Limited public comment asks for settlement details, no settlement at all and continuing with bankruptcy proceedings.
Throughout the past year of closed sessions, confidential agreements and then a turn to bankruptcy in Mammoth Lakes, citizens have said very little in public meetings about their feelings over the negative turn of events. Today, we have two comments. One, posted on our website, and the other sent to the Town of Mammoth Lakes. Both comments support no settlement and proceeding through bankruptcy.
First, the web comment, which was signed by Mammoth Business Council members and addressed to the Town Council and Town Managers. It says, “After Council’s quiet request for input from the public about the settlement made in closed session that no details were available to question, we wrote and delivered this letter that was censored by management and never delivered to council and staff.”
The letter is posted on our website’s Town Council story dated September 17. The comment says the letter writers are home owners and business owners representing the “silent majority” seldom listened to. The names given appear to be pseudonyms. The writers of the letter say they believe bankruptcy is designed for a fresh start for an honest debtor and that settlement now brands Mammoth as dishonest.
They ask for the court system to take care of the matters. The comment says, “You have spent millions of dollars chasing this truth. If you change horse mid-stream you have lied to us. If the system fails, we take our punishment and pay our debt.” They also accuse officials of “ridiculous actions” that have plummeted property and business values of the community.
In another letter to Councilman Michael Raimondo, Peter Dach asks for a statement to be read to the Council. He says he is a multiple property owner in Mammoth Lakes. Mr. Dach points the finger at the Town Council for taking Mammoth down a path of “great difficulty these past many years.” He says that “Unless this settlement that the Council says it has reached is profoundly and powerfully a huge benefit to the town, while still being acceptable to the lien holder, we should not be entering into any agreement at all at this early time.”
Mr. Dach says millions already spent would go for nothing. He writes that unless the settlement is in the low single digit millions with a clear cut payback plan, “this will be a bad, bad deal.” He writes that while Mammoth lost in court, the greatest crime against the town’s people would be failure to “disclose the entire nature and cost of this settlement and where and how they plan on getting the money to pay for it.” He said people have a right to know now what kind of deal is planned.
Officials have indicated that details must remain confidential for now. Managers and councilmembers have given the impression that nothing will go public until the opposing parties reach complete and final agreement.
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This is better than any Soap Opera. The same old mouths speaking the same old rallying cry. Where were you when the elections were held and only one person stepped up. Was it the fact that when times are tough the rats take shelter and bash the people who at least are giving it the best they can. These aren’t professional politicians. They are everyday neighbors and friends who took the initiative to put themselves out there and try to make this a better place to live. Sure a couple of them have been there a long time and have made some pretty poor decisions but the fact is they are still being elected back in term after term. The only people that are to blame are yourselves. You have been reelecting them without anyone new stepping up to put their time in. Try showing up at the Council meetings and taking an interest. Be a productive entity instead of being one of the know-it-alls that can only type there poison in these blogs. It’s time to stop the fighting and saying what should’ve been done and start being a part of the what can be done community. Get involved and do what you can do to make it better. Stop the negativity and begin the healing.
@tired of it..
Too Late.. the entire system is rigged you will never fix it and the sheeple know this.
It is called Debt..
Quit the bull, everyone knows if your not a puppet in a company town you haven’t much chance in getting elected. You could get lucky with the right or maybe in this case the wrong last name.( RIP Skip ) Nobody wanted to go along with the 4-1 council that has existed including Skip so an appointee was drafted if truth be known.
The politics is and always has been about how the money pie gets split among the real stakeholders since this town was incorporated. It is my hope that the $29,000,000 plus the millions in interest and legal fee’s is enough to wake the electorate up to the scam that has been perpetrated on this sleepy little hamlet. We need to realize the millions of dollars of “cash” that flow through Mammoth only to find another place to live. Funny how we didn’t have $400,000 for air subsidy a couple months ago and needed an emergency meeting on July 4th, two days after filing for bankruptcy to fund air subsidy for the slowest tourist time of the year. The money was “borrowed” from measure U funds because of our desperate lack of funds. Today we learn of a 2.5 million down payment we can make for the shysters that have arranged for the taxpayers to pick up the tab for all the airport shenanigans that the business interest have bamboozled.
My guess is you have a vested interest in the business as usual or hope to gain by profiting by the town reorganization in some way?
I’l be damned if I let someone spin my first amendment rights into a community or town council cheer leading event. The fact is the community has just been bent over and sodomized by some of the very people you call our friends and neighbors. Anyone with a modicum of intelligence would know who runs this town, its politics, the political and paid appointees.
If I’m not mistaken this is still the United States of America. Just in case you are not aware, no one forces anybody to read this blog.
Bankruptcy is the solution not these behind the door dealings with Ballas.
And how is it that the town still has a developer agreement with Ballas who is trying take the town for everything? Um, shouldn’t the agreement be terminated immediately?
Hello!
=
The last time we immediately terminated the agreement it cost us $43M.
Perhaps we should honor our agreements?
To 1234, people in town have voiced their opinions, for years, the opinions fall on deaf ears…
I hope that some good, honest, hardworking, solution driven citizens in this community step up and run for council in the next election. Not saying they are all bad, but at least TWO of the current council members need to GO!!!!
Town Council,
Put your cards on the table for the townsfolk to see before you commit to this deal.
We filed for chapter 9 because we are insolvent. There are multiple ways to become solvent. A new plan within chapter 9 is likely the friendliest option to the town. We can submit a plan that considers all of our obligations and reduces them to an amount that we can afford.
We have already funded millions of dollars to get into chapter 9, lets take advantage of what it has to offer or at least consider it before obligating us to an unknown, un-affordable future where we get no return for tens of millions of our invested tax dollars.
If we have the money to settle with MMLA, why did the council borrow Measure U dollars to fund the air subsidies for the fall shoulder season?
Something stinks here, it’s time to empty this cesspool!
Simple — because Rusty told them to….
Three words sum it all up.
“GOVERNMENT GONE WILD”
time to take it back sheeple
‘
And just how do you “take it back?”
Nobody goes to any public meetings, town or county.
Nobody cares.
And don’t think for a moment that your elected officials haven’t notice the lack of citizen involvement.
Why do you think I call them “Sheeple”
It’s time for the people of Mammoth to come out and voice their opinions. The fate of our town and our livelihoods are in the hands of those who have not made the best decisions in the past. It’s very scary!
This is how to start the recall of a council in the state of California…
http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/recall.pdf
At least two of our council have exhibited a serious pattern of “FAILURE TO LEAD”
Can you say malfeasance. Start with the quote ” We will win in appeal”
Quit talking about it and do it.
Brentwood City Council recall, California, 2010
http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Brentwood_City_Council_recall,_California,_2010
Fullerton Recall City Council, 2012
http://capoliticalnews.com/2012/07/04/fullerton-recall-city-council-new-council-repeals-illegal-tax-of-10-on-water
Bell City Council recall, California, March 2011
http://ballotpedia.org/wiki/index.php/Bell_City_Council_recall,_California_%28March_2011%29
Okay, “Put up”
I’ll be watching for you to have the petition signed. Von’s would be a good place to have JQ Citizen sign the petition.
Or whatever else (other than blogging) you have in mind.