2007 archive of links to stories from other
sources
Note: all links were live and valid at the time of original
posting; any dead links are the result of moved content on the linked-to web
sites
Prior archive of stories from other web
sites: 2007 2006 2005 2004
2007: A year so big that it took 12 months to kill it "Venice city officials were working on a secret deal to
develop the airport and adjacent public golf course when the public got wind of
it" -- gee, wonder how that happened? Oh yeah, it was Venice Florida! dot
com that first told you about the Marriott at the airport
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 12/31/07
Gondo still wanking over 2007 election
Gondo looks back at 2007 and craps all over itself in their
Worst of the Year List;
print edition included a pic of Ernie Zavodnyik,
Sue Lang, and
Ed Martin being sworn into office directly under headline "Bye-bye 2007 - we
won't miss you;" TO CANCEL YOUR GONDO SUBSCRIPTION, CALL 941-207-1300
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 12/30/07
Englewood Water District to county: Fix yer toilets
Englewood Water District's bad boy list includes a broken toilet
at an unoccupied single-family house owned by Sarasota County Parks and
Recreation... wait... huh? Why does the county own a single-family home? How
many of these do they own?
-- Eric Ernst, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 12/30/07
The legacy of Katherine Harris:
Voter blacklist from 2000, 2004 elections tossed by federal judge
"Plaintiffs do not allege that these errors are the result of any
ill-intent on behalf of the state;" -- yeah, right, cuz that would never happen,
not in Florida
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 12/27/07
This is the sound of a bubble bursting
Southwestern Florida: it was here that housing prices multiplied first and most
exuberantly, and here that the deterioration has unfolded most rapidly; this
region offers what may be a foretaste of the economic pain awaiting other parts
of the country
-- NY Times, 12/23/07
OK, we've outlawed short term rentals... now what?
We get sued, of course, and not just any old 'ho hum, there's
another subpoena on the landing' sued, we're gonna get sued like a blind rabbi
with Parkinson's after a botched bris gets sued
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 12/21/07
Dear CQG cretin: Merry Christmas, you pustulant toad
We're still not sure if it was Jim Clinch, Ed Taylor, or someone else who called
in to the Gondo last week with a vitriolic diatribe aimed at the Gods and all of
creation, but it was funny as hell
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 12/21/07
eBay
headed for the big flush
Scammers on the outside, cannibals on the inside, and the CEO has gone AWOL to
skip through the daisies somewhere with Mitt Romney
-- Wired, 12/18/07
Jim Todora explains the proposed property tax laws
On January 29, Florida voters will be asked if they approve of
four changes to the property tax laws -- here's the view from the county's
property appraiser
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 12/16/07
Fire department's bake sale: pay an extra $180 or you bake
Gondo story |
Herald-Trib story
Not content with current budgetary restraints, the fire department wants
an extra $180 a year from each taxpayer -- yeah, that's gonna go over
well
-- both stories 12/12/07
2007:
Tomato Pasta Park revisioned now
It's been four years since the $10 million bond passed --
plenty of time to forget what was actually on the ballot
-- Venice Gondolier, 12/09/07
2004:
Tomato Pasta Park revisioned then
It's been one year since
the $10 million bond passed -- plenty of time to forget what was
actually on the ballot
-- Venice Gondolier, 11/24/04
My first day at school
I lost my mittens, the older kids took my lunch money and stuffed me in
a locker, and I couldn't find a bathroom so I held it in all day
-- Ed Martin's blog, 12/04/07
Running AOL on your computer? Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
Using AOL and its Instant Messenger service (AIM) is a
cold way to get a viral infection, somewhat akin to having unprotected sex with a
syphilitic corpse (not that there's anything wrong with that)
-- Wired, 12/06/07
Florida's state fund crisis has a familiar smell
Coleman Stipanovich, the executive director of the
Florida State Board of Administration, made the decision to resign while
driving to yesterday’s board meeting; In an interview, he declined to
discuss the fund’s investment decisions on the record: “I’m not going to
go there, we’re in the move-on stage”
-- NY Times, 12/05/07
Miller gets his four stories, becomes media darling
Note to Miller: The PR person in your organization who
greenlighted the idea of having you pose in front of one of your towers
should be shot
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 12/01/07
State-run investment fund is in a bit of a panic
Facing a run by panicked local government investors, Florida officials
on Thursday suspended withdrawals from a state-run, short-term
investment fund that has shrunk to $15 billion from $26 billion over the
past two weeks
-- Reuters, 11/30/07
Ya wanna make a city economically viable? Make it family friendly
If you talk with recruiters and developers in the
nation's fastest growing regions, you find that the critical ability to
lure skilled workers, long term, lies not with bright lights and
nightclubs, but with ample economic opportunities, affordable housing
and family friendly communities not too distant from work
-- Wall Street Journal, 11/27/07
VHA's Prost promises to rebuild
He'll be gone after January, so he has no way of keeping
that promise, but that should be no cause for alarm, right?
-- letters, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/26/07
Honey, I shot the kid
Bad day at the police shooting range
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/25/07
A MUST
READ ARTICLE IF YOU CARE ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN'S FUTURE:
Al Gore: The Rolling Stone interview "It's a mistake to think of the climate crisis as one
in a list of issues that will define our future: It is THE issue!"
-- Rolling Stone, via Progressives for Gore, 11/15/07
43
Is Black's memo an indication that he is willing to turn
on a dime or an admission that the city has some serious problems
that have been ignored for quite some time?
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/25/07
Bush to honor Gore at White House
blink... blink... you can't believe you read that
headline... we can't believe we published it... blink... blink...
-- New York Times, 11/16/07
DEP investigating Osprey Wal-Mart developer Rodriguez
Henry Rodriguez, who built the Wal-Mart in Osprey, is suddenly shy a few mangrove plants on his home property
-- that's called an oooops
-- Pelican Press, 11/22/07
Short-term rental clusterflap about to get ugly
Venice residents wanted this fight, city hall flip-flopped
like an IHOP during breakfast rush, now it's full throttle towards an
inevitable brick wall
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/23/07
Pudding, Jell-O, and EST: Tom Slaughter gets "it" -- eh, maybe
Herald-Trib rediscovers EST and starts quoting Werner Erhard
in a loving tribute to Jell-O and city planner Tom Slaughter; H-T ignores
the possibility that Slaughter may likely lose "it" big time in upcoming
short-term rental debacle
-- Eric Ernst, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/23/07
The Return of the Living Wal-Mart
The Planning Commission thought they had buried Mike Miller's
hastily drawn plans for a Super Wal-Mart on Laurel Road; Miller and his
attorneys have crawled out of the grave and are slowly lurching towards city
council: "Braaains... braaaaaaaains."
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/21/07
World leaders head to Bali next month to update Kyoto Protocol "With this final report, the scientists have done their
job and explained that global warming is happening and we need to do
something about it; We have to stop hiding behind China, and China has to
stop hiding behind us."
-- Wired, 11/20/07
Civility can kill you
According to a series of studies at Frankfurt University by
Dr. Dieter Zapf, fake smiles can
have serious effects on your health
-- Adelaide Advertiser, 03/17/06
The "R" word
Recession? No recession? Ask the workers
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/17/07
How I spent my summer
The new Hizzoner looks back at the campaign trail
-- Ed Martin's blog, 11/17/07
Mardirossian sues the world
Aris Mardirossian, the investor behind the now-dead Marriott
project at the airport, claims that he invented instant international text messaging, is
suing Microsoft, Yahoo!, the government of China, and 128 other internet and phone
service providers -- good
luck with that
-- Maryland IP Law, 11/05/07
Gondo muffs VHA story
First, this is a land grab setup and the Gondo is puffing it;
secondly, the Gondo incorrectly jabs Valerie Buchand for her correct
interpretation of Residents Council requirements -- this is godawful
journalism that never should have been published
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/16/07
We're not running out of water -- we're out
The mathematical reality of too many people using finite
resources has caught up with us, but you probably won't believe it until
your kitchen tap goes dry -- that would be a mistake
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/14/07
Good thing Hammett's not bitter... much
You won't have Fred Hammett to kick around any more --
somewhere in the cosmos, Dick Nixon is applauding
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/14/07
Dear Bob Vedder: STFU "Bob Vedder just won't quit defending all the wrongs that have been
overseen by this council, who in fact have represented special interests and
not the people of Venice"
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun
HUD
'em up and move 'em out "The land is a secondary concern at this point" --
yeah, uh-huh, right
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/13/07
Hooray for Precinct 150 -- wait, what?
Precinct 150 had the largest voter turnout in a vote that
ousted three council members; the great irony not mentioned in the article
is that
Precinct 150 is located in Waterford, Mike Miller's gated community, where
Miller campaigned heavily for the incumbents
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/13/07
Going green can get you some green
So our present ecology-grinding economy has come to a
grinding halt -- could there be a way to tool up the economy while saving
the planet? Al Gore and some capital investors in Silicon Valley think so
-- Wired, 11/13/07
CQG:
When male bonding goes bad
CQG's Boone, Harner ducking phone calls; CQG prez Fishman
quotes Tony Soprano: "We're just members of this community like anyone else"
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/11/07
The "R" word - Recession
While some economists say no, most of the statistics suggest we are in a recession; all agree the Gulf Coast is suffering more than most of Florida
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune,11/10/07
Election results were anti-business? How do you figure? "Citizens essentially stated they like their community the
way it is, yet they want to make it even better and will put up the money to
do it; for most businesses, that type of climate is ideal"
-- Eric Ernst, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/09/07
Gondo's thinly veiled teeth gnashing over election
Gondo publisher Bob Vedder's soul is being eaten alive by his
hatred of the idea that Sue Lang is now on city council and he's doing a
very lousy job at hiding it
-- editorial, Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/09/07
Chamber of Commerce's John Ryan ain't happy either
Another bad job at hiding emotions, as though Ed Martin has to offer an
olive branch to a community that overwhelmingly voted him in; as for Ryan's smug
shoulder-shrugging comments -- isn't it about time for Jim Clinch to weigh in?
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/09/07
Wal-Mart, Miller told to FOAD
Mike Miller needs the Wal-Mart to provide the base funding
for his Renaissance project; planning commission yawns, offers to send
flowers to the funeral
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/09/07
Landslide victory!
Gondo story |
Herald-Trib story
CQG's long run of owning city council is over; incumbent
officials struggling to remove boots from their asses
- both stories, 11/07/07
Super majority, sales tax referendums pass
Mixed signals on those two referendums: Sales tax is geared towards funding
growth while Super Majority is aimed at controlling it
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/07/07
Final numbers
in city race
Challengers beat incumbents by 2-1 margin; strangely,
Zavodnyik pulled in the most votes (5,140), followed by Lang (5,042), with
Martin in third place (5,013)
-- Supervisor of Elections, 11/07/07
Martin, Lang, Zavodnyik win!
Coup d'état with pie charts Three coins in a fountain? Try three heads in a basket
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/06/07
HOLY
CRAP:
Here we gooooooo...
Today's the day, and brand new Diebold voting machines are
ready... What could possibly go wornggggg?
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/06/07
Last ditch PR
attempt backfires: Half-finished unmanned fire station dedicated
The new symbol of growth in North Venice won't be open until
December, but by dedicating it now, Hammett and company ensure that their
names are on the plaque -- nice albatross there, Fred, you look good wearing
it
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/06/07
County Commissioner Thaxton on green energy Thaxton lauds Crist and Buchanan
over their environmental stances -- sounds good so far, but is Florida's carbon
footprint shrinking yet?
-- letters, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/05/07
Voting is way, way up An angry constituency
is an ugly thing to behold -- if you are running for re-election, that is
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/04/07
Gondo tries to justify split endorsements
Paper blames it on community schizophrenia -- Good luck with that lame
explanation because there isn't anyone else in Venice who's gonna follow that
logic
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/04/07
Republicans wanna party like it's 1988 Republicans trying to turn local race into Bush Sr.
versus Dukakis, Democrats see it as Carter versus Ford, and hey, has anyone
looked at the calendar?
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/03/07
Gondo
has already endorsed Woods, Willson; and now for mayor, ... WTF?
Some days I wake up, look out, and smile with the knowledge that
there's some seriously schizophrenic people in this town -- the worst ones work
for newspaper editorial departments at the Gondo and Herald-Trib
-- editorial, Venice Gondolier Sun
Mike Miller's astroturfed protest
Really, Mike, did you actually think we'd be fooled by this crap?
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 11/02/07
Ed Taylor's drug problem grows
Marriott on the beach's point man, Ed Taylor, on growth: "Uncontrolled
growth has not been a problem within Venice's city limits;" Hey, did you
bring enough of those mushrooms for the rest of the class, Ed? In other news,
foreclosure rates triple over last three month period (that last part is not
a joke, wish it were)
-- letters, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 11/01/07
No surprise number 2: Gondo picks Willson over Zavodnyik
The paper banned some ads for Zavodnyik, so the
endorsement of Willson is no surprise; now we all hold our breaths
waiting to see the comedy goodness of supporting Hammett's idiocy over
the paper's own policy columnist, Martin
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 10/31/07
Venice Housing Authority primed for land grab For years, the city and investors have tried to
figure out a way to grab the valuable land owned by the HUD housing
project -- now the prize is within tantalizing reach, but then there's
those pesky elections and that could ruin the dream
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/28/07
Herald-Trib endorses Lang, Zavodnyik, and... WTF?
See if you can even begin to follow this logic:
H-T gives strong, no punches pulled endorsements for Lang and Zavodnyik,
then weakly nudges Hammett over Martin on a coin toss
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/28/07
Lang versus Woods: This will only end in bloodshed
These two really don't like each other with a loathing that comes from
the depths of tortured souls; Both dodge the question "What's a Budway?"
while Venice Florida! dot com has discovered the answer: 12 fluid ounces
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/27/07
Mike Miller's
money pit in Bradenton: The Palms
One building done, one building stalled, one resident, and 57
empty units -- anybody want to buy a condo in Bradenton? Now all of the
shenanigans surrounding the proposed Wal-Mart in Venice is starting to make
sense - EVERYONE PANIC!
-- Bradenton Herald, 09/23/07
Martin, Hammett disagree on growth
Hammett thinks it is just a fungus growing in between his
toes, Martin tells Hizzoner that maybe a qualified physician ought to
take a look
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/25/07
The Prophet of Climate Change: James Lovelock
One of the most eminent scientists of our time says that global warming
is irreversible — and that more than 6 billion people will perish by the
end of the century
-- Jeff Goodell in Rolling Stone, 10/17/07
Woods lied
In a mad grab to keep his seat on council, Jim Woods trotted out some false
information about his challenger, Sue Lang -- Herald-Trib's Eric Ernst calls
him out
-- Eric Ernst, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/21/07
Vote YES for Super Majority
Land use has never been a more important issue, the Super
Majority rule will ensure that appropriate use will be the major factor in
future decisions
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/21/07
Panic hits the Gondo -- Weirdest. Editorial. Ever.
Gondo has a very public nervous breakdown due to identity crisis:
should it stand by it's good ol' boy friends despite their asinine behavior or
should it take a stand for its readers? Gondo's response is to delay its
endorsements and beg incumbents to do something, anything
-- editorial, Venice Gondolier Sun, 10/21/07
Grove Terrace landgrab magnifique: a fait accompli?
Gondo story |
Herald-Trib story
HUD housing complex has spent itself into near bankruptcy on consultants;
consultants are now advocating dumping the residents and selling to developers
-- gee, what a surprise
-- both stories 10/19/07
Grove Terrace is down the tubes
For years, the HUD complex has funneled much needed funds to
consultants and attorneys -- now they're about to be told by a consultant that
they are bankrupt from spending too much money on consultants
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 10/17/07
Miller disrupts Planning Commission hearing with
staged protest circus
Gondo story |
Herald-Trib story
Is the local economy so bad that the only hope for our children is a door
greeter job at Wal-Mart? Mike Miller wants you to think so
-- both, 10/17/07
Wal-Mart is the leading cause of Medicaid payments in Georgia and other states
Those low, low prices have a high, high back-end price tag for
taxpayers as state governments end up footing the bill for the employer's low,
low
wages and lack of benefits -- that's what you would refer to as "corporate
welfare"
-- USA Today, from April of 2005
Wal-Mart,
Wal-Mart,
Wal-Mart,
Wal-Mart,
scrub jays,
Wal-Mart,
Wal-Mart,
Wal-Mart
8 different letters linked to in above headline; In other news,
Ed Martin's wife, Peggy, is boxing up his home office and shipping it all to
city hall: "At last, I can have that room back"
-- letters, Herald-Trib, Gondo, Ed Martin's blog, 10/14/07
Dear Fred -- Maybe try this?
It's three weeks until the election and Hammett is all but guaranteed to lose
his job as mayor; maybe the CQG should take notes from this Hialeah city council
campaign -- what the hell, it might work
-- UPI, 10/13/07
Zavodnyik disses Wal-Mart
CQG candidates still silent on Wal-Mart headed for Laurel Road,
despite the fact that it's been floating silently in the background for a couple
of years
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 10/12/07
Challengers kicking ass AND taking names in council race
Martin, Zavodnyik come out swinging; appointed mayor guy mumbles
about his experience at rubberstamping tall buildings when he was on the
Planning Commission
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/10/07
A Super Wal-Mart in North Venice?
Just as council manage to bury Tra Ponti and airport development
until after the elections, a new monster rears its ugly head
-- letters, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/10/07
Money and local politics
Fundraising by challengers upsets CQG prez C.J. Fishman: "This shouldn't be about
money;" Careful, C.J., lest the Gods of Irony smite thee
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 10/09/07
Boone,
VGA to city: we want our kickback BLAST FROM THE PAST, 2004: Venice
Golf Association and their attorney, Dan Boone, feel cheated by not being able
to cheat the city; Herb Levine surrenders
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 06/26/04
Martin takes on Willson over so-called "villages"
The city's comp plan changes call for "villages" -- closely
packed clusters of tall condominium buildings; Willson states that landowners in
areas like Golden Beach have the right to build them already, Ed Martin says au
contraire
-- Ed Martin, 10/05/07
Sharky's caught building without a permit
Hey, it's OK -- we only hired Native Americans, so it's perfectly
legal; Jesus Federico Longfeather, Pedro Ramon Eaglewing, and Conchita Rosalinda Lonewolf unavailable for
comment
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 10/05/07
The anti-CQG PAC goes online
It takes money to win an election -- Herb Levine's Concerned
Taxpayers PAC plans to give the CQG a run for theirs
-- Concerned Taxpayers PAC
More comp plan fun:
It takes a village to raze a town
Ed Martin has been less than thrilled about the city's comp
plan for a couple of years now, particularly about the city's "villages" of
compacted tall buildings -- turns out that the state agrees with him
-- Ed Martin, 10/02/07
Tallahassee on
city's comp plan:
They love us, they love us not
Gondo story |
Herald-Trib story
Gondo and Herald-Trib are miles apart in their coverage of
the state's objections to the comp plan: Gondo claims the state loves us,
Herald-Trib actually talks to the state and gets a somewhat different tale
-- both, 10/03/07
Council gets a bloody beatdown in the woodshed over Tra Ponti, airport
hotel
Gondo editorial |
Herald-Trib letter
"The cynic in us has to ask whether the same decision
[to have a workshop on Tra Ponti] would have been made if we weren't a
month away from an election"
--editorial, Venice Gondolier-Sun, 10/03/07
Little known 9/11
facts from Dan Hopsicker
A probable assassination attempt on Bush took place in
Sarasota in the early morning hours of 9/11; in other news, Rudi Dekkers, the trainer of
9/11 terrorists, is now a motivational speaker -- no, really, that's not a
joke
-- Dan Hopsicker, 09/27/07
Is
Florida Over?
For Americans on the move, Florida has become a
less-appealing destination; moving company Atlas Van Lines brought 6,700
families into Florida last year and took 8,000 out, the first time it has
moved more out than in
-- Wall Street Journal, 09/29/07
Vote No on penny sales tax
It's difficult to determine how much Venice
would subsidize growth with its tax revenue because more than 79 percent of
the money earmarked for roads is for undesignated "improvements" and
"contingencies." -- Pelican Press, 09/29/07
Article rigged?
CQG politicos stealthed as average retirees in U.S. News top ten article
Planning commissioner Janis Fawn and CQG bigwig Jack Meyerhoff
are quoted, cited as average retirees; Say, how many 15-story buildings on
the Intracoastal is "not a lot?"
-- U.S. News and World Report, 09/20/07
City council and Tra Ponti: Situation normal, AFU "We haven't done our jobs:" The Venice City Council
admitted as much when it voted unanimously Tuesday to postpone action on
developer Mike Miller's proposed condo-hotel, Tra Ponti on the Waterfront -- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/27/07
Tra Ponti falls down, goes boom; will return after
elections as Tra Natiche
Gondo article |
Herald-Trib article |
Ed Martin's blog
With elections looming, council stops dead in the middle of the road,
suddenly sees oncoming traffic: "Oh,
yeah -- the voters -- forgot about them, didn't we?"
-- all three stories 09/26/07
GONZO IS BACK!!!
The patron saint of Venice Florida! dot com is back where He
belongs -- on the cover of Rolling Stone
-- Rolling Stone, 10/04/07 issue
Tra Ponti workshop never happened "One question each incumbent is likely to hear during the
campaign if Tra Ponti is approved Tuesday: Did the council, following two
years of delay, rush to vote on Tra Ponti before an election in which
opposing candidates have criticized aspects of the project, especially the
height?"
-- Larry Evans, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/23/07
Yo council: I got your transition right here, pal
City council wants a visual transition from nine stories on
the island to six to five -- not a problem, right?
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 09/23/07
What hath council wrought in this nebulous CMU thing?
Everybody wanted that CMU ordinance and now we have it --
according to Greg Shanika, we gave everyone in the CMU district 80 feet in
height and we basically have to fight a developer to go lower -- thank you
Jeff Boone, C.J. Fishman, and, of course, city council
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 09/21/07
City to Herald-Trib: Tra Ponti jumps to seven stories
In a letter that was previewed by council members prior to
its publication, city's Propaganda Minister informs us for the first time
that the plans for Tra Ponti are now seven and six stories -- no, it's not a
typo on the Trib's part,
here's the original letter
-- letters, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/21/07
Gondo goes NIMBY on Tra Ponti and Clinch
editorial |
letter |
letter |
letter |
letter
Gondo takes an awkward stance on the latest proposed monster land
development project as Tra
Ponti will be directly across the street from the Gondo's office building --
the Gods of Irony smile down from the sky, Herb Levine is ROTFL, Jim Clinch
can't change his underwear fast enough
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 09/21/07
Airport development doublespeak
It's six weeks before the elections, so we get this quote from
Hammett:
"For all practical purposes, development of the airport is off the table"
COMBINED WITH THIS IN THE SAME ARTICLE: "Hammett would not rule out the chance of developing something on the
airport property;"
In other news, Marriott consultants give green light to airport land
surveyor team
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/20/07
Clinch lynched
Say Jim, how's that foot taste?
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 09/19/07
CQG gets a web site
Just stare at the screen... your eyelids are getting heavier
and heavier... tall is good... we can do anything... when you wake up, you
won't remember any of this...
-- Zombo.com
Fractured history from CQG bigwig and Bogey's/Crow's Nest owner Steve Harner
Aside from the fact that Harner can't spell John Nolen's name
correctly, Harner forgets that the BLE went belly up one year before The
Great Depression from trying to implement
Nolen's plan; Harner wants history to repeat itself -- relax, Steve, it
looks like you're going to get your way
-- letters, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/18/07
The Full Ponti -- Six stories next to Miller's towers' nine stories
Editorial |
Letter
So it'll be six stories next to five stories next to nine
stories, all right up to the sidewalk on Venice Avenue in downtown Venice --
say goodbye to the sky and hello to stucco and red brick tile
-- both, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/17/07
COMEDY GOLD FROM THE CHAMBER POT: Dear citizens of
Venice: Die in a fire, you bunch of f@#king idiots
If you thought Jim Clinch's article in the Gondo was
comedy gold, wait'll you read his farewell message as outgoing chamber
president -- don't forget to wipe, flush, and wash your hands before
returning to work
(PDF file - scroll to pages 2 & 3)
-- VeniceChamber.com, September 2007 issue
The mountain comes to Miller
Gondo story |
Herald-Trib story
A mountain of buildings is headed for the west side of downtown's
Intracoastal Waterway as developer Mike Miller gets approval
from council to move ahead with The Manhattan Project
-- both stories 09/12/07
Shannon Staub -- conspirator?
Attorneys for Tammi House argue that County Commissioner
Staub conspired with county employees to look for a way, legal or not, to
shut down the rehab halfway house
-- Pelican Press, 09/12/07
The bigging of Venice
Battle lines are drawn in city council election matchups --
Hey mister, wanna buy a town?
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/12/07
Sheriff shows his a$$
After a litany of over-budget luxury-style spending ills hits the news, Balkwill shows his a$$ by threatening to close down the south
county jail, has it handed back to him by elected officials
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/11/07
Blowing the top off of mountaintop mining
The Appalachian mountains are being blown up in a steady
destructive process that is killing the headwaters that eventually turn into
rivers -- of course, this couldn't possibly affect us here in Florida,
right?
-- Wired, 09/10/07
We gotta build something
Market analysis on the need for more hotel rooms is
conflicting, but developers are hot to build in the wake of a flooded
housing market -- what could possibly go wrong?
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/09/07
THE SLATE:
Martin, Zavodnyik, Lang
WWF comes to Venice politics -- asses will be kicked, names
will be taken
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 09/09/07
If there's one thing this county needs, it's a good 7¢ sales tax
Local governments, and those who depend on
them for roads, bridges, schools, beaches, clean water and more, have just
eight weeks to convince us that there's one tax that's really worth voting
for
-- Pelican Press, 09/07/07
BillWillson.com goes live
Incumbent defends his seat in cyberspace (even buys a banner
ad on Venice Florida! dot com) -- this ain't gonna be a normal race
-- BillWillson.com
Keepon the robot dances Video
|||
Story
Keepon is a cute Japanese robot used in research on autistic children. Wired
asks Keepon and its scientist inventor to do a rock video with the band
Spoon -- hilarity ensues
-- Wired, 09/05/07
Martin to oust Emperor Fred There is unrest in the forest,
There is trouble with the trees,
For the maples want more sunlight
And the oaks ignore their pleas
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 09/05/07
School board: VHS to stay where it is
Gondo story |
Herald-Trib story And we would believe you this time... why,
exactly?
-- both stories 09/05/07
Gondo: Elections are a good thing
Just so long as the developers win and the status quo is maintained, that is
-- editorial, Venice Gondolier Sun, 09/02/07
Roundabout ad nauseum
An exhaustive look at circles
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 09/03/07
Showdown at the OK Corral
Council candidates packing heat, promise to shoot each other
on sight
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/31/07
On the Road turns 50
Kerouac's jangly attack on conformity is still a top seller,
which ought to tell you something about under-the-surface unrest in America
today
-- Wired, 08/30/07
Albee is out, Gondo goes for fluffy bunnies
Ignoring the elephant in the living room, Gondo goes for
fluffy bunnies in a puff piece -- jolly good show, wouldn't want to write
about anything too controversial there, would we old boy?
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 08/26/07
Budway joins council fray
Former corrections supervisor wants Jim Woods' job, promises
secure cells for city management team
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 08/23/07
Bad time for a big raise
City manager gets a hefty pay raise, workers get a boot --
hey, this Ayn Rand "looters
and moochers" economic model ain't so bad after all
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald Tribune, 08/23/07
Here come the corporate retailers
All that growth that local business owners have supposedly been in strong
support has a down side and it's coming soon: corporate competition
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/22/07
Betcha Hammett doesn't get the joke
The Herald-Trib's deft and hilarious use of irony aimed at
the mayor for his dumbness is one of the best bits of back-handed political punditry in
memory; To the Herald-Trib: we salute you and stand in awe
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/22/07
Business news you can use for all sorts of stuff -- use your imagination Charrette consultant (and descendant of Venice's founders)
Steve Albee would like you to know that you are all dumbasses and you don't
know what's good for you; Bonus hilarity -- the mayor is practically a member
of MENSA (Adobe
PDF file)
-- The Business Chronicle, 08/17/07
Fire the blind gal and give me more money
City council's homework assignment: compare and contrast the
city manager's proposed budget with the viscosity of goose droppings
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/21/07
Martin for mayor?
Can an ethical, arrogant smart guy beat an unethical,
arrogant dumb guy for the seat at center square? Ed Martin aims to find
out... maybe
-- Ed Martin, 08/19/07
Lennox Bramble is a God among men
New utilities director can tie his own shoes, zip up his own
fly, and eat with a fork -- all of which is a marked improvement over his two
predecessors; former mayor Dean Calamaras stumbles into view, says some nice
things about former utils head John Lane, then trips on a banana skin
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/19/07
HOLY SHEEEE-IT!!!! Barefoot Bay
meltdown caught on tape (video)
All on one video clip: Barefoot Bay votes 6-2 to fire its community manager for not being able
to undo the economic damage caused by George Hunt (the same guy that's suing this web
site); two trustees resign on the spot; suddenly appointed interim chair Wilma Weglein promptly
rips into Hunt: "This started with George Hunt... [we] let George
get away with murder and we are in the mess we are today because of George
Hunt"
-- BarefootBay.us web site
No kickback in Wasserman project earns a nay vote from Hizzoner "When I look at height exemption (requests) I'm always
thinking, what will the city get in return? I don't think the extra 10 feet
gets us enough." Council approves hotel anyway -- sorry, Fred, no free Bahamas
vacation for you
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 08/15/07
The Golf War All hell broke loose when the City Council entertained proposals from companies interested in land development at the airport. which sparked an outcry among golfers; now there's something new on the radar screen -- 24 vulnerable homes in the Gulf Shores neighborhood -- Larry Evans, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/12/07
Ernie talks Council candidate Ernie Zavodnyik's campaign platform is strangely lacking in baseball, hot dogs, apple pie, and Chevrolet -- Ed Martin, 08/11/07
Marty talks Faced with political realities, city hall starts to back away from airport development with gratuitous and patronizing crap like 'community discussion' and 'will of the people' -- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/13/07
AAB: No to shorter runways Gondo |||
Herald-Trib editorial AAB member Jim Leis plummets after being shot down by friendly fire, discovers parachute has been tampered with -- bad day, eh Jim? -- both 08/10/07
Another Whiskey Tango Foxtrot moment at the airport MEA and the city have previously stated that there's no way that runways could be shortened, so naturally the city has a great idea: shortening the runways -- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/08/07
Ernie's back in the mix Zavodnyik hits the campaign trail running, Sue Lang and Ed Martin may not be far behind -- things oughtta get very interesting very fast -- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/07/07
That nutty Herald-Trib just can't leave the airport alone So what if a few homes are in runway safety zones? C'mon give it a break -- who doesn't want a few stewardesses dropping in unexpectedly? -- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/07/07
Airport charrettes: Who's leading whom? Airport consultants try to get all warm and fuzzy with Venice residents -- yeah, that'll work -- Venice Gondolier Sun, 08/05/07
Feces + rotary oscillator = airport charrette "Bowed but not broken, Black and the City Council are pressing forward on a more limited scale" -- well, we can fix that in November -- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 08/03/07
Get your torches and pitchforks ready -- it's showtime!
Airport charrette process starts tonight at 6 PM at the
Venice Community Center -- Herb Levine's anti-arrest legal team is on
emergency standby
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 08/03/07
Crack house in wealthy all-white
neighborhood is a shocker
Gondo story |||
Herald-Trib story
Wealthy white folks forced to encounter their inner whiteness as they
discover that they actually live in the real world -- the horror, the
horror, the horror
-- 07/31, 08/01/07
H20 $$$ ↑ Seen your water bill lately? Take your heart
meds before opening the envelope
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 08/01/07
Patten/Hunt lawsuit hits the news... again...
A few minor facts are wrong in this story (see
this), but the significant thing is the headline -- lawsuit claims that
Patten is not a journalist, and yet this newspaper article says otherwise
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 08/01/07
VHA FUBAR'd, HUD to the rescue
VHA's mismanagement and hired consultants' bills have led to
near-bankruptcy, but HUD will make it all better; in other news, scientists
discover link between human anus and flying monkeys
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 07/31/07
The charrettes are coming
It may not matter what the city wants as the FAA has the final
say on safety
-- Ed Martin, 07/27/07
Venice Housing Authority to get federal nose
Is the non-profit incapable of running itself? A merger with
Sarasota or Fort Myers projects will cure that
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 07/27/07
Driving in Florida will get a whole lot more exciting
when the requirement to carry auto insurance expires on October 1 MSNBC |||
Fark
-- posted 07/27/07
Venice is too short?
Don't worry, the planning commission will fix that for ya
-- Ed Martin, 07/25/07
China's (cough) green Olympics (cough)
You can see the stadium gently rising out of the smog as
morning breaks in Beijing -- oh wait, no you can't
-- Wired, 07/26/07
Bella Citta not so bella
Gondo story |||
Herald-Trib editorial
Exactly how many albatrosses can a mayor wear before falling over from
the weight? Looks like we're gonna find out
-- 07/25, 07/26/07
The Battle of Bella Citta:
The March of the Wooden Lawyers
City hall prepares to foot the legal bill to defend a
developer at the expense of citizens who don't
want the fight -- haven't we been down this road before (and before and before)?
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 07/22/07
Good news: taxes won't go up quite so much
Best quote comes from Hizzoner: "Venice invested in parks, a fire
station, things that we needed, things that do not end up as an ongoing
expense." Read that quote again. Slowly.
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 07/20/07
Bradenton cops get Farked... again
Last year, the BPD was in the news for traffic stop shakedowns --
guess what they've been spending the money on? Hookers and crack, natch
-- Fark, 07/19/07
Support local radio
Story |||
Live audio
stream
Clear Channel sucks, indie radio doesn't, WSLR in Sarasota proves
it
-- Pelican Press, 07/19/07
Pretty vacant
Hotel vacancies in Sarasota County point to an obvious need: more
hotels (♫ we're so pretty, oh so pretty... vacant
♪)
-- Ed Martin, 07/17/07
Diebold will return integrity to Sarasota County elections
Voting machine maker with strong Republican ties (and a past
about as dodgy as Enron's) will be the gatekeeper for future Sarasota elections;
oh hell, why don't we just become a monarchy and be done with it?
-- Pelican Press, 07/16/07
We're paying a quarter of a million dollars for... what, exactly?
Venice resident Rita Kutie sounds off on city hall; code inspectors
and bulldozers will arrive at Kutie's house for a surprise visit in 5...
4... 3...
2...
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 07/15/07
North Port to be renamed to New South Flint
10% of existing houses are for sale and not getting offers; in other news,
Michael Moore is set to start filming the long-awaited sequel to Roger & Me in
southern Sarasota County
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 07/16/07
Global warming fashion
What to wear to beachfront restaurants as the oceans rise? Check
out these chic pumps, available soon in shops on the island
-- Wired, 07/14/07
A city government based on meanness?
It would have been cheaper for the taxpayers of Venice to fix an old lady's roof
rather than bulldoze her house and make her homeless -- so naturally, we
bulldozed her house; Arthur Dent unavailable for comment
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 07/13/07
Airport FUBAR clusterflap banana banana
"Having an election coming up could, a cynic might think, have
had some impact on this most recent change of course in the city’s planning
behavior, which has been an object lesson in how not to operate a city"
-- Ed Martin, 07/11/07
State of the climate Story
|||
Editorial
You discover that if you keep treating the climate the way you
have been, your entire state will be underwater. Do you: A) Change your ways to
try to avert disaster; B) Continue to party like its 1999; or C) Seek the help
of an indestructible robotic android assassin from the future? Correct answer: C
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 07/12/07
Levine goes green
VTL prez to push for growth -- green, sustainable growth; if you
hear a loud 'thunk' while reading this article, please pick your
jaw up before someone trips over it
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 07/10/07
Countdown to November
Growth will be the main issue in November when three seats on the
seven-member Venice City Council are on the ballot
-- Larry Evans, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 07/01/07
Rafferty on Airport Master Plan: City will have to destroy golf course
Mike Rafferty, a public engineer who lives in Venice, has been
studying the city's plans very carefully and has come to what he says is an
inescapable conclusion: the golf course has already been doomed by the city
-- Ed Martin, posted 07/02/07
The good news: airport charrettes to be delayed
The bad news: they'll probably be delayed until after November
elections, allowing for plenty of false promises
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 07/04/07
MEA Group sold
The company responsible for the ongoing development of the
airport master plan is off the block and in the pocket; oh and look: MEA Group
has an office in Germantown Maryland, the same place that Amalthea (the Marriott
investors) come from -- what are the odds?
-- Charlotte Sun, date not given, sometime in the last two weeks
The city is spending $275,000 more on airport charrettes and it's all Sue Lang's
fault
After spending some $300,000 so far on the airport development
and master plan process, citizen outcry has caused city hall to up the ante to
over half a million -- this to convince the public that the airport is going
broke; this, in turn, causes more citizen outcry -- in a marriage, this is
called a cycle of abuse
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 07/01/07
Keep the airport pristine
Venice resident Pat Zingler appeals to council: "Stop the
madness"
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 07/01/07
Long range plan "flawed"
For this rather unique situation, "flawed" is not exactly the
most accurately descriptive word that starts with "F," but it'll do for a start
-- Ed Martin, 06/29/07
Bella Citta development plan in north end of Venice is headed for city/county
mediation
Residents of neighboring Sorrento Ranch feel Bella Citta is
incompatible with its surroundings; not in article, but it really happened:
city's argument is that Sorrento Ranch, which was there first, is incompatible
with the growth that has since surrounded it
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/30/07
VGA gator goes national
One-eyed gator gets book and film offer after terrifying ordeal
of attack by golfer: "...then he went to get the golf ball back, I figured he
was going to hit me with it again... so I bit him."
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/27/07 BONUS LINKS:
CNN ||
FARK
Will the circle be unspoken?
Venice wants to talk with the county about a planned roundabout
that caught city council by surprise, county commission responds with profuse
apology -- ha, just kidding
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/26/07
Venice respite
M.T. Penz' video collage
focuses on the beauty of Venice
-- YouTube, 06/07/07
Huffman Aviation's owner
tied to convicted drug smuggler in recent aviation venture
Wally Hilliard staked Rudi Dekkers in Huffman Aviation here in
Venice -- that's the flight school that trained Mohamed Atta; Dan Hopsicker
reports that Hilliard recently partnered with a convicted drug smuggler in yet
another aviation business
-- Mad Cow News, 06/25/07
What hath Tallahasee wrought?
Shiny new tax cut legislation and the Super Exemption are rife
with potential unintended consequences -- here comes the science...
-- Pelican Press, 06/24/07
Who needs The Sopranos?
Here come the drums
Here come the drums The world is at war and
our President has just been murdered by Britain's psychopathic Prime Minister;
Europe and Canada
are on
the edge and breaking viewership records as U.K.'s #1 TV show heads towards
its season finale this coming Saturday -- if you can't find it on YouTube (it's
there somewhere), you can always
wait a few weeks
-- The [London] Stage, 06/24/07
Miller, Wasserman to save city with high rise hotels
Gondo story |
Herald-Trib story
"The number one problem in
the Venice area is a lack of hotel rooms" -- Venice
Florida! dot com to demand formal apology from Wasserman
for being bumped to number two
-- both stories, 06/20/07
Levine smells a rat
Amidst rumors that charrettes will be stacked with out-of-towners
in favor of development at the airport, Herb Levine has a suggestion -- check
voter cards at the door
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 06/209/07
County to Venice: I'll be your roundabout; Venice to county:
GTFO
Gondo story |
Herald-Trib editorial
County commission wants to build a roundabout less than a
mile from city Councilman Rick Tacy's favorite pub -- what could possibly go
wrong?
-- 06/20/07 & 06/18/07
We B-II confoozed about the airport "Ahhhh, I C-II," said the
blind man; Herald-Trib takes a look at the runway safety zone problems in the
Airport Master Plan; for maps and a visual explanation,
read this
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/19/07
Grassroots uprising over airport development stuns council
Like a deer in the headlights, council never saw it coming; now
they are being forced into responding to some of the questions that citizens
have been asking; Venice Florida! dot com gets a nice mention; Rita Kutie's referenced
letter can be found here
-- Larry Evans, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/17/07
lolcats?
This web joke has been around for a couple of years now,
media suddenly discovers the newest thing since Rodney Dangerfield -- it's
still pretty funny, though
-- Fark, 06/16/07
Tallahassee tax cuts coming our way?
How can we take a really bad situation and screw it up even
worse? That's easy -- just pass a rushed law through with no study and
little debate, we'll fix the unintended consequences later
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/15/07
Gondo's relevance now officially non-existent
In the wake of momentous news about taxes, airport
development, etc., Gondo issues its typical editorial about anything
non-controversial it can think of, which leads to the obvious question:
who gives a crap?
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 06/15/07
Council ducks, wants redux
So let me get this straight... the city manager and council
just suddenly discovered what citizens have been saying for months, so
they back off the airport plan at the last minute? Kudos for the backdown,
but how the hell did it get this far?
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/14/07
Airport talks crash at end of runway, three political careers feared
dead
Gondo story |||
Herald-Trib story
"Looking for more public buy in," city delays making decisions, probably
until just after November elections
-- both stories, 06/13/07
Mike Miller is holding
and holding and holding and holding -- condo glut has
developers stopped dead in their tracks
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/13/07
City hall layoff roulette
Blind gal gets the boot in a weird and cruel-sounding domino-effect story;
planning department untouched despite lack of new construction
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 06/13/07
Venice council should...
Oh the hell with it... does anyone really think that they
are listening?
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/12/07
City hall's PR wiz: No, we're not up to anything funny -- why do you ask?
Standard municipal fluff, but what's really interesting is the
denial that Venice is considering a high density project next to South
Venice... as nobody that we know of has ever heard that rumor... until now
-- letters, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/12/07
Mohamed Atta...
pancake entrepreneur?
Dan Hopsicker comes up with yet more 9/11 weirdness that
slipped by law enforcement -- Florida corporate records show that after
Atta left Venice to fly into the WTC, he became an entrepreneur in Orlando
with an IHOP address
-- Dan Hopsicker, 06/12/07
Cops, city involved in undecipherable news story
Former city personnel-wank-turned-reporter Rollie Reynolds covers the
police contract negotiations -- hey, at least it fills in the gaps between
the ads
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 06/08/07
City, county should learn to get along
Also: war and hunger should end, skies should be blue, and fairies should
paint sparkly colors on all of the trees
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 06/08/07
City, county in zoning squabble over Bella Cita development
Less than three months ago, voters passed into law the
Joint Planning amendment and Sarasota County is alleging that Venice is
already in violation; in other news, grass is green
-- Ed Martin, 06/02/07
$61 million airport facelift -- say what?
Airport consultants MEA, among other things, cite support
data that Venice Airport currently has 180,00 takeoffs and landings per
year; that's 493 per day or 20 per hour every hour, which begs the
question: is MEA even talking about our airport?
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 05/31/07
Threats, allusions, and innuendos: You can't handle the truth!
City manager and council get defensive on airport
development, admit to getting jiggy with the numbers, refuse to give
out alternate info and ideas because the public isn't bright enough; on the upside, nobody
on the city's payroll is asking for
permission to carry a gun into city hall... yet
-- Ed Martin, 05/23/07
Plan B: The Big Lie proposed
First it was that the FAA was demanding development... that
turned out to be false; now city hall is moving on to Plan B: Does Venice
airport really need to grow? That's the multi-million dollar question that
is fueling city hall's latest media blitz to support the airport buildup
bust out
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 05/17/07
Plan B: The Big Lie exposed
Ed Martin puts on hip waders, wallows through city hall's created mire
-- InsideVenice, 05/17/07
Does the FAA really give a flying fart?
When the federal agency is deliberately misquoted, they do get
particularly interested
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 05/16/07
Venice High School static
Gondo story |||
H-T story
School board suddenly realizes that there's a few people out here who want
VHS to stay where it is -- who knew the public's opinion even mattered?
-- both stories 05/16/07
All in the families
Vice Mayor Taylor's recusement, Boone family owns the
airport development deals, and Venice Florida! dot com gets a nice mention
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 05/11/07
While you weren't looking...
While everyone's eyes have been on the airport, council has
been busy redrawing the Venice map with only one dissenting vote
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 05/11/07
Blinking Black memo: a surrender?
Gondo story |||
Herald-Trib editorial
While the city manager's memo stops short of stopping the process, you
wouldn't know that from these two articles
-- both 05/04/07
H-T's take on The Blinking Black memo
Herald-Trib sees the city manager's latest memo as a
surrender of sorts -- it's the 'of sorts' part that is troubling
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 05/03/07
Venice can't de-Milo
Gondo story |||
Herald-Trib story
Short term rentals hearing at the zoning board goes
sideways; not in either story, but it really happened:
here's one of the supporting cases that Steve Milo's attorney cited --
no, we're not pulling your leg
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 05/02/07
City hall gets flamed again
Herald-Trib picks up on our city email stories and asks,
'Where's the love?'
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 05/01/07
Politics 101: Do not piss off the old farts
Gondo story |||
Herald-Trib story
City hall has gotten away with a lot of crap over the
years, but now they are messing with the tee times of folks who are
otherwise uninterested in municipal shenanigans
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 05/01/07
Mardirossian lawsuit against activist dismissed
Aris Mardirossian, the money man behind the push here for
the Marriott, doesn't like opposition and will sue if he doesn't like what
he hears -- Why, yes, this is exactly what we need in Venice
-- Washington Post, 01/18/07
North Port's growth strategy turned out to be a real winner -- NOT!
City faces an economic implosion due to bad strategy; Scary
thought for the day: this is pretty much the same strategy that Venice has
followed, although to a lesser extent
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 05/01/07
FAA denies being the bad guy
Sorry about the mess, but it originates in your city hall,
not from our offices
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 04/29/07
Why does everyone hate me?
Surrounded by enemies and people that won't talk to him anymore, Hizzoner
looks for adoration from 8th graders, asks to be referred to as Uncle
Freddie
-- Venice Gondolier-Sun, 04/29/07
Stop this flight
H-T tells city hall to stop flying and come back to Earth
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 04/27/07
Ditto
Gondo and the public agree
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 04/27/07
♪♫ I
love a charade charrette...
♫♪
Council, airport developers' love-fest marred by pestilent public input
"If they pass this, there will be three new faces up there in December,"
said Herb Levine, president of the Venice Taxpayers League; Marriott
reportedly already pouring concrete foundations
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 04/26/07
Charrette
"The term charrette also, historically, applied to the cart or
tumbril used to carry the condemned to the guillotine"
-- Wikipedia
Jon Stewart on missing White House email scandal (with
VIDEO)
White House staffers used unofficial email accounts to hide
from public view -- that worked out real well, didn't it?
-- Raw Story, 04/17/07
Black gets spanked
In what is the harshest criticism to date of City Manager
Marty Black's PR skills, the H-T pulls out the BIG PADDLE over the
public's right to know in the airport development issue
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 04/16/07
If it looks hokey, label it as "New Urbanism" -- nobody will know the
difference
If you were one of the hundreds of citizens who told city planners during
the Envision Venice meetings you preferred a small-town feel and scale
similar to the 35-foot limit in the downtown shopping area and hoped they
would apply those standards to emerging areas of the city, say goodnight,
Gracie. -- Ed
Martin, 04/11/07
Reassurance factor
There's plenty of hoops that any developer will have to jump
through before they can start building on airport property, so close your eyes
and relax... nothing could possibly go wrong
-- Venice Gondolier-Sun, 04/11/07
Still unprepared for takeoff
Airport development planning is "a backwards and mysterious
process in Venice"
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 04/10/07
Venice water cop de-Nazified
Turns out he's a good bloke after all and truly has no ill
intentions towards France and Poland; in other news, Mayor Hammett sends this
warning to Fish and Wildlife Commission: "We shall defend our island whatever
the cost may be; we shall fight on beaches, landing grounds, in fields, in
streets and on the hills. We shall never surrender."
-- letters, Venice Gondolier-Sun, 04/06/07
Golf course lease extension renewal will won't happen
Perhaps the most confusing article yet to be written about the
airport development debacle: the concepts of lease renewals and extensions are
used interchangeably in the article and the dates are all wrong on the FAA
agreements; this article is trying to say something, but good luck trying to
figure it out
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 04/06/07
Welcome to Arrakis
Locals to be issued stillsuits as water bumps up in value -- and
stop watering your damned lawn
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 04/05/07
Anthony Tundo, 1963 - 2007
Beleaguered former owner of Venice Island Pub (and husband to the
CQG's head of fundraising) was facing drug
charges when he died
-- obits, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 04/03/07
The last confession of E. Howard Hunt
He was the ultimate keeper of secrets, lurking in the shadows of
American history: he toppled banana republics, planned the Bay of Pigs invasion,
and led the Watergate break-in; now he would reveal what he'd always kept
hidden: who killed JFK?
-- Erik Hedegaard in Rolling Stone, 03/21/07
Height restrictions in downtown to go bye-bye?
On April 3 at 1:30, the Planning Commission will meet to decide
on the possibility of taller buildings in downtown Venice -- Ed Martin already
has his speech ready
-- Ed Martin, Inside Venice, posted on 04/02/07
The
See-Through C.E.O. -- Transparency in the digital age
The public expects it, companies and governments run from it, yet
it has become a successful doctrine in a number of Fortune 500 companies; just
what, exactly, is Transparency and would it be a good thing for Venice?
-- Clive Thompson in Wired, March 2007 print edition
Airport buildup bustout "Other talk centers on the potential sale of the 27-hole
public course by the Venice Golf Association, a private corporation whose secret
list of shareholders could divide millions amongst themselves from a sale of
their long-term lease with the city" -- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 03/28/07
Buzzwording the city's budget
Curiously, "cross-platform," "robust," and "ad-nauseum" are
missing from the following list:
"pre-emptive,"
"reactive,"
"worst-case budget scenario,"
"solid financial footing,"
"scope and magnitude of impacts,"
"long-term sustainability"
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 03/28/07
Pam said it, I believe it -- then again, maybe not
Pam Johnson, the city press officer who is notorious for getting
almost everything wrong, climbs out of her mouse hole to deny that the city's
boater survey has anything to do with trying to get funds to build a marina --
yeah, that'll quell the fears
-- letters, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 03/22/07
Murder by
numbers in Iraq
Step 1: Trick the
surveillance drone
Seven marines and a Navy medic committed the perfect murder of a disabled Iraqi cop
with a simple hack; they would have gotten away with it if
one of them hadn't developed a guilty conscience
-- Wired, 03/22/07
Impact fees to ↑
The cost of building a single-family home in parts of
Sarasota County could rise by more than $1,200 in five weeks; developers cry
foul even though they'll double the fees and charge them to new homeowners
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 03/22/07
Apocalypse soon -- where to now, St. Martin?
Gondo story ||
Herald-Trib story
Council's strategic planning sessions includes airport development and
the slowdown of new housing -- the horror, the horror, the horror!
-- both stories 03/20/07
Boone 2, Lobeck 0
Current residents become roadkill in the rezoning battles over
the Gerrymandered north section of Venice; Arthur Dent to lie down in front of
bulldozers wearing pajamas and a bathrobe
-- Venice Gondolier-Sun, 03/20/07
--yawn-- Hammett threatens to sue over control growth election results; Al Gore and
Christine Jennings offer support, comfort food recipes
Gondo story ||
Herald-Trib story
It's a Florida tradition -- when an election doesn't go your way, accuse voters
of being idiots and sue your opponent
-- both stories 03/18/07
Game over
City officials, Boones tight-lipped over deal to build hotel on
Harbor Drive on VGA's back nine
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 03/16/07
Yahoo betrayed
my husband
Wang Xiaoning Ling is serving a ten-year sentence in China for
subversion -- specifically for making pro-democracy statements in an online
Yahoo group; Yahoo cheerily gave up his identity to Chinese authorities in
exchange for entry into the Chinese market
-- Wired, 03/16/07
County to raise impact fees (maybe?)
The battle is on (again) to make new homes pay for the bulk of
their own infrastructure requirements -- developers cry foul
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 03/15/07
LANDSLIDE!
Control growth amendment passes with 71% voter approval
Gondo article |||
Herald-Trib article
Voters tell Venice and North Port city councils to FOAD
-- both stories, 03/14/07
Miller picks a winner
Best. Idea. Ever. For a marina, anyway. Kind of throws a monkey
wrench into Marty Black's puppeteered convolutions to shove that airport marina
down everyone's throat, but...
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 03/12/07
Turtles may save the airport
Slowest stealth plan ever slows down airport development --
step... draaaaag... step... draaaaag...
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 03/09/07
Hang the ba$%@&ds
Hubbard Construction offers free shrimp to shopkeepers in
exchange for driving their shops out of business; Chamber of Commerce shows up
in bull with tits costume -- hilarity ensues
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 03/08/07
Holder: Black's doomsday tax scenario unlikely
"I do believe that an idea that's this far outside the box will
go to the Senate and get completely changed around"
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 03/04/07
Marty Black's
'We're losing $5.7 million and it's all Patten's fault' memo -- full text
Police officers publish Black's infamous e-mail to their online forum;
cops note
that Black specifically cites emergency services as a likely source of cuts with
the warning "LOOKS LIKE THE WRITING IS ON THE WALL" --
hilarity does not ensue
-- LEOAffairs.com, 02/28/07
Sharek quits
Within hours of posting our story on other city employees'
involvement in the romp in the swamp incident, Venice Utilities Director Chris
Sharek resigns
--Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 02/27/07
Muddin' was utility manager's mistake
"Yee-haw -- to have more fun you'd have to be nekkid; too bad
that dang state wildlife officer wrote him a big ol' ticket"
-- Tom Lyons, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 07/27/07
Sharky's blank lease to have holes plugged
The mysterious "blank lease" fiasco that former city manager
George Hunt negotiated may not have to be litigated after all as Sharky's and
the city now have agreed to agree on an agreement
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 02/24/07
Utilities Director Sharek on the way out
City manager announces a "demotion," swears it has nothing to do
with Sharek's illegal romp in the swamp; Herald-Trib takes false credit for
uncovering Myakka State Park incident when, in fact, the paper learned of the
incident from Venice Florida! dot com
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 02/24/07
Developers devolve Public ain't buying, builders ain't building; in other news,
there's a charity fundraising dinner tonight to support land use attorney Jeff
Boone's Lexus
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 02/22/07
Coming soon
to a neighborhood near you: The National Guard
Bush slips a hidden martial law rider into a budget bill that
gets passed by congress -- hilarity does not and will not ensue
-- editorial, NY Times (registration required), 02/19/07
Short term rentals on the web: homeowners versus residents in the new economic
war
While short term rentals have been a mainstay background economy
in Venice for as long as the town has been in existence, the increased
visibility caused by web advertising has sparked an economic and
social civil war between affluent Golden Beach residents and the numerous owners
of snowbird homes throughout the city; enter speculator Steve Milo, an unlikely hero
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 02/17/07
Herald-Trib pimp-slaps city manager over free municipal beer at Bogey's
H-T reads Venice Florida! dot com's coverage of Bogey's beer
cards, kind of forgets to mention how they found out about the story; in other
news, Bogey's owner Mike Harner now has a brand new, wall-sized HD liquid screen TV
in his living room,
city employees not invited to watch anything on it
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 02/17/06
Herald-Trib pimp-slaps Hizzoner for talking out of his...
It's like Calamaras never left! Mayor Fred Hammett spouts promises to HUD,
forgets to clue anyone on council as to what commitments he's making; hilarity
ensues (hey Fred -- maybe we could bunk them all at Bogey's)
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 02/13/07
Dent promises new voting machines by November
While congress and the courts are still trying to figure out how
18,000 votes disappeared, Dent is scrambling to find Republican stealth
programmers to hack the next generation paper trail machines
-- Pelican Press, 02/06/07
Let's get small
Gondo pimp-slaps Mike Miller over the newest version of his
Manhattan Project
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 02/03/07
Run, Al, run
A stiff vice president campaigns on his administration's legacy
of unprecedented prosperity; looks terrible on TV; bows out, following a
disputed vote count; two terms later, he re-enters the fray. promising to
change the course of a disastrous war founded on lies. We're referring, of
course, to the 1968 campaign of Richard Milhous Nixon. History has a chance to
repeat itself for Albert Arnold Gore.
-- Rolling Stone, 02/01/07
Kathy Dent and the
Okie-Dokie Doctrine
Sarasota election standards set a shining example: If over 50% of
the vote is recorded properly, it's okie-dokie
-- Mad Cow News, 01/31/07
Windows Vista's gotta-have-it killer business app
Wow. Just wow. Never mind all the hype about smoother network
integration and Digital Rights Management, would ya look at the cool backgrounds
in Solitaire?
-- Wired, 02/30/07
Fred Hammett: 'I have a dream'
As Black History Month approaches, mayor announces his vision for
Venice -- run all the blacks out of town; HUD officials respond with raised
eyebrows and a 'not so fast' statement to the press
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/28/07
Hopsicker drops the 'F'
bomb on Kathy Dent
In his latest installment, Hopsicker notes that the
Herald-Tribune suddenly and strangely veered away from early reports of votes
not being recorded properly in the Jennings/Buchanan race -- despite Elections
Supervisor Kathy Dent's election day admission that voting machines weren't
recording votes properly!!!
-- Mad Cow Morning News, 01/24/07
County to vote on increased impact fees -- Where is Lewis Black when we need
him?
After years of builders and growth advocates arguing that growth
pays for itself, builders and their lawyers will argue against increasing impact
fees, stating that new growth shouldn't have to pay for itself -- it is at this
point that you want to stick hot pokers in your eyes and scream
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/23/07
Black flies solo to push airport development
With no tacitlpublic direction from council, Venice's city
manager is in the wheeling and dealing airport development biz; Herald-Trib asks
a simple question: WTF is going on?
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/23/07
And if the airport were to close?
Local oral surgeon John Yurasko paints a doomsday scenario: what
if the airport were to close and a calamitous natural disaster happened?
-- letters, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/23/07
Rollie and Mikey, sittin' in a tree, kay eye ess ess eye enn gee
Continuing in his Orgy 'O Love series, Gondo cub reporter Rollie
Reynolds gets between the sheets with local developer Mike Miller to discuss
rising towers, stiff competition and whatever else pops up
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 01/22/07
County to force North Port city commissioners to dress in drag
As part of the joint planning agreement, NP city commissioners
have to dress in drag and sell themselves on U.S. 41 to developers and construction workers;
commissioners are aghast, state they only do that in private
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/17/07
Miller's Manhattan Project is back, now with less more
Miller's third try knocks out most offices and stores that were
in original plans for revamping business district on Venice island, opts instead
for more rich old-fart pudgeballs in faux tropical shirts from New York and
Illinois; attorney Jeff Boone chimes in with usual unintelligible PR crap
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/16/07
North Port losing in annexation war with county
Sarasota County threatens to give North Port to Charlotte County,
Charlotte County says they're already full of crazy city officials
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/16/07
Feds drop the ball; council, Patten cry foul
Venice Florida! dot com's Patten urges council to get angry...
and they do... what's wrong with this picture?
-- Venice Gondolier Sun, 01/11/07
Sarasota has no head
City Manager McNees quits or is fired or something; out in Palm
Bay, George Hunt is busily polishing his resume
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/12/07
Official Mac users forum names utils director Sharek as First Floridiot of the
Year "The guy in charge of enforcing environmental laws in Venice FLA takes his redneck relatives off into the swamp through a hole in the fence
despite the fact that its protected park land hes ripping up, so the park eats
his car" -- The Podcast Network, 01/10/07
House seat
hangs by a byte
With 18,000 votes missing, the putative loser of a tight Florida
congressional race is demanding to see the source code for the electronic voting
machines that squeaked her opponent into office; a key House committee is
joining her call, even as the winner moves to Capitol Hill
-- Wired, 01/11/07
Shane sends the wife out
Not content with only showing his own ass, Shane Saputo sends the wife out to
paste the press and city hall -- good call, Shane
-- letters, Venice Gondolier Sun, 01/10/07
Utilities Director Sharek can't clean the mud off
"A strong environmental ethic should motivate anyone paid
by the public to protect the environment..." -- except in Venice, of course, where
those people hired specifically to protect the environment have traditionally
been the worst offenders
-- editorial, Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/09/07
Black lets Sharek slide on Myakka State Park incident
City's top environmental official caught damaging the environment
for fun, city manager states "it is not an action that relates to his employment
with the city;" when asked if he knew he was breaking the law, Sharek responds,
"I suppose"
-- Sarasota Herald-Tribune, 01/05/06
