It was sadly predictable that only a few days after a story about how the City of Whitewater violated federal law in awarding a contract under a multi-million dollar federal grant, City Manager Kevin Brunner would attempt to distort & minimize the nature of the violation, with a tale that’s simply incredible. Sure enough, he’s…
City
City, Innovation Center/Tech Park
Wisconsin State Journal: Work was stopped on Whitewater technology park due to federal rules violations
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a story on Whitewater’s Technology Park and Innovation Center, from the Wisconsin State Journal. See, Work was stopped on Whitewater technology park due to federal rules violations. Reporter Dee Hall writes that Work on the Whitewater University Technology Park was temporarily halted last week when the federal government notified officials with the city and…
City
Municipal Openness and Transparency, and Their Alternatives (Update)
by JOHN ADAMS •
There was a second reading, and subsequent passage, of an ordinance before Whitewater’s Common Council on Tuesday, providing for greater openness and transparency in government. I’ve written in support of reform along these lines before. See, Municipal Openness and Transparency, and Their Alternatives. This was the right step for Whitewater, a non-partisan effort to make…
City, Economy
GazetteXtra.com: “Whitewater company announces 87 layoffs”
by JOHN ADAMS •
City, Innovation Center/Tech Park
Whitewater’s Innovation Center: Economic Development Administration Sends ‘Cease and Desist’ Letter Over Alleged Violation of Competition in Construction Requirements
by JOHN ADAMS •
The City of Whitewater, together with UW-Whitewater and the Whitewater Community Development Authority, is undertaking an eleven-million dollar, publicly-funded technology park project. The centerpiece of that project is an Innovation Center building. (I have written about the project before; for information on the relationship between the three organizations involved in the project, see the Memorandum…
City, Economy, Government Spending, Innovation Center/Tech Park, Poverty
Whitewater’s Innovation Center from the Perspective of the New Deal
by JOHN ADAMS •
I posted yesterday about Whitewater’s Innovation Center, in a post entitled, Whitewater’s Innovation Center: Grants and Bonds. The more one looks at the project, the emptier it seems. Attempts to justify the multi-million dollar public expenditure — on their own, apart from any other consideration — are exercises in embarrassing hyperbole. Attempts to answer objections…
City, Poverty
The City Manager’s Selective and Deceptive Use of Data
by JOHN ADAMS •
Over a month ago, Whitewater’s city manager, Kevin Brunner, used his Weekly Report to tout data from the Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance that he contended showed the strength of Whitewater’s fiscal position. (Predictably, the website of a local politician ran the figures that Brunner posted in full, without commentary.) Brunner aimed to show that, using data…
City, Innovation Center/Tech Park, Planning
At the Whitewater, Wisconsin Business Park
by JOHN ADAMS •
Scenes from a local, overly-planned economy — Whitewater, Wisconsin’s Business Park. This empty building alone is half the size of a planned Innovation Center, and has more vacant space than the Innovation Center now has signed rental space (rental space for two related, publicly-funded, non-tech agencies).
City
Home-building permits tumble 22 percent — Walworth County Today
by JOHN ADAMS •
Anything that lessens construction burdens — up front — will be useful to communities hoping for a return to growth. Building permits for new homes in Wisconsin’s biggest metro areas dropped 22% in August compared to the same time a year ago, the third consecutive month that home construction permits trailed totals from 2009. Via…
City, Crime, Police
Filling Up Prisons Without Fighting Crime: Mark Kleiman on American’s Criminal Justice System
by JOHN ADAMS •
When you look around your community, do you feel that politicians’ and bureaucrats’ policies have reduced crime, or do you feel that they’re merely treading water, with every supposed ‘victory’ followed by subsequent crimes? Even small communities spend big sums on crime-fighting, but many of these efforts make no dent in crime. Carrying on as…
City, Innovation Center/Tech Park
More Absurd Excuses from Brunner and Telfer: “UW-Whitewater Breaks Ground on Technology Park”
by JOHN ADAMS •
Excuses made on behalf of Whitewater’s publicly-funded Innovation Center and Tech Park are growing increasingly absurd, and are easily refuted. Each attempt of officials to justify the project only shows, yet again, what a wasteful scheme it is. Serious and thorough examination of tech parks like this shows they’re money-draining failures. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel…
City, Government Spending, Politics, Poverty, Taxes/Taxation
Dockside Inspections, a Lost Decade, and Municipal Obstructionism
by JOHN ADAMS •
Years ago, in the 80s, when trade with Japan was controversial, Americans leveled legitimate criticisms about how Japan used dockside inspections of cargo as a way to prevent importation of foreign goods. The regulations were often small, and although rational individually, they were collectively irrational and counter-productive. By inhibiting free trade, Japan’s insidious protectionism actually…
City
Whitewater-Area League of Women Voters September 2010 Newsletter
by JOHN ADAMS •
The Whitewater-Area League of Women Voters’ September 2010 Newsletter is now available, and the latest issue includes a calendar of upcoming LWV events. The most-recent copy of the LWV newsletter is available as a link on my blogroll, and is embedded below, with coding through Google. A selection of upcoming events for the Whitewater-Area League…
City
Think Whitewater’s ‘Eat Local’ Challenge
by JOHN ADAMS •
A buy local movement in my town has issued an ‘eat local’ challenge. I’ll take that challenge. I’ve questioned parts of the buy local campaign, but I’m open to eating locally. (Readers know that I’ve opposed city officials’ meddling in what should be a private merchants’ campaign. It’s not the business of our city government…