Nampa Mayor Tom Dale should consult with Caldwell Mayor Garret Nancolas to really get into the thick of things on how to spend public funds and really look like the good guy. Mayor Nancolas has a Community Relations Project Fund in his budget for $30,000.00.
These funds are disbursed for such things as sponsoring the Chamber of Commerce luncheons at $500 a pop, three times in 2010, to the DARE girls for a night out at the YMCA in 2010 for $348.00 and for the DARE Boys' night out to the YMCA for $348.00.
These are just a few examples of how this fund is used. There are other donations of sponsorship's of all kinds. Public funds that were spent by this fund in 2010 were over $20,000.00.
I am not saying that funds were spent illegally, but according to former State Attorney General Wayne Kidwell in case No. 78-44 issued on Dec. 19, 1978, his opinion seems to say that this could be an improper use of funds.
I guess what appalled me the most was the Chamber of Commerce accepting these funds. I naively thought that they stood for free enterprise and less government intervention.
I see in reading a recent edition of the paper that they are going to team up with the city and do studies on how to attract more commercial enterprise for Caldwell.
It is very evident that since 1998 the chamber and our city elected officials seem to have been asleep. All you need to do is compare the commercial progress that the city of Nampa has made in comparison with what Caldwell has done in this same time, and I think you can get a pretty good picture of what I am talking about.
D. L. Maitland, Caldwell, Idaho
In my opinion the Chamber of Commerce has traditionally had a Curio Shop mentality toward business growth in Caldwell. That hasn't worked so it has bedded itself with the city government and the likes of CEDC and CEURA to achieve their narrow goals.
ReplyDeleteI operated a business in Caldwell that employed a number of people for many years but could never see how this organization earned its salt, other than being a nice club for the "beads and trinkets" crowd that gets lunch on the mayor and slapped up for dues for not much better.
The proof that the electorate of Caldwell is its own worst enemy is offered above.
ReplyDeleteIN SPADES
Garret Nancolas has created the further demise of downtown Caldwell in his tenure as Mayor. He has failed as a civic leader to take advantage of the fact Caldwell is the County Seat of Canyon County. He has failed in adherence to his own comprehensive plan requiring government offices to locate in downtown Caldwell. Think about how Caldwell would look today if: we had the SW Dist. Health Dept, the Idaho Job Service building, the Veterans Clinic, the senior citizens housing project at Linden and Chicago all located in downtown. Too much Yaba-Yaba and not enough results with a long view of what needed to happen is where we are today. We must all like it as he keeps getting reelected.
ReplyDeleteGarottes slush fund of $30,000.00 is taxpayers providing Garotte funds for the betterment of Garotte, not the betterment of Caldwell or Caldwell's taxpayers. Garotte is strangling the Caldwell taxpayer with a music wire garotte, and the taxpayers eyes are bugging out like Luka Brassi's in "The Godfather" scene when Luka was sent to "sleep with the fishes". Our Garotte is sending Caldwell to sleep with the fishes".
ReplyDelete