Mayor Nancolas will present the Oppenheimer Development Groups latest effort at selling citizens of Caldwell a new city hall at the April 19th meeting of the city council. Pretty pictures abound in this latest effort to indenture the property taxpayers of Caldwell. The Master Framework Plan does not go into much detail about how all of this is going to be paid for but there is a reference to Build America Bonds mixed in with all the other financing schemes.
THE GUARDIAN attended a service club presentation by the Oppenheimer Group on a new City Hall complex about a year ago. This iteration had a price tag of around $30 million. City Finance Director Eljay Waite disagrees with that project and the costs. So, what will it be and what will be the justification for a new city hall? The last time Mayor Nancolas was asked this question he indicated the HVAC systems in the current facilities were getting old along with some other stuff. Short answer is we really don't need a new city hall.
We now have a clearer understanding of why the downtown ordinance was changed to allow the TVCC building (cost $9.5 million) to be built next to the creek. Oppenheimer MFR shows a new city hall between the TVCC building and Blaine Street. The new and improved Master Framework Report has lots of pretty pictures and diagrams.
We are now into the 13th year of the Nancolas administration in Caldwell and downtown Caldwell is not showing many signs of life. Indeed, we are seeing an out migration of businesses falling by the wayside. King's is now closed and the South West District Health Offices looking to close in the near term and head out of downtown Caldwell. Urban renewal will expire in 2014 and just what will have been renewed. The creek got uncovered but building structures close to the creek has made the uncovering a moot issue. The view is visually obstructed with the TVCC "Big Box" and the Gazebo with more to come to obscure the view.
Stay tuned for more.... we are all in for the hard sell on a new city hall. Urban Renewal can now issue debt instruments without a vote of the people, let's see if they actually do this to property taxpayer's without their consent.
I'm sure Caldwell's city leaders are taking note of what is happening in Nampa with Urban Renewal bond for the the new police station and soon a libary. Mayor Tom Dale and most of the city council apparently feel that the tax payers job is to sit down , shut up and pay the bills. they certainly don't want to take a chance by bringing these matters to a vote.
ReplyDeleteThe M. Mafia at it again!
ReplyDeleteOppenheimer Developement is the monkey on the back of the Caldwell property tax payer.
ReplyDeleteJust like a drug dealer hanging around a school yard selling crack, heroin, and weed, to the children, Oppenheimer lurks in the shadows trying to give Mayor Nancolas anothern fix. Oppenheimer is the buzzard cleaning the bones of "Old Caldwell". CALDWELL DOES NOT NEED A NEW $30.000.000.00 CITY HALL! The grapevine says Oppenheimer is getting 8% interest for financing the TVCC building give away. Oppenheimer has found the GOLDEN GOOSE in Caldwell. Wake up Caldwell taxpayer, your paying for it!
What can we do about this? There is no way that "they" can spend 30 million without our consent, right?
ReplyDeleteEditor Note:
ReplyDeleteRecent Idaho Supreme Court decision in Rexburg will allow cities to issue revenue bonds for virtually any amount with no voter oversight.
For example: Mayor Tom Dale and the Nampa Development Corporation will be issuing revenue bonds with no vote of the people for $68 Million and there will be no vote on any of this. All taxpayers in Canyon County will be paying for Nampa's new Police/Public Safety Building and a New Library in downtown Nampa.
Caldwell can issue revenue bonds for a new city hall, TVCC or anything they wish with no vote of the people.
This is the beauty of Urban Renewal Law in Idaho. It is used to get around voter oversight and property taxes is used to pay the bonds off.
I would suggest that anyone who disagrees with the mayor and city council in Nampa refuseing to bring this matter to a vote contact the mayors office and ask why we are being denied a vote. Mr. Dale's position is that he is protecting our constitutional rights . I guess I am laboring under the handicap of a public school education because I donot understand this concept. They have already spent enough money denying the vote to have paid for an election.
ReplyDeleteTHIS IS WHAT YOU CAN DO
ReplyDeleteGET A BLACK MARKER, CUT A LARGE PIECE OF CARDBOARD, USE LARGE LETTERS, HAND PRINT,
"CALDWELL DOES NOT NEED AND CAN'T AFFORD A $30,000,OOO.00 CITY HALL, MAYOR NANCOLAS"
GET A ROLL OF DUCT TAPE, TAPE IT TO THE BACK OF YOUR TRUCK OR CAR, DRIVE AROUND CALDWELL.
IF YOU CAN'T DO THIS, THEN GET YOUR CHECK BOOK OUT AND GET READY TO PAY UP WHEN YOUR PROPERTY TAXES GO UP TO PAY FOR THE
OPPENHEIMER/NANCOLAS TAJ MA CITYHALL!
$30 MILLION DOLLARS?
$30 MILLION DOLLARS?
ARE THERE GOING TO BE MINK LINED TOILET SEATS?
What arrogance: Garrett is already picking out the wallpaper and the leatherette lounge chairs for his new corner office. I operated a business in Caldwell for thirty years, had to suspend opeations a couple of years ago, due to the building crunch and resulting lack of revenue. Last year due to reappraisals of commercial and industrial properties, my tax bills for hanging on to this property increased by 50%. Caldwell has the highest city mill levy in the state, much higher than Boise or Meridian. I am going to have a difficult time liquidating my property positions in Caldwell because of this, and liquidate I will at the next best opportunity. I have really lost my stomach for Caldwell, and if old opportunities reaccure will look to locate somwhere east of Ada county. I used the annonomus feature because as you can see I still have a few dogs in the fire in Caldwell and these guys scare me.
ReplyDeleteAlso I saw four 8500 gal diesel tanks head out of Caldwell last week from Simplot's trucking terminal on Kit Ave. I wonder what that means and wonder if they don't have my mindset. A quick drivethru of that area shows a disturbing number of For Sale signs on both sides of Simplot Blvd. After the last city election reaffirming these clowns, I have lost any hope for the town I have spent more than a half a century in.
If Oppenheimer's mayor of Caldwell put a new $30,000,000.00 million dollar City Hall to a vote, it would be defeated.
ReplyDeleteOppenheimer's mayor of Caldwell has a grandiose sense of himself, and is being used as a pawn in Oppenheimer's continued fleecing of Caldwell.
Spending $30,000,000.00 on a new, unneeded City Hall, will only raise taxes and although you couldn't tell by looking at it, Caldwell's property taxes are the highest in Idaho.
This high tax rate will kill private development in Caldwell.
Caldwell will probably end up with a $30,000,000.00 "White Elephant" City Hall.
In the future years, when the "White Elephant" is done, and sits majestically in the same broken down, downtown that exists now, many people that mistakenly took exit 27, or exited, looking for gas, cigarettes, or a Coke, will surely ask them selves, "What were these people thinking?"
gar·rote or gar·rotte (g-rt, -rt)
ReplyDeleten.
a. Strangulation, especially in order to rob.
Enough said!
If people are dissatisfied with the current Caldwell city administration then next time we have an election find some "QUALIFIED" challengers. Last time our mayoral choice was between the incumbent or a 20-something kid who moved into Caldwell less than a month before the filing deadline and had no experience whatsoever. The challengers in the city council races were also a joke. There must be some mature, intelligent, educated people in town who participate in the process, attend council meetings and have reasonable ideas on improving our city. Let's hear from you!
ReplyDeleteSo are you saying the current incumbents are highly educated? Ha!That made my day.....
ReplyDeleteThe city council races were close in 2009 with one challenger coming within 100 votes and another losing by a margin of 250 votes. An educated person knows that it is difficult to beat an entrenched incumbent politician. I would say that if the city council races hadn't included LONG-term incumbents, people would be singing a different tune. It must be comfortable being an appointed incumbent, i.e. Rob Hopper, Jim Dakan, and Jim Blacker. It also helps with your chances for "re-election."
ReplyDeleteWell the current city council does know how to sit up there and play computer games at city council meetings. And in general, they are not paying attention to what is going on in Caldwell.
ReplyDeleteWe are now into the 13th year of Mayor Nancolas telling us how great things are in Caldwell and how wonderful things are doing in downtown. If the Post Office moves out of town there will be little reason for people to go downtown.
Does anybody know when the Southwest District Health Offices will pull out of downtown?
What everyone fails to see is, is this IS Caldwell's leadership! The people of Caldwell (Well not this guy!) voted these guys in. And to the person above, we had "QUALIFIED" challengers. So what if he was 20 something, at least he would not be looking to build a $30,000,000.00 City Hall right next to the Urban Renewal project that is going to cost around $6,500,000.00. Nothing like $36,500,000.00 worth of buildings in downtown Caldwell without anything else nice around!!! This will NOT, and I will repeat myself, WILL NOT be the "Catylst" for downtown revival! We are being fleeced by the wolf in sheeps clothing. And most of Caldwell doesn't care because Garrett is "A Nice Guy", that makes a great Mayor doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteOh yea, Caldwell has the HIGHEST Unemployment of any major city in Idaho, how are all these Banks (they are the ones that own most of the homes in Caldwell now anyways) going to pay for the new City Hall? If you voted for them you deserve what you get, I won't EVER vote for these arrogant, self centered, sons (oppss stop there) people ever again!!!!
Where would a person find information on recalling a Mayor and/or city councilmen? Is this something that starts in the City Clerks office, or is this a County Clerks authority?
ReplyDeleteWould be good to be able to vote out a Mayor and a couple new councilmen,in November.
This bunch of political cronies are running amuck with the tax payers money. Better yet, put this obscene City Hall deal to a vote and let the tax payers decide if they want to pay for the "WHITE ELEPHANT" on the banks of Indian Creek. The cronies have found a way through "Urban Renewal", to take away your right to choose and your right to vote.
Garrote Nancolas and Barack Obama are two peas in a pod then it comes to taking away Americans freedoms!
What we lack is True Leadership! One who seeks to find more great leaders to fulfill the goals of the whole, not their own selfish agenda. No one should ever hold an office seat for so long. We need to establish term limits in local elections. TERM LIMITS!
ReplyDeleteThe total price tag for the Oppenheimer Master Framework Plan is listed at $32 million in the back part of the study. This includes a 38,000 square foot city hall project and other items.
ReplyDeleteWho asked for a new city hall? And where does the Mayor and Team Garret think this money will come from. They have spent all the Urban Renewal monies and are now at a high level of concern about where the money already committed will come from to pay for ear mark projects.
Team Garret has had 13 long years to get downtown figured out and to date we have a net loss of economic activity in our city.
Oh great Paul, now the city has plans to ear mark all the people in Caldwell? Do they plan on gelding the males? Will this ear marking and gelding apply to all citizens or only the property tax payer? Garrote, and his mostly self annointed council, already made me feel ear marked when I paid my property tax December 20, 2009 and all the rest of the past December 20th's! Will this excuse me or shall I get ready for a new round of inqisition methods.
ReplyDeleteIf these tokers, who must obviosly be smoking something, would only put the unneeded $32,000,000.00 city hall to a vote, the tax payer, would decide. IT'S THE TAXPAYERS MONEY, NOT THE TOKERS!
(apologies to Brewer & Shiply's 1971 song "One Toke Over The Line"
Untill 2 years ago I owned a number of rental properties in Nampa. As the property taxes have risen we have sold them and invested the money elsewhere. It does not make sense to invest in an area where your cost are going up and your income is going down . By the way as a rental property which pays the highest assesment rate is sold and becomes a owner occupied property the tax the county collects is reduced by about 40%.
ReplyDeleteHow would you like to pay a fraction of what you do based on the market value of your property. Own so called farm ground, such as the property east of the car dealerships on Garrity.The highest valuation for so called farm ground in Canyon County is $1100 per acre.I wonder if they would like to sell it for 5 times that amount?
ReplyDeleteBob,
ReplyDeleteThat's because we don't have anyone in local government that think past their budget needs or should I say "Wants". No financial or economic impact is ever considered. No wonder we are in trouble!
Hey Bob,
ReplyDeleteThe Idaho legislature eliminated property tax on farm machinery and most real estate improvements, a few years ago. The Idaho farmer/legistlator, takes real good care of themselves when it comes to their real estate and farm equipment! When they passed the sales tax in 1965, they also took care of the TV stations, railroads, and newspapers. Apparently they didn't want any bad publicity. I don't have any idea why UPRR and BNRR got a pass.
On Old Highway 30, farm ground went from $400.00 an acre to $35,000.00 when a subdivision was put in. Now, instead of growing weeds and a little corn, the empty subdivison just grows weeds.
Class of 65!
Hey "Anonymous." Just what exactly do you mean by "M. Mafia." Why don't you just say what you're thinking? If the "M." you are referring to is what I expect it is, you're assertion is worse than the other drivel that exists on this blog and the comments posted here.
ReplyDeleteAnd Paul, for a change, why don't you post one of my comments, eh?
Here's the m. Mafia:
ReplyDeleteGet a clue.
About m:Mafia
"Embrace your inner gangster! Join m:Mafia to fight your friends and do jobs for the Don. Case, Fix and Enforce your way to the top."
http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=85221201389
Times have changed. i think a lot of people wouldn't get involved in politics because they thought there was no way to fight city hall. we are finding new tools, there are ways to fight them and win but only if the people use the power they have and stand up as a group! Rarely does anyone go to the meetings and protest what they are doing so they get to do whatever they want to. It is we the people who have to stand up and hold the officials accountable. Not many people want to take the time!! Absolute power corrupts absolutely...and we the people gave them absolute power by giving them our money and not supervising them. It is easy to sit back and critisize - stand up and say something and make a change. get together with these grass roots groups or your own neighbors and friends and find out how you can help. If you don't help - then just like those who don't vote; you have no right to complain!
ReplyDeleteWhen is this City Hall/Retail to be constructed anyways? How they going to do it with a giant pointless parking lot in front of TVCC?
ReplyDeleteThe speculation floating around town is the TVCC digs will be our new city hall when TVCC clears out. With State budgets imploding right and left it is anybodys guess if their Oregon budget will necessitate folding up shop in Caldwell.
ReplyDeleteEven that is suspect given they are there rent free and got all the furniture for free as well. They send about 20% of their revenue generated here in Caldwell back to the great state of Oregon to use as they see fit. Councilman Dakan and the Mayor call this a win-win situation for Caldwell. THE GUARDIAN sees it a "they win-Caldwell taxpayers take it in the backside" come property tax time each year.