what SHOULD we take in at the pool?

Is the fair market value of the pool team practices $3000 a month? (number of lanes per day times number of days, etc) A couple years ago they were paying 1300 a month to practice in 4 lanes at the junior college. Are they using 8 lanes now? Thats $36,000 a year. What should the pool take in for a meet as pool rental?(16 hours times 165/hr=2460). How many meets do we have at the pool every year? Six? Eight? Lets say seven, times 2460 would be about 17k. Add the 36k and we get 53k, right, what we SHOULD get from MDAC? How much SHOULD we take in from Columbus? Reagan? the middle school? Krop? How much do we really take for swim lessons? How much additional expenses do the meets cost us (overtime, we paid $150 for an extra lifeguard at the last meet)? That is figured into the 300k+ overall loss, right? What if we marketed our pool to other swim clubs? We need to determine what a fair market value would and SHOULD be for using our pool, and then weigh THAT against 1) what we are receiving NOW; and 2) and how that number stacks up against our costs- would those numbers, IF we actually charged and collected them, make the losses acceptable? or not? IF the majority of kids were from here, and/or it was a nonprofit, it might be a different situation. But it ISNT. What could we save if we closed it from Dec thru May? How much pool heating goes in in Sept, Oct, March and April? What were the heating bills during those months last year?

facts missing ?

The City Manager says all the facts are not being represented- IF there are pertinent facts about this pool fiasco that are missing, let him present them NOW, if he dares. Would that additional facts he claims to have involve other sweetheart deals? Unclaimed revenues? Kickbacks? IF there are more than 6 Springs kids involved at MDAC, let him demonstrate THAT fact. IF the participation varies over time, fine. Let him provide verifiable numbers for the past year or two. He whines about all the facts not being presented but when given the oppurtunity to provide those facts, he, like Gorland, has NOTHING to offer of ANY substance. IF he had them, he would present them. NOTHING has been presented contrary to the facts presented.

jefferson

In light of the present financial crisis, it's interesting to read what Thomas Jefferson said in 1802.

I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive the people of all property until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered. ~ Thomas Jefferson

Dotsons investigation

Mr Dotson IS seriously looking into this pool situation. He would prefer if residents call him or email him so he can speak with them directly. Hes in the phone book, I believe. He has a pretty good general grasp of the situation but needs specific details and sources to solidify and confirm his current information. If he can talk to residents directly he can ask his questions at that time, and not wait for information to be relayed indirectly. It just makes is easier to see the whole big picture if its all there in front of him at one time. While getting info indirectly is better than NOT getting it at all, he is a direct kind of guy and would prefer to address this situation directly, and specifically, 1:1. You CAN remain anonymous, if you prefer, of course. The TRUTH shall set you free! We have come this far, and have finally gotten the attention of somebody who can do something about this situation. NOW is the time to make it count! Thank God somebody is interested and has the cojones to stand up and be counted!

annexation issues

The DERM oficial couldnt make the Council meeting but he DID give some kind of report to the Council members. There was NO debate or discussion of any possible areas of pollution in the Milam tracts. A DERM map as of 2004 indicates at least TWO open contaminated sites; three environmental crime sites and DERM enforecement cases; 3 facilties handling hazardous materials; 53 small quantity generators; 16 underground storage tanks; 4 hazardous waste material remediation sites; 16 grease traps; 4 solid waste disposal sites; one Superfund site; and one landfill at the site of the canada dry bottling plant. When are THESE potential pollution issues going to be debated and discussed? EVER? this map DOES say that all of the potential sites are NOT listed and that there may very well be more that are NOT listed. If the County has cleaned up some of these they need to tell us how many and where? Which ones were partially cleaned up? 20% ? 35%? How much has been done, and how much MORE needs to be done? Hoping businesses that have been bankrupt for 25 years will pay for a cleanup is not a real option. Are we willing to roll the dice, and HOPE no pollution shows up?

sidewalk contractors delight

Is it POSSIBLE that the City spent $5,000 per BLOCK to put in sidewalks along Huntinglodge drive? it is apparent that the only people who will HAVE any money to contribute to the gym project will be the contractors! If we are paying $5000 a block for SIDEWALKS, how much are we gonna pay for a 32,000+ square foot, trilevel building? I assume that those who contribute will get their OWN placques, right below Billys, and just a little bit smaller. How much is that concrete per yard? What are the standard costs?

appointment comments

Is it POSSIBLE that, after THIRTY MONTHS, Billy and Youngs CANT find ONE person out of the 13,000 + residents here in the Springs to fill their appointments? How hard could they be looking? I know of 3 people right now who would volunteer readily. Perhaps they arent looking too hard because its NOT important to them? or maybe they are just too lazy? or perhaps they could care less about their duties and responsibilities as City officials? or maybe a combination of all three? It is apparent that Youngs has one foot out the door already and he just doesnt care if his appointments are EVER filled. Billy is a little harder to figure as he is presumed to be running again and wouldnt like this to become a campaign issue against him- lazy, uncaring, and irresponsible are not electable traits for a candidate, are they? IF those two would fill their appointments the issues of "not enough for a quorum" would just disappear, right? But they havent bothered to fill them for the past THIRTY MONTHS so its unlikely they will fill them any time soon. Lets not rush into this, right guys?

forgotten showcase?

Is it possible that the year end financials are not available because they havent finished massaging the pool revenues and expenses enough yet? It may be a significant part of it. We shall see. What other areas need a massage? rec center? Public works? Police? Finance? how much revenues DID we receive from that commercial that was shot all last week at the Gym? or was this another FREE oppurtunity to SHOWCASE the gym they say is ancient, decrepit, termite-infested, and falling down? how many Springs businesses benefitted from that week, in which it was closed to all residents? how many more FREE "showcases" can we afford? It sounds VERY similar to the pool situation, doesnt it? since the City Clerk doewsnt know ANYTHING about a contract with MDAC to use or pool, for free or otherwise, is it possible that Gym has made a side deal to allow that? one that NOBODY but Gym knows about? Would THAT have to be included somewhere? Would THOSE revenues have to be reflected somewhere? if not, why not? Could he have made an oral contract with MDAC and just FORGOT to tell anybody about it? Would that be legal? Can he legally give away our pool usage to his buddies? If monies werent received, WHY NOT? A "showcase" scenario again? If they DID have revenues paid to the City, where would they be reflected?

convoys as a cure for pirates?

Posted By: McLovinB (November 27, 2008 at 4:30 PM)
I see many posts advocating acts of war against innocent people, invasion of sovereign countries, etc. These are hideous, knee-jerk responses. Arming the ships will just put more weapons beyond the control of governments and in a volatile area of the world.

The best solution is the use of convoys.

This pirate area is a small corridor through which ships can be escorted by armed vessels. The armed ships can meet with merchant vessels at rendez vous points at either end of the corridor. Once or twice a day, the convoys can move through en masse. If any pirate vessels attack, the armed vessels can engage and destroy, or at least coordinate a response from other vessels.

This is a cheap, easily coordinated solution that can be arranged legally and multinationally. There will be no collateral damage, no civilian casualties, no cases of mistaken identity, and no engagements in the national waters of any nation.

A system of payments from shipping countries could even be arranged to defray the costs. Each convoy ship could be assessed a charge based on photographs or other means.

I offer my apologies that it is not excting. It is unlikely to make a good Michael Bay movie, but it will solve the problem safely and efficiently.

possible pirate counter measures

Posted By: rashid120583 (November 28, 2008 at 1:03 PM)
BTW I realize I didn't offer a solution so here are a few:

Short-term: As this article mentioned, the addition of barb wire would be a cheap and effective deterrant. Add with that some outward facing curved non-electric fencing means that hooks will have little area to gain purchase. Further, even if they do manage to gain a secure line it is very difficult to climb on a moving vessel around an outward curving fence. This idea works because no one benefits from it other then those who participate. It is relatively cheap and easy as well as non-violent.

An active crew on alert when moving through this area with the suggestion I made would significantly reduce the likelhood of sucessful attack.

As has been mentioned before there are Islamists in the reigon who did not approve when Islamic ships were attacked. Create a treaty with these people and the Pirates to ensure that no Islamic nation ship is attacked. It is very easy to swap flags when moving through the area (swallow your pride). Further, it reduces the number of targets of opportunity which reduces the cash flow of the pirates. This is a good thing.

Note: I did not say to sign some sort of alliance with these Islamists. All I am suggesting is co-opting them so that we reduce the number of ships attacked and start to reduce the profitability of attacking these ships. The Islamists will eventually have to be taken care of on their own.

I would even co-opt McLovins plan by adding some sort of convoy system in the short term. Independently the idea would not work. However, coupled with a number of other things it can be a first step to a long term solution.

Long term: The creation and development of Somalia and its goverment. Yay... nation building sucks but in this case, some sort of stability is needed. It is cheaper to provide aid to Somalia for 10 years and solve a multitude of problems and generate good will then it is to escort ships through the area for the next 50.

pirate solutions

The solution is obvious. Albeit not politically correct.

Dont copy the US FIRST barbary pirate war of 1805.

The first Barbary war had grossly ineffective "diplomacy" that meant nothing to the pirates, followed by slow, gradual, escalation of military force.

The USN kept building more and more ships, all being sent to north Africa, losing one of its largest warships (a sister of the USS Constitution) as well as merchant ships to the pirates, the mess dragged on for years as pirates built forts at their bases and bought bigger guns before finally being worn down by a country that originated the saying for that war: "millions for defense, not one cent for tribute"..

That seems to be what the world is set on doing now.

Copy the second Barbary war of 1815 instead.

After winning the first Barbary war, the US navy was elsewhere from 1812 to 1815 because of an altercation with the Brits -- the 1812 war that included sacking of Washington and torching of the White House. This took priority, the resultant absence of the USN near North Africa allowed the pirates to resume their activities.

After peace with England in 1815, the bulk of the Navy, complete with Marines, was sent to Africa.

The Navy wasted no time.

On arrival they landed the marines, at night, at a leading pirate base.

The local pirate ruler awoke to find that his forts had fallen. All ships and boats in his harbor had been captured. The Navy's frigates were lined up along the waterfront, guns run out, ready to blow his palace off the map; with Marines confiscating or torching the entire contents of the storehouses where loot was stored. (If commingled - consider all stolen contraband)

The slaves and hostages (in those days hostages were sold as white slaves if ransom was slow) were promptly released, loot returned, and peace reigned.

Neighboring pirate bases sent their envoys to meet the fleet as it left harbor, and surrender their slaves and hostages early lest they meet the same fate.

The solution here is to

TAKE THE GLOVES OFF, LET THE MILITARY DO THEIR JOB, WITH AMPLE SHIPS AND MARINES TO DO IT QUICKLY AND EFFECTIVELY, INCLUDING LAND ASSAULTS WHERE APPROPRIATE.

Forget the meaningless but endless UN resolutions and slow amendments to rules of engagement.

As to penalty for captured pirates - while most nations have gone soft, with wrist-slapping of a few months in prison instead of the traditional penalty of hanging by the neck until dead and decomposed, Saudi Arabia still has appropriate penalties for pirates.

Send captured pirates to Saudi for amputation of head or hands.

AND make it a felony throughout the world to pay ransom to pirates or terrorists of any kind.

alien concepts

Perhaps one explanation of why nobody in Wilton Manors has ever heard of him is because it was 28 YEARS ago! Surely there is Human Resources information available, right? Some oldtimer who might remember him? resignation letter? Date of resignation? Something? Starting and ending employment dates at the very least, right? Perhaps a performance evaluation? What does Mr. Giglio have to say about his time there? his reasons for leaving? All of this would have been good for the Council to know, PRIOR to his hiring, if they had been the least interested in doing their job (oversight and due diligence). Unfortunately due diligence and oversight has somehow become a 4-letter words and alien concepts to these city officials that they want NO part of, in ANY way, shape, or form. So they simply DONT do it, or anything close to it, and things slip thru the cracks. Whoooops!

business licenses? meets?

While the district meet was in Milander, I know that there were quite a few meets for MSSh and for Columbus held at our pool. Where is the pool calendar to compare to school schedules? Revenues? Invoices for those. Also, if the private business is operating from our pool dont they need a business license? Or some type of oversight? And we were led to believe that the insurance they bring to the table covers their swimmers and coaches. If we do not have a team roster how do we know that all are registered and therefore insured? How many meets have been held at our pool this year? What revenues have we received from THOSE, if any? All private businesses that do business in MS are required to have a business license, no? Does MDAC have a business license to operate in MS?

unanswered questions

In the past Mr Giglio was a football star and fancied himself as quite a ladies man! Wonder if he still sees himself that way? Also wonder why he only put in one year at Wilton Manors? After spending 8 years in recreation in one capacity or another to get that job, wonder why he didnt stay longer? was he fired? Still many unanswered questions about this hiring, no?

now is the time for action

Those who would like an investigation of the pool operations need to contact Mr. Dotson or post your information here so it can be relayed to him by the resident. Numbers will be checked for accuracy, of course, against FOI numbers and information currently in hand. Several outstanding questions remain about how the pool operates- for instance, who receives punch cards, how are they bought, in what dollar value, and how are they accounted for? Are they issued to swim team memebers? Scuba? Polo? Who?

facts and figures

You might be surprised how much factual information can be found on this blog. There are numbers, of course, and the information receved is mostly of a confirmatory nature, or an explanatory nature, where it explains the numbers already known and how those numbers were derived. Numbers that seem out of bounds or implausible are checked against other known numbers for accuracy. Its amazingly simple to do and opens up avenues of information that were previously unknown, sometimes. For instance, it may be that those 6 Springs kids on the MDAC swim team may not even be 6at some times in the past; could be less, considerably less, close to, or even zero, at times. A LOT of the information received here in the past, especially regarding the pool operations, has been remarkably accurate, and corroborated by the numbers and information available now. The Internet and the Freedom of Information requests can be incredible sources of accurate information, especially about local events.

commentary

There are those who say that Mr. Giglio worked at Babcock and Southeast parks in Hialeah, but pert-time at each, and was not in charge of either. Can anybody confirm or disprove this? If his resume is inaccurate, and/or embellished, it would cast doubts upon his competency to run a large new complex, even beyond the fact that it happened 30 years ago. It would also cast serious doubts as to whether he was completely vetted by the City Manager, who assured the Council he had been thoroughly checked out. Is it possible that the Council was mislead? Deceived? Given the wrong impression about the new Rec Directors qualifications, experience, and character?? Inquiring minds want to know.

commentary

Lets see if this info is right- the swim lessons cost $20 a week and are bought in 2 week blocks- $40, right, no matter what level lessons, right? Some of this info was given once before but those who currently need it, missed it then, and its been erased somehow. those who want an in-depth and comprehensive investigation of the pool, its finances, and operations- NOW is the time for that, as its happening as we speak, but there are gaps in knowledge that need to be filled in, in order to visualize the entire picture. The data rollback wiped out important data that is needed. HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL !!

information please

More info is needed- who watches the admissions gate? the city or the host team? Who actually sells the food at the concessions? Who is responsible for the totals? Who receives the admissions fees? what is the average revenue generated by heet sheets? What is the admission cost to get in for nonswimmers, etc? is $165 an hour the standard fee per hour of pool rental, or an average? How many meet hours are the pool rented for, usually? 6? 7? 8? Are the Devil Rays a nonprofit? Does the pool rental fees include the costs for cleanup afterward and setup before? How do we know if the numbers of admissions are accurate? concessions? heet sheets? number of swimmers at each practice? each meet? Do they register anywhere? if so, where? Would the heet sheets reveal any information about the individual swimmers? which swim team? where they live? Who would have a complete team roster? Pool officials? Swim team officials? Does the cost per swimmer per meet depend on how many events they are competing in? Or is it a standard charge for everyone, no matter how many events they are in? what do other pools charge for a meet? how do we compare? Who is in charge of admissions, heet sheets, and pool rental fees at other pools? Do other pools have a written contract with the groups that use their pools? Do most pools have a contract with Dade County schools? These are some of the pertinent questions that have arose so far. Help is needed to fill in these gaps. Thank you for your participation.

theory vs practice

Its good to know that the hiring of a Rec Director is solely the responsibility of the City Manager. If they do well, he deserves some of the credit. If they DONT turn out well, he deserves a significant portion of the blame. Surely the City charter doesnt absolve the Council of their duties and responsibilities to oversee the activities of the City Manager, does it? Making sure that a thorough and comprehensive vetting of employess would seem to fall under their area of supervisory responsibilities, wouldnt it? At least in theory, because in practice they havent supervised the City Manager for a LONG time. It would not be surprising to find that due diligence has NOT been done in this case, as the Council themselves have not been accused of doing due diligence themselves, in YEARS!

right?

When the City Clerk says that a FOI request has had all confidential items removed from a job application, one might assume they would be talking about things of a personal nature: SS #, credit and background check, personal and professional references, etc. Those WERE done, right? Those are standard checks that are done for almost ANY job applicant these days, right? Not to mention a high-profile position that has been described as " the most important job in the city", right? To NOT have done them prior to hiring would be a SERIOUS and unprofessional breach of the public trust, right? Gymbo IS on record as having conducted a thorough and complete vetting of this candidate, right? Any possible problem areas would have been presented to the Council PRIOR to any hiring, right? Were any possible problem areas found and presented to the Council? None that can be recalled. While rumors are not to be given all that much weight, especially unsubstantiated ones, it would be the City Managers job to check them out and prove or disprove them as much as possible beforehand. As the old saying goes," Where theres enough smoke, you will usually find a fire".

due dilgence denied, again

The City Manager DID assure the Council that he had PERSONALLY vetted the resume of Mr Giglio, right? any discrepancies would be HIS responsiblity, right? He vouched for Mr Giglio when he pitched him for the job, right? There IS a video record of that, or eyewitnesses, right? Since there was NO other interviews, job search, or advertising done for the job, the Council has gone completely on the word of the City Manager regarding his background, experience, and character, right? Some might say the Council has a lot of confidence in the City Manager. Others might say the Council is being lazy and totally negligent in their oversight duties. Why didnt Mr Giglio come in front of the Council to answer any questions they may have regarding his background, experience, or character? Of course the only one who would have been prepared and asked any substantial questions would have been Mr Dotson, but he never got a chance. Wonder why. Talk about buying sight unseen! for the "most important job in the city?". Where was the DUE DILIGENCE done there?" AGAIN. NONE. Would anybody buy a CAR based only on the salesman's word? Ridiculous. Incredibly irresponsible!

commentary

American innovation can be a wonderful thing, but it will NEVER cure poor/corrupt management, unqualified personnel, incompetent and inept(if not corrupt) city officials, backroom sweetheart deals, rigged bids, kickbacks, $400-600 a square foot construction projects, or an oppressive, arrogant, bullying, and secretive management styles. Without getting to the core of this problem and correcting it, whatever THAT takes, more money would just be more losses to the taxpayers and more money for them to disappear, as previously stated. What are chances that there are some creative, imaginative, and innovative things happening at City Hall as we speak, trying to explain this pool fiasco?

commentary on Garcia

Mr. Garcia stated last night that the resident was in error by saying that only 6 Springs kids use the pool. That is NOT what the resident said. Check the video and you will see that the resident said there are only 6 Springs kids on the MDAC team. While it is probably true, as Mr Garcia said, that hundreds of kids use the pool, the majority of those kids use it during the Summer, probably over 90%, not during the off-season. If Mr Garcia wants to debate whether there are more than 6 kids on the MDAC team he should present verifiable numbers to that effect. If he cant, or wont, produce such numbers perhaps he should calm down, and get his facts straight first. He doesnt seem to have ANY objections to the taxpayers subsidizing a private business and taking a 300k loss to do it. Is it possible that he has NO CLUE as to what is going on at the pool? or perhaps he just doesnt care- its NOT like its HIS money thats being wasted, right? As long as its OUR money going down the drain to subsidize a private business, he OKAY with that! Why would public tax dollars go to support a private enterprise? Do we NOT have enough to support with Mr Santana, his 100k in electricity, the $600 a square foot CC addition, and the $200k+ for EACH bathroom? Get a grip, Mr Garcia! Or, at the very least, get your facts straight.

swim lessons

When you pay for swim lessons, do you pay one lump sum? or by the lesson? does it make any difference at which level the lessons are? Are those lessons for an hour each? Some swim lessons have only been for a half hour. How much is aerobics? Again, by the session, or a block or week of sessions? It has been said that aerobics is no longer a viable and functioning program, and hasnt been for a while. Most of the main aspects of the resume in question have been posted here. What more is required?

pool issues

100k for pool repairs was included in the LINK contract, initially at least. Is it still there? is it possible that, with the new community center and all the extras that go with it (bills included), the Mayor and Council will decide we need a new POOL too? With all the terrible mismanagement at the pool and the resultant losses, is it possible the city officials will decide to outsource the pool to a private entity? like they did the Country Club and the tennis courts? Incredible. THEY screw up things beyond belief, and WE take the hosing. Amazing! Ridiculous! Enough!

pool exposure needed

Did Gorland actually say last night that there IS a contract with MDAC and that they write checks directly to the City? I have it in my notes but will need to see it in the video again to be sure. If that is true, where is that money reflected? What about the water aerobics program? Is it still a viable and ongoing program? What are the charges for that program, if its still viable and functioning? Dotson wants and needs details to investigate this situation fully. Those who have those details might want to contact him via email or phone. All info will be checked out for accuracy, of course, but only once the details have been fleshed out and verified can the investigation into this, yet another city disaster, take its natural course. The GMAC meet says specifically that the $1100 was paid in cash from the concession stand. No other monies were noted or received, apparently, for pool rental, heet sheets, or admissions. If monies WERE received, but not documented, WHY are they NOT documented? Where are they reflected? If monies were NOT received, WHY NOT? We charge even taxpaying Springs residents SOMETHING to use the pool- why would we allow nonresidents to use it for free? Something smells here.

differnt foci

Garcia said tonight that the pool costs are "irrelevant". He doesnt care how much money we lose at the pool. Again he has shown that he has NO concern about the taxpayers money and NO interest in, or desire to be,in any way fiscally responsible. He has said that several times in the past too- whatever the cost, he is willing to pay it! WITH OUR TAX DOLLARS! He doesnt care HOW MUCH it costs us! he will pay ANY price! as long as its NOT his money being spent! He wants to combine the Ecology Board with the Parks and Parkways Board because "they both like trees"!!? While both of those Boards may have a few overlapping interests, they have 90%+ different focuses. The Ecology Board is interested in rain barrels and water conservation- Parks and Parkways is not. Ecology is interested in residential recycling- parks is not. Ecology is interested in increasing the recycling in City buildings and the gym and pool- Parks isnt. Ecology is interested in getting some fluorescent bulbs for our residents for free, or a big discount- Parks is not. Ecology is interested in residential composting- Parks is not. Ecology is interested in NOT using plastic water bottles, especially at Council meetings- Parks is not. The Parks and Parkways Board was instrumental in getting the state grant by the river, between the bridges; their focus is just different than the Ecology Board's. Not better or worse, just different areas of interest.

commentary

I agree with the Good idea below-put up or shut up! otherwise this is just ANOTHER case of the Mayor and Council providing NO oversight of the City Manager! Another lack of any resemblance to due diligence being done. Whatever you say, Gymbo! A pathetic excuse for city government. A poster child for rubber-stamp flunkies. The "most important job in the city" gets NO job search? NO debate? NO serious inquiries? NO double checking of his qualifications? Simply unbelievable! All need to be replaced, and soon!

deficit spending, no problem

On average, U.S. cities saw spending jump 3% in 2007, while tax revenues remained flat, according to the National League of Cities' annual report. Nearly two-thirds of city officials polled by the league expect revenues to take a larger hit this year, as tax bases continue to shrink and businesses contract. "Any form of government that has a heavy reliance on property tax is going to face massive budget shortfalls," says Matt Moon, a spokesman at the Tax Foundation, a nonprofit tax research group. It appears that we are NOT the only idiots who are spending more while taking in LESS. This is of little comfort to the beleaguered taxpayers in the Springs. Can it be that our city officials are NOT worried about their deficit spending because THEIR paychecks wont be affected, and they just plan on continuing to raise our taxes and fees to pay for their stupidities/cluelessness/corruption?

taxes and fees on the rise

By Catherine Holahan, MSN Money
As if it weren't bad enough that Michele Cetta's home value is plummeting, she's also facing a property-tax increase. "The value of the house is going down, but the property taxes are going up," says the mom from Staten Island, one of the suburban areas of New York City. She anticipates adding several hundred dollars to this year's nearly $7,000 property-tax bill. "People already can't afford to buy in the neighborhood, and this makes it worse." Homeowners see the same troubling trend across the nation. Despite a nationwide drop in home values of more than 6% -- and as much as 30% in some areas -- many homeowners are seeing their property taxes ratchet up, as state and local governments try to cope with revenue shortfalls caused by the economic downturn. This has already happened in Miami Springs, where the average property values have dropped 24.3% in the past year. City fees and the millage rates have increased to make up for the shortfalls they have caused by paying 100k for Santana's light bills; NOT charging private swim teams to use our pool; losing 300k to keep it open year-round for the private swim team; and overpaying HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS of tax dollars on EACH and EVERY City construction project!!!!! When the well gets low they just raise our taxes and fees. Simple, for them.

pool losses mount, officials unconcerned

Any further word on the new Rec Directors resume? Coaching teams and umpiring are laudable pursuits but not what we pay 100k to get done. Knowing that the City manager is a control freak with a long history that requires YES men, or women, that will just do what he tells them, like the Council, could make a resident who is concerned about what the new Rec Director actually brings to the table, wonder. One year experience as a Rec director 28 years ago doesnt exactly inspire confidence. No pool, building, or construction experience is another red flag. This is a multi-million dollar facility planned, and experience selling athletic shoes, school jackets, and backstops is not the background or exoerience needed to get this done right. The lack of appropriate experience and background WILL make the new Rec Director beholden and grateful to the City Manager, and will meet HIS requirements as a YES man who will do whatever the City Manager wants, whenever he wants it. What would the new Rec Director do about this ongoing pool disaster? Anything? Gorland was apparently NOT aware that any controls were in place, or thats what he told Dotson. There WERE, and are, some controls in place, along with some good documentation. To not even KNOW what business practices are being used at the pool shows an unbelievable lack of awareness, competency, and management skills on the part of Mr. Gorland. He is only aware that there is a POSSIBLY new system being tried out that MAY provide some of the answers to who is using our pool and how much revenues we are receiving ???? After over FORTY YEARS of having the pool we still dont have such a system in place? Please. Unbelievable! TRULY unbelievable !!! How do YOU spell incompetence? Ineptitude? Unbelievable? Highly suspicious? Ridiculous! He is either an incompetent bozo of humongous proportions, with NO clue regarding management principles, OR is covering for his boss, the City Manager. Neither is okay. Both should be fired for incompetence and ineptitude, at the very least; if not prosecuted for the misappropriation of municipal monies.

pool audit needed

Perhaps the audit committee is being lauded for creativity and imagination in the performance of their duties. Honestly, all of the people on that committee work FOR the CITY Manager. They are NOT CPAs or accountants and ALL depend on Gym for their jobs! We need an independent outside audit of the City, starting with the pool, with real forensic accountants and CPAs. Perhaps this will be provided by the State Dept of Revenues, or the State Attorneys office. The pool data has been real helpful in breaking down which people are using our pool facility, in what numbers, and when. Good documentation will be needed by those doing an honest audit in the future. Can it be that the City Manager has NO contract with MDAC and receives NO revenues for their use of our pool 6 days a week, or for meets? Or is it more likely that money is taken in but NOT recorded, or reflected anywhere? To NOT charge for the use of the pool would be defrauding the residents of monies they rightfully deserve, no? To charge for the use but pocket it or NOT have any record of it as revenues received would be grand theft, right? To obligate and guarantee a $200,000 loss to the residents by keeping the pool open during the school year for a handful of Springs residents, may not be criminal but it IS incredibly poor management and judgement, and fiscal insanity during these very difficult times for everybody else. Sound familiar? It SHOULD.

pool audit needed

Missing also from the records presented so far is ANY contract with ANY entity that uses our pool and ANY proof of payment of past debts to us from prior meets and daily practices! If any bills have been presented to MDAC, where ARE they? IF they have been paid, where are the receipts and where is that money reflected ? IF those bills havent been paid, WHY NOT? Also missing are the complete swim team rosters for MDAC for the past couple years. We should be charging EVERYBODY the standard rate - schools, meeets, practices, and private swim teams. There is NO justification of using taxpayer dollars to subsidize a private for-profit enterprise. It also makes NO sense to indulge a handful of Springs swimmers at the expense of 13,000 hard-pressed and struggling residents. The buck stops at the City Manager and his assistant's desk, doesnt it?

unaffordable luxuries

Was Oct 6th the districts? Thats the only day any other substantial payments were made, besides GMAC. Perhaps the time is right to make a FOI request for monthly MDAC master rosters for the past couple years, and any contracts with, and/or payments made from, MDAC for the past couple years. If Patti Bradley says that Gym handles MDAC personally and she doesnt receive any payments from MDAC for the use of our pool for practices or meets, then Gym should be able to clear this up for us. Who is inconvenienced more, the parents of those 6 Springs kids, or the 13,000+ residents who lose $200,000 in the offseason by keeping the pool open for MDAC? If MDAC would just pay us fair-market value we could keep the pool open and preserve the facilities and solid lifeguard staff we already have in place. We really need to break even, at least, but could maybe live with a little loss- but not $200,000. That money needs to be applied other places to benefit the large majority of residents, who are already hurting. That $200,000 could help a lot of residents and needs to be spread out for the benefit of all- not just a few. Its just a luxury that we can no longer afford, and is NOT without precedence. It has been done in the past when times were tough, and needs to be done NOW. We will also have a HUGE deficit next year, count on it, as the change orders and cost overruns begin on the new gym.

Looks like the Oct revenues will be $3142. Of course $1100 was received from the GMAC swim meet. Oct 6th took in $791.20 total, $400 of which was under swim lessons and $385.20 was for rentals. $246 was in cash, and the rest was in checks. Was that another meet? districts? who paid those monies? Who paid that $400 by check? Was it one swim club and several? 58 MDAC swimmers, 21 Columbus, 19 Springs. 4 aerobics noted but no charges were made or received. One lap swimmer noted but not charged. Inconsistent billing, payments that were made are not differentiated into who paid for what, and the majority of the revenues billed for swim lessons that never happened. Whose on first? Goofy? Mismanagement, lack of accountibility and oversight, and chaos at the pool. Another city fiasco, more money NOT accounted for- when does it end? EVER? It seems clear that if the swim teams pay their money for their use of the pool to practice to the City Manager directly, he needs show where that money is, no? How much have they paid to him over the years? Where is that money reflected?

as the pool fiasco unfolds...

Oct 13th pool records indicate 117 total team swimmers- Springs 22, Columbus 17, Krop (?) 45, and MDAC 48. Two memberships were noted for that day, netting $70. 12 swim lessons netted $20. Pool was closed until 11am, due to high pH- swim meet today noted. cash $ 84 noted on the Patti Bradley receipt as amount tendered, and paid. One adult, punch cards?, swim lessons... NO total number of patrons at the bottom.. lap swimmers 4, but no charges.. do they pay by the month? year? week ? at all? what are punch cards
? It seems the charges for each team should be based on their usage and the number of lanes they use. Is $3000 for two seasons (2006, 2007) about right for Columbus HS? Thats what they billed them. No evidence that they ever actually PAID that amount tho. Reagan was apparently billed for $1500 for 2006 season in 2007 but there is NO record of their ever paying that amount, or anything, for that matter. Rip Tides were billed for SEVERAL months but the exact number is NOT given. Any way to find that out? So they were aware that even token payments on the pool rental bills hadnt been paid over a YEAR ago. There is NO record that even these pittances were ever paid! Where would that revenue be reflected? Anywhere? There were NO nonresidents noted anywhere! Rarely more than 2-3 adults. 12/26/07 water polo camp- $500 in rentals, Rip Tides. 8 Dec 07 30 kids, 2 adults = $5 revenues? How much are swim lessons? does it matter if its beginners? intermediate? or advanced? kids or adults? 12/12/07 swim lessons $105,+ water aerobics $30+, swim team ?= $235 ? is whiting out figures a common practice at the pool? Numbers just dont add up. Period. Poor management all the way across the board.