Weekly schedule

A light Monday schedule quickly deteriorates into chaos for the rest of the week. A PTA friend is coming over first thing in the morning so we can plan for the workshop on boardsmanship we have to present on Saturday. (Never mind that we've had this assignment for months -- both of us have been too busy to think about it until now.)

Tuesday, May 2 begins with Committee C's examination of the city's Finance Department. That will be followed by my polygraph exam, assuming it is still necessary. Then there is a 4PM work session on the potential fall bond referendum followed by our regular 5:30PM city council meeting. The agenda looks fairly routine so I'm hoping it will be one of our shorter meetings, given the long day I will have already put in.

I will be attending the TREBIC local leaders lunch at noon on Wednesday, May 3 where we discuss local development topics. I'm clear at this point for the rest of the day, which will allow me to pull things together and pack my suitcase for the rest of the week.

After participating in the Charity League event on Thursday morning, May 4, I will participate in the GTA/SCAT task force meeting at 1:30PM. Then I have to dash down I-40 to the Sheraton Imperial at RTP to participate in the North Carolina PTA board meeting and convention for the rest of the week. I have a number of responsibilities to cover during the convention, including the workshop on boardsmanship and one on bylaws -- no time for relaxation unfortunately. (And sorry, husband, you are on your own for meals for a couple of days -- break out those pizza coupons!)

On Saturday May 6, I'll return home just in time to enjoy Cirque de Soliel's Delirium at the Greensboro Coliseum that evening with my husband. I'm looking forward to this unique performance.

Hopefully I'll be able to catch my breath on Sunday before the next week's whirlwind starts up.

The power to pull the plug

I know I am reopening that proverbial can of worms, but it's hard to ignore so much public commentary and remain silent. So, for better or worse, here I go again.

Many good people I know and admire (some with a terrific sense of humor) have written and cartooned about the absolute absurdity of the city council's decision to undergo polygraph testing and the precedence it is setting in attempts to prove that we as individuals are not the infamous "leaker" of the RMA report to the News & Record . Despite receiving support from many who think the polygraph is the right step to take, I totally agree with your statements!!!

Having acknowledged that, I will resolutely keep my Tuesday appointment to be hooked up to "the machine" in an effort to document my innocence and integrity. Yes, I know we brought it upon ourselves by voting to undergo this indignity, but the council had run out of "behind the scenes" options to get the suspected leaker to step forward and accept responsibility for the actions that plunged us into a maelstrom of distrust. To back out now (although I have no fear about undergoing the examination) would start an avalanche of "Aha, I told you they wouldn't do it -- wonder which one has something to hide" comments. In fact, that has already occurred within council's inner circle. One member suggested in a conversation early this week that perhaps we should rethink our decision; another council member speculated to me the next day, "Gee, I wonder why *** is reluctant to take the test, is *** afraid of something?" I can only imagine the general public's reaction to such a suggestion!

Like it or not, I feel the city council's course has been set and there's no turning back now EXCEPT--- there are at least two persons and/or entities who could "pull the plug on the polygraphs" and end this fiasco right now.

One, of course, is the person who gave the report, either directly or indirectly, to the newspaper. If you gave it to anyone, then for heaven's sake, be an adult and explain your actions to the rest of us and to the public. I'm certainly willing to listen, to try to understand your reasons, and to perhaps even personally forgive you (although that possibility decreases with every additional minute this situation drags on and is likely to disappear totally if we do have to go through with the polygraph fiasco). A genuine member of the team will do what is in the best interests of the team.

The second option is for the few persons "in the know" at the News & Record to publicly state that "no council member was responsible, either directly or indirectly, for the leak of the RMA report to us." I understand and accept that the newspaper cannot and will not respond to speculation about the guilt or innocence of individual council members. However, IF no councilmember was involved in any way, the N&R should issue a statement absolving ALL councilmembers IF they have that knowledge (if they don't, they should say so). That could end the perceived need for councilmembers to undergo the polygraphs, remove a tremendous burden from the one who is having to endure council and public speculation, help us heal the mistrust among councilmembers, and redirect leak-detection efforts in the right direction. In other words, such a statement could put an end to this sideshow controversy that is distracting from the more troubling issues within the GPD.

The N&R's failure to issue such a statement so far has been quite revealing to me, and that silence tends to confirm the rampant speculation. I realize such a statement could be problematic for the N&R. IF the leak investigation is on the wrong course, this could direct efforts onto the right trail. Let's face it -- I doubt the N&R wants the council or the public to ever know who their leaker is; future "sources" might become scarce if identities cannot be adequately protected. But the option does exist for the newspaper to step up, bring some clarity to the situation, and perhaps stimulate some healing.

A third potential person/entity with "the power to pull the plug" is the intermediary between "the leaker" and the newspaper if the prominent leak theory is accurate. If such persons or entities are indeed interested in the truth, I would hope that they would be willing and eager to share that truth with the rest of us.

There it is. I've suggested several possibilities to those with the power to enable the city council to step away from the polygraphs without aspersions being cast about our motives. Any takers?

Potty humor

I received a call today from a constituent friend seeking city help with a growing colony of 25+ feral cats in one of my District 5 neighborhoods. The cats are being fed by a well-intentioned elderly neighbor, but the result is an unbearable stench on nearby properties from the felines' droppings.

At the end of our conversation he stated, "With all the issues you city council members deal with, I really hate to bother you about cat poop."

To which I responded with a laugh, "I'd rather be dealing with cat poop than this other S*** we've been faced with lately!"

And that's no joke!!!

First draft of the bond referendum

{Yeah, I know I said I was slowing down, but I might as well dash off a post or two while I wait for the clothes dryer to finish with my husband's shirts.}

The city council made a lot of progress during this morning's briefing session where we developed a first draft for the proposed fall bond referendum. Eric Swensen has provided a detailed list of possible inclusions over at The Inside Scoop, so I'll send you there for the full listing to save me time.

The grand total at this point is in the $117 million dollar range, but will quite probably be reduced during future deliberations as we get more information, particularly on the economic development and Parks & Recreation categories. The personal "wish list" I drafted Sunday afternoon came in around $95 million. The main differences between my personal list and the full council's first draft are:

* I did not include the Benjamin Branch library expansion (-$1.1 million).

* I allotted less money in the capital improvement needs category (-$1.7 million).

* I included more for War Memorial Stadium, choosing Scheme 2 over Scheme 1 that was tentatively added (+ $1 million).

* I had a smaller amount for Economic Development (-$10 million).

* I selected a smaller amount for Parks & Recreation projects, but did include the long-sought skateboard park (- $5.4 million).

* My list did not include the Civil Rights Museum (or any other proposed facility/program not owned or operated by the city (-$5 million).

All the other items on my personal list are almost identical to the full group's list. We will meet on Tuesday, May 2 prior to the regular city council meeting for Round 3 (or 2, or 4, or whatever, I've lost track). Given the progress we have already made and the general appearance of consensus among a majority of us, I wouldn't be surprised at all if we are able to reach final agreement then on specific amounts and what should or should not be included. We're definitely close!

Revamping, not quitting

Remember the old joke where the man visits his doctor and says (as he raps himself in the head), "Doc, can you help me? Every time I do this, it hurts!" To which the doctor replies, "Well, for heaven's sake, just quit doing THAT (rapping your head).

That's the situation I've found myself in lately, and it's not a joking matter at all. I've been struggling to meet my (and your) expectations for keeping up with this blog for some time now. The standard I have set for myself as an elected official is to be timely and factual in what I write in my posts and responses to comments. This often take a lot of research and checking to make sure I am being accurate. Thus I have found myself sitting at this keyboard for hours at a time, often into the wee hours of the night, leaving me more and more tired.

Many extra meetings and obligations have been added to my plate in the last month or so -- weekly Committee C and GTA/SCAT task force two-hour meetings, the intense Heart of the Triad charrette process and follow-up, extra bond referendum discussions, two workshops at the upcoming NC PTA convention, becoming chair of the Charter Schools Advisory Committee with its extra duties, and on and on and on -- in addition to my normal (whatever that is) schedule and obligations. Toss in a controversial issue or two that generate lots of comments to which some expect immediate responses and some of which require a law degree to adequately analyze and address, and I've developed a big-time case of BURNOUT.

My husband can confirm that I've toyed with the idea for the last week or so about backing off or shutting this blog down . I edged even closer when chastised by a fellow blogger for not responding to another's lengthy, detailed inquiry on Saturday and later receiving flack from a fellow councilmember along the line of "see what blogging gets you" after reading some of the comments that were being submitted.

David Hoggard's unexpected but perfectly-timed call on Sunday morning to get information on something he was writing helped me put things into better perspective. As he noted on his blog, we discussed what a burden my blog had become lately, consuming so much of my time and energy. When I told him "I can either do my job or write about it, but I can't do BOTH effectively right now," he responded that it was time for me to take a break. Signing on late Sunday evening and finding a whole new batch of comments awaiting me made me realize just how right he was. I decided then and there that I would heed "Doc" Hoggard's advice and slow it down.

I genuinely enjoy blogging when I can do it because I WANT to do it, not because I feel I MUST do it in order to explain something ad infinitum or to defend myself. Therefore I am scaling back somewhat in order to regain control of this blog rather than let it control me. I will continue to post as my time allows, but it probably will not be as often. I've activated the "comment moderation" feature that enables me to exercise control over which comments appear and when. This will allow me to conduct any necessary research and post my responses at the same time of the original comment and not leaving anyone hanging, wondering if or when I'm going to respond.

So, I'm going to try it this way for a while and "let my batteries recharge", as Sue put it, and see if I can manage my time a bit better. I ask for your patience while I get it all worked out. Many, many thanks to those who have been so supportive of me and my effort!

Weekly schedule

This week's schedule appears to be fairly manageable without too much rushing to get from one meeting to the next. Monday at this point is totally clear so maybe I can finish up planting the flowers I didn't get done due to the (beautiful, badly needed) rainy Saturday.

Tuesday, April 25 will begin with the regular monthly briefing session at 8:30AM. There are only two items on the agenda -- discussion about electronic projection signs in downtown and a continuation of the work session to discuss the proposed bond referendum items. I spent Sunday afternoon going through all those proposed items and have come up with a tentative "wish list" that I can probably support. (I hope to write a separate post about that IF it doesn't take me too long to wade through all comments that came in this afternoon about that d*** leak.)

I will be attending the annual awards banquet of the Guilford County Council of PTAs that evening. I always enjoy this event that recognizes all the hard work and fabulous projects our PTA volunteers are doing in our schools.

The steering committee for the Heart of the Triad project will have a lunch meeting on Wednesday, April 26. This should be an informative session, the first meeting after the weeklong charrette. The consultants should have the traffic analysis and other evaluations of the three proposed scenarios developed during the charrette.

The Fun Fourth Advisory Committee meets at 8AM on Thursday, April 27. Plans for the Fourth of July celebration are moving along nicely. The it's off to the Communities in Schools Student Awards Luncheon at noon.

On Friday, April 28 I will miss the city council tour of the city's recycling center due to a schedule conflict with the next GTA/SCAT task force meeting. Hopefully I'll get a chance to update you on the progress we are making on this issue.

An event on Friday afternoon will be bittersweet for me -- the retirement party for the coliseum's business office manager, Laura Smith. Laura's youthful appearance belies her many years of service in managing the coliseum's business office. She has outlasted several coliseum directors and is considered to be the expert on the "history" of this facility; she could tell many a tale about various celebrities who have passed through that building and the events that have occurred there over the years. While she has trained a highly capable staff to carry on behind her, the coliseum will not be the same without Laura's smiling presence. Enjoy your retirement, Laura, you've definitely earned it!

Gas pains

I'm sure everyone was groaning right along with me when I heard on the evening news that crude oil has now reached $75 a barrel. That means our wallets are going to be stretched even thinner as we fuel up our gas tanks this summer. Unfortunately, the gasoline flowing into our personal vehicles is not the only hit our wallets are likely to experience.

In two of the extra city meetings in which I participated this week, fuel costs were a prominent topic. The first encounter came during Committee C's review of the police department budget. Due to the rising costs, the police department is spending $600,000 more than budgeted this year for gasoline. So far, they have managed to cover this deficit by using unspent money from other budget categories.

The second instance was during today's GTA/SCAT task force meeting where we learned that gasoline and diesel fuel costs for our buses and paratransit vans are causing a $406,406 deficit in that operating budget. They too are trying to reduce consumption and shift money from other budget categories to cover this shortfall.

Think about it -- just between these two city departments that entail a lot of vehicle miles on the road, the city is spending in excess of $1 million extra dollars this current budget year alone to keep those buses and police cars running!

City Manager Mitchell Johnson noted budget shifts are being performed in all city departments to deal with the increased fuel and energy costs. In a normal year, the city expends about 97% of total funds allocated in the budget for that year. Due to spending every unused dime to cover the fuel costs, he is predicting spending 99% of the money budgeted this time. That means there will be very little carryover to jump-start the next budget that will begin on July 1.

The end result is you are paying for these increased gasoline costs twice -- once when you fill up your own vehicles and again through your property taxes to keep the essential city vehicles operating. As the 2006-07 budget is being prepared, these higher fuel costs are being figured into those operating expenses. In addition, the fund balance carried over from one budget year to the next is likely to be lower than in previous years, so there will be little or no "cushion" to ward off potential tax increases to cover these increased costs.

Ouch -- not a pleasant prospect at all!

Developments in the GPD investigation

As reported by the News & Record and other area media, the continuing investigation into the Greensboro Police Department has uncovered secret audio recordings of various community leaders made prior to January 2006 during meetings and/or conversations between them and a GPD officer and/or unsworn employee. While taping conversations is an accepted tool routinely used by detectives during investigations, the purpose or motive behind these particular recordings (and which, if any, appropriate investigation) is unknown at this time. Needless to say, these citizens are rightfully upset about being recorded without their knowledge and consent.

Attorneys representing former police chief David Wray are now criticizing the city for publicly revealing these findings [Update] and saying Wray was not aware of the recordings. Local bloggers such as Hoggard and Troublemaker are offering their opinions about why this new information was released and the potential motives behind the release as well. While I certainly don't have all the details -- the flow of information to city council members about developments in the investigation has been significantly restricted, for obvious reasons -- I will share the explanation I received from the city manager in a phone call on Monday evening.

I do not know how long the investigators and the city manager had been aware of the existence of the recordings. No matter, but according to Mitch, it became apparent on Monday that one or more of the people who had been secretly recorded had learned of the tapes. Mitch was told that these persons planned to attend Tuesday night's city council meeting to publicly complain about the situation. It was at that point the decision was made to inform city council members about the tapes so we would not be caught by surprise as well as to inform out of courtesy all the people who had been secretly recorded.

As Cara Michele correctly reported in the comments on Hogg's Blog, Nelson Johnson did indeed raise the issue during the "Speakers from the Floor" portion of the city council's agenda. Although the city manager did not directly respond to his inquiry, the issue was now definitely out in public. Rather than have rumors and misinformation swirling throughout the community (any more than they already are), Interim Chief Tim Bellamy issued his short factual statement to the public the next day to let people know it was not being "swept under the rug."

Preferably, this finding would not have been made public until the investigation was complete to allow for a better understanding of it in its full context. However, it became necessary to publicly acknowledge the situation and then move forward in the search for more answers.

Believe me, I'm as frustrated as all of you are about how long this investigation is taking, but I recognize that it must be conducted professionally and thoroughly out of fairness to those directly involved as well as to protect the public's interest. I know you are as tired of hearing me say "Be patient" as I am of saying it, but in the end -- however long it takes -- these findings will be revealed and whatever necessary actions are needed will be taken. That's a promise!

Center City Park progress

I attended a lunchtime presentation at Cafe Europa on the progress of the new Center City Park currently under construction. Things are progressing nicely, and the target date for the official opening is in mid-October.

The highlight of the briefing came when we hiked over to the Davie Street parking garage and looked down on the park from the top level of the deck. I've caught street-level glimpses of the construction driving by on Friendly Avenue and Davie Street from time to time, but really could not appreciate the full scope of the progress from that angle. Here's the view from the webcam overlooking the park, but I highly recommend taking the time to view the area from the top of the parking deck if you want to experience the full magnitude of the project.

I have to admit I was somewhat skeptical when this park was first proposed, but I now see a wonderful downtown attraction emerging from the dust and dirt. (The park's achitect is a NC State graduate, so you know it has to be great!) I'm looking forward to the park's completion and the grand opening this fall.

Back to blogging (hopefully)

You've probably noticed I haven't published many posts for the last couple of weeks. My excuse is that I've been flat-out busy with too many meetings, a short escape to the coast, and trying to whip our yard back into shape. I have a lot of catching up to do on reports on Committee C's budget study, the GTA/SCAT task force, the potential bond referendum, and a ton of other topics. I 'm going to get started this evening and start reducing the backlog.

Weekly schedule

Heavens! You take a break and then have to work twice as hard to catch up on all the things you didn't do while you're vacationing. The beach was nice this weekend, but no elves magically appeared to do my work while I was gone.

I spent Monday doing long-neglected yard work until the afternoon thunderstorms forced me inside. The rest of the day was spent reading budget notebooks, council agendas, and other materials in preparation for the rest of the week's activities.

Tuesday, April 18 started off with Committee C's review of the police department and its needs for the coming year. That will be followed by a special council working meeting beginning at 3:30PM to begin focusing on what will/will not be included on a potential November bond referendum. Our regular council meeting begins at 5:30PM. While the regular agenda looks fairly routine, there are a number of potential "extras" that may pop up to make the meeting more interesting.

I'll be in Raleigh on Wednesday, April 19 attending the meeting of the Planning & Services Legislative Action Committee of the North Carolina League of Municipalities on which I serve as an at-large member. We will be looking at issues concerning drinking water, stormwater, and waste collection/recycling. If I'm not too worn out, I'll try to make it to the blogger meet-up that evening.

On Thursday, April 20 I plan to attend the lunch meeting at Cafe Europa for an update on progress on the Center City Park. Hopefully I will be able to complete my yard work later that afternoon that I didn't finish on Monday.

I'll spend some time on Friday morning, April 21 with John Hammer on the Dusty Dunn Show. That's always an interesting experience as I never know what topic might come up for discussion. That will be followed by the next meeting of the GTA/SCAT task force at 1PM where we are exploring service and budget issues for the bus and paratransit service. Then it's off to the War Memorial Auditorium to enjoy the Broadway production of Thoroughly Modern Millie.

Another busy week!

Relaxing!

I haven't dropped off the face of the earth -- just relaxing at my brother's place at Oak Island for a couple of days.

Meeting cancellation

The Committee C budget review meeting for Tuesday has been canceled due to schedule conflicts for two committee members and the city manager as well. So my morning schedule has suddenly cleared up. That's good, because my brother and his wife will be coming to Greensboro for her grandfather's funeral and will be staying with me a day or two. Then we'll return the visit and stay with them at Oak Island for the rest of the week.

City Connections

The latest edition of City Connections has a great picture of the new roundabout under construction on Greene Street downtown.

An easier week

Things calm down considerably from last week's schedule that really kept me on the run constantly. I don't have anything at all scheduled for Monday, so that will give me a chance to do all the reading and preparation for the rest of the week's activities.

Tuesday, April 11 is my busiest day, beginning with another meeting of Committee C's budget review assignment at 8:30AM. This week's department is the Executive Department. Watch out, Mitch! {smile}

That will be followed with a short conference with the city manager on another subject and the grand unveiling of the Greensboro Merchant Association's public art donation to the city at 5PM. I will finish this day by attending the East Hunter Hills Community Watch meeting at 7PM.

The next meeting of the GTA/SCAT task force examining the service and budget needs of our bus and paratransit service with be held at 1PM on Wednesday, April 12. We are working hard to meet the deadline to report to the city council on May 16.

I'm off to Wake Forest, NC on Thursday, April 13 for the monthly meeting of the Charter Schools Advisory Committee. Our regular meeting room at the Department of Public Instruction was not available so we decided to meet on the campus of The Franklin Academy, one of the state's charter schools. Committee members will be selecting which of the 17 applicants for new charters will move forward to the formal interview process in May. (My husband is going with me and sit through this meeting because of our vacation plans that follow -- hope he doesn't get too bored!)

After that meeting ends, it's off to Oak Island for an escape and relaxation at my brother's place at the beach for a couple of days. I plan to take my laptop with me, but if the weather is as gorgeous as it's forecast to be, don't count on me to get any blogging done while we're there. The beach and kayaking will get first priority!

Results from the Heart of the Triad charrette

The end results of the weeklong Heart of the Triad (HOT) charrette were shared in a public meeting this evening. The consultants from HDR worked with information and comments supplied by area residents, business people, planners, and elected officials from six governmental jurisdictions to formulate four concepts. The rough maps were taped to the walls of the meeting room for attendees to review and share their comments about their likes and dislikes of each of those concepts.

Dr. Keith Debbage from UNCG and Guilford County Planning Director Greg Niles were two of the many local planning experts who have spent untold hours gathering the information needed to feed into the computer models as well as providing the local expertise and perspective to keep such a study relevant to our local resources and needs.

Supporters of the HOT project such as steering committee co-chair Robbie Perkins were present to explain the maps and answer questions --

-- as well as opponents of the project who prefer that the area be left alone.

Included below are the four conceptual drawings that were presented for public review. I must stress that they are a BEGINNING point reflecting a variety of growth opportunities for the future. They are not final nor set in stone; we know that the final version will likely be a combination of the best elements of each. The consultant will narrow the four maps down to three based on comments submitted this evening and will conduct a cost-benefit analysis, project how many jobs and what type will be created, and compute transportation impacts on those scenarios. Using all that input and information, the steering committee will make a final decision on the best option to present to the six local governments for their consideration.

HDR expanded the original study area to include 18,000 acres of land in the vicinity of the Forsyth/Guilford county line. These drawings of that area are very rough and intentionally do not have any of the political jurisdiction boundaries on them. I think you can get your general bearings by identifying the I-40/Business 40 split west of Sandy Ridge Road, knowing that Greensboro is on the right side of the drawing, Winston-Salem and Kernersville to the left, and High Point at the bottom.

The color codes are as follows:

Purple and brown = employment districts and centers

Yellow = residential

Green = agricultural uses, parks and open space

Dark blue = sports venues

Pink = retail and entertainment

Light blue = institutional

Orange = village centers, urban neighborhoods

Red = town centers, transit-oriented development

Concept A concentrates the most intense development in two opposing corners - in the vicinity of the I-40 split at the top and near the Dell plant at the bottom. It shows a transit-oriented village to take advantage of the rail line north of I-40 and its potential for light rail commuter service.

Concept B is much more intense and aggressive, concentrating employment centers in the I-40 "triangle" and near the Dell plant to take advantage of existing roads.

Concept C places a sports center in the center of the development served by a meandering parkway through the center of HOT.

Concept D disperses development over a larger area rather than concentrating it in smaller areas. (Please pardon my fuzzy photography in this one; I think you can still get the general picture.)

Initial observations and reactions (acknowledging that this product is in its very early stages and needs a lot of refinement before it's complete):

* The consultant could have skipped his detailed explanations about land use and how they interact with each other. The most frequent comments I heard were based on personal interests such as "I like Concept (fill in the blank) because it leaves my property alone" or "I like Concept (fill in the blank) because I want to sell my land and you've designated it for development - big $$$ for me."

* Judging from the large amount of park areas and open space, it's evident the consultant heard and honored this request from many local residents. On the flip side, I heard some grumbles from developers that they had not included enough development in the proposals.

* I'm a bit disappointed that the consultants did not identify or recommend many specific businesses or industries that should be recruited for this area. There has been so much talk about needing to identify the "it" or "brand" for this area, and I'm not sure I've heard that yet.

* Along that same vein, there was a lot of discussion about the need to create a "sense of place," but that seems to be missing at this point. In a private conversation with me, one resident observed that this area already has a "special feel" that HOT should not be allowed to destroy.

* Earlier in the week, I walked into one of the steering committee sessions to find a piece of chart paper taped to the wall containing suggestions to construct a new coliseum to host the ACC Tournament, to relocate the ACC headquarters, and construct a convention center in HOT. I made a pointed observation that we had agreed not to steal existing things from any of our jurisdictions to place in HOT, but if we were going to abandon that basic tenet, where were the proposals to move High Point's Furniture Market or Winston's biotech research park here as well? I noticed there was no mention of ANY of those proposals this evening. [smile]

* It will be interesting to observe reactions and participate in the political deliberations once a final plan is formulated and presented. At this very preliminary point, it appears that the most intense employment development (in other words, more increased tax base) is concentrated more in Forsyth County while infrastructure improvements such as sewer might be more easily provided by High Point (Guilford County). Will all six jurisdictions be able to identify "wins" and support the HOT proposal with the necessary money and resources? And if they do, where does that funding come from? What will be the governance structure, if any, and will there be revenue sharing?

Stay tuned - the work has just begun!

A momentary celebrity

War Memorial Commission members ribbed fellow commission member Stahle Vincent today on an amusing encounter he experienced during the recent Men's ACC tournament at the Coliseum.

According to Stahle, a woman approached him during a break in one of the games and asked him to autograph the back of her game ticket, saying that her two sons were great fans of his. Stahle asked her, "Just who do you think I am?" to which she replied, "Oh, come on, we know who you are!"

He told her, "I don't think I'm who you think I am" about the time he noticed one of her companions in the background signaling and shaking her head, "no, that's not him."

A little later, a nearby usher solved the mystery when he told Stahle, "There's about a dozen folks over there in that row who think you are Michael Jordan!"

We laughed with Stahle and joked with him about his fleeting moment of fame.

Coliseum Lifesavers

Four Coliseum ushers and Show Pro staff (one who was an off-duty nurse) recently saved the life of a Greensboro woman attending a symphony pops concert in the War Memorial Auditorium with their quick action. The victim suffered cardiac arrest during the event, and they quickly removed her to the lobby area, utilized a defibillator donated by the Moses Cone-Wesley Long Community Health Foundation and performed CPR on her. She is now recovering in the hospital. Kudos on their lifesaving performance!

Coliseum update

As noted over at The Inside Scoop, the War Memorial Commission (advisory group to the Coliseum) held their monthly meeting today. In addition to the information Eric reported there, here are additional items of interest from that meeting.

Concessions sales inside the coliseum during the 28-game run of Tournament Town grossed $1.5 million dollars in sales -- $210,000 during the Women's ACC, $826,000 during the Men's ACC, and $445,000 during the NCAA regionals. Centerplate catered 18,000 meals and provided 3,000 meals to the media, adding another $1.2 million dollars. These figures pushed the coliseum onto the 60 percentile plateau during the Men's ACC games, meaning that the coliseum now earns a 60% commission on all Centerplate food and beverage sales from that point until the end of the fiscal year on June 30, an unbudgeted bonus. Gross merchandise sales for the games totaled $750,000, and parking revenue was $500,000.

The year-to-date operating financial figure as of February 28 for the facility is $162,271 better than projected in the budget. This does not include the revenues from the Tournament Town games that will show up in next month's financial statement.

In addition to upcoming events such as the Revolution's indoor football games, "Lake Wobegon Days," "Thoroughly Modern Millie,"Cirque de Soliel, and college and high school graduations (including the High Point schools for the first time), staff is preparing for the Southern Baptist Convention in June. Matt Brown described its impact as similar to the ACC Tournament in that every available space and meeting room will be utilized during that event.

Commission members expressed their strong support for the War Memorial Auditiorium upgrades to be included in the city's fall bond referendum as well as formally endorsing the proposed 2006-07 budget that was submitted to the city budget office. It projects a slightly lower operating deficit for the coming year.

Caught in his own codes

During Committee C's examination of the Engineering and Inspections Department programs and budget yesterday (more on that in a later post), we were discussing the need to be more "business friendly" and wondering if city inspectors were being too strict in their interpretation of various building codes requirements. That led to City Manager Mitchell Johnson's sharing of this humorous incident.

Quite a few years ago (several fire chiefs ago), the fire chief at that time was sitting in on a plan review of a new city fire station that was being constructed. His own fire inspector pointed out that there needed to be an exit sign placed over the door of the sleeping quarters (the only entrance/exit for the room), another in the hallway, another at the end of the hallway, one at the outdoor exit. The chief became more and more irritated as each sign was mentioned, and finally exploded with, "(expletive deleted), these people are firefighters -- they're supposed to be fighting fires, not running away from them!"

We all enjoyed a good laugh and learned that even those that write the codes sometimes get caught up in their own requirements.

Weekly schedule

I'm late posting my weekly schedule again - sorry. I spent the weekend scrubbing and Cloroxing the green moss gunk off my deck and wrought iron furniture and restaining the deck and repainting the chairs and tables. That didn't leave any time for blogging, but my deck looks brand new and ready for summer enjoyment. Now if I can get the last few flecks of white Rustoleum paint out of my hair, I'll be all set.

I attended two Heart of the Triad meetings today, Monday, April 3. The first one was the midday session for elected officials to ask questions and give input. It was heartening that 2-3 elected officials (plus city managers or assistant managers and/or planning staff) from each of the six jurisdictions attended this session -- Mayor Holliday, Sandra Anderson Groat and I represented Greensboro.

At this meeting, we learned that the consultants will at first ignore the political boundaries as they study the area and form their recommendations, treating the Heart of the Triad as one big economic development project. Those jurisdictional considerations will come back into play once they develop three potential scenarios and how best to achieve them. Some very pointed remarks were made, including "don't make it impossible for smaller businesses to participate by placing the standards so high that it prices them out of playing" and concerns about the "identity" of the people who might end up living and/or working in this area -- which city or county would they claim as their own?

I returned for the 6:30PM public information meeting (in the middle of a horrific thunderstorm) that was attended by approximately 150-200 by my estimate. This session was a "show and tell" explaining the concept and the methods that would be used to form the final recommendations. Attendees were encouraged to return on Wednesday evening for the actual hands-on public participation portion of this charette process.

The regular city council meeting will begin at 5:30PM on Tuesday, April 4. There are numerous rezonings on the agenda, and the main business item is the approval of a contract with Republic Waste to accept Greensboro's solid waste at their Montgomery County landfill site. This one could be lengthy, depending on how much time we spend on the zoning cases. I anticipate there will be a closed session following the end of the regular meeting.

Committee C's first working session will be held from 11:30AM-1:30PM on Wednesday, April 5. We will be examining the programs and budget for the Engineering and Inspections Department. Then it's back out to the Heart of the Triad charette for a steering committee meeting at 4PM.

Thursday, April 6 will begin with a breakfast sponsored by the Library Board of Trustees for the city council and county commissioners to hear about the library's programs and needs. That will be followed by the noon meeting of the War Memorial Commission (coliseum) and a 3:30PM steering committee meeting to review the preliminary Heart of the Triad recommendations.

On Friday, April 7, I will attend the next meeting of the SCAT/GTA task force composed of councilmembers and GTA board members to make recommendations on possible service changes and budget issues. We have a lot of ground to cover in a very short period of time. I was the only councilmember to attend last Friday's first meeting, so I hope circumstances will allow some of the others to attend and participate this week. Then it's back out to the Heart of the Triad charette one last time to hear the final recommendations at the 6:30PM final public meeting.

I plan to sit in on the meeting Saturday morning, April 8 between D.H. Griffin and Southwest Neighborhood Association representatives to hear what, if any, accommodations are being offered to reduce the negative impacts of this business on its residential neighbors. Given the spirit of cooperation that was evident at the first meeting, I have high hopes for progress on this issue.

It's a very busy week!