Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Open Questions to the Pueblo City Administration

A list of queations directed toward decisions made, future expenditures, needed changes, etc.

Open Questions to the Pueblo City Administration
The Questions that are submitted need to be answered to let the public know the City’s Administration is;  Visionary, Ethical, Accountable, Transparent, Professional, Responsible, Respectful, and with a “Can Do Attitude”.  In addition, the City Administration needs to gain Public Trust.  This can only be done by not being afraid to answer questions directed towards; issues, decisions made, future expenditures, needed changes, etc.  The questions submitted at this time are most likely not the complete list that require answering. 
The questions are being made available to the City Council members, City Manager, City Attorney, Pueblo Chieftain, Internet Web Sites, and the general public.

1. What is the City’s total outstanding bond debt?
2. On an annual basis, how much of the City’s revenues, approximately $64 million, go toward paying the bond debt?
3. What is the existing capital fund requirements for the City to maintain, infrastructure, buildings, etc.?
4. How much did the City pay for the properties which will be used to locate part of the new City campus?
5. The City purchased land from the Catholic Church, were the funds used for the purchase in the budget?
6. Where did the City get the $1 million plus to buy the property?
7. What does the City plan to do with the property?
8. Did the management of the City’s golf courses go through a bid process?  It is known that the City is planning to turn over the management of the city pools without a bidding process.
9. How long has the Jagger Law firm been the acting City Attorney?
10. Why have there not been a maximum term set for the City Attorney and/or the services of a law firm gone out for bid?
11. When did the YMCA first go to the City for help and what did they ask for?
12. Why does the YMCA need the tax payers money?
13. The first contractual agreement dated December 6, 2006 says nothing about the City paying the YMCA capital funds for the construction of the aquatic center and the YMCA in turn managing the four city pools.  Why and how did this come about?
14. Since the YMCA claims to have raised approximately $11 million and they say the cost of the aquatic is around $4 million, why has the City specified that the funds are to go towards the construction of the aquatic center?
15. If the YMCA needs the tax payers money as a prerequisite for gaining additional funds, the funding source(s) should be made public.  Why would the source(s) require a City that is already in debt to spend money they don’t have?
16. How much does the local YMCA annually pay to the YMCA National?
17. The non-profits that go through the CSAC process are required to make public the salaries of their executives.  As the City’s highest paid non-profits, the Chamber of Commerce and the YMCA as part of their qualifying for city money should also be made to disclose what their executives are paid.  Why haven’t they?
18. The City budget for police and fire protection is being cut.  How can the City justify giving the YMCA $2 million?
Submitted by:  Ted Freeman,  425 West23rd St,  Pueblo, CO 81003, 719-544-4479

Something I Was Curious About

A Public Notice in the newspaper announced a hearing on a liquor license at the local university.

So I went to the web, found a phone number, and called up the State Liquor Enforcement office to find out what was going on.

A nice lady explained that the State was handling the license because the CSU-P is state-owned property and the local government (City of Pueblo) had decided to opt out of licensing liquor serving on state property. Which makes sense when you realize that includes the State Fair grounds and the local liquor board would be inundated every year with requests for special licenses, along with complaints from folks who didn’t get theirs because they didn’t apply in time. Anyway, she said she would have preferred to have had the hearing in Pueblo. It is scheduled for the state office in Lakewood.

Apparently someone wants to open a cafe on the campus, and serve alcohol.

Anyway, the nice lady explained the hearing process and said that the applicant would have to present a “need” for the liquor license in the neighborhood.

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