Council’s scheduled to address the possibility of selling hundreds of acres of public land to the Community Development Authority for a dollar ($1.00). (It’s Item C-9 on tonight’s agenda.) The proposal’s been kicked around for months, but I’m curious if there’s been any positive headway since an April memo from the CDA’s Patrick Cannon, and…
CDA
CDA, City, Corporate Welfare, Government Spending, Press Release, State Government
Press Release Tips for the WEDC
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
Let’s assume you’re a troubled, controversial public-private hybrid agency in Wisconsin, like the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation. While spending vast sums of public money, you decide to issue a press release announcing taxpayers’ your largesse. You must know – and hope residents of a small city don’t know — that you’re politically toxic, across the…
CDA, City, Corporate Welfare, Government Spending, Innovation Center/Tech Park, Law, Official Misconduct, Open Government, State Government, Taxes/Taxation, Wisconsin
The Truth about the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
A person should be able to make simple distinctions, as between the sensible and foolish, or practical and impractical. Sometimes those distinctions should be clear, and as stark as the difference between the contents of a sample cup and a glass of Chardonnay. You’ll hear a lot locally over the next few days about a…
CDA, City, Economy, Gov. Walker, Innovation Center/Tech Park, Local Government, Technology
The New Whitewater Start Up Grants (in Proper Perspective)
by JOHN ADAMS • • 1 Comment
Whitewater’s Community Development Authority has been working on a seed capital fund (working on this fund for some time), and today the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation has announced a $150,000 matching contribution to the CDA, and two grants – each in the amount of $10,000 – for entrepreneurs from that fund. The matching grant from…
CDA, City, Corporate Welfare, Government Spending
The City of Whitewater’s 2013 Budget: CDA & Bus
by JOHN ADAMS • • 2 Comments
Whitewater’s Common Council considered four budget items at length during her 11.13.12 session. I’ll address now the first two of those four, immediately below. The Community Development Authority Budget. Someday, one hopes, Whitewater’s Community Development Authority won’t require tens of thousands from the City of Whitewater’s general fund, as it does now, since the CDA…
CDA, City, Green Energy Holdings, Waste Digesters
The Whitewater Community Development Authority Meeting for 9.27.12
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
Whitewater’s Community Development Authority met yesterday afternoon, the agenda including both open and closed session discussions (with a return to open session). The principal topics of the meeting appear below. I’ll address one of particular concern first, and the rest in the order in which they were discussed in public session. The Waste Digester Proposal.…
CDA, City, Development, Green Energy Holdings
A Waste Digester Proposal Summary, June to August
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
As with so many other recent proposals, the proposal for a large waste digester in Whitewater was announced quickly, without public input, and trumpeted unthinkingly. In this way, the scheme was the quintessential proposal of the outgoing Brunner administration. There’s much more ahead about all this, but before that, a summary of where we are.…
CDA, City, Green Energy Holdings, Open Government, Press
What Whitewater’s Officials Don’t Know (or Don’t Want You to Know) about that “Green Energy” Deal
by JOHN ADAMS • • 5 Comments
I’m not sure what would be worse – (1) an airy proposal for an energy deal for the City of Whitewater in which city officials don’t even know simple implications of the proposal, or (2) a deal in which city officials actually know how this proposal has been received elsewhere, but don’t want the residents…
CDA, City
Common Council’s 8.7.12 Session
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
Common Council held its first session of the month last night. Discussion of some highlights from that session appears below: Library Expansion Plans. More space for people, less space for books (as new media require less space): that’s a sensible modification. Adjustment in the total space required, and a survey of community wishes for a…
CDA, City, Development, Green Energy Holdings, Law, Local Government
Questions for the CDA about a Proposal with Green Energy Holdings
by JOHN ADAMS • • 2 Comments
Yesterday, I posted a series of general questions about a proposed deal with Green Energy Holdings for a waste digester. See, Preliminary & General Questions about a Proposal with Green Energy Holdings. (For all posts about this deal, I’ve a designated category.) Today, here are questions specific to the Whitewater Community Development Authority’s role in…
Business, CDA, City, Development, Green Energy Holdings
Preliminary & General Questions about a Proposal with Green Energy Holdings
by JOHN ADAMS • • 2 Comments
There’s a development proposal now pending between the City of Whitewater and Green Energy Holdings for a waste digester. The community’s heard only a bit about the proposal, from one newspaper story, and an item in then-city manager Brunner’s Weekly Report (publicized verbatim thereafter). The proposal’s been described in big terms, but there’s been little…
CDA, City, Development, Green Energy Holdings
The CDA Session from 6.27.12
by JOHN ADAMS • • 2 Comments
Part of the Community Development Authority’s discussion for its June 27th meeting included consideration of a proposal for a digester, in a possible agreement with Green Energy Holdings, Inc. I’ve no remarks to make here about that company, or its work elsewhere, but about the conduct of Whitewater’s Community Development Authority there is reason for…
CDA, City, Green Energy Holdings, Open Government
The CDA and GEH
by JOHN ADAMS • • Comments
There’s a meeting of the Community Development Authority today, and of the topics on the agenda, there’s an item (number 7) to “Discuss Development Agreement with Green Energy Holdings LLC.” (The agenda and packet appear below.) This item is a reference to approval, from last Thursday’s Common Council meeting, of an agreement with Green Energy…