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Here’s The Scoop … The Town Manager Sends Her Own Letter To FL. AG McCollum …

April 8, 2010 by Barbara

A NEED TO “COVER” HERSELF?….

Dear Readers … Town Manager Esther Colon must have been “irked” that Town Attorney Susan Trevarthern used the word “fired” in her letter to Fl. Attorney General Bill McCollum on March 31, 2010…when asking his opinion on the use of the Law Enforcement Trust Fund (LETF) funds…(prev. post)… So in her infinite wisdom …and her style of prioritization of Town staff time …TM Colon sent her own letter to the Fl. AG yesterday…

THE LETTER….

“April 7, 2010

Attorney General Bill McCollum

Florida Department of Legal Affairs

The Capitol PL01

Tallahasse, Florida 32399-1050

RE; Clarification of March 31, 2010 letter sent to Attorney General Bill McCollum by Town Attorney Susan Trevarthen

Dear General McCollum,

I would like to clarify the second sentence in paragraph three of the first page of the above letter. The previous chief was not fired by the Town Manager. Below is the verbatim request I made to Sheriff Alfred Lamberti on June 26, 2009.

“Pursuant to Article XV, Section 15.3 of the police services contract, I am requesting that Chief Scott Gooding be “transferred” out of the Town-of Layderdale-By-The Sea, District 13.” (See attached).

Public safety is my prime concern not only to the employees, citizens and visitors of our Town, but also the welfare and human respect of the detainee. Attached are photos of before and after holding cell.

Please contact me if you should have any questions concerning this inquiry.

Thank you for your assistance in this matter.

Very truly yours,

Esther Colon, Town Manager

cc Mayor and Town Commission

Susan L. Trevarthern, Town Attorney”

BC-The first issue of importance for Colon was the word “fire” rather than “transfer”…and the second was her stance as a protector of the welfare and human respect for detainees …and her insinuation that the BSO was negligent in both by including that and photos of the chair and “shackle” used prior to the new holding cell purchased with the LETF funds in question….

There are some real “red flags” that come with this unilateral action taken by the Town Manager …and they must be addressed by the Commission, the Town Attorney and the BSO …

The Town Manager, in this writer’s opinion should have sent any “clarification” to the Town Attorney to send to AG McCollum… It seem that would be the normal course of action, rather than to usurp the Town Attorney in the way she has with this letter…

The Town Manager conveniently leaves out some important points in her letter to AG McCollum…While she includes a copy (or is it? It states at the bottom “faxed and confirmed receipt (Marta) to Sheriff Lamberti Original sent via US Mail”)…) of a letter to Sheriff Lamberti dated June 26, 2010 stating…

“Dear Sheriff Lamberti:

Pursuant to Article XV, Section 15.3 of the police services contract, I am requesting that Chief Scott Gooding be transferred out of the Town -of-Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, District 13.”

Sincerely, Esther Colon Town Manager”

BC-Also included to the AG was that Article XV, Section 15.3…with an arrow pointing to it…….and what she conveniently left out …

“15.3 In the event the Town Manager becomes dissatisfied with the performance of District Commander/ Chief, the Town Manager shall provide notification to BSO. Thereafter, representatives of BSO and the Town Manager shall meet to discuss possible remedies of the problems experienced by the Town Manager. BSO agrees to act in good faith in resolving any problems experienced by the Town Manager. The Town Manager may remove the District Commander/Chief at any time without cause.”

BC- What was conveniently left out were the facts brought to light by the BSO Colonel who came to speak at the June 30, 2009 Special Meeting on behalf or the BSO and Chief Gooding …He brought to light that the Town Manager did not fulfill the contract’s provision after that notification on June 26, 2009….. TM Colon did not follow through with….”Thereafter, representatives of BSO and the Town Manager shall meet to discuss possible remedies of the problems experienced by the Town Manager.”….The same Colonel stood at the podium and told the overflowing crowd in Jarvis Hall about the longtime close relationship this Town Manager had with Chief Gooding as he held up two fingers together to demonstrate …This Colonel told the crowd and  the Commissioners not privy to the Town Manager’s actions how the BSO informed the Town Manager of the unsuitability of the motel for their uses before it was purchased and the BSO’s  desire to remain where they were … He went on to state the Town Manager informed the BSO the Commission wanted them to move (they did not)…and the Colonel spoke in detail of the long process of the Town Manager /BSO meetings to spend well over a half million dollars for renovating the BSO portion of the building using LETF funds and Town funds…He spoke of the Town Manager’s encouraging the BSO to go forward on architectural drawings even after the BSO said it was beyond their scope to do so… Town Manager Colon it is said, guaranteed them often not be concerned about any excess funding..stating the Town had it and it was not a problem……The Colonel finished his time at the podium by calling it like it was …The Town Manager had sullied the career of a fine officer with this action….The Town Manager did find “cause” in her dismissal of Chief Gooding and let it be known in a press release made through the Town PIO D’Oliveira…It was for “being fiscally irresponsible”…That trumped up “cause” didn’t pass the smell test on any level!…

The Town Manager did not choose to include in her letter to the AG, the background of when the Town Manager called the Chief into her office to inform him that the Commission did not want to spend the money on the renovations …When called on it by the Chief, we are told, the Town Manager insisted she had spoken to the Commission… (This was never brought before the Commission as a whole prior to this meeting in her office ….and “polling” the Commission is not allowed…So her statement, if made, was false!)… Chief Gooding came to the June 23, 2009 Regular Commission meeting where this was addressed the situation after the meeting with the Manager under Old Business c. and spoke of his concerns…He stood up for the department but offered to work with the Town…At that Commission meeting the Town Manager countered those alleged statements made of the Commission not wanting to move forward with the expense when she said this  (contained in the minutes”)… Manager Colon said the BSO improvements cost over $420,000 She added that current funds available were $284,000. Manager Colon felt it was irresponsible for her to go ahead in this economic climate and make the improvements when the improvements that were already made met the needs of the Fire Department Police Department and Emergency Medical Services.”…. Also conveniently left out was the following (also in the 6/23/09 minutes) “Mayor Minnet wanted clarification that the $284,000 had to be used for training. Manager Colon stated that it had to be used for non-recurring operating expenses of the police department such as surveillance cameras, ATV’s and bicycles. She explained further that most of the equipment that the police department received came out of the Law Enforcement Trust Fund and became Town property.”…There is no statement on LETF funds being a non-recurring operating expense in the Town Purchasing Manual…and a look into prior Town uses of LETF funds should be done…. especially now that the Fl. AG is involved….

June 23 Regular Commission Meeting  and video links below…

http://www.lauderdalebythesea-fl.gov/town/arc-meetings-2009.htm

http://lbts.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=2&clip_id=238

June 30, 2009 Scott Gooding Special Meeting minutes and video links below…

http://www.lauderdalebythesea-fl.gov/town/spc-meetings-09.htm

http://lbts.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=2&clip_id=239

In the letter the Town Manager made a statement “Public Safety is my prime concern not only to the employees, citizens and visitors of our Town, but also the welfare and human respect of a detainee. Attached are photos of the before and after holding cell.”…This writer sent a Public Records Request into the LBTS-BSO Police Chief to address this statement…

THE PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST ….

……………………….

Public Record Request
Thursday, April 8, 2010 1:18 PM
From:
“Barbara Cole”
To:
[email protected]
Cc:
[email protected]
Dear Chief Llerena;
It has come to my attention that the Town Manager sent a letter to Attorney General Bill McCollum yesterday (4/7/10) to clarify her actions in the termination of Chief Scott Gooding.
Included in her letter to AG McCollum was the following statement by Manager Colon-“Public Safety is my prime concern not only to the employees, citizens and visitors of our Town, but also the welfare and human respect of a detainee. Attached are photos of the before and after holding cell.”
It was my understanding in visiting the BSO office shortly after the termination of Chief Gooding that the chair and the “shackle” were not in any violation and BSO was operating within the laws of “welfare and human respect for a detainee”.
Please verify this for me along with any documentation stating this as factual.
While in the BSO office that day I also saw the old holding cell. Can you tell me why the Town never upgraded that cell if the Town Manager was so concerned about the “welfare and human respect for a detainee”?
I feel that if the BSO was acting within the proper guidelines, the BSO might also want to contact AG McCollum to clear up any misrepresentation of improper actions being done by the BSO in LBTS over the years in using the chair in question and possibly leaving the BSO and the Town open to litigation by any former detainees after reading the Town Manager’s statement sent to the AG.
If this is done, I also request a copy of that letter and any correspondence to and from the Town Manager on this subject.
I await your response, Thank you Barbara Cole

…………………………….

In conclusion….The letter had  absolutely nothing to do with the opinion being asked for by the Attorney General  and it looks to this writer like the Town Manager is only interested in one thing as her days are surely numbered …any and all ways to use the Town staff to “cover” herself for all she has done as Town Manager over the last (almost) 3 years…..

It speaks volumes about her track record…. and what is still to be uncovered concerning Esther Colon, Town Manager …

more to come………

Post Division

Here’s The Scoop … The Sun Finally Set On 2009 In Lauderdale-By-The-Sea ….

January 1, 2010 by Barbara

A FINAL LOOK BACK AT 2009 …..

Dear Readers …as promised the real retrospective of what happened in LBTS in 2009…Informed readers know that repetition of “fearmongering” by the “gang” cannot pass muster this time around…because nothing goes unchallenged ….What has been posted from daily is an accurate account their own actions and in their own words …

IN 2009….

We heard Calypso’s time was running out prior to the presidential election and in the end it was a no go after communities came together to speak out against it… We saw that the pavilion had a permit problem at the end of 2008 and the start of a unilateral decision made by the Town Manager to change the Forbes design seen only when a rendition was put up causing quite a ruckus that continued on throughout 2009…and continues still…We saw fees increasing at an alarming rate brought forth by the Town Manager and staff through codes and code sweeps…Moe McIntee went “Truth Deflector”…and tried unsuccessfully to remain anonymous as she “slapped” those who called it like it is …Vice Mayor McIntee made a scene at Athena By The Sea and was called out in a letter …with fallout to come…A drowning victim was found on the beach…The CIC called for members to re-up and found their re-up efforts were re-down…Vice Mayor McIntee was now VFD Deputy Chief McIntee despite promises made after his last turn in the same role and breaking the VFD By-laws…The Pelican Hopper was hopping out of money and needed an influx of taxpayer cash…it would come unilaterally from the TM…Height referendums  were discussed at workshops …Palm Club residents were called to come to Jarvis Hall with Vice Mayor Mcintee “pulling a Parker” on them…with false hopes of ” Gold Shovel” federal funds for the sewers…Vice Mayor McIntee went after the Pier sign to take it down …Athena By The Sea owner Louis Marchelos caught his hypo-Crissie on tape and played to a “hissing” response from the Vice Mayor’s wife…In the infamous “Cockroach” exchange…an encounter after the meeting with Mr Marchelos.. a filed McIntee  police report ..The incident was published in and outside of town limits in local newspapers…and in Feb. Moe McIntee had a different version at the podium…(like husband like wife)…Decorum special meeting…The Master Plan Steering Committee began talk of the medians for the south per the Manager’s continued instruction the Oriana million could only be used for that part of El Mar….only to find at years end she was wrong…and the “Gang would” vote in Dec. to spend the million on it anyway…no matter walkers of El Mar and the MPSC do not want it!…

The ribbon cutting for the $2 million dollar Public Safety building…despite the BSO not in…and VFD not allowed to sleep there …Bags finally came off the meters throughout town…The new VFD-ATV  broke …Vice Mayor was caught in the “purchasing” on the repairs /new  apparatus despite a letter to the Fl. Ethics Comm. he did not have any such role…Comm. Silverstone began frequent his freedom of speech “Norm Crosby”/ answering the public comments made act…Joe Couriel thrown out of the meeting called VM McIntee “God”…Vice Mayor McIntee was now called a “Vigilante” in town for patrolling and calling out code violations…Vice Mayor McIntee was proposing his VFD referendum to make the VFD a lifetime public safety provider…Vice Mayor McIntee, Comms. Clottey and Silverstone  wanted to put bathrooms in the alleyway…This writer found out Deerfield Beach was asking for the annual performance review for their Town Manager and began the search to see if TM Colon was to have on as well…The pre-proposal meeting took place for the Waste contract RFP …This writer found a seriously flawed contract brought to the table by the Town Manager and poorly presented by her Asst. TM Olinzock..it contained a requirement for a toter per unit and warnings given verbally that day and posted of the up-rise that would ensue fell on deaf ears…This writer received the Manager’s contract to find an annual performance review was indeed required before the budget was adopted each September…This was just the beginning for that portion of Esther Colon’s contract and for what else she put in it….

We saw 2nd readings of ordinances …go back to the drawing table numerous times…$$$$…boats and Tennis and more…because some commissioners could not do their homework..Comm. Dodd offered up a code of Ethics based on the Miami/ Dade ordinance…and it died as a “2-hats” ordinance from the dais majority…contents buried in it would come back into play later in 2009 with the “cone of silence” lame excuse by the TM who erroneously after she used it to imply the Town had such it on the books …and it wad found we do not…… Broward Commissioner Ken Keechl gave the Welcome Center $20,000 and the TM, and Comm. Clottey tried to take it away from the Chamber’s annual amount for 2010… as the Chamber had to jump through hoops to get the check from the Town…. A look into the audit for this writer brought forth the news that the Town Manager had unilaterally accepted a 3 year $200,000+ contract with the (way too) long Town Auditors after a look back at the video and the minutes showed she was “informing” the commission of her actions never getting a vote and she supplied them with the prior contract with the prior amounts made to the previous commission although the Town had a current packet at that time…Comm. Dodd chased this one down…leading to an ongoing RFP/ITB conflict that later boiled over in July…The new RFP for audit went out at the end of the 2009…Looking forward to the 2010 election and needing new blood in the CIC the majority CIC dais member voted for spending over $50,000 for blacktopping N. Tradewinds despite protestations from other area residents that said there’s was worst……The recipient became a CIC member and a writer to the BTSTimes Editor…. Bel Air and Terra Mar residents were at odds over the way Bel air got its new signs and Terra Mar’s bridge is again pushed to the future…(in the budget for over 5 years).On March 10, 2009 this writer posted an article from the Miami Herald Business section that Mayor Minnet and family had sold a warehouse for $416,340 stating maybe the Mayor could help the Town with their still unsold and never brought back to the dais west side warehouse sale …The Mayor’s warehouse would pop up at the last meeting of 2009 with the Vice Mayor and his anonymous letter where he lied and said she flipped a house for that amount and he had a letter from the not so anonymous letter writer…There is no letter…and the Mayor requested it on Dec. 9th with still no response from the VM…because this was the sale..and again McIntee screwed up his “investigation”…RFP bids were opened for the Waste contract bids..no problems at all reading them “aloud” after being “publicly opened”…but that would change in July anyhow…The last sight of any real number of CIC members were directed to Jarvis Hall after a CIC meeting to “parade” to the podium and support the TM and thwart an annual performance review…..The CIC tried again to have a Town Hall meeting after failing with the 1st one…and failed once more……it was the last one…Planning and Zoning finally sat on the dais to get to some land regulations…(Chap. 30) …and found as the year went on most went un-noticed by the dais..at the end of 2009 another portion is in the works for 2010…ISO had a workshop for the community and no one came except this writer, and the Sentinel and a few commissioners…..Waste Management after the bid opening sent out a last ditch letter to longtime customers…Choice Environmental won the contract …and the “toters” this writer warned about early on…came into play just as predicted..an uprising with the increase of fees as well as cans…The pavilion saw a sinkhole and flooding…renamed “Lake Colon”…..A police chase took place..SWAT teams were in place and a BTSTimes newsflash was at odds to give way to the rumblings of a LBTS Police Dept. from the Mc-Furths…A semi tractor trailer came a rushing down Commercial and ended up at the pavilion and in the news…Later in the year it would be a car chase from Radio Shack and a car on its side at the pavilion….Suddenly majority on the dais began a new “mantra”…”we’re in the black”…although numbers from the multitude of Sun Trust Bank accounts would not be brought forward until right before the 2009-2010 budget in September…A fire in a kitchen condo and a few incident reports at odds with the VM/ Comm. Silverstone’s dais accounts for pats on the back to the Dep. Chief… … McIntee again sat on the dais and spoke of the end of his and Comm. Silverstone’s 2006 Fl. Elections complaint investigation..whitewashing the many “probable cause” findings…

McIntee went after the Mayor still on the Mayor’s  problem with Greenfest…all for a paltry $33 …the cost to the Town must be tenfold at the very least……This continued on even as late as Dec. through  McIntee/ Furth  “minion” and former candidate for Mayor /P&Z Chair Peanuts Wick at 2 public comments …He was “outed” on his intoxication by Comm. Clottey after his “slanderous” comments concerning the Mayor were repeated at public comments in a recap of the Chamber’s Holiday party …The Pier and Athena By The Sea made the New York Times Travel section…along with La Spada  winning Zagats 2009 award later in the year…The Beach Pavilion had their ribbon cutting…and Comm. Clottey though she had no part in the project became the MC…This writer sent her an open letter  to that effect…The project shut down within hours due to faulty siding and continued problems…Thanks to PIO D’Oliveira the backup material for meetings was not to be online on the Town website until the next meeting…Former Mayor Oliver Parker showed up in the news to perhaps run for County Commission against Ken Keechl…Parker would rise up again in the news concerning his run against Bogdanoff…a possible 2nd run for that seat…and later in the year as a BFF to the Furths and Clottey and Moe Mcintee… who sang his praises for keeping decorum as Mayor …and again as a nominee for the Hillsboro Inlet by fast food pal Clottey after she threw Comm.Dodd under the bus……and then he changed his mind per an interview in the Pompano Pelican?…Easter By The Sea took place as a drowning arose and the ATV’s were stationed in the park with the Dep. Chief’s sign front and center…it included mandatory VFD participation at the Mc-Furth led event…July 4th fireworks on the beach began and this years event was filled with appearances of breaking sunshine…non-RFP fireworks…and we hear an accusation by the VM that threw the then-Fire Marshall under the bus for a “Kick-back” to “job” the appearance of bidding on the display from the beach…Turtle and environmental groups were mortified…TM Colon assisted in lack of public notices etc….The noise ordinance began with Comm. Clottey and more “claims” on phone calls of complaint…although no one ever came forward to verify them……and ensued for some months…bringing lots of angry residents and businesses to the podium…and hilariously videoed “field trip” to do a “gotcha” on the entertainment providers… The Vice Mayor went after the Mayor in an orchestrated display with the BTSTimes for her removal from her condo board ……it backfired ..Jay Leno did his “headlines” using the By The Sea Future’s “Town’s Colon wins an award”…The Furths through “besotted, clueless” Clottey had the Anglin monument moved across A1A in order not to interfere with their July 4th extravaganza…McIntee Free Zone signs went out to keep the unwanted first responder on scene for medical/fire calls outside their door…

The Hyperbaric explosion took place while the VM was out of town…BSO had a real hero and the VFD was heroic as well as AMR in an event that touched us all…  The Dep. Chief came back with his usual P.R. overload that was embarrassing  considering the devastation of what took place…Aruba canceled it’s Beach Bash..due to the ongoing noise ordinance /code invasion…The VFD was still feeling their oats when they went on a mutual aid-McIntee free…A suicide took place in Bel Air and the VM broke the VFD By-laws/ first responder and changed the story later in the year when the 1st investigation was posted and printed…It would be active at the end of 2009 still…A ceremony would be held to Hero BSO Deputy John Melbourne for his role in the Hyperbaric explosion…The ISO report came out and the Town retained the same as BSO with a dismal training score under McIntee’s training direction…… The power went out in downtown with 2 electrical fires.in one day…..McIntee faced with a crowded Jarvis Hall withdrew his  call for a permanent VFD referendum…..5 near drownings More riptide encounters brought a flurry of beach incidents..and VM McIntee and his photog Marc Furth put together a powerpoint to show the Beach Patrol in action…another near drowning followed …Bert J.Harris came into play serving the Town with 4 north end properties lined up with lawsuits…Comm. Clottey had her 1st concert series at the Community Church…Marc Furth was tagged as the VM’s personal photog…Chief Gooding came to the podium to address Comm.Clottey’s charges of residents fearing to contact BSO and did not know  then that his days were numbered…Kite surfing was put on the forefront…bringing forth quite a number of agenda item discussions and groups with input for regulations and fees pro and con that in the end went nowhere…Same scenario for lifeguards on the beach…The Mc-Furth gang was talking of  replacing  BSO police……The VFD “Bee Foam” incidents took place ….Beach access was  being used to keep the alleyway closed ….it was introduced yet again in a flawed “traffic study” wrapping that was payback to the Marchelos brothers…and made the news in and outside town limits in print…Doubled up another year with dueling Hurricane events…and a dismal turnout for the Town sponsored one where the soon to be terminated Fire Marshal was thwarted from his speech due to TM fears of questions about the fireworks on the beach…The Scenic Highway was approved for LBTS and neighboring coastal towns……Manatees were beached en’masse and an overzealous Deputy Chief wanted to assist…told to stand down by the experts…he had his 15 minutes to embarrass us all with crass statements made on and off the dais… BSO Chief Gooding was thrown under the bus by TM Colon with a big assist by Clottey, Silverstone and McIntee…after the TM pulled the plug on the long agreed upon BSO renovations… A special meeting was called by the Mayor to a packed room of Chief Gooding supporters… The Town Manager stood her ground…The Vice Mayor was asked for his e-mails in the matter by resident Yann Brandt…Some weeks later  McIntee told constituents from the dais he deleted all 3 1/2 years of emails..He further lied about writing e-mails…and this writer posted many from his past…The VM  proceeded to ask for email from his opposing dais members Mayor Minnet and Comm. Dodd…for payback…going to the State Atty. to get them, the same State Atty. looking into his own lack of e-mails produced…It ended later in the year with the state not wanting to get involved…and only Mayor Minnert turning over the PRR made by the VM through the Town Manager…..the other 2  Mcintee and Dodd are still in a holding pattern…The fallout from the TM termination of Gooding resulted in a talk radio interview “Th Banana Republic of LBTS”…The Furths put on the July 4th event…They were the CIC “Citizens” of the year…small participation by non -CIC members (the few left)…and mandatory for VFD… smaller turnout for the parade/ event in El Prado park…The fireworks were on the beach…with highly accessorized ATVs and VFD Seadoo taking up the center of Town’s fenced of El Prado beachfront…The numbers for the event were “jobbed” something seen again with the Halloween event………Clottey resorted to pull out her “degrees” to stand up against her mounting lack of support in her role to oust the Chief…The TM assisted in buying VM/Dep chief McIntee a brand new red command car…which was as it turned out only his til the year ended…The Town Manager’s contract was posted on this site to show she had a guaranteed $250,000 addition to it if she was fired…unlike the “as is” she required for her staff including the soon to be terminated Fire Marshal Alex Stevenson…The VFD Fire Inspector was given a 2 titled job…Also posted was a side by side comparison of Colon’s contract and her predecessor Baldwin…showing they were nothing alike as she/McIntee and Silverstone insisted for 2 years!….The VFD purchased a $150,000 102′ ladder truck with a big “purchase” assist from the Dep. Chief….and multiple attempts and removals  on the agenda with an offer to the town  to buy it a a reduced rate…after the fact…. Fire assessment and millage were addressed and a unilateral Sun Trust acct. for the VFD Beach Patrol was put in place by the TM after it was found to not be allowed to come from the fire assessed funds as was being done…A goodbye party at Village Grille for outgoing BSO Police Chief Scott Gooding…with Sheriff Lamberti  to sing his praises…No longer were RFP’s read aloud after publicly being opened…in an effort by the TM to stop transparency and accountability in the process…with the info being posted by this writer ….A fallout would ensue after a room full of vendors came and were turned away in Jarvis Hall…with calls of “backroom deals”….Adding to further RFP problems seen in faulty and substandard TM practices for putting out the parking RFPs …resulting in a new low in dealing with “Who’s the Boss” and insulting interested vendors like Chris Hood …with untruthful assertions made   by the “tag team” McIntee and Colon…Fishing from the beach started with an assist from this writer to a comment sent in for help and a directive to come to Jarvis Hall and speak at public comments……the Broom Boys took it as a sign of a new voter and a way to cause yet more trouble for the Marchelos…and eventually despite it was voted in 3-2 despite the will of the people…The Manager left her Finance Director here and went to partake in a basic course at the very place that gives her kudos for her presentations of budget (not the budget itself)…Later in the year after the 1st quarter the new Furth assisted budget book would appear to give her another presentation award in 2009…This writer through a PRR obtained (finally) TM Colon’s resume…in fact 2 were found that showed why she hires from within…it was familiar territory ..as she did not meet the requirements for her 1stposition as well… Another PRR and we found the Manager’s contract was in the 2007 backup…or was it?… Still questionable…leaving the Broom Boys either complicit in the contract or accountable for lack of due diligence…

The old BSO Chief was gone…New BSO Chief  Oscar Llerena was brought in to work with Lt. Angelo Cedeno…..The RFPs went out for the slimmed down BSO renovation…with again the results not being read aloud…extra time and money spent to keep all in the dark with Ocampo and the deadline missed as was required…again swept under the rug……The administration went ahead and changed out the windows in the existing BSO headquarters…The TM bought new vehicles for town and tried unsuccessfully to sell the old…also unsuccessful in selling the development trailer…on its way out…as Minto is allowed trailers across the way with no expiration date…We still we have the warehouse in the west…and no updates on the dais…We finally learned about the money for capital improvements…thanks to Comm.Dodd/Resident Yann Brandt  persistence and the hefty pre-payment penalty thanks to Finance Director Colon’s past direction……we took a financial hit due to the TM secrecy and lack of response for the requests…despite Comm. (He’s not a CPA) Silverstone’s bait and switch attempts to give the TM cover…In a 4-0 vote at the 1st Sept. budget meeting …Clottey was M.I.A. ..the direction was pay it off…TM Colon paid it off the next morning.. with no negotiation… We had the adoption of the annual budget scheduled on Yom Kippur…with fallout and the “slights” spoken by  McIntee and Silverstone that cannot be wiped away…despite McIntee’s action of trying to appease the Town’s Jewish residents by enlisting a  Chabad Rabbi to give the invocation thus  bypassing protocol and going behind the Town Chaplain’s back…There was a unilateral action by Town Administration using a Wilton Manors copied Townwide survey…It out with the politically driven and factually inaccurate question for the townwide height of 33’……The expected dismal response came in…It was used as P.R.in a slanted Town Topics entry at the end of the year…. Comm. Clottey and TM Colon put out an RFP for the Senior Center…bypassing the rest of the commission and treating the center’s Director very badly…In the end the Director was re-upped…there was alot of bad P.R. and less than truthful response for their actions on the dais…and payback from the Manager with not allowing under 60/non- residents from attending after 9 years…at the end of the year petitions are in the works once again……Fees for town went up 5% in 6 months rather than a year…The “Gang” brought some back down to appease their upset supporters…The Town Manager fought back often from the dais saying she will be the “browbeater” of her staff and will not be the “browbeatee”…The TM went after a early candidate for McIntee’s seat early on with a questionable and unconvincing use of the BSO to undermine his podium claims…it failed…The Manager’s performance review consisted in the end of 2 round tables…a special meeting with a “Range Rider” brought in though unfamiliar with the town…and a borrowed  Lauderhill based evaluation  done by 4 of the 5 commission members of the dais…More Referendum workshops …. heights and ethics and lifeguards…Halloween came with alot of unnecessary Mcintee noise …literally…and more “jobbed” numbers of the cost……… Esther’s evaluations of her staff proved she evaluated THEM annually …McIntee tried to get the sewers in front of his house fixed  “anonymously”…and withdrew the item when caught…A number of candidates came forward for the 2010 municipal election to run against the “Broom Boys”….Unite Our Town now the largest growing Town PAC had a fundraiser at Athena By The Sea and an overflowing crowd….The CIC’s was not so plentiful except in the propaganda published after the “it’s a fundraiser …it’s a dinner…it was a fundraiser after all” event in the Surf and Yacht Club whose Board has asked the CIC Chair/BTSTimes Editor Bob Roberts to stop the CIC use.. A meeting set for Jan. 3, 2010 shows Robert’s does not abide by the rules either……Bonnet House was the sight for the ribbon cutting ceremony for A1A scenic Highway….McIntee again tried to get the cul-de-sacs back and go after the “developers” of Garden Court…The VFD sent out a colorful mailed plea for Booster Fund donations claiming they needed the money and saying it was tax deductible…which it is not…a big problem for longtime VFD Registered Agent Comm. Jim Silverstone… McIntee went on a cruise and left the Furths high and dry…as the vote for heights and ethics  went down…and off the 2010 March ballot…It happened in a preview of a whatt a McIntee -free dais can be like…Commissioner Clottey accused political opponents of vandalizing her car…and later it was found she made no police report…McIntee came back and returned to the dais on Dec. 8th with an anonymous ( or was it?) letter accusing the Mayor’s occupation …and ended up with the majority voting to allow for anonymous letters being accepted as long as one commissioner knew the identity……A 1960s evaluation was posted about a certain “Quack” at the beginning of his chosen occupation…. Upon his return from the sea …McIntee chose to throw his Chief of the VFD under the bus…and ran for Fire Chief position himself ready to resign from the commission ( or was he going for both?)……He lost in a landslide… as a complaint made against him for his altercation in Mexico was read and put with 5 others in his permanent file…He is said to have made threats and then went underground…although he attended the CIC- Carribean Christmas party and was promptly welcomed back into the Furth Town East fold…He went away for Christmas only to return a few days before New Years Eve with a TM “oversight” assist to go after the  VFD ….and take down what he said he built… The VFD are seeing support everywhere without him…knowing now his threats were empty and when all said the “problem” was not with the VFD ..it was with their leadership…They really meant it was with McIntee!… The new candidates, Scot Sasser and Chris Vincent were busy going door to door .. Chris had  a Boat Parade fundraiser…and they are way ahead of whomever they run against…The CIC has yet to announce…with word going around McIntee is over…or McIntee is in…Silverstone is not yet finished…or Silverstone will finally put his Fiancee’s wishes first and not run…And Cristie Furth is still trying to ascend to the commission…… Christmas brought a weekend of overflowing garbage /recycling cans…due to a change in the Choice contract…and a myriad of calls that despite the Colon negotiated contract brought Choice out to deal with the lack of oversight…New Years Eve was last night…it was another McIntee- free event.. Fireworks and warm wishes were the universal theme of the night….as the ball dropped and shouts were heard in Pelican Square…”Happy New Year!”..

As the sun finally sets on what looks to be the end of the last year of a 4 year reign of McIntee terror…This writer looks forward to a much different…much shorter year in review next December…coming from a newly elected commission that provides me with nothing much to write about…due to representing the will of  all of the town’s people …openly, honestly and transparently… as the sun rises in 2010!…

more to come….

Post Division

Here’s The Scoop … Lock Em’ Up !…

December 15, 2009 by Barbara

WITH A CLICK OF THE FOB ….

Dear Readers … Unlike a certain “Clueless” Commissioner….Commissioner Dodd called the LBTS-BSO and made a report after finding his car was vandalized yesterday….Commissioner Dodd did not assume it was from political opponents or their supporters…He apparently had a lot of company in his neighborhood…. The BSO sent out the Cybervisor alert today…… If you don’t have the alerts coming to you….sign up at the link below…If you are unlucky and get an unwanted “visit” to the inside of you vehicle…follow Comm. Dodd’s lead…and call the LBTS-BSO at the number below…and remember LBTS- residents…”Lock em’ up”…

LBTS-BSO CYBERVISION ALERT … sent this afternoon…

“Please help BSO’s LBTS District in combating crime by locking your car doors. We have recently experienced a rash of thefts of small items from unlocked cars in the south side of LBTS. Please report any suspicious persons in your neighborhoods immediately. If you have any questions, contact the district office at (954) 491-3920.”

http://www.sheriff.org/apps/cybervisor/

more to come….

Post Division

Here’s The Scoop … Get The Straitjacket …

November 6, 2009 by Barbara

ONE SIZE FITS ALL ….

Dear Readers … Hot off her senseless browbeating of Mr. Hood from IyeTek …(red light tickets, red light tickets, red light tickets)…and her sudden interest in rotating the appointment on the Hillsboro Inlet, Clueless Commissioner Clottey has truly gone awry in her items placed on the November 10, 2009 Regular Commission meeting…

First up under the Consent Agenda …12a. is the award of the newly named Lauderdale-By-The-Sea Recreational and Senior Center Services…which went out for RFP due to Comm. Clottey (prev. post)… We are left after this colossal waste of time and money with the same well liked and appreciated Director we have had in charge of the Senior Center Service being the only respondent…The Director thanks to Clottey-Colon was treated very badly…He was put in the position of  putting together the RFP, after he was asked by the Town for a “job description” ..basically, the Town “lifted” it to look for his potential replacement!… Also the Director is now  left with running the  additional recreational program with no extra pay!…. Not only was the Director put through this stressful and demeaning situation for no reason (excuses made of RFPs required  for everything are just a  “payback to Comm. Dodd”  ploy)… …The last time Commissioner Clottey spoke about this she said the center was supposed to be for those 65 and older, with a certain percentage to be in need, economically  and there is supposed to be field trips…One resident in the hall was astonished at her declarations and said…”She’s going to kill the Senior Center!”… The Director has a Broward County audit each year and is following the guidelines…The dual funding allows for 62 and younger and there is no wrongdoing of any sort…except …what he has endured!…

Next comes Consent Agenda item 12c.  “Place an announcement on the website and channel 78 requesting residents who are interested in serving on the Hillsboro Inlet Commission to submit their application by December 1, 2009 (Commissioner Clottey)”…A look at her opening  comments on Oct. 27th show Comm. Clottey saying she has heard from a couple of people who are interested in the position!… She  said this position should be “rotated” …..comparing it to the AMR/ Broward County League  of Cities positions……something that has not been done with the Hillsboro appointment in the past!… It looks like Clottey is having more of those loony BSO -like calls when she said people were afraid to call the police!… We hear even her supporters have called her on this action of “payback” on behalf of  the Mc-Furths… OUCH!… Comm. Clottey chose to use this embarrassing item to further embarrass herself with a new business item….

New Business item 16h. “Discussion and or action regarding: At the last Commission meeting when I was speaking on the last item, Mrs Barbara Cole called me “inappropriate words”. This goes way beyond a person’s freedom of speech rights. People acting like this should be removed from the meeting immediately and asked not to return to the next meeting”. (Commissioner Clottey).. OY VEY!…I suppose she is speaking of the Hillsboro Inlet Appointee…. I never said anything “inappropriate”…No profanity …NOPE!.. I shook my head in disbelief… I did say  “shameful”…and “despicable”…but in light of Comm. Clottey’s treatment of  Mr. Hood, Mr Smith and Mr. Dodd…in this writer’s opinion, I would say the responses were well within my “freedom of speech” and 100% “appropriate”!… Hmmm…..I feel like Fox News to the Obama Administration….. I must be doing something right!… And the Commissioner must be getting some of that Colon thin skin!…In 2007 former Town Atty. Cherof advised Commissioners are to put on agenda items that are dealing with Town business…Why no such advice from the present Town Atty.?…

Old Business items brought back by Commissioner Clottey …encroachments on public property…Comm. Clottey, last go round thought it was ok for the planter in front of the news stand business but the table and chair in the breezeway on Commercial…nah, they should have to pay!… Now thanks to the business code sweeps it will be a pick and choose for who is allowed the “privilege” of “encroaching” on town property… “Shades” of who you gonna vote for in 2010 comes to mind as a criteria…YIKES!…Up  in front of the Commission again is Garden Court and Shore Court ( a look at the archives shows these developments  have  been going in front of the town commission since 2007)….Also making a return Atty. Grant Smith…who as many noticed in the Sentinel was front and center in the Rothstein case sitting with Rothstein’s Partner in the Broward County courtroom… One can only imagine the tone to come from Clottey  and Vice Mayor McIntee… Ear plugs may be required…and for this writer I’ll bring my neck brace to keep from “inappropriately” having whiplash!…

New Business item 16g…”Discussion and/ or action regarding homeless people in our beach access areas, especially in Washintonia Beach Park. LBTS should have posted signs indicating how long and when people can linger a each of the portals and Pavilion. No sleeping should be allowed on the benches (commissioner Clottey)”… WOW!… Someone should contact the advocates for the Broward’s homeless… It was only last month when discussing the fishing on the beach ordinance that Comm. Clottey said she had nearly “tripped over one of THOSE people” when speaking of the homeless…and now she says they’re sleeping in our town!… Great P.R. Comm. that’s gotta help our tourism!… Wait a minute though, Hmmm…. At the last commission meeting Town Manager Colon told us all of the new 10 hour shifts for the BSO Police and how the town was successfully being covered…Hmmm… Perhaps Comm. Clottey is going for another round of LBTS-BSO bashing.. WHACK-O!…. One reader had a great idea… I shall pass on…How about putting parking meters in the parks and in the portals…timed and ticketed!…LOVE IT!…

New Business item 16 i “Discussion and/or action regarding a contest for a new slogan (Commisioner Clottey)… Yet another Furth -induced item on this agenda……This past year the BTSTimes tried to get this “LBTS Slogan contest” off the ground in their “Flashback” newspaper… those who are not so easily besotted…in the wee hours of the night at Town Hall East…were not amused!… The Town has a slogan…But  listen folks…perhaps Comm. Clottey inadvertently came up with perfect new slogan without even knowing it from her NB item g…..new LBTS slogan for LBTS in 2010….”LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA, WHERE PEOPLE COME TO LINGER”!…or….”LINGER -BY-THE-SEA”!…

Boy, do I wish I could go back in time…I ‘m wishing for a do-over….We could have changed history..Yep, we could have… If only… we (Candidate Stuart Dodd and I ) had listened to MacMillan  et al….and followed through with their directives to tell Birute Clottey, she needed to step aside for Bob Eckblad… If we had and she had walked away… after Mr. Eckblad had his change of heart…and the reality of not having a CIC member in sight to run from the north end of town….It would have been an uncontested win for former Commissioner Clark… If only I knew then what I knew now….it could have been so different……

2 more years of this Commissioner…without a new majority on the dais…Somebody get the straitjackets, one size fits all!…

LBTS Nov. 10, 2009 back-up agenda… http://www.lauderdalebythesea-fl.gov/town/backup2009.htm

more to come…

Post Division

Hare’s The Scoop … Scene And Heard Around Town ….

November 6, 2009 by Barbara

“SNAKES”  AND LADDERS ….

Snakes and Ladders originated in India as a game based on morality called Vaikuntapaali or Paramapada Sopanam (the ladder to salvation).This game made its way to England, and was eventually introduced in the United States of America by game pioneer Milton Bradley in 1943.

The game was played widely in ancient India by the name of Moksha Patamu, the earliest known Jain version Gyanbazi dating back to 16th century. The game was called “Leela” – and reflected the Hinduism consciousness around everyday life. Impressed by the ideals behind the game, a newer version was introduced in Victorian England in 1892, possibly by John Jacques of Jacques of London.

Moksha Patamu was perhaps invented by Hindu spiritual teachers to teach children about the effects of good deeds as opposed to bad deeds. The ladders represented virtues such as generosity, faith, humility, etc., and the snakes represented vices such as lust, anger, murder, theft, etc. The moral of the game was that a person can attain salvation (Moksha) through performing good deeds whereas by doing evil one takes rebirth in lower forms of life (Patamu). The number of ladders was less than the number of snakes as a reminder that treading the path of good is very difficult compared to committing sins. Presumably the number “100” represented Moksha (Salvation).

The squares of virtue on the original game are Faith (12), Reliability (51), Generosity (57), Knowledge (76), Asceticism (78); the squares of evil are Disobedience (41), Vanity (44), Vulgarity (49), Theft (52), Lying (58), Drunkenness (62), Debt (69), Rage (84), Greed (92), Pride (95), Murder (73) and Lust (99)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snakes_and_ladders

Dear Reader … Hmmmm…..”SNAKES”…. We hear Vice Mayor McIntee has turned over a partial payment for the Dodd e-mail (the fishing expedition as Comm. Dodd refers to it)…that was only the cost of the paper but not the hours of labor it took…the charges for labor are appropriate and coincide with hours charged by the town itself to this writer and others making public records requests…it is in line with state statutes… Comm. Dodd has complied with his duty to this political “payback”…and now the ball is in McIntee’s court…pay up or go back to the State Atty. and let them decide!… Comm. Dodd is all on board with either choice the Vice Mayor makes…but Dodd will stand his ground until either option is taken!….

The lights are finally on in El Prado Park…but if residents and tourists felt safer with the brightness…forget about it!… Why?… Well let’s start with this…If you had a 102′ ladder truck and you were going to use it for a drill …where would you take it?… No idea?…How about using it on the Minto sales trailer…then get a bunch of your guys up there on the trailer roof …and start shooting the water from the hose in the park!… We saw a few park passerbys…..run for safety!…

Lots of talk about the VFD shed to be placed on the beach  for the Seadoo (s)….The Vice Mayor spoke about last commission meeting and many wonder where …how …and why?… A look at the powerpoint presentation the Vice Mayor gave when we had the beach rescue showed the Seadoo was of no help at all in the rescue!…

The 102′ Tower Ladder truck is back with new lettering (now that the 2nd year checks are filling the VFD diminished coffers once again)…and it is sticking out in front of the canopy due to the incredible number of VFD  apparatus in the first year alone…acquisitions of apparatus and upgrades (sirens, lights, signs) are a monthly event that keeps that VFD credit card sliding through the credit card machines at a record pace…

We hear the Dep Chief (McIntee) carries his own…for gas…BJ’s and other “purchases”he makes riding around in his new commander car… despite his pre-election for VFD Officer letter last year to the Fl. Ethics Commission that his position would have nothing to do with purchasing!… (He admitted such involvement on the dais with the trucks …and we saw his name on invoices for the canopy and the ATV repairs)….And many voters wonder why the Fl. State Ethics Commission is not enough for local ethics enforcement!…

Still awaiting the answer for how you average response time to fire call in 15 seconds…that is what the VFD Fire Chief had for the month of September….Maybe that’s why McIntee is trying to replace him?… We hear McIntee has someone else in mind to be Chief to his re-election for Dep. Chief…Hmmm. could it be due a faster response time than McIntee…some funny averages that don’t add up to the CAD reports…or maybe the bloom is off the rose for Perkins being “Little Chief”…because “Little Chief” has been caught with “Big Mouth” when out of earshot of “Big Chief” McIntee?…

It’s quiet in our town…at the restaurants…and the hotels… and it is up to the businesses to unite and realize that they need to join together for the next election… If we have a “Broom Boys” clarify the 33′ height limit re-election…the town will continue to decline… and not just in the townwide height limit……Don’t be afraid of the dwindling CIC-Mc-Furths…be afraid of the dwindling downtown and tourism!…

Tomorrow is the 1st Saturday of the month and the Chamber of Commerce will have its 2nd Beach Cleanup at 9 am at the Beach Pavilion… gloves and bags provided…and supporters of the Chamber… the businesses …and the beach will be there ….

Have you seen the BSO out on their new ATV…it’s a presence on El Mar and on the beach that more than makes up for the void witnessed from the VFD ATVs!… And guess what people comment on the most….the BSO doesn’t stop to politic or hand out business cards and lollipops!… People are pleased!…Nice!…

BIG….BIG… BIG….The BIG By-The-Sea-Future is out today BIG TIME ….and full of some BIG…BIG  surprises!… And its grown…to 16 BIG pages…due to what it offers…in BIG time-ly concise reliable content…BIG advertisers…and a BIG readership 4 months away from this BIG all important election in town!… (more on this to come)….It’s BIG!…

The Town Agenda is out later today…for the one and only commission meeting in November …on Tuesday the 10th at 7 pm……a day after the Master Plan Steering Committee/ Commission workshop on  Monday November 9th at 5:30….The UOT Fundraiser is on Wed. November 11th at Athena By The Sea 6-9 pm….BSO  Lauderdale by the Sea Police Town Hall Forum November 12, 2009 …….

The March 9, 2010 Referendum dates…1st Ordinance reading is Dec. 1st at the 1st Reg. Comm. meeting of the month / 2nd Ordinance reading is Dec. 8th at the 2nd Reg. Comm. meeting of the month ….Very quick turnaround between the 1st and 2nd…leaving the Town commission majority with a big assist from the Town Atty and Town Manager to skew those all important 75 words…This writer again holds out hope…NO REFERENDUMS!… Let the “Broom Boys”…run on their record…no “clarification”…no “ethnics”..(Jimmy-boy speak for the ethics referendum)… just accountability for their actions on  and off the dais!….

more to come….

Post Division

Here’s The Scoop … LBTS- BSO Gets New ATV ….

October 28, 2009 by Barbara

BSO PATROL ON LBTS BEACH … (below)

BSO LT. ANGELO CEDENO CHECKS OUT THE NEW BSO ATV (below)

LBTS- BSO received their new ATV yesterday….another way to protect our beaches …

more to come….

Post Division

Here’s The Scoop … The Mc-Furth Times …Livin’ In The Past … Who Do YOU Trust? …..

October 23, 2009 by Barbara

HEY MAN, WE’RE GOIN’ TO TOWN HALL EAST AND VILLAS BY THE SEA ……

IT’S ALWAYS 1973 IN MC-FURTH LAND….

Dear Readers…WOW!…That’s all I can say …the Mc-FurthTimes is out…A look at the cover answers the question on the Marc Furth photo-shopped blimp…”WHO DO YOU TRUST?”… All the voters  have to do is look at the rest of the cover and it’s LBTS BEFORE the Minto redevelopment…It’s the old Villas By The Sea!!!… That really says it all with this group …We will never see any planned investment in our town…We will never see a real comprehensive plan to bring progress and stability to this town…We will be stuck in the past with decaying properties and revisionist history…just stuck in a  Furth induced timewarp!….

This paper was hastily put out early to accommodate the Vice Mayor’s and the Furth’s attack on the BSO… There is yet another story with another version about the May 4th, 2009 suicide in Bel-Air…and it is a stomach turner….The Vice Mayor who was the first one to publicly use the widow’s name has now put her picture and name in this edition…It opens up so many questions…and opens the door for BSO to respond and investigate even further…The story and the “Editor’s note” call into question the BSO’s ability to handle a crime..It accuses the BSO of being screw-ups from the time they arrived at the scene all the way to the final investigative report…It says BSO did not get the woman’s story right, did not get McIntee’s statement right…did not investigate properly with “no formal interviews conducted,  no recordings or official depositions taken, or written notes preserved to verify the witness statements”…because it was not a “homicide investigation”…OUCH!… How can residents of LBTS feel secure with the BSO if the BSO does not get this straightened out?… It is this writer’s opinion that going after BTSFuture Editor Mark Brown is just an aside to what McIntee is doing to the BSO Police…McIntee knows full well that with the investigation re-opened, the BSO cannot answer back until it finishes… Mark Brown should sue McIntee for his recent slanderous statements on the dais (Oct. 20, 2009 Comm. comments) when McIntee falsely stated Mr Brown pushed his way into the widows front door. The widow contacted Mr. Brown through his paper and set an appointment to meet with him in Pompano Beach…Mr Brown passed by her residence and she came out to see if it was him that drove past. Without her giving him directions and setting a time he would not have known where she lived. The woman was shown the police reports and Mr. Brown proved to her as he did for the readers of his article that he took all his information from the 6 official reports on the incident. He has nothing to worry about from any threat of a lawsuit from VM McIntee…Because unless you are a conspiracy theorist or you really do believe the BSO is inept…the reports from all of the BSO personnel from the day of the incident  up to the final release of the investigation 4 months later (which LBTS -BSO Chief Llerena said was standard practice in a crime) are the same…The story only changes from McIntee and the widow…and each new version (The “Truth Deflector/ Oct. 13, 2009 Comm. meeting/ Oct. 20, 2009 Comm. comments/ this issue of the BTSTimes) becomes more and more fanciful…pure comic book “superhero”stuff with a seedy underbelly that looks shamefully like McIntee using this woman for grand self promotion for his re-election in light of his dwindling support…

In the latest version…there is a picture of the Vice Mayor shaking hands with the widow in front of the Blue Seas (Furth’s motel and BTSTimes headquarter-Town Hall East)…So first we must ask…At the Oct. 13th meeting in Jarvis Hall VM McIntee is on the record saying the widow was already interviewed by “an Editor of the By The Sea Times”…that we now know was Cristie Furth…McIntee said it was recorded …Did he sit in on that interview?…Did he and/or Editor Furth tape the widow?… BSO better get that tape to verify this article…and protect themselves from this ongoing scandal… The story is written with quotations… and they are damning…she has changed the story significantly from the BSO police account (prev. posts )…saying this time around “When the suicide happened I started screaming  I’m sitting next to my husband’s body, just screaming at the top of my lungs and my 7 year old daughter is distraught…..” “I had already called 911 and standing over my husband’s body still screaming when, almost immediately Mr. McIntee came into the room and said “I heard you from down the street before I got the call” . He then got on his walkie talkie, called for assistance and tried to calm me down”… Well if you believe the widow…Jerry McIntee heard her screaming from inside his house approx. 400 ft. away around the corner while she was inside her master bedroom …BEFORE he got the call (was it on the radio or pager…in 2 prior versions)… If you believe this version and the previous versions of McIntee he must have broken into her house to get to the master bedroom (unless it was unlocked?)…Has BSO spoken to the many neighbors to see if the widow ever came outside the house when yelling for help?….In this version the paramedics arrive within 15 seconds…not even the “Truth Deflector” tells it this way…(they say 30 secs. for the BSO)…In this version McIntee is asked “Please save him”…In the prior versions McIntee admits he did not check for vitals and knew he was gone …in the police report it was by “his color”… on the dais Oct. 13th by the type of wound describing “his head half blown off”…This version makes McIntee’s lack of proper “First Responder” action even worse!… The widow states in this version “I had assumed when I looked into my husband’s eyes and saw the wound- that he had passed. Although he had a faint pulse there was no one home anymore, he was brain-dead.”…The Vice Mayor said he took no vitals, so how did the widow know there was a pulse?…If the widow is correct about a faint pulse it further causes trouble for McIntee not providing any aid for the husband!…According to the AMR and BSO report and McIntee in prior versions…he [McIntee] took the mother and child to the living room and they were not in the room when paramedics worked on the husband…and it was the paramedics who say they found a faint pulse…According to the prior versions the BSO came first…removed the gun and then instructed AMR they could come into the house…In this version the widow says the paramedics came first….It is sad to see the widow feeling the need to enter into McIntee’s politics and be used in such a way… It is disturbing to read  that after the incident a week later McIntee came by  offering “maybe  a ride on the fire truck for my daughter?”… The VFD took up a collection and a sympathy card…but we hear the BSO also collected approximately $3000 for the woman…Then it goes deeper around the bend in including comments about Maureen McIntee and the mutual loss of their dogs… There is nothing that can clarify why that would be included except campaigning in its lowest form …What needs to be remembered here is this…This poor woman went through a life altering ordeal…and what she does or does not remember from it is not the issue…How she felt Vice Mayor McIntee responded is not the issue…The issue is what VFD Deputy Chief McIntee did per the VFD SOPs when responding to a call as a VFD member and a “First Responder”… and what matters is that he says he will not follow the rules if he is faced with a similar call again…no matter how he hears it…by radio …pager or super human hearing!… What matters now to the residents of LBTS is to know if the BSO was correct in their response and investigations…or if McIntee is correct and the BSO was not!…

The rest of the paper is the same old drivel of old guard and new guard…by the Editors Furth…who are the real “Old -Guard” in this town having backed both sides of the aisle in their years of politicking in their lust for retaining their hold on their piece of the pie….The same- old, same -old political rhetoric …is now falling on a shrinking number of ears according to the 4 new candidates who are indeed knocking on those doors around town and are being met with welcoming smiles after voters are seeing new blood arriving on their doorsteps with new names…that are not Furth…and not McIntee!…..

The skewed Town Manager review by Editor Cristie Furth tells half the story …leaving out the the points made by Mr. Simmons himself, that this evaluation is required in the manager’s contract and Mr Simmons acknowledging that he himself was reviewed with this type of review!…(prev. post)…OOPS!… It was sad …kind of like the widows remarks to see the Furths and the CIC bring forward old- time CIC members yet again unaware of the requirement in the manager’s contract when making their remarks …And a repeat of the Manager’s remarks claiming the former Town Atty. met independently with the commissioners…a statement the former Town Atty. denies…The rest of the managers explanation for her need to add in a large severance and other perks…it doesn’t add up…because the clean-sweep was a year prior to her contract…and those “Broom Boys” were front and center for wanting her in  as TM as shown in her hiring in the minutes and the video……Perhaps she is spending too much time with the VM …and following suit with ever changing versions of this story……You know what they say about the “clean up” …that’s what brings them all down in the end!…

Tidbits…more  Moe-misstatements.. Commissioner Dodd put the 15 stories on the agenda…the Town Clerk put all the Referendum items underneath and did not include the word Referendum in his items as turned in…He did what Jimmy-boy said a good commissioner does…he put items on that his constituents asked for…You see many feel if you’re are going back to see what height the voters want…to LOWER the height to the Mc-Furth33 ‘/ maintain the 3x voted for 44’/ or increase the north back to 15 stories along with lifeguard…and oh yes…the constituents want ETHICS… (with or without 2-hats)…

On the subject of heights…this brief intermission from the Times…

From the previous CIC website before 2009…

2008

“* The CIC Height Limit Charter Referendum, which lowered the maximum allowable height limit in the Northbeach coastal area from 15 stories to 3 over 1 stories, won despite fierce campaigns by developers and pro-development commissioners. This charter amendment will prevent our barrier island from over development, limit further congestion along A1A, and preserve the Town’s low-rise image. A critical clause of this referendum was that no major zoning changes can now be made in any neighborhoods without a vote of the people.”

……………………………………………………………

From the defunct previous BTSTimes after the 2008 election…

“All About Lies and Backroom Deals

The election is already history, yet campaign lies continue by the old guard Commissioners John Yanni and Chuck Clark who refused to accept their defeat graciously.

In another publication, both Yanni and Clark claimed their loss was the result of lies by the opposition, when in fact, they were ousted by their own deplorable records and disregard for the will of the people.

Yanni claimed the opposition said that the Commissioners were “for high rises.” The documented record of both Yanni and Clark prove they supported high rises and fought to defeat the 44-foot height limit every step of the way. When Judge Barry E. Goldstein’s court order directed the old guard to place the citizens’ height limit referendum on the ballot, the old guard refused. Clark and Yanni even went so far as to order Town Attorney Cherof to use “every means available” to challenge the court’s ruling.

The old guard approved spending $75,000 of our taxpayer money to fight the height limit. Nevertheless, the voters approved the 44-foot height limit in March 2006.

Meanwhile, the 15-story referendum was placed on the November 2006 ballot and defeated by the voters, while the old guard stood next to developers at the polling places, clearly supporting the referendum!

So when Yanni and Clark say they support the 44-foot height limit, it is only because their 15-story high rise referendum was defeated by the people.

Clark claims there were lies about backroom deals. Clark created and signed the annexation agreement as President of the South Beach Civic Association (SBCA) which falsely claimed to represent the entire “Intracoastal Beach Area.” Bel Air residential homeowners had no input whatsoever into the decisions or actions of the SBCA nor did other residents of the north. There were no public hearings for the residents of the north or the south ends of town to voice any input. So where was the honesty and openness in this deal?

Let’s proceed from here with an honest and open government; the people have spoken.

Maureen McIntee”
………………………………..

From the Florida Attorney General….

Mr. James A. Cherof
Town of Lauderdale By The Sea Attorney
3099 East Commercial Boulevard
Suite 200
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33308

RE: BERT J. HARRIS, JR., PRIVATE PROPERTY RIGHTS PROTECTION ACT – MUNICIPALITIES – REAL PROPERTY – PROPERTY RIGHTS – CHARTERS – citizen initiated charter amendment as governmental action under Bert J. Harris Act. ss. 70.001 and 166.031, Fla. Stat.

Dear Mr. Cherof:

As Attorney for the Town of Lauderdale By The Sea, you have asked for my opinion on substantially the following questions:

1. Does an amendment to a town charter initiated by ten percent of the registered electors pursuant to section 166.031(1), Florida Statutes, constitute “action of a governmental entity” as that term is used in the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act?

2. Following such amendments to the charter, does subsequent action by the Town Commission, compelled by language in the charter as amended, constitute “action of a governmental entity” as that term is defined in the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act?

Your questions are related and will be answered together.

According to your letter, the electors of the Town of Lauderdale By The Sea submitted a proposed amendment to the town charter using the procedure authorized by section 166.031(1), Florida Statutes. This amendment was submitted to the electors and was approved earlier this year.[1]

The charter amendment provides for a 44-foot height limit on new construction in the area that was annexed into the town from unincorporated Broward County in 2001. Prior to approval of the charter amendment, the 44-foot height limit did not exist in the annexation area. Under Broward County zoning regulations, buildings as high as 15 stories or 150 feet were allowed, subject to other zoning regulations.

In the annexation area there are several 15-story high-rise buildings that now exceed the new 44-foot height limit. These buildings are now legal nonconforming structures. In addition, there are several undeveloped parcels in the area that were zoned under Broward County regulations to permit structures of 15 stories in height that now may only be constructed to a maximum height of 44-feet. The town is concerned about potential liability for imposing an inordinate burden on property rights through the adoption and implementation of this charter amendment and has requested assistance in resolving these questions.

The 1995 Legislature enacted the “Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act.”[2] The act provides in part that when a specific action of a governmental entity has inordinately burdened an existing use of real property or a vested right to a specific use of real property, the property owner of that real property is entitled to relief that may include compensation for the actual loss to the fair market value of the property caused by the action of government, as provided in the statute.[3] This cause of action is separate and distinct from any cause of action that might arise under the law of takings.[4]

The term “inordinate burden” or “inordinately burdened” is defined in section 3(e) of the act to mean that

“[A]n action of one or more governmental entities has directly restricted or limited the use of real property such that the property owner is permanently unable to attain the reasonable, investment-backed expectation for the existing use of the real property or a vested right to a specific use of the real property with respect to the real property as a whole, or that the property owner is left with existing or vested uses that are unreasonable such that the property owner bears permanently a disproportionate share of a burden imposed for the good of the public, which in fairness should be borne by the public at large.”

Legislative intent is the polestar that guides statutory construction analysis.[5] The legislative intent of the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act is evident from the first section of the act, which clearly provides that the statute was intended to protect private property interests against “inordinately burdensome” governmental regulations that do not necessarily amount to a constitutional taking.[6]

Section 70.001(1), Florida Statues, provides for relief or payment of compensation “when a new law, rule, regulation, or ordinance” unfairly affects real property. An amendment to the municipal charter would appear to come within the scope of this language. A municipal charter is the paramount law of that municipality. It represents the constitution of the town, enumerating and providing all the powers the town possesses. A municipal charter consists of the creative act and all laws in force relating to the corporation, whether in defining its powers or regulating the method of their exercise.[7] Thus, the provisions of the Charter of the Town of Lauderdale By The Sea are laws within the scope of section 70.001, Florida Statutes, and can give rise to liability for any inordinate burden the charter provisions impose on real property “for the good of the public” when “in fairness [this disproportionate share of the burden] should be borne by the public at large.” Likewise, the regulations, ordinances or rules adopted by the town to implement the charter amendment, would constitute “action of a governmental entity” that may implicate the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act if these regulations impose an “inordinate burden” on real property.

In sum, it is my opinion that an amendment to a town charter proposed and approved pursuant to section 166.031(1), Florida Statutes, does constitute “action of a governmental entity” as that term is defined and used in the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act. In addition, any new rules, regulations, or ordinances adopted by the town to effectuate the terms of the amendment to the charter would also constitute “action of a governmental entity” as that term is defined and used in the act. I note that the authority to determine whether such action gives rise to a claim under the act is expressly vested in the judicial branch.[8]

Sincerely,

Charlie Crist
Attorney General

CC/tgh
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[1] As you note, pursuant to section 166.031(1), Florida Statutes, the town commission, as governing body, has no discretion regarding submission of the proposed charter amendment to a vote of the electors:

“The governing body of the municipality shall place the proposed amendment contained in the ordinance or petition to a vote of the electors at the next general election held within the municipality or at a special election called for such purpose.”

ANY DOUBTS ABOUT THE TOWN WIDE HEIGHTS?….. NOPE!…. It’s 44’….

……………………………………………………………

Commissioner comments…Jimmy-boy loves his new home…with the foliage…the code violating foliage…OOPS!…. That foliage was conveniently overlooked when he got HIS variance…(unlike Mrs. D’Uba)….not too long ago…Many say Jimmy-boy is no longer the lovable fumbling …bumbling goodhearted basketball coach…He’s mean…He’s a pit bull and he’s history… Hate…you speak of hate…as your BFF says all the time on the dais……Jimmy-boy…”look in the mirror”…

Vice Mayor McIntee… “Dogs of war are in full attack mode”…”This writer is going to do all he can to take the high road”…”Hate mongering”…All this writer can say…stand outside the VFD and listen to the VFD “Premier Trainer”… you’re sure to get an earful… Catch the VFD Chief when he’s out of earshot of his Deputy Chief and he’ll let you in on the “High road”…It’s not pretty… Look at the tired old litany…lackluster at best…what’s an “old dog” to do…. deflect…deflect…deflect…What’s a newly informed electorate to do defeat..defeat…defeat…the “old dog”….movin’ to Tampa…

Comm. Clottey… “Communism”…Clottey is talking “communism”… “”?…The commissioner is clueless on many crackpot topics when she speaks out on the dais……But she knows what the truth is …and like the VFD Chief …it depends what living room she is sitting in and who’s ear she is bending at the time…for what “truth” comes from her mouth…and as for McIntee being “a gentleman”…that is one for the comic books!….This commissioner knows full well what was “expected” of her from the “gentleman” in her first days on the dais…and this “blogger” is definitely one who intends to see that does not happen again!…

The “Truth Deflector”… The Town Manager did not reveal the town’s funds until the 11th hour…talking of paying it off and sitting on the actual accounts for way beyond the PRR “reasonable time”…only to produce portions…is just plain wrong. and violates the PRR rules…..anIf it had not been for Yann Brandt and Comm. Dodd…we would still be left with the elusive “we’re in the black” remarks…The taxes lowered …sounds good for running…but the devil is in the details …and like his e-mails…the Vice Mayor deletes them!….The Vice Mayor is on video at the Oct. 13, 2009 meeting …side stepping as to not be re-interviewed himself by BSO…any question watch the video online…The VFD Chief we all know talks out of both sides of his mouth…to keep the Vice Mayor at bay!… So no surprise he would not own up to his statements to Mr. Brown…Comm. Silverstone was a dunce in his verbatim remarks of Yom Kippur being “applicable” for a meeting date……and the Vice Mayor clearly and unequivocally used the lack of audience to say the voters were happy with the town a blatant act …that smacked of exactly what it was in this writer’s opinion…Doesn’t really matter if McIntee becomes the next Police Chief…if he can undermine the BSO (suicide incident) and get the ball rolling if re-elected …he will run the police just as he runs the VFD by putting in another “little chief”…Moe- is a moanin’  again…

Mary Ann Wardlaw is talking down the Mayor…nothing new she has not liked a Mayor in town since her husband…Is she going to back Crisite Furth if she runs for Mayor?…Hmmm…That will be a big change from the Wardlaw point of view in 2008…when this writer was for Ms. Furth as a candidate (before I knew the personality) …and the Wardlaws  were definitely not!…And as far as  the audience in Jarvis Hall for the VFD not feeling threatened …she’s correct…It was those on the dais who felt threatened…and needed to be protected by BSO as they left Jarvis Hall……http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDbw9CCLLHI&feature=youtube_gdata

Beware of the new ad from Resident Jerry Sehl…it is not a unbiased Town survey…by any stretch…This writer had my link removed…as did the By The Sea Future newspaper…and we hear the Chamber was none too pleased that the give-aways made it look like they were associated with the site…The Chamber is non-political…So this site will be Mc-Furth CIC- skewed and any monthly reports at the podium should be taken with a grain of salt…

Funny when a letter writer writes of “so much hatred”…and then calls a sitting commissioner a “turncoat” and Judas”…Have you drunk the Kool-aid?… De-tox is coming in March!…

On the back a full page yet again from the VFD Booster fund…if the pics are more proof of the VFD drills at Minto…these “2-hats” better recuse themselves when Minto comes a callin’ for an extension or a change in plans…. The Deputy Chief is an Instructor III?… Who was his trainer?… According to the requirements…he needs..

1. Six years experience as a regular member of an organized fire department.

2. Documentation of completing the 40- hour Fire Service Course or equivalent.

3. Documentation of completing the 40-hour Fire Service Course Design class or equivalent.

4. Documentation of a Bachelor’s Degree or higher that meets the requirements of s 817.567

5. Physical ability to perform the tasks associated with the training.

6. Form DFS K-4-1453 and current application fee (no examination is required.)

A PRR will be made to the VFD…

So,Hey Man….Who Do You Trust?….

more to come….

Post Division

Here’s The Scoop … A Lack Of Judgment Calls?…..

October 14, 2009 by Barbara

MCINTEE THE “GUMSHOE” …..

Dear Readers… For this writer March 9, 2010 cannot come soon enough!…Tuesday night’s Public Safety Discussion was just the latest “Deputy-sode” of McIntee muck and mire in the last three and a half years…… What is wrong up there?…

How can they sit up there and completely miss the mark …(pun intended)… on the substance of the story of the suicide which appeared first on this site shortly after the incident in May and again after the Mark Brown in-depth articles in the BTS Futures?…

How can they be so blind as to not realize that until Vice Mayor McIntee requested the police reports through the Town Manager as Vice Mayor (We know he cannot do e-mails but is he also incapable of doing public records requests…He did his e-mail request for the Mayor and Comm. Dodd as the VM through the Manager as well)…thus this report went to each of the Commissioners as well…Putting it on the agenda he made it part of the backup for the item further expanding its distribution which along with his statements on the dais made the Vice Mayor himself the FIRST person to publicly expose the name of the widow and her address!…

In what capacity was he speaking ?…If he was speaking as the Deputy Chief of the VFD he should have stepped down in front of the podium… and he should have been questioned by the commission as the rest of the public safety officers were….

This writer has watched over the years how this “Gumshoe” McIntee operates…You have to watch closely when McIntee does one of these numbers…and see how he diverts attention away from facts or self incrimination…it’s a trait that’s really quite well honed after 60+ years……Notice throughout this exercise McIntee never says his police report interview as witness #3 is incorrect…Notice McIntee never asks the Chief to ask BSO to re-interview him under oath and taped…He never does an “Esther Colon” and says “subpoena me”…”I won’t take the 5th”… Why because he knows the interview and the statement he made were true!…We have seen this before with past discrepancies…The McIntee on the dais…and the McIntee in the reports…Fl.Ethics Commission/ Fl.Elections Commission …and BSO… They’re always different… This time he put the onus on the widow…asking for the BSO to interview her…Having her taped for the interview with the “Editor” of the BTSTimes…Notice how he changes times… He arrived in 17 seconds per Chief Perkins at the podium…15 seconds according to the VFD Incident Report (270/300/ 400 ft. in 15-17 secs?)…Notice how he changes how many feet his home is from the suicide 400 ft…270 ft…300 ft…Notice how he says he heard the fire radio in the police report …In the 2nd version he was “directed to go there by the emergency dispatch” on his pager…knowing the only reason he and the VFD get these kind of call is because they have asked to be included on them as a practice…There is no need in a suicide to call the Deputy Chief of the local volunteer fire department to go to a suicide…Notice how he says he heard the woman screaming this time…this version from “around the corner”…inside her house…(is that possible?)…In his police statement he says the woman and the daughter followed him into the bedroom…Notice how he says “he made the decision to go in there and do whatever I could to help the woman”…was the house unlocked?…Did he break down the door?….Notice how he says “the gentleman had put a 45 caliber pistol to the side of his head and blew one side of his head off. He was lying in a position. There was no chance of recovery from. “I looked at him briefly 5-10 seconds,”…as opposed to his police report ” after taking a look at the victim he knew he was dead because of his color, he never checked his vital signs.”…He had time to decide it was a 45 caliber but not time to be the “First Responder” and do CPR….Notice how he says “I scooped up the daughter and the wife as they’re screaming and took them out of this terrible sight they were looking at and put them on the couch and consoled them as best I could.”…In the police report “McIntee then made everyone sit in the living room until the arrival of the police, which he said was almost immediate.”… He says from the dais “I got them to the couch and within 30 seconds the troops arrived. That would be the Chiefs, cops, deputies. They were all there., did a great job.”…But later when asked about entering against VFD SOPs (standard operating procedures) McIntee says ..” I was the first person there. They didn’t get there for a minute, minute and a half and if you think I’m gonna stand outside and with a woman and a kid screaming because I’m in jeopardy, the only life I’m jeopardizing is myself, you’re wrong.”…

McIntee used his usual tactics of comparing apples to oranges (with Jimmy-boy entering the fray in his comments)…by actually comparing a volunteer fireman entering a house where it was reported on the call “HER HUSB POSS SHOT HIMSELF…STILL LLONCONSCIOUS AND BREATHING UNCONSCIOUS OR STAB/GUNSHOT/PENETRATING TRAUMA UNCONSCIOUS OR ARREST (GUNSHOT!) HE HAS RECEIVED A GUNSHOT WOUND” …to the BSO bomb expert who entered the Hyperbaric explosion to save the little boy and his grandmother…with McIntee saying they gave him” a medal… (was that a hint to Jimmy-boy for as future agenda item?).. No gunshot reported at that explosion…and it was a policeman who responded to an explosion…not a volunteer fireman responding to a “possible suicide”…Notice how the little girl becomes the “baby”…and then he descends into a plug for the BTSTimes…an article coming next issue…a follow-up to the Truth “deflector” in the last issue?….He says “I never called her. I never asked for her cooperation”…Not quite what is being said in the background…He continues to ask the BSO Chief “to send somebody out to talk to her and release a sworn statement from her and then I can start looking for retractions.”…But later when the Mayor read the BSO Investigative Action Report (page 2) with his “Witness #3 statement” McIntee entered the master bedroom with the victim’s wife and daughter following him and after taking a look at the victim he knew he was dead because of his color”…. saying “those are pretty strong words and they came from you Vice Mayor”……McIntee countered careful not to implicate himself “No, they came from a Homicide Detective who is presently off sick and did not take any notes and who did not take any tape and who did not generate the report for 3 months.”..(Later when asked by Comm. Clottey about the 3 month gap from May to July BSO Chief Llerena replied it was “standard procedure” for death cases..Did the “seasoned police officer McIntee not know this?)… The Mayor did not back down…”So you’re calling this report [BSO] a lie?”… McIntee sidesteps and does not answer ..instead saying ” Well one of those reports I read Mayor was that I had my feet put up on the detective’s desk. He interviewed me in the fire station.”…McIntee could not say the report was a lie…because it is not…When the Mayor continued to push him on it…he further stepped aside from answering to again “offer up ” the widow…”and that’s why I’ve suggested the Chief [BSO] go interview the woman and get the inside story.”…But again did not offer up himself for another interview… The Mayor was strong and asked for “another investigation”..saying “Because looking at this information and reading what was in the original report we need to get to the bottom of this. We need to protect the citizens of this community and I would think Vice Mayor you would want that as much as I do.”…The Vice Mayor said “I do Mayor and I asked the the Chief prior to that dissertation to please do that.To contact…” (the woman…not him)…The Vice Mayor continued throughout to say the BSO was wrong in their investigation …He said he had asked for a “complete investigation” from BSO “Homicide” from her because “one of the problems was and she told us this was the day of the homi, suicide they talked to her and that night she was very distraught and they never went back to talk to her. I think they did this because it was a courtesy. It, they didn’t want to put her through that again and that made a lot of sense at the time….So according to McIntee BSO stopped investigating as a courtesy?… That’s a pretty serious charge against BSO…

Mark Brown the Editor of the BTSFuture’s had an opportunity to defend his reporting and himself after McIntee spoke first (not the “standard practice…usually public comment comes first)…He was steadfast after hearing McIntee say …”But when I read a description in a paper [BTSF] that is so opposite what happened it hurts and it’s evil and it’s slanderous. And I went to a lawyer and I’m, my aggressive moves that you heard yesterday [4 pm Comm. workshop “defamation” definition] in my initial statement and I’m not backing down. This was a hate filled article that did not tell the truth.” http://www.bytheseafuture.org/ He was armed and ready with 6 reports all used for the factual information found within the pages of his publication …Mark also met with the widow after she contacted him. (He brought her the police reports, which she had not seen until he showed them to her) …Mark told the dais he was glad the Vice Mayor chose to speak first and said “If the objective was to try and discredit me, I’ll tell you right now that I stand 100% behind my story. Everything I wrote down is documented in the public records that are available to all of you on this incident including the Vice Mayor’s statements on this, and I’m prepared to defend my story at anytime and in any forum.” http://www.lauderdalebythesea-fl.gov/town/backup2009.htm (scroll down to Public Safety discussion 7 a. Report on Suicide in Bel-Air) …Mark pointed out some of the content including the Vice Mayor’s statement and when he made the common mistake of calling it a “deposition” McIntee seized the opportunity to try and throw Mr. Brown off message by countering the mistake as ” untrue.”…Mark returned to pointing out the discrepancies between the 6 reports and the BTSTimes “version” along with this evenings statements made by the Vice Mayor. He said “I think there needs to be an investigation to find out why these stories are changing. But who’s gonna do it because you’ve got two commissioners with the VFD. The Town Manager hasn’t done any oversight of the VFD. She can’t do it. That leaves the State of Florida I think this commission should ask the Florida State Fire Marshal Office or the Florida Bureau of Emergency Medical Services to investigate this matter and find out why there’s these different stories now between the official reports and what we’re being told now.”…He went on about the Vice Mayor’s actions of entering the house and the Florida State Statute 112 concerning the Vice Mayor’s required assistance once he chose to become a “First Responder”…When Mark said the Vice Mayor said the man was dead …the Vice Mayor called out “point of order” saying “that’s an absolute lie,. I never said that, that’s an absolute untruth and another lie and you’re putting your foot deeper in it.”……The Vice Mayor said “I looked at him briefly , maybe 5-10 seconds sensed there was no hope.”..Mr Brown also knew from the VFD CAD report it said “DP12 ADV S7″…which is police “lingo” for dead…(it was odd because we hear S7 is not used by firefighters…must be more of that “seasoned cop stuff)… Mark continued after telling the Vice Mayor “It’s my turn to speak now I’ve listened to you.”…Applause came from the hall…..He spoke of the standard investigations done throughout the country in police departments and fire departments in reviewing the conduct of their members …The Vice Mayor he said should be treated the same way as a VFD firefighter who was suspended this past summer.. McIntee should be put on administrative leave pending the outcome…”If the investigators find he was negligent or otherwise violated the law then he should be put on trial or otherwise be held accountable for his actions.”….”It’s also time for this commission to pass a law that prohibits members of the VFD from responding to medical calls unless assistance is first requested by the BSO or AMR.”…The Vice Mayor had enough and called out “Time!”…the audience responded angrily…

Time came for the other Public Safety Officers to make their way up to the podium…First was LBTS-BSO Chief Llerena who would be facing his first head-on interchange with the Vice Mayor…(welcome to politics in LBTS Chief)…The Chief pointed out this investigation was never a homicide and there was never any indication of a suspicious death or any type of crime related to it. He explained the process of not taping or having sworn testimony statements in these cases. He said any issues of the VFD By-laws were not part of the homicide unit and they would not get into that… Well the Vice Mayor jumped onto that opening ..”Question for the Chief, there’s no crime here.” …Chief Llerena said “No sir, there was never any allegation of any type of a homicide.”…The Vice Mayor found just the way to go further away from his own role of entering the home contrary to VFD procedure and to keep off his “first responder” problem of not doing anything for the victim… He said he had asked the Chief to take the statement “from the poor woman, Is that correct?”…Chief Llerena said “Yes Sir,  I’ve been  authorized  by the Chief of Detectives to comment to the best of my ability on the case. So I can relay that concern back to the Homicide Division, we have a victim advocate.”…

Commissioner Silverstone chimed in giving Mr Brown some BFF (Best Friends Forever) swipes for the article…his paper and skewing the papers report saying that McIntee calling off the rescue of an injured man would have been breaking the law if it happened…He tried to initiate some verification of it being punishable from Chief Llerena but the Chief could not comment on the matter due to unfamiliarity with statutes governing firefighters…( the CAD report in the VFD Incident report the DP12 S7 and the VFD June monthly report that shows the “04-May-09 S.E.15 Street medical, cancelled by DPC12)… Getting nowhere Jimmy went to AMR Lt. Brooke Liddle to address this asking who could call off the medics…Mr Liddle answered only law enforcement can cancel or prohibit them from entering a scene…Jimmy said” it was impossible for this to happen. He [McIntee] doesn’t have the authority to do it and if he tried nobody would listen to him anyway ….”…Too funny…Since when did this ever stop the VM?…Comm. Silverstone decided to go for the paper in an attempt to portray the BTSFutures as “nothing but a political format, a platform to use, it’s obvious to me.”…He then stated he hoped the Vice Mayor would follow through with his “promise of seeing this to the end.”…saying this reporting was what was dividing the town…Hmmm….

Commissioner Dodd asked AMR Lt. Liddle and VFD Chief  Perkins the same question…finally getting to the reason …It’s nice to see a non-lemming in action…He asked each about their procedures for entering a “situation such as this”.. that AMR “are not allowed to go into the premises until cleared by BSO to do so”…The Lt. answered that is “standard AMR procedure.”…Comm. Dodd went further asking why the procedure was in place and he was told for the safety of the rescuer…Comm. Dodd said he had concern for the members of the fire department if they did not follow the same procedure…and went on to throw the Vice Mayor a bone about his days in Buffalo and his past a cop going  to similar calls..but he reminded the Vice Mayor that now he enters as a VFD Deputy Chief…He went on to put Chief Perkins on the spot to answer the same  question of procedures where a gunshot had been heard….Chief Perkins said ” Our procedures are the same as AMR. We have to stand outside until the scene is cleared by P.D., That’s the procedure” …It took from May to get the VFD Chief to admit the procedure was in place…Comm. Dodd asked what happens when “somebody doesn’t adopt that procedure?”…Perkins said the following ” Well, every call has a life of its own and Mr. McIntee made a judgment call and I weighed all the circumstances of what happened and I decided he did go against our procedure but it was justified.”…Comm. Dodd asked for more…”So that was the result of the internal fire department inquiry into this particular incident?”… Chief Perkins said ” Yes Sir, the decision came on me. I would either suspend him him for going against procedure or justify of. I felt he made a judgment and every emergency like that is a judgment call and because the woman was screaming, and there was a child involved. Yes it was against our procedures but they needed help.”…

What kind of internal inquiry was done and was the Town Manager informed in the process?…I sent a PRR to the VFD and the Town… The VFD responded…
……………………………………………
Public Records Request
Wednesday, October 14, 2009 12:30 PM From: “Barbara Cole”
To: [email protected]
Chief Perkins, Cheryl : I am making a public records request for all correspondence , e-mails, memos or meetings between Town Manager Colon or any Town Staff and the VFD, Chief Perkins, Dep. Chief McIntee concerning the May 4, 2009 suicide incident on SE 15th St.
I am asking for any internal investigation report, documents on Deputy Chief McIntee ignoring VFD SOPs for entering a suicide scene against procedure. Chief Perkins acknowledged DP 12 did not follow procedure .
Please acknowledge this request.
Thank you Barbara Cole

Re: Public Records Request

Wednesday, October 14, 2009 3:08 PM

From:

“Cheryl Louvaris” <[email protected]>

To:

“Barbara Cole” <[email protected]>

Mrs. Cole,

We received your request; unfortunately we have no correspondence that you request.  The only report we have is the incident report in the CAD system which is now public information.

Cheryl Louvaris
Executive Secretary

……………………………………………………….

Back to the meeting…The Vice Mayor took yet another opportunity to go off topic when the Chief mentioned he was on scene in 2 minutes…Ah Ha…McIntee said the BTSFutures said the Chief was not there for an hour…”That’s an absolute untruth.” said McIntee…The Chief said he was there and “I’m dealing in facts.”…But which facts…The Chief in the exchange with McIntee states he has dispatch arrival times odf AMR 3 minutes 8 seconds/ Perkins 2 minutes and McIntee 17 seconds….The VFD Incident Report states on page 2  for DP12 (Dep. Chief McIntee ) Apparatus Dispatch Date and Time 17:11:51/ Apparatus Arrival Date and Time 17:12:35 / Response time 0:00:15 ….For C12 (Chief Perkins) “Apparatus Dispatch Date and Time 17:12:29/ Apparatus Arrival date and time 17:12:37  The mistake of the Perkins arrive on scene time was the “Arrive facility date and time 18:08:29″…it was an honest mistake…..Back to Comm Dodd…(McIntee was interrupting throughout the item and he carried on his behavior the rest of the evening…Time for the gavel!)…. Comm. Dodd asked about suspending people for going into a building without permission from BSO…asking AMR what they would do…The response “administrative leave”…He felt that should be a lesson for Chief Perkins …This is where McIntee said he was first…by a minute to a minute and a half and was going in no ifs, ands or buts ….He went on to try and engage the BSO Chief to compare a policeman going into a fire…and felt quite invigorated when Chief Llerena said “that would be a judgment call he would have to make.”…but the caveat was “we don’t have any specific policy”…VFD does…as stated by the Chief…McIntee was not deterred by this mere “detail” …this is where he went for the “medal”…the “hero got for going into the Hyperbaric explosion scene…

No wanting to be left by the wayside Jimmy-boy could not resist…he asked Chief Perkins if he [Jimmy]was allowed to go in the water to save someone drowning..The Chief said “Yes, you are.”…Comm. Silverstone puffed up and said “Do I need permission from anybody?”.. The Chief said he did not…but he said “you do need to contact dispatch to let them know so we all know that you’re in there”…Aw shucks…Jim was not going to let this bravado go “Just for the record if I see somebody out there, I’m going out. If I hear somebody screaming  and I’m the first one there I’m gonna do something about it. If I can. I’ll make a judgment call obviously.”…You go Jimmy…you go!….

Commissioner Clottey had another chance to deal with a police issue… and she showed where she’s spending her free time lately (eeny….meany…miny…MOE)…saying it was unfortunate to “put a resident in our community through this.”…(The widow now lives in another town)…”But I do have a question of the Police Chief” (we held our breath, deja vue)… She followed the Vice Mayor’s lead about the May to July date on the investigative report…and it was explained by the BSO Chief as standard … Comm. Clottey said “I also have another question. When you have somebody commit suicide who’s not a public figure in any way shape or form is it common to put the family through something like this?…Chief Llerena just got a dose of “Cluelessness”…and answered “I’m not sure what you’re referring to?…Comm. Clottey “I mean the publicity is it common?”…Chief Llerena “That’s improper for me to comment on. That’s not part of the Sheriff’s office. In terms of the investigation it’s routine, it’s unfortunate but we do have to interview some of the victims and witnesses. That part of the investigation is very routine.”

Comm. Dodd stated a public statement containing the information about the investigative procedures might have alleviated the need for this exercise…the Mayor agreed but still trying to dodge the bullet of public opinion the Vice mayor went off  point by inferring Comm. Dodd wanted the in-depth report of the event…when what Comm. Dodd and the Mayor wanted was just what Mark Brown wanted. Some real  accountability and real action taken concerning a member of our town contracted public safety provider who breaks the rules….no judgment call just the rules in black and white….for as the Town Manger said the evening before… there is no gray…

What happens now…well, the Futures comes out on Friday…and you can bet the “Truth Deflector” will be ready, with laundry marker in hand …The Chief of the VFD who spent a long time one on one with Mark Brown after the exchange will be doing some fancy footwork to yet again deny his words to the “opposition” of the “Mc-Gang”…The Town might get my PRR back to me before next month and they may have more info than the VFD. …The Town Manager will continue to ignore this very real public safety issue…that effects us all and it should become a factor in her evaluation next Tuesday……

We have a rogue VFD Deputy Chief who believes he is above the VFD bylaws… and continues to believe his actions…are judgment calls that ONLY jeopardize him…we strongly disagree!….

Remember voters…..If your judgment call is to give him 4 more years with his BFF Jimmy-boy Silverstone (Batman and Robin)… Vice Mayor McIntee won’t just be content acting like the Police…he will be the Police in LBTS……  and that will jeopardize us all!….

more to come….

Post Division

Here’s The Scoop … Town Manager Colon Allows Herself … “My Constitutional Right To Freedom Of Speech” To Disparage Town Taxpayers …..

October 8, 2009 by Barbara

WHAT WOULD THE RANGE RIDERS SAY?….

Dear Readers …I wonder what the Florida League of Cities Range Riders  …a group of retired Town Managers would say about the LBTS Town Manager’s “report”  on two longtime residents received by the Commissioners on Oct. 5, 2009…It is a public record and it is certainly an insight to yet another reason why there is a real need to evaluate her….. and hold her accountable!

Excerpt 9/9/09 Public Comments… Edmund Malkoon…
“I personally have been the recipient of vandalism three times. The last occurrence was just over a month ago. In fact I know, based on evidence, a current member of this audience is responsible for carrying out at least one of those acts.”

Excerpt from 9/22/09 Public Comments…Edmund Malkoon….

“At the last public comments, I was very critical of the mishandling of public records by the Vice Mayor. I also spoke of witch hunts and scare tactics which are causing our citizens to think twice about speaking up. I gave an example of harassment & vandalism that occurred at our home.
What happened the next day shocked and astonished me and many members of the community. The Town Manager, in her continuous role of abusing power and going where she shouldn’t go, asked Mr. Olinzock, the Assistant Manager, to investigate my claims through the Police Department. Why did she not call me instead? At the time Chief Llarena wasn’t able to locate the claim and told him that he needed more information. Later that day, the Town Manager issued a false memo attempting to discredit me. Last Tuesday, I went and spoke with the chief myself. He was able to locate the CAD report and on the following day provided it to Mr. Olinzock.
Did another memo go out to correct the previous one?
Did the members of the commission receive a copy of the report provided?
The Town Manager has used town money and time for a personal vendetta. I ask the town manager: Who directed you to investigate this? Was it a disgruntled commissioner who didn’t like what I had to say? Here is another example of a type of dictatorship that is occurring in this town. Last I checked, we live in a country where freedom of speech is our constitutional right. It is not I who should be defending myself. Rather it is the citizens’ right to hold their elected officials responsible for any wrong doings.”

Mrs. Malkoon was not going to be intimidated by Esther Colon and stood her ground with the Town Manager telling her she [TM] “you have  too much time on your hands, you tangle where you don’t need to and with the wrong people!”…..

Excerpts TM Colon Town Manager Report 9/22/09…(prev. post)…

“The Manager then stated there was a “resident who made a comment a break-in or some incident in their house (neither comments were said in Mr. Malkoon’s public comments)… she said she “told John to please contact the police department because to me it’s rare that the police department does not respond to any kind of situation.” She said “this is no personal attack, this is no personal vendetta. I don’t know where these words are comin’ from, because I have…”and she stopped, looked at the Mayor and said “I’m trying to explain, but obviously nobody wants to listen, that’s okay. I’ll put the “facts” in writing. Why should I sit here and every time I sit here I get interrupted and there’s plates it’s”… “I will put the response in writing if this Commission does not disagree with me I’ll put the “facts” in writing.”

Now we find the  Town Manager’s “facts in writing” …took quite a different turn…At the 9/22/09 Comm. meeting she said she “told John to please contact the police department because to me it’s rare that the police department does not respond to any kind of situation.”…but in the Oct. 5th memorandum she states ” During the Public comments portion of the town hall meeting on 09/09/2009, Mr. Edmund Malkoon made a comment regarding three acts of vandalism at a resident’s home and more importantly, the insinuation that the offender was present in the audience, was a cause of concern for me. As Town Manager, I have not only the authority, but the moral responsibility to find out if a member of the audience in a public meeting committed acts of vandalism victimizing a town resident. This inquiry was pursued in the interest of public safety in order to identify any potential problems at future public meetings.”

(BC- Come on!…That was not the reason given on the dais!…And Mr. Malkoon could have told the police or the Manager if she called him who he felt the vandal was. The Town Manager’s obvious attempt to tie this issue in with the Mc-Furth BTSTimes Halloween edition and the “theme” of safety in Jarvis Hall smacks of politics…big time!)..

“I instructed staff to a public inquiry with the Police Department to find out the status of these reported crimes. The Police Department informed that no Police Reports had been filed documenting these misdemeanor offenses. Since these comments were directed at five members of the Dias, I saw fit to report to the Dias that there were no official Police reports filed documenting these acts of vandalism in order to dispel any unfounded fears. The memo certainly was not an attempt to discredit anyone and I fail to see how it is a falsehood or an abuse of power.”

(BC- the memo attempted to portray Mr. Malkoon’s assertions as false, and as Mr. Malkoon said himself, she and her staff made no attempt to contact him.)

“For purposes of clarification, I need to address Mr. Malkoon’s insinuation that there was a Police Report filed. During the 09/22/09 public comments, Mr. Malkoon states  “I went and spoke with the chief myself. He was able to locate the CAD report”…… “Did the members of the commission receive a copy of the report provided?”

( BC- The TM conveniently left out was the rest of the statement Mr. Malkoon made…between the above [where she put ….]  “and on the following day provided it to Mr. Olinzock. Did another memo go out to correct the previous one? “…Hmmm. The BSO Police Chief did indeed send over the CAD report to TM Colon and Asst. TM Olinzock the next day (9/16/09)…The Tm/Asst. TM did not distribute it then and did not distribute it with the “report” on Oct.5th to the Commissioners… A look at the comments from Mr. Malkoon show he used the terminology “the claim”, not Police Report no “insinuation”.)

” A CAD report is a “Computer Assisted Dispatch” report that documents a request for police service, it is not a Police Offense-Incident Report documenting the commission of a crime. What Mr. Malkoon has chosen to interpret as a Police Report was in fact his call for service on July 16th, 2009. The Police were dispatched to the complaint’s address, investigated the complaint and found no reasonable suspicion or grounds to produce and create a Police Offense-Incident report requiring investigation, documentation or follow up. To the best of my knowledge, there was and there is still no Police Offense-Incident report in existence.”

(BC- the report…supplied by the LBTS BSO….

“BROWARD SHERIFF’S OFFICE COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION-LAW ENFORCEMENT INCIDENT IN-HOUSE SUMMARY SHEET”

“Dispatch time 22:18:35/Primary Unit 13c3/Arrival time 22:22:29/ Primary 5282/ 5 MIN T.D.COMPL ADV UNK SUBJ WENT AROUND THE COMPLS HOUSE AND WAS BANGING ON HER ANS HER SONS BEDROOM WINDOWS ON THE E/S OF THE HOUSE…COMPL ADV SHE DIDNT SEE ANYONE…NFI/ ICIDENT TYPE CHANGED FROM 131:SUSPICIOUS INCIDENT TO :144 INFORMATION/ DISPOSITION#1 CHANGED FROM—-TO B:NO WRITTEN REPORT”)

(BC-ALERT….CONDUCT UNBECOMING FOR A TOWN MANAGER…below…)

“Finally, I would like to address the public comments portion of the town hall meeting of 09/22/2009 when Mrs. Rosalie Malkoon made a comment of accusations of my attempts to discredit and intimidate her. What possible motive or vendetta is there to cause me to intimidate any resident in this community? I am not running for office and I have no political aspirations; if I am allowed to express my constitutional right to freedom of speech, I must conclude that Mr. and Mrs. Malkoon’s fears are unfounded. I should follow Mrs. Malkoon’s advice and consider the source.”

EC/mi (no signature)..

BC- This alone should be grounds for dismissal…”if I am allowed to express my constitutional right to freedom of speech, I must conclude that Mr. and Mrs. Malkoon’s fears are unfounded. I should follow Mrs. Malkoon’s advice and consider the source.”…OH MY GOD…NO!…

You, Madam Manager are an employee of the Residents and taxpayers of this Town… and are to act accordingly!

As far as you discrediting and intimidating…for what reason?…The very reason that when the election is over and the Mc-Gang is replaced…you are out of a job!…

Monday October 12 at 4 pm is the Town Manager’s Annual Performance Review…any mention of such behavior from the commission on this?…. Don’t hold your breath…it’s gonna be a “whitewash”…Just get your scorecards out…and add it to the list of reasons to vote in new Commissioners in March!….

more to come…

Post Division

Here’s The Scoop ….LBTS 9/22/09 Regular Commission Meeting Agenda ….. Nope, Can’t Wash It Off …

September 19, 2009 by Barbara

THE BROOM BOYS CANNOT CHANGE THOSE SPOTS….

Dear Readers…The September 22,2009 Agenda is out and it shows that the “Broom -Boys” pre-election strategy is out of sight…out of mind…For the 2nd time Vice Mayor McIntee has not put a single item on the agenda…This time his BFF (best friends forever) Commissioner Jimmy Silverstone has followed his lead (surprise, surprise)……Perhaps they really think if they keep themselves off the dais and out of the spotlight the voters will have short term memories when the March election rolls around…NO CHANCE!… Their records are long…their misdeeds are recorded …and their spots are too numerous to wash away…They face some very stiff competition from some newcomers….and a growing Unite Our Town organization along with 1 in-town local NEWSpaper, one neighboring local newspaper  and this site all armed with their collection of past articles and posts for reminding and informing the voters of the reality of what has transpired from the “Broom Boys”  4 year term!….

TOWN OF LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA
TOWN COMMISSION
REGULAR MEETING
AGENDA
Jarvis Hall
4501 Ocean Drive
Wednesday, September 22, 2009
7:00 P.M.

1. CALL TO ORDER, MAYOR ROSEANN MINNET

2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG

3. INVOCATION – Reverend George Hunsaker

4. PRESENTATIONS

BC- last meeting we were overloaded with presentations…this time there are none…poor administrative planning…

5. PUBLIC COMMENTS

6. REPORTS

a. Development Services Monthly Report – August 2009 (Assistant Town Manager Olinzock)

BC- visitors 482/informational calls rec’d 490/ verbal warnings 29/notices of violation 60/citations issued 0/ Spec Master cases 19/complaints investigated 37/re-inspections 136/lien searches 15/zoning reviews 61/ final zoning inspections 26/ bus.tax licenses inspections 5/ PRR 0/ fire permit inspections 16/ fire permit apps & resubs 17/ special event app reviews 3/ new bus. research 0/ courtesy letters 0/ building permits issued 116/ Some descriptions-no single family rental violations/1 illegal sign/Town Atty req. for copies of codes and variance file/staff printed over 80 sea turtle disorientation report complaints/prepared a history report and pre-hearing inspection forms for Bel Air sewers for code hearing/drafted courtesy letter for the final orders regarding shed and setback/STAFF ASSISTED 6 businesses with licensing requirements for custom made apparel (see previous post..bus. given verbal warning & complied/ met with Finance dept. for Town addresses for State master list/staff drafted NEW Complaint Form and submitted for approval/performed a backup of the occupational license data and completed a system rebuild/researched cases and drafted memo on sea turtle lighting issue/staff sent notification to resident with illegal July 4th firewks display…

b. Municipal Services Monthly Report – August 2009 (Assistant Town Manager Olinzock)

BC- Some interesting hours…”Building Maint”- PUBLIC SAFETY COMPLEX- 8-11 9 hrs/8-12 3.5hrs/8-20 1,50 hrs/ 8-20 1.50 hrs/ 8/-26 8 hrs/8-26 12hrs…”Off SITE COMPLEX” 8-25 14hrs/8-27 11 hrs….”Wash and Clean service”…”off site complex” 8-5 3 hrs….”Ground Maint.” Chamber 8-3 6.5 hrs/ 8-12 4 hrs…”Off Site Complex” 8-13 6 hrs/ 8-14 6 hrs/ 8-21 15 hrs…”OFF SITE COMPLEX”…warehouse in the west or?…

c. BSO Police Monthly Report – August 2009 (Chief Llerena)

BC-Cases Reported  (2008-2009 )Auto theft … (12-8 )33.3%/ (2-7) burg. business 250.o%/(24-35)  burg. convey 45.8%/( 34-12)  burg res. -64.7%/ (6-1) burg struct. -83.3%/(1-0)  foreciable sex -100%/( 0-0)  homicide 0.0%/ ( 3-2) robbery -33.3%/ ( 26-19) theft-grand -26.9%/ ( 28-32) theft petit 14.3% /totals-14.7%

BC- NO  FINANCE /VFD/AMR  AUGUST MONTHLY REPORT…Hmmmm….

7. PUBLIC SAFETY DISCUSSION

BC- perhaps the “little Chief”  Perkins has come up with the “bargain” price the VFD wants to sell the 102′ ladder truck to the Town for?…

At the 9/9/09 Commission meeting Town Manger Colon told the Mayor that the Chief had the ladder truck on that agenda because the VFD wanted the Town to buy it from them at a reduced price! The VFD bought the 1989 truck for $150,000 on their own…and now they want to “sell it” to the Town for less?…I’d call that being “fiscally irresponsible”…

One story being told by the VFD for buying the truck was to use it in Pompano Beach…..for mutual aid…In the Sentinel this week the Pompano Beach Fire Chief said Pompano was going to purchase their own 100′ ladder truck..OOPS!…Add to that when Chief Perkins answered Comm. Dodd about the condos in the north and using the new truck… he admitted the truck would need to stay on A1A…because it was too big to go onto the condo’s property!…OUCH!…Perhaps, a reduced “fire” sale of the truck to the Town was really …buyers remorse?…

8. TOWN MANAGER REPORT

a. Staff discussion

BC- No backup but this writer wonders…if the Town Manager is going to talk of “morale” or make more false accusation of “instigating” going on when a certain “blogger” attends RFPs or make public records requests…PRRs are the only way to get answers from the Town, (even though the time of receipt is still not “reasonable” according to the Fl. statute)…if you aren’t in the Town Manager’s good graces…and positioned for “fast track” responses as recently seen with the Vice Mayor’s flood drainage problem, (the Aug. Devel.report shows a change for the complaint form is coming..Hmmm)…Comm. Clotteys’ concert series and Bel Air sign Resolution…and the Furth’s events…(see below)…Perhaps she is going to speak about the New Business item put on by Comm. Dodd for a part-time procurement position…either way..with no backup…she opens herself up to speculation..Hmmm….there will be a “staff discussion “…but not a  Town Manager discussion…(prev. post)…

9. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

BC- OOPS no minutes!..What happened to the 2nd half or July 28,2009?…MIA minutes…shades of the former Town Clerk?…The “2-Hats” were all over her…for being remiss in her duties…but the present Town Clerk… gets a pass…

10. ORDINANCES – PUBLIC COMMENTS

1. Ordinances 1st Reading

2. Ordinances 2nd Reading
11. COMMISSIONER COMMENTS

BC- will the “Broom-Boys” speak? Will it be a litany of the great things they have done for this town..VFD..VFD…VFD….and Jimmy’s “I made a promise to myself” and then going after the public comments made this meeting?… leaving Comm. Silverstone…”black and blue”…per his budget statement on 9/14/09!….

12. CONSENT AGENDA

a. Commission approval of Special Event Permit Application for Athena By The Sea and 101 Ocean “Music By The Sea” Event, every Saturday night, 4:00 PM till 11:00 PM, October 1, 2009 thru October 10, 2010 (Assistant Town Manager Olinzock)

BC- The “Gang of 3” made it so the Athena needs to re-up their Saturday night permit every 3 month…which means they re-up and then they prepare to get the paperwork in to re-up again…a waste of staff time and the time of the Commission…it needs to be put back to 1 year!…

b. Commission approval of Special Event Permit Application for Jazz on the Square – Village Pump and Grille “Jazz on the Square” Event, every Friday night 4:30 PM till 11:30 PM, October 16, 2009 thru October 15, 2010 (Assistant Town Manager Olinzock)

BC- Ditto ….make it 1 year!…

c. Commission approval of Special Event Permit Application for “Christmas By-The-Sea 2009”, a Town sponsored event, Wednesday, December 9, 2009, 1:30 PM till 11:00 PM. Co-Applicants are LBTS Chamber of Commerce, Aruba Beach Café, Village Grille, 101 Ocean, Athena – $5,000 (Assistant Town Manager Olinzock)

BC- Looks like the Chamber gets a reprieve this year now that the “Broom Boys” realized they don’t want to continue to go after the Chamber if they want 4 more years…No Problem…..if they win, they can pick up where they left off!…The $5,000 from the Town is even included …imagine that…And maybe now the Asst. Town Manager will back off …after making them jump through countless…ridiculous hoops just because he could…Did Olinzock ever work for the DMV?…

d. Commission approval of Special Event Permit Application for “Halloween 2009”, a Town sponsored event, Saturday, October 31, 2009, Waiver of Code requirement of submission sixty (60) days before the special event – $4,000 (Assistant Town Manager Olinzock)

BC- This one is a classic “case in point” of the “Town Hall East” Coordinators and their 2009 reluctant Commission sponsor,Vice Mayor McIntee doing as they please compared to the 3 applicants above… It waives the 60 day requirement  for submission….and  a look at the application…  written by McIntee? (or employee)…Marc is written as “Mark” Furth …and no information is included..”TBA” (to be announced)…stated the same way as last year… and “TBD” (to be decided) is among the empty pages…a BSO empty page report that says “after Oct. 1st?” at the top……and there’s a copy of the 2008 application…Yes, it’s a “Town” event but the rules should still apply…and we hear the other 3 applicants were not allowed to use their prior applications ….allowing them to add only an updated addendum… What happened to “following the rules?”…….Look for Jarvis Hall to again be shut down for at least 2 weeks!…

e. Commission to approve waiving of right-of-way permit fees as noted in the attached letter from the City of Fort Lauderdale for replacement of water mains (Assistant Town Manger Olinzock)

BC- a $360,000 Fort Lauderdale project for the Galt and Imperial Lane…Fort Laud. funded…we just give them a pass on the fees…

f. Commission approval of Broward County Community Bus Service Interlocal Agreement FY09-FY10 (Clerk White)

BC- this is for the Pelican Hopper…This was never brought back to the Commission before the budget…The only time it was discussed at length …the Commission said if it was going to cost us money…forget about it…But the Town Manager had other ideas and it went forward…in the budget…with a County workshop…and here we are…It would still be cheaper for the taxpayers to send a car for whomever wanted to use bus in our town…Many say the VFD has plenty of vehicles, perhaps they could be our LBTS “Community ” transportation…

g. Commission approval of twenty-five (25) additional parking permits for use by the Woman’s Club of Lauderdale-By-The-Sea, valid Wednesday only from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM and the third (3rd) Thursday of every month from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM expiring September 30, 2010 (Clerk White)

BC- It’s that time of year a gain…asked and answered…should be no discussion…

13. RESOLUTION – “Public Comments”

14. QUASI JUDICIAL PUBLIC HEARINGS

15. OLD BUSINESS

a. Discussion and/or action regarding draft Resolution 2009-23 concerning street names in Bel Air (Commissioner Clottey) Deferred at the September 10, 2009 Commission meeting

BC- This one just might take a while…we hear the Town Manager is none too pleased with the board of Bel Air…and even though she [TM] “fast tracked” this project with a draft Resolution prepared by the Town Atty. before any discussion by the Commission…she [TM] was peeved (we hear) when she was called on her dais statements that she had not received the complete street name package and the signatures required…Bel Air board member Edmund Malkoon came to the podium to say he was told it was delivered on the day before..The Town Manager said it might have gone to her subordinates…an exchange took place (we hear) after the meeting and the VP of the board watched the Bel Air portion of the meeting online and disagreed with the Town Manger’s statement…He sent an e-mail on 9/12/09 to the Town Manager, Commissioners and the Bel Air board and said the following ” I would like to make clear the documentation that WAS hand delivered to Esther Colon on Tuesday afternoon in preparation for Wednesday evening’s commission meeting”…adding what the packet contained…all the required materials…he ended it with “Esther, feel free to contact me if you do not have the documents delivered personally to you on Tuesday. Next time I hand deliver documents I will insist on a signature accepting the forms.”…Well, them is fightin’ words…for this Town Manager who proceeded to send a memo to Commissioner Clottey on 9/14/09 with copies to the Commission,the  Bel Air board along with Town Clerk White, Asst. TM Olinzock and (pseudo) Development Director Bowman…”I am in receipt of another e-mail from Mr Saindon inferring information requested and/or received was not passed on to the Commission on a  timely basis”…She then stated memos for PRR on the zip codes and the Bel Air Street names…We hear that when the VP of the board handed over the packet at the front desk the Town Manager was standing there and took it!..OUCH!…Now the Town Manager after making her “fast track” Resolution decided to send a 1st class letter to all Bel Air residents about the signs and the boards decision …”giving notification”…it was sent with the draft resolution and a map…WOW!…This writer asked if the Town Manager did this for the Bel Air entryway signs…the answer was “NO!”…Hmmmm……..This one should be interesting…

16. NEW BUSINESS

a. Commission nomination of Florida Municipal Insurance Trust (FMIT) – Nomination must be accompanied by a resume or biographical sketch reflecting nominee’s background and qualifications to serve (Clerk White)

BC-added on the backup…”not mandatory” it’s an “oversee” board for the pooled self-insurance program for local gov. ins….Hmmm. maybe we had it wrong …not an oversight board…we want and oversee VFD board…any chance we’d get one with the change…NAH!….
b. Commission approval of amendment to Choice Environmental Services Agreement (Assistant Town Manager Olinzock)

BC- The amendment is only to address a 1 cubic dumpster …with a cost residential per month with 2 x wkly pickups $199.80/ Commercial  $220.17…It still offers no relief to those who have too many garbage cans…which the Town Manger and the Commission need to address… allowing for the owners to decide how many they really need…The Town makes no money off the cans…so why keep hurting the residents with the increase cost?…CHA-CHING just remember residents/ property owners in March…the touted lowered taxes…don’t mean nothing…when you look at the Town Manager free fall in new …heavy duty fees!…

c. Discussion and/or action by Town Commission to provide Resolution to approve encroachments existing on public property (Assistant Town Manager Olinzock)

1) 4404 Bougainvilla Drive
2) 263 Commercial Blvd

BC- Did the Vice Mayor do a late night “tour” as “Code Enforcer” and have the Town go after those “encroaching” on the public right-of- way?…Sure looks that way from the memo on Sept. 3rd in the backup…A resolution needs to be made to allow the status quo for a breezeway with a few tables on Commercial and a barrel with some flowers… WOW!…Cha-Ching…businesses,  you too are getting “black and blue”  with “black and white” Town Manager directed code enforcement and fees…fees…fees…

d. Discussion and/or action regarding supporting the Town Manager’s request for a (part time?) Procurement Officer needed to handle RFP’s in a professional manner (Commissioner Dodd)

BC- The Town Manager being characteristically snide after she stopped reading the RFPs and not in any hurry to return to the practice…No vote was taken to fix the purchasing manual threw out the “procurement ” card…(her scare tactic for personnel costs)… Comm. Dodd picked it up and decided it might be worth it…especially with the lack of judgment we have seen in the RFP/BID process done by Town staff…

The Town Manger directed her staff to do a comparison…in her usual procurement manner …apples to oranges…The backup shows procurement managers for Davie/Sunrise/BSO/ Coral Springs/ Davie/ Hollywood/ LauderLakes/ Lauderhill/ Oakland Park/ Plantation/ Pompano Beach/Tamarac…the cost for full time salaries…min. $35,000- max. $90,000 per yr/ A chart …”Are Bid/RFP amounts “read aloud”….RFP only Plantation/ Bids only Davie-Coral Springs-Hollywood-LauderLakes-Miramar/ Both read aloud Lauderhill-Oakland Park -Pompano Beach- Tamarac…It’s  definitely worth it to hire a competent procurement manager to deal with the RFP/Bids and for the Commission to now make a motion for the change in the purchasing manual and an ordinance….which many of these towns have as well!

e. Discussion and/or action to change the Commission’s organizational rules to allow the Mayor to make and second motion’s in her own right (Commissioner Dodd)

BC- A little CIC history….It was a dirty thing to do and I am sorry to say I was there …I knew they were going to do it and did not say a word, I was complicit …The Mc-Gang wanted to try and do anything possible to embarrass the new Mayor…They planned and enacted to stop her from making motions and to move the Town Atty. down the dais so the Mayor would not have any help!….Well the Mayor has done very well without the Town Atty. by her side and now the ability to make motions should be returned to her ….for 3 reasons…1- it should never have been done/ 2- it is the right thing to do to rectify a bad deed/ 3- to stop the Vice mayor from further embarrassing himself when she hands the gavel to him for the next 6 months!…My apologies Madam Mayor…

f. Discussion and/or action regarding communication from Hannelore Heiden (Mayor Minnet)

Bc- This woman is asking for some relief …she has been the recipient of a myriad of code violations over quite a long time…..and all of it has grown beyond her capability to comply…This one puts the Commission between a rock and a hard place…but…election time is coming…so?….

17. TOWN ATTORNEY REPORT

18. ADJOURNMENT

FINISH TIME …TAKING BETS?….

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