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Eco-Strong Money Grab – Part II

We saw in Part I how Alan Champagne and Mike Cour were spinning lies and webs of bullshit for months trying to keep the LEDC and Mandy Walsh on the hook before they foolishly asked for $1.85 million dollars of tax dollars for their “privately funded” project.

I ran across a hilarious fuckup by Mike Cour when he sent Mandy Walsh the “rough draft” of the press release he was about to send out on May 7th:

SO many lies!!! They had NOT relocated corporate headquarters and they were NOT scheduled to break ground anywhere!

Mandy emails him back and asks why it says CITY in there instead of Lampasas! LOL!!

Mike emails back defensively “Does it matter?”. Ummm, yes it matters, moron. You are SUPPOSEDLY going to put your plant HERE…and not anywhere else.

Oops, Mike! Caught red-handed. Looks like Mike might actually be shopping this around at the same time he’s wooing the LEDC with promises of moving into their business park! Mike told me a similar story about another phantom piece of land to try and cover up his PREVIOUS lies about the press release timelines not matching up. I asked who owned the other land and where it was.

No answer. So either THAT was a lie, or he didn’t want LEDC to know he was kissing other asses too in order to try and get more free stuff.

He also doesn’t even have the square footage figured out yet! I pointed THAT out last year too. In his presentation to the City, he quoted 10,000 square feet. Then in the press release it was 25,000 square feet. Either way, he spouts the same lie that it will produce 200 jobs.

Sure buddy. Your plant in Alberta is 35,000 square feet and only employs 50 people! But your 22,000 square foot plant HERE will produce 200 jobs. Sure it will! Can you smell the bullshit from here?? Apparently the LEDC couldn’t.

Also, your existing Canadian 35,000 square foot plant recycles 6 million tires per year, but in your bullshit PowerPoint you gave to the LEDC, you are going to recycle 40 million tires in Lampasas with 22,500 square feet. If anyone believes THAT nonsense I have some land to sell you on south 183.

But Mike Cour and Alan Champagne (despite their protestations to the contrary) are all about GRABBING THAT FREE MONEY!! They can’t be bothered with silly details like square footage or job creation or how many tires will be recycled! You can smell the desperation in these emails below.

I gotta tell you Mike, desperation is a stinky cologne:

Grant money! Grant money! Ask her about it! Ask for more! Money money money!! Grant money!

Just a reminder to those of you who actually earn your money out in the real world by getting up and busting your ass: “grant” is a fancy word for “free tax money stolen from someone else that you never have to pay back”. Not a loan. Not an “investment”. Just free shit thrown right into the wallets of scumbag con men like Alan Champagne and Mike Cour.

Alan Champagne and Mike Cour Caught Lying Red-Handed – Part I

When I started asking a few questions about Eco-Flex and Eco-Strong and their weird press releases last year, CEO Alan Champagne could not keep his stories straight.

Eco-Flex Can’t Get Their Stories Straight

His big whopper of a lie was that the joke of a press release I saw about breaking ground in Lampasas on June 2nd was actually sent out in February BEFORE Covid hit. I knew this was bullshit. Now I have proof:

Oh! Lookie there! In an email dated May 7th, good old Mike Cour is still working on his press release – which will hit “around Monday”. Monday would be May 11th. VERY close to the May 12th date I insisted was the ACTUAL release date.

Alan Champagne lied last September and told me:

“The press release was issued late February , I dont feel I have to explain myself. With the boarder closure which was supposed to be temporary and now will probably be closed to the end of this year. This is a private company which is not using any government funds or such.”

[It’s spelled BORDER you absolute moron]

Oops. Guess it wasn’t issued in February after all….was it, scum bag?

Also, the BORDER closure did NOT prevent Alan Champagne from traveling here to Texas to make his pitch (a lie he told Mandy Walsh over and over). The REALITY is he could have come for business if he wanted to. Canada and U.S. only closed their BORDER for NON-ESSENTIAL movement. This is from a press release on 3/21/20:

The border remains open for essential travel, which includes the transportation of goodsand travel for work, in order to not hamper trade and the supply chains between the two countries.

It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if the REAL reason Alan Champagne couldn’t come here is that (1) he has an ankle monitor on for being a serial bullshit artist in Canada OR (2) he knew this project was a giant pile of feces and couldn’t get through the pitch with a straight face.

His THIRD lie in just that one paragraph is “this is a private company which is not using any government funds or such”. Mike Cour ALSO repeated the exact same lie to me in a separate email, saying “we intend for this to be a private effort.”

Uh huh. That wasn’t my accusation, Alan. You might not CURRENTLY be scamming any government funds in Canada, but my accusation is that you were LOOKING to grab some free stuff down here in Lampasas and screw over our local government and LEDC. I was right about that too!

When I FINALLY got my hands on the pathetic Eco-Flex/Eco-Strong pitch that looks like an 8th grader did it, I got to see what they were REALLY asking for from the LEDC and the City:

***How can Lampasas help? Just hand us $1.85 million dollars, suckers!!***

Yeah. We don’t want anything! Totally private effort! Oh, besides the five acres of free land AND another ONE POINT SEVEN FIVE MILLION DOLLARS to build a plant! Besides that, we’ll handle everything!

Are you fucking kidding me?? This moron reminds me of Jerry Lundegaard in the movie Fargo trying to get his rich father-in-law to hand him cash in this classic scene:

“He’s saying we put in all the money and HE collects if it pays off!” [50 second mark]

I’m guessing Mandy and the LEDC were ready to hand over the land. Why not? They have 152 acres of it sitting there. They were also prepared to waste another $1.9 million on “Phase I” (really Phase II) construction. This is on TOP of the million they blew running water and electricity to the site in 2015.

But handing these retards $1.75 million?? That was a bridge too far. Only TJ Monroe would OK a ridiculous waste of money like that, and thankfully she’s not in charge. It’s my belief that Eco-Turd asking for such a ludicrous amount of money is what ultimately blew up the deal. I also think Mandy was starting to suspect this guy was a shit bag for other reasons and was maybe stringing her along. We’ll get to that in Part II.

Alan Champagne – CEO of Eco-Flex – is a Lying Sack of Shit

Oh, the things you find in 800 pages of crap the City hands you, eh?

It only cost me about $350 and 30% of the pages they handed me were useless crap I never requested. But one thing we DID find was TWO huge smoking guns. The first one proves Alan Champagne (CEO of Eco-Flex) is a lying sack of shit.

The second one proves Mike Cour is also a liar. No big surprises there, but I always love to find proof in black and white emails that the guys who seem like shady bullshit artists trying to scam some tax dollars ARE actually just that.

This 800-page pile of paper does not shed any light on WHY the LEDC/Ec0-Turd partnership fell apart. Probably because they used a black magic marker to black out some of the interesting stuff and keep it away from my prying eyes. But there is enough there for me to make a good guess.

Photo evidence tomorrow! Stay tuned!

To Mike Cour:

Hey Mike. Remember seven months ago when I said I’d do everything in my power to expose Eco-Strong and the LEDC partnership as a scam? Remember how you were haughty and refused to hand over any materials you used in your secretive presentation to the LEDC?

Remember when you didn’t bother to respond to me or to the editors at British Tyre and Rubber when we had some questions? Remember when you said you had nothing more to say to me because I was asking too many uncomfortable questions? You probably figured you’d just ignore me and sail through the LEDC application process and nobody would be the wiser, right?

Remember when you lied and said Eco-Strong was “intended to be a private effort” and you weren’t looking for tax dollars?

Guess what?

I win.

Mayor Transparency STILL Holding Up Documents FOUR WEEKS After Attorney General Orders City To Hand Them Over

Months and months ago, I requested documents related to the “economic impact” report for the LEDC ‘business’ park prospect Eco-Strong.

The City did everything in their power to obstruct me. I got my lawyer involved (yet again) and tried several different tactics to make those documents public.

One of my tactics (which worked previously in the Azbell A/V scam) was to request CITY EMAILS that contained keywords like “Eco-Strong”, “business park”, “Mike Cour”, etc. Those emails are most DEFINITELY public docs and they will be required to produce them.

Overpriced City lapdog lawyer JC Brown made sure to produce reams and reams of bullshit (and billable hours to the taxpayer) to try and stop this. She (once again) requested the Texas Attorney General side with her and protect all these emails as containing “sensitive” and “proprietary” information which would harm negotiations with Eco-Strong.

[Keep in mind, the LEDC appears to have DUMPED Eco-Strong as a viable prospect for their goat pasture – which makes this all a moot argument. But that doesn’t stop them from continuing to obstruct]

That is total bullshit, of course. The AG agreed and ordered these buffoons to hand over the docs. They ARE allowed to redact certain “sensitive info”, but they MUST turn these docs over.

That was over a month ago. Odd, because our mayor has sworn up and down she is all about the “transparency” in City government. Remember this quote from a City council meeting?

Her exact words: “I feel like (City) staff and Council oughta be tasked with being accountable to answer on the spot…and..uh…I would be comfortable doing that….that’s transparency at its finest…is…you know…we don’t put off a question, we answer it on the spot”

I’ll tell you this, JC and Misti and Finley: when I finally DO get my hands on these documents, I will go over ALL 800 pages with a microscope. I will not miss ANYTHING. And since you have dragged your feet and farted around for so long on this, I promise you I am going to embarrass the shit out of every single City Nerf job worker and/or council member who appears in them and deserves it.

Stay tuned.

Keep Bums Off City Council

Never EVER forget: Clayton Tucker is a socialist. He works for a Bernie Sanders splinter organization called “Our Revolution” as a “political organizer” and he thinks Robert Francis O’Rourke is a FANTASTIC guy who should be governor of Texas.

He LOVES open borders and thinks useless college degrees should be FREE to everyone. He also demands the complete takeover of the healthcare system by Big Government. Government which is comprised of know-nothing bums like Bernie Sanders and Clayton Tucker.

Those are the FACTS.

Keep socialist Clayton Tucker OFF OF CITY COUNCIL.

At their heart, all socialists are bums. Bums are drawn to Marxism like moths to a flame. They think they are NOBLE, of course. Trying to save the world and everyone in it without ever lifting a finger to do a real day’s work themselves.

The noble bum.

Has The Eco-Turd Finally Been Buried?

Like a guilty cat burying a stringy and malnourished turd under the sand, so doth the LEDC quietly and unceremoniously dump Eco-Strong as a “business park prospect”.

Cat Poops In The Litter Stock Photo, Picture And Royalty Free Image. Image 27975898.

Well, it took a looong time, but there are FINALLY some new LEDC minutes on the City website. Specifically, the minutes from the Feb 24th meeting.

Hey…just because they didn’t meet in December (which is normal) or January (which is not) doesn’t mean they aren’t hard at work!!

Anyways, it looks like the sad and sorry Eco-Strong “business prospect” turd might finally be buried. Even after paying Impact DataSource a bunch of money to paint Eco-Turd in a flattering light, they must have realized that Mike Cour was just too full of shit even for THEM to spin the story in a positive light.

So now it looks like they are back to square one. I would like to think my tireless exposing of Mike Cour and Eco-Strong had something to do with this. Don’t worry Mike, I have zero doubt you will try and run your scam again in another town. Best of luck!

According to the LEDC minutes from Feb 24th:

“Mandy Walsh (Economic Development ‘Director’) discussed with the board the options of the Business Park. One being the possibility of applying for the standard EDA grant contingent on a business prospect. Second option is to request an updated loan proposal from Bancorp South to fund development of Phase I”

Looks to me like they no longer have any “business prospects” for their ~~goat pasture~~ ‘business’ park. Which means Eco-Turd must have been flushed down the toilet. Finally.

[That would be the “standard EDA grant” that Langford was supposed to have done WAY BACK on July 31, 2020. I’m guessing that in order to complete the grant, they needed to show they had a viable business prospect. Despite SIX YEARS of trying, they STILL don’t have one]

Oh, they tried mightily to polish the Eco-Turd and pin their hopes on Mike Cour – but that was a sorry joke. I have detailed Eco-Strong HERE and HERE and HERE.

Also, it is NOT “Phase I” as they continually lie about in public. Phase I was actually back in 2015 when they pissed away over a million bucks to make the ‘business’ park ‘shovel ready’. That was a lie then and it still is today:

*Hey! There’s TJ Monroe smiling about another one of her many screw-ups! I hear she’s running for mayor now! Yipeeee!!*

So – now they are mulling the options between finding another “business prospect” to hand a bunch of free shit to in exchange for dubious promises of growth. OR they go back to the bank and try to borrow the money to put themselves even deeper in the hole in this idiotic project.

[Let’s NOT forget, they have already handed Pope Eckermann about $70,000 to draw up plans for “Phase I” (really Phase II) and they STILL don’t have any idea how they are going to pay for it! Classic! Spend $70,000 on plans you might never be able to use]

I suggest a third option, which I have suggested for about 8 years now: sell the piece of shit and get out of the entire thing. It is and was a doomed project. Putting the likes of TJ Monroe and Cathy Kuehne in charge of millions of tax dollars for “economic development” is a recipe for disaster.

Just remember TJ Monroe’s colossally terrible prediction about the ~~weed patch~~ ‘business’ park almost SIX YEARS AGO to the day:

“Mrs. Monroe noted the Lampasas Economic Development Corp. is working with the business park south of town on U.S. Highway 183, and she said she hopes the site will attract good employers to Lampasas. [Council member TJ Monroe] – April 14, 2015

For some other hilariously wrong predictions, you can click on this link and read them all.

So The Irishman Says…

The day after his wife disappeared in a kayaking accident, an Irishman answered his door to find a grim-faced constable waiting in the front yard. “We’re sorry, Mr. O’ Flynn, but we have some information about your dear wife, Maureen” said the officer.

“Tell me! Did you find her?” Michael Patrick O’Flynn asked. The constable said, “I have some bad news, some good news, and some really great news. Which would you like to hear first?”

Fearing the worst, Mr. O’ Flynn said, “Give me the bad news first.” The constable said, “I’m sorry to tell you, sir, but early this morning we found your poor wife’s body in the bay.” “Lord sufferin’ Jesus and Holy Mother of God!” exclaimed O’ Flynn. Swallowing hard, he asked,”What could possibly be the good news?”

The constable continued, “When we pulled the late, departed poor Maureen up, she had 12 of the best-looking Atlantic lobsters that you have ever seen clinging to her. Haven’t seen lobsters like that since the 1960’s, and we feel you are entitled to a share in the catch.”

Stunned, Mr. O’ Flynn demanded, “Glory be to God, if that’s the good news, then what’s the really great news?” The constable replied, “We’re gonna pull her up again tomorrow.”

Bum Who Can’t Keep a Job Maligns Accomplished and Brilliant Surgeon

Going through all of Clayton Tucker’s social media blather, it becomes disgustingly obvious that this moron thinks he is in the same league as the brilliant Dawn Buckingham (whom he ran against for Senate TX-24).

Dawn actually did something with her life. She spent DECADES educating herself while she learned and perfected skills that few are capable of: that of a successful surgeon.

Clayton Tucker, on the other hand, pretends to be a rancher on land he doesn’t even own and can’t even hold down a job. Oh, and he worked for a few months on the political campaigns of some other losers.

But that doesn’t stop “Trust Fund” Tucker from thinking he knows more than Dawn Buckingham about medical issues. He spent more than a few posts whining like a little girl that Dawn refused to wear a mask for Covid while HE, Tucker The Hero, wore one all the time:

It takes some SERIOUS delusion to think you are saving more lives with your shitty mask than an actual MEDICAL DOCTOR saves by just going about her day and doing her job.

I have a lot of respect for Dawn just choosing to ignore this twerp instead of punching him in his diapered mouth – a fight I have zero doubt she would win, by the way.