Following Candidate Funding and Election Myths
I love living in Erie and have truly appreciated serving as Mayor for the overall good of our Town. Although I’m not writing endorsement letters for any candidate, given the topic of this “MooreInfo” I will disclose that my wife and I have given campaign contributions to:
Each have sought out information broadly from diverse constituents and directly from Town staff. We feel they are positioned well to continue the current positive direction for the Town and we also understand their source of income is not development related.
When I first ran for office I promised to not take developer (special interest) campaign contributions. Because I was not employed by any profession that relied on “the land deal” for income, it helped the Board of Trustees achieve support from groups lobbying for various growth perspectives. Within this environment the Town moved forward and executed a quality growth plan. Under this model we made development pay its own way. Subsequently, there was a six year period of much reduced tensions amongst the groups advocating the various growth interests.
Because I feel elected officials have an obligation to make decisions for the good of Erie overall, it is important to know if developers or other special interests are funding the candidates. In each election I check the campaign finance statements which are available from the city clerk’s office to anyone. I do this to understand where the money is coming from and to whom it is going.
I was pleased to see the reports showed no significant signs of developer funding candidate campaigns. What stands out is the proportion of airport related money funding the 2010 campaigns.
| Candidate Occupation (neighborhood) |
Reported Cash Contributions Less Returns (not airport or developer identified) |
Reported Cash Contributions Airport Identifiable* |
Reported Cash Contributions Developer Identifiable |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheryl Hauger | Retired Business Analyst |
$225
|
||
| Joe Wilson | Commercial Real Estate Broker/Hotel Owner, Operator, Broker |
$339.98
|
$2250
|
$100
|
| Paula Teeple | Substitute Para-educator, Retired Administrator |
$0
|
||
| Hank Pantier | Small Business Owner (Erie) – Marketing |
$50
|
||
| Joe Carnival | Human Resources/Operations Management- Level 3 |
$1555 |
||
| Mark Gruber | Semi-retired CFO |
$683.84
|
$100
|
|
| Matthew Williams | Erie High School Teacher |
$0
|
||
| Ronda Grassi | Small Business Owner (Louisville) – CAD |
$0
|
||
| Rob James | Sales Mgmt Telecommunications/Non-Erie Land Developer | $627.70 |
$2035.20
|
|
| Scott Wood | Flight Attendant |
$0
|
*(Those suing for the Town for money with regard to the runway, Airpark Residents who are part of the HOA litigation, Out of State)
I’m pleased with the candidates and new faces looking to lead. No matter who wins, I will support them as I know it is harder than it looks to lead with the overall good of the entire Town in mind. For those who do not get elected, I hope they will apply for other volunteer roles such as the Planning Commission or an Advisory Board. There is always a need for talented, motivated people to serve Erie for the good of the many.
I’ll close by commenting on a few myths I’ve heard during this election campaign…
- Myth #1 Erie is running a deficit budget. Not true. By state law (Colorado Statutes 29-1-103(2)) Erie has to have a balanced budget. We are simply spending a small portion of our savings during this down economy to maintain the quality of public services and to keep the existing infrastructure in good repair which will save us money in the future. Deficit spending and “printing of money” may happen in Washington, but it is illegal in Colorado!
- Myth #2 The developers will only pay $500,000 to connect Bonanza to Vista Parkway and if they sell the land they are not liable. Not True on both fronts. There is no cap to make the connection and if they sell the land the responsibility to pay for the connection goes with it. You can find the developer commitment contract language at http://www.eriebonanza.com.
- Myth #3 If Bonanza is not connected services will suffer. This one is not verifiable in the near term. The connection benefit is that it will make the Bonanza/Hwy 7 corners more appealing to retailers. If the retailers come, then there will be more sales tax revenue for town services. If they do not come, sales tax revenue will go to Broomfield and at some point services may need to be cut and/or taxes increased.
- Myth #4 If Erie would have given incentives to King Soopers they’d be in Erie by now. Not True. Erie will give incentives to King Soopers as a “Market Maker” and they know that. King Sooper’s know how many Erie residents already shop at their Lafayette store and they don’t want to cannibalize an existing store until there are enough consumers to ensure both stores are profitable. They also know they have to generate $20-30 million a year per store to open the doors.
Ballots should be in the mail today.
Best Regards,
Andrew
303.482.3037
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