Pueblog USa
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change(PCPC) meeting
November meeting to discuss outcome of Convention Center expansion and competitive bidding procecures as outlined in city charter.
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change(PCPC)
PCPC will hold their monthly meeting on Wednesday, November 12th, at 6:30PM.
The location is the: Barkman Library
1300 Jerry Murphy and Bonforte
The outcome of the Convention Center expansion issue and the Competitive
Bidding procedures as described in the city charter will be discussed.
The Public is welcome.
For more information contact;
Ted Freeman, 544-4479 or 369-4469
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change(PCPC) meeting
Important meeting. Last meeting before November elections.
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change(PCPC)
PCPC will hold their monthly meeting on Wednesday, October 8, at 6:30PM.
The location is the: Barkman Library
1300 Jerry Murphy and Bonforte
Opposition to the expansion of the Convention Center and other issues facing Pueblo will be discussed. The Public is welcome.
This will be the last meeting before the November elections. We need donations for printing fliers and /or volunteers to distribute fliers.
The people supporting the convention Center expansion have thousands of dollars. Soon you will see advertisements on a daily basis.
We have spent a couple hundred dollars to date.
It is hoped you saw PCPC’s article in the Sunday, September 28 Chieftain and if you believe in our position, give us your support.
We hope to see you on Wednesday.
For more information contact;
Ted Freeman, 544-4479 or 369-4469
Sunday, October 05, 2008
Vote No on Ballot Initiative 2B
Many reasons why the the Vendors Fees should not be used for the Convention Center expansion.
Vote no on ballot initiative 2B:
The use of Vendor Fees for Convention Center Expansion
By Ted Freeman and Alvin Rivera
The proponents of the Convention Center have stated that the Vendor Fees are not a new or additional tax. However, what they don’t say is that funding the Convention Center expansion will create a new debt. The Pueblo tax payers already have considerable long term debt: the Harp River Walk, the new Police Station, the new Judicial Building, the new Health Department building, the School bonds, and various Urban Renewal projects. True, these come out of different budgets and different agencies, but they are all funded with Pueblo tax payer dollars.
Let’s be real for a moment. Would you run your household checkbook with this kind of debt? If you did, your home would be in foreclosure! Well, that’s exactly what your city officials, Urban Renewal and the proponents of this measure are asking you to do.
Has the existing facility had a major economic impact on Pueblo? Recent news releases in the Chieftain say that Pueblo is the poorest of the eleven largest counties in Colorado. Did the past performance of the Convention Center make a difference to change this poverty standing? It does not appear so!
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
No Expansion Without Justification
There other choices and needs, besides the Convention Center expansion. Vote no on ballot question 2B.
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change
No Expansion Without Justification
Here’s Why a “Vote No” on the Convention Center Ballot Question 2B is the Right Choice
PUEBLO: This Will Cost You Money. It does not matter if it is called a tax or fee, the money is out of your pocket. Where is the value to the community? When will “our real needs” be addressed?
The Urban Renewal Authority (URA), the Convention Center gatekeeper, has not been able to prove that the expansion will bring in a significant amount of out-of-town business to Pueblo. When we requested past performance records URA provided incomplete and inaccurate files, leading one to question the credibility of the URA. National studies show the number and attendance at conventions and trade shows have been decreasing.
The Convention Center operated at a deficit every year and would continue to do so even with the expansion. During the years 2005, 2006, and 2007 the operating deficit averaged $400,000 each year (Pueblo Chieftain, 6-4-08). The City Attorney told the City Council (6-9-08) that the Convention Center deficit was $500,000 in 2007.
Each year Pueblo sends Global Spectrum, the Convention Center management firm, over $120,000. In 2007 checks were written to out-of-town Global Spectrum for over $150,000 (2007 Convention Center check history).
Financing for the expansion would include paying interest only until the year 2019. What will be the actual cost at the payoff year 2029: 14 million, 20 million? Remember that URA and the City have a history of cost overruns. We have until 2019 to make the decision as to how to spend the Vendor’s Fees or to stop collecting it after 2019.
There are other choices and needs, besides the Convention Center expansion!
To learn more and to record your opinion, visit http://WWW.PUEBLOG.ORG or http://www.pueblog.us on the Internet.
Donations for copying are urgently needed (call PCPC). Contact Ted Freeman 544-4479 or Alvin Rivera 566-0069.
Vote No on ballot question 2B
Vendor Fees can be used for puposes other than the Convention Center expansion. The Convention Center is poorly managed and has not been justified.
Vote no on ballot question 2B
Proponents, including city elected officials, have misled the public about the need to utilize the Vender Fees for expanding the Convention Center. How to spend Vendor Fees should be the choice of the people. There are other CHOICES AND NEEDS in Pueblo besides the need of the Convention Center expansion.
Let us examine the past record of the Convention Center operators: Urban Renewal Authority officials in cooperation with the City Council. Vendor Fee expenditures are simply out of control:
• The Convention Center operated at a $500,000 deficit, which has been increasing every year.
• The 2007 contract with Global Spectrum, manager of the Convention Center, has doubled their management fee and incentives are based on gross revenues, rather than PERFORMANCE or any accountability for keeping expenditures in check. The Convention Center should be managed by a local business source, not a Pennsylvania firm.
• Urban Renewal Authority administrative expenditures, which are not direct operating expenses of the Convention Center, are being partially financed with Vendor Fees.
• It has been shown that the insurance rates provided by Global Spectrum are not competitive.
• Substantial increases in employee salaries and bonuses were made without regard to incentive performance and accountability.
The Convention Center expansion has not been justified:
• National studies and the Hunden Report paid for by the Urban Renewal Authority indicate that both the number of conventions and trade shows and their attendance have been decreasing.
• The Convention Center’s own literature claims they hosted only 25 conventions in 2007. Further, their reports for 2008 show they only have 12 confirmed events and for 2009 there are only 9 confirmed events with 7 proposals pending. The Urban Renewal Authority claims there is an increasing demand for Convention Center space. However, their own reports indicate different results.
• The Vendor Fees are committed to paying off the bond debt, operating expenses, and maintenance of the existing Convention Center until the year 2019. Financing for the expansion would include paying interest only until 2019.
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change (PCPC) opposes this measure because it lacks a positive economic impact and consequently is not in the best interest of the people of Pueblo or their city government. Thus, PCPC recommends a “no vote” on Ballot question 2B.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Vote For City Ballot Question 201 - Return Televised Public Comments to Pueblo City Council Meetings
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Demonstration for PNP
This is a demo…..
Hi there everyone….
Tuesday, September 02, 2008
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change(PCPC) meeting
Strategic planning and fund raising to oppose the Convention Center expansion
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change(PCPC)
PCPC will hold their monthly meeting on Wednesday, September 10th, at 6:30PM.
The location is the: Barkman Library
1300 Jerry Murphy and Bonforte
Strategic planning and fund raising for opposing the expansion of the Convention Center will be discussed. The Public is welcome.
For more information contact;
Ted Freeman, 544-4479 or 369-4469
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Pueblo Free Speech Initiative to be On the November Ballot!
Pueblo voters will have a chance to vote to return televised public comments to Pueblo City Council Meetings!
Pueblo Citizens for Open Government has met the required number of signatures to force the Pueblo City Council to place the item on the November ballot. The council voted 7-0 Monday night to place the item on the ballot, as required by the city charter.
The ballot item will ask city voters to return the public forum to the already televised regular council sessions. The Pueblo City Council removed public comments from the televised meetings in September of 2007, without so much as a public hearing. Public comments were moved into the non-televised work sessions, which does not allow citizens viewing the meetings on television to hear the comments of their fellow citizens.
Supporters of the effort are calling the ballot question the “Pueblo Free Speech Initiative”.
Join our campaign to bring back televised free speech to the Pueblo City Council Meetings. If you value open government are interested in getting involved contact us at: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
I Am REALLY….
...getting TIRED of auto accidents ending up in my front yard.
For the self-serving purpose of having a minor convenience during funeral services, or so it seems, Ascension Episcopal Church has arranged for 18th Street to be one-way going West.
In a suburban setting such as ours, this is a grave mistake and we almost had another grave in Pueblo just a few minutes ago.
The problem is that people don’t expect a one-way street in a suburban setting such as ours.
So here I am typing at my work and I hear the squeal of tires and a loud CRUMP! and loss things skittering down the street.
I don’t need to look outside. All I need to do is reach for the phone and punch up 911 and tell them there’s a traffic accident at 18th and Greenwood. Send emergency services vehicles immediately. And I mean NOW! DAMMIT NOW!
This is the second time this scenario has been played out…..
Someone going the wrong way East on 18th Street from Elizabeth; thinking it’s your standard suburban two-way street. And, there being no Stop sign at the intersection with Greenwood; after all it IS the wrong way, they drive into the traffic on Greenwood.
No serious injuries THIS time, but it’s only a matter of time before we have that or much, much worse.
The previous incident, two years ago, involved an SUV full of children that wound up in my yard upside down.
As I said, it’s convenient for the church to manage funerals. But do they REALLY need to be drumming up additional business of that sort? It’s time for the City Traffic Managers to make 18th Street a two-way.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Fighting for on-air comments - Denver Post 8-10-08
Here is the Denver Post coverage of Pueblo Citizens for Open Government effort to
return televised free speech to the Pueblo City Council meetings.
Fighting for on-air comments - Denver Post 8-10-08
A Pueblo group wants opinions at council sessions back on TV.
By Steve Graff
http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_10146063
Thoughts on Governance — 080810
An interesting perspective.
Last month there was an article published in the Denver Post. One that has not appeared in our own Pueblo Chieftain. And I have to wonder just why that is. But I won’t go into that…..yet. Here is the link
to the article.
What follows are my comments, i.e., some fisking, of said same….
Friday, August 08, 2008
City Clerk Certifies Televised Public Forum Petitions!
PUEBLO – The Pueblo City Clerk’s office completed the validation of signatures submitted by Pueblo Citizens for Open Government in their effort to return the televised public forum to Pueblo City Council meetings.
The City Clerk’s office had completed their review by noon on Friday when they contacted the group’s organizers by telephone to notify them that they had verified the necessary 1,359 valid signatures.
City Clerk Gina Dutcher has placed the item on the Pueblo City Council’s agenda for their upcoming August 25th regular meeting. The Pueblo City Charter requires that council take action within thirty days to either pass the ordinance without alterations or refer it to city voters in the upcoming November election.
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change(PCPC) meeting
We need a City Government that will listen to the people
Pueblo Citizens for Positive Change(PCPC)
PCPC will hold their monthly meeting on August 13th, at 6:30PM.
The location is the: Barkman Library
1300 Jerry Murphy and Bonforte
Opposition to the expansion of the Convention Center and other issues
facing Pueblo will be discussed. The Public is welcome.
For more information contact;
Ted Freeman, 544-4479 or 369-4469
Saturday, August 02, 2008
GROUP SUBMITS PETITIONS TO RETURN TELEVISED PUBLIC FORUM
PUEBLO – A citizens group working to roll back last year’s decision by the Pueblo City Council to do away with the televised public forum during regular council meetings turned in their petitions Friday to make the August 1st deadline set by the Pueblo City Clerk’s office.
The effort has been named the Pueblo Free Speech Initiative by its organizers and seeks to reestablish public forum prior to the commencement of any business at regular Pueblo City Council meetings. The measure would also require that the public forum be included as part of the televised portion of the regular meeting and allow up to six people to address the City Council on camera for five minutes each.
The Pueblo City Council voted last September to do away with the televised public forum by moving it into the non-televised work session meetings. The rule change has drawn criticism from members of the community who are concerned that the move eliminates the public’s ability to voice concerns to the community, especially on nights when the council is taking action by resolution. The council is not required to hold a public hearing before voting on resolutions.
The group calling themselves Pueblo Citizens for Open Government turned in 2,003 signatures. The petitions contain 644 signatures over and above the 1,359 signatures necessary for a citizen’s imitative. Both state law and the city charter require the group to have obtained signatures totaling at least five percent of the votes cast in the most recent municipal election in order to move their issue forward. The City Clerk must determine if the group has submitted enough valid signatures to force an action by the council.
If successful, the City Council will be required to take action within 30 days. The City Charter requires that council either pass the ordinance without alterations or they must refer the proposed ordinance to city voters in the upcoming November election.
The measure would not cost the city any additional funds since the regular meetings are already being televised. The petitions were submitted by Pueblo resident Chris Nicoll and former District 4 City Council member Ted Lopez Jr. The circulation of petitions was a collaborative effort of approximately twenty of Pueblo’s citizens.
Pueblo Citizens for Open Government was formed shortly after the Pueblo City Council voted to eliminate the televised public forum in September of 2007. Comments made by former City Council President Judy Weaver to the Pueblo Chieftain alarmed many people in the community. Weaver was quoted saying “People have to understand this is our meeting being held in public; it’s not a public meeting.”