City of Richardson Responds to RCA PAC's Misstatements

Richardson City Manager Bill Keffler sets the record straight:

Fellow Richardson Residents and Businesses:

It has come to our attention that a number of unfortunate misstatements about the City of Richardson are being made through local media outlets and throughout our community.

As employees of the City of Richardson, we take great personal pride in our daily work and remain focused on delivering the high quality services you’ve come to expect. Such misrepresentations however strike at the organizational and personal ethics and integrity that are a cornerstone of our ability to effectively deliver these services. Therefore, we feel it is important to publicly address the misrepresentations you may be hearing.

Following is a summary of misstatements with some additional information aimed at clarifying the facts you may have been wondering about.

Should you need additional information on these issues, or any others of note, don’t hesitate to contact us bill.keffler@cor.gov at 972-744-4204. We welcome the opportunity to provide information you can trust. Meanwhile we will continue to focus on excellence in public service day in and day out.

Sincerely,
Bill Keffler
City Manager

City Manager Bill Keffler's full letter can be found here.

Richardson Citizens Alliance 2011 Voter's Guide

Last week was the mailing of the highly anticipated Richardson Coalition PAC's 2011 Voter's Guide. Richardson voters can be forgiven for eagerly checking their mailboxes for the competing guide, the Richardson Citizens Alliance PAC's 2011 Voter's Guide. After all, the RCA has a war chest of $50,000 (all donated by one man), surely enough to pay postage for a mailing of their own. But so far, my mailbox has been empty. Maybe my voter's guide got lost in the mail. But, the RCA Voter's Guide is available on the RCA website.

After the jump, let's pore over the copy there.

One Thing To Remember In Place 1

One candidate is suing the city. Over a procedural matter. Really. Over closed meetings. What's that you say? You say that state law permits closed meetings in certain cases? You say that for decades, the city charter has granted the city all powers granted to cities by state law? You say that the city charter itself, since 2007, explicitly permits closed meetings in certain cases? I know. I know. I know. But one candidate is still stubbornly suing the city over a legally tenuous claim that's been moot since 2007. An appeals court dismissed the lawsuit. Now, one candidate is back in district court trying to revive it. It's easy to remember who that candidate is. He's first on the ballot, William Gordon. And that's the one thing you need to remember in Place 1.

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Political ad paid for by Mark Steger

Twitter Tracks: State Budget Cuts, City Candidate Forums, Trees

Twitter tracks from April, 2011:

• 2011 04 01 - For your April Fool's pleasure ... Rent-a-Grave. This might sound like an April Fool's story, but it's not. http://www.slate.com/id/2285478/
• 2011 04 01 - Richardson Heights NA urges members to turn out to *support* the city. How refreshing. Is "IMBY" an acronym? http://goo.gl/vWeKG
• 2011 04 01 - Headline: "Unemployment rate falls to 8.8 pct, two-year low." GOP blames health care reform.
• 2011 04 01 - I grew up loving baseball. I'm glad Rangers won pennant. Still, steroids & money & mismanagement spoiled it all for me. No excitement today.
• 2011 04 01 - By critics' logic, we ought to pave parks. If they really want to help Richardson, they can find more sponsors to cover more costs of trees.
• 2011 04 01 - The Adjustment Bureau (2011): Bourne meets The Matrix meets The Candidate with a touch of Mad Men style. Most of all, a love story. B+
• 2011 04 02 - Mark's Stylebook: Maybe the rest of us don't know what a compositor is, but he can only blame himself if the movie credit reads "composter".
• 2011 04 02 - Get yourself over to Eastside. Free food. Great weather. Party atmosphere. Hurry. 'Til 4. Oh, did I remember to say free?
• 2011 04 03 - Metropolis (1927): Long overdue viewing of this classic. Overwrought story but some amazing imagery. Will Avatar look as good in 2100? C+
• 2011 04 03 - RT @amiromar: "Tree the Town inspires Tree North Tx." @amiromar doubles down. No concessions, then? In your face, critics?
• 2011 04 03 - Tree North Texas: "a plan to plant 3 million trees in North Texas." http://goo.gl/joiMO Just think of the water that'll suck up. ;-)

After the jump, more Twitter tracks.

Richardson Coalition 2011 Voter's Guide

Sears

It's out. It's the most anticipated mailing of the year. It's even better than the Sears Christmas Wish Book of old (ask your parents). It's the Richardson Coalition 2011 Voter's Guide.

After the jump, let's pore over our new Wish Book.

A Message From The Chief

The Richardson Coalition PAC mailed a brochure to Richardson senior citizens. The Dallas Morning News posted a copy of the mailer here.

After the jump, let's review it.

A Second Look At Place 2

I earlier reported that the choice between Mark Solomon and John DeMattia for Place 2 on the Richardson City Council was my hardest voting decision of all. And it was. Judging only by their performances during the series of candidate forums, I tended to tilt, ever so slightly, towards DeMattia, with some reservations. But looking at the total picture, including not just forum performances but everything I knew about the candidates outside the forums, I finally came down on the side of Solomon. You can read my reasons here.

After the jump, a second look.

Alliance and Coalition Battleships

For several weeks Fort Richardson has been under attack from the DeMattia, an Alliance frigate commanded by an Alliance admiral. The McCalpin, a ship of the line [independent] of the Coalition, [but aligned with the Coalition on this issue at least], returned fire but has been unable to stop the attacks. Yesterday, the Coalition's flagship made its first appearance in the battle, rolling out its big 24-pounders and directing fire straight at the DeMattia. For us spectators watching safely from shore, it's been a glorious spectacle. As the smoke begins to clear, it appears that both sides have sustained damage, but the Alliance and Coalition banners continue to fly.

After the jump, surveying the battlefield.

Richardson Idol: Week Six Season Finale

Richardson Idol had its big season finale Tuesday evening. The red carpet was out. The searchlights were shining. All the stars were there (Gary and John and Bob and Lanet and the Kim twins). And so were the paparazzi (well, Cheri). The public poured into the hall by the hundreds (meaning at least two; three, tops.) The big event was held at Hollywood's Kodak Theater the Richardson Civic Center's Grand Hall. It was co-sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Richardson and the RISD Council of PTAs. Check your local listings for rebroadcast times. Our broadcast partner, CITV, can be found on Time Warner Channel 16 and on ATT U-Verse Channel 99.

Wednesday night's post-show party at the Canyon Creek Country Club will be a meet-and-greet hosted by the Dallas County North and Richardson Republican Women. It will not factor into our judges' scoring. (Note to Republican Women: holding your event at Richardson's posh country club makes way too easy a target for satirists, so I'll resist saying anything ... drat, too late.)

Twelve of thirteen contestants vying for the grand prize, a seat on the Richardson City Council, performed on our stage for our judges Tuesday night (absent: North).

As the format requires, it is up to the audience (and by audience, I mean me) to eliminate one contestant each week until we have a council.

But before we hear who will be eliminated this week, let's first hand out superlatives ... after the jump.

Secret Tapes from City Hall

Thanks to a well-timed Open Records Act request just before the upcoming city council election, I was able to get my hands on voice recordings of the private phone conversations of certain members of the city's Parks and Recreation department. The transcript reveals questionable details about the behavior of our city officials. It also confirms the truth of some of the most serious charges being made by candidates in the upcoming city council election. This could blow those races wide open.

After the jump, some of the highlights of the verbatim transcripts of the secret tapes from city hall.