Mayor vetoes rejection of funding for controversial housing plan department of employment and economic development

Jake L.
04/16/2008 9:16 PM

OK, realize this may not be directly related to this issue, but wasnt the Mayor FIRED from Woodland Centers for something like this?? And, do you not think that he has a CONFICT OF INTEREST. He owns a counseling firm that caters to people with issues. Not sure what Gardner is thinking...its not like he is going to get a central vac contract from these new homes. He is well on the way to losing his business and his position on the council. Anderson...well...can we say JENNIE-O!!!! Daaah!! We have CLOSE friends that live right on 16th Street who have small children. The comments about gunshots is a eiree thought. I sure hope they do not read these comments.

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Shannon S.
04/16/2008 9:11 PM

How Long Do We Have? About the time our original thirteen states adopted their new constitution in 1787, Alexander Tyler, a Scottish history professor at the University of Edinburgh , had this to say about the fall of the Athenian Republic some 2,000 years earlier: A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government.' A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always vote for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's greatest civilizations from the beginning of history, has been about 200 years During those 200 years, those nations always progressed through the following sequence: 1. from bondage to spiritual faith; 2. from spiritual faith to great courage; 3. from courage to liberty; 4. from liberty to abundance; 5. from abundance to complacency; 6. from complacency to apathy; 7. from apathy to dependence; 8. from dependence back into bondage Professor Joseph Olson of Hemline University School of Law, St. Paul , Minnesota , points out some interesting facts concerning the 2000 Presidential election: Number of States won by: Democrats: 19 Republicans: 29 Square miles of land won by: Democrats: 580,000 Republicans: 2,427,000 Population of counties won by: Democrats: 127 million Republicans: 143 million Murder rate per 100,000 residents in counties won by: Democrats: 13.2 Republicans: 2.1 Professor Olson adds: 'In aggregate, the map of the territory Republican won was mostly the land owned by the taxpaying citizens of this great country. Democrat territory mostly encompassed those citizens living in government-owned tenements and living off various forms of government welfare...' Olson believes the United States is now somewhere between the 'complacency and apathy' phase of Professor Tyler's definition of democracy, with some forty percent of the nation's population already having reached the 'governmental dependency' phase. If Congress grants amnesty and citizenship to twenty million criminal invaders called illegal's and they vote, then we can say goodbye to the USA in fewer than five years. ENOUGH OF THE HAND OUTS!!!!

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Mike J.
04/16/2008 9:11 PM

Jared S, read up http://www.municode.com/resources/gateway.asp?pid=12199&sid=23

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John S.
Willmar, MN     04/16/2008 9:08 PM

Jared, I guess you had to have something to complain about in my post. Real adult like!

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Mike J.
04/16/2008 9:03 PM

All kidding a side, I am afraid to say this, but I think the project will go through in the end. the reason is that the council is split 4-4 and the mayor is going to vote for it every time. and if the vote doesn't go his way, he will veto it and claim some sort of excuse (full council was not present) short of recalling the mayor, there is no way to stop it. sad, very sad

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John S.
Willmar, MN     04/16/2008 9:03 PM

No Joyce C I am not running for city council, but I do attend every meeting and almost all of the committee meetings and spend a lot of time on the web looking up laws and other cities ways of doing things and suggest ideas to our ? leaders who don't seem to have any real interest in suggestions until the last few weeks, but it has taken 2 years. I won't quite either as I enjoy it and I think in the long run I can help the city I love. As to taking Jared around town I would be more than happy to, but he has to know if the home he is talking about is owned by the tenant or a rental property. I would also be more than happy to document any violations of city laws and ordinances and take them to the proper officials and give Jared and you all the credit. There are so many things I could say, but this isn't the place or time for it, but maybe after this is all said and done I may go public with a lot of things that the city doesn't know about that is going on. The WCT has known about one serious breach of law that I presented to them last winter, but they continue to sit on it as they're to busy. Oh well, life goes on!

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Mike J.
04/16/2008 8:57 PM

eagles landing?

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John S.
Willmar, MN     04/16/2008 8:50 PM

Jared, I have never once said anything one way or the other about the project. I am only interested in getting this city to do things right and legal. I could give you a list that would be very long on wrong doings within this city that they aren't doing right nor have they fixed anything after I bring it to their attention. Yes, Jared I do see the issue, but in truth the issue was caused because this city government doesn't take care of correcting things that don't work and making things understandable and requesting the information they WANT to know about applicants for anything. How am I making things difficult for you? By stating facts instead of half truths. I will state publicly right now that NO, I don't think this is a good place for this project. But, also that the project has its merits as far has helping people have the pride of home ownership, regardless of status in life. My type is trying to make Willmar a better place to live by having the council and staff start abiding by the laws and to do things that should have been done a long time ago. If you want things to remain as is, then you are taking the right track, by complaining and not willing to talk to your council and make them accountable for their actions and inactions. I'm sorry if I offend you, but I will continue to do what I feel needs to be done in all phases of city government. The city charter is a prime example, if we need to start a petition to have a charter commission I will start it. Let's operate under the laws of the state of Minnesota.

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Lee S.
Spicer, MN     04/16/2008 8:46 PM

Thanks Beth, Obviously you have done your homework and I for one appreciate it! I am not from Willmar but have interests there, and like so many others of the area have been watching this closely. This project smells to high heaven and has so many mysterical angles it defies imagination. Why Heitke and his cohorts continually support this group instead of their own constituents is also a mystery. Everyone knows the reputation of Willmar has been damaged in the past few years and this SWMHP fiasco is not helping. Thanks to Christianson, Swenson, Fagerlie and Doken who are standing up to the mayor and are trying to promote what is the best future for the city. After all, that is the job they were elected to do--not promote some hidden agenda, which is what this is appearing to be more and more.

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Mike J.
04/16/2008 8:46 PM

If the low income housing were built north of eagles landing, east of the county road, would that increase or decrease the home values of the people in eagles landing? I say built it west of eagles landing, there is an open farm field there.

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