The Feral Beast Among Us

OUR VIEW: Take back the community
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By
The Herald News
Posted Jan 29, 2010 @ 12:00 AM
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Five stabbings scattered throughout the city. A home invasion. Several robberies and a shooting in Corky Row. And that was all in the span of two days.
Enough is enough. It is way past time to fight back against the petty criminals plaguing Fall River, frightening and endangering innocent residents and preventing the city from progressing socially and economically. These dregs of society, who seem to be emboldened recently, damage Fall River’s reputation, making residents and businesses think twice before moving into the city and making life miserable for those who long for the days when the Spindle City had a thriving economy and a welcoming reputation. But criminals have stolen Fall River’s good name and residents’ sense of security.
The wave of violence that wracked Fall River last weekend has caught the attention of police, city officials and neighborhood groups, who are working together to address what City Councilor Brad Kilby termed “a crisis situation.”
The Flint Merchants Association organized a neighborhood meeting with city officials and police representatives last night to discuss ways to make the Pleasant Street area safer. Other community organizations, including the Niagara Neighborhood Association, are also seeking ways to work with the city on an action plan to deal with the violence.
“I get the feeling people would like to see more police activity on the street,” said Dino Bissaro, president of the Niagara group. “They feel like if they go walking to their car or corner store, there’s a concern they’re going to be robbed.”
Unfortunately, budgetary restraints will likely prevent the Fall River Police Department from adding to its ranks any time soon. While the police are surely examining the allocation of its force, there is little chance additional officers will be put on the streets in the near future.
But that doesn’t mean the crime problem can’t be addressed. People have to realize crime is not a city problem — it’s a community problem that requires a community solution. While residents should certainly not take matters into their own hands or put themselves into dangerous situations, they must be partners in crime-fighting and help the authorities protect them. But too many people look the other way.
“People are in and out of their homes, many of which are right above the stores,” said Flint Merchants Association Vice President Carlos Cesar. “But nobody sees nothing, nobody hears nothing.”
“People around here don’t call the police,” Bissaro added. “People have to get involved in their own safety.”
Indeed. Anyone who witnesses a crime or suspicious activity and doesn’t immediately report it to the police is part of the problem. Some will say they fear retribution if they report a crime.
Others simply don’t want to be labeled a snitch — a petty, self-defeating concern. If residents want a safer community, they need to get over their fears and stop being complicit to the criminals. They have to stand up to crime by cooperating fully with police. Remaining fearful only gives the thugs more power. Besides, there is little chance of reprisal, particularly if a witness places an anonymous call to police.
Every now and then, communities do stop allowing criminals to walk all over them, staging events like “Take Back the Night,” an annual march and vigil intended to show solidarity against crime, especially crime against women. But all too often, once the event ends, people go back to ignoring the problem. These events cannot be sporadic. Residents need to take back their community on a daily basis. Be vigilant. Go out in pairs. And most importantly, report crime as soon as it happens. That’s the only way to affect change.
There are a lot more peaceful, law-abiding residents than there are violent thugs. It’s time to show them who truly holds the power.

Just let it be known that in today's world, it's not just politicians who play the politics game. Sometimes - and far to many times of late - it's also the editorial board of the Fall River Herald News (HN).
You'd have to completely brain dead not to agree with the gist of this editorial. Yes, what is going on in Fall River, especially in the last week, has been intolerable. Yes, this City's citizens lives in fear, a kind of fear this City has never witnessed before. Most adults I know do not lightly decide to venture out at night these days, and certainly, almost never in certain sections of the city regardless of time of day. And these feelings are held by every race, creed, color and religion that make up the City's population. Every one of them is a victim of this fear, and has been victim of the violence.
However, aside from cliched and worn out reference to "those who long for the days when the Spindle City had a thriving economy and a welcoming reputation", the one major elephant in the room not being discussed in this editorial is the same one not recognized by the Mayor the other night when he issued his "Law and Order" statement - the drug problem that inculcates Fall River in every income class, racial class, religious group, political affiliation, age group and neighborhood, and the culture of violence and crime that travels with it.
How can this City hope to survive this pestulance if it does not even recognize it's existence! Drugs, and the desire to obtain them are what is the , not just root cause, but just about the ONLY cause of the spate of crime and violence in this City since the cutting of police rolls by The Great Destroyer Correia last year. Warrants and a few extra patrols are not going to stem the tide of these drug ravaged zombies. They'll just wait until the public furor blows over, or until the police shift with the smallest manpower contingent is on duty. There are gangs as well, real and organized gangs, like the Bloods, the Mafia, the Vietnamese gang and more splinter groups from these primary gangs, and I am sure that's not nearly all of them. These gangs communicate between themselves, they traffic in drugs and guns, BUT THEY ARE NEVER ACKNOWLEDGED!  The rumors of Al Lambert having Mayor Flanagan's ear must be true because the "No Gangs In Fall River" stance was Lambert's for years, even thought every cop in a patrol car could tell you it was B.S. Ask any cop on patrol today what the root cause, or complete cause of the violence is today, and they will tell you "drugs and gangs".
Parents in this City themselves have drug problems and I'd say at least 25% of the total number parents are drug addled zombies themselves. How can you expect the parents of these kids to be involved in their children's school work and behavior while in school when they are spending most of their own time trying to cop drugs. This information is widely known to the police, school officials and City Council members.
It's the gangs that terrify City residents, especially business owners. It's terribly facile for the editor if the HN to suggest that citizens pooh-pooh the threats of "snitchin'".  Unless she's willing to sit outside the apartments or businesses of those willing to turn these maggots in for their crimes and protect them with her own body maybe she should not volunteer these people to get "capped" for cooperating with the authorities. I'm sure she doesn't live in a neighborhood with gang affiliated hoodlums hanging about.
The editor's rhetoric is just so political. It is meant to appeal to the ever growing ,HN reading, groups in the City with not much education, working blue collar jobs and having their children, if they are of school age, who still must attend Fall River schools because they lack the income to send their children to private schools. For example:

" These events cannot be sporadic. Residents need to take back their community on a daily basis. Be vigilant. Go out in pairs. And most importantly, report crime as soon as it happens. That’s the only way to affect change. There are a lot more peaceful, law-abiding residents than there are violent thugs. It’s time to show them who truly holds the power."

More political drivel from the HN editor to rally their paying readers. When there are few police around, the few violent thugs who hold illegal weapons, wear ski masks and, unfortunately as we have seen these many months, are driven like feral beasts to find money to buy drugs, the many peaceful, law-abiding residents seem to melt away like so many snowflakes on the ground in march for their own safety, and who among us could blame them. It is the violent thugs who truly hold the power, and they will until the powers that be start to deal with the terrible scourge of drug addiction and the primary sources of drug sales to our youth.

Time for Another WSAR Editorial by Bernie Sullivan

Hello again friends, it's time for a serious discussion.

You see, we here in the world's greatest city, Fall River, have had it easy over the years. We have been blessed with things only the great Kubla Khan or Queen Cleopatra could have envisioned. No, I'm not talking about gun powder, Marc Antony, Julius Ceasar or even poisonous little green snakes called Asps. I am talking about the greatest political mind the modern world has ever seen since the birth of Christ. That's right, my friends, I'm talking about Fall River's heart and soul for the last 30 years, one Robert Correia.

Yes, he's my friend. In fact, if this were an episode of the Chris Rock show, I'd probably be known as Bob Correia's "Main SH@T Stain", and be mighty proud of it! But he'd never BE on the Chris Rock show, for very obvious reasons known to Bob and all of his friends. So most people would simply call me Bob's "A**HOLE BUDDY". And they'd probably be right. What's an "A**HOLE BUDDY" you ask? Well, that's a person who'll nod his head in approval, like a bobble head doll in the back of a New York City taxicab going thru the Holland Tunnel at 3 A.M., at every ill conceived, criminal bit of anti-social human, noxious, personally destructive and overtly sociopathic behavior their friend can muster, or even contemplate. Well, I'm proud to say that, in terms of Bob Correia, that's me!

The citizens of Fall River should repent their votes against this Fall River patriot! He did the things that needed being done for him to continue in office, for as long as Fall River took care of Bob Correia, he could continue to take care of Fall River, and how, in the ways only Bob Correia could, or would, do. We, as the leading light of civilization in the Western Hemisphere, with our fantastic education system, well paved and always passable roads, our clean water and rock solid sewerage waste facilities, and help for the poor and needy through our world class Housing Authority and exhaustive, non-stop efforts to leverage private investment through public housing projects have delivered a quality of life to the citizens of Fall River that could NEVER be called second to none. In fact, it's a fair statement that my great personal friend, Bob Correia, and the people who have worked with him and for him for the same 30 years he has been in public life, have delivered a particular brand of service to Fall River that only a judge's learned eyes could fully see. Yes, we have been fortunate.

Some detractors will tell you that Bob Correia had too hard a personal style, that he ruffled to many feathers, but they would be wrong, That was just Bob's way. Often criticised for being closed minded, a dullard, a bully and a thug who liked to physically intimidate little old men with his popping blood vessels and veins in his reddened face and neck, only saw the side of him Bob would show when he himself felt threatened by questions in the face of decisive action on his part. His favorite quote was Spiro Agnew's "Nattering Nabobs of Negatavism" to describe the citizens of Fall River who failed to see the error of their ways in questioning his self righteous leadership and iron fisted approach to governing Fall River. What eles could you expect from an ex Marine? He made a plan and kept to that plan regardless or warnings or pleas from those who claimed to have a better way. Bob always knew HIS way would always, not only be the better way, but the only way. It was this kind of driven tunnel vision that has brought the City to where it is today, and we should praise him for it!

Once the voters rejected this humble man, he did what he thought he should do, as always. He was not likely to change a single thing in the way he had always approached public service. He took the time in his remaining days to be as active as he could in directing the signing of numerous construction projects that would benefit those who such projects in Fall River had always benefitted. He wanted to leave himself a lasting legacy of personal success, which is precisely what he did. In fact, he takes great personal pride in the many newcomers on the Fall River scene he was instrumental in bringing into greater public service that will no doubt add to Fall River's illustrious government history, such as Meg-Mayo Brown, and Kevin Augiar. The future in Fall River will remain bright once Bob Correia passes into his well deserved retirement in Florida.

Yes, he is gone now, my close personal friend Bob Correia. But he will not soon ever be forgotten. The man I know as my friend "No Matter What" is in the history books now. This City shall never see the like of him ever again. He certainly was one of a kind. A special kind of leadership was put into that man, one whose tresure he felt the need to share with Fall River, just as Bob wanted Fall River to share in it's treasures with him. And share they did.

WSAR and I, Bernie Sullivan, want to let you know you will be missed, and that you will always have a home on the Southcoast here , with me, when the need arises. The sun rises in Dartmouth just like it does in Florida.

( The REAL Bernie Sullivan...on the left)

The Tale of the Quequechan Man

MMB speaking to FREA members Prior to second vote

Sewer Enterprise Fund

Fall River Teabaggers

The Ken Fiola Memorial Award

FROED ?

Fall River Municipal FY11 Budget ?

Looming State Receivership of Fall River

We'll Try ?

MMB and her Rhode Island "All-Star" Administrators

Fall River Dreams

NRA USA

Fall River Schools Under MMB...Oh heck,

Fall River in General

Fall River Politicians

CSO/Stormwater : Distinction Without A Difference

I think the level of salemanship going on with the issue of the "illegal" CSO/Rainwater "TAX" is a bit humorous. I think this primarily because I have now read the famous OPINION from City Attorney Steven Torres about the matter. For information purposes you can find the slightly longer than one page analysis at this web address:

http://media.townonline.com/fallriver/legalopinion.pdf

In this analysis there is a discussion on the characteristics of a "fee", as laid out by the Mass Supreme Judicial Court in the Emerson College vs. Boston case. There the MA SJC held that a"FEE" must share certain common characteristics to be considered a valid, or legal, fee, which also distinguishes them from TAXES, as follows:

1) they are charged in exchange for a particular governmental service which benefits the party paying the fee in a manner not shared by other members of the society,

2) they are paid by choice, in that the party paying the fee has the option of not using the governemental service and thereby avoiding the charge,

3) the charges are not collected to raise revenue but to compensate the governmental entity providing the services for it's expenses.

In his analysis, Attorney Torres proceeds to lay out his arguments that only the 3rd condition is applicable to the CSO/Sormwater Fee, and since all three conditions  do not apply, the charge is a tax, and further, since the MA Constitution states municipalities as entities are not allowed independent power to charge "taxes" (this can only be done by a vote of the legislature), such a charge constitutes an "Illegal Tax".

Now please understand, this is Attorney Torres' OPINION, not an actual finding by any court in the Commonwealth. Only a decision by the court in a case brought before it would make this opinion effective. So where does this leave Fall River?

Let's look at what happened when the City reached agreement with DOR to solve the Sewer Enterprise Fund deficit problem. DOR recommended a rate sufficient enough to cover the entirety of the deficit in the Sewer Fund, inclusive of any collections related to CSO/Stormwater Fees. In the minds of DOR, there is no discussion of the legality of the CSO/Stormater Fees. No new legal ground was broken here. It was Mayor Flanagan who chose to make this an opportunity to ANNOUNCE he would do away with the "illegal" tax of the "CSO/Stormwater Fee". In fact, to do this, I believe, he specifically refused to adopt the DOR recommended greater revised Sewer Rate and in it's place adpoted a slightly lesser rate, while expending all Sewer Enterprise Fund reserves ($609,000) and cutting a similar amount of FY10 expenses, to cover the remaining deficit. With one exception.  The DOR rate would have covered the outstanding Sewer Enterprise Fund deficit from the close of the prior fiscal year, roughly $600,000, which must now be made good by  FY11 sewer rates and collections. You see, once DOR recommends a solution, and you do not accept their solution, and you still have a deficit in the very fund they tried to help you with, and you do it for blatantly political reasons, you will NOT get a second bite at the apple. This City MUST, and I mean , MUST, cover that roll-forward deficit during FY11. In fact, I would highly recommend that the Sewer Enterprise Fund operate completely at no less than a break even status for FY11, or any deficits in the fund will most definitely be applied against the tax revenues for FY11 and be shown as a Cherry Sheet charge in next Fiscal Years Tax Rate Recap Sheet.

DOR made allowance to set the Sewer Rate without Attorney Torres' analysis in mind. To DOR, the CSO/Stormwater Fee is just fine and dandy as a fee. All Mayor Flanagan has done is made statements that he abolished an "illegal tax" when in fact, he has set a "DE FACTO" fee to cover those related expenses within the larger umbrella of the Sewer Enterprise Fee. And in terms of "Illegal Taxes", any Sewer Enterprise Fund/CSO/Stormwater deficits  MUST, by statute as voted by the MA Legislature, be covered by the City's PROPERTY TAX revenues, when other sources of revenue are insufficient or unavailable. Only DOR, through the Commissioner of Revenue and the Secretary Of Administration and Finance can allow such a deficit NOT to be paid in the year immediately following the actual deficit in which it occurred.

Finally, if all else failed, because the CSO/Stormwater expenses were the result of a Federal Court Judgement against Fall River, DOR would also be allowed to take any yearly expenses related to solving the CSO/Stormwater problem through the Tax Rate Recap Sheet as an un-met Court Judgement and, yet again, apply the expense against property taxes to be collected, as allowed by vote of the MA Legislature.

I am not an attorney, but it seems the effort to decree this CSO/Stormwater Fee an Illegal Tax, while at the same time indicating it also does not meet the MA SJC qualification standards to be declared a FEE, in all practicle terms, would render the City unable to cover the cost of providing the service. This argument between "is it a tax" or " is it a fee"  is a distinction without a difference. This is proven when , in needing to raise the funds necessary to offset the expenses of the CSO/Stormwater construction and ongoing operations, Mayor Flanagan and Fall River agreed to raise revenues - fees - to meet ALL the expenses to provide sewer AND CSO/Stormwater services. Failing that, these expenses would otherwise have to be covered, by statute as voted by the MA Legislature, by the City's property tax rate. Why is this critical?

Let's suppose tomorrow  Attorney Torres and Mayor Flanagan were successful in having this Stormwater Fee overturned. Under their analysis, no fees could be raised to cover CSO/Stormwater expenses, unless , of course, those properties found to be in question had sufficient , effective methods of measuring the cost and metering installed to cover each person/unit involved, say in a 6 apartment tenement aprtment house. The costs would be prohibitive, let alone the political nightmare related to so doing . So what then? The charges would be covered by the property tax rate, by state statute, and would REDUCE the amount of property tax revenues available to pay for police, fire and all other general fund budget operations and assessments. Facing this, while declaring the CSO/Stormwater Fee an illegal tax publicly, Mayor Flanagan , in practice, has done precisely the opposite.
 The basic premise of the argument is false in it's conception. In actual current practice by this administration, the CSO/Stormwater expenses are being collected through a fee mechanism....if not by a fee, the City would have no choice but to include them on the Tax Rate Recap, thus making the "Illegal Tax" arguement moot by actual practice even in Fall River and statutes passed by the MA Legislature. Like I said, a false concept at worst and a dinstinction without a difference at best.

I put it to you my readers, if Mayor Flanagan and Attorney Torres, and whoever was advising them during the campaign, understood even the basic principles of public finance,  it's theory as well as it's actual practice in Massachusetts, they would never have run using an argument that the CSO/Stormwater Fee was an Illegal Tax...because, as it turns out, under actual practice AND the law, it can be considered both a fee and a very, very legal tax. Now, many property owners who voted for Mayor Flanagan on the basis of this promise, mostly teabaggers, are expecting fee rebates, and will be quite unhappy when none are processed or handed out!

That's one heck of a choice to consider.....were Mayor Will Flanagan and his advisers ignorant of even the most basic public finance practice and theory, or were they purposely manipulative during the election campaign? You be the judge.

Something To Keep In Mind For FY11..........

Schools bracing for deep cutbacks
With stimulus funds gone, no relief in sight
By Peter Schworm
Globe Staff / January 13, 2010
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 School administrators across the state are crafting bleak budgets for the next school year and warning of steep cutbacks, including teacher layoffs, to cope with a probable sharp drop in funding from Beacon Hill and dwindling federal stimulus money.

Though schools grappled with thinned-down budgets last year, they got relief from a massive infusion of federal education dollars that is now all but spent, and officials are bracing for cuts that go deep into the classroom.
Arlington is weighing the elimination of 21 elementary school teaching positions. Needham, for the first time in recent memory, is also proposing that teaching positions be cut, despite growing enrollment. Hingham, facing a $3 million deficit, has similarly placed 33 teaching positions on the block. Brockton is looking at a staggering shortfall that could approach $20 million.

“We dodged a bullet last year,’’ said Glenn Koocher, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of School Committees. “Now, people have taken the panic buttons out and are keeping them close. There’s an unprecedented level of angst, and it’s evolving into anger.’’

Most school budgets remain in the blueprint stage, as educators wait for Governor Deval Patrick to unveil his spending plan later this month, an announcement that will begin the months-long budget process in earnest.

Some school leaders are reluctant to discuss potential layoffs, wary of harming teachers’ morale. But many said the emerging scope of the crisis makes staff reductions nearly inevitable, with the state reeling from anemic tax collections and residents reluctant to approve property tax increases.

“Over the last couple of years, schools have tried their best to avoid it,’’ said Thomas Scott, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents. “They’ve virtually annihilated everything else: administrators, textbooks, supplies, infrastructure needs. But now there’s no place for them to go but into the marrow of the classroom.’’

While the economy is showing some signs of life, Massachusetts still faces a yawning budget deficit, with one budget watchdog group placing it at $3 billion.
Last year, the state aggressively tapped its savings and spent the bulk of the roughly $800 million in education funds from the federal stimulus package to minimize budget losses. This year, state leaders do not have that luxury.
“Every city and town is likely to face steep local aid cuts,’’ said Samuel R. Tyler, president of the Boston Municipal Research Bureau. “You just don’t know how steep.’’
In recent weeks, state officials have warned local school administrators to expect sharp cuts in local subsidies, although legislators will not determine the final total for several months. In poorer school systems that rely heavily on state assistance, the prospect is alarming.

“We’ve been told to prepare for cuts of 5 to 10 percent,’’ said Aldo Petronio, executive director of financial services for Brockton public schools. “That would be devastating.’’

Brockton, a city rocked by the housing crisis, starkly illustrates the potential affect of education cuts. Last year, the district received $126 million in state funds, which comprised more than 80 percent of its total budget, and another $6.5 million from the federal stimulus package. This year, a sizable chunk of that aid is in jeopardy and, with it, many jobs.

“You can do the math,’’ he said.

The depth of the financial woes sparked a legislative rush earlier this month, with lawmakers passing an education overhaul that will better position the state to qualify for about $250 million reserved for states that aggressively work to improve lackluster schools.

“Last year, the stimulus money provided a lot of cushion,’’ Scott said. “This year it’s not there, and people are bracing for the worst.’’
Legislative leaders have told educators to expect cuts in school assistance, which enjoys strong public support and is fiercely protected by advocates. But given the magnitude of the state’s financial hole, many assume that every budget item is on the table.
“Everyone’s bracing for a cut,’’ said Superintendent John Antonucci of Westwood, who will present a budget with no increase to the School Committee tomorrow. “That means we need to reduce in a lot of areas. That ‘do-more-with-less mentality,’ you can only do that for so long.’’
The budget calls for teachers to go without a cost-of-living salary increase for a second straight year, and many educators predict that financial constraints will make contract negotiations between administrators and teachers more contentious.
“We’re extremely concerned,’’ said Anne Wass, president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association. “Last year, I don’t think the layoffs were as bad as expected because of the stimulus money. Now, it looks like we’re going to be facing some incredibly lean years.’’
Several difficult budget cycles have left schools with virtually no financial margin, others said.
“At some point it all comes home to roost,’’ Scott said.

It is easy to understand why Fall River applied for object specific directed Federal Stimulus Funds for underachieving schools. Given the liklihood that we could see drastic cuts in Local Aid as a result of weak state revenues, after multi-years of cutting scenarios most every community, including Fall River, is down to bare bones. Every dollar cut will be painful. It appears the only place to reduce where it will not impact classroom performance would be the phalanx of  "education hessions", administrators, hired by MMB who seem to do NOTHING in the schools but drink coffee and sit on their arses all day. We need teachers, especially now, even if we qualify for these Stimulus Funds. Enough already with the hand picked out of towners that have become a useless layer of management and impediment to clear and concise communication. More management layers means slower and more muddled policy direction and communication, and provides a ready made insulator with which top level management can hide from their own poor performance, assigning the blame on layers of underlings. At a time we are facing fewer resources, we need to be doing away with these natural insulators. Top management needs to be as accountable as the staff person in the classroom. Something tells me MMB is trying to protect her own future, not the future of the children in the system. Haven't we all had quite enough of the Correia-like blame avoidance machinations  and outright deceipt his hand picked favorites continue to exhibit? What else is new?! When will the people of this City ever learn?!

I also think it may be too early to say whether state revenues will be so weak to necessitate such drastic cuts in Local Aid. Actual versus projected numbers for the remainder of the current year will have to be monitiored closely to see if the last two month's trend of better than expected state revenue performance continues. All I do know for certain is that a 5-10% cut in the School Department's operating budget would have disasterous impact on the ability of the Schools's to meet their achievment and performance objectives.

Education In Fall River On Brink Of Complete Failure

Cadime voted in as new Fall River School Committee vice chairman

Shawn Cadime was voted in as Fall River School Committee vice chairman at the board's Jan. 11 meeting

By Will Richmond
Herald Hews Staff Reporter
Posted Jan 12, 2010 @ 02:21 PM

FALL RIVER — The new year is also bringing new leadership to the School Committee.
In addition to Mayor Will Flanagan assuming the committee’s chairmanship, the group also voted to elect a new vice chairman in Shawn Cadime.The decision, however, was not smooth with the committee first split among two candidates.
Addressing the selection of a vice chairman at Monday night’s committee meeting, a motion was first made by Marilyn Roderick, and seconded by Richard Pavao, to nominate Cadime. That action was followed by Joseph Martins nomination of Mark Costa for the position, which was seconded by Robert Maynard. Costa has served as the vice chairman for the past two years.
With the sides evenly split, the deciding vote came down to Flanagan, who cast his support behind Cadime.
After realizing he did not have enough votes to capture the nomination, Costa then made a motion to make Cadime’s selection unanimous.
Among the vice chairman’s responsibilities is running the meeting should the chairman not be present. It’s a role that would gain greater importance should Flanagan remove himself as chairman during the next two years.
Cadime is entering his third term on the School Committee after finishing second in November’s City Election.
With the decision finalized, Cadime addressed the committee and said he is looking forward to aiding the committee develop a new focus on improving education.
“I want to thank my colleagues for their vote of confidence,” Cadime said. “I am highly optimistic we can usher in a change, and this committee can potentially accomplish great things for the betterment of our educational system.”
Cadime said the committee needs to ensure a strong partnership with Superintendent Meg Mayo-Brown and do a better job building relationships with community partners.
“Together we can overcome some of the obstacles faced not only by the city but this district,” Cadime said.
Cadime is currently employed as a senior program financial analyst for General Dynamics C4 Systems. He is also enrolled in the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth masters in business administration program.
E-mail Will Richmond at wrichmond@heraldnews.com.

I have grave doubts about this. A split appears to be deep. It also appears to split along the lines of Martins versus Cadime, and that sheds light on the forces pro MMB and anti MMB. Why will this be problematic?
It could augur badly for those who wish more public discussion and say in School Committee policy decisions. I also think it sends the wrong message to those families
of students, teachers and staff's of the School Department that the extraordinary levels of administrators who have proven only that they suck up financial resources like so many SHAMWOWS will remain in place even after subject qualified teachers could face summary layoff as a result of the application for Federal Education Stimulus Funds for underperforming schools.
What all the members of the School Committee, especially the Chairman and Vice Chairman, need to realize and accept is that until the audit of school grant funds are timely completed by a new independant third party audit firm (ie, NOT Hague & Sahady...maybe a firm that advertises in the MMA news bulliten, a Boston firm!), and all horror stories I believe you'll find contained within are revaled in the light of day, the School Committee , and MMB in particular, will not receive public support, from taxpayers, parents OR staff. MMB's past life as the Fall River manager of the Title I Grants program needs to be carefully examined to insure every Fall River taxpayer that during her tenure as grant administrator that none of the fun and games and lies that peppered the administration of the Great Destroyer Correia did not also reach The Title I program. After all, who was appointed Superintendent of Schools by the Great Destroyer? With all we know and have seen  of the reign or Correia, do you think the Title I Grant Program was the only item NOT invaded by the corrupting touch of the Great Destroyer? Neither do I! Public support for this person will remain non-existent until a clean audit is produced!

Eventually, the City's population will reject importation of what are the equivelent of "education hessions" throughout school administration and teaching ranks and demand true control be shared with the community at large. This can be done in such a way to build a stronger, more vibrant and responsive School Administration and program, one supported by the City's citizens. Unless and until that is done, the Schools, who have lost nearly all middle class resident's support, is doomed to fail. The current management track has failed, and failed miserably. And worst of all, it is filled with an ethos, and employees, of the Great Destroyer himself. This collection of failure must be driven from the Schools or we will see the City's School's taken over. And that would be a real shame.

Here goes FROED and Fall River once again......

Wampanoag Mill project gets more than $5M in state funding

More than $5 million in state funding will go toward a 97-unit apartment complex at Wampanoag Mill.

By Grant Welker

Herald News Staff Reporter
Posted Jan 10, 2010 @ 05:00 PM
Last update Jan 10, 2010 @ 05:09 PM

FALL RIVER — More than $5 million in state subsidies and federal and state tax credits were announced Friday for a 97-unit apartment complex at Wampanoag Mill.Most units will be set aside for low- and moderate-income residents.........

Winn Development, the developer for Wampanoag Mill, received a special permit and variance waiver a year ago to build apartments in a converted mill on Quequechan Street. The cost of the project was pegged last year at $25 million to $28 million.
Of the 97 planned apartments, 63 will be for low- and moderate-income tenants, and another 10 will be set aside for residents earning 30 percent or less of the area median income. The apartments will be built in the five-story Wampanoag Mill, which has mostly been used as a factory outlet center since its manufacturing heyday ended.
A construction schedule was not announced.
Wampanoag Mill was one of 26 projects across the state to receive a total of $153.9 million in funding. Gov. Deval Patrick’s office announced the funding Friday. The Fall River project was given $1.6 million in subsidies from the state Department of Housing and Community Development, $1.1 million in federal tax credits and $2.4 million in state tax credits.

With this news, we can now see that Fall River once again will be staring down the gun barrel of importation of up to 67 new low and moderate income families from out of Fall River placements so that yet another mega developer, Winn Development, can walk away with it's close to 18% profit margin at very little cost to anyone but we, the taxpayer. Winn, like Peabody, specializes in leveraging local, state and federal grants and tax write offs to provide original equity and project completion funds to complete projects from which they then make huge profits, all at taxpayer expense, and usually, their risk as well.

AND WHO BROUGHT US THIS WONDERFUL "WINDFALL"?  The Fall River Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) and the Fall River Office of Economic Development (FROED)! In fact, Atty. James Clarkin represented Winn Development before the ZBA while serving as a City Attorney:

BOARD OK’S PLAN TO TURN MILL INTO APARTMENTS

Fall River — The half-vacant Wampanoag Mill abutting the Quequechan River will become 97 age- and income-restricted apartments under a $25 million conversion plan a Boston developer presented to the Zoning Board of Appeals Thursday night while seeking needed permits.
Applicant Winn Development, represented by city attorney James Clarkin, received special permit and variance waiver approvals on a pair of 4-0 votes by the ZBA after about an hour discussion and 15 minutes of deliberation.
The board’s chairman and vice chairman, David Assad and Gene Alves, recused themselves from discussion over potential conflicts of interest. Assad’s family has long owned a small adjacent property, while the retired Alves for six years has owned Alco Technology inside the 138-year-old granite mill.
Board secretary Andrea Simister chaired the meeting, which included regular member Richard Mateus and alternates John Frank and Denise Luccida to form the needed four-member quorum.
The special permit to convert the historically significant mill located within an industrial zone for multifamily residential use met the two required criteria: that the public good is served and not adversely affected by such use, and the permitted uses are not “noxious” as multifamily apartments.
All apartments would have one person age 55 and older and two-thirds would require incomes up to $33,000 for the one-bedroom and $40,000 for 10 two-bedroom units........ (source: FROED WebSite)

Always the same names, always the same questions ....when will this City ever learn...let's see what some of the other recipients of Winn Development's  "largesse" seems to say about the way Winn does business, and think to yourself, were they any different here?

" Winn Some, Lose Some (Posted by Bill Dusty on Oct 16th, 2008 and filed under Cities & Towns, City Hall, Politics, Society.)  FROM WEBSITE "The Springfield Intruder" http://springfieldintruder.com/?p=1101
by Bill Dusty

With this years’ state budget shortfalls and Governor Deval Patrick’s recent announcement of layoffs and budget cuts, local municipalities are left wondering which pet projects and pork barrel favorites may be the targets of the Governor’s fiscal ax. Patrick has said that state aid to cities and towns will remain unaffected – for now. But the future is murky, and promises are not kept forever.
Here in Springfield, many residents have their own concerns about which programs may or may not survive the state’s cuts. And still other residents have their personal wish lists.
In the Forest Park section of Springfield, the battle lines have been drawn out for months, now, as two neighborhood associations have spent nearly the entire year squaring off over the fate of the currently vacant, former Longhill Gardens Condominiums project. For the Forest Park Civic Association (FPCA), selecting an apparently pre-approved developer to resuscitate the properties was a simple matter of a show of hands at an annual meeting. For the folks over at Springfield Forward, meanwhile, the FPCA meeting was a rubber-stamp job that was heavily tainted by questionable dealings on behalf of some members of the Association.
It all began back in the summer and fall of 2007, after the Longhill Gardens projects sank into receivership and were ordered shut down, vacated, and condemned by the courts. Unknown to many at the time, a Boston-based real estate management and development company, WinnCompanies (aka: WinnDevelopment), signed off on a letter of agreement that November with Citibank, the mortgage holder of most of the units at Longhill Gardens. That letter of agreement for the purchase of the property was contingent upon WinnCompanies winning state aid to help finance their redevelopment plans for the site.
On February 24, 2008, the FPCA hosted an annual meeting where a vote allegedly took place to support WinnCompanies plans. Another civic group, Concerned Citizens for Springfield (CCS), also voted in favor of Winn. But Springfield Forward protested both the votes and the conditions under which they were taken. That’s because according to state records, the FPCA and Concerned Citizens had board members serving with both organizations at the time of the voting. Yet both the City and the media reported the two votes as being two separate examples of “community support.” Furthermore, as a property owner at Longhill Gardens, with five units, Concerned Citizens could hardly be categorized as a financially disinterested party. Springfield Forward contended that the community at large should have been allowed to have their voices heard as well as been allowed to vote on Winn’s plans, the same as the board members of the FPCA and CCS. This reportedly never happened. Instead, both the Mayor’s office and Winn touted the FPCA and CCS votes as evidence of widespread community support for the Winn project. (Read more details on these events here.)
From the very beginning of this controversial episode, supporters of Winn have asserted that the Winn plan was the only viable plan to go forward with. The Intruder was specifically told by a city official earlier this year that going along with any other proposal was “impossible.” Pronouncements of Winn’s greatness and how efficient and successful they are have been heard repeatedly from their backers, both at the FPCA and at City Hall. But a closer examination of Winn’s operations in another Massachusetts city reveals a company that is perhaps not so efficient, and whose business practices may be best described by some observers as being unsatisfactory, to say the least.
In Boston, Massachusetts, folks had also been smitten by the charms of WinnDevelopment for a long time. Winn’s partnership with local manager Roger Cassin had promised to bring a luxury hotel and retail complex, called the Columbus Center, to the city’s economically-depressed South End. The project reportedly began a over a decade ago. Yet years passed with little progress made at the proposed site. meanwhile, the project’s cost had skyrocketed from an estimated $300 million to approximately $800 million.
Then, back in 2005, the Cassin-Winn partnership reportedly approached a non-profit group, Boston Connects, Inc., with a $500,000 enticement. According to a July 25, 2007 South End News story, Cassin-Winn promised the half-a-million dollars to Boston Connects in exchange for that group’s board of directors lobbying to get the Columbus Center site brought into a federally-designated “empowerment zone” that Boston Connects administered. From the South End News story:
In a move that appears to have deviated from typical procedures in Boston and some other cities administering empowerment zones, Columbus Center developers lobbied Boston Connects, Inc. the nonprofit group that administers the Boston Empowerment Zone, to expand the zone so that land slated for the Columbus Center development would be included within it. As part of the lobby effort, Cassin-Winn Development pledged to pay a “financial package” of $500,000 to Boston Connects if the group’s board of directors recommended to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that the zone be expanded, according to minutes of Boston Connects board meetings that took place in 2005 and 2006.
State Representatives Marty Walz and Byron Rushing are both opposed to public funds being used for the Columbus Center project. And both representatives, too, were reportedly unaware of the arraignment until informed of it by South End News.
“This report raises a tremendous number of questions about the neutrality of a governmental agency that’s accepting money from an applicant,” said Walz in the South End News article, “and I want to hear from Boston Connects and the Mayor about why this money was being given from a developer to an allegedly neutral governmental agency that was considering an application from a developer that should be weighed on the merits, not whether the developer makes a payment.”
Said Rushing in the same article: “My guess is that other developers do not know that if they came to the empowerment zone board with a chunk of money, that they would be able to perhaps get the boundaries changed for them.”
In an August, 2007, story from South End News that followed up on the controversy, word came out that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) had opened an investigation into the Cassin-Winn payoff of Boston Connects on behalf of South End resident Ned Flaherty. According to the article, Flaherty complained that Federal money that was meant to alleviate poverty was instead being delivered into the coffers of a wealthy real estate developer.
“I’m glad we know that they have begun to take a look at this,” said Rep. Rushing in the article, “and I hope that their investigation will be thorough, but also I hope they will be transparent with us. The people who live around Columbus Center need to hear what HUD’s take is on this.”
One year later, one thing had become perfectly clear to everyone: The 11-year-old Cassin-Winn project had come to a grinding halt. A May 2, 2008, Boston Business Journal story detailed the carnage:
Today, after a decade of planning and debates, the area is a dreary vista of cyclone fences, idle machinery, dirt piles and construction signs that were meant to be temporary but have become fixtures of the local scenery.
Columbus Center is in limbo, and no one knows when it’ll emerge — a victim of escalating project costs and stalemates over funding.
The holdup this time was the city of Boston’s reluctance to fork over $15 million in “tax increment financing” until WinnDevelopment could verify that all of its other financing for the project was in place. Winn in turn was apparently arguing that it needed the city’s money for use as equity for that other financing, according to the Director of the Boston Redevelopment Authority, John Palmieri, in the same Boston Business Journal story.
State Representative Byron Rushing was quoted again in the Journal article: “I have no idea what’s going to happen, and I think it’s outrageous that we have a project that has essentially prevented any other proposal for air rights in the South End to come forward because they have complete development rights over this land.”
Four months later, in an effort to extract itself from the quagmire that the Columbus Center had become, Winn brought in two developers to help find a way to bail out the failed venture. Related Properties, out of New York, and Beal Companies, out of Boston, agreed to take on a “six-week, top-to-bottom review of the Columbus Center’s finances to determine whether the long-troubled project remains viable,” according to this Boston Globe story.
What will make their job even more difficult is the state’s decision to rescind promised funds for the project, as well as “significant” resident opposition. From the Boston Globe article:
In the 11 years since Winn first started planning the construction, Columbus’s costs have soared to more than double its initial projected costs, from around $300 million to its most recent estimate of $800 million. Moreover, Winn and MacFarlane failed to obtain a package of $35 million in previously promised state subsidies after the Patrick administration lost confidence in the developers’ ability to proceed. The project also encountered significant opposition from residents in the South End and the Back Bay over the size of the project and the use of public funds for what is mostly a luxury development.
Meanwhile, back in Springfield, critics of the Winn proposal for Longhill Gardens continue to be labeled as naysayers, outsiders or worse.
And the hero’s welcome continues for WinnCompanies, our city’s last, best hope to soak up taxpayer dollars  "

I think, after the near miss with Peaobody, that Mayor Flanagan, when he gets a chance, has to make major changes on the FROED Board of Directors and most importantly, allow Ken Fiola to achieve greatness elsewhere. In fact, this blog will remind him of this "opportunity" for Mr. Fiola on a regular basis until it happens. I, for one, cannot believe these transactions are arm's length at all. And I also think just because you once played basketball for Durfee it does not entitle you to more than waking up and taking a breath each day. Atty's Brilhante and Fiola please take notice. Sorry Fall River...it's grow up time!

Song of the Reptile

Fall River taking aim at deliquent taxpayers

----------------------------

By Michael Holtzman

Herald News Staff Reporter

Posted Jan 08, 2010 @ 10:47 PM

Last update Jan 09, 2010 @ 06:21 AM
----------------------------
FALL RIVER — Hundreds of tax scofflaws have one month to pay their fiscal 2009 property taxes or the city will lien their properties, Collector Shannon L. Lyonnais reported.
She’s placed a legal advertisement in Sunday’s Herald News listing 372 property owners to pony up $982,575.55 by Feb. 8 at 9:30 a.m. or risk legal proceedings prescribed under state law.
Liens will be placed at that time at the city’s Registry of Deeds.
Lyonnais reported being bolstered by response to her warning letter of Oct. 21 informing owners the listed properties are in jeopardy of having liens placed on them.
At that time, just more than $1.8 million of real estate taxes was owed.
In the ensuing 2½ months, through the end of business Thursday, the city received 423 payments totaling $827,720, leaving the nearly $1 million unpaid balance.
The bad news was that the amount of unpaid taxes this year is close to double the amount owed a year ago, perhaps reflecting the poor economy and unemployment, Lyonnais said.

Last February she mailed 614 letters seeking $1.1 million in back taxes.
Close to $600,000 was paid off following the warning letters were sent, leaving a legal advertisement for $533,079 on 294 parcels on last March 21.
With this year’s listing roughly $460,000 more than a year ago when Douglas Industries had the largest tax debt at about $27,000, several owners are delinquent by far more than that.
Essentially all in the top tier are commercial holdings.

Five Kings Associates LLC owes $109,471 for its 6-acre 386 Kilburn St. granite mill property bought for $2 million in 2004. The company owes another $6,265 for 379 Kilburn St.

A familiar name appears next among highest delinquent taxes: Quaker Fabric, which filed for bankruptcy protection and laid off the 930 remaining workers in 2007, owes $85,000 for properties at 387 Quarry St. and Brayton Avenue, where there is 8½ acres.

Homeland Realty LLC owes $76,191 for its 465 Sykes Road property on 8.6 acres. The company bought the property in 2000 for $258,000 and built a steel industrial building the next year.

The Greater Fall River Development Corp. bought the property in 1980 for $345,712 and sold it to Homeland 20 years later. It’s assessed for $4.1 million, including $1 million for the land.

Colville Properties owes $42,021 for 37 Hargraves St., another $6,113 for 63 Hargraves St. and $2,915 for 270 Fifth St., a total more than $51,000.

The company owing for the most properties of consequence is Hanover Properties LLC. The company owes about $35,000. But there are outstanding taxes on 16 properties, an average of about $2,000 each and most appearing to be investment apartment rentals, assessors’ records show.
Brayton Avenue Development owes taxes on many parcels, all of them listed for $342.55.
Other owners with significant tax obligations include:


— Sandra Botelho, 45 William St., $33,519.
— North American Acquisitions, Weaver Street and 221A and 221D Weaver Street, three properties, total of $21,790.
— Magellans Cousin LLC, two properties, Weaver Street and 100 Weaver Street, total of $11,596.
— Pauline Management Inc., 43 Lowell St., $10,257.
— Pleasant St. Condo Association, 212 Pleasant St., $20,821.

While customarily the city does not take subsequent legal action on properties liened in prior years, a few properties and owners listed last year appear on this list, including: Douglas Properties, which runs a concrete business in the city and gravel operation in Tiverton.
They owe about $38,000 on eight properties, including Kay Street with 3.5 acres, $25,661.
Also listed last year and again this year was Water Street Café owner Jeanne Azar, 56 Water St., $12,736.

Two others listed that have been in the news in recently include:
— Gregory A. Brilhante, Diman School Committee legal counsel, who last month sought a contract extension, 18 Salisbury St., $1,939; 114 Adams St., $2,901, and 31 Almy St., $1,210, total of about $6,100.
— Cindy Rego, sister-in-law of John Pavao and sister of Debra Pavao, who were charged by Florida authorities in a multi-million mortgage scheme that awaits trial, 2160 South Main St., $1,666.
The city has had a policy of not collecting delinquent taxes for amounts less than $30. There are roughly a half-dozen or fewer in that category.
On the reverse side of the ledger, Lyonnais said she expects to see a legal ad published in the next few days of roughly 300 property owners who have not cashed checks the city issued for real estate abatements and for other reasons.(Note: Called "TAILINGS"...once again Mr. Holtzman shows himself, and the HN, incapable of thorough reporting on municipal finance issues)
The amount totals $65,981.47, with the average roughly $200 and many less than $100.
Only two of the uncashed checks are for more than $1,000: Carlos Costa, 31 Bourne Road, Swansea, $1,254.84; and Tilly Realty Associates, 386 Kilburn St., $6,157.50.

Several checks are for less than a sawbuck, such as $7.09 for the Eagle Restaurant, 45 N. Main St.

For reasons Lyonnais could not explain, 386 Kilburn St. property owner of record Five Kings Associates is listed as owing more than $100,000 in back taxes through June 30.

E-mail Michael Holtzman at mholtzman@heraldnews.com.

Typically, once lien letters have been sent, a good portion of overdue taxes are paid by those owing monies to the municipality. However, there are always those who absolutely will not pay until the Sheriffs just about to say "SOLD", at the auction of properties. In most cases these are businesses or individuals holding property for investment purposes waiting until the last possible moment to pay their property taxes.

But, regrettably, there are those instances when even the most legitimately minded individuals and businesses are unable, for whatever reasons or combination of reasons, to pay what they owe.

Having been responsible for property takings while a Municipal Finance Director, when there was any chance an individual would be able to pay the taxes owed at some point, every effort was made to accommodate the property owner, especially in the instance of a single family property where a tax taking would essentially render the family homeless. Once a lien has been filed, and assumming additional unpaid taxes have been properly added to the lien, the municipality will eventually be paid, either directly by the owner or in the event the property is sold and/or transferred in any way. Only  federal tax liens, state tax liens and child support liens take precedent over municipal liens. Uncle Sam ALWAYS gets his money!

All the other properties should be moved to auction as soon as possible. This is the best way to not only obtain the taxes through turnover of the property, but is the most fair policy for the overwhelming majority of property owners in the municipality. One of the foundation principals of property tax policy is that the policy be fair to all, in its determination of amount owed and in it's collection.

I never had the idea that it was my role to carry delinquent tax payers forever. The City does not win, nor does it do well, when it plays the role of LANDLORD, so to speak. At some point it becomes a careful balancing act, always having to err on the side of taking the property. Single family owners were the only individuals who received such leeway, and that was because I knew the City would eventually get it's cash from the property. All others had to be made to pay in  an expidited manner.

It was at this point, where the current Tax Collector is now - and it sounds like she's doing a solid, good job, from what I can see and hear - when the local politicians would make their way to casually "drop bye" to attempt to intercede on behalf of attorneys or business owners and the amounts of taxes they owed. I always found this quite distasteful. It was always some form of "Couldn't you just give them more time?" NOPE! I can tell you in all my years of being in charge of property tax administration, I never was approached by politicians on behalf of a single family home owner, or someone living in a duplex, for example, who lived on one side and rented the other. These people would usually make their way to me on their own, and I did everything possible to assist them. I think it's a sad reality that local politicians would rather move heaven and earth to lobby you for a business entity, but not individuals.

I sincerely hope that Ms. Lyonnais has not been approached by some of the more reptilian members of our fine and upstanding City Council. However I am willing to bet that she has been, if not right now, then  during the last two years under the Great Pretender and his slithering friends among the City Council. By their past votes ye shall know them.

City Councilor at Tax Lien Time

Two things of I took notice of while reading the article. The first was this sentence:

"The company owing for the most properties of consequence is Hanover Properties LLC. The company owes about $35,000. But there are outstanding taxes on 16 properties, an average of about $2,000 each and most appearing to be investment apartment rentals, assessors’ records show."

These types of investments often have oodles of professional types involved, holding onto the properties for tax writeoffs of one sort or another, and often have more than sufficient resources to pay the property taxes owed. It is precisely these type of properties, with local professional types who contribute to local politicians, which should be taken to auction first. They are also the type of property over which the reptiles will approach the Tax Collector . DISGUSTING! While real families try to keep roofs over their heads after loosing their jobs, these paracites, trying to cull favors, sic their friendly pols on hard working public servants. Beacuse let me tell you folks, there is no such thing as a gentle threat. And a visit from a City Councilor to help a friend out is just that. It's pernicious behavior.
These owner/investor's will sell to another entity or persons to retain the loss for their clients tax situation, if nothing else. So either way, get the property because Fall River needs the property taxes and these investors, as a class, will not be hurt one way or the other!
 The second item of note was the following:

"Two others listed that have been in the news in recently include:
— Gregory A. Brilhante, Diman School Committee legal counsel, who last month sought a contract extension, 18 Salisbury St., $1,939; 114 Adams St., $2,901, and 31 Almy St., $1,210, total of about $6,100.
— Cindy Rego, sister-in-law of John Pavao and sister of Debra Pavao, who were charged by Florida authorities in a multi-million mortgage scheme that awaits trial, 2160 South Main St., $1,666."

How is it that a close friend of The Great Pretender, Mr. Gregory A. Brilhante, Diman School Committee legal counsel, whose Correia stooges attempted to bless with an all new contract extension until the whistle was blown by responsible adults, can be mentioned in the same breath as some of the more notorious, entirely disreputable Fall River miscreants? I'm not sure, but it tends to explain the panic with which the outgoing mayor sent forth his own reptilian forces to secure Mr. Brilhante's contract extension. It appears that Mr. Brilhante is a might overextended. But, I have a suspicion he's good for the cash. Never heard of a decent attorney who was broke. NEVER...have you? My advice to the Tax Collector...go after these two with EXTREME PREJUDICE...but legally, of course!

My good wishes to Tax Collector Lyonnais. Keep gettin' after them. We need the money!