City Government
The Saga of John Paul Jones
August 25, 2005 
John Paul Jones is a decorated Vietnam War veteran who will tire you out just listening to him because his sharp mind is usually about three steps ahead of his mouth. The result is a conversation with so many diversions he seems wacko.
Well, he IS a little wacko and proud of it. 
JP is a hotdog vendor, properly licensed, inspected, and legal with Boise City. He made news three years ago by getting convicted of trespassing in front of the courthouse which two judges declared as “private property” of the CCDC, our taxpayer funded urban renewal agency. (CCDC is Capital City Development Corp.) He has appealed the trespass conviction all the way to the Idaho Supreme Court.
When the downtown criterion bicycle race was held last month, JP showed up at the entrance to The Grove with his hotdog stand and claimed a spot on an “Identified Vendor Location” at Main and 8th. He soon came into conflict with the event sponsor, Wells Fargo, the CCDC and the Boise Police.
The bottom line was another citation for “FAILURE TO VEND IN APPROVED LOCATION.” JP claims the location was approved by the city. Both the city and CCDC say it is owned by the CCDC and is somehow private. JP has a map which he claims shows the location to be owned by the Ada County Highway District and within the jurisdiction of Boise City–not CCDC. We think there will be some sort of amended complaint charging him again with trespassing.
The actions of JP are not the issues at hand. There are two issues in this mystery: “Is CCDC private or public? And who owns the spot he was claiming?” How the courts decide or interpret the CCDC will determine whether or not he is convicted of what he sees as civil disobedience challenging the authority of the CCDC.
In our attempts at determining the facts of the case, the GUARDIAN was met with a bunch of officials who simply didn’t KNOW who owns what or the authority of any of the agencies.
Meanwhile JP is awaiting a hearing November 23 in Ada County Magistrate Court.
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Comments & Discussion
Comments are closed for this post.
Aug 25, 2005, 2:33 pm
As far as I am concerned whether ACHD, the City, or CCDC own it…THE PEOPLE own it.. ALL OF IT! So, that in mind, I find the hot dog vendors to be some of the last sign of real user friendly downtown. Leave it to the City Clerk and City Attorney to figure out a way to regulate someone out of a vocation and the rest of us out of the experience of chatting with John Paul. He and others are a part of the character and fiber of downtown. For pete’s sakes let them be.
Aug 26, 2005, 1:26 am
The confusion arising from these ridiculous “quasi-governmental” agencies like CCDC is nothing new. Consider, for example, the unconsitutional financing they facilitate in collusion with various unethical elected officials. No one seems to even know who owns the new “Ada County” courthouse – not even CCDC OR the Ada County commissioners!
Aug 26, 2005, 12:03 pm
Having retired from the title insurance business some years ago, I too am confused about property ownership. How, exactly, can one entity own the land and someone else the building? Our leaders in Eagle have done the same thing. Having lost at least two bond elections for construction of a new city hall (which was probably really needed, by the way) the city officials are having a city hall built on what is supposedly city property…so much for bond elections.
Aug 26, 2005, 2:01 pm
Chalk another one up for the “Good Ole Boys”. Being back in Boise for not quite a year, from a 12 year “Hiatus”, it is becoming clear that the collusion in the Capital City rivals that of Las Vegas during the “Bugsy” era. Who is really behind all these shenanigans, and why? (greed, one of the seven “deadly sins”!!) Citizens of Boise unite, stand up and greet you foe at the door of the ARID Club, let them know it’s not THEIR city any longer.
Aug 26, 2005, 5:04 pm
I’m a 15 year old teen and I personally know J.P. and his family. He is not as they claimed “wacko” he just has a know how that alot of people would not think. I have been downtown numerous occasions where JP and his children worked the cart. I think I can speak for many young people when I say JP insists that we eat for free and says “Ah put your money away.”
If my history serves me correctly John Paul Jones fought in the revolutionary war, and stated,
“I have not yet begun to fight!”
Keep fighting for the people JP and good luck.
Ed note–
JP calls himself wacko just like the GUARDIAN is a little wacko. Wacko isn’t always a bad thing. We need more wackos to keep the rest of the people from getting too comfortable doing nothing.