Comments on the post, POLICE PROWLERS GUZZLE GAS prompted a flurry of defenses for the idle arguments.

Fewer Idle Cop Cars

Top Cop Mike Masterson was not happy to hear cars were parked and left running with the doors locked–all it takes is a whack on the window for access to guns, computers, radios, and the car itself.

Fast forward a year later and the city has hired a “Fleet Services Manager” in the person of Craig Croner whose job it is to save gas, negotiate vehicle purchases, and keep every car and truck in the city running safely.

Croner assembled a committee of “users” from all the city departments and came up with a proposed energy and fuel policy with regard to idling vehicles. He says the “break even point” is a mere 30 seconds. Longer than that and it is better to turn off the engine. It seems like a rational policy to us.

Take a look for yourself.

Anti Idling Policy:

I. INTRODUCTION
Vehicle idling gets zero miles per gallon; unnecessary idling wastes fuel and pollutes. Running an engine at low speed (idling) also causes additional wear on internal parts compared to driving at regular speeds. The break-even point for shutting off and restarting gasoline engines or leaving it to idle is 30 seconds – from the point of view of both emissions and fuel consumption. This restriction does not apply to congested traffic, city driving or traffic controls.

Air quality is a critical issue in our area. One of the leading sources of air pollutants of concern is from vehicle tailpipe exhaust. The City of Boise needs to be a leader in reducing sources of these air pollutants. Additionally, the rising cost of fuel makes it imperative that the City of Boise focus on fuel efficiency and cease vehicle idling when not warranted by the situation.

Effective immediately, unless exempted in the following section, no City vehicle or piece of equipment is to be idled in a non-emergency situation. The operator of the vehicle/equipment is to turn-off the unit and the keys are to be removed from the ignition.

II. EXEMPTIONS
The following situations will allow idling, as needed:
A. Emergency vehicles at scenes where lights, Power Take Offs, and/or other accessories are needed to accomplish the mission;
B. Police vehicles working traffic enforcement details;
C. Department of Public Works, Department of Parks and Recreation and Boise Airport vehicles at job sites requiring the use of emergency lights, Power Take Offs, and/or other accessories to accomplish their assignment. Planning and Development, PDS Inspector – 2005 or older and non-hybrid vehicles only, while performing inspections.
D. Inclement weather situations and the supervisor authorizes the use of the vehicle/equipment heater-defroster for the work crew’s comfort according to the guidelines listed below;

1. If the outside temperature is: Above 32 degrees F: 5 minute maximum
2. Between -10 and 32 degrees F; 15 minute maximum
3. Below -10 degrees F: as necessary

NOTE: Operators of vehicle/equipment and supervisors will be judicious in the idling of units at emergency scenes and job sites. If not all the units at the scene/site need to be idling, those units must be turned-off and the keys removed from the ignition. Each vehicle/equipment operator will be responsible for the idling operation of their unit and will have the unit keys in their possession to ensure that crewmembers do not arbitrarily violate the policy without the operator’s knowledge.

Supervisors in each department/division will be responsible for the adherence and enforcement of the idling policy. Violations of the policy will be documented as to the vehicle/equipment operator, vehicle class code, location, date and time, weather conditions, and circumstances of the violation.

The vehicle/equipment operator will be informed of the violation by the supervisor at the time of the infraction.

Department Heads will be responsible to ensure this standard of conduct in the use of City vehicles and equipment. Employees have the responsibility to abide by this regulation, violation of which can subject them to progressive disciplinary action.

That’s right. Boise City Councilors authorized $30,000 to be spent for a mere 500 responses to the survey–that comes out to $60 per interview. They use the answers to “guide the budget priorities” as they did with the $10 million windfall at Christmas.

The contract was awarded last month to an outfit called Northwest Research. Here are the duties outlined in the proposal:

Scope of Work:
1) Build on a previous citizen survey conducted in the spring of 2005 by developing and carrying out a 500 person survey lasting approximately 20 minutes, and deliver a report of the findings to the
Mayor and Council.
2) Facilitate focus groups on key public policy issues such as transportation, growth, etc.
3) Assist City departments with conducting additional customer surveys and feedback mechanisms.
4) Recommend and provide creative technology based tools to enable additional public feedback on
significant issues as they arise.

We would bet one of those “creative technology based tools” found in #4 includes the weekly Team Dave e-mail spam. Hard to criticize a mayor communicating with the public, but when the site has a picture of the candidate in shirt sleeves, it sure looks like a campaign tool to the GUARDIAN. If it had a picture of the entire council and the message–or even other pages on the city site–included other Councilors it may be less suspect.

Since ALL e-mails in the city are a public record, Team Dave–and those who subscribe–need to remember ANYONE can get those addresses for their own campaign spam.

It seems council president Elaine Clegg gave direction to lobbyist Lyn Darrington on how to testify on a bill that would impact Boise’s urban renewal agency, the CCDC. She told the GUARDIAN it was a “no brainer” on how the city should view the proposed bill which would have mandated election of board members by the public–she was against it.

She said there was “nothing nefarious” about the way things are being handled with regard to the Idaho Legislature adding, “We have taken measures to increase communication among council members with weekly e-mails from the lobbyist.”

She said councilors were welcome to attend a weekly Monday meeting to get further updates regarding legislative issues effecting Boise. We applaud the move.

The GUARDIAN did some further checking and finds that on January 16 Boise Councilors hired not only the local Gallatin Group and lobbyist Lyn Darrington for $45,000, but they also hired another firm, Ball Janik LLP for $66,000 to do their bidding with the Feds.

Each private lobbying firm is to be the “primary point of contact” between Boise and the Feds or State government.

We find this to be downright absurd!

We have ELECTED state and federal senators and representatives. We have ELECTED city councilors and a mayor. The system is dysfunctional if we need to BUY influence through lobbyists to be heard in the legislative halls of America. We are sickened at learning of this new practice.

Here is the job description in the city contract:
Scope of Work:
1) Serve as a consistent and effective primary point of contact between the City of Boise and State
agency officials and elected representatives.
2) Assist with development and execution of the City of Boise’s 2007 State legislative agenda,
including analysis, preparation, coordination, and filing of legislative items, whether statutory or
Constitutional in nature.
3) Identify, prioritize, monitor, and respond to State legislative and regulatory proposals that have
potential implications for the City of Boise and its operations, and report back regularly to City
officials regarding the status of these items.
4) Schedule and conduct frequent and regular meetings with State lawmakers, Legislative staff, City
of Boise officials, and representatives of the City’s governmental and community partners before,
during and after the 2007 State Legislative session.
5) Represent the interests of the City during the 2007 State Legislative session by regularly attending committee meetings, monitoring floor votes, preparing correspondence with key lawmakers, and providing relevant testimony when applicable.
6) Consult on a regular basis with City of Boise officials, including the Mayor, members of the City
Council, Department heads, and other City staff and advisers about the status of and strategy
regarding State legislative and statutory issues.

The BOISE WEEKLY did a story mentioning the lobbying contracts earlier and we expect a bigger one soon from the STATESMAN.

Public employees are EXPECTED to do a good job, be on time and not absent from work. Those who do good things and follow the rules should be fairly and adequately compensated for their efforts.

They also deserve some job security–unlike what county employees apparently will have under the new “at will” classification which will allow firing without cause.

Anything “extra” a public employe does should be compensated through overtime, promotions, salary increases, or compensatory time off. To use surplus tax money for one-time bonuses is merely redistribution of the wealth.

BONUSES should be awarded only to those who risk their lives “above and beyond the call of duty” or quantifiably save money for the taxpayers through:

–whistle blowing which reveals corruption, waste, fraud, and abuse.
–suggesting cost-savings procedures they are otherwise not paid to perform.

If all workers deserve more money, make across the board raises. It is hard to tell them they are worth an extra $200 this year, but next year they are not.

To simply “share the wealth” from tax collections is inappropriate use of public money in the GUARDIAN’s opinion.

We have been reflecting on the past year along with the new year and would like to share some thoughts about the GUARDIAN and what we feel and believe. I am sober (don’t drink) on this New Year’s eve and after a week in the Tampa Bay area of Florida with family it is time to get back in touch.

The GUARDIAN has worked to inform you of the “sins of government” over the past year, but with little change, improvement, or hope for the future. We are not really depressed, just realistic.

In short, one guy with a web blog can’t fight the might of government with paid spin doctors who earn thousands of dollars more than mainstream media. Ever hear of someone leaving a government PR job to work for a newspaper or TV station?

Development rules, developers are hailed by the Daily Paper, and our air, schools, and roads continue to be used beyond capacity. The only glimmer of hope seems to be the recent Idaho Transportation saber rattling over Avimor’s access to Highway 55.

In general we feel local government does a pretty poor job of responding to citizens and is too eager to judge “accomplishments” by the number of growth-related issues they approve. It is an absolute fact that much, if not MOST, of the money paid to local candidates comes from developers and those who gain from growth. It is a filthy system.

We have often said–and many readers seem to agree–Boise’s City Council seems to have little regard for voters and the rights we are afforded by state law and the constitution:
–We need a cop shop, but they won’t let us vote on a proposal.
–There is an apparent need for airport parking, but they won’t put it to the voters.
–They refused to allow a hearing or public meeting on how to spend $10 million in surplus funds.
–Legal dept. at behest of mayor and council chases futile legal issues.
–They cater to downtown, the CCDC, and developers.

At the county level the Ada commishes have little respect from citizens, despite “demands” from at least one commish to be respected. They have:
–Continued the legal battle over illegal closed meeting issue.
–Rushed to pass a poorly worded and thought out EMS ambulance ordinance.
–Enraged county workers with another rushed passage of “at will” work rules.
–Continue to encourage overpopulating our county with “planned community” developments.

Based on the anonymous e-mails we get and the number of commenters who don’t use their real names, we can only conclude most people are afraid to speak openly for fear of retaliation from employers, loved ones, or the government.

The GUARDIAN will attempt to continue to provide a forum for one and all in the coming year, but it will probably be at a reduced frequency. We are tired and disappointed. It is not supposed to be this way.

Mayor Dave Bieter has a shopping list of items for the council to consider. Most of them probably make sense, but there are some red flags popping up as bright as Rudolph the reindeer’s nose.

In an item entitled “BONDED DEBT ADJUSTMENT”, he seeks to spend $15,000 for an election of private INVESTORS who own two of Boise’s fire stations. Team Dave would be better served asking the voters of Boise for permission to BUY the stations which the previous administration illegally purchased without voter approval. There is no bonded debt according to court records provided by the City–they say it is a LEASE.

The Idaho Supreme Court has made it abundantly clear that voter approval MUST be obtained with a two-thirds majority for long term debt. The GUARDIAN is concerned because the slip shod financing methods employed by the City always tend to go around the voters.

It makes good economic sense to own the stations and not be forced to pay $60,000 a year in property taxes. However it is up to the citizens of Boise to make the decision–not the holders of “certificates of participation” (bonds) which were illegally issued. Our interest is one of precedent to prevent such illegal shenanigans in the future.

If the City wishes to to pay cash (buy out the leases) for the illegally financed stations they would be within the law. However, to take title to the leased property and CONTINUE long term debt would certainly constitute a purchase without voter approval. It is prohibited by the Idaho Constitution.

Councilors need to be aware the proposal is a cover up of past council’s sins and will do nothing but add to the record of defeats for the legal department.

11/27/06
Curtis Williams
853 N. Sneed Pl
Eagle
Parade: Mayor, I have a suggestion. The BSU football team just won the WAC championship for the 5th time and is going to a national bowl. These kids have really stepped up that program and Boise has received a lot of publicity and is going to as a result of this. My suggestion is that the City of Boise step up and show some gratitude toward the players and the program. I suggest some sort or parade prior to the team leaving for Phoenix for the Fiesta Bowl. This could be coordinated through the staff at BSU to coincide with their schedule. I just think the players would be so happy to have something like this to happen and it’d be a great send off to them. I think the people of the City of Boise would love to come out to support such a gesture. If you think that’s beneficial, I’d appreciate some feedback and we’d like to see it get done. Thank you very much for your time and keep up the good work. Thank you.
M/CC BSU

11/29/06
Jeremy Groit
PW: He wants to know who to contact to develop a hydrogen power plant in Boise. He has a hydrogen generator that gives out virtually no emissions and it fully runs seven houses. Thinks this is the way to take care of factory emissions. Please call back.
PW

11/29/06
John Post
2103 N. 19th 83702
BPD: I called the other day and spoke to you about the homeless issue. I just have a comment and a compliment. Last night I was volunteering at the Interfaith Sanctuary when they opened at the old Carnegie Library there on Washington between 8th and 9th. During the snow storm around 9:00 if I remember correctly an officer from the BPD brought a gentleman in who was incredibly intoxicated and had urinated on himself. The officer was incredibly professional and very compassionate in dealing with this man. He picked him up actually he was passed out in a gutter in front of the River of Life building. He brought him to our facility and we brought him in. But I’ve talked to LT. Tony Plot about this incident or act of compassion rather. I wanted to write a complimentary note and he’s trying to track down the name of the officer. The officer like I said was very compassionate and very professional and this is the kind of act that needs to go noticed instead of just another typical thing. Anyways I thought I’d pass it on to you guys as well to let you know that there is some amazing professionalism going on in our police department. You know that as well as I do, but too often they don’t make the news. Thanks for following up if you can, bye.
BPD HR

11/27/06
Vern Lewis
9608 Sunflower
Boise
Code Enforcement: The house directly across the street from him has had a pickup trailer full of junk parked on the street for at least 6 weeks. He thinks the address is 9605 Sunflower.
PDS

11/27/06
Lorraine Henry
676 N. Vail Pl.
Boise, ID 83706
Sanctuary: I’m calling in regards to the Sanctuary and the homeless. I want to tell the Mayor that I like this 10 year plan but we need something right away. Our friends are going to be on the street if we don’t get something done. If you’d please tell him that we need a permanent shelter, a winter shelter. Thank you.
M/CC
Action Taken: contacted

11/29/06
Christen Green
612 W. Franklin
Boise 02
PDS: I am a woman of 50 years old and have disabilities. I am renting a house that is owned by the City of Boise and they are raising the rent by $75 a month and I am already paying over half my income at $600 dollars a month. I need to talk, I cannot afford this, and I’ll be out on the street. Please get back to me as soon as you can, I appreciate it, thank you.
PDS
Action Taken: PDS

11/29/06
Jan
345-6352
VRT: I ride Bus # 17 in on Warm Springs Ave. I have had problems with the kids that ride the bus to and from school using very poor language. These kids do not hold anything back and have no respect for anyone. I am a Christian woman and I don’t appreciate our city bus allowing this activity to go on unattended to.
ValleyRide

11/29/06
Beverly Russell
4800 Hill Road
Boise, ID 83703
342-4408
BFI: I’m calling about trash pickup. I have called about it before. I’m having trouble with it again. The trash pickup problem is at 3836 and 3838 McGonagal. Three weeks ago I called the trash people about some allied waste pick up and I put my signs up there the way they instructed me to do it and here it is more than 3 weeks later and that trash is still sitting there with my sign on it. I have called them at least 4 times in the meantime. I simply do not know what to do about this problem. All they do is tell me they will tell their drivers whatever they need to tell them but they don’t seem to get the message to them. I am very frustrated. If you can get that problem solved for me I’d appreciate it very much. Thank you, bye.
PW

11/30/06
Jen Whitewing
Futuristic School by Microsoft: I got some information from the Governor’s office about this fascinating thing you may know about it called the school of the future and it was a joint project between the Philadelphia Public School District, the City of Philadelphia, and also the Microsoft Company. It’s a pet project of Bill Gates. It has to do with building a school that is so innovative and futuristic that’s it’s a prototype for an ideal way of educating our youth. I wanted you to look at it online and get some interesting ideas so we might be able to do that for our kids at some point in the future. It’s Philadelphia school of the future by Microsoft. You will probably be able to figure it out online. Thank you.
Boise Schools

12/1/06
Linda Coughlin
375-3457
3785 N. Farlight Place
Boise, ID 83713
Abandoned Cars: I have a question and concern about several junk cars that are parked outside. I believe the address is really on Cloverdale, which backs up to my yard. They are next to the Serenity Alzheimer’s unit. They have a couple of junk cars out front but really out back is really where my concern is. They have several and they have added a couple of additional cars out there. It backs right up to my fence and right back there is a pond and drainage ditch. We are all on septic tanks and well water so I’m a little concerned about what might be seeping into the water possibly so I was wondering if someone could come take a look. Thank you.
PDS BPD

ADA COUNTY Coroner Erwin Sonnenberg has decided to “try something different” with the investigation of two recent fatal police shootings. Instead of inquests, he is asking prosecutors in Twin Falls and Bannock Counties to handle the investigations. Both of these cases have a different wrinkle than the shooting of the 16-year-old boy in the Highlands a couple years ago. Downside is most of their info will come from the locals.

In both the Boise and the Meridian cases, police and sheriff’s deputies were on scene for at least half an hour before killing men who were brandishing pistols. The sticky question is WHY did police in each incident use BOTH deadly and non-lethal force? Reports say the victims (suspects?) were shot with bean bag rounds as well as rifle and pistol rounds. The GUARDIAN won’t question use of either weapon, but BOTH? Nearly impossible to tell which weapons were fired first, but we fear “contagious fire” may be a factor–one shoots and they all shoot.

DEVELOPERS need to post huge bonds posted before they are allowed to go forward with public involved projects. Another planned community was announced last week and the media pretty much ignored it.

We fear these developers won’t come through with the proper infrastructure and if they fail to sell as many houses as expected, it could be cheaper to walk away and leave the few homeowners–and taxpayers–to provide for sewer and water needs…the latest developer to get the CCDC nod to build a 34 story tower on the infamous “hole” has a history of bankruptcy… and a parcel intended for condos at Idaho and 16th is in foreclosure.

Under a well intended plan to get medical aid quickly to those in need, three firefighters aboard a $275,000 fire truck respond along with an ambulance on most emergency medical calls. Costly, inefficient, and cause for endless “code 3” responses all over town as one station responds to cover for those not available.

Since fully 70% of all calls are for medical assistance, it seems wasteful to send 100% of the aid in the form of a truck loaded with hose, ladders, and pumps. The fire departments need to be staffed–and equipped–for firefighting, but that duty comprises merely 30% of their actual responses.

The GUARDIAN thinks local fire departments need to rethink their equipment investments. We think in the city of Boise for example, they could purchase 5 medical vans for the cost of a single fire engine. With the capability of transporting patients if needed, these quick response or “squad” cars could supplement the ambulance service in the event of disasters, save wear and tear on pumper trucks, and provide efficient medical service to residents. They could also eliminate the need for county ambulance service within the city.

We figure staffing levels could be increased by 15 firefighters to provide paramedic/firefighter coverage at five stations and cover all shifts. One member of the three-man crew from the pumper could be assigned to the medical response unit, freeing the pumper from responding to medical calls, thus eliminating 70% of the wear and tear on a truck designed to fight fires.

Instead of having a truck with three guys respond to 70% of the alarms (medical) it makes more sense to have the cheaper medical van respond to ALL calls with two firefighters (one would also be a paramedic). That way, the fire truck is not overworked, and if there is an actual fire both the medical van and fire truck respond, which places four people on scene at the outset.

11/14/06
Jim Allen
1060 E. Washaki
Meridian, ID 83646
Taxi/Vendor: Even though I’m not a resident of Boise, I do frequent the downtown area. As far as the problem with the push cart vendors and the taxi cabs, and the fights, I just want to weigh in there. The push carts and the taxis aren’t the problem, it’s the drunks. I think it’s totally ludicrous and in violation to the principles of this problem that you don’t deal with the problem. Deal with the problem, which are the drunks. In fact, because of that, my wife and I have many times said, “Do we really want to go downtown because of the problems that occur?” The drunks are providing no service to the citizens of Idaho. Get rid of them. Thank you.
M/CC

11/14/06
Janis Stevenor-Dale
Opposition to new school site: I would like to let the Mayor know that the Harris Ranch Neighborhood Association is opposed to the new school site that the Boise Independent School District has entered into a purchase agreement with David Turnbull. We are fully in support of the master planning process that has been developed by the Harris family and Harris Ranch Development. In support of that master planning process, prefer the original school site that was identified in that process which was located near Eckert Rd across from the Alta Harris park. We greatly appreciate your attention to this matter. Thank you very much.
M/CC
Action Taken: contacted

11/15/06
Rick Groff
899 Saratoga Drive
Boise, ID 83706
Community House: I’m calling to express my concern and disappointment and amazement that the city would continue to fight this case regarding the Community House. I think in the article in the paper, the city is trying to claim that it’s a complex issue but really it’s a pretty simple issue. The first issue is it’s not legal in government property to discriminate against women and children. You lost on that the first time and you’re going to lose again. The second issue is that government can’t promote religion. I’m especially shocked you’d continue to fight this particular argument in light of the fact that in the City of Boise, 37,000 people just voted to say no, we do want a separation of church and state. It concerns me that you are going to use city money to continue to fight this suit when you have many other needs and you know you’re probably going to lose. I’m quite certain that if you, Mayor, and the City Council had to pay the fees of fighting this appeal if you lost, you wouldn’t go forward. The only thing I can see happen is the public is going to have to express their outrage that you continue to use tax payer dollars to fight these two issues where you are clearly in violation of the Constitution. I will personally do whatever I can to stop you from continuing this outrageous behavior.
M/CC Legal

11/15/06
Rebecca Rene
6353 W. Battlement Court
Boise, ID 83703
Atlanta Gold: I’m calling because I’m not sure if I can make it to the meeting tonight on the Atlanta Gold Mine and I have very strong objections to the mine going in. If there’s anything I can do besides making phone calls. I’ve already given money in signed petitions but if there’s anything else, you can call me back. If you can pretend I called 1,000 times and mark me down 1,000 times against this stupid gold mine, then do it. Thanks very much and thanks for having the Mayor’s hotline.
M/CC
Action Taken: left msj

11/15/06
Jan Peterson
Dog issue: She has a dog problem. At 7am the dog was howling across the street. She thinks maybe the dog is having a problem with the cold. It was 30 degrees this morning. She called the humane society, called the police and they referred her to animal control. No one was available. 6 hours later animal control showed up and put a ticket on people’s door for barking. They called her and told her what they had done. She talked with Officer McCall of animal control. He told her dogs don’t freeze in the cold and that the dog was fine. They just gave the owners a warning for dog barking. He told her if there’s shelter, like a dog house, it is fine. No homeowner can be forced to have the dog go inside. The only thing we can complain about is the dog barking. She wants to see the law changed. According to the vet, the dog is in danger below 40 degrees. It’s barking is valuable in the neighborhood watching out for culprits. The dog barks like a cry for help.

11/16/06
Robert Clark
1249 Grand Ave # 237
Boise, ID 83702
Comments and Concerns: I have four concerns. One is about the Community House, Rescue Mission. If Roscoe doesn’t think men and children and families should live together, then why would he want to put it in the middle of where children and families live at this time? If they can’t live in the same building, why would they want to live in the same neighborhood? Especially if he sells the other one downtown and lets sexual predators plus pushing religion on people is wrong. Second is about the library downtown. You guys need to go to other cities and look like the Chamber of Commerce did and other people. Salt Lake City. If you want a vibrant downtown, you need a library downtown. Where do you get the money? Sell some of that extra property you all think you need to have and quit worrying about all these neighborhood libraries and have a beautiful downtown library to make some vibrant living downtown. Until you have people live downtown, you’ll never have good retail and other things that makes the downtown area grow. Go to other cities and look around. We have one of the worst pedestrian cities in the northwest. Why? Because you have rounded cities, one way streets, and you don’t care about that obviously. About the cab vendors on 6th and Main St. the problem is getting the cars off Capitol and 6th and let them park somewhere in the garages on other streets. Not on the corner of downtown. Go to other cities like Austin, TX where all the bars are in the same area and there’s no cars and there are places to walk. It’s all about walking, not driving. You’re forcing people to drive and drink. I’ve been downtown and I’ve rode cabs and a lot of my friends ride cabs. It’s a pain in the rear. If you had the cabs in a cab lane, it would work 150% better. Go to other cities and look. Another thing, you have an ordinance. If you don’t use the patio in a certain amount of time, they are supposed to be taken down. Why are you guys not forcing the ordinances? Or is the downtown association pushing you not to? On 8th St. where CCDC runs the ordinance for the space, they are all pushed back the right length and you can walk around. Where you have outdoor patios out there, you can’t walk two by two, you can barely walk by one. Now around 6th and Main, it is the same thing. They are not supposed to be permanent. Read your ordinance. You need to talk to the people that live here about sexual predators too. One thing they want me to ask is, Mayor Bieter and the rest of the City Council, do you believe in protecting our children? If you say yes then we need to do more about sexual predators. I know you’re not the judge and jury, but let’s do something for the children. They have to live with it the rest of their lives. We need to teach society there is no cure. Quit believing there is. Don’t let the doctor out here at the Correction Institution tell you anything different. If you believe and you want to stay in office, let your citizens know how you stand. Quit hiding behind your walls. It’s time to speak up. If you want a vibrant downtown, don’t do what the last City Hall did before and ran it like Nordstroms out of town that never will come here. Let’s have a vibrant downtown. Another thing is, if you want a vibrant downtown; let it roll like it’s going to. Don’t worry about bringing families in here. If there’s kids, that’s fine. Quit being like the Boise School District and worrying about having more kids so they can get more money from the government per child. Lets downsize but lets make is safe. Work with the builders, developers, people that live there. Another thing is about the skinny houses up off of Vista areas up on the bench. If you go look at some of those old homes, they never had it cleaned up until these new skinny houses came in. If you go to Phoenix with these self-contained communities, you walk behind houses and meet your neighbor. I guarantee you the majority of these people don’t know their neighbors. When you walk behind back yards in Phoenix in these communities, you meet people. I did. You don’t meet neighbors because everyone drives in their garage, shuts the door, and goes in the back yard in the summer and their house in the winter. Don’t tell me these people are worried about their neighborhoods. They are worried about change. Change can be good and can be bad. It’s all up to you and the citizens of this city. You have a good winter. Bye.
M/CC

11/16/06
Joe Basavik
3623 Williamsburg Way
Boise, ID 83706
BFI : I think if I was running the garbage company, my game would be to collect as little garbage as we can. For instance, if it’s a rainy night, I’d have the recycle truck pull up prior to 8am. People are not going to set their recyclables out on the curb when it’s raining. If it is the time for picking up leaves, I would pick them up sporadically in the morning or afternoon. I’d have the guys in the truck pick them up beforehand or afterwards so in the event that the homeowners will have no idea when to expect leaf pickup. Such as today, Thursday, the 16th, it’s raining this morning. I set my leaves out after calling BFI and being assured they would pick them up anytime they want. I think if I was them, I would figure out better plans for not picking up garbage. I mean hell; it saves effort, gas, and everything else. Goodbye.
PW