Tag: Spinley

Again….And Again…

Some beautiful and unseasonable December weather, once again! December 13th and 15th (just like December 7th) were the kind of days hundreds of in-shape citizens stream to Campbell Park to throw Frisbees, shoot hoops, eat a picnic lunch, and lament the absence of a no-bid $185,000 bathroom.

Just kidding. This isn’t the 1950s nor is it a Leave It To Beaver town and it is also filled with Lampassholes. So the park looked like this (YET AGAIN):

Then yet again yesterday on a lovely 80 degree Sunday….

I hate to beat a dead horse, but I’m hoping if I show this deserted park enough times, even Spinley will see the pattern and wonder why he blew $185,000 on a bathroom – let alone why he couldn’t be bothered to go out and bid this project.

I guess he can always just grab a few hundred thousand from the electrical fund – like they did recently with “a total transfer of $167,202 from an electric fund surplus. The amendments move $100,000 from the electric fund to the general fund balance“

Isn’t that nice? Grab $167,202 in ‘electric fund surplus‘ and use it to cover all your profligate spending. Just raise electric rates a penny or two every year and…voila! Slush fund.

I really can’t wait to take a nice big dump in the new bathroom. Literally.

Rumors Were True: Gary Cox ‘Resigns’ As Assistant City Manager

Looks like my Oct 10th rumor rumblings were true – Gary Cox ‘resigned’ back on October 1st. I find it very weird that this is just NOW being reported on November 5th – and it is jammed at the end of an article about a butterfly park on page 8 as an afterthought – hidden from view of most people.

When the Number Two guy in City government abruptly resigns to “be closer to his son in the Houston area” (yeah, right), that is what I call “newsworthy” – apparently Spinley doesn’t think so. Nor do The Seven Goldfish, who only discussed this in ‘executive session’ away from the prying eyes of the pesky public (which is also why I never saw this appear in the Council minutes, which I watch like a hawk).

Also telling is the fact that Spinley had none of his usual feel-good b.s. spin like “Gary did a fantastic job and we wish him well” or something like that. Nope -Spinley had no comment at all, which makes me suspect the OTHER part of the rumor (that Cox was shown the door and allowed to ‘resign’ gracefully and that there was quite a bit of yelling involved) was also true.

You’ll recall, Misti Talbert was one of the HUGE proponents of creating this “Assistant City Manager” position a couple years ago. They received over FIFTY resumes – possibly because the pay and benefits were worth about $120,000. I have always maintained the position is not needed and the only reason Spinley needs help is because Spinley wastes a LOT of time on foolish projects like the $1.5 million Fishbowl.

If I may make a suggestion to The Seven Goldfish? How about NOT filling this position at all. After all, now that the Spinley is all done spinning his wheels (see what I did there?) on the Old City Hall $1.5 million Fishbowl Debacle, he should have LOTS more free time to do his REAL job, which is making sure the boring stuff like water and electricity and roads are in working order.

Also, by NOT filling this position, the city will have an extra $120,000 every year to waste on stupid stuff like an overpriced A/V system or a survey on SurveyMonkey.com.

Oh, and Gary? My inbox is always open!

This Is Why Spinley deGraffenreid Makes The Big Bucks

No, not for just managing the city. But for his incredible ability to make every horrible decision look like it was a good one and to also hold two contradictory positions in his head at the same time, while talking out both sides of his mouth. He is truly a marvel. Take today’s Dispatch article about the Fishbowl as a prime example:

At the beginning of the article, Spinley needs to somehow explain why they paid $229,000 for a building they had just sold less than two years earlier for $75,000. The reason? The owner made a ton of awesome improvements like new windows, a new roof and ‘electrical work’. He implies the building is just spectacular and they got a deal on this thing.

By the end of the article, he ALSO needs to explain why the $1.5 million Fishbowl is a year late and WAY over budget. He does so deftly with this quote:

“Throughout the project, some residents voiced concerns about the expense and whether a new council meeting venue is necessary“

Asked about those concerns, and about whether renovation was a better option than constructing a new building, deGraffenried said, “I think the choice of the project was correct. I think that to say we have not learned anything from remodeling an 85-year-old building would be incorrect,” 

See how he slips “an 85-year-old building” into the mix? He is now implying (contrary to the BEGINNING of the article) that this shitty old dilapidated building is to blame for all his woes and delays and cost overruns.

Just to recap for the slow crowd:

  • Beginning of article: building is awesome and a great buy at a 200% markup
  • End of article: this crummy shitbox took a lot of effort to get straightened out.

Seriously. Spinley, you missed your calling. You would be a shoo-in for White House Press Secretary.