Friday, April 7, 2023

Durango says...

It's that time again!

Meet your water board candidate, learn about WHO the others are...related to.  Some things never change.  (If you need proof of that, check the campaign finance reports!)

http://durangotexas.blogspot.com/2023/04/its-that-time-again.html

Wednesday, October 20, 2021

Congresswoman’s daughter-in-law to exit water district


 Folks,

There’s a new reporter in town, and her name is Jessica Priest.

If you haven’t been reading her articles in the Fort Worth Report, you can just start here.

Get your popcorn.

THIS is what reporting looks like. This lady has only been here a hot minute and she’s reported better articles on the TRWD than half of you combined. Maybe more.

Wednesday, October 13, 2021

Buckle up, Buttercups!

 Seems the DA is up for re-election. 

And Fort Worth Report should be up for some awards!

Sunday, October 10, 2021

Welcome Back!

The stats say you've been missing us, though we are pretty sure it was Mary Kelleher on the Water Board you were actually missing.

Look, we know you had high hopes-

Mary was reelected, there were some newbies on the board and Jim Oliver's 30 year reign was over.  But alas...we've learned except for Mary's return, it's more of the same.  The ousted President, Jack Stevens, (Kay Granger's candidate that came in dead last by the way) made his last act an embarrassing one by signing over $360,000 of your money to Jim Oliver and JD Granger.  Supposedly, unbeknownst to the board (there is some question as to when Marty Leonard knew).  

The board voted to stop the payments and Tarrant County residents breathed a sigh of relief, that they finally had a board representing THEM.

Then came Dan Buhman, the new GM, who was trained by WHO?  You guessed it, Jim Oliver.  The voters had questions on how the process worked when there were no mention of the other candidates and all the emails lead right back to the plan of Dan taking over the show.

And last but not least, when Oliver leaned he wasn't getting his payment, he threatened to sue the board for age discrimination - "one of the things threatened in lawsuit".  Many thought the newbies would stick to their guns and not give the taxpayers money away on another frivolous lawsuit.  Some of the old school knew better.  The vote was once again 4-1.  Welcome back, Mary Kelleher.  We, the taxpayers, have missed you. 

The TRWD has never been afraid to spend your money on a lawsuit.  From employee harassment cases, eminent domain cases, suing Oklahoma to take their water, the IPL pipeline...the list goes on and it's long and very expensive.  So if you run into TRWD board members out and about ask them what they were really afraid of.  YOU deserve to know.

And if you're not reading the Fort Worth report, you're missing out.  They've blown the doors of that Startlegram "news" rag.

Tuesday, April 13, 2021

Star-Telegram "News" Paper prints funnies

The reason no one takes the Star-Telegram anymore is because they are nuts.  Like Bat Sh*t Crazy Nuts.

 Let us count the ways -

A week ago we got a call about hiring block walkers for the TRWD race. For three candidates.  Living the Fort Worth Way, one would assume the status quo, the three incumbents.  But no, hold up.  They want two of the incumbents and one of the ones the establishment continues to run.  If you're wondering why, he's in real estate.  Duh.

And here we are a week later and we are sure no one finds it odd, that the ST just came up with these same three candidates all on their own!  (If you buy that, we have a bridge to sell you.) They are endorsing candidates who have not made any waves or stood up for their constituents during their time on the board. Looking at one of the incumbents signs, it seems they aren't even clear what the board they serve on is called.  This is the same candidate that happens to be the treasurer for a certain Fort Worth Mayoral Candidate. Apparently the ST is okay with that, too. It's Fort Worth, it's all relative.

We understand not backing the president of the board again, though the ST's excuse for that doesn't hold water.  They feigned shock over his "arrogance" and unwillingness to listen to the voters.  Um, are they new?  Have they ever been to a meeting? This is who he is and what the water board does.  Granted other local papers have done a much better job on reporting that over the years. Did the ST forget they’ve always endorsed him? (see pic above).

The ST has a reputation for being derogatory and dismissive when it comes to the People's Candidate, Mary Kelleher.  The one time they did endorse her, they called her "the squeaky wheel".  When she won a seat on the Tarrant Regional Water District, a food critic at the Star-Telegram insulted all Texas women and beyond by saying her win had something to do with her being the only woman on the ballot.  It couldn't be because she's a highly intelligent, caring, hard working citizen, could it?  This time they label her as a "disruptor".  Well, sign us up!  We're voting for the disruptor and asking you to do the same.  Had the ST been focused on disrupting the Fort Worth Way that the TRWD has practiced for years, the taxpayers wouldn't have wasted $40 million to date on the Billion Dollar Boondoggle. 

Monday, April 12, 2021

Say what??


Someone tell Mrs. King (and the Ethics Commission) what board she’s running for please.

We hope she’s more thorough while doing Mrs. Parker’s campaign finance reports.

Sunday, April 11, 2021

She's back...

Did you miss us?

Some of you didn't.  For the rest of you, you know what to do.

Saturday, April 10, 2021

We waited 7 years for this??

 


They are kidding, right?

There is not much traffic up there. No one knows it's open. The bridge leading to the million dollar trash can.

Tuesday, October 30, 2018

We're back...



Did you miss us?

We had been sitting back watching the TRVA Panther Island drama, but if the circus is going to come to town, clowns and all, we decided to take a trip down memory lane.

Here are a few gems for you:

“Whether it’s an abatement, TIF, public/private partnership, getting favorable changes in the law to reduce private risk – it never stops,” Picht said. “TRV is in a class by itself for getting so much public money from so many sources while having no transparency, no hope of keeping within budget, no competent management, and no hope of producing the product that was advertised in the original concept plan.” he said.

Water district officials say the criticism is unwarranted. The idea behind the TRV always has been to reintegrate the Trinity River back into the city and make it a centerpiece of economic development, they say.

Funny, we thought the plan was always "flood control".  Oops

And there's this from way back in 2011, when the Boondoggle also know as: Panther Island, Trinity River Vision & Trinity Uptown, went by Central City.

With the current congressional moratorium on earmarks, Trinity River Vision Authority officials have been told not to expect any federal funding in the current fiscal year for the flood control and economic development project.

I'm curious when we reach the tipping point where we don't have to be worried," said Maenius, who added that he has been unable to receive a clear-cut answer. U.S. Rep. Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth, who has secured earmarks for the project since its inception, cannot seek funding for the project since Congress has instituted a moratorium on earmarks. Her son is J.D. Granger.

Since the Senate joined the earmark moratorium, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison also can no longer seek an earmark for Central City, the Army Corps of Engineers portion of the project.

The Fort Worth project is not in President Barack Obama's budget -- nor was it in President George W. Bush's budgets -- but has been funded through earmarks championed by Rep. Granger.
From Show us the money.

And then there's this, straight from the horse's mouth...or the Manager's nephew...

Our favorite might be the the blurb below, as you know, the Trinity River Vision was touted as a "flood control" project, to secure federal funds. WHERE do you see the words flood control in this statement?

(Durango) In the Trinity River Vision's website we get to read what I think must be the Trinity River Vision Mission Statement:

The Trinity River Vision Authority (TRVA) is the organization responsible for the implementation of the Trinity River Vision (TRV) - a master plan for the Trinity River in Fort Worth, Texas. It is underway now - connecting every neighborhood in the city to the Trinity River corridor with new recreational amenities, improved infrastructure, environmental enhancements and event programming. The TRV will create Trinity Uptown, a vibrant urban waterfront neighborhood, expand Gateway Park into one of the largest urban-programmed parks in the nation and enhance the river corridor with over 90 user-requested projects along the Trinity Trails.

Do you see the words, flood control anywhere in that statement?

We could do this all night. But you get the point.  SSDD.  The only difference is, the "news" showed up today.  But they brought Bud Kennedy with them so, you know...


Thursday, April 12, 2018

Welcome back, Fort Worth Weekly


Nice work on the run down. Now explain a 50 year TIF...

Buddy, Can You Spare A Billion?