City Government
Boise City For Sale
April 16, 2008 
Seems that lobbyists, economic development people, and even elected officials couldn’t get the job done. Now Team Dave has hired a guy to “market the city,” according to a story in the Daily Paper.
Ross Borden has been hired full time to “help forge better relationships with local leaders and push the city’s agenda in the Idaho Legislature,” says the story in Tuesday’s Statesman. The city lost on most of the major “agenda pushes” in the past session.
Anyone know how much return the locals got on their investment in that big puff piece in the United Airline mag last year?
Given the track record of the city leaders in “forging relationships” and working on “intergovernmental affairs,” it makes sense to hire a salesman.
After last year’s annual confab at Sun Valley spending taxpayer dollars for travel to be sequestered with Chamber of Commerce types for the “feel good” Blue Print For Growth, local politicos are headed back for a repeat performance.
Lot of good it has done. Nampa, Boise, Valley Ride, Eagle, Star, and COMPASS, all seem to be about as likely to agree as the Israelis and Hammas. What a waste of time, effort and citizen’s hard earned cash!
Looks like the city salesman will make up to $57,000 a year. He is currently a “special assistant” to Dr. Bob at BSU. Meanwhile Boise will still have the contract with the Gallatin Group and association memberships to influence lawmakers.
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Comments & Discussion
Comments are closed for this post.
Apr 16, 2008, 11:59 am
What a joy to hear. We get to pay double for something that should cost nothing. At least with this hire, the Gallatin contract should be allowed to expire.
Apr 16, 2008, 12:59 pm
Intersting that the City hires a good Republican.
Apr 16, 2008, 1:48 pm
Were Boise City and its leadership to mind their own business instead of attempting (and failing)to play 800 pound Ada County gorilla, they could have saved a)face and b)this guys salary. Sad. You voted for them Boise citizens….nobody to blame but yourselves.
Apr 16, 2008, 3:45 pm
Antiphobe, I have a problem with your comparison. A gorilla is a magnificent animal that conjures up the image of a huge “silverback” sitting on a mountainside in total control of his domain. That is why I have started referring to our beloved mayor as a baboon. A smallish, ugly little opportunistic ape that operates best in ambush and is the consumate bully. A lot more fitting, don’t you think?
Any way, we now have a situation where instead of the legislature telling our baboon to go home and pound sand, they now have the luxury of telling the “new guy” to “go tell your boss to stay home and pound sand”. Oh, and Clancy? You are kidding about letting the Gallatin contract expire, right?
It’s a helluva a way to run a railroad!
Apr 16, 2008, 5:16 pm
I have had the opportunity to work with Ross and I think he is a stand up guy and ethical person, but I must admit I do not understand the whole industry, where each government agency hires an executive to communicate with other government agencies.
These agencies also hire lobbysists to speak with our legislatures. Why should one branch of government have to hire expensive lobbyists to speak to another branch of government? Are our politicians so out of touch that their own state agencies have to go through consultants just to be heard?
EDITOR NOTE–Yes.
Apr 16, 2008, 10:39 pm
The mayor and council, having hired a surrogate mayor-council, now need to complete the loop by hiring a surrogate constituency. They would then be free (paraphrasing Shakespeare) to bind themselves in a nutshell and declare themselves masters of infinite space.
The bard was talking about insanity. The idea of bunch of politicians hiring someone else to do their politicing is similarly insane.
Looking on the bright side, if the hired politician does a good job, next time around we can save some money by electing him to all of the positions and leaving out Bieter, Klegg, and the rest of the middlemen.
Apr 17, 2008, 3:47 pm
Good one Cyclops, but you forgot to describe the hind end of a baboon in your description!
Apr 17, 2008, 4:00 pm
Cyclops, I don’t see the need for either.
I find it funny that we are still refer to the city polictico’s as primates
Evolution: Humans to Monkeys, Chimps, Gorillas
Apr 17, 2008, 4:12 pm
Taxpayers would be better served by local leaders who chose NOT to attend the conference in Sun Valley but, rather, insisted that local issues be discussed locally.
As far as paid lobbyists, it’s time for all of the area’s elected leaders to step up to the plate and do their own jobs – not just lobbying, but public relations as well. For example, Ada County has two hired professional P.R. people whose apparent responsibility is to put the politically correct spin on everything that comes out of the County, including huge increases in the County’s budget and spending.
Apr 18, 2008, 1:56 pm
Amen, Sharon.
The list for the City, County, school districts, and State is amazingly large. Lots are ex tv reporters. I can see one for the Governor’s office.. .past that, let them face the cameras themselves.
Apr 18, 2008, 5:26 pm
Sharon,
Are you not going to attend the conference in Sun Valley after you are elected Ada county commissioner?
What about the “two hired professional P.R. people whose apparent responsibility is to put the politically correct spin on everything that comes out of the County, including huge increases in the County’s budget and spending”.
L
Apr 18, 2008, 6:03 pm
Eric, why the governor’s office? Shouldn’t he also have to face the cameras? Let’s face it, when even the Boise Planning department has a spokesmouth, there is something wrong. These people spend way too much time trying to tell the public how we should think or feel about an issue and not enough time working for the people.
Any elected official should be able to answer questions of any citizen or any media person without the filter of a spokesmouth.
Apr 19, 2008, 11:25 am
Jack – No, I would NOT attend the Sun Valley conference! When I was in office, I chose NOT to go to Sun Valley to discuss local issues, and I would continue to make the same decision in the future. It is my belief that elected officials travel, at public expense, far more than is necessary.
Apr 19, 2008, 11:55 am
Sara, good point. I stand corrected.