Boondoggle Extension & The Failure of Traditional Media
Posted by Jeff Pruitt - 6/24/08 @ 11:39 pm - Filed Under Featured, Local Politics
It’s days like today that make the few-and-far-between victories so sweet. We have a long way to go in this community - the citizenry are still ignored by those elected to power. The Maplecrest Extension project has been fast-tracked from day one to avoid a referendum. Any person that tells you otherwise is a liar - period. Is there anyone out there that really believes that today’s vote, less than one week from the deadline, was coincidence?
Now the county commissioners claim that a referendum wouldn’t be required anyway because they are paying for it with TIF funds. I disagree with this due to the fact that the bond will certainly be backed by property taxes even if they claim the TIF will pay for it. Either way, they aren’t taking any chances by getting it approved before the deadline are they?
But here’s the truly sad part. Not a damn one of our local media ever pressed the commissioners on this - not one. Is this not news? Is the only news fit to print what gets spoon fed to them via press releases and talking points? Did anyone challenge them on this issue? What about challenging the facts behind the bogus economic impact study? Nothing. Traditional media, especially the JG, has become a propaganda outlet for the establishment.
Establishment can be the government, or entrenched developers or other political operatives. They always get the benefit of the doubt while the masses and the outspoken citizenry are marginalized and mainly ignored. This isn’t the so-called “liberal bias” - it’s apolitical. What you read in the papers and watch on television simply promotes the establishment agenda.
There’s two problems really - first the traditional media interviews the proactive politicians/developers and doesn’t come close to giving equal time to dissenters. Second, the traditional media requires access to those they cover and upsetting these entrenched powers hinders their ability to do their job - or at least the cushy way they’re used to doing it. That’s really why bloggers are effective - we’re giving a voice to those in the community that have been kept outside the “inner circle” for years.
Yes today’s vote was disappointing on many levels but we have to continue to fight the good fight and challenge those in power. When the traditional media fails to properly inform the citizenry then we must pick up the slack. I will do whatever I can to get this thing sent to a referendum. I have not been able to keep up my usual level of citizen oversight lately but there will come a day in the near future when that will change. And when that day arrives there will be a whirlwind of investigations, public information requests, etc. If local government wants to play these games then I will be forced to meet their tenacity.
Mr Nice Blogger will be going away soon enough…
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15 Responses to “Boondoggle Extension & The Failure of Traditional Media”
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I don’t believe I personally know anyone who was in favor of the project, if I do, they are far and few between. Do I just have odd friends or was this really that bad of a push-through project?
And they wonder why college kids like myself are looking to other cities for life after our educational careers are complete.
Jeff, you are so right on this one. We got smoke and mirrors with no one asking what was behind the mirrors.
Then again they would have told you the following.
1- New Haven would NOT take an acctive role in bringing back the East Allen County government idea.
2- East Allen County Schools is nearing death because of the decline in taxbase. The hope is they can get businesses located in the area to bring in more tax dollars.
3- Everyone will want to build a home near Mount Hazzard Landfill. Then again they will will be over 20-30 minutes from a hospital.
4- In most cases where cities agree to build bridges over railroads and shut off the road they will help pay the cost of the bridge. They now require all bridges to be no less then three stacked trailers on a flatbed car.
5- Certain people that contribute dollars to many of the people who on council voted own property in the area.
6- The one partner from GeorgeTown Square talked the project up as helping him put dollars in his pocket but failed to consider what the very residents living along this root think.
7- The odds of this project coming in at 55 million is a joke. They will blame it on the delay of getting started or some other crap. The costs are going to go out of sight when they build the bridges.
8- Sadly we will see the day the water being held up by the brige and grade level road north of the river contribute to a dike failure someplace in Fort Wayne. Just like they can not figure out if they got the roller dam working on the Maumee at Anthony they could drop the river level some 6-9 feet during flood season.
Oh well we lost this one and Maplecrest will become a full truck route so the hundreds of people living along the area can sell their homes for less and sleep less at night. I guess in this city that is called progress. I call it, “kick them out of office!”
“Mr. nice blogger will be gone soon enough…”
This is the funniest thing that I’ve read so far today! How old are you? Sorry man I can’t take you seriously at all. Your credibility as a “citizen journalist” runs right down the toilet with these Roach-like rants.
I, for one, am very glad to see this project go forward. I live southeast of New Haven and
have waited for this extension for a long, long time. Have you ever been stopped by a train in New Haven (sometimes the wait is 15 minutes long?
The only other way around is to go all the way to Coliseum Blvd. and then backtrack down Lake to get to the Georgetowne- Stellhorn area.
When 469 was first built in Allen County, I thought - WHY? What a waste of money. It didn’t take long to realize that someone knew what they were doing when they planned it. 469 is widely used and it is a great asset to Allen County.
I am confident that when the Maplecrest Extension is complete, many of you that oppose it will realize the need for it.
Just my 2 cents…………….
Jeff, Scott, and John, you guys are in danger of becoming the “boys who cry boondoggle”. Your overuse of the term has watered down its impact. Please come up with some other word to use and save boondoggle for limited use. I was especially disappointed to see a young Scott Spaulding beginning to mimic Mr. Kalb and his relentless use of the term.
Thank you
Mr. Green Jeans
“Your overuse of the term has watered down its impact”
Dude… you’re letting the cat out of the bag!
This $55 million sounds like a steal, compared to what commissioner Bloom is doing concerning the recent Bass rd. rezoning. I would like to tell my story if possible?
jack vrnon - you are a jack-hole( whatever that is..)
hey pal- you have something to say about “rants”? you’re treading on thin legal ice- thats close to slander, and defamation( the commenter, not FWP blog- for the record.)
Welcome to fort Wayne- where the rule of law, and the constitution, etc dont apply- its like one of those ‘dead-zones” where you cant get a cell phone signal, for example.
fort wayne is the most crooked, corrupt, disgraceful city in america. I’m sorry to call it home, and you can quote me on that.
the local govt, the media, and the police, courts, developers, and system is al in each others pockets. It may not be illegal, per se, but it sure doesnt pass the “smell test”
remember, this is going out into the global google blogosphere- so If you own a comapny, and are thinking of locating here- avoid fort wayne like the plague!!
this 55 million dollar “bridge to nowhere is nothing more than a ploy to give Nelson Peters- one of the most useless, mediocre, stupid elected officials to come down the pike in years( since last year…)something to toot his horn about.
This bridge is overprices, and will be sure to line the pockets of his most ardent supporters, who will use this windfall to contribute mightily to his re-election campaign, as way of thanks.
I’m looking forward to the endless parade of garbage trucks up and down maysville road, and maplecrest road between the adams center toxic waste superfund site( mount giaquinta- the Giquinta’s family contrubution to the Fort Wayne legacy). endless parade of foul, stinking trash trucks, running up and down adams center road, paulding road, south anthony blvd, and 469 to points unknown.
And although fort wayne needs more N_S roadways- such as from harvester tower across to heseen cassel, widening hesen cassel rd, for example, and widening n river road, and building a short bridge from kreager park across to river haven( go to google maps, to see more)and so on, this bridge project is ill timed, ill conceived, and does nothing useful except to line the pokcets of the profiteers who will build this “nelson peters bridge to nowhere”
traffic, emt/police/fire etc, troubles is new havens problem, not FTW’s- let them deal with it with all the tax money they are reaping from nelson peters stupid smoking ban law.
and jak vernon can go “Jack”, himself, if you get my drift. care to meet me in a dark alley alone, and then say whatever you want, mr, vernon, if that is indeed your real name? dcroach@yahoo.com
keep up the good work , pruitt! lock and load that keyboard. ever notice how the ratatatat of computer keys is like a tommy gun? the proverbial “chicago typewriter”…
Jack,
It was meant to be a cheesy line thrown in at the end of a long irritable rant - lighten up Francis. As for my age, a year older today - thanks for noticing.
To each their own. I wouldn’t expect much to change. Rants are pretty much my specialty…
Ranger Bob,
Send me an e-mail…
Happy Birthday, Jeff!
Happy Birthday Jeff and I think that the opponents of Maplecrest have explained their positions quite thoroughly. Only problem is that the proponents think it is okay to spend $60+million for 1.5 miles in a Recession based economy. Somehow the folks that think its okay to continue to use the Credit Card if the “ends” sound good will never really get it. The rest of us can think about keeping a budget! (on their behalf). For those elected officials that are read to whip out the checkbook for every project that walks by, elections do have consequences. Where is the threshhold of financial pain that a community can endure for the sake of “progress?” I think we are seeking that point out. We don’t need to legalize gambling in Fort Wayne our governments are already engaging in gambling with our future.
Jeff-
I hope you didn’t just realize that Mr. Boffo & co. on Main street are the the city’s leading proponents of spending other people’s money.
Did Fort Wayne’s westside really need the Hillegas Extension? There were many critics, however, I do believe that the direct roadway from north to south has led to the success of Jefferson Point.
In my honest opinion, I believe that East Allen County Schools will increase its number of students as many are looking to leave Fort Wayne Community Schools. Heck I even left FWCS for the greener pastures!
Tudor - Please try to explain to us how the Ardmore-Hillegas extension in any way “helped” the success at Jefferson Pointe? There are at least 10 times as many people living within 4 miles of Jefferson Pointe who were living there BEFORE the extension was built than live within 4 miles of the location of this $55 million (dare I say? BOONDOGGLE - The success is not due to a roadway, but due to the population density AND the “smarts” of the developers that designed Jefferson Pointe WITHOUT USING HARDLY ANY OF THE TIF MONEY EARNED BY IT in the original Economic Development Area! I don’t know where you live, but our property is at the corner of Ardomre and West Jefferson, so I do know what has happened in this EDA over the last 16 years.