looks like it has less manure in it, not that I am going to sit on the fence forever.

Comment Moderation

I am not going to automatically publish the comments on this blog.
It might be "old school" but I am not going to approach this campaign with an uncontrolled debate about the issues that degrades into insults and finger pointing.
Please feel free to send comments or questions in an e-mail, and I will do my best to address your questions and comments in a future post.
If you agree with what I think, or most of it, then please vote for me.
If you don't agree with me, then don't vote for me.
Either way, please vote.

Old Issues

I never ceases to amaze me that some people cannot understand that the past is in the past. We cannot continually debate a decision made by council members years ago. Purchases are made, projects are approved, and ordinances are passed. If you want to be part of the decision–making process, then you should attend the council meetings and speak your mind.

But, because people have asked me about two items in particular, let me state my position on:

A) The fire truck.
A wise person understands that whenever you have a dedicated group of volunteers like the Sidney Fire department, you should provide them with the best equipment and training possible.
The job is as dangerous and dirty as any job can be, and yet these volunteers gladly respond when the call is placed.
If Sidney had to hire and pay its fire department, the payroll would be greater per year than the one-time purchase of the newest fire truck.
Our historic downtown district is filled with two–story buildings. Many single–story structures in town do not have easy access from all sides. The ladder on the truck doesn't just go up and down, it can go over.
Our volunteer force continually trains for the worst–case scenario.
Some day, the fire truck will be used to save a life. Then people will understand it was not expensive, it is priceless.

B) The walking trail.
In March of 2006, the Sidney City Council unanimously approved the construction of a concrete pedestrian and bicycle trail linking the existing Sidney Deadwood Trail system to the Interstate 80 interchange. It was clearly stated in the resolution that the cost to the city would be approximately $171K. It was also clearly stated the Federal Transit Act and the Nebraska Transportation Act would provide $500K for the project.
In November of 2006, the resolution was given a deadline extension by unanimous vote of the council.
In June of 2007, the project was given a deadline extension by unanimous vote of the council.
In October of 2007, the project was given a deadline extension by unanimous vote of the council.
In February of 2008, the project was given a deadline extension by vote of the council. Council member Marv Filsinger abstained from the vote, the four other members voted yea.
In September of 2008, the project was given a deadline extension by unanimous vote of the council.
In March of 2009, the project was given a deadline extension by 4-0 vote of the council. Council member Bob Van Vleet was absent, excused, from the meeting.
In December of 2009, the project was given a deadline extension by a 3-2 vote of the council.
Time and time again, the project was discussed in meetings. Rarely did anyone stand in objection to the project.
Four years have passed since the project was officially approved. If a majority of the citizens in our community stood in opposition, the project could have been killed at any time.
I suspect that the majority of the community either supported the idea, or, to be quite honest, didn't care one way or the other.
Do I support it? While I find it laughable that the state and federal government will give us half a million dollars to build the path but not to repair our roads, if they are going to give us half a million dollars we'd be foolish not to take it.
And yes, in the last four years the cost of the project has increased, but due to a generous offer by Cabela's, the city's share has not increased.
If Cabela's wants to invest $200,000 in the project, than I say Sidney would be foolish not to take it as well.
Will I use the path?
Doubtful.
But I believe that it will be popular with a sector of the population.
According to Public Works Director John Hehnke, the path will be cleared of snow and ice, as not doing so could open the city to liability if someone were to fall. Yes, he will have to budget for the expense, but does not expect that to be significant because the snow will be cleared using the roller brushes on a mower or the little push plow if the snow is deeper.
One last thing. To those who refer to the trail extension as the "path to nowhere," I wonder how all the fine people employed at the businesses near the I-80 exchange, or those who own businesses there, feel about being labeled as being "nowhere."