Breaking news from Downtown **updated**

Whist out and about this afternoon, I noticed Elmwood Park without it's "Festival in the Park" items, but with a decidedly LARGE area of snow fence. You know, that orange plastic fence put up normally to designate a construction area? It's called snow fence.

Anyway, this vast area of snow fence is located at the corner of Elm and Williamson, just inside the park. And something is missing!

The curse is gone!

Stay tuned for further information....

****UPDATE****

From the City GIS Permit Center: "Remove the monument in the South east location of Elmwood park corner of Elm and Williamson and clean and repair the monument. Install a new slab and foundation to support the new look of the Mayor's Monument with electrical light and water line for planter irrigation."

New look? The plotz thickens.

Propaganda, or does he have a point?

It seems that the Roanoke Citizen's Brigade is finally moving into the public light.

They have a blog now.


(the title and address are NSF tiny brains)

They have put a post up about some church having it's services in a city school. Sure - the post is crabby and cantankerous, but the question is - do they have a point?

Should city schools be allowing religious groups to hold services within them, even if it is not during school hours?

Interesting question, and I am curious to see more posts from them.

Finally!

Thank heavens for PPS. And a leak.

Who knows who the leak was, but thank them if you do know.

A new plan for the City Market that actually works!

Mind you, I like this as both a citizen and shopper of the market, and as a future business owner. Should the report vanish, I have a copy and will be re-hosting it, but honestly, it's brilliant.

Almost seems to be inspired by the Chelsea Market in Manhattan, which is where the Food Network is now based.

Right down to the use of the center court area for vendors, I like this plan. This opens up the Market to more people - more uses - more options for products.

Yep - works for me. Your thoughts?

Oh - and notice the 3rd floor is a rental space/theater once again?

Damn skippy.

Brilliant

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "What's missing?":

I am a city firefighter and would like to share some thoughts on the continual downsizing of the fire department.The citizens of Roanoke need to know this.

To Mason, Trinkle, Harris, Fitzpatrick, Nash and others so unaware yet in a position of influence:
The chief is senior management by assignment. The chief is not a senior fire officer, not hoback, not grigsby. Neither of them have firefighter views or concerns. They were given the job to do whatever Burcham says. Things will never be better for us until Burcham, Grigsby and Hoback leave. Then it will take a long time to clean up the mess they made. (Read the firefighter blog) The chief is an appointed position. You do not have to come up thru the ranks. You need never ride or drive a fire truck; you are not required to have any fireground experience. They were not with us on the street with ice covering our turnout gear, hands and feet numb from the cold; they were not there when we crawled thru the basements or attics with zero visibility and intense heat. They did not pull their lungs out to get the hose to the seat of the fire. They have not gone home with aching body and burning eyes. They never stood in a situation so dangerous that the mind very quickly and quietly thought of family. They were not there to hear the gasps of tortured agony. They did not help dig the remains of a body from the rubble. They weren’t there to hear the cries of the family members at the loss of a loved one. They haven’t seen what I’ve seen nor done what I’ve done.
Yet they pretend to be one of us and speak for us.
They don’t know who I am or what I’m about; and the fact of the matter is, I really don’t care.
I don’t need or want them to know me. But then they risk my safety and the safety of the public.

A chief needs not have loyalty to the citizens or to the firefighters. He must only follow instructions from downtown. The office serves at the pleasure of downtown. Do you really think he speaks for us? Are you that naive? Or are you the same as he?

We didn’t come to council about our poor salaries, our ever decreasing benefits or the way we are mismanaged and mistreated. Our department is full of problems and the sad thing is that they come from the top down. Most of our people question why they stay here considering the way we are treated, even the young people. Look how many are leaving.

We came to you about SAFETY, and you could not see and were led. We will face even more cuts soon.
Where will you stand?

We write anonymously because of the retaliation, but if you squint your eyes in the twilight you will see me.
Blue ghost

Have you seen?

The city launched the StarCam - 24/7 webcam live from the top of Mill Mountain.

It's about time too.. and because they are about 10 years late doing this, they used 10 year old web code.

The entire page refreshes every 15 seconds. Hope your cache is strong enough to handle it.

However, with a bit of digging - I was able to find the site where it does not refresh the entire page, just the photo.

And it's every 5 seconds.

Here you go - the Real StarCam

Oh, and your welcome - City of Roanoke, for saving your servers the 15 second total refresh.

What's missing?

The new budget - for a cash-strapped city, is painful at best. Downright dangerous at worst.

We know about the FD getting cut by 6 positions, and the shuffle of equipment. That's bad.

What has not been spoken of are the cuts to the PD.

Suddenly I am thinking that we are about 2 years too late on the vote.

The Roanoke City Police Department, the only department where on any given day - around 9:30 in the morning, there might very well be 2 officers on patrol for the entire city while the rest sit around court, is facing a $1.2+ Million Dollar cut.

Let's say you wake up one morning and find your garden hose missing in action. Now you have no idea who took it, and it's not all that urgent, but you do feel the need to report it - as some of your neighbors have had other garden implements vanish recently. You call down to the HQ, and are put on the line with a Citizen Service operator. They take the report - file it, and ship it down to the correct officer for follow up as time warrants.

At least something gets done, and the report stays active until the officer, as part of his or her regular duties, closes it out.

That's before July 1. As of July 1 - those operators have been given notice that they will most likely be let go, pending budget.

So - no more Citizen Service operators, no more people to take your report and get it checked out in a fairly timely way. No more reports getting to officers, who as part of their normal duties, would investigate and close out the report.

Nope. Now they will be taking patrol officers off the street to staff the phone lines.

Let's take my home turf - Southeast, as an example.

Many years back, when Madame Burcham was just cutting her teeth in this city, the state and federal prosecutors came to the city to complain that the police were not bringing them enough cases in comparison to the reported crimes. In a quick scramble, the minimum staffing levels for the city were.. uh.. re-calibrated for the "population" of the city. This cut back most sections by at least 2 officers a 24-hour period.

For PD purposes - Southeast runs from the tracks south, 581/220 east, and south to the gravel pits. Yes - those gravel pits. On 220 south of WalMart.

That's Southeast, Garden City, SoRo, the Carilion area, Mill Mountain, Franklin Rd., - well, down to the Blue Ridge - you get the idea.

How many officers per shift do you think are on duty?

5? 7?

For an area that big?

How about 3.

3 per shift.

And now they are going to pull one to work the phones? Not to mention all the times they are stuck in court from 8:30am til' 12p or so...

Who will be watching the streets?

So now, if you think of it this way - you'll be looking at reduced fire service AND reduced police service.

The Harris legacy - a city in flames. A city that could be rolling in the cash, but does not have the common sense enough to turn a nickel into a dime.

It's going to be a wild and wooly two years folks.

Interesting so far

Results are rolling in folks - come discuss them in the Meebo chatbox to the right there.

Mayors link

Council link

Right now, a very VERY strong showing for Bowers, with the exception of South Roanoke - which came out for Harris.

As far as the Council races - so far the only one who looks like a lock is Lea.

Come on, discuss.

***update*****


Times has called it for Bowers, and prematurely for the Dem slate.


Tinker... whats the delay?

*****update*****

So the election is over, and we welcome Mayor-Elect Bowers. We question the count for the Rosen-Wishneff result, but thats only because it's late - and math is not my friend. Although with a 102 vote difference pre-tinker, and a 104-202 Tinker result - it's hard to figure for some reason. Must be the tiredness.

Oh, and Nash will step down from Blue Ridge - that's my prediction. If he steps down from the council, that throws everything into chaos.

Harris, sorry to hear you are finished with politics. That's a statement that came too late, Emperor Nelson.

See you all tomorrow.

Voting..

Today's the day. The day that will set the course of Roanoke for the next 10 years (see my previous posts as to why I say that).

I only ask this of you: Think before you pull that lever.

I wonder if Harris has learned anything from his reading on the history of politics in Chicago, if he is adopting a "Vote early, vote often" message today.

For my money - Bowers and Garner. I'm going to have to do some soul searching to figure out the 3rd and 4th - but Bowers and Garner for sure.

I'm no great fan of Bowers, but I think he is at least more responsive Harris could be.

As for Valerie - I've had chance over the past year to really pick her brain, and I am very impressed with what I have seen. She would be a great asset to the City Council.

And please, remember the Fire Fighters in all this - our saviors when we call.

Oh, and remember Mrs. Burcham too... as I am sure she is looking forward to another easy couple of years.

Get out and vote, there's nothing more important right now.

The growing pains.

You know usually when I sit down to write one of these I have 18 tabs open in FireFox will all my supporting information, articles, and data.

Not this time. This time I am speaking to you off the cuff, and from the soul.

The Times, The Chamber of Commerce, and several other groups have endorsed Harris, Lea, Price, and Rosen.

The question is, why would they want the ticket that could keep Roanoke stagnant for another 2-4 years?

Harris is done, and has been for a while now. He reached the end of his usefulness with a trip to Mexico bought and paid for by a developer who then came with his hand out asking for city monies. Harris has his own troubled personal life which he needs time off to perhaps "prayerfully" go and think about what HE values. He is a man with a overinflated ego, who is supposed to be a man of God. Think about him in those terms, and you'll see where the trouble lies. Plus, it's hard enough to trust any politician - now your talking one who is also a minister? Oy Gevelt!

Lea is not a bad man, but has fallen in with a bad crowd. The ForTheHarris crew elected last time around has sunk a large hook into Lea - and they are buddy-buddy now. Lea never strikes me as a visionary, or someone who is capable of great thought. Not that he is not a smart man, but he is not a forward-looking one. So far, everyone keeps touting his founding of a sporting event. Ok.. so? Anyone for a game of Sandlot baseball? $5 bucks a head and we can donate the money to the hospital's children's services. Ok - so how hard was that? By the way - Sherman, watch what you say to the media - that's really what got your buddy Dowe evicted. When he accidentally came out with the City's negotiating to land a 2nd hotel Downtown, thats when the fuse was lit.

Anita Price, who are you and what do you want from us? She's a counselor for the City Schools - so combine her with Trinkle, and you have psychological help nearly from cradle to grave available on the City Council. Other than that? Can't really find anything - although I have to say, I will have a hard time supporting a candidate who allows her yard signs to be placed in medians and on public property. That's tacky.

And finally, Court Rosen. A fellow who I have personally met, and spoke with, and felt the need to wash my hands after speaking with. A person who stands to gain huge from a source no one thought of yet. Mr. Rosen was weaned in the halls of Congress as a lobbyist. And not just any lobbyist - but one for the Pharmaceuticals industry - a Billion Dollar Lobbyist. It was there he learned to speak in his vagaries, and offer no compelling visions - just wispy ideas that come and go like wind. He speaks to everyone, but for no one. Offering no real positions to pin him down on, claiming everything needs more study. He is a young professional who made his money in DC, decided to get out of that game and become a Land Spec Developer down here, and now sees the dollar signs popping up from the Carilion med school. A Pharma Rep in Roanoke + a med school in Roanoke = $$$$$$$$

This run for City Council, and all the various other meetings he shows up to, are purely for the display of his face. Making sure people know what he looks like seems to be very important to him, although personally I would rather know what he is thinking. Or if. I have heard rumor that Mr. Rosen might be a touch on the ditzy side. You know who else is a Pharma rep? The wife of Valley Forward's leader, Mrs. Lugar. You know who else is a Land Spec Developer? One of the board member's of Valley Forward, Mr. Fralin. Maybe being these things are what makes one a "young professional." Don't know, I'm not one apparently.

Anyway - these are the options the Times and Chamber of Commerce have seen fit to thrust upon us all.

I ask one thing of you folks. You all know I am the earliest announced candidate for the 2010 election. Please, think about what you are giving me to work with. For the good of the City, and all it's citizens - think hard about who will be in power 2 years from now.

I'll have one more post, covering the rest of the candidates before election day, but start thinking now where you want this city to be in 2, 5, 10, or even 20 years - and who is actually going to get it there.

Soon to be...

I know I've been unnervingly quiet for the past week, or several weeks depending on how you look at it.

Just one more week and I'll be returning to normal, I promise.

The past few weeks have seen soaring highs, quiet lows, and the day to day discovery that is a child.

But don't think I've been resting, or had my gaze averted.

No, I have been keeping a keen eye on the "For the Harris" crew... the Also-Ran Bowers, Rabid Wishneff, and the ForOURCity crew. Along with the usual suspects (VF, AMWV-Taubman, et. al.), I've not yet turned a blind eye to any of the thwarters of progress and rational development in the city.

No, I've just taken a sanity break - for a short time anyway.

You have 7 days before I'm fully back.

And there will be a major post in the final hours before the election.

See you on the other side.

Into the mirror black

And here we go, as the republicans (small r intentional) must be kicking themselves for not having a dog in this race.

Wishneff, who could have had the easiest run of all - let's his big mouth get in the way of any real progress and ruins his chances for re-election.

Harris - well, I hope he has started dusting off his shelves, cleaning out the desk. Without some major shenanigans, he is a lame duck on his way to the packing plant.

Lea, probably a shoe in. Has Anita Price done anything since she announced?

And Court Rosen, well what a tangled web he is turning out to be.

This election is getting ugly folks - so far the only one I trust is Garner.

Bowers reminds me of a few former mayors of New York City rolled into one.

Sorry it has taken me so long to get back in the swing of things - especially after all the loaded articles last week. It pained me to not be able to post about them, but family comes first.

Of course, I wish some of our elected officials would get that message. But what have you. There will be more to come in the coming days. I've been sitting on some powder-kegs, and I feel a little Donkey Kong.

Question is - which one is Mario?

What is youth?

I have to wonder, with all the talk of Young Professionals and Youth Groups and whatnot - exactly where does that line fall. By some, the range is 21-40 - and others limit it to 19-35. But the City launched a new video to "sell" Roanoke to the outside world.

2 impressions I am left with after watching it: 1 - it's very 'old', and does not perk my youthful interests. 2 - The video gives plenty of reasons to come here, but no incentives to actually LIVE in the city. The things the video shows are accessible to anyone in the Valley - not just those who live in the city of.

Here's the Vid. Any observations?

Sometimes it's good to be wrong

Well, thankfully we dodged that bullet. Alvin Nash will be the Dowe-placement for the next 2 years.

How many citizens really cared? Not many as far as I could tell.

I hope Mr. Nash can do a better job than the current pit of Vipers. From what I understand, he's a pretty decent and reliable guy, but once the vipers fang you..

Good luck Mr. Nash. Here's hoping all goes well for you.

My prediction

Cutler will get the seat. Valley Forward will get the "Community Center", and we will get the shaft.

Let's see what happens.

Breaking news: RVAR selects it's ticket

This just in:

The Roanoke Valley Association of Realtors has concluded it's interview and determination sessions - and selected Lea, Price, and Rosen as it's choices for City Council.

Add to this Dr. Cutler's assured hand-over of the Dowe seat, and it speaks to being screwed by the business sector.

Cutler should have never put his name in for Council (if he did to begin with - the man seems to get many things without asking), as now someone is going to have to reveal all the conflicts of interest the candidates for all open positions are rife with.

Rosen, Lea, Price, Harris. Does any one of them seem trustworthy enough to be YOUR elected official?

You might think differently soon enough.

Sorry I have been away so long, but sometimes life comes before public service. But never forget, I'm more motivated than before.

2010 is not that far off. And yes, I am the first announced candidate.

Easter dawn

Looks like another beautiful day in the valley. Too bad this week can't be the same.

You'll see.

But for now, enjoy this little quiet day, and take the time to reflect.

A St. Pat's Tradition

Don't sit under the apple tree...

I know I haven't been the most reliable news source lately... And I know I have levt you wanting for opinion.. I'm sorry. Really..


It's just.. well, it's hard to post dispatches from the edge of a war zone each day, when you are fighting for the future of Roanoke. It tends to become more personal. I've seen some good people go down in flames lately, victims of the folly of war.

But we are heading in for a new round of battle, and with any luck - I'll be able to start writing you more often. Until then, keep us in your thoughts and prayers - we are up against a formidable enemy. And the stakes are high.

Until I return more regularly.. Don't sit under the apple tree, with anyone else but me.. anyone else but me, anyone else but me...

Come rain or shine

Hell or highwater.

Southeast is on the move.... Stepping off at 11:30am today.. the SEAF will be marching proudly in the St. Pats parade.

We do this in honor of those good brave sons and daughters of Ireland and Scotland who worked the NW shops, the Viscose mill.. Raised families, celebrated life and death in Southeast.


To them the glory, to us - the legacy and the future.

Come join us.

(crossposted to seroanoke)

sorry

admit it.. you smiled.