–Voters have turned them down twice. On the first go around they couldn’t even get 50% of the required 67% majority required by law.

–Round three was an exclusive deal with a private developer who didn’t even offer a plan because he “didn’t have time” to mess with it.

–Round four is a plan to not only build a convention center, but include an 11 story hotel on a block of publicly owned land downtown.

Their overzealous efforts included using public money to advertise in favor of their bond election and the Idaho Supreme Court declared that stunt illegal. Tens of thousands of dollars in public tax money was spent to defend the illegal ad campaign.

The latest deal is supposedly a flat out lease with no purchase option (we will believe that when we see the agreement). News reports say local developer Oppenheimer Corp. is planning a joint venture with John Q. Hammons Hotel Management to build the convention center and an Embassy Suites Hotel for $80 million on the G-BAD public land and lease it back to the G-BAD.

We wonder why the developers would want to lease it back to the G-BAD boys if it is a good business deal. Why bring in the G-BAD as a middleman if they have a profitable venture?

The GUARDIAN thinks a private venture with no lease back would make a lot more sense–even if G-BAD leased the land for $1 a year. They can’t sell the land without an auction to the highest bidder and they also have a buy back contract with the Simplot family-owned S-16 development company. The status of that deal is unknown at present.

Unfortunately, this smells like just another scheme to get around the voters. They are packing too much into too little space and potentially creating a terrible mess at the entrance/exit to the I-184 connector. The current Grove Hotel-Convention Center complex has already compromised our public sidewalk and intrudes daily into our public street, choking traffic with illegally parked cars, busses, vans, and delivery vehicles which cause traffic hazards. Capitol, Front, and 9th have lanes blocked daily.

Expect more of the same if this ill-conceived project is allowed to proceed without citizen approval.

They are also talking about using Capital City Development Corp. (Boise’s city urban renewal agency) public taxpayer funds to build a parking garage under the private developer’s structure. Not a wise move.

Narrow streets and limited space are not conducive to massive public buildings. We don’t have the broad avenues of Paris or Buenos Aires or even the wide streets of Austin, Texas. We are small town at least in scale and should make the best of it…live within our means.

The Greater Boise Auditorium District made the front page of the daily paper yet again with plans to build a convention center the voters and a private developer have turned down. The daily paper headline asks WHERE a convention center will be built and the real question is IF it will be built. The sub headline mixes west with east which is appropriate since NOBODY has offered a clear direction on the issue.

The broad open spaces along the 9th of July Boulevard in Buenos Aires look better all the time.

The G-BAD boys are rushing to meet a Tuesday deadline to have “something” started on the parcel between 11th and 13th bounded by Front and Myrtle Streets. The entire area presents a nightmare of competing plans for anyone who cares about our town.

Most of the land is owned by the J.R. Simplot family in one form or another. The Foundation, headed by Scott Simplot, wants to extend Broad Street to the west, essentially cutting the parcels in half with a new Discovery Center at the base of the freeway ramps at 13th. They envision shops and restaurants along a pedestrian corridor.

The G-BAD boys are happy with their site for a convention center, don’t want it cut in half to create a “bowling alley” and will fight for something that is without support of the community.

Mayor Bieter and his Team Dave want to move the proposed site to 9th and Front diagonally across from the existing Center on the Grove. He wants to use CCDC bonding authority to issue bonds the citizens refused to approve for the G-BAD boys.

Of the three concepts we see on the table, Scott Simplot’s idea of a pedestrian area with an expanded Discovery Center as an anchor sounds best for our city–without a new convention center.

Tall buildings and massive structures on small lots crowd our city and create a claustrophobic sense of “big city.” Downtown will always be a small town no matter how tight you cram it full of buildings.

If you have a small living room, it doesn’t get any bigger with more furniture and a bigger TV set.

Like his pals at G-BAD Bieter will not take “no” for an answer. After Judge Cheri Copsey declared it was up to voters to approve long term debt(for a police station), Bieter and the council pushed for a parking garage at the airport without voter approval. After spending tens of thousands of Boise taxpayer dollars pushing their illegal effort to go around the voters, city attorneys lost in the Idaho Supreme Court. That decision was issued April 13.

Now, Bieter is quoted in the daily paper saying, “I will push CCDC to to help with financing.” He reportedly has already asked the Capitol City Development Corp.–the city urban renewal agency–to explore plans to issue bonds for a convention center, similar to the plan used to finance the Ada County Courthouse.

The Ada Courthouse deal has been subject of ongoing criminal investigations. It is one of the most complex deals ever perpetrated on the citizens of Idaho. Lawyers have been disgraced, a university president ousted, and after four years, ground floor space designated as income producing commercial area remains vacant.

G-BAD(Greater Boise Auditorium District) has been turned down by voters twice and again by a private developer on plans to shoehorn a convention center into a vacant block of downtown between the entrance and terminus of the I-184 connector. Their latest attempt is a plan to build a convention center piece meal over a 10 year period. G-BAD board member Mike Wilson calls the idea “the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

G-BAD lawyers erroneously advised the board it was legal to use public tax money to advocate one side of an election, despite pleas to the from citizens to the contrary. Like Boise City, they spent public money defending their illegal cause until the Supreme Court ruled against them earlier this year.

No surprise, but behind-the-scenes maneuvering involves the J.R. Simplot family. They own most of the land in the area and have a “buy back” provision on the G-BAD land where voters have rejected a convention center. Even among the Simplots there is not a consensus for what or where development should take place.

The sad reality is Boise Citizens have been ill served by local government. In their zeal to “build something” Boise City government has demonstrated a lack of direction, understanding, and integrity. ANYTHING built will yield NO REVENUES to the city of Boise–all the property tax on improvements goes to the CCDC which offers unfair subsidy to businesses downtown. In short the GUARDIAN and many others have lost confidence in the ability of these agencies to act on behalf of the citizens.

It is time to disband the CCDC and let the free market prevail. Boise is not a “big city” and shouldn’t aspire to be one. The “small town feel” is what makes our city so appealing. The Grove Hotel encroaches on our public sidewalk, unfairly deprives motorists the use of our street as they permanently block a traffic lane of Capitol Boulevard. The Quest Arena events cause increased demand on public services–like police–but they pay NOTHING for police services…or any other city services.

Meanwhile, Bieter and his Team Dave have asked Ada Commishes to expand the city area of impact into the desert south of town so sprawl can continue to ruin what was once a really neat place.

Apparently it isn’t hooking enough visitors and the silver pyramid is about to become a garish super store the likes of which has never been seen– a BASS PRO SHOP!

That’s right. Plans call for a top water casting plug-shaped “incline mobile” to haul visitors to the top for a view of the city and the nearby Mississippi River. They will most certainly have a casting pond and sell fishing boats, all under the four roofs (no walls) of the pyramid.

When the GUARDIAN visited recently and inquired about the structure, residents mostly shook their heads. Some were actually proud that it was about to become a famous retail outlet, but their neighbors across the river are proud to have inflicted Wal-Mart on society as well.

If the Greater Boise Auditorium District (G-BAD) Boys continue with their obsession to build a convention center piece-meal beginning with a hole in the ground, they may want to look at the new Cabela’s store as a back up plan. A good fishing hole may be a prime attraction downtown.

The board recently voted 4-1 to engage in some wild plan of “creative financing” to fund the convention center voters have turned down twice and a local developer declined to pursue. Now they want to build it piece meal over the next 11 years and raise the room tax by a per centage point and pray for more visitors, lower gas prices and cheap airfares. Right!

G-BAD also apparently lacks an understanding of some of the basic principles of governing. They have a pretty long track record of doing a poor job and operating right on the edge of legality, always claiming their legal advisors told them it was “OK.”

Here is just part of the laundry list:

–Center On The Grove was built by a private non-profit front organization in order to avoid a vote of the people…Boise Convention Center INCORPORATED.

–They used public money to advertise and solicit support for a bond measure, got sued and lost when the Idaho Supreme Court ultimately ruled they broke the law.

–They sold public land for those skinny Aspen condos on Front Street without a hearing, advertising, or bids. A sweet insider deal that no regulatory agency has investigated. Cities, counties, and the state all have to follow specific procedures to dispose of public land.

–And this latest debacle is frought with pitfalls. Without a bond election and a clear mandate from the citizens, there is no proper method for this board to obligate a future board to do what these guys want done. Won’t work, bad idea.

They are clearly trying to avoid the voters by “pay as you go” financing. Sounds good on the surface, but we could have another downtown hole in the ground if the next group elected to G-BAD decides to do something else. G-BAD is an elected government agency and needs to respond to the VOTERS, not a select few hotels and restaurants.

Notice that no PRIVATE groups or individuals are willing to risk building a convention center.

The GUARDIAN is in Ohio at this writing and observed that places like Toledo, Cleveland, and Columbus have nice directional signs for visitors. The signs are strictly for visitors and list various attractions…apart from highway directions.

In Boise we should have signs all over town with directional arrows for BSU, OLD PEN, ZOO, HISTORICAL MUSEUM, QWEST ARENA, AIRPORT, EXPO IDAHO, etc. Placed at major intersections, these signs are a godsend for travelers.

When Boise cannot even keep the Depot open for tourists or provide good signage, the best convention center on earth is useless.

We say disband G-BAD and put the money toward promoting Boise tourism, adding signs, and keeping the Depot open.

Not only is 9th of July Avenue the widest street in the world, it is lined with shade trees and has “frontage roads” on both sides of the main drag. The GUARDIAN editor could´not help comparing our little old Capitol Blvd with the encroachment of hotels and development on our grandest street. (We will offer photos upon return)

The checkered history of B.A. has left a batch of open space parks from the ENGLISH TOWER outside the rail station to a modern mechanical flower sculpture the size of the Guv Mansion J. R. donated to Idaho. Locals tell me the shiny silver flower opens and closes with the sun. It sits on a grassy knoll of several acres.

Througout the city one can find plazas commemorating just about everything. The one thing they all have in common is open space and little obvious “squeezing in” of these public areas.
To be sure, there are many many blocks of multi-story appartments.

Even the most modern area, Puerto Modero, is open and like the city name implies “airy.” The old port with it’s warehouses and cranes has been transformed into a happening spot with lots of chrome and glass mixed in with the historic past.

In case you missed the message, convention centers and The Grove should not get squeezed into an area that is simply too small for grand schemes.

More on Argentina from the GUARDIAN foreign correspondent later.

Voters told them “NO” at the polls on two occasions when they wanted to build a new convention center in downtown Boise. Developer Gary Christensen briefly considered doing a private deal and he too said “no thanks.”

Disregarding the three strikes and your are out rule, the G-BAD has come up with another plan. This time they want to build skyward, using hotel room taxes which are about to burn a hole in their collective pocket.

Architect Neil Hosford has been retained to look into the potential of expanding the existing convention center at 9th and Front from 85,000 square foot to 205,000 square feet by adding two more levels.

G-BAD chairman Stephenson Youngerman claims in a press release there is a demand for additional space and the board has a responsibility to address that demand.

The GUARDIAN can safely say the demand to shoehorn more ballrooms into downtown Boise doesn’t come from the voters who told them “NO” twice in the past.

Let’s hope the architect isn’t the same dude who wants to build a 17 story apartment building on a 30 foot wide strip of grass at 8th and Front next to the crosswalk. These folks should all be in the Idaho Legislature–no offense intended.

The citizens have twice voted down your plan to build a convention center and now your hand picked private sector developer has also shown disinterest and failed to meet an October 31 deadline. We don’t need another “rebar pit” in downtown Boise.

The Nov. 28 issue of the IDAHO BUSINESS REVIEW had a good piece by Steven Anderson detailing the failure and certain options help by the Simplot family real estate company, S-Sixteen.

The deal under discussion had developer Gary Christensen getting land at 11th and Myrtle for a dollar a year. He was to build a $ 35 million convention center and then lease it back to G-BAD for $2 million a year in an effort to go around the voters who already said “NO” in 2003 and 2004.

The Idaho Supreme Court also spanked G-BAD in August for using public money to advertise in favor of the proposed convention center during the 2003 election. They were sued by Ameritel Inns who prevailed in the action.

The G-BAD needs to either turn in their guns or get bullet proof shoes so they won’t keep shooting themselves in their collective foot.

Thursday the high court ruled the G-BAD could not use public moneys for the purposes of influencing the outcome of an election. The suit was brought by AmeriTel Inns of Boise which said construction of a proposed convention center and a potential increase in a hotel room tax would adversely effect their business.

When an individual citizen filed a similar complaint, a Fourth District judge held that since no adverse effect could be shown by an individual citizen who did not suffer a loss for which the court could grant relief, the case could not proceed.

The G-BAD argued in the case with the citizen (the GUARDIAN editor) that it was OK to use public moneys for promoting the convention center because they were in the business of “promoting convention business.”

The GUARDIAN notes that schools are in the business of “promoting education,” but that doesn’t mean they can use public money to push a bond election. While the GUARDIAN editor was denied a chance to fight the G-BAD battle, the merits of the case were indeed upheld–you don’t spend the public’s money to advertise one side of an election.

AmeriTel, in its case, was able to show a potential loss and was allowed to proceed. However, the District Court ruled it was OK for the Auditorium District to use public funds to advocate a new convention center during a bond election. Ameritel appealed to the Supremes.

In their ruling, the Supremes sent the case back to Judge Cheri Copsey to make a determination whether or not the advertising and brochures constituted advocacy of a new convention center or was merely “informational.” The Supremes were clear that public funds should not be used to campaign on any issue. They did not rule on the nature of the brochures and information.

The sad thing is G-BAD has spent tens of thousands of public dollars in their ill fated attempts, much of it in the associated legal fees. Now they have to pay the costs for AmeriTel’s appeal as well, according to the Supremes decision. They may also have to pay additional attorney fees.

Meanwhile the G-BAD has made public a scam to have a private developer build the convention center, then lease it back to the G-BAD and go around the public bond election process. We will keep you posted.

The deal calls for developer Gary Christensen to pay one dollar to lease valuable public land at 13th and Front, build a “private” convention center with no public input (because it is private) and then lease the package back to the Auditorium District for about $2 million a year.

The GUARDIAN thinks if the deal is so sweet Mr. Christensen should take all the risk and receive all the benefit–it is simply wrong to spend our public money on his private deal.

Here is another dirty little secret: taxes on his $25 million PRIVATE building should be about $460,000 a year and all but the schools portion would go to the urban renewal agency and nothing to the City.

The widow living on the Bench and the family in the North End have to pay for police, fire, and other city services in the Downtown area. No taxes are paid to Boise City on any of the IMPROVEMENTS in the urban renewal district –it all goes to fund (CCDC) the urban renewal district.

The Auditorium District owns the existing Center on the Grove and it is funded by a 4% hotel room tax. The tax is aimed at promoting tourism in Boise and the surrounding area. In every respect it is PUBLIC MONEY. The land for the proposed scam is PUBLIC LAND. The board members are elected PUBLIC officials.

Last year when voters rejected the proposed convention center a second time, a spokesman for the District vowed that a convention center would be built, “one way or the other.” So much for honoring the will of the people.

The only proper expenditure of the $ 2 million hotel room tax is to lessen the financial burden of police, fire, roads, parking, sewer etc. placed upon the city taxpayers by visitors–WE should get the 4%!