The events now unfolding leave one to wonder what may be happening in our fair city.
Our sources now tell us that one of the first acts of the new Commissioner de Jesus is to appoint the darling of the boozing set, the charming friend of police officers, both Davie and Cooper City), and the role model for the impressionable Commissioner Mallozzi is none other than Former Commissioner and Infamous Bart ‘Give them the Finger’ Roper to P&Z, Planning and Zoning Board of Cooper City.
It appears as though Commissioner de Jesus thinks that Mr. Roper’s recent past indiscretions so widely viewed on the local television stations in stories regarding dinner/drinks on the taxpayers tab and the DUI/Sleeping in your car in the middle of the street, are just boys being boys.
Ms. Mallozzi’s scathing comments of 1 ½ years ago directed to Commissioner Roper and the others on the commission now appear as very shallow if not totally disingenuous. I guess she wanted out more and needed some place to go, presto, why not a city commission meeting. At the time she seemed quite concerned. I guess after her election and a year of watching him in action (sobriety tests are not required for city commission meetings) and her gushing adulation of praise at the last meeting must indicate either a back room deal of some sort or she is off her meds again.
It should be clear to even the most distant viewer of city politics that the decisions of the P&Z should be regarded by the citizens and the commission as being in the vital best interest of the city. Any decisions in which Mr. Roper will participate will have to be second guessed as to whether or not alcohol may have had any influence.
The conventional wisdom is that all of the members of that board are persons of good character and that none would be influenced by anything other than good common sense, Gregg Ross might be the exception. It is the view of many who have been made aware of this planned transgression that rather than commit this gross misjudgment another appointee should be selected. We can only hope that sound judgment will prevail and that the composition of this important citizen’s advisory board will not be diminished by a rush to fill a position without solid reflective thought process.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Your Cooper City Commission at Work
The Cooper City commission is really out of touch. The writers strike is over. If you want to create a drama to entertain the relatively few people who can stomach the meetings you have truly succeeded. Based upon the comments in the Sun-Sentinel article online edition the last commission meeting has so confused the issues that no one can hardly get to the critical issue.
The increase in the BSO level of coverage is an issue that one would think is at least the most important singular one that effects every person in Cooper City. The restoration of the full complement of patrol officers seems like a no brainer which the commission finally understood and agreed on. The increase of officers was not perceived as something that was needed. It is as though adding officers would in some way create a problem of incalculable dimension. It only amounted to $200,000. Several election candidates had campaigned on it. The city manager had announced at the last commission meeting that $3.952 million in excess funds from the previous year was now available. He was supposed to tell the Commission that information within thirty days of the close of the fiscal year. To you financial types that means the city took in more than it spent, and it tried very hard to spend it all.
The drama of the night continued with a subsequent ‘love feast’ of adulation of some of the commissioners to each other and then gave way to a harangue starting with Mallozzi and her spontaneous version of ‘plagiarism’. ( So much for the GED diplomas.) This then lead to Bart Roper’s soliloquy of his fictional version of ‘The Dastardly Acts’ of his fellow commissioner John Sims. Hardly in keeping with Mr. Roper’s more than 10 years of commendable service to this community his final comments were disgusting. The nature and tone of those comments should bring shame to the record of this commissioner. This part of the show appeared to be a repetitive final act of the last three meetings. One begins to assume that this reoccurring theme has been planned and probably choreographed by someone. The facial expressions of the chairperson, Mayor and leader of our community pretty much indicates who the author might be. What pray tell doth that mean?
Well, fellow citizens of this once well respected community in the western edges of Broward, (other local municipal personnel are now calling each other with the latest about Cooper City Shenanigans ), ‘the game is a foot’ as the English would say.
One wonders, ‘What is it all about?’ Look to the underlying element, the ’Hiring Manual’ for the city manager. Yes, that’s right a hiring manual. The reason for the ad hominem, (personal attacks repeatedly forbidden and so conveniently overlooked by the chairperson) is that a proposal has been laid on the table. It is the work of a state government and others, modified with the permission of the state for the purpose of providing a specific plan to enable municipalities, such as Cooper City which does not have an HR dept., to have a working document to aid in the hiring of the singularly most important person in the city administration, the city manager.
Why the commotion? Well, the main reason is that someone had the audacity
to obtain and modify and prepare a manual to be used instead of using the vast expertise available from the commissioners who have had extensive working knowledge and background to draw from in the new hire process. (This would be only the second city manager hired in the entire history of Cooper City, the resigning city manager has served 27 or so years and at least three of the commissioners have never had to hire any significant executive or high level manager.)
I think Not. What really makes sense is that the Mayor who has known for quite some time that Mr. Farrell would be going one way or another, had someone in mind for the job and the last thing the Mayor will allow to happen is for the search for a new manager would reach out across the milieu of 27,000 or more municipalities and find the best available candidate for Cooper City. And we all know by now that the judgment of others, especially those who are not part of the Cooper City Cabal, should not have any part in selected the manager. It is best if the individual has been thoroughly vetted by the Mayor and the ‘King of Cooper City‘, her husband, and then presented as the preordained city manager. (Cronyism never seems to disappear.)
Yes, it is possible that the dots have been misaligned in the dramatic scenario portrayed . Only a careful scrutiny of the yet unfolded scripts can really tell us the egregious plan. Cooper City deserve and can easily afford a well qualified, experienced professional city manager. One who is not the chosen one by the Cabal but one who will begin to restore the integrity of the position and one who can provide the necessary leadership to the employees, citizens and commissioners in the years to come as the problems that this city may yet confront can only be described as challenging.
Keep your Tuesday nights free (viewing should only be on the older TV in case emotions become physical) as this could be an exciting if not exhilarating ride thru the pages of local politics as its very grittiest.
The increase in the BSO level of coverage is an issue that one would think is at least the most important singular one that effects every person in Cooper City. The restoration of the full complement of patrol officers seems like a no brainer which the commission finally understood and agreed on. The increase of officers was not perceived as something that was needed. It is as though adding officers would in some way create a problem of incalculable dimension. It only amounted to $200,000. Several election candidates had campaigned on it. The city manager had announced at the last commission meeting that $3.952 million in excess funds from the previous year was now available. He was supposed to tell the Commission that information within thirty days of the close of the fiscal year. To you financial types that means the city took in more than it spent, and it tried very hard to spend it all.
The drama of the night continued with a subsequent ‘love feast’ of adulation of some of the commissioners to each other and then gave way to a harangue starting with Mallozzi and her spontaneous version of ‘plagiarism’. ( So much for the GED diplomas.) This then lead to Bart Roper’s soliloquy of his fictional version of ‘The Dastardly Acts’ of his fellow commissioner John Sims. Hardly in keeping with Mr. Roper’s more than 10 years of commendable service to this community his final comments were disgusting. The nature and tone of those comments should bring shame to the record of this commissioner. This part of the show appeared to be a repetitive final act of the last three meetings. One begins to assume that this reoccurring theme has been planned and probably choreographed by someone. The facial expressions of the chairperson, Mayor and leader of our community pretty much indicates who the author might be. What pray tell doth that mean?
Well, fellow citizens of this once well respected community in the western edges of Broward, (other local municipal personnel are now calling each other with the latest about Cooper City Shenanigans ), ‘the game is a foot’ as the English would say.
One wonders, ‘What is it all about?’ Look to the underlying element, the ’Hiring Manual’ for the city manager. Yes, that’s right a hiring manual. The reason for the ad hominem, (personal attacks repeatedly forbidden and so conveniently overlooked by the chairperson) is that a proposal has been laid on the table. It is the work of a state government and others, modified with the permission of the state for the purpose of providing a specific plan to enable municipalities, such as Cooper City which does not have an HR dept., to have a working document to aid in the hiring of the singularly most important person in the city administration, the city manager.
Why the commotion? Well, the main reason is that someone had the audacity
to obtain and modify and prepare a manual to be used instead of using the vast expertise available from the commissioners who have had extensive working knowledge and background to draw from in the new hire process. (This would be only the second city manager hired in the entire history of Cooper City, the resigning city manager has served 27 or so years and at least three of the commissioners have never had to hire any significant executive or high level manager.)
I think Not. What really makes sense is that the Mayor who has known for quite some time that Mr. Farrell would be going one way or another, had someone in mind for the job and the last thing the Mayor will allow to happen is for the search for a new manager would reach out across the milieu of 27,000 or more municipalities and find the best available candidate for Cooper City. And we all know by now that the judgment of others, especially those who are not part of the Cooper City Cabal, should not have any part in selected the manager. It is best if the individual has been thoroughly vetted by the Mayor and the ‘King of Cooper City‘, her husband, and then presented as the preordained city manager. (Cronyism never seems to disappear.)
Yes, it is possible that the dots have been misaligned in the dramatic scenario portrayed . Only a careful scrutiny of the yet unfolded scripts can really tell us the egregious plan. Cooper City deserve and can easily afford a well qualified, experienced professional city manager. One who is not the chosen one by the Cabal but one who will begin to restore the integrity of the position and one who can provide the necessary leadership to the employees, citizens and commissioners in the years to come as the problems that this city may yet confront can only be described as challenging.
Keep your Tuesday nights free (viewing should only be on the older TV in case emotions become physical) as this could be an exciting if not exhilarating ride thru the pages of local politics as its very grittiest.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Closed door meetings are still a staple of Cooper City Government
Last Monday, March 9th, a closed door meeting (what?..there are no closed door meetings in Cooper City according to our mayor!) was attended by the city manager, the assistant city manager, our purchasing agent (whomever that might be), our police chief, one city commissioner, and several representatives of companies vying for the ‘red-light camera’ contract. It was a hastily arranged meeting, proposed the previous Friday afternoon, and set-up for that Monday morning. This meeting was done at the insistence of several residents who expressed great concern how unfair it was that only one ‘red-light’ company, American Traffic Solutions (ATS), was making a presentation of their product. Several residents who were very interested asked to be present at this meeting, only to learn more about the ‘red-light’ camera process itself, but also to monitor the fairness of the playing field between all the vendors. Unfortunately they were NOT allowed to be present, secrets being what they are and all.
Our sources (hey, we’ve got a mole...better watch your step!) tell us that the one commissioner present was very closed minded to all vendors except the one she (whoops, we don’t want to give it away now do we?) had a preference for. Our sources and the other vendors tell us that this commissioner was argumentative and just plain rude to all except ATS, her favored company. Thankfully, at the time this was going on, up in Tallahassee the whole criteria of ‘red-light’ cameras, RLC, their legalities and such, was being drafted into Florida law, so this Cooper City ordinance had to be tabled for the time being.
While we are not weighing in at this time about how we feel about this whole ‘red-light’ camera project, (article being developed) we will tell you that we are absolutely appalled how this process was handled. First, where was the competitive bidding process in all this? Unfortunately and unfairly, it was nowhere to be found. One commissioner took it upon herself (slipped again didn’t we!) to pick the company she wanted, at the exclusion of all other vendors with the same, if not possibly a better product. One commissioner personally decided what is best for Cooper City without the input of her fellow commissioners or much less the public. Hey, remember us, the residents, the ones who will be directly affected by this! The public was not even allowed to hear the presentations by the companies because this was a closed door meeting...public keep out! This is how our city is being run! I guess this says it all.
During the election several candidates ran on platforms of open government, only to be told by the mayor that “closed door meetings do not take place in Cooper City“. Well, we can tell you they do, this being a perfect case in point. ALL, and we mean ALL, significant city contracts should be handled during a competitive bidding process in the OPEN at commission meetings or workshops, where the PUBLIC is allowed to give their input and opinions, and where each company can have their products presented in an open and fair manner. One commissioner should not have the right to choose and push through a company of her own choosing without all interested parties being allowed to present their company’s product. This is a democracy for heaven’s sake, not the personal playground of a selected few.
Our sources (hey, we’ve got a mole...better watch your step!) tell us that the one commissioner present was very closed minded to all vendors except the one she (whoops, we don’t want to give it away now do we?) had a preference for. Our sources and the other vendors tell us that this commissioner was argumentative and just plain rude to all except ATS, her favored company. Thankfully, at the time this was going on, up in Tallahassee the whole criteria of ‘red-light’ cameras, RLC, their legalities and such, was being drafted into Florida law, so this Cooper City ordinance had to be tabled for the time being.
While we are not weighing in at this time about how we feel about this whole ‘red-light’ camera project, (article being developed) we will tell you that we are absolutely appalled how this process was handled. First, where was the competitive bidding process in all this? Unfortunately and unfairly, it was nowhere to be found. One commissioner took it upon herself (slipped again didn’t we!) to pick the company she wanted, at the exclusion of all other vendors with the same, if not possibly a better product. One commissioner personally decided what is best for Cooper City without the input of her fellow commissioners or much less the public. Hey, remember us, the residents, the ones who will be directly affected by this! The public was not even allowed to hear the presentations by the companies because this was a closed door meeting...public keep out! This is how our city is being run! I guess this says it all.
During the election several candidates ran on platforms of open government, only to be told by the mayor that “closed door meetings do not take place in Cooper City“. Well, we can tell you they do, this being a perfect case in point. ALL, and we mean ALL, significant city contracts should be handled during a competitive bidding process in the OPEN at commission meetings or workshops, where the PUBLIC is allowed to give their input and opinions, and where each company can have their products presented in an open and fair manner. One commissioner should not have the right to choose and push through a company of her own choosing without all interested parties being allowed to present their company’s product. This is a democracy for heaven’s sake, not the personal playground of a selected few.
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