NoTel Hotel
Tucson, Arizona. As noted at the last post, Tucson City Manager Mike Hein last week declared that the purchase and renovation of the Hotel Arizona was DOA not happening, dismissing it with minimal language that included "too expensive." My cloth alert sensors flashed and rang regarding what appears to be a unilateral decision affecting many in the community.1. Wasn’t the plan for the Hotel Arizona purchase and upgrade a package deal along with the purchase of the 6.7 acres and construction of the Sheraton as selected by committee last year? Doesn’t the assertion that some $60M or so is "too expensive" while $230M or so is affordable seem a little odd?
2. Was the $28M selling price a firm number? Is the $17M for the land a firm number? The price for the arena mushroomed. How real is the price for the Sheraton? Did the conversations proceed to where real numbers were on the table?
3. What appraisals were conducted and who did them? What methodologies were used? Are the glasses looking at the Hotel Arizona, the land, and the proposed Sheraton of the same color? With the right change of lens, I can make horse manure look like platinum.
I assert that underneath this one we would find cloth incarnate, the same nonsense that destroys functioning agencies and noteworthy efforts in order to stroke the favored. By the way, the reader does realize the cloth is rich with conflicts of interest.
posted by x4mr at 2:52 PM
10 Comments:
Should we be surprised by the contradictions and incongruities here?
John McCain is nothing more than an economic witch doctor.
"the cloth is rich with conflicts of interest"
That's to be expected when the cloth are involved with every project of significance in Tucson.
I would add a fourth question: how much of the projected $550 million in TIF is still available, and does the TIF's projected revenue stream and bondable net present value still cover the $500 million in commitments the city council made just last year?
I bet it's more like $400 million at this point, and that explains Hein's stalling for time on all these projects that he rushed to council last year to approve.
Congratulations, x4mr. You have come a long, long way from the well meaning kid teaching algebra in 2003.
Navigator's calls for you to close the chapter were premature, but now you're there. You had to understand what happened to you, and now I think you do. You even educated some of your readers along the way.
Replay the tape of our argument, and I think you will laugh. Get your PhD, and re-write Something Else with the maturity you have gained, trimming what should drop and enhancing what is incomplete.
Use 100% real names.
As Dr. X4mr, publish that puppy!
I totally agree, Cigar Man. "Something Else" should be taken to the next level where the lessons can be shared and the guilty parties get the recognition that they so richly deserve.
I only know of one other recent tale of extreme greed and incompetence in local government that is as well documented and that is the San Diego Pension Crisis story. The difference is that X4mr's story is very personal and written by him where the SD Pension Crisis story has mostly been written by the San Diego Union Tribune.
I also concur, but do wish to defend myself simply noting that I primarily meant x4mr should move on in the sense of emotionally and feeling the need to repeat prior rants.
I think we all learned, and it's not material they teach in business school. I would love to see x4mr become important in higher education and his book become well known enough to cause many communities to address enhancing the skills of their workforce.
Nice work, x4mr. I predict we will look back on this post as the actual tipping point. Dominoes are falling at a rapidly accellerating pace now. Can you hear that sound? Critical mass has been reached. The cloth is coming unraveled. It's by the hour now instead of by the day or week.
Good advice from Liza and Cigar Man. Bag that PhD for sport and prestige, but you don't need any piece of paper in my book. [You've already got more knowledge and wisdom than a single person should be allowed to have. There's no justice!]
Hey, thanks all.
Policon, If you are correct I will be delighted. The decent people in this town deserve so much better.
I actually am working on a revised Something Else that implements real names for all (except a few SAIAT staff), significantly tightens the work, and cuts/shortens less pertinent content.
I won't commit to a time, but I plan to post the revision before the end of the summer. As you have suggested, no effort will be made to publish in the "formal sense" until I complete the dissertation and obtain the degree. Also, the formal publication needs to "go national" and include workforce development material pertinent to all communities.
Cigar Man is spot on. I replayed the tape of our parking lot altercation, and it was pretty funny. He probably remembers when I screamed, "WE SERVE TEN THOUSAND A YEAR!!"
as if that had anything to do with anything.
Business leaders are organizing for change. Citizen activists are looking for allies to transform the unrest into action.
Who seems oblivious to all this? Why, our elected leaders. Everything is fine, everything is normal. "Directing" the city manager to return on generous deadlines with "plans" that should have been developed a year or more ago is what passes for strong council action these days.
Did anyone hear the John C. Scott Show today? Shirley Scott broke the mold and demanded some answers. John C. has much to rant about. The rest of this week on his show should prove interesting. 690AM
Perhaps the ice is breaking. The arrogance of those who would blatantly deceive the elected officials and a cynical public is being exposed.
Perhaps the Tucson community is ready to draw aside the Cloth and see the nakedness of our "leadership".
I'll throw my hat into the ring and say I agree with Cigar man as well.
John McCain is not the biggest fan of human rights.
Thank goodness for this blog ... we cannot expect anything of substance to come out of the morning newspaper, since they would rather devote their limited resources to insightful pieces such as mother-daughter look alike contests ...
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