30 DAYS, BUT WHO'S COUNTING?

Actually, a lot of people are counting the days until the 2014 Municipal Elections are over. But, like the 2010 will they really be over?  Or will a small group of people, who think they are entitled to run this town, set about, as they did in 2010 to unseat duly-elected councillors?

For certain people, the current election campaign started shortly after the 2010 election.  It was within days that Project 4-2-0 was created.  The was the code name given to the effort to turn the current four councillors who were elected by comfortable margins of people who were opposed to the giveaway of public beachfront lands to a high rise developer into zero councillors elected by comfortable margins of people who are now gratedul that the so-called Molinaro P3 scheme has been cancelled. We are fairly certain that Project 4-2-0 was hatched by Jim Thibert, Mayor-by-five-votes Doug Martin and others like Marina Butler.  

It started off with Compliance Audits, with Marina Butler requesting one on John Hill who roundly defeated the incumbent Bully Tim Whitfield who once called for the removal of Ann Marie Noyes from council. (Ann Marie Noyes came within five votes of winning the mayor's race and Tim was routed in a landslide.)

Then came a billboard on Garrison road, funded by an unidentified group that called the four councillors "liars."

Then came a brochure that was acknowledged by only one person (Kim Zanko, current candidate in Ward 3) and contained quotes by Marina Butler and others while inferring that the four councillors were "anti-development."

Then came Jim Thibert and his string of profane comments about the councillors and the town in general because the four dared to ask for accountability from the Economic Development and Tourism Corporation which he heads.  (This is the same "arm's length corporation" that used well over $20,000. of taxpayer money to sue me. Result: zero.)

The biggest attempt at the takeover was dreamed up by Jim Thibert along with Doug Martin. It was the lawsuit against the four councillors for Conflict of Interest. Ironically, the lawsuit was initiated by none other than the ousted former Ward 4 Councillor Tim Whitfield.  The lawsuit was put together in attorney Dave Hurren's office (he has acted as a lawyer for the EDTC) at the behest of Mayor Martin. Shortly after filing the lawsuit in April, 2013, Tim Whitfield admitted that he went on a golfing trip to Pennsylvania with fired solicitor (and the basis for the lawsuit) Heather Salter's husband.

Jim Thibert even threatened a lawsuit back in January of 2013 in a newspaper article.

Last year, Lubberts along with councillors Bob Steckley, John Hill and Paul Collard voted in favour of terminating the municipality’s director of legal services, Heather Salter.

The decision was made in closed session, so the severance package that was given to her is not known by the public.

He used that situation as an example, saying that if this matter gets to the point where it heads to a courtroom, he will be prepared.

“If they thought it cost a lot of money to get rid of the town’s lawyer for no reason, then bring it on,” said Thibert.

“Bring it on,” he repeated.

Even Rick Shular, in his cross-examination during the preliminaries to the lawsuit revealed that Jim Thibert urged him to go to Hurren's office to give an affidavit in the case.

Jim Thibert even brought a separate Conflict of Interest suit against Don Lubberts over what some call a bonusing attempt by Thibert to get the town to buy some industrial property to sweeten the deal for the sale of the racetrack lands which were ultimately bought in their entirety by Carl Palladino and associates.

So, now we have Marina Butler and Kim Zanko running for local office. Both were willing participants in the effort to destroy the reputations of duly-elected councillors. Marina Butler is listed as one of the contributors to the lawsuit against the four and she is now running in Ward 4 against John Hill. 

Getting the picture? I thought so. Stay tuned, there's a lot more.

OH STEPHEN, YOU'RE SO CARELESS WITH THE TRUTH

Looks like Passero will soon need a lifeguard as his campaign is drowning in the foul waters of the aged Kinsmen Pool.

His latest gambit makes him look like an elephant in a synchronized swimming event. So clumsy. Withholding important documents from the members of the Underwater Recovery Unit is so unprofessional and the possible culprit in this could be hizzoner wannabe Passero.  The members have been waiting for the lease agreement that appears to have been negotiated with the help of Passero (cough-cough conflict anyone?) but were nowhere to be seen although they were released by the town to the URU weeks ago. So who had them hidden away along with their Monopoly money?  Could it be VP Donna Wood who has her sights set on the presidency of the URU? Could it be Shawn Willick, Passero's campaign manager and member of the URU? Or could it be Eddie Haskell himself? Never mind that a study completed a couple of years ago advised that the pool is beyond repair and money would be better spent on a whole new facility.

Here's a couple of good ones, taken from Passero's latest campaign literature:

"As councillor and past Shorewalk President, (he) delivered results to reclaim and improve waterfront road allowances - (he) will continue to fight for increased shoreline access."

Except, he favoured the giving away of the Bay Beach Properties' shoreline property to a high rise developer.  

Oh, and he voted against $50,000. for improvements to encroachments on Rose, Beachview and Pierce Roads in Waverly Beach. Oops. So much for improving waterfront road allowances.

Not just that, he's claiming that he will "create the reserves we need" in the town budget. Spoiler Alert: it's already been done by this council under former town treasurer Helen Chamberlain. 

Nice try, Stephen, but you're not even close to the truth.  

Like how you photo-bombed the race track announcement the other day. We know you had nothing to do with it but you are hoping to be the heir apparent to the throne currently headed by Mayor-by-five-votes Doug Martin. Jimmy Thibert would like that too.  He will get to keep his job and continue to pull the levers from behind the curtain where he has resided for several years.  It has only been through the efforts of the four councillors that he has been forced to be accountable to the people.

Does anyone believe Stephen Passero? They certainly shouldn't.  He says he has a thriving business but we can't find it; his wife works for the DSBN but he never declares a conflict; he will be involved in the disbursement of grant funding if the URU is successful at taking over the Kinsmen Pool.

He had better jump into that blighted pool because now his pants are on fire.

HAS DAVE HURREN GONE TOO FAR?

A sure sign of desperation has emerged in the ongoing effort to destroy the reputations of four duly-elected Fort Erie Councillors.

The rumoured "Project 4-2-0," apparently started shortly after incumbent Bob Steckley, John Hill, Don Lubberts and Paul Collard were elected to council in 2010 in Wards 3, 4, 5, and 6 respectively.
The ultimate insult in a long line of insults to the democratic process was a conflict of interest lawsuit against the four filed by former Ward 4 Councillor Tim Whitfield who was roundly beaten by John Hill in 2010.

Whitfield had been persuaded to file the suit by mayor-by-five-votes Doug Martin who has lost much of his power since the new council was elected. Whitfield met with Martin at Dave Hurren's law office in early April 2013.  Hurren also does legal work for the Fort Erie Economic Development and Tourism Corporation whose general manager, Jim Thibert has had a difficult relationship with the four because they have dared to expect him to be accountable to the taxpayers for the over half a million dollars that the EDTC receives from the town each year.

The case has stumbled its way through the court system, according to a plan by a very small, select group of local business people, including Marina Butler, a candidate now running against John Hill, who are funding the conflict of interest lawsuit following the termination of the town solicitor. The solicitor, in an attempt to receive a larger settlement threatened further lawsuits for unproven harassment by the councillors. It appears that she violated the terms of the agreement by revealing details of her settlement to a Martin-friendly local reporter who is now laughably running for mayor.

So, now it appears that Dave Hurren has defied court protocol in releasing certain court documents to Greg Bonito who runs a local blog that was created to destroy the reputations of the four councillors. Hurren has reportedly also attempted to enter sealed court documents into Don Lubberts' cross examination testimony.

If it is proven that Hurren, as an officer of the court and fully aware of protocol and procedure, went outside his duties and released information inappropriately, there could be serious consequences for him.

It's just another example of the lengths that some people will go to to thwart the democratic process and the voters' decisions.  The effort has been funded and encouraged by a very small minority, some of whom are now seeking office while others are chafing at the change in the power structure on council.

Make the connection, it's all right in front of you. Do you want your town run by the kind of people who subvert the democratic process for their own ends?  Remember that, were it not for a "mix-up" at a polling station in Fort Erie, there may have been a different person wearing the mayor's chain of office. Instead, a mayor-by-five-votes persuades a losing candidate to file a lawsuit funded by a few "friends of Doug;" handled by the lawyer for the EDTC, who gives unreleased court documents to Greg Bonito, the court jester/troll/blogger. 

WHAT ME WORRY?

ATTENTION:  Certain blog posts containing scans of court documents have been removed from this blog as per a decision by the court reporter. This would not have been an issue if not for the actions of another blog in publishing confidential material.  This is ongoing.  

Now back to the regular rant:

One of this blog's regular contributors, Corruption Fighter said the following:

"Not to down play the serious threat this letter presents to 1 of the few people here with the guts to speak out , Sharon Bowers"

I feel that I have to set the record straight. I am not brave, nor do I really want the attention.  If anything, I want to live in quiet and peace. I am a writer,  no longer a political activist. Or so I thought.

I became involved in community organizations in my adopted home town, hoping that Crystal Beach would make a come-back from near death after the amusement park closed.  The arrival of the prestigious C.A.U.S.E. group to study Crystal Beach gave many of us great hope for its future.  The recommendations of the group became a blueprint for those working to bring the village back from blight and abandonment.  That was in 1996.

In 2001, the town purchased the Bay Beach Properties from the Rebstock Family, a recommendation of the C.A.U.S.E. study. Many of us were elated that a large piece of waterfront property and parking lots would belong to the public.

Within a year, came the staff suggestion that the north section, which included the parking lots, be sold off to help finance a portion of the Friendship Trail.  That's when I started The Strand. I wanted to inform people of the potential loss of a valuable part of the public property. The CAUSE recommendations did include the purchase of the Bay Beach Properties, but it recommended that the north section be sold off only to enable the purchase of more waterfront property in Crystal Beach. As someone who had participated in the study and practically memorized it, I was concerned that the town would sell the property and we would gain nothing for it.  

So, we worked to stop the selling off of the north properties. A petition went nowhere but the 2003 election brought the issue to the fore and a new councillor was elected on the promise that he would not let the property be sold.  And it wasn't.  The award-winning 2005 Crystal Beach Neighbourhood Plan was accepted by council and it contained clauses about the maximum building height and the retention of the north side of the Bay Beach Properties. We all took a collective sigh of relief and I went on with my life, putting the Strand and blog away for a while, 

In 2006, Doug Martin was elected mayor and some new faces appeared at council.  Didn't pay much attention until Rino Mostacci, the town planner at the time, offered the suggestion that the south (lakefront) side of the Bay Beach Properties be offered up for a Public Private Partnership (P3) in order to take advantage of amenities offered in such a scheme.  Not only are P3s expensive to the communities where they have been used, the chosen developer wanted to put two 12 story high rises on the public property in front of the public beach.

And now you know why I came out of semi-retirement and went full bore against Mostacci and everyone who supported the project. Many others took up the fight, right to the point where they realized that there needed to be a change at council because the then council ignored the petitions, pleas and delegations that came before it.  Thus, in 2010 the voters selected four councillors who were not in lock step with the town planner, the mayor and even the former Ward 5 councillor who betrayed the people's trust with lies and self-interest.

The four brave councillors have weathered numerous attacks, lawsuits and a slanted local press. 

Why is that?  I think we know.  

There is a lot at stake in this election. It boils down to the average taxpayer vs. the "establishment" which has been running this town for decades through puppet candidates and nepotism.

The record is available to peruse on the town's website. What was accomplished in the last four years. It is impressive, especially the lowest tax increase in almost a decade.  That's what the voters should be concerned with: their taxes and the services they pay for through their taxes.  

It's not about one blog vs. another.  

LESLEY UNCHAINED

For anyone who might be interested, Lesley North has thrown down the gauntlet and sent me a registered letter.  I will now post the unedited letter with translation and response:

I received the letter on Friday, September 19, 2014.  It was posted on the 17th of September.

Translation:  I would guess that "dissembling your live" in Lesley's lexicon means that she is planning on ruining my life, although I could be wrong. I can only assume that her response to me on Facebook was sent to the phony account set up in my name by one of Lesley's friends as I do not recall ever receiving it. I don't know about you, dear reader, but what Lesley has stated in writing and signed is a threat against me.  Since her friends have already called the police on me a half a dozen times for no good reason and she stated on line that I was "under police investigation" when I wasn't, I can only guess what she and her friends have in store for me. 

As to an apology, I can only say that the statements I made were common knowledge and reported to me by numerous sources, therefore I can only apologize for being misinformed and then publishing those erroneous facts.  If this caused Ms. North any angst, I can empathize because there have been many instances where I was smeared and lied about in blogs and on Facebook by members of the group Ms. North associates with.  The blog that often publishes such slander does not have the fortitude to identify any of the writers, chosing instead to adopt pseudonyms.  I have also heard that Ms. North is a regular contributor to that blog but I cannot verify it except to say that grammar and spelling errors are consistent both here and in certain posts on that other blog.

As a former business owner myself, I understand how difficult it is to make a living that way. I would never disparage someone else's business, especially one who enjoys such a sterling reputation as Ms. North.  I did however remark in a post that a couple of Saturdays ago at around 3:00 p.m. Jarvis Street was deserted. So sorry about that really. I remember Jarvis Street as a busy place on Saturday afternoons.

I was not shocked nor surprised about Ms. North's letter, only concerned about her tone. Yes, I was sued successfully for slander by Jim Thibert using taxpayer money alloted to the EDTC to bring in new business and tourism to Fort Erie. This is the man who has gone on record in council meetings comparing the town to a prostitute and just recently called duly elected councillors "dweebs" because they dared to discuss a report prepared by the CAO and the town solicitor regarding the MOU between the town and the EDTC.  "Dweebs" is actually a very mild term given Thibert's propensity for the profane.  I will continue to be a thorn in the side of those who abuse their power.  Ms. North has become involved with some very questionable characters, especially Royal Greer who has quite a reputation for harassment and stalking. Greer's neighbours and some of his victims have been getting together to compare notes.  I went by his house to get his license plate and address information because there may be legal action taken, not by me, but by others who have been harassed by him. 



"QUIT BASHING THE EDTC," HIZZONER SEZ

It must be really bothering Doug Martin that he is now a real Lame Duck - not just on paper like most of the other councillors.  He had to hang it up because he knew that his five vote margin in the 2010 municipal elections would not hold up under tighter scrutiny and more competition.

Still, that didn't stop him from declaring that a discussion about a report on the Memo of Understanding that the town had with the Economic Development and Tourism Corporation was "bashing" the corporation - feudal kingdom ruled by Jim Thibert.  That report was requested a couple of months ago by Ward 6 Councillor Paul Collard and was expected in August. Unfortunately, it was delayed and just became available, now in the so-called "lame duck" period of council where council is limited in what it can do. Council can still discuss a report; it just can't enact any sweeping changes as a result of the report. It cannot terminate an employee of the town nor can it enter into an agreement to disburse property over $50,000. in value. It was entirely out of line for the Lame Duck Mayor to call out councillors for merely asking for clarification of certain aspects of the report, including the rather damning observation that the 1994 MOU had been greatly watered down in a 2007 rewording of the agreement. (cough-cough: Martin and his privy council of sycophants let that one go through)

Meanwhile, the palace blog has re-entered the fray with an "anonymous" letter purporting to be the authority on the Conflict of Issue lawsuit currently stalled (another cough-cough) in the court system (according to the plan hatched shortly after the 2010 municipal elections dubbed Project 4-2-0.)  In that letter comes the startling admission that Mayor Martin, Stephen Passero and Rick Shular violated the confidentiality of closed sessions in order to give former, beaten by a landslide, councillor Tim Whitfield the ammunition needed to proceed with the lawsuit that he admitted later under oath was suggested by Mayor Martin. Here it is:

"Mayor Doug Martin, Councillor Stephen Passero and Councillor Rick Shular provided resident/ratepayer Whitfield with sworn affidavits accounting for the details of a variety and number of closed session meetings and issues.

Those affidavits are now part of the court record."

In his cross examination, Whitfield admitted that he had no interest in anything to do with local politics after his crushing defeat by John Hill in Ward 4. He also admitted that he was approached by Doug Martin about a "legal matter" and was invited to a meeting at the office of Dave Hurren, the lawyer who is on record as the representative of Whitfield as well as others.

So who's bashing whom?  Sounds like Mayor Martin and others are not only "bashing" certain duly-elected council members, but he and his buddies are trying to assassinate the councillors' reputations.

Just in time for the election.  Get ready folks, it will get worse.  There is a lot at stake. Do the people of Fort Erie want to go back to the way it was before the people elected four members of council who did not follow the old boys' script? The last four years have seen many improvements and changes in Fort Erie, yet all the local, highly compromised press can report on is the COI cases and the Kinsmen Pool.  BTW, the reports were true. The Underwater Recovery Unit had not received the lease agreement. According to Eddie Haskell (a.k.a. Stephen Passero) at council last night, er-ah, they were to receive an amended version today and have a meeting about it on Wednesday night. So, the saga continues.  Passero is counting on pulling this off as he has pretty much screwed up everything else he's touched.  How's that cake baking business going, Steve? Where is it? Why hasn't it been inspected by the health department in over three years?  Is it still registered? Inquiring minds (and voters) want to know. It has already been established that you Steve have no problem breaking the confidentiality of closed door sessions and being careless with the truth, so 'fess up. 

The disrespectful gang that disrupts meetings was there in force last night behaving like teens at a high school assembly. And Kim Zanko made a cameo appearance.  I still recall overhearing her say at a council meeting four years ago when she ran unsuccessfully for Ward 3 councillor: "Since I'm running for council, I thought I should find out what goes on at council meetings." Yep. She's one of the "chosen candidates" from the Old Boys Network, ready to fall into line with their directives.

Please read the actual transcripts of the cross-examinations of Martin, Shular, Whitfield and Passero contained in part here in other posts on this blog.  I will be providing more pages very soon.

Speaking of Conflict of Interest:  what do you call it when a council member sits on a committee, making decisions and having discussions regarding the local school situation while his wife works in a school in Fort Erie?  

DECISIONS, DECISIONS, DECISIONS

A trio of recent decisions has vindicated certain elected representatives.  Two have been decided in the favour of the accused while a third has upheld an earlier decision.

First, The Mayor of Richmond Hill was cleared of a conflict of interest accusation leveled at him by a political rival.

Mayor Dave Barrow announced his court victory at a Chamber of Commerce luncheon:

“Today’s court decision confirms what the facts have always shown, that there was clearly no conflict of interest and no basis to substantiate that claim,” he told The Liberal, later. "Unfortunately, this ill-considered and unwarranted action’s only purpose was to attempt to discredit my reputation among residents while diverting attention away from the issues of importance." 

Now does this sound familiar? A political rival, by bringing conflict of interest charges against an elected official, hoped to cast the mayor's integrity in doubt.  The judge saw right through the attempt and completely vindicated the mayor.  Meanwhile, the man who brought forth the lawsuit,
Sridhar Methuku, who put his name on the ballot in early February, withdrew from the race this morning, in advance of a judicial decision expected later today, and just hours before the final close of nominations according to an article in a local newspaper.

Closer to home, regional councillors Andy Petrowski and Selena Volpatti were also cleared of conflict of interest charges brought to the integrity commissioner of the region.  Again, the charges were brought against Petrowski by a defeated political rival. 

In his statement, Petrowski, who has ruffled quite a few feathers at regional council said:


“I’m pleased the integrity commissioner did the right thing and dismissed it,” he said. “Unfortunately, it’s another example of the same old political gang using taxpayer money to go after people who don’t agree with them. Obviously, over the last four years I’ve said and done things they don’t agree with, so they resort to integrity commissioners to go after me."

With that in mind, we now turn to Fort Erie and the on-going dust-up over the firing of the town solicitor.  Lesley North is unable to let it go and continued her quest to have all the documents surrounding the firing made public so that she could presumably prove conflict of interest on the part of four councillors who are currently charged with conflict of interest in Superior Court by former councillor Tim Whitfield (at the behest of Mayor Doug Martin and EDTC GM Jim Thibert according to the cross-examinations of Councillor Rick Shular, Stephen Passero and even Tim Whitfield himself.) Like the cases against the mayor of Richmond Hill and the two regional councillors, this lawsuit is just a vicious attempt to discredit the four who are running in the current municipal elections.  

Well, the Freedom of Information adjudicator has thrown out an appeal filed by Ms. North.  Those documents that are currently confidential shall remain confidential.  Sorry, Lesley.  Best you get back to saving the Kinsmen Pool with your good buddy Stephen Passero (Bwah!)  At least it is a productive use of your time and, judging from the atmosphere on Jarvis Street on Saturday afternoon, you must have a lot of time on your hands.  Deserted and ignored, Jarvis Street is a far cry from its previous glory days.  Whose fault is that?  Certainly not the current council as the decline has been going on for years and it seems nearly complete as far as business and tourism go. Even the Fry Truck was lonely looking.

IT'S TIME FOR A FORENSIC AUDIT

Remember this?


Fort Erie council has approved a last-minute decision to give $500,000 to ensure the Fort Erie Race Track has a racing season this year. The decision was made with a 6-1 vote in favour of assisting the track Monday night following a closed session meeting.
The money will be taken from the Town's reserve fund and used for the track's lease payment which was due at midnight.


That was done on March 31 and reported in local media on April 1, 2014.  No, it was not an April Fool's Day joke. It was presented as an emergency request so the track could pay its rent for the season.  And council voted to give the money to the track.

Flash Forward to Monday, September 8, 2014 and we now learn, during a regular council meeting, that the money had not been turned over to the race track on April 1. Instead, it will go to the track now for "operating expenses."  So, what happened to the emergency?  Doug Martin explained it away by saying that the province's $7.5 million taxpayer investment in the track came through at 2:58 p.m. the next day, just two minutes ahead of the lease deadline. Does anyone really believe that?  Certain members of council didn't but they voted to accept the revised by-law anyway. 

This is just another reason that a full forensic audit of the Economic Development and Tourism Corporation be done as well as a forensic audit on the town itself. And hey, throw in the Live Racing Consortium for good measure.

Look at what a forensic audit in Brampton revealed about its mayor, Susan Fennell.  The fourteen year mayor, who is running for re-election racked up $172.608 in inappropriate charges to the taxpayers and council voted to send the audit results to the police.  It all started with a FOI request by the Brampton Guardian. By November, 2013, council voted 8-0 for the forensic audit.  Ann Marie Noyes has been fighting to get the financial information about the EDTC for a couple of years now and her request has been bogged down in red tape and stall tactics.  Which would lead any thinking person to surmise that the EDTC has something to hide.

It would seem that whomever is running for council or mayor would want to make sure that the hard-working taxpayers are not giving money to an entity that is careless with the truth.

OTHER NEWS:

The Stephen Passero Blind Ambition Tour drew about 100 people to the Centennial Library on Tuesday night.  The event co-starred one of the Miller offspring, the family that had helped support the lawsuit against the four councilors. Apparently the Millers matched their campaign donation to Doug Martin with a $1000. donation to the Kinsmen Pool effort. 

Passero went on to "promise" that the Kinsmen Pool would be re-opened by June, 2015.  This is based on his belief that the Underwater Recovery Unit would sign on to take over management of the doomed pool and refurbish it through grants that only a non-profit group is eligible for.  Funny thing, there were four members of the UR in attendance. None spoke about the lease or the situation.  Which leads one to wonder if the UR has even received the lease that was reportedly sent to them from the town. Was the pool even discussed at the UR meeting held on Wednesday evening?  We think not or there would have been some kind of announcement. Sounds like the deal is dead in the green water of the Kinsmen Pool.

Sure, everyone wants a public pool where kids can learn to swim in a safe, clean environment.  Fact is the Kinsmen Pool is beyond repair.  Even if the taxpayers invest the recommended $180,000. plus to refurbish the pool, it would only add a couple of years to its dying life.  Waste of money, many think.  A proper new pool should be built and that will cost in excess of $2 million.  Some act as though the decline of the Kinsmen Pool happened overnight (about the time the new council came into office in 2010) but that is far from true.  The pool was badly neglected for years and its usage has declined sharply over the years.  Kids are learning to swim elsewhere.  Lesley North worries about kids swimming in the river at the foot of Jarvis Street.  Kids have been swimming in the river at the foot of Jarvis Street and lots of other places for decades, even when the Kinsmen Pool was open. Fortunately, there were no mishaps for such swimmers reported this summer.

Lies, Lies and More Damned Lies:
James Culic lies. And he did it in black and white: HERE.

Of course, the pool was closed for a reasons – it’s old and falling apart – but that’s where the Fort Erie Underwater Recovery Unit (FEURU) comes into play. The town has already drafted up a lease agreement, and is in the process of transferring ownership of the pool from the municipality to the FEURU


The town is nowhere near any kind of agreement with the FEURU and probably never will. Culic has his head so far up Stephen Passero's ass that he didn't even bother to ask any member of the FEURU about the status of the pool situation.  If he had, he would have found out that the FEURU has not yet received the lease proposal, nor was the matter discussed or voted on in their meeting on Wednesday night.  Passero is promising a June 2015 reopening.  Based on what? Nothing but his blind ambition.

So, the Stephen Passero Blind Ambition Tour goes on with absolutely nothing accomplished at his first appearance. I see that he didn't photo-bomb the Shorewalk photo in The Times.  After he just about ruined that group, he has been forced to step away while the original founders try to rescue their credibility.

Richard Berry has wisely left the campaign for mayor.  Too bad that his health does not allow him to be able to campaign. Berry knows where "the bodies are buried" and he has tried to warn people of the corruption and scams in town. Some of us know he's right and appreciate his dedication and hard work to bring honesty to our local government.

PASSERO TAKES SELF-PROMOTION TO A WHOLE NEW LEVEL

Leave it to Fort Erie's own Eddie Haskell to promote and host a public information meeting about the Kinsmen Pool during an election. Especially when there is no real news coming forward about the now-closed pool.  To many, this is merely a campaign stunt, using a town facility to advance his mayoral hopes while leading people to believe that major advances have taken place in the fight to reopen the forty-five year old open air pool in Fort Erie.

The truth is that the Underwater Recovery Unit that Passero claims is still in negotiations with the town to take over running the pool is far, far away from reaching any kind of agreement. Of course to Passero, who knows all, this is already an almost done deal and he goes on to expound on the advantages of the pool being run by a not-for-profit organization in a recent article in the Fort Erie Times.

He's already hoping to have the pool open by next summer. In his dreams.  He forgets that in October, 2011:

A feasibility report presented to council Monday night had most agreeing none of the five options available to rebuild or renovate the historic aquatic facility are anything the town can afford.
To build a new facility would cost about $2.5 million, and to keep it open for the 2012 season, the town would have to set aside at least $180,000 to fix safety problems.

Later in the article, Stephen Passero

"asked staff to prepare a report explaining the budgetary impact should the town pitch in $1.5 million, leaving his fundraising committee to find the additional $1 million through grants, community sponsorships and fundraising."

Even Ward 2 Councillor Rick Shular concluded that it was too expensive and suggested a splash pad with a revisit to the pool issue in three to five years. Council finally voted to no open the pool for the 2012 season and it has been closed ever since.

And, leave it to Passero to link the restoration of a National Historic Landmark (The Point Abino Light House) with the refurbishment of the Kinsmen Pool.

Passero was disappointed in 2012 “when the majority of council decided not to replenish the facilities reserve fund that was used to restore the lighthouse.”

Back during budget deliberations in early 2012, Passero demanded that council put $378,000 in the facilities reserve fund for the pool for 2013.  The earlier feasibility study prompted council to close the pool for the 2012 season as it could not afford the $180,000 needed to fix necessary safety problems.  Council was already facing a possible 9% tax increase.

Add that to the statistics slowing a sharp decline in pool use over the past several years and the high cost of refurbishing the pool becomes even more problematic.

Note that Passero has donned a light blue shirt for his photo op, apparently eschewing his signature white shirt and black tie for less vampirish garb. His not-so-secret campaign manager is working hard to get Passero to look user friendly.  It's hard to disguise such raw desire for power; certainly a blue shirt won't do it.

And certainly a campaign stop, disguised as an informational meeting about a troubled public pool won't do it either.  Besides, isn't that against campaign rules? 

See for yourself by attending the meeting on Tuesday, September 9 at 7:00 p.m.at the Centennial Branch of the Fort Erie Library. 

KUDOS TO ART VANDALAY

A reader sent in his version of a Limerick.  It deserves to be reprinted here:

Alas'

If not for The Jimmy there would of course be no ninja
For it was from his lips came the leaks to this frinja

Passed from the mouth of his pal majesty Martin
Now as a group we find them a partin.

To the center of it all comes one Sensi aka Leach
You'll now find him a squirming with the toads on the beach

As it all falls to pieces for this group of horse asses
We'll not shed a tear as this nasty bunch passes

From billboards to websites they spewed hateful phrase
Rejoice at the end of our towns darkest phase

Here's to October and the election of four
With hopes that it means we'll see even MORE

Yes, we are witnessing the end of a very dark and nasty time in our town's history.  Total elimination of this curse will end soon, but not soon enough for those of us who have been taunted, stalked and harassed by the ever-decreasing group of domestic terrorists. 

There I said it.  What kind of decent citizens erects a billboard calling four councillors liars?  What kind of community-minded people put a flyer in every mailbox in Fort Erie full of untruths and innuendo? What kind of decent people follow senior citizens about; drive down their streets; vandalize their car; crash a private meeting and then tell lies about what happened at that meeting?  And, in this electronic age, they go on Facebook and blogs and tell lies and try to destroy the reputations of their perceived "enemies" in order to curry favour with corrupt officials. 

Peter Koutroulakis put his family's restaurant in jeopardy to spew his nonsense on Facebook. He gathered a small group of hangers-on who shared his warped view of issues. They include Lesley North who used to work at a local pawn shop but now has a business on the once thriving - now a testament to urban blight - main street of downtown Fort Erie.  Rather than put her energies to revitalizing and promoting the business area, she has become consumed with the four councillors and myself, none of us who pose any threat to her livlihood or business. She has made numerous appearances at town hall just to trash the four councillors.  Her presentations are cringe-worthy to say the least.  "What is she on?" is a question on the minds of many who witness her diatribes. Like the two lost souls that they are, neither Peter or Lesley has given up on the constant barage of negativity towards the four councillors.  Meanwhile they have been dropped by their former, well-placed supporters, so now they wallow in the slime they created on the internet.

As the pages of the cross-examinations of the co-conspirators have been posted on this blog and they have no rebuttal, they have resorted to their high school tactics and sent their ace photographer, a local pest, to play paparazzi and stalk Donnie Lubberts and myself among others. That pest's name is Royal Greer and he has a long history of harassment. 

So, folks, here are Fort Erie's domestic terrorists.  Yes, they are even roundly anti-American to boot, especially those Americans who own summer homes and pay taxes.  Doesn't matter to these people: they think that taxpayers who are not citizens have no right to express an opinion or oppose a high rise supported by a town planner who didn't even live in town. Rino Mostacci has never paid property taxes to the Town of Fort Erie but he bragged that he wanted to see a line of high rises all down the shore of Bay Beach. Off he went shortly after the 2010 election to Markham to see what grandiose plans he could foist on the people of that community.  Apparently they were not impressed and Rino is back working for the region.

So, Art's poem is bang-on. One of their midst has already flown the coop and settled down in Crystal Beach.  Hope he comes to realize what a great place it is and why the people do not want a high rise on their public beachfront.

And that is why we were celebrating this weekend. End of Summer - yeah.  End of what one FOCB member stated was "a pimple on the landscape" is another reason to celebrate.