Incompetent Mayor Sarah Palin and the boondoggle Wasilla Sports Complex

[RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE]

typical tax and spend republicon

Sarah Palin was mayor of Wasilla from 1996 to 2002. Her record during that time can tell us a lot about her. The biggest deal during her tenure is perhaps the construction of the sports complex that was built on someone Else's land. She had to raise sales taxes to pay for it. The whole episode of incompetence, arrogance, and lack of respect for the law is exactly the style of governance that we've seen from Bush and co in the past seven years.

The $15 million multi-use indoor ice arena was supposed to be her legacy as the mayor. This was a very big deal for a city that had a budget of $3.9 million in 96 (increased to $5.8 million in 2002). Although the city subsidy has gone down from the initial $600k per year to about $125k per year, the sports complex still does not break even.

The biggest problem, however, was the process of how the land was acquired. The whole thing was handled with exceptional incompetence and arrogance, ultimately costing the city an extra $1.7 million in settlement and court cost for a piece of land that would have costed only $125k if they had handled it right from the beginning in 1998.

This involved a developer by the name of Gary Lundgren. Here is The $15 million multi-use indoor ice arena was supposed to be her legacy as the mayor. This was a very big deal for a city that had a budget of $3.9 million in 96 (increased to $5.8 million in 2002). Although the city subsidy has gone down from the initial $600k per year to about $125k per year, the sports complex still does not break even.

The biggest problem, however, was the process of how the land was acquired. The whole thing was handled with exceptional incompetence and arrogance, ultimately costing the city an extra $1.7 million in settlement and court cost for a piece of land that would have costed only $125k if they had handled it right from the beginning in 1998.

This involved a developer by the name of Gary Lundgren. Here is the whole scoop: http://dwb.adn.com/news/alaska/matsu...-8971221c.html

Lundgren negotiated with the national office of The Nature Conservancy to buy the land. Meanwhile, Wasilla city officials decided they wanted the land too, and began negotiating with the Alaska office of The Nature Conservancy. Offers were extended to both parties. Lundgren closed the deal.

Without the title in their hands, the city went ahead with the sales tax increase and started the construction. Then in typical Bush fashion, as Palin was leaving office in 2002, "sound familiar legacy highway anyone"

Wasilla sued both Lundgren and The Nature Conservancy for title to the land. The case went to a federal appeals court, where Lundgren won rights to the property.

The court case was finally settled several years after Palin left.

The real legacy is, that the city is still paying for this today, while having to cut budget in library service, postponing capital improvement projects, and raising fees.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/8...7119/35/578632

Can we afford this kind of incompetence on the national level?

myopic neocons say yes she's our VP
whats even more disturbing here it is the third anniversary of Katrina
and the cronyism of the bush crime family was total exposed and it
looks like mcsame will continued the same thing .

[Navajo_Taco]

Palin used 'Bridge to Nowhere' for gain

Gov. Sarah Palin was for the so-called infamous "Bridge to Nowhere" before she was against it, a change of position the GOP vice presidential running mate conveniently ignored Saturday when she bragged about telling Congress "thanks but no thanks" to the pork barrel project.

Federal funds for the $398 million bridge were tacked into an appropriations bill as an earmark, the practice by which members of Congress get special funding for pet projects. Sen. John McCain opposes earmarks as an avenue for pork barrel and special interest spending.

The bridge issue dates back several years. Former Republican Gov. Frank Murkowski, who had been an Alaska senator, wanted it built. Stevens and Rep. Don Young, pushed the project through Congress, securing $452 million in a federal transportation bill for two bridges ? the one in Ketchikan and another in Anchorage.

With criticism over earmarks increasing, Congress stripped the provision from the bill, requiring instead that some of the money be used for an airport. Alaska eventually received about half the money. Palin last fall directed that money to transportation projects statewide instead of for Ketchikan's bridge.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h...p51EgD92TEV9O0

[richard dale]

can you say 90% approvel rating by those around her? Far better than your boy Obama!

[Navajo_Taco]

Originally Posted by richard dale

can you say 90% approvel rating by those around her? Far better than your boy Obama!

If I got $1 BBBillion for highway earmarks in my state I'd give Huntsman a 90%

[richard dale]

Originally Posted by Navajo_Taco

If I got $1 BBBillion for highway earmarks in my state I'd give Huntsman a 90%

Only 90%?Tell us what Obama has done for his state?

[Navajo_Taco]

Originally Posted by richard dale

Only 90%?Tell us what Obama has done for his state?

Nothing and even less when he becomes President if I have anything to do with it

Screw Utah

[richard dale]

Originally Posted by Navajo_Taco;271203[B

Nothing [/b]and even less when he becomes President if I have anything to do with it

Screw U

.......................nice come back?

[RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE]

Originally Posted by Navajo_Taco

Palin used 'Bridge to Nowhere' for gain

Gov. Sarah Palin was for the so-called infamous "Bridge to Nowhere" before she was against it, a change of position the GOP vice presidential running mate conveniently ignored Saturday when she bragged about telling Congress "thanks but no thanks" to the pork barrel project.

Federal funds for the $398 million bridge were tacked into an appropriations bill as an earmark, the practice by which members of Congress get special funding for pet projects. Sen. John McCain opposes earmarks as an avenue for pork barrel and special interest spending.

The bridge issue dates back several years. Former Republican Gov. Frank Murkowski, who had been an Alaska senator, wanted it built. Stevens and Rep. Don Young, pushed the project through Congress, securing $452 million in a federal transportation bill for two bridges ? the one in Ketchikan and another in Anchorage.

With criticism over earmarks increasing, Congress stripped the provision from the bill, requiring instead that some of the money be used for an airport. Alaska eventually received about half the money. Palin last fall directed that money to transportation projects statewide instead of for Ketchikan's bridge.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h...p51EgD92TEV9O0

Palin's government accepted the federal money would have been spent on the Gravina Island Bridge, had Palin not canceled the bridge because the federal government wanted Alaska to pay for part of it. This gained the state of Alaska over $200 million, which it could spend however it wants. In 2008, the state gave each resident $1200. awww

[Navajo_Taco]

Originally Posted by richard dale

.......................nice come back?

What's the matter? Didn't Bennett and Hatch get you enough on the gravy train?

So that Conturds like Jason can retire with two pensions?

You got Energy Pollutions, ATK's new 6000 employee ammunition plant in Ogden, Nuke Central at Hill AFB, Tooele Army Depot nerve gas, White Sands in Green River UT reopened with the new cruise missile and the new Nuclear Gen Plant in Green River.

Isn't that enough pork? or do you just want more ways to kill third world babies?

[RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE]

Originally Posted by richard dale

Only 90%?Tell us what Obama has done for his state?

State legislator, 1997?2004

Obama was elected to the Illinois Senate in 1996, succeeding State Senator Alice Palmer as Senator from the 13th District, which then spanned Chicago South Side neighborhoods from Hyde Park-Kenwood south to South Shore and west to Chicago Lawn.[26] Once elected, Obama gained bipartisan support for legislation reforming ethics and health care laws.[27] He sponsored a law increasing tax credits for low-income workers, negotiated welfare reform, and promoted increased subsidies for childcare.[28] In 2001, as co-chairman of the bipartisan Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, Obama supported Republican Governor Ryan's payday loan regulations and predatory mortgage lending regulations aimed at averting home foreclosures,[29] and in 2003, Obama sponsored and led unanimous, bipartisan passage of legislation to monitor racial profiling by requiring police to record the race of drivers they detained and legislation making Illinois the first state to mandate videotaping of homicide interrogations.[28][30]

Obama was reelected to the Illinois Senate in 1998, and again in 2002.[31] In 2000, he lost a Democratic primary run for the U.S. House of Representatives to four-term incumbent Bobby Rush by a margin of two to one.[32][33]

In January 2003, Obama became chairman of the Illinois Senate's Health and Human Services Committee when Democrats, after a decade in the minority, regained a majority.[34] During his 2004 general election campaign for U.S. Senate, police representatives credited Obama for his active engagement with police organizations in enacting death penalty reforms.[35] Obama resigned from the Illinois Senate in November 2004 following his election to the US Senate