City Government
Power To The People
January 22, 2006 
Congratulations and a pat on the back to John Weber, Richard Kaylor and Tish Hetrick who have each paid $174 to file an appeal on the Boise planning commission’s Jan. 9 approval of the two natural gas-fired plants.
Among other reasons for filing the appeal, the trio have cited the importance of the decision to build the facilities on citizen owned property near the Outlet Mall. The property is land Mayor Bieter and the present council inherited from the Coles band of bureaucrats.
Bieter´s economic development staffer, Mr. Jones, offered up a deal to Mountain View Power which included a lease at below market rates, hence getting around any bids which are required by a sale of public land. Not only was the price too low, but it cuts Ada County, Boise Schools, and Ada County Highway District out of real estate taxes on 25 acres that is zoned industrial and worth big bucks. Public land is tax exempt period.
The rest of Boise citizens need to contact their recently elected councilors and remind them of the financials on this deal which have yet to have any council scrutiny. Public property is for all of us, not just a stash the Mayor´s staff can use to entice businesses to occupy our city.
At the very least these Three Musketeers have forced the council to show their true colors. Let’s hope the colors are natural green and not cash green.
(See previous posting Power Plant Poses Problems)
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Comments & Discussion
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Jan 23, 2006, 9:27 pm
Good luck to the 3 brave souls that are appealing….only problem is that the Planning & Zoning Commission, the planning staff and City Council have already decided to make sure the power plants go in. It is all about getting and spending more tax money!
It is just like how they decided that regardless of the evidience or appeals that the massive condos would be approved, we will get more ugly row houses and they now allow cheap wood frame apartment builings downtown and “spot zoning” for their insider developer friends.
Unless we get new leaders the appeals and concerns will continue to fail and the blueprint to goofy growth will continue and we will see more insider agendas and politics.