Posts Tagged ‘sean gill’

CITY OF RIVERSIDE: SLEEPING WITH THE BOSS, A NEW LOW?

Posted: April 13, 2015 in Uncategorized
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CLICK THIS LINK TO VIEW EXCERPTS OF THE BANNED VIDEO ON YOUTUBE.

On April 6th an anonymous email came in to Thirty Miles of Corruption concerning some current and former staff members at City Hall.  There were four issues, one of which had to deal with sex in the work place.  We were going to take the email to the monthly Human Resources Board meeting and address the boss herself, HR Director Brenda Diederichs, as to the allegations.  With email in hand, merrily we arrived to the meeting … but it had been cancelled at the last minute with no notice given to the public.  Staff and board members had of, course, been advised of this already, so as to not waste their time showing up.  TMC realizes the public is low man of the totem pole in Riverside, so we accepted our fate and moved on.

Now what were we our options?  For you see, there is no formal complaint policy in place at the City to address such issues.  The public has raised this issue before, only to be ignored by those on the dais. We first contacted Councilman Mike Soubrious by phone and read him the email.  He certainly didn’t sound shocked by it.  In fact, he stated these allegations were just a small piece of a larger puzzle.  Hmmmm … we wonder what he meant by that?  We couldn’t take the letter to City Manager Lee McDougal (that’s a whole other story, but will be told, much to the chagrin of Mr. McDougal we suspect).   With no other alternatives available, we decided to take our story right to City Council.

So at City Council on April 7th, we stood before all seven council members and the mayor and read the staff email … and all hell broke loose.  In the history of attending the council meetings, we have never seen such a response.  Apparently, the email was deemed so salacious by the powers that be that the video of the meeting was taken off the City’s website and government television channel.  That’s right folks: you will never be able to view the video on the City’s web site because of this censorship.  If you want the entire video you can order it from the City Clerk, but it will NEVER be posted again.  However, in the spirit of transparency, and as a free service to the public, we at TMC offer it here for the viewing public.

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CLICK THIS LINK TO VIEW FULL APRIL 7, 2015 CITY COUNCIL MEETING ON YOUTUBE

‘It’s discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit.” – Noël Coward, Blithe Spirit .

Many on staff at the City of Riverside have been coming to Thirty Miles, anonymously, for their voice for years.  This is certainly not the first time we have brought an email to a board or council meeting.  Most employees know that if they come forward with any honest information or concerns that are in any way perceived as potentially embarrassing for management of the City, they will be retaliated against or fired: that is a fact.  Just as Raychele Sterling, Jason Hunter, Sean Gill, or countless others.  This has been an ongoing problem for years, which remains unaddressed.

TMC has taken up the cause of staff issues a number of times in the past.  One of our favorites recurring themes involves sex in the workplace: City Hall’s worst-kept, dirty little secret.  Now of course, we enjoy a scandalous tryst as much as anybody, but there’s another reason these romantic rendezvous capture our attention…

Where do you think the money comes from to run City Hall?  The taxpayers and ratepayers of Riverside foot the bill for the salaries for all employees and operations already.  Should we also have to pay for conferences that are really lovers’ vacations as well?  How about 2 hour lunches for folks to look starry-eyed into each others eyes, aka time card fraud?

There are other reasons sex in the workplace is detrimental to the taxpayer.  Moral suffers amongst fellow employees who suspect favoritism which then affect their productivity suffers.  When unqualified girlfriends/boyfriends get promoted over better candidates it ends up costing the taxpayer millions of dollars because of bad decisions.  The City knows this of course.  For example, let’s take a look at the Neely Nakamora vs. City of Riverside case.  Former Assistant City Manager Tom Desantis, a subject matter expert we’ve been told, testified in court that workplace relationships hurt the taxpayer.  The Council may pretend to be shocked by the email, but that’s just the facade they put on for the public.

Let’s talk about accountability for a moment.  Our City has been trying to figure out what to do with the former Riverside Golf Course on the north side of town for years now.  At one point, there was momentum for developing a soccer complex on the site. The developers who wanted the contract spent thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars putting their plans together to present to the city council.  The City/taxpayer spent almost two full years working on this project, an entire department laboring away.

Well what happened?  The project went quietly into the night.  It unraveled because of cover-ups and scandals from the previous administration, much of it having to do with a certain executive who had been promoted because of her ability to do the horizontal mambo we hear.  Now we’re back to square one.  And where’s the accountability?  Have you ever seen anyone from the city of Riverside ever admit to a mistake, or heaven-forbid try to quantify one.  They will happily just charge the taxpayer more – it’s free after all!  The taxpayer just has to pay the bill.  Now we’re told by our master that the public is not allowed to ask or encourage the council to look into matters that affect us all?  Well, what are they there for?

And that’s not all.  For you see, relationships beget hurt feelings sometime, which in turn result in sexual harassment lawsuits.  And guess what?  You will be forced ultimately to pay out all legal fees, investigative and court cost, settlements, verdicts, etc., all in the name of love.  If the public were to examine the typical weekly closed session City Council agenda, they would find a handful or two lawsuits against the City, maybe 20 to 25 a month.  Some ongoing, some new, and some anticipated.  Who do you think is writing check for all this? … Us.

Back in May 2011, Thirty Miles asked City Hall if there was a “Love Contract” on file, with reference to Miller vs. California Department of Corrections, as policy in order to deal with situations as this.  City Hall emailed us back there were no documents response to our request.  In City lingo, this means, “we ain’t got squat.”  Does anyone in this city use protection?  Apparently not.

COMMENTER CRUSADER SENDS EMAIL TO THIRTY MILES OF CORRUPTION:

Subject: Keep up the Good Work!
From: Crusader: 4/11.201  To: thirtymilescorruption@hotmail.com

Dear Vivian,
The minute I saw the headline in the PE article online re Riverside City Council, the first thing that came to mind was “That has got to be Vivian!”

Nice to see people raising hell in this county, to be sure. The government and politicians always try to find a way to hide stuff.  How childish to BAN the airing of council meetings because they don’t like the content; that is a real joke.  Also, I’m not a lawyer, but it might violate some type of rights of the public.

People who don’t live near the meetings, are in ill health, disabled, etc., have no way to see what is going on at the controversial meetings.  The City requiring a public records request is also troublesome, because its sole purpose is to DISCOURAGE the public from obtaining public information.  You probably know all this stuff anyhow, but I think there are some constitutional issues to be addressed.  Anyhow, I have to get back to proofreading.
Be well and stay safe!

Crusader

UPDATE:10.29.2015: SEX AND THE CITY HALL? New Voice of OC article by writer Adam Elmahrek.. What sex by Santa Ana City officials within the walls of San Ana City Hall? This story gives credence to those within Riverside City Hall who attempted to discredit the issue that sexual relationships in the workplace can create liability for a City, thus the taxpayer. This point was made by Vivian Moreno with blow back from council and executive staff.

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THE CITY OF SANTA ANA CITY HALL

04.14.2015: RIVERSIDE PUBLIC UTILITIES ACCORDING TO THE PE ACCIDENTALLY OVERBILL$ RATE PAYERS!  OOPS, WE DID IT AGAIN!

Girish-BalachandranPublic Utilities General Manager, Girish “the Bag Man” Balachandran

Since brought to the attention of Balachandran back in November of 2014, he has continued to give the public the bird when it comes to representing our interests.  Is he following in the footsteps of David Wright, and proving once again that in the River City there’s simply no bridge too far when it comes to conflict-of-interests, in this case his his board membership with the Greater Riverside Chamber of Commerce?  Will things change?  We’ll find out soon, as the topic’s scheduled for the next Governmental Affairs Committee … and right before an election too!  Bad timing for the status quo.

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CLICK IMAGE TO ENLARGE

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JASON HUNTER, THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE FORMER RESOURCE ANALYST, PUBLICLY STATES THAT THE CITY IS CHARGING RATEPAYERS TO MUCH! (CLICK THIS LINK TO VIEW ON YOUTUBE)

Jason Hunter, former City of Riverside Principle Resource Analyst, who was fired for reporting assorted executive tomfoolery within Riverside Public Utilities, speaks during City Council public comment on April 14, 2015.  Hunter points to the camera in the rear because of a new, old, new policy to film the public, and only the public, using the camera waaaaaay back in the rear of the Council Chambers, brought about by, “below the belt,” comments made by public speaker Vivian Moreno the previous week.  We’re told it is now official City Council policy, although we don’t know when they met to talk about it in yet another in a long line of apparent Brown Act violations.  Wanting to see the backsides of the public is a bit kinky if you ask us, but perhaps that’s a better question to ask Interim City Manager McDougal … who knows a thing or two about that.

Hunter asks the question: what is the purpose of having a $300,000,000 stockpile of cash at Riverside Public Utilities?   Who knows!…because our Water Utility has no Reserve Policy! The Electric Fund has a policy, but is 10 years old and completely outdated, and no one in the City is following it anyway. What the City has done is set the utility rates too high, resulting in a cash reserve which the city cannot justify … so give it back to the community we say.

What’s apparent is that the City needs to decrease utility rates, and give back, oh say, $100 million or so back to the 100,000 customers of Riverside Public Utilities.  That’s comes out to a nice tidy $1000.00 check apiece.  The larger question of course is: why were the rates set so high for so long?  Was it so that executives at Public Utilities could pay for every mistake that would every come up?  One being…San Onofre?  Or was it to maximize the annual transfer from the utilities to the General Fund to keep those glorious salaries and benefits going, and allow the Council to continue its fat cat spending ways?

One thing’s for certain: with Hunter’s lawsuit against the City settled, we can look forward to hearing from him every week in 2015 about another unethical or illegal activity that’s been funded with ratepayer money.  Hopefully, the District Attorney is watching.

04.14.2015: CITY MANAGER LEE MCDOUGAL GOES BACK TO FILMING PUBLIC SPEAKERS FROM THE BACKSIDE … AGAIN!  IS HE BEING PETTY? OR JUST ATTEMPTING TO PUNISH THE PUBLIC SO THAT WE “GET THE MESSAGE”?  BACK IN FEBRUARY 14, 2014 THE PE RAN A STORY OF THIS REAR VIEW FILMING.

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During public comment, folks watching MgmTV (McDougal Gluteus Maximus Television), will be treated to a new, “below the belt,” perspective of City Council meetings.  Juvenile as it may seem to the community, viewing public speakers from behind will not make the real issues in the City of Riverside go away.  They still need to be addressed, even if city hall isn’t quite ready to handle the truth.

04.15.2015: OPINION ON THE PE: DON’T SWAT GADFLIES FOR CIVILITY’S SAKE.  McDougal says the city will “look at how do we control speech, if we can, that is harmful, that is slanderous going forward.” If we can is an important caveat. It isn’t for any government official to say what’s “harmful” or not. “Harmful” can be just another word for embarrassing.

And who will get to determine what, “harmful,” speech the general public will not be exposed to?  Why government people like Mr. McDougal of course!!

Again, Mr. McDougal, the First Amendment is non-negotiable.  But your actions speak louder than words.

PCB’S AT AG PARK FROM MARCH 27, 2015 VIDEO DOCUMENTARY: PENNY NEWMAN AND DTSC DIRECTOR SHOW.

Untitled-2CLICK THIS LINK TO VIEW VIDEO ON YOUTUBE.

OH BOY…..RIVERSIDE COUNTY SUPERVISOR MARION ASHLEY’S BOY CHIEF OF STAFF, JAIME HURTADO, WANTS TO SUCCEED HIS BOSS IN 2018.  IS IT ALL IN THE FAMILY?

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JAIME HURTADO

Jaime Hurtado filed paperwork this month with the county Registrar of Voters to run for the Fifth Supervisorial District three years from now. Ashley, who has represented the district since 2002 and was re-elected last year, has said he won’t run again.  Hurtado, a Moreno Valley resident, has been on Ashley’s staff since 2003, working his way up to Chief of Staff.  How well did Ashley groom Hurtado to continue his legacy … as some residents have said … to continue a legacy of corruption?

TMC, RATED RIVERSIDE’S MOST “DISAPPOINTING,” “BELOW THE BELT,” “A NEW LOW,” “SHOCKING,” “OFFENSIVE,” “INAPPROPRIATE,” “HURTFUL,” “MEAN SPIRITED,” “DISTASTEFUL,” “EMBARRASSING,” HORIFFIC,” “SLANDEROUS” AND MEZZSPELLED, “MISSPELLED” AND “OPINIONATED” BLOG SITE!  TEMPORARILY BLOCKED BY THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE AT PUBLIC ACCESS SITES WITHIN THE CITY, THEN UNBLOCKED.  I GUESS YOU CANNOT DO THAT ACCORDING TO THE ACLU.  RATED ONE TWO ONE STAR OUT OF FIVE IN TERMS OF COMMUNITY APPROVAL RATINGS..  TMC IS NOW EXCLUSIVLY EXCLUSIVELY ON FILE WITH THE COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE’S DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE (WE BELIEVE THIS WILL END SOON, SINCE THE FOCUS IS NOW ON THE IMPROPRIETIES OF MR. “Z”, WE TRIED TO TELL YOU, BUT NOBODY LISTENED), AND DON’T FORGET WE ARE PROSSIBLY POSSIBLY ON FILE WITH THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE’S POTENTIAL SLAPP SUIT LIST… A STRATEGIC LEGAL MANEUVER THAT CAN BE DONE ONLY IN RIVERSIDE WITHOUT A CONTRACT… AGAIN, THANK-YOU COMMUNITY OF RIVERSIDE AND THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE EMPLOYEE’S FOR YOUR SUPPORT!   COMMENTS ALWAYS WELCOMED, ESPECIALLY SPELL CHECKERS!  WE JUST CAN’T SPELL!  EMAIL ANONYMOUSLY WITH YOUR DIRT BY CONTACTING US AT:   THIRTYMILESCORRUPTION@HOTMAIL.COM

PASADENA INDEPENDENT: TWO PART SERIES OF ARTICLES REGARDING FORMER RIVERSIDE EMPLOYEES, RAISING QUESTIONS OF TOXIC POLITICS!

Posted: January 23, 2015 in Uncategorized
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COLLAGE

A two part series of articles has been written regarding Pasadena’s Public Works Director Siobhan Foster and City Manager Michael Beck with relation to their part with the City of Riverside featuring former fired Resource Principle Analyst Jason Hunter, former City of Riverside Business Owner who was retaliated by a City of Riverside Executive and Taxpayer Advocate Vivian Moreno, former fired Riverside Contracts Administer for Public Works Sean Gill, former fired Deputy City Attorney Raychele Sterling and retired Chief of Enforcement for the California EPA Department of Toxic Substances Control, and also worked for the Department of Food and Agriculture in their Environmental Hazards Assessment Program specializing in ground water contamination Scott Simpson.

PART ONE:

SHAKEUP AT PASADENA CITY HALL-TWO KEY DIRECTORS “FIRED WITHOUT CAUSE” FROM CITY FALLOUT FROM EMBEZZLEMENT SCANDAL RAISES MORE QUESTIONS ABOUT MICHAEL BECK’S MANAGEMENT.

PART TWO:

PART TWO: MICHAEL BECK AND TOXIC POLITICS

RIVERSIDER’S COMMENT ON THE PASADENA INDEPENDENT:

The people of Pasadena are lucky they have a newspaper that is covering this information. The owner of the Riverside paper, the Press Enterprise, retired, and it was sold to a Texas corporation that then gutted its staff’s ability to do this kind of investigative reporting. It has since then changed hands again.
Meanwhile, Michael Beck was hired as City Manager by the City of Riverside WITHOUT ANY SEARCH FOR, OR INTERVIEW OF OTHER CANDIDATES. I know; I was there objecting to this hire.
Why was Beck hired without any search for candidates? I think it’s because our then-Mayor, Ron Loveridge, knew Beck would participate in covering up what already had been taking place for years, under the “leadership’ of the previous City Manager, Brad Hudson, who, with Loveridge, had concocted a redevelopment scheme, the so-called “Riverside Renaissance,” that has left local citizens forced to overpay utility bills, sewer charges, and more, and stripped local services so that, for example, the annual expenditure on public libraries is only 25 cents per citizen per year. (I think Pasadena was spending at least $4 a year on library services).
Beck had worked at the University of California at Riverside, where our multi-term Mayor, Ron Loveridge, was continuing to accrue pension credits while on repeated annual leaves to serve six four-year terms as the City’s Mayor. (This means Loveridge is getting pensions from both the UC system AND from the City of Riverside; a recent salary poll showed that some unnamed associate professor at UCR is making $680,000 annually, and I bet that it’s Loveridge.)
So Loveridge knew Beck before extolling his virtues as a City Manager — an accolade Beck received despite his lack of ANY experience as a city manager.
I hope this newspaper continues to dig deep into this story!  – LETITIA PEPPER, former Attorney for Best, Best & Krieger.

Beck started out without the proper credentials to be a city manager, but Mayor Loveridge brought him from UCR to pull off the Renaissance scheme. Although Beck is not smart enough to pull this scheme off himself he had help. We also fired good management so the scheme could be pulled off. Check with the purchasing manager, did they replace him/her. Did someone alert management and get fired? This is a trick Beck learned in Riverside. Fire Beck!!! Check not only your interfund/interagency loans but also your bond proceeds.  City council need to call the state controller to do an audit. Do not rely on outside auditors they can be bought and sold. Beck is no good, he will only try to hide the larger problems.  Someone needs to ask Beck why he was in the City of Riverside, city hall about 3 months ago, saw him in the elevator.  – DVONNE PITRUZZELLO, former candidate for Riverside Mayor & Council

And why, people should ask, did Beck fire Green and Foster “without cause”? Why weren’t they fired FOR cause — for failing to institute, and then follow, procedures designed to prevent the theft of at least $6.4 million? It looks like Beck is actually TRYING to protect them. He’s probably hoping that the average person will think that by firing them without cause, at least Beck is punishing them.
Under these circumstances, describing their departure as being “without cause” is actually a reward, compared to what should be happening.
So who REALLY knew WHAT was going on with that embezzlement — and WHERE did the money go, and WHO got a share of it? Will BECK’s name figure as an answer to any of these questions? Let’s hope there is an in-depth investigation and prosecution in the works.

I can’t believe the incredible timing of this article. Toward the end of the article, Jason Hunter, a former City of Riverside employee fired for knowing too much and not keeping quiet, talks about how the City of Riverside’s top officials worked to silence public discussion.

One of the ways to do that was that the City Council voted to take away the public’s right to take things off the Consent Calendar so that they were available for public discussion, and how then a small group — the Mayor, Mayor Pro tem, City Manager, City Attorney, and City Clerk — would decide what items went on the Consent Calendar.
In fact, individual Council members were denied the right to put anything on the Discussion or Consent Calendar at all, thus depriving their constituents of any voice as to issues that needed to be discussed.
I just recently stumbled onto the fact that this method of controlling public discussion is a violation of the Ralph M Brown Act. On January 16, 2015, I sent the Riverside Mayor and City Council a letter demanding that they stop violating the Ralph M. Brown Act and return to the former — and legal — method by which members of the public may object at any City Council meeting to any item being placed on the consent calendar, which then puts in on the Discussion Calendar for a full, public discussion and debate about its merits.
I am still awaiting a response, but if the City fails to correct this glaring, and meaningfully timed violation of law, there is a group of citizens ready to retain my legal services to sue the it.
Notably, the motion to take away this public right was made by Riverside City Council Member Dom Betro and seconded by Council Member Steve Adams as the “Riverside Renaissance” shell game was about to heat up. Steve Adams has been a HUGE proponent of developing the Ag Park land (mentioned in the second article in this series)and has continued to insist that there are no toxic chemicals there. I believe that Steve Adams was a primary a proponent of using sewer funds to build the infamous “road to nowhere” — a road built with city money leading directly to land that Cox, the developer mentioned in part two of this story, was planning to develop.  – LETITIA PEPPER, former Attorney for Best, Best & Krieger.

TMC, RATED RIVERSIDE’S MOST “OFFENSIVE,” “INAPPROPRIATE,” “HURTFUL,” “MEAN SPIRITED,” “DISTASTEFUL,” “EMBARRASSING,” HORIFFIC,” “SLANDEROUS” AND MEZZSPELLED, “MISSPELLED” AND “OPINIONATED” BLOG SITE!  TEMPORARILY BLOCKED BY THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE AT PUBLIC ACCESS SITES WITHIN THE CITY, THEN UNBLOCKED.  I GUESS YOU CANNOT DO THAT ACCORDING TO THE ACLU.  RATED ONE TWO ONE STAR OUT OF FIVE IN TERMS OF COMMUNITY APPROVAL RATINGS..  TMC IS NOW EXCLUSIVLY EXCLUSIVELY ON FILE WITH THE COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE’S DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE (WE BELIEVE THIS WILL END SOON, SINCE THE FOCUS IS NOW ON THE IMPROPRIETIES OF MR. “Z”, WE TRIED TO TELL YOU, BUT NOBODY LISTENED), AND DON’T FORGET WE ARE PROSSIBLY POSSIBLY ON FILE WITH THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE’S POTENTIAL SLAPP SUIT LIST… A STRATEGIC LEGAL MANEUVER THAT CAN BE DONE ONLY IN RIVERSIDE WITHOUT A CONTRACT… AGAIN, THANK-YOU COMMUNITY OF RIVERSIDE AND THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE EMPLOYEE’S FOR YOUR SUPPORT!   COMMENTS ALWAYS WELCOMED, ESPECIALLY SPELL CHECKERS!  WE JUST CAN’T SPELL!  EMAIL ANONYMOUSLY WITH YOUR DIRT BY CONTACTING US AT:   THIRTYMILESCORRUPTION@HOTMAIL.COM

 

 

TMC NEWS FLASH: CITY OF RIVERSIDE: FORMER RIVERSIDE PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR SIOBHAN FOSTER: “IF THIS GETS OUT, I’M OUT!”

Posted: October 26, 2011 in Uncategorized
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 THE PASADENA STAR-NEWS IS REPORTING NEWLY HIRED PASADENA PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR SIOBHAN FOSTER IS SUBJECT TO A LAWSUIT!  THE SUIT WAS FILES BY FORMER CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS ADMINISTRATOR, SEAN GILL IN 2010, WHO WAS TERMINATED WITHOUT EXPLANATION BY THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE. GILL DESCRIBED RIVERSIDE AS THE CITY TAINTED WITH CORRUPTION.  FORMER RIVERSIDE PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR SIOBHAN FOSTER RESIGNED IN SEPTEMBER 2011, TAKE A POSITION IN PASADENA AS PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR UNDER CITY MANAGER MICHAEL BECK.   ACCORDING TO A PRESS RELEASE BY THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE, SIOBHAN FOSTER WAS “APPOINTED” BY PASADENA’S CITY MANAGER MICHAEL BECK TO THIS POSITION.  NOW MICHAEL BECK ALSO WORKED FOR THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE AS ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER UNDER CITY MANAGER BRAD HUDSON.  THE OFFICE CAME UNDERFIRE VIA THE ALLEGATIONS OF ILLEGALLY PURCHASED GLOCK FIREARMS, BADGES AND COLD PLATES.    FIRED IN MAY 2011, FORMER DEPUTY CITY ATTORNEY RAYCHELE STERLING ALSO ALLEGED THE STEERING OF CONTRACTS WITHIN FOSTER’S OFFICE TO A SELECTIVE OR PREFERENTIAL GROUP OF CONTRACTORS.  IS THIS THE STORY THE RIVERSIDE PRESS ENTERPRISE WOULDN’T COVER?

The city fired me when I tried to make people aware of their corruption. Its been going on for years. Brad Hudson, Siobhan Foster and Tom Boyd all deserve to be fired for their corruption along with half of the city council. People think Bell is corrupt, I hope they keep digging into the City of Riverside. If Ed (Former Councilman Ed Adkinson) becomes mayor, wait and see how much more work his firm receives.

—Sean Gill, to Press Enterprise comments

OTHER RELATED TMC ARTICLES:

RIVERSIDE: FIRED EMPLOYEE ALLEGES CITY OFFICIALS AWARDED MILLIONS IN CONTRACTS WITHOUT BID

RIVERSIDE: DUCK TAPING A MOUTH HAS A PRICE: A CITY GONE ROGUE

CITY OF RIVERSIDE: PUBLIC WORKS FOSTER’S & BOYD’S THE BID PROCESS!

CITY OF RIVERSIDE: FUZZY MATH AND THE BID PROCESS IN THE SEWER, BUBBLES UP THE USUAL SUSPECTS

CITY OF RIVERSIDE: THE BID PROCESS IN THE SEWER! THE STINK KEEPS BREWING, THE GROUND KEEPS A SHAKING..

HOW MANY INSTANCES OF OVERSIGHT DOES IT TAKE TO MAKE A FRAUD?

KEEP CONNECTED WITH TMC, RATED RIVERSIDE’S MOST “SLANDEROUS” AND MEZZSPELLED, “MISSPELLED” AND “OPINIONATED” BLOG SITE!   TMC IS NOW EXCLUSIVELY ON FILE WITH THE COUNTY OF RIVERSIDE’S DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, AND THAT’S ALL WE’RE GOING TO SAY ABOUT THAT ONE… AGAIN, THANK-YOU COMMUNITY OF RIVERSIDE AND THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE EMPLOYEE’S FOR YOUR SUPPORT!  COMMENTS ALWAYS WELCOMED, ESPECIALLY SPELL CHECKERS!  EMAIL ANONYMOUSLY WITH YOUR DIRT!  THIRTYMILESCORRUPTION@HOTMAIL.COM

CITY OF RIVERSIDE: TMC CONTINUES TO REQUEST A FORENSIC AUDIT OF THE CURRENT CITY HALL BOOKS!

Posted: September 27, 2011 in Uncategorized
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INTERESTING STUFF COMING DOWN THE PIPELINE, AND I DON’T MEAN THE CITIES LEAKY SEWERS.  THERE IS NO DOUBT WHY GREG IS HIDING BEHIND THE COMPUTER INCOGNITO THIS TIME.  ACCORDING TO CITY COUNCIL PERSON NANCY HART, HE WOULD NEVER STEER US WRONG.  WELL NANCY HART, I HOPE YOU ARE RIGHT, BECAUSE ISN’T THE CITY OF BELL SUING THEIR EX-CITY ATTORNEY FOR NEGLIGENCE AND FAULTY LEGAL ADVICE?  LET’S NOT FORGET, THE EX-BELL CITY ATTORNEY WAS ALSO AN ATTORNEY FOR BB&K.  THE VERY FIRM OUR CITY ATTORNEY CONTINUES TO SEEK WHEN IN NEED OF ADVICE OR TO PERFORM OTHER LEGAL ACTIVITIES.   IT ALSO APPEARS THAT THE CITY IS COMFORTABLE IN IMPLEMENTING VERBAL BILATERAL CONTRACTS, SINCE NO HARD CONTRACTS ARE USED ACCORDING TO CITY OFFICIALS IN RETAINING BB&K.  ILLEGAL OR JUST BAD BUSINESS?

HOLDING TRUE TO THEIR MISSION STATEMENT: The mission of the City Attorney’s Office and BB&K is to provide excellent and ethical legal advice, effective legal representation, and other quality legal services for the City Council, City officers, and City employees in order that they may lawfully attain the City Council’s goals and other department program outcomes without undue risk to the City. 

WHO WILL BE HIDING BEHIND THE COMPUTER NEXT WHEN THE AUDITOR COMES ASKING QUESTIONS? CHECK BACK WEEKLY…THAT IS, EVERY CITY COUNCIL TUESDAY! WE’LL EVEN PROVIDE THE DIRECT LINK SO YOU CAN CHECK THE CURRENT CITY COUNCIL AGENDA. CALL YOUR LOCAL ELECTED COUNCIL PERSON AND THE MAYOR AND REQUEST THAT A FORENSIC AUDIT BE DONE BY STATE CONTROLLER JOHN CHIANG OF THE CITY HALL BOOKS.   WITH A NEW INTERIM CITY MANAGER, SCOTT BARBER, THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE NEEDS BASELINE NUMBER AS DONE IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR IN ORDER TO ASSURE BALANCED NUMBERS AND TO CLEAR POSSIBLE DISCREPANCIES OF THE GENERAL LEDGER BOOKS. IF THERE IS NOTHING TO HIDE, THE NUMBERS WILL ALWAYS COME UP RIGHT! 

THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT, NOW EXCLUSIVELY ON FILE WITH THE RIVERSIDE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, AND THAT’S ALL TMC HAS TO SAY ABOUT THAT ONE FOR NOW…

UPDATE: PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR SIOBHAN FOSTER RESIGNS TO TAKE A POSITION IN PASADENA, AS PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR UNDER CITY MANAGER MICHAEL BECK.  NO DOUBT A GOOD TIME TO STEP OUT.  BUT IT DOESN’T STOP THERE! ACCORDING TO A PRESS RELEASE BY THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE, SIOBHAN FOSTER WAS “APPOINTED” BY MICHAEL BECK TO THIS POSITION, THEREFORE OVERSTEPPING THE AUTHORITY OF THE KINGDOM OF RIVERSIDE. GET IT , SHE COULDN’T SAY NO! YES, IT ALL GETS WEIRDER BY THE MINUTE.  WHY LEAVE YOUR FAMILY, WHEN YOU HUSBAND, BARRY FOSTER, IS MORENO VALLEY’S ECONOMIC DIRECTOR?  IS A VOLCANO READY TO EXPLODE IN THE CALDERA KNOWN AS CITY HALL?   NOW MICHAEL BECK ALSO WORKED FOR THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE AS ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER UNDER CITY MANAGER BRAD HUDSON.  THE OFFICE CAME UNDERFIRE VIA THE ALLEGATIONS OF ILLEGALLY PURCHASED GLOCK FIREARMS, BADGES AND COLD PLATES.  FOSTER LEAVES AMIDST THE ALLEGATIONS MADE BY EX-CITY EMPLOYEES.  FIRED DEPUTY CITY ATTORNEY RAYCHELE STERLING ALLEGED THE STEERING OF CONTRACTS WITHIN FOSTER’S OFFICE TO A SELECTIVE OR PREFERENTIAL GROUP OF CONTRACTORS.  FIRED CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS ADMINISTRATOR SEAN GILL, ALLEGED FOSTER IGNORED HIS CONCERNS REGARDING COST OVERRUNS AND THAT SHE DIRECTED HIM TO GATHER INCRIMINATING INFORMATION ON OTHER EMPLOYEES WHO THREATENED TO EXPOSE WRONGDOING AT THE CITY.  OTHERS HAVE OPENLY QUESTIONED HER QUALIFICATIONS AND ABILITIES FOR THE POSITION SHE HELD..  TWO HIGH PROFILE EXECUTIVES HAVE NOW LEFT THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE WITHIN MONTHS OF EACH OTHER. THE OTHER BEING CITY MANAGER BRAD HUDSON IN AUGUST.  WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE CITY OF RIVERSIDE, IS THEIR MORE INFORMATION COMING DOWN THE PIPELINE THAN WE KNOW OF?  WHO WILL BE NEXT TO JUMP SHIP? BELINDA GRAHAM, GREG PRIAMOS, DEANNA LORSEN, TINA ENGLISH, TOM BOYD, SCOTT BARBER, RHONDA STROUT, PAUL SUNDEEN? THE PRESSURE IS ON!  GOOD LUCK PASADENA!

CITY OF RIVERSIDE: PUBLIC WORKS FOSTER’S & BOYD’S THE BID PROCESS!

Posted: June 25, 2011 in Uncategorized
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It never ends, Sewer Bid Contracts again in the News, is City Hall in turmoil once again at the wheel of damage control working feverishly to sort a believable story for the public?  Do we now hire our trump card Best, Best & Krieger for Public Relations, or are we just a bit beyond that?  With City Councilman Paul Davis up for Mayor Pro Temp coming this week and City Attorney Greg Priamos hiding behind the comforting doors of his office, is City Manager Brad Hudson conveniently leaving the scene of the crime just in time?  Is his remaining posse working hard to answer all the abounding questions that remain?  And are City Hall employees celebrating Brad Hudson leaving, as they did when Assistant City Manager Tom DeSantis left?

Well, the spotlight is now on Riverside Public Works, that would be Tom Boyd’s department.  Did his department preferentially award a contract to Camp, Dresser & McKee?  A contract according to the standard scoring process should have went to Hill, known as CH2M Hill,  of who scored higher.  Incidently, CH2M Hill for the third year has been rated Worlds Most Ethical Companies, I understand ethics just doesn’t sit well in Riverside.  Regardless, there are two employees at the forefront of the allegations, City Engineer Warren Huang and Sewer Treatment Plant Manager Craig Justice, who stated to Deputy City Attorney Raychele Sterling that they were called into Public Works Director Siobhan Foster’s office, where “they were told that ‘she did not like the results of the scoring,’ and that the scoring needed to be ‘fixed’ so that CDM was selected” because Albert A. Webb Associates was to be a subcontractor on the job, according to the email.  Was there creative math occurring in this bid process?   Now we have the subcontractor Albert A. Webb and Associates at the forefront of the questionable bid process.   Matthew A. Webb, president of Albert A. Webb Associates, has acknowledged a friendship with Hudson, but has said the firm gained work based on merit and that jobs for the city are only a small portion of its business, but twelve payouts on a single day?  There lies the questionable appearance of bid splitting, and no one at City Hall has been able to explain it.  The following is City Memorandum from last month by Webb requesting a change order for an additional appropiation of $308,495.00.  Now the question, what is the purpose of the scoring process when no one follows the rules?  Does it then become just a city formality?   TMC has asked for a an independent forensic audit, who will answer to a community finance commitee.  Or a request by the City Council for State Controller John Chiang, would also be in order.

What does Chief Financial Officer, Paul Sundeen say about this.   According to Mary Shelton, who writes the River City Cop Watch Blog, Sundeen believes an independent audit is too expensive and wouldn’t be necessary in his opinion. He claims no bid splitting has ever taken place ever but if it happens, he should be notified to investigate it.  We have this bit of info for Paul to investigate thirteen payments in one day. Bid splitting or coincidence? as coincidental as our emails being blocked Paul’s office.

Cihigoyenetche, Grossberg & Clouse, Rancho Cucamonga based law firm Hudson requested to investigate allegations of favoritism of himself to the tune of $100,000.00, presented their findings.  According to Cihigoyenetche’s report, the employees Sterling says told her of favoritism denied making those comments when questioned by an investigator and they did not find that Hudson’s friendships influenced who got  contracts or that Hudson pressured anyone to award contracts to someone specific.  Good work Cihigoyenetche, Grossberg & Clouse!  I’m sure there was also no conflict of interest between the firm and Hudson…..and by the way, did the taxpayer pay your bill alright?  Did anybody know that Scott Grossberg performed magic! …and wrote books such as  “The Vitruvian Square: A Handbook of  Divination Discoveries,” “The Masks of Tarot,” and “Bauta: Betraying  the Face of Illusion,” in addition to his  oracle/divination cards, “The Deck of Shadows.”     But in all fairness, in report notes of the hired law firm requested by the Press Enterprise via the public records request act,  Cihigoyenetche’s reports, “To the extent that any public works managers pressured staff to award the contract to the firm with (Hudson’s) alleged friend as a subcontractor, such pressure emanated from a pervasive desire within the city to award contracts to capable local business to stimulate the local economy,” rather than to reward Hudson’s friends.  Ahhh, thats it!…it was all about “stimulating the local economy”, that was worth a $100,000.00 of taxpayer money to find out, wouldn’t you say?  Or a bit of magic sleight of hand with taxpayer money, now you see it, now you don’t!  Further, Deputy City Attorney Raychele Sterling, who was fired last month in May, stated that the employees were badgered and berated with threats of losing their job.  In a March 23 email to the City Council, Sterling wrote that public works employees told her they were directed by their superiors to assign projects to a particular firm because its head “is a personal friend of the city manager, and the city manager wants him to receive as many projects as possible.” This at around the same time fired employee Sean Gill, Construction Contracts Administrator for the City, claimed that city officials gave millions in contracts without the contracts going out to bid. The lawsuit also alleges Gill was ordered by Deputy Public Works Director Tom Boyd to sign off on projects that didn’t meet handicap-accessible standards or city requirements, and that Boyd “even instructed Gill not to inspect the work.”  The suit claims city officials — with the knowledge of council members — awarded contracts “in an effort to increase their political allies” and ordered work without public bidding, which cost the city more money than necessary.  There you go Mr. Sundeen, sounds like something to investigate, also sounds as both Raychele and Sean fall into the whistleblower category.

Last year, June 2010 at City Council, that Dvonne Pitruzello, City Council Candidate Ward 1, requested to see documents in regards to City Manager Brad Hudson’s discretionary fund spending.  Since then, numerous questions of indiscretions came to the forefront at City Council Meetings, such as the Connie Leach Contracts and questions of favoritism in contracts awarded to Albert Webb and Assoiciates.  Will the City of Riverside experience another mass exodus due to the next erruption of the Toba Caldera?  Keep connected with TMC…

UPDATE: 06/29/2011: HUDSON’S RESPONSE TO FORMER DEPUTY CITY ATTORNEY RAYCHELE STERLING, “ABSOLUTELY SILLY.”   HE MAY BE SAYING THAT BECAUSE HE’S LEAVING, BUT RAYCHELE HAS ONE HELL OF A LAW SUIT AGAINST THE CITY (TAXPAYER) WHICH WILL DEVULGE A BOMBSHELL OF IMPROPRIETIES.

RIVERSIDE: DUCK TAPING A MOUTH HAS A PRICE: A CITY GONE ROGUE

Posted: May 26, 2011 in Uncategorized
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In my opinion it’s always been the nature of government to propose the proposition if there is no trail to an incident or event,  it didn’t occur.  In a free society we expect accountability and transparency, not some semantical play on words leading us further from the truth.  What is really disturbing is the fruition of a culture which has become unrepresentative of the needs of the community and has  become increasingly detached from mainstream economic theory, that its interference with the free market takes precedence.  What is best for the community is simply to do the right thing.   If that was done at all, we would not have so many employees fired at will.  But in retrospect, couldn’t this in essence,  be construed as a reflection of leadership?  And leadership can inadvertently distort the truth as a mechanism of defense.  Whereby an initial account of truth once disseminated, is followed by a transfiguration there of,  eventually becoming a subterfuge leading the community with a distorted perception of the truth.  For these reasons people are angry, people are frustrated, economically stressed and foremost, people are now asking questions.  Having questions is one thing, asking them is another.  People are feeling intimidated and afraid of government, and for good reason for which it has been quietly expressed in the community.  What has happened to our government, our protector and fervent leader?  What has propagated an entitled culture to developed independently of  the needs of surrounding community?  We have seen this within cities such as Bell.  People shouldn’t  have to feel that they are wrong  or be  intimidated by asking questions of public servants, or to feel they may be retaliated against.  Remember, elected and appointed officials are there to work at the pleasure of the people.

“Fear is the foundation of most Governments…”       

– John Adams, 2nd President of the United States of America,  January 1776

City Attorney Greg Priamos states he is there to protect the mayor and the council.  Is this an aberration of duty?  Or a momentary lapse of clarity?  …such as when an inquiry is initiated, and the assertion of attorney-client privilege is spawned.   Attorney-client privilege?…. lets analytically conceptualize the relationship.  In our tangible world it simply means the relationship between attorney and client, whereby the client hires the attorney for a fee.  Elected and appointed officials work at the pleasure of the people, taxpayers, and the community etc.,  therefore are we not their employers?  In essence, is the City Attorney present to protect the people and serve at the pleasure there of?  Therefore, would we not be his client?   An employee is still considered to be an employee, and we the people are technically their employer.  Such as the case of Best, Best & Krieger representing the Chief of Police via the tax payer,  we the employer/the CEO, do we not have the right to know what he may have done wrong and how it damages us as the employer?   Furthermore, is it the taxpayer/employer which must then hire a third party entity such as BB&K to actually tell us, again the taxpayer/employer, not the truth?  Led of course, by former Riverside DA Grover Trask, now with BB&K.  The City Manager, serves at the pleasure of the Mayor and the Council,  and therefore the responsibility of his actions reflects upon the mayor and council, it would be considered a breach of trust and of their fiduciary duty to the community  if they did otherwise.  It should also be assumed that the city council and mayor if necessary, could conduct themselves as city manager.  This would imply, a mastery of the appointed position, and this should be a requirement to becoming mayor or a member of the city council.  Understanding the work of the City manager is not only necessary but pertinent to the understanding the intricacies of the general fund.  Therefore there would be no justification to an aberrational abuse as seen with City Manager Robert Rizzo of the city of Bell.

Those that have been there longest have attained institutional memory, of which could be detrimental to a leaders agenda.  Ridding the work force of this intangible phenomenon insures the likelihood of implementing ones agenda without question, regardless if it is right or wrong.   Of course, those with institutional memory know right from wrong.  Is it a benefit to leadership to control and to rid their immediate arena of institutional memory?  And when expelled from the work arena,  does it have a corresponding price?  Duck taping a mouth always has a price within a city gone rogue. (Note: This Original Link Dissapeared From The Press Enterprise Site).  Without integrity there ultimately would be no need to question the actions of representative leadership.  Say what you don’t mean and mean what you don’t say.  Thank-you Sean Gill and Raychele Sterling for doing the rightful work of the people and with the integrity, and thank-you for asking the questions which help us, the taxpaying community,  to protect us from the abuse of public funds.  You have not been forgotten….