It wasn't that long ago when Lois Frankel told the citizens in West Palm Beach to go blow smoke. Lois went ahead on a City Center that cost three times the original price. Originally it was to be $50 million but ended up at $154 million without certain components that were promised by Lois.
Citizens formed a political action committee and went out on a petition to stop the madness. Carolyn Wright, Michael Bornstein, Anita Mitchell, Gladys VanOtteren and Patricia High sued Lois and the West Palm Beach Commission. It got to the Appellate Court and the 4th District Court of Appeal rejected a referendum by the opponents of the project who collected more than 6,000 signatures calling for a special vote to decide whether the city hall and library should be moved from their current sites to the old D&D block, which the city purchased. The appeals court affirmed the trial court ruling in that the petitioners came forward too late to force the vote.
Even though there was this legal technicality, Lois didn't listen to the people and now has them all in debt on a project that never should have happened without the vote of the people.
A couple of politicians in Lake Worth were so enamored with Lois' waterfront project that cost another small fortune designed by Michael Singer that Lake Worth hired him on our beach redevelopment. Costs went up 34%. We will be $2 million over budget.
Now Lois is here in Lake Worth looking for the GLBT vote. At election time she panders to groups for votes. Once elected we are all invisible. Tell Lois to stop "doing" us. Tell Lois "no."
Michael Singer was brought in by Varela,without an RFP, Public Bidding for municipal project mandated by our Charter and State Laws..The callous,(Cara most vigorously promoted it,knowing nothing about it),and indifferent Commission agreed to hire him and any contractors of his choice,(again no RFP) to be paid with Citizens' money.
ReplyDeleteSince when did Varela and michael singer own our City, to assume the right to step on our Charter and take as much money as they can from the suckers?Pay our taxes?Primitive,ignorant with road rehab work, and no infra structure mentioned, voted unanimously to give Michael Singer any money he wants for this $2,000,000,- to $3,000,000,- at most costing job. County Commission members(several in jail) signed away our %5,000,000,- to get rid of the responsibility for oversight and evaluation of this simple project.
Romano did most of it for $220,000,-,see records after Laurence and my urging for 2 years..Commission members googoogaagga'ed,swallowed all the snake oil Singer was feeding them!
The Beach site job surrounding OUR Casino was never put out for bid, and therefore any contract null and void according to our Charter.
The new $7,000,000 Deficit Commission members don't know our Charter and need to read ,this vital to Lake Worth Law book,and act accordingly, respecting the will of the people.Correcting the outrageous, no RFP,
multi million dollar job, would somewhat give them respect.
Commissions do not pay our taxes, we all the bills.
Lois is doing what Jeff Clemens did ,approving the throwing out of our 9000 Seniors from their social Center within walking distance..He coerced with lies, the callous,odious Commission members
ReplyDeleteto lease the Commercial 12000 sq.ft. for 7cts.per sq.ft.L.W. standard $100,- per sq.ft.He promised $1,000,000 rehabilitation by COMPASS , and after signature of the lease we found out they had no money, and needed to borrow $260,000 to rehab the 9000 thrown out Seniors' Center on 2nd.Ave and Dixie.
Most of us learned respect for our elders.Society's lower echelons element, learned to live like cornered rats, respecting nothing and nobody.Watch wannabee College Parker,crawled in from the wrong side of Town, Dixie HWy,living still right next to it.
Lois ran on Nancy Graham's according fiscally irresponsible plan to build a new $54,000,000 City Hall. Once the rat got in, she with her buddy Catalfumo, built a $154,000,000 City Hall nobody wants to lease or be in.At night it is ghostly.
Citizens swallow her bull.
I believe that there is more to this story and that it went to the Florida Supreme Court where the petitioners won. By that time, Lois had already built the building. They got back their legal fees I think. If someone knows the rest of the story, please post.
ReplyDeleteYou are correct Lynn- the Florida Supreme Court reversed the decision of the 4th DCA and said that the citizens' right to petition was sacrosanct and even though the WPB charter language allows petitions to reverse ordinances and the City Hall was passed by a resolution, the people's petition right overruled this technicality.
ReplyDeleteThe case strongly recognizes that "All power is inherent in the people"
Excepting when you come in contact with someone like Lois.
ReplyDelete