So, the council meeting was a complete farse. We came out in large numbers to support the PBID and DPOA only to be turned back by a delay caused by the Freddie Rodriquez's absence. Oh it could have happened today, as Paula Lantz was all for going on with the meeting, but the Mayor decided it would be "disrespectful" to hold the meeting without Freddie. Well what about the disrespect to all the people that took time out of their busy lives to be there when it was scheduled? Paula made a point that she spoke to Freddie and he was okay with the meeting going on without him since it wouldn't come to a vote anyway. But the Mayor stepped in and said he also spoke to Freddie and was told to not have the meeting without him. So what's the real deal here? The real deal is there's something fishy going on with the Mayor calling all the shots and postponing the meeting until Thursday when Paula will not be able to attend and Freddie will. What does that mean? Well Paula expressed she was in support of the PBID and only mentioned some trash issues that need to be addressed. And word is Freddie is against the PBID. So this means the PBID loses a positive vote and gains a negative. What's up with politics? Either way the meeting has been rescheduled to Thursday, don't we the citizens have any say in the matter? We were there, we were ready, what about us?
-Juan
From the other half of Bunny Gunner:
I would like to add that I am for the P-BID/ DPOA and happy with what they have done for our Downtown area, so are my customers....I hear wonderful things about our town from people who travel from all over Southern Ca. to do business with me....they love it here!
We have grown to love the members of the DPOA too... it makes me sick to think that they could loose their jobs.
That is why I went tonight! Larry Egan, Lorena and Augusto and all the members of the DPOA have gone beyond the call of duty to make this a place others would want to spend their time and money. Larry is the best thing that has happened to us in the 9 years that I have been living and doing business in the Arts Colony.We are so fortunate to have a fine art photographer on staff, Sally Egan, who tirelessly is at every event shooting pictures to promote our businesses and bring new business to the downtown area.
The Metro Pomona Website is like no other, Jason Christman ( brand new Papa) is a genius...the best web designer I've ever seen. Thank you to all of the members of the board of directors, Carolyn Hemming, Mike Showalter, Kathy Tessier, Jerry Tessier and Don Church, you have all done an excellent job!
The vision statement for the DPOA is:
Metro Pomona is a safe, clean, friendly, historic mixed-use urban neighborhood that serves as a regional destination for arts, antiques, retail and entertainment and as the center for commerce, education, and cultural life of our diverse community. The core purpose of the Downtown Pomona Owners' Association is to make Metro Pomona a desirable and economically vibrant place to be.
Mission Accomplished!
-Susie
10 comments:
Thank you so much! this means a lot, at least we know our efforts are not lost within one our own, a business that is well predominate and well respected in our downtown.
Thank you Susie and Juan
Thanks Juan, Susie, Steve,Terry, Rolo,Cheryl, Sally, Sonny, Diana, Ashley and everyone else in the Arts Colony who appreciate what we are trying to do. I to was raised in Pomona and I do not know why anyone would not be thrilled with the events of the last few years. We are not perfect but when a problem is pointed out we try to be get on it, thank god for Larry. We are currently being slammed for alittle trash in VPD parking lots, not during the day but at 4 am so as of now we will have 24/7 maintenence just like security, we are finding staff as we speak and we will figure out later who is responsible after all if you are not part of the solution you are part of the problem. Thanks again for your support, hope to see all of you on Thurs. night.
Carolyn
I have to say that I share Juan's dismay over the seeming lack of consideration for the hundred or so people who showed up at the meeting to speak on the DPOA item, both those for AND against. While I appreciate that councilmember Rodriguez, as an EMT, was performing important emergency service to the community, the business of our city's governance could still have gone on. This was also a disrespect to councilmember Lantz who will NOT have her voice heard on this issue as she will be absent on Thursday.
On the flip side, I stayed for much of the meeting, leaving at about 11:30 and I would hate to think how late it would have gone otherwise (I guess inconvenience does matter?).
Jaun & Susie,
On behalf of the staff of the DPOA, and myself, I want to thank you for your support of the DPOA. And for all of the people who came to the Council meeting last night, words cannot express my gratitude. I've always been told that anything worth having is worth fighting for, and the downtown's future is no exception. It is wonderful to know that so many believe in what we do at the DPOA.I hope to see even more supporters at the Thursday evening meeting.
Larry
It was obvious that the Mayor and Rodriguez are up to something. Why do we allow them to treat us like sheep? What good is government when they don't work for the citizens? My gosh people, our Mayor is a jackass, with no respect for the common people! When will the corrupt polictics stop! I guess we have to remember, what goes around comes around. Our corrupt Mayor will get we he deserves someday.
Hopefully, Council member Lantz can rearrange her schedule if her absence will alter the results of any discussion.
Does Metro Pomona have any sort of PAC or 527?
Perhaps residents/businesses should begin saving their dimes and nickels for the next city election. I believe districts 2,3, and 5 are up in 2010. You might find quite the war chest, if you use the Saturday Art Walks as an opportunity to enlist $upport.
With a Starbuck's latte at around $4, giving up two a week would net about $400 a year. Before the next election, a mere 100 people could accumulate $50k. How many votes did Rodriguez get in 2006? 1313.
If you have one, I'll be more than happy to contribute.
Thanks for keeping us informed. I really appreciate it. Maybe you could spell out the acronyms once in each article so people like me who don't know can learn what PBID and DPOA mean. thanks. I agree, I thought it very unfair to change the date of the meeting considering how many folks came to Monday's meeting.
Is politics the issue that has caused the goddess to make her blog private? How sad.
Thank you for reading our blog. PBID is Property Business Improvement District and DPOA is Downtown Pomona Owners Association. Tonight was a victory for the PBID as the Pomona City Council all vote yes to continue with the process of reinstating the PBID. It's not over yet, there will be a meeting in July which will be the actual vote to keep the PBID. We don't know what happened to the Goddess, but It seems it did have something to do with the current issues. Stayed tune for our next, non political, positive blog.
-Juan
Thank you Juan and Susie.
You've always been out there for the arts colony, downtown, and the city as a whole.
I'm sure that getting involved in the political debate is not your favorite activity.
FYI for Anon:
PBID = Property-based Business Improvement District. Such districts are created to assess property owners in a given area (increase their property taxes) to provide services in addition to those provided by the city, specifically in the areas of business improvement, including cleanliness and safety. There are similar assessments for homeowners groups such as the landscape assessment in Phillips Ranch.
DPOA = Downtown Pomona Owners Association or Downtown Property Owners Association (I've seen it both ways). This is the organization formed under the downtown Pomona PBID to administer the PBID funding. It is made up of the downtown property owners and businesses and they hire an administrative staff and coordinate the activities of the PBID.
Hope all that helped with the alphabet soup.
Hi Susie!
Thank you so much for the warm welcome. Hopefully this marks the first of many more to come.
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