I'm headed to the North End of Town today.
I heard that at the meeting the other night that a storm drain at Poinsettia was busted, so I am go see what it's like.
Yet-the Commission voted 4-0 (Walker was absent from the meeting), to move $98,000 from the general fund into a new Rykman fund.
They did NOT say what they planned to do with that $98,000 though. I suppose they want to use it for that median they want to put in on Ocean, or more stop signs, or for the skatepark? Idk.
I also spoke to some people on Ash Ave because they have a water issue there too. We walked out and looked at it, it does seem to be a problem requiring attention.
Fixing these things are the kinds of things we need to spend our taxes on, instead of silly, willy nilly fancy stop signs that I'm not even sure are legal or approved by engineers. We also need to do competive bidding.
We need real, actual, competitive bidding in order to be fiscally responsible stewards of our tax revenue, rather than what they do now, which is to invite their preferred contractor recommended by Runte and crew, to come out early to meet with Mascara and Davis so they can walk THAT contractor through what they want (and probably have that contractor write up the bid early), then later release the bid "competitively" (wink, wink). It should be no surprise later, under that system, who ultimately gets awarded the contract!!
Then later, of course come the add ons- the "oops" costs, like that Cherry Dr. contract that more than doubled afterwards and curbs that were somehow originally overlooked, and the additional costs elsewhere from the contractor fixing one section of road while crushing other pipes with their trucks driving and parking where they shouln't, further jacking up that original price they said was such a good deal.
I'm out of flyers until tomorrow (Monday), and I took the weekend of be my kids. I will be out again Monday, with my head up!
I do have more signs, in case anyone wants one or had one taken! They take us down on social media, steal signs in the night - whoever they are - but sometimes trying to silence people, makes them stronger, more determined.
Also, I did drive Poinsettia the other day and was able to speak to a few people who were home who answered the door and I learned good information. This water issue at Poinsettia is not new, in fact it's a been problem for 11 years and it's pretty bad too.
Apparently the water backs up very badly - very dirty water, floods people's driveways for up a full month sometimes. The road has areas so stained with old stagnate water they appear painted with pretty stinky stuff. So, I am glad this issue is finally getting attention. But there ARE lots of others too still long neglected.
I've been going to meetings a few years, and always there is a certain blame phrase used, which is:
"The prior commission didn't raise taxes and neglected infrastructure. WE are fixing that" - they say - this Commission. But THEY have been using that line - that convenient catch phrase for awhile now. For years in fact. It started with Simmons, and continued with Hovver, and will continue with Barton, if she is elected.
And if you ARE going to raise taxes, which no one likes, you need a good phrase to justify it. Call it "political pr" if you will. If you want to raise taxes, you need a safe scapegoat and a savior. At a certain point if those raised taxes each year don't get you caught up, at any greater rate than before, then you start to realize it was a ruse.
They had a lot of money these last several years, but they keep wasting it and spending it on pet projects and unnecessary things which add up, instead of prioritizing and addressing backlogs of all kinds. For example, $98,000 for a new Ryckman fund, to put in a fancy Palm Beach on Ocean Ave, right by Djons. I'm sure that will be very pretty for those newcomers who live in those residential Riverview Lofts above Djons which are now possible for development after they created "Mixed Use" Zoning. I'm sure those new residents and Air BnBers on top on Sand on the Beach will love watching the confused turtles scattered around while sitting on on Multimillion new Condos with outdoor balconies overlooking the ocean with their lights on, loud parties, and their fires on the beach now made possible because of this Commission and Barton's Mixed use zoning and ok for fires on the beach.
Those new out of towner's will appreciate the taxpayer funded "destination" location (a phrase I'm borrowing from one insightful resident) our town is turning into and will continue to--with that new dock at 6th Ave bring more outsiders parked along side streets waiting to put their boats into our neighborhood ramp (after it's blown up and expanded), and that Town Skatepark, and the fancy signs and the Ocean ave Mixed use zoning they passed March 2023 and the Palm Beach inspired, expensive landscaped median along Ocean Ave and elsewhere.
I'm sure all those 2nd house out-of-towners and their Air BnB visitors will love it.
While we, the residents will slowly but surely stop letting our kids bike around happy and carefree from house to school or to the park or the baseball fields. We won't feel as safe letting them out because of all the new traffic and constant check in and check out of new faces each week and weekend.
Taxes and wisely using them
Rather than use our taxes wisely to fix streets first, those streets will keep flooding, people will sell for higher and higher prices and houses will be bulldozed and bigger ones built, and in time this place will become a Town Hotel Resort Destination and not a quiet safe community of residents. It may still be "pretty" but it will lose that charm that brought all those people there in the first place. People will wonder when, and how, and why. No one will know though, because all the people who could answer those questions will be gone, driven out. It reminds me of a kid's book, the Lorax. The unnecessary stop signs are like the "thneads" in the book, the thneads that nobody needs. I'm like that Cranky Lorax - trying to get people to see through what they (Barton, Runte, Hoover, Quarrie and the absent one) SAY, and to consider what they DO. If those things don't line up, then think back to what your mother and your common sense tells you. Track records and actions speak louder and carry a lot more weight than Re-Election Slogans.
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