Special interests, guilt, and OPM

"I think, myself, that we have more machinery of government than is necessary, too many parasites living on the labor of the industrious.  I believe it might be much simplified to the relief of those who maintain it."
                                                                                   --  Thomas Jefferson

Everyone who asks government to finance their special interests encourages "more machinery of government" at the expense of "the labor of the industrious."  

Should the City Council treat your home as a piggy bank for special interests? 

Is buying wind-powered electricity a necessity for the city of Lake Oswego?  No.  Those who are tempted to say yes no doubt confuse their concern for the survival and health of Lake Oswego with the survival and health of the planet.

Will the cost (machinery) of government increase if Lake Oswego purchases wind power?  Yes.

The Sustainability Advisory Committee said this would cost the city an additional $28k. This money will come out of the general fund with money coming from residents' property taxes.  Could this money be spent on actual necessities like paving, salaries, or building repairs instead?  Yes.   

SAB makes the claim (as printed in the Lake Oswego Review) that the additional cost of wind electricity will go down as more customers use it.  Where is their crystal ball?  Even if the cost of wind power were to drop to equivalent or lower pricing in the future, wouldn't there be a net cost to the city for expenditures made now?  Yes.

Citizens elect a mayor and city council to decide how to spend their money.  Public money is to be spent on behalf of all of the citizens of Lake Oswego.  Will some people be harmed by the city's unnecessary purchase of wind power?  Yes.

Adding any expense to the city budget has the potential to harm those who currently struggle to keep their homes, or would like to decide which good causes they want to support.  If unnecessary expenses were eliminated from the budget, the property tax liability on all citizens could be reduced, or in an inflationary period, taxes would not have to be raised.  Will citizens be harmed by unnecessary spending by the city council?  Yes.

Is $28k a significant amount to spend on unnecessary wind power now and going forward?  Yes.  All public money collected and expended is significant.   What amount is not insignificant?

What are the citizens of Lake Oswego getting for their $28k?   Some people (SAB and 4 members of the City Council) will feel better that they did something positive for the planet (at someone else's expense).   The facts regarding the "good" of wind power were not proven.  Should citizens pay through their property taxes for City Councilors to feel good?  No.

No government will spend its money in a way that satisfies everyone.  But this expense is clearly not
necessary because we are getting the same service (electricity) for a cheaper price now.  The City Council has reacted to the demands of a special interest group instead of putting all of the citizens of Lake Oswego first.  Pandering to special interests is not their job.  It is ego.  If shame exists in City Hall, let this be an example of shameful behavior.

City Councilors voting for the expenditure:  Jackie Manz, Jeff Gudman, Jon Gustafson, Joe Buck (4Js).  Voting No: Mayor Kent Studebaker, Councilors Skip O'Neill, Karen Bowerman.

"Beat 'N Cheat"

It's all just a game, isn't it?  

Winners and losers.  

No big deal.  

Just business.  

It's the way the world works.  

And you thought local politics was different?  

LOL

By the way, are we talking about the City 

or the developers here?  Hmmm.  

You decide.  

Here is a clip from the Planning Commission meeting on July 13. The subject concerns what one can build on a substandard lot:  Agenda item 8, regarding LU 15-0017.  The speaker is Rick White, owner of Whitehouse Collection, a home design firm that was involved with the Silver Oak development in the Hallinan neighborhood on Bickner St.   White comments on how convoluted (my word) city code is, and how designers deal with it.  If you watch the entire exchange, notice how many times the planners, the commissioners, and White say the word "exceptions."  Once exceptions are allowed into the code, the code turns into Swiss cheese.  Smile!   

Throwing money at "good" causes

A reader commented on my post, "Throwing public money at bad ideas", and I'd share it with you since many of you no doubt feel the same way.  My response follows (with minor changes for clarity).  Further discussion is welcome.

Tall Chris:
Considering that Lake Oswego has over 35,000 residents, the $28,000 cost works out to less thank $1 a person. I certainly support every avenue that encourages clean energy and reduced carbon emissions. on Throwing public money at bad ideas 

Up Sucker Creek:
I'm sorry, either you didn't get the point I was trying to make, or I wasn't clear.

The cost isn't the most important part of the story.  We could be talking about $10,000 or $100,000, $.25 or $5 per person, it's all the same to me.

Governments should not be spending more of our money than necessary on anything, especially a feel-good endeavor like this.  If YOU want to buy wind energy, great!  But don't ask the rest of us to pay for your good causes.  I don't think the government, you, or anyone, should pay for what tickles my conscience either, even when it is "for the greater good."

The municipal government has a very limited role in providing services and should do so in a thrifty way so that all of those 36,000 people can afford to live here.  Plus, we are all paying for wind power whether we choose to or not through federal and state grants and tax credits.

What if the good cause the city spent (or didn't spend) our money on was us - saving every penny to lower taxes so we could have more of it for ourselves?  We earned it, we should be the ones to decide how to spend it!  

Will he or won't he?

I have a bet with a friend on whether or not Patrick Kessi and his investors will begin demolition of the Wizer building before all legal challanges have concluded.  What do you think?  It's all about money, not about the good it will do our little town, so you have to look at it from a gambler's point of view.

Now is the time to start thinking of starting that office pool or the friendly bet among friends.  The last tenant, The Glass Butterfly, must move out of the Wizee Building at the end of September.  As for Kessi:
Will he or won't he tear the place down before all legal challenges are exhausted?    

$   If, in a final appeal at the Oregon Supreme Court, the Court decided the appellants made their case (to deny the building permit), would the city stop construction, or would Kessi and his investors win anyway because they had already "come too far" to stop?

 $   Will the appellants get an injunction to stop demolition and/or subsequent construction until all appeals have been exhausted?

$    Will Evergreen Group LLC investors (or their lenders) pull the plug, fearing the consequences of a delay or final judgement?  Or will they take a risk that building sooner will not result in money lost or will will warrant the risk of rising interest rates?

$    Would the city actually pull the plug on a project in progress if a court decision denied their building permit?

It is interesting to note that the names of the Evergreen Group LLC investors have not been made public.  Why not?  Rumors are all over the map on who might be involved; local vs institutional owners would affect the apartments' management and relationship to the community, so it is important.  I am still scratching my head about that $95+ million price tag - it just doesn't feel right.

I'll see you in Salem!

July 15 - Today

State Supreme Court Chambers

Salem, Oregon

Appeal of the LUBA decision on the Wizer development to the Appellate Court.  Hearing starts at 9:00 am.  Next stop, the Oregon Supreme Court.  

 

The Supreme Court Building, Salem, Oregon

I'll see you in Salem.

P.S.: it's not too late to contribute money to the legal fund for the appeals process.  Contact Save Our Village for where to send your donation.  

Thank you, but I'd rather be dumb

When I hear the word "smart" anymore, it isn't as funny as it used to be.  This is getting serious.

Haven't heard of Smart Cities?  Neither had I, although it is the obvious next step for the
Smart movement to take. A U topian smart city means mining our personal data for the efficiency of the city and the good of all.  It makes me wish we all had the old black, dial desk phone technology.  Unless one had a party line, or a sibling listening in on an extention, privacy was assured, and no one could hack your non-digital tele-communications.

Smart Cities Council  
smartcitiescouncil.com

Take a moment to read what this organization is all about, and see who the partners and advisors are.  Do you recognize any local entities?

Get a feel of where these giant, national and global corporations and organizations want to take us: read the articles below.  Smart Cities are not warm and fuzzy.  The scary thing is that Central Planners eat this stuff up.  And they are in control of us for the foreseeable future.  The monied interests and the CPs are lining up, ready to pick our pockets and invade our lives.  Enjoy!


Wall Street Journal July 12, 2015  Commentary by Mike Weston
'Smart' Cities Will Know Everything 
About You 
How can marketers cash in without

becoming enemies of the people?

From Boston to Beijing, municipalities and governments across the world are pledging billions to create "smart cities" - urban areas covered with Internet-connected devices that control citywide systems, such as transit, and collect data.  Although the details can vary, the basic goal is to create super-efficient infrastructure, and urban planning and I prove the well-being of the populace.

A byproduct of a tech utopia will be a prodigious amount of data collected on the inhabitants.

In a fully 'smart' city, every movement an individual makes can be tracked.  The data will reveal where she works, how she commutes, her shopping habits, places she visits, and her proximity to other people.  You could argue that this sort of tracking already exists via various apps and on social-media platforms, or is held by public-transport companies and e-commerce sites.  The difference is that with a smart city, this data will be centralized and easy to access.  Given the value of this data, it's conceivable that municipalities or private businesses that pay to create a smart city will seek to recoup their expenses by selling it.

The Guardian December 17, 2014. By Steven Poole  This is a must read on the subject.
The truth about Smart Cities: "In the end, they will destroy democracy."

"Why do smart cities offer only improvement?" asks the architect, Rem Koolhaas.  "Where is the possibility of transgression?"

See also:

District of Future districtoffuture.eu.  (European Union projects)

Information Applied to Better Efficiency in Smart Cities

Throwing public money at bad ideas

I confess I did not go to, nor did I watch the City Council meeting Tuesday tonight, so I don't know what the Council's repose to the SAB was concerning their proposal for the city to purchase wind power was.  The purpose is to lower the city's carbon footprint at a higher cost to the taxpaying public, just to be able to show that Lake Oswego is part of a small group of cities that are hip and sustainable.  SAB does not mention the vast majority of metro communities that do not spend money on this expensive power program.  

USC wonders why SAB did not propose this expense to the Budget Committee like other special interest groups did.   I'm m

J ,ml ñ.  

City Council Meeting

July 7, 2015

Agenda Item 4.1 

The proposed annual cost of $28,110 to purchase 100% Clean Wind is a small fraction of the over $1.3 million the City currently spends on electricity.
Let's never make the mistake to consider $28,110 a trifling sum.  You can compare the number to any other and it can look large or small, but the amount is still $28,110, or about 1/4 FTE, a year's mortgage payments. or rent for one or two families.  It is always easy to look at OPM as insignificant and not consider where it comes from at at what cost.  

The City is lagging behind local businesses like Shorenstein Realty Services, Our Lady of the Lake, and New Seasons Market who all currently purchase Clean Wind power from PGE. These businesses recognize the economic advantage from the good publicity, marketing opportunities and community approval that comes with setting a positive example.
"If everyone jumped off a cliff, would you do it too?" Why should the city spend the people's money on some goofy logic that says the city needs "good" publicity and marketing, or token political gestures?  Are so-called green politics (aka Greenwashing) a core service?  Good gosh, I hope not!  


The Sustainability Action Plan for City Operations 2014 Updated has a greenhouse gas reduction goal to reduce emissions 10% below 2000 levels by 2020. Purchasing Clean Wind will lower City carbon emissions by 12,555,616 pounds of CO2, allowing the City to affordably reach this goal.
Affordable?  What reduction in city expenses will the city (public) see with this less expensive option? (Oops, I forgot, it's actually more expensive.) 

From the 2014 Sustainability Plan:
Strategy 1. Clearly articulate financial and other benefits of City sustainability projects to employees, decision makers, and the community.

Myth:

Alternative sources of energy like solar and wind are renewable and carbon-free, and these power sources should be supported with government subsidies.

Reality:

The Northwest (Lake Oswego) gets most of its energy from hydro-electric sources which are renewable and carbon free.  If other sources of energy are sustainable, they need to be cost-effective as determined by the marketplace.  

Open for business

Remember the movie Braveheart?  The Scots were in a fierce, and losing, battle with England for control of their homeland.  Eventually the larger, more sophisticated and better armed side won, but not without the aid of turncoat Scots,leaving many of those brave hearts slaughtered, and the country without defenses against the invaders.  A very heroic and sad tale.

The Mayor holds a meeting.

At the end of Tuesday night's City Council Meeting, Mayor Studebaker announced that he was meeting with builders to see if they were happy with our building codes.  I compared that to asking a glutton if they had had enough food.  In either case, the answer is predictable, so why ask?  Unless the Mayor wants the city to be even more conciliatory to developers, he ought to be asking his constituents if they are happy with the development codes.  But in a way he has.

The question arises, how does today's meeting fit with the Mayor's pre-election comments about how sad he was that his children and theirs would not know the same freedoms their predecessors had.  USC and others thought he got it - about outside control and developer interests changing our small town, and that he wanted to preserve our way of life as the city evolves.  

Studebaker also lamented that our city had the reputation of being a difficult place to do business in, and he wanted ours to be business-friendly.  Who was telling him things were more difficult in LO?  And isn't the same complaint heard by the business community in every city, town and hamlet?  Sometimes it's right - like when codes and fees are not uniformly applied.  But usually business interests ask for fewer restrictions and less public involvement in how they conduct their business - and this happens more when larger developers and out-of-town businesses become involved.

Who is the Mayor trying to please?  Who should he be working for?  People have a right to do business in our city, but only on our terms.  The city can't act like we are open for business without restrictions when they exclude certain types of businesses such as big-box retailers and heavy industrial.  But someone, somewhere has decided that large-scale, transit-oriented, dense, mixed-use development should be encouraged.  It is a not-so-secret truth that the Central Planners at all levels are in control of our cities, and that citizens and local officials will have little influence unless they are particularly savvy about current land use philosophy, theory and code practices.  The city works for outsiders, not locals.  For the truth about how this affects downtown, read Phil Chizum's commentary in last week's LO Review.

Whose city is this?

City Councilor resigns , cites over-development as one reason to move out of Lake Oswego.  The city is killing what makes it unique and what draws people here in the first place.  How many planners live in the city?  How many think suburbs and LO-density development is  a bad thing?  How many in planning, engineering and administration respect this city, it's inhabitants and its lifestyle, and consider them worthy of preservation as unique in character and aspect?   Karen Bowerman is not alone in her decision to move on.  Lake Oswego will continue to lose its most valued citizens - the people who are in the forefront of fighting for preservation of our city's character.  Is there hope for change, or will this battle end with the Bravehearts being destroyed?

How about it Kent?

Whose city is this?

Climate Crusaders' campaign

Here we have another group intent on getting this regressive tax on citizens' energy use passed in the Oregon legislature.  Yippee.  It is so Oregon, so boringly banal, so arrogant and so wrong, one is tempted to laugh it off.  But this isn't your Mama's Oregon where there was an unspoken code of "you mind your business, and I'll mind mine,"  or "live and let live."  We could all live together then, but the game-changers are't happy with this.  Mellow, beautiful Oregon has changed.

The new, brittle, fascist Oregon elites like to tell others how to live: according to their beliefs and their new rules.  Enter a new political action group, Renew Oregon, one among hundreds.  The problem is that half of the population has been hoodwinked into thinking there is truth to their rhetoric.  Go ahead and recycle that can, and grow your own food, those are good things to do. Just don't think you are affecting the weather.



Portland Tribune, July 2, 2015. By Steve Law
Oregon environmentalists have quietly formed a new political action arm to spearhead a game-changing campaign against global warming such as a tax on carbon*

                            *
Game-changing group:  Renew Oregon
Members: Oregon League of Environmental Voters; Oregon Environmental Council, Climate Solutions

Read the article, but read the comments too - they are the best part.  The press never prints the other side of the story, probably because few, if any, groups have formed to defend common sense.  It seems like common sense is desperately needed now before more people are hurt by climate groups..

* The groups and legislators who favor a carbon tax should know that Australia tried it and it failed spectacularly.  The tax took money from each taxpayer and yielded no benefits.  The tax has been repealed.  It would be easier not to try out a bad idea than have to abandon it later.

BTW, how does one measure how one state's anti-carbon efforts actually impact the weather?

Reaping the freedom of America

Happy

Independence 

Day!

Those who expect to reap the 

blessings of freedom, must, 

like men, undergo the fatigue of 

supporting it.

-- Thomas Paine

Speaking the truth about LO

Rarely is someone so frank and so insightful about the economic potential of downtown LO and what a constant flow of redevelopment funds (tax-backed debt), started in the in the 80s, has done to the East End.  Easy money.  No voter interference in fantasy plans of a destination shopping center.

When the original urban renewal plan was completed and downtown was not as vibrant as planned, the plan was renewed with even more projects to keep the funds rolling in.  The number of blocks the city has purchased and sold or subsidized is astounding.  And the downtown still isn't "vibrant".  What is wrong with this picture?

What citizens are now realizing is that the city, with or without the council, intends to keep the plan alive indefinately.  Great job security for bureaucrats, developers and consultants, and bonus points for Central Planners from the top down.  But I stray.  Read the commentary in Thursday's Lake Oswego Review for an inside look at the impact LORA has had on the city.

Note:  The measure that requires a vote to approve creation of, or spending on urban renewal districts in Clackamas County relates to land in the county only, not inside an incorporated city.  If Lake Oswego citizens want the same right, they or the city council could initiate a measure to change the city charter.   One has to ask what is keeping the council from doing this. ??? 

Lake Oswego Review, July 2, 2015
After 26 years in downtown LO, 'I think there's a better way'
Citizen View by Phil Chizum
Phil Chizum is the co-owner of Glass Butterfly in downtown Lake Oswego 

I agree with the neighbors and businesses opposed to the proposed large apartment retail complex on the Wizer Block in downtown Lake Oswego. 

Lake Oswego is known for good schools and being a residential community.  It is not a destination for shoppers, because of the natural barrier of the Willamette River and the opening of many shops at Bridgeport Village and zon Kruse Way.  It will be difficult to lease retail space in these conditions.  Most people do not drive to Lake Oswego to shop and live within five miles of downtown.  

The Lake Oswego Redevelooment Agency has improved the downtown look of the area - but at what cost?  Loss of local businesses, subsidizing developers with our tax dollars, higher rents and always fighting with the neighborhoods, businesses and citizens who do not want it.  

Read the entire article at The Lake Oswego Review online.   

Welcome to Yakima!

The WEB property has been sold - or it is on the City Council agenda for Tuesday night to finalize the agreement.  The new owner is Yakima Products, a company that makes car carriers for bikes, kayaks, skis, containers for gear, trailers, etc.  The company is moving its headquarters from rented offices in Beaverton to their own building in Lake Oswego that will be large enough to expand their growing business.

Yakima Products expects to close the deal in August and immediately begin remodeling the interior.  They expect to be in the building by December.

If a deal with the school district can be worked out to purchase Palisades School, this would give Palisades area it's only public park/playground area - something they have desired for a long time.  This would be icing on the cake.  IF the deal does not allow the Parks and Recreation Department to grow - some downsizing and outsourcing might be good.

Welcome to the community Yakima.  This could be the start of a beautiful friendship.


Lake Oswego Review,  June 30, 2015  By Saundra Sorensen

Yakima Products to buy Lake Oswego's West End Building for 20.1 million
Beaverton-based rack maker plans to move its headquarters by Dec. 1; city negotiating with school district to move Parks & Rec to Palisades Elementary

The 35-year-old company, which makes roof racks, bike racks, cargo boxes and bags and multi-sport trailers, will move its corporate headquarters and research-and-development operations to the 89,000-square-foot building at 4101 Kruse Way.

Beaverton-based Yakima Products Inc. has agreed to purchase the West End Building for $20.1 million, company and city officials announced Tuesday.

The 35-year-old company, which makes roof racks, bike racks, cargo boxes and bags and multi-sport trailers, will move its corporate headquarters and research-and-development operations to the 89,000-square-foot building at 4101 Kruse Way.

“We are thrilled to be making the West End Building Yakima’s new home,” said Ryan Martin, the company’s CEO. “It’s the perfect location for our growing business, and we are excited to have a headquarters that we fully own and can customize to our unique needs.”

[Brant] Williams said Yakima has agreed to lease back office space to the city for the Lake Oswego-Tigard Water Partnership until that project is completed, probably for two years. The city currently is in negotiations with the Lake Oswego School District to relocate the Parks & Recreation Department to Palisades Elementary School; if those plans are approved, department staff would likely begin their move in mid-August.

Williams said that if the council approves the deal with Yakima on Tuesday, the company would then have to “sign the agreement, undergo their due-diligence period and hopefully close somewhere between Aug. 21 and Sept. 13.

Yakima said Tuesday that it expects extensive interior remodeling to begin in August, led by the Portland architecture and design firm Mackenzie. The company said it plans to complete the move from Beaverton by Dec. 1.

Martin, the company's CEO, said the nearly 14-acre property not only provides Yakima with a campus-like setting, but also reflects the company’s passion for the outdoors and the natural environment.

“With woods in our backyard and a beautiful lake just a mile away, this new location really supports and embodies our love of playing in the outdoors,” he said.

The city has been looking to find the right buyer for the WEB for years. It acquired the property from Safeco Insurance in 2006 for $20 million, with plans to create a community center-of-sorts. But those plans were derailed by the Great Recession, when voter support lagged and the city resolved to put the property back on the market.

Water shortage?

I guess my eyes weren't fooling me after all.  

The Clackamas River is running very low right now, and given that we won't get into our rainy season for another 4-5 months, the drought is here to stay.  How low will the water go, and what does our future look like with a "shared" water supply?  

And we haven't even begun to "share" our water yet.  Actually, share isn't the right term since we sold away our rights to our water.  Tigard now has control/ownership over some portion of our water, but I am not sure how the proportions work out in a drought condition.  

Will we have enough water for Lake Oswego residents and businesses who are here NOW?  

How can Lake Oswego responsibly approve more development when water security is not guaranteed for current citizens?   Putting more people and water users into the city is irresponsible.  

Should we start thinking of a moratorium on residential developments (particularly high-density)?  

The not-so-amusing thing about this mess is that the Hammerstad/Hoffman administrations sought and signed on to the deal to facilitate the development of Foothills and Stafford.  Any school child could predict what is happening now:  In summer, the river levels go down and there is less water available for fish and human use.  The Clackamas River is a finite resource and cannot support new development desired by politicians.  The LOTWP was a bad deal from the start and there were plenty of voices telling the powers-that-be to stop, but no one was listening.  

I hear people talk about the LOTWP purchasing water from Portland to make up for the water the Clackamas River can't provide.  This added expense can only be made up only one way - through our water rates. Don't they know how people struggle to pay their water bills now?  And now we pay more for Tigard's new citizens, and maybe ours?  This stinks.  

This is what blind ambition looks like.

Lake Oswego issues Stage 1 alert, urges residents to reduce water use

'Voluntary call to action' comes in response to below-normal levels on the Clackamas River

Lake Oswego has issued a Stage 1 alert in response to below-normal water levels on the Clackamas River and is urging residents to conserve and lower water use this summer.

“The City of Lake Oswego wants to be proactive and raise awareness by asking our customers to conserve water during the dry summer months,” says Kari Duncan, the city’s water treatment plant manager. “It’s important to monitor our usage this summer and reduce needless waste.”

Most of Oregon is experiencing moderate to severe drought conditions. Lake Oswego gets its water from the Clackamas River, where summer flows are sustained largely by creeks and streams that originate from aquifers. But Duncan says the river’s flow is currently below normal, prompting what she calls “a proactive, voluntary call to action.”

Some of Duncan’s tips to reduce usage:

• Adjust sprinklers so that they only water the lawn or plants that they are intended to water and not the streets, sidewalks and driveways.

• Keep a pitcher of tap water in the refrigerator, so it’s already cold.

• Only run full loads in your dishwasher or washing machine.

• Turn the water off when brushing teeth or shaving.

• Shorten shower times to five minutes (timers are available for free on the third floor of City Hall).

• Replace older toilets (rebates are available online at www.ci.oswego.or.us/publicworks/water-conservation-program).

• Take off one day of watering from irrigation schedules.

• Water shrubs only if needed (soil moisture probes are available for free on the third floor of City Hall).

• Use a broom instead of a water hose to sweep up debris or clean driveways, sidewalks and steps.

• Wash cars on the lawn and use a nozzle with a shutoff (available for free on the third floor of City Hall) or use a commercial car wash, which recycles its water.

Duncan says the city and other providers of water from the Clackamas River will continue to monitor river levels to determine if further reduction measures or mandatory restrictions become necessary.

For more information on the water alert or for tips to easily reduce water use, including free water audits, visit www.ci.oswego.or.us/publicworks/water-conservation-program.

Lake Oswego asking residents to voluntarily conserve water

The Oregonian, June 29, 2015  By Brad Schmidt

The city of Lake Oswego this week will begin asking residents to voluntarily conserve water.

The unusual request comes amid sweltering June weather and lower-than-average stream flow along the Clackamas River.

But California this is not.

Officials are following protocols set back in 2008 and say no one needs to let their plants or grass die.

"It's voluntary," said Kari Duncan, who manages the city's water treatment plant. "We're hopeful we won't go into further curtailment."

This marks just the second time that Lake Oswego has implemented a voluntary, Stage 1, alert. The first alert, issued at least five years ago, was for mechanical reasons – not the weather.

Duncan said the Clackamas River's flow is now about 900 cubic feet per second, less than half the typical volume of 1,910. Lake Oswego takes its drinking water from the Clackamas River.

Lake Oswego will officially publicize the conservation request later this week. 

Pilot takes stunning aerial photos

Pilot turned Instagram star takes stunning aerial photos around the world
The Business Insider, June 26, 2015. By Jack Sommer

Pilot / Photographer:  Adam Senatori

Public housing a waste

But didn't we already know that?  
Remove private property from the property tax rolls.  Pay many times more per housing unit than necessary.  Concentrate poverty (even with mixed income housing).  With mixed income housing, expensive, government-subsidized housing units go to renters who do not need any benefits - a real crime.  Disrupt organic development of area.   Why do we do this?

Who benefits from public housing? 
~ Redevelopment agency staff ~ Housing agency staff ~ Building contractors and unions ~ Non-profit management services ~ Real estate professionals ~ Bond traders and other financial services ~ Consultants, architects, engineers, lawyers, accountants, other professional services ~ Developers who receive direct and indirect subsidies ~ Low-income NGO personnel that replicate services available locallyN~ Renters who are likely to stay in the units for decades, eschewing income opportunities that might disqualify them for aid

Who pays for it?  
The U.S. taxpayer ~ Local and state taxpayers ~ NGO contributors

Who gets kicked in the teeth?
The people who struggle to make ends meet, pay market rate for housing, and pay taxes to house others who live in housing better than they can afford.

Section-8 Alternative
Lower cost per family for rental unit -~ Ability to house more families due to lower per-unit costs ~ Low income population is dispersed and integrated with market-rate units ~ Choice of where renter wants to live, not restricted to government housing units ~ More popular with low-income clients ~ Safe surroundings; tenants screened for behavior and crime backgrounds ~ Low administration and costs since housing ownership and management is private ~ Property produces taxes for local governments ~ No maintenance for housing units, all taken care of by private owner ~ All personnel who work on the property are employed privately and not on public pension and benefit plans ~ No construction, neighborhood disruption, inflated or deflated land prices, consultants, political finagling, etc. ~ Taxpayer gets more bang for buck, pays for housing at minimum cost

Whenever you hear about public housing (government-supported low-income housing units), remember, it isn't a housing program, it's 1) am employment program, and 2) a social-engineering program.  Except for special needs populations, it should be against the law.  

Philadelphia to seize 1,330 Properties for Redevelopment
Forbes, June 26, 2015  By Scott Beyer
...
Another problem is that the plan, rather than adding to city coffers, as private developments do, will be a net loss to heavily-indebted Philadelphia (not to mention U.S. Taxpayers).  ... Phase I will include the construction of 57 affordable rental units for $21 million, or $368,000 per unit - an astounding cost for low-income housing.  In total, the plan will have 10 phases that include housing, retail, and a new Philadelphia Housing Agency headquarters.  This will cost $500 million and because much of the land is publically owned, will generate little property tax revenue.

...the worst thing about the plan is that it's being overseen by the very agency that blighted the area.  For decades, the Philadelphia Housing Authority, like so many other top-down urban development bureaucracies, has been notorious for waste, corruption, mismanagement, and for delivering poorly-run, substandard complexes that degrade their surrounds.

The "Afters" all look pretty much the same - spiffed up buildings, street trees, new paving and striping - this one lacks sidewalk cafes, but maybe they are in the after-the-after images.  Besides the fact that the (private?) buildings need money to fix up, can't the city put in the street trees and do some basic improvements  now?  Oh well.

 

How are the fish doing?

It's a scorcher out there!  101 degrees predicted for today, and it's only June.  

Have you seen the Clackamas River lately?  
It looks like August. Portland has had it's first brush fire and no fireworks or tiki torches allowed.   

This was January:
The Times, January 7, 2015 By Geoff Pursinger
Court sides with Water Watch in Clackamas River case

Under terms of the [Clackamas River water] permits, Lake Oswego is allowed to draw up to 59 cubic feet per second from the river.  The city currently draws 28 cubic feet per second.  Plans were made for the remaining 31 cubic feet per second to be shared with Tigard as part of the Lake Oswego Tigard Water Partnership.

Project Director Joel Komerak said Tuesday (January 5, 2025) that taps are expected to begin running Tigard-Lake Oswego water in summer 2016.

"We don't believe the decision from the Court [of Appeals] will impact the Lake Oswego-Tigard Water Partnership project or our planning for a sustainable responsible water supply," he said.

Under the law' cities and water districts have to leave enough water in the rivers or struggling and protected fish.  The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife indicated that struggling fish would need 650 cubic feet per second of river flow in summer and 800 cubic feet per second in fall for spawning salmon.

This is Today:
June 27, 2015.
USGS Water Resources: National Water Information System

Tables above:  Top is water flow at Oregon City, bottom is river at Estacada.

GWPF: Open Atmospheric Society

Check out this website from the UK:

The Global Warming Policy Foundation

Skeptics Set Up Scientific Society To Escape Journals That ‘Keep Out’ Dissenters

• Date: 20/06/15

Some scientists and meteorologists have banded together to create their own scientific organization so they can study, publish and engage in science debates they argue mainstream scientific bodies don’t want to have.

The Open Atmospheric Society was founded to “give you a voice where other societies may not.” The group is meant to be an alternative to traditional scientific societies that have members who are actively trying to shut out scientific debate, according to OAS founder Anthony Watts.

“In 2009, with the release of the Climategate e-mails we saw a disturbing revelation: a small clique of scientists were actively trying to keep out scientific papers that gave other viewpoints on climate,” Watts, a meteorologist who is skeptical of man-made global warming, told The Daily Caller News Foundation.

Indeed, one of the leaked Climategate emails between U.S. and UK scientists talked about how they would keep skeptics from publishing any papers. A 2004 email from University of East Anglia Climatologist Phil Jones told a fellow U.S. scientist that “I can’t see either of these papers being in the next IPCC report,” referring to two papers authored by skeptical scientists.

“Kevin and I will keep them out somehow – even if we have to redefine what the peer-review literature is!” Jones stated.

“That sort of gatekeeping and replication problem still exists today, with papers that don’t follow the political narrative on climate often being rejected,” Watts said.

- See more at: http://www.thegwpf.com/skeptics-set-up-scientific-society-to-escape-journals-that-keep-out-dissenters/#sthash.sfuQZobI.dpuf

Mother Earth and the Enlightenment

Apocalyptic fear, Buckner says, "transforms us into children, 

ready to obey the orders of the enlightened." 

Book Review:  The Fanatacism of the Apocalypse
eprints.lse.ac.uk  By Amelia Sharman June 13, 2013

The planet is sick and human beings have to pay.

The most recent in a series of books examining f ear and guilt, The Fanaticism of the Apocalypse is the newest publication f rom Pascal Bruckner, a French philosopher who rose to notice during the 1970s as part of the anti-Marxist ‘new philosophers’.

Offering a ‘take no prisoners’ attack on what he terms the “ecology of disaster” (p.184), Brucker argues that the dominant theme of contemporary environmentalist discourse has become that of an inescapable environmental catastrophe with a central aim to instill fear into the hearts of the masses. As the f ear of communism has collapsed, our new adversary is ourselves, as we become framed as the enemy of nature.

He argues that “ecologism has become a global ideology” that, in succeeding Marxism with a similar blend of “fatalism and activism” (p.18-19), requires us to believe in a coming apocalypse in a quasi-religious manner. This, ironically, echoes the climate sceptic trope of the ‘Church of Global Warming’, whereby scientists and others are said to ‘believe’ in the reality of climate change because it supports their paycheck, akin to evangelical preachers found with their hands in church funds. It is therefore no surprise that Bruckner’s thesis has been welcomed by sceptical organisations, and that he was the guest of the UK’s Global Warming Policy Foundation, delivering a presentation on his book in April 2013 at the House of Lords.  (See video link below)

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VIDEO: Global Warming Policy Foundation, April 29, 2013  

Pascal Bruckner - The Fanaticism of the Apocalypse: Save the Earth, Punish Human Beings

French philosopher Pascal Bruckner gives a GWPF talk at the House of Lords on his new book, 'The Fanaticism of the Apocalypse', introduced by Benny Peiser with concluding remarks from Nigel Lawson.

Short (34 min.) video of a talk by Pascal Bruckner - worth watching ! ! !

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Pascal Bruckner: Apocalyptic Daze

• Date: 16/04/12  (general summary of Bruckner's GWPF talk on video link above)

Secular elites prophesy a doomsday without redemption.

As an asteroid hurtles toward Earth, terrified citizens pour into the streets of Brussels to stare at the mammoth object growing before their eyes. Soon, it will pass harmlessly by—but first, a strange old man, Professor Philippulus, dressed in a white sheet and wearing a long beard, appears, beating a gong and crying: “This is a punishment; repent, for the world is ending!”

We smile at the silliness of this scene from the Tintin comic strip L’Étoile Mystérieuse, published in Belgium in 1941. Yet it is also familiar, since so many people in both Europe and the United States have recently convinced themselves that the End is nigh. This depressing conviction may seem surprising, given that the West continues to enjoy an unparalleled standard of living. But Professor Philippulus has nevertheless managed to achieve power in governments, the media, and high places generally. Constantly, he spreads fear: of progress, of science, of demographics, of global warming, of technology, of food. In five years or in ten years, temperatures will rise, Earth will be uninhabitable, natural disasters will multiply, the climate will bring us to war, and nuclear plants will explode. Man has committed the sin of pride; he has destroyed his habitat and ravaged the planet; he must atone. 

- See more at: http://www.thegwpf.com/pascal-bruckner-apocalyptic-daze/#sthash.OGWtrwu2.dpuf

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Weekly Standard, August 5, 2013  By Steven Hayward
Book Review:

Mere Ecologism?
Is modern environmentalism science or faith?

… But just as Bruckner came to understand that Marxism was a perversion of—or an obstacle to—achieving greater justice for the dispossessed, he regards “ecologism,” as he labels the dominant tendencies of environmental thought, as the virtual successor to Marxism, and believes it to be just as potentially degrading, if not tyrannical. 

He writes: “In the wrong hands, the best of causes can degenerate into an abomination”—which is exactly what Bruckner thinks has happened to environmentalism. 

Ecologism has become a global ideology that covers all of existence, modes of production as much as ways of life. In it are found all the faults of Marxism applied to the environment: the omnipresent scientism, the appalling visions of reality, the admonishment of those who are guilty of not understanding those who wish us well. All the foolishness of Bolshevism, Maoism, and Trotskyism are somehow reformulated exponentially in the name of saving the planet.

He notes that “Marxism designated capitalism as responsible for human misery. .  .  . With ecologism, we move up a notch: the guilty party is humanity itself.” The result is a domain of thought and action today that rewards vehemence over sensibility. This is not a new theme; the “watermelon” label—green on the outside, red on the inside—has been applied to environmentalists for a while. Likewise, Bruckner joins in seeing environmentalism as a secular religion. But Bruckner captures more of the depth and texture of these two aspects of environmentalism than do other critics.