I read, each week, the Weekly Report from Whitewater’s City Manager, Kevin Brunner. The August 13th issue has clippings that Brunner chose to include from news stories and columns published elsewhere. Brunner included one from New York Times columnist Paul Krugman. Here’s the clipping Brunner included: Krugman States Anti-Government Movement Hurting “Basic Government Functions.” Paul…
167 search results for "Brunner "
Innovation Center/Tech Park
Whitewater Innovation Center’s Second Tenant: As Unsuitable as the First
by JOHN ADAMS •
I am one of the few people who bothers to read the Weekly Report of Whitewater, Wisconsin’s City Manager, Kevin Brunner. Read it I do, and in the August 13th edition, one sees this announcement about a second tenant for the under-construction Innovation Center: Construction on Schedule for Whitewater Innovation Center; Another Tenant to Lease…
Innovation Center/Tech Park
On Whitewater’s “Innovation” Center, August 2010
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a story at the Janesville Gazette‘s website that offers a chance to consider yet again Whitewater’s Innovation Center. It’s a welcome opportunity. For the Gazette‘s story, see UW-Whitewater is a serious player in economic development. First, an observation about the Innovation Center and Tech Park: This is an eleven million dollar publicly-funded project, using…
City, Politics
The Grass, Weeds, and Natural Lawn Menace in Whitewater, Wisconsin
by JOHN ADAMS •
Link: http://cityofwhitewater.blip.tv/file/3910060/ Whitewater, Wisconsin held its last Common Council meeting on July 20th. There’s another session tonight, but a part of the last session deserves notice as an example of a dodgy discussion. On the agenda of the last meeting, one finds this item, C-7, nestled in the middle: C-7. Review of and possible direction…
City
Record All Public Meetings
by JOHN ADAMS •
I wrote earlier this week about the agenda of a Whitewater Community Development Authority meeting. The agenda seemed oddly vague, and some portions of it were so obscure that it provided no reasonable information about a subject’s contents. See, Daily Bread for Whitewater, Wisconsin: 7-26-10. The agenda’s not a minor task; it’s a public announcement,…
Daily Bread
Daily Bread for Whitewater, Wisconsin: 7-26-10
by JOHN ADAMS •
Good morning, Whitewater’s forecast calls for a sunny day, with a high of eighty-four degrees. The Board of Directors of Whitewater’s Community Development Authority meets today, from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. The agenda is available online. The agenda’s a fine substitute for a crossword or other puzzle, but a deficient and embarrassing public agenda.…
Beautiful Whitewater, City, Law, Police, Politics
Citizens’ Complaints and the Reaction of Misguided, Selfish Officials
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here’s a question about (limited) government: If the residents of a town want an official fired, is the fundamental problem that they’re asking that he be fired, or the reason that they’re asking? In the Township of Linn, not far from Whitewater, a group of residents want the police chief fired. They’ve filed a complaint…
Comment Forum
Friday Open Comments Forum
by JOHN ADAMS • • 13 Comments
Here’s the Friday open comments post, following reader responses to a recent poll. The use of pseudonyms and anonymous postings will be fine. Although the template has a space for a name, email address, and website, those who want to leave a field blank can do so. Comments will be moderated, against profanity or trolls.…
City, Freedom of Speech
Whitewater’s Overreaction to Citizen Complaints: Trees, Tree Commission, and Urban Forestry Commission
by JOHN ADAMS •
Whitewater’s city manager, Kevin Brunner, seems oddly inadequate to the task of managing a city of fourteen thousand people. His response to complaints about Whitewater’s urban forestry program, a successor program to our former tree commission, shows that he has trouble responding maturely to simple, lawful criticism. The mere act of citizens’ sending a letter…
City, Innovation Center/Tech Park
The City Manager’s Greetings from Ames, Iowa
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’ve posted cards about Whitewater from earlier times, but it’s a card from Iowa that I’ve embedded today. Imagine someone passing along a card from Ames, Iowa, site of a recent International (!) Town and Gown Association meeting on sustainable partnerships. Here’s that recent find: Click card to view larger image The postcard that I’ve…
Development, Free Markets, Planning
The Wall Street Journal on Private Campaigns Against Walmart
by JOHN ADAMS •
In prior posts, I’ve made clear the difference between competition between private merchants and local government’s endorsement of a campaign that expressly favors one kind of merchant over another. That’s not the place for government, either on principle (government should be limited) or prudently (government has a poor record of picking winners in the marketplace).…
Freedom of Speech
Is Anti-Blogging Rhetoric Proof of Blogs’ Success?
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s a story at Politics Daily, entitled, “Anti-Blogger Rhetoric: A Sign of What the Blogosphere Is Doing Right,” that sees opposition to blogging as a sign of blogging’s success. Matt Lewis writes that If success breeds contempt, then bloggers are finally making it big. Consider this study in contrasts: During his first White House news…
City, Free Markets, Planning, Politics
Whitewater Local Government’s Favoritism of Some Local Businesses Over Others
by JOHN ADAMS •
In towns across America, private businesses and groups compete for support. This is to be expected and defended in a free society. That competition for support need not — and should not — receive a preferential boost from local government. It’s only in a community where bureaucrats are confused about the limits of government that…
City, Development, Planning
Whitewater’s Planning Commission Meeting from 5/10/10: Walmart
by JOHN ADAMS •
After a few preliminary items, Whitewater’s 5/10/10 Planning Commission meeting considered Walmart’s proposal for a significant expansion at its present location. A video recording of the meeting is available at http://blip.tv/file/3624624. The agenda with a memo from Vandewalle & Associates about the Walmart expansion is available at Planning Commission Agenda & Attached Documents. The documents…