Visalia, California is far from Whitewater, Wisconsin. (It’s about 2100 miles by car, according to Google Maps.) Despite the distance, they recently confronted a question like one we in Whitewater once faced. In Whitewater, we once foolishly imposed a moratorium on residential apartments in our downtown; in Visalia, they considered and rejected a moratorium on…
City
City, Development, Free Markets, Government Spending, Laws/Regulations, Planning
A Bigger Walmart Proposed for Whitewater, Wisconsin
by JOHN ADAMS •
I wrote once about the Walmart, No. 1274, in Whitewater. (Walmart now uses a name without a hyphen in advertising. I’m guessing they consider it both simpler and more upscale than “Wal-Mart.”) I wrote about Walmart a while ago, and a lot has changed. Walmart now sells both beer and liquor, there’s no east side…
City
The Fairhaven Postcard
by JOHN ADAMS •
There are lots of interesting items that one can find for sale, of memorabilia of a town’s past. I found something like that recently, and thought readers might find it interesting. It’s a postcard of Fairhaven, in Whitewater, from decades ago. (I’ve no connection to Fairhaven, except to know of it as a senior care…
City, Laws/Regulations, Libertarians
Could a Libertarian Run a Competitive Campaign Against President Obama? Yes.
by JOHN ADAMS •
Over at Rasmussen Reports, there’s a poll asking about a matchup in 2012 between President Obama and libertarian-oriented Ron Paul. The results aren’t surprising – there’s a considerable support for a libertarian-leaning candidate, even if people don’t always refer to support for free markets, individual liberty, and limited government by using the term libertarian. In…
City, Law, Laws/Regulations
On Whitewater’s Spring Election
by JOHN ADAMS •
Wisconsin’s spring election was yesterday, and there were few surprises in the races that involved the City of Whitewater. Common Council. In Whitewater’s municipal election, both of the unopposed incumbents on the ballot were returned to office. The total votes for the at-large seat (Stewart) were in between the numbers for the winning and defeated…
City, Press Release
Whitewater-Area League of Women Voters — April 2010 Newsletter
by JOHN ADAMS •
The Whitewater-Area League of Women Voters’ April 2010 Newsletter is now available, and the latest issue includes a calendar of upcoming LWV events. The latest copy of the LWV newsletter is available as a link on my blogroll, and is embedded below, with coding through Google. Here is a sampling of upcoming events mentioned in…
City, Police
Whitewater City Manager on Police Chief on Community Outreach
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a paragraph from the Whitewater city manager’s Weekly Report for March 5, 2010 that reveals all one needs to know about how these two gentlemen view community outreach. Here’s the paragraph: City and UWW Police Departments Hold Community Forum On Tuesday of this week, Officer Saul Valadez and Chief Jim Coan participated in a…
City, Police
Chief Coan Remains
by JOHN ADAMS •
One sees that Whitewater’s police chief, Jim Coan, wasn’t hired for the public safety director’s job in Mankato, Minnesota. Coan faced an uncertain field, and even then, he wasn’t hired. One candidate dropped out, one candidate wasn’t even currently working, and the third rival Coan faced wasn’t even a police officer. Coan sought a position…
City, Police
Mankato Free Press: Miller Chosen as New Public Safety Director
by JOHN ADAMS •
From the Mankato Free Press story: MANKATO — Todd Miller, an experienced police chief who most recently served in Texas, will be Mankato’s next director of public safety…. Miller will be replacing Jerry Huettl, who is retiring after more than 28 years with the city. Mankato City Manager Pat Hentges, who chose the new director,…
City, Laws/Regulations
The New Prohibition – Drink Specials (Part 2, Advice)
by JOHN ADAMS •
On a ship, the officer of the deck looks out, and sees storms directly ahead. He makes no mention of it to the captain, or anyone else among the crew. The ship sails directly into the storm, and is tossed about, being badly damaged from high waves and fierce winds. Afterward, the captain confronts the…
City, Laws/Regulations
The New Prohibition – Drink Specials (Part 1, Regulation)
by JOHN ADAMS •
Not long ago, Whitewater’s common council saw a proposal to regulate the drink specials that some taverns in Whitewater offer. After a half-hour discussion of the proposal, the matter was sent to an alcohol licensing committee for further consideration and recommendation to the common council. Not for unfettered consideration — for consideration to propose an…
City, Police
Whitewater, Wisconsin’s Tiny Chameleon
by JOHN ADAMS •
Whitewater’s police chief, Jim Coan, is a candidate for the director of public safety position in Mankato, Minnesota. I’ve written about his candidacy before, in a post entitled, Whitewater Chief Coan’s Interview with the Mankato Free Press: Dodgy! after reading his answers to questions from the Mankato Free Press. (Readers who’ve emailed remarking that Coan’s…
City, Planning
Haste Makes Waste
by JOHN ADAMS •
Whitewater’s City Manager, Kevin Brunner, trumpets what he considers a speedy advancement of a publicly-funded tech park for Whitewater. Brunner considers this a sign of accomplishment. He’s wrong, twice over. First, there’s less to Whitewater’s supposed accomplishments than meets the eye. Second, and even more important for our town, is the fundamental understanding among successful…
City, Free Markets, Libertarians
“Quiet Libertarian Victories”
by JOHN ADAMS •
Jeremy Lott has a brief essay entitled, Quiet Libertarian Victories, about how the last year has proved libertarians right about their core principles, and some successes effecting change toward more liberty. Lott observes that The last several years have not been easy for libertarians to stomach. The U.S. government, which had bloated under President George…