City Managers Job

For those of you who are unaware of it David Husemans job (our city manager) is on the agenda for tomorrow nights city council meeting.

He has been good as schmoozing groups of individuals and nodding his head often to appease everyone but he's not leading our city in a manner which we need to be lead, and our council if finally sick and tired of it.

Bottom line is he does not communicate to the city council members at large, and has not followed their direction given him time and time again. He's tried to run several things under the radar, and when caught always comes up with a sweet talking snake in the grass answer to get out of it.

Honestly if I was a council member this item would of been on the agenda every month for a year now.

I know some of you don't agree with me on the rodeo issue, but bottom line is this year he is scheduled to lose over $200,000 in your and my tax money out there this year. After 3 years you would think he would of gotten it under control.

We are about to experience the largest growth our county has ever seen, we need a manager we can trust, is transparent, open and honest about the operations of this city. I totally support our council members in removing Mr. Huseman tomorrow and look forward to working with a city manager that will take us forward in the next 5 - 10 years.

I encourage all of you to attend the meeting at city hall at 6 pm Tuesday night.

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Shhhhhh - It's a secret

Two months ago a gentleman stood up at the city council meeting and asked the council and the city manager why there was so much secrecy in our city government.  He pointed at specific points like a book that contained city offices, and a listing of all members of all city appointed boards that sat behind a desk at city hall that he was told was not available for public viewing.  He spoke of several other specific incidences that he didn't understand.  Isn't our city government our government, working for the citizens of Gonzales?

His words ate on me for an entire month.  For those of you who know me well, you know I like to know what's going on, and am willing to share with anyone I know.  I go to every city council meeting I can (about 90% of them), and have never gotten up to say a thing, even though I've been passionate about several of the issues the council has discussed. But after a month of thinking about it I knew this gentleman was correct and I needed to reiterate it for the council and the city manager.

So at January's city council meeting I got up for the first time and spoke to the council in open forum.  I told them the words from last month had bothered me because they were so true.  Things like the removal of the river trash, the "JB Wells committee" that was illegally meeting and was not appointed by the city council, the expenditures of dollars that the city council has no clue of, and on and on and on.  And that whether or not it was intentional, or real the reality is the people of Gonzales believe that our city government is not only working in secret, but going to do what ever they want regardless of what the people of this town want.

There is an old saying that states, "Perception is reality".  Our perception of the city management and it's workings is that they are working in their interest, not those of the town, and they are doing it in secrecy.

Afterwards the city council members found out exactly what I was talking about as the mayor passed out evaluation forms for the city manager.  This wasn't on the agenda for the meeting that ended just 30 seconds before.  It wasn't discussed under new business, where the mayor can put any item on the agenda at his own whim.  And it wasn't in the package received by any of the city councilmembers prior to the meeting. 

The next morning is when the real slap to the council and the people of Gonzales came.  We found out that one month after the city council voted not to expand JB Wells (September city council meeting), the city manager signed a deal, obligating the people of Gonzales to well over $100,000, if not $250,000 in a 10 year deal for a new rodeo.  Not one of the city councilors had a clue this was even in negotiations, much less had been signed 4 months prior.

And then for the 'Official Signing Ceremony' only a few of the city managers supporters were invited. Selected businesses were told, most of ours were not.  Shhhhhh, the rest of the city might find out.

If this was my business and my General Manager had done that, he'd been gone.  Plain and simple.  If I was a city council member I would stand up at the next city council meeting and let everyone know "I do not appreciate the actions of the city manager in embarrassing me with my constituents.  The last I looked the city manager took care of the daily operations based upon my, and my fellow councilmen guidance.  He has failed to do that. in this matter, and it is unappreciated, uncalled for, and I have no confidence that any time in the near future our city manager is going to be able to operate this city as we instruct, above board, and in the best interest of our community."

People, it's time we as a community stepped up and spoke up.  We are the employers of our city government.  They work for us! We do not work for them!  Let your councilman know what you are thinking.  Let them know you are tired of "but it's always been done that way in Gonzales", tell them we deserve better than that! Tell them you want to see an above board, legitimate city government being run. It's the least we deserve!

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Youth Rodeo Contract

So for those of you who are living in a cave or under a rock you might of missed that in October our city manager signed a 10 year agreement to host another rodeo here in Gonzales at taxpayer expense.  The Gonzales Canon and the Gonzales Inquirer both printed these press releases that spoke about how wonderful a deal we got out of these deal.  I take exception to these postings, and to Mr. Mundys editorial "Arena expansion: You have to spend money to make money" (http://www.gonzalescannon.com/node/3647" telling us that we need this to grow, even though we don't have the infrastructure in place to benefit from the upcoming rodeo.  


I posted the following rebuttal to Mr. Mundys editoral:

While I agree we need change, and have supported issues like liquor by the drink to help bring an economy to this town I have several issues with this agreement that has been made with the rodeo.

1) We do not have the spaces needed to properly host this event. So now Mr Huseman and his hence men are trying to make this happen with sweet deals to GEDC if they will approve the money. The last time we added spaces to the arena it was estimated by Mr. Huseman to cost $1000 each, wound up costing approximately $2500 each, and now they want 300 more? Tally that on your fingers and toes.

2) Not even our elected city government (or at least 3 of the councilmen) we even aware of this contract, a significant liability to the city, until the papers ran the story. Why even have officials if there is no say? This contract was signed in October, see an issue here?

3) The city council told the city manager NO to expanding JB Wells, and yet he has ignored them.

4) We, as a city were promised an area for all of Gonzales out in JB Wells. I have copies of the plans that were originally brought to the people of Gonzales and to the Texas Parks and Wildlife, for funding, and it is NOT a huge rodeo area, but a common park for all of Gonzales. Why are we changing plans instead of completing the plans we have already in place?

5) Why are we again putting the horse before the cart? Even you said it, we have NO PLACE for these people to come spend money in Gonzales. The business base is not set up for it, and so we are NOT going to prosper from it. We need to be working on getting our 2 town squares filled with businesses as a #1 priority so that we CAN deal with visitors like these.

6) Even with JUST the $25 per head for 550, these rodeo visitors would have to spend $687,500 to break even on sales tax (2% sales tax rate, 550, $13,750 we are paying out, simple math), and that's not counting all the other concessions and items we are responsible for in the contract. Please someone lie to me and tell me we'll get real close to that number, but I don't think so.

7) We STILL haven't gotten a handle on the way we run our arena and the accounting over there! So lets make the problem bigger, because bigger will only make our losses greater....oh wait, something isn't right with that statement is it?

8) I spoke at the last city council meeting about secrecy in our city government. I understand contracts and negotiations, but this is once again a case of our city manager (and who ever else is involved) ignoring the will of the people of this town, the city council and going behind our backs to do something they were told we don't want. So in secrecy they've gone and done it and are taking the approach it's better to ask for forgiveness that permission. I for one and tired of this attitude from SOME of our city employees that think we work for them. This is our city, our taxes, our budget, and our livelihoods that are affected here, and we are suppose to have a say that counts!

And for the record I didn't read in the paper where the arena and all of it's facilities are at NO COST to the association putting on the event. That we will be providing most of the items used during this rodeo at our cost with their emblem and the year put on everything.

I wish I could run a business where I didn't have to pay for my building, my equipment, and oh the city is going to be providing a good bit of the labor for it, so the association isn't paying for that either, I AM as a taxpayer here in Gonzales.

I'm surprised that every business doesn't move to Gonzales with incentives like that, oh but wait, I'm not a rodeo, so my business doesn't count to the city does it?

Dennis Nesser

So my question is why are we allowing anything to happen without ramifications to those ignoring the elected officials and the taxpayers of this town?   Why can't we take care of long standing problems before we move forward?  Why is it our city continues to run in secrecy thinking we as citizens, "aren't smart enough to handle the truth"?

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Voting Time

Ok, it's that time to Vote!  Early voting started in Texas today and there are several things on the agenda that need attention.

I'm not going to spout my political views on most of the races or items to be balloted on this election, but I do want to talk about 2 of them.

First and the easiest one for me is the vote for Liquor by the Drink.  I've said it before (read my previous blogs) that if we in Gonzales County ever want an opportunity for a nice dinning facility then we need liquor by the drink.  Even if you don't drink you are directly effect by the tax revenues that are lost by our going to Roberts, Chilis and variously other out of county establishments that have liquor by the drink on their menu.  Please support this worthy cause.

The second is for congress.  I am still reeling from the fact that Lloyd Doggett would submit any bills or amendments that would potentially take away millions from our childrens' education funding.  I'm still reeling from his support of the unconstitutional Obama Care bill.  His lack of support for you and I as taxpayers taking away $500 of our children credits, adding back the marriage penalty.  He's part of the congress that has voted in the largest debt in our nations history, and I'm honestly tired of it.  Send him home!  I've spoken with Donna Campbell.  Talk about a no nonsense lady, it's her. 

There's a contested Governors race, locally there is a JP race and a County Judge race.  All are important to our community and how we fair in the next couple of years.  How would I vote on them?  I am going to tell you exactly how I would vote if I were you.....I'd educate myself on the records of those in office now, and read what I can about those running against them.  Personally if what is in office is not worst that whats there, then I'd just leave (better the devil you know syndrome).......I'd PRAY about my decision.....then I'd make my way down to the ballot box and VOTE!!!  That's right Educate, Pray and Vote!

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Apologies

I have to apologize to all those who have followed this blog for not having been able to update it recently.  Between start of school year, scouts membership drive, and work I haven't had time to follow up on leads that have been sent my way. Doesn't mean there are still things to follow up on, doesn't mean there isn't good and bad going on in town, just means I haven't had time to follow up on them.

Keep the info coming though and I will.  dennis@90asign.com will get you right to my email.

Thanks, and soon there will be writing up on the newly painted chalkboard.

God Bless,
Dennis

A Mix Bag

I've got to tell you with this having been first week of school and all time has just gotten away from me.  I'm not sure 48 hour days would allow me to catch up on all that needs to get done.  But one thing that does happen in my travels back and forth to customers is that I get time to think about all the things going on. 

I had originally decided I was going to talk about GCAM and what a great group of people they are over there and how they can always use our donations.  I know especially things like canned meats and fruit are always in short supply.  But there is just to much pressing to spend the time to do that right.

So back to the "what's going on....."

First the Lynn Theater.  GEDC basically told the City Council that this was their football, and while they might not be going home with it, they were going to sit on it till the city played nicely.  So in this lose/lose situation, we the citizens of Gonzales are now on the sidelines watching both sides do nothing because they can't play nicely together.  GEDC owns the note as it stands, but can't make any changes without the councils approval.  The council voted not to make changes, but have not bite with their bark.  So who looses?  We do!

If you'll remember I told you that this issue could take years and years to resolve if we don't give Mr. Colins a chance.  I personally think Mr. Colins made some poor business decisions in taking the original debt, not letting GEDC know when there were first problems, and not showing up to the city council meeting this month.  Very poor decisions on his part.

GEDC was at fault for loaning the amount they did on a property that wasn't worth that much, and that couldn't maintain the debt services that they were undertaking.  That's like a bank loaning me a quarter million dollars for my house worth $100,000.  Not good business practices. Also at fault for not demanding monthly or quarterly statements to be submitted as is standard practice.

It's times like this I wish we could put all 3 parties involved - Mr. Colins, GEDC, and the city council - in a locked room and tell them they aren't coming out till they come to an agreement.  We the people of Gonzales are going to miss out theater for a long time if they don't.

Second also involves GEDC and the city at JB Wells.  While I can't remember exactly when, I believe the June meeting the city council approved $16,000 for the 39 new RV slots.  I remember laughing at the time thinking no way in hell.  Well now at least part of the truth is coming out, those lots didn't cost us $16,000.  The city manager went over budget just a bit and asked for $40,000+ to be reimbursed by GEDC.  Now I want to point out a few problems with this $40k.

1) It's almost 3x the original estimate.  HOW CAN YOU BE THAT FAR OFF ON RV SLOTS??? This isn't a billion dollar high rise taking years to build, it's 39 slots of electric, water, and rock.

2) We still haven't gotten the $40,000 bill sitting at GVEC.  I'm not sure if I'm more upset as a shareholder at GVEC they are not giving the city the bill, or thankful as a taxpayer they aren't.  But don't think the $40,000 asked for this month was the real cost, we're at $80,000 now.

3) In Mr. Husemans presentation to GEDC he told them that the City of Gonzales and the County of Gonzales "donated" the labor.  Donated?  Really? You think that's the appropriate word for 'the taxpayers already paid that money in salaries to the individuals who worked out there'?  Donated? Now don't get me wrong, those employees deserved the money they earned working there! In some cases it was their job.  In others it was all hands on deck, so if you had two legs and two arms you were working down at JB Wells for over a week.  But what did the entire city payroll for that week run us? That's not donated, nor are they properly accounting for it on the books.  Every department in the city got charged their normal payroll even though they didn't receive the employee that went with it!  It's a way to legally cook the books and hide the cost from auditors and those wanting to know the truth.  So on top of the $80,000 we're up to, there is the payroll issue.  We're well over $100,000 (more like $150,000) at this point for the 39 slots.

4) The city (read Mr. Huseman) did not turn in any paperwork, or paper trail to backup the $40,000 request. This was more like a kid passing a note to another, "hey I forgot my lunch money, would you send me some?" No forms filled out. No documentation.  No anything except a memo requesting the money.  You nor I could get anything from GEDC that way.  There is proper protocol and procedures to follow, but I guess Mr. Huseman is above all that.

5) We have a case of putting the cart before the horse.  These spaces were built in May/June time frame and this is August by my calendar.  That means that unlike everyone else that has to ask permission to do something, the city just did it with the assumption that GEDC would give them the money.   We know what happens when you ASSUME! Right now it's the city running GEDC instead of GEDC members running it properly.  This is not the first case like this, I seem to recall a recent issue with the city manager having his name put on a contract 'on behalf of GEDC'. 

The third thing I want to bring up with GEDC and the city is this $4444 for work in industrial park.  This is for work the city should be paying for (infrastructure) leading up to a property, and for the part up to the needed location.  The city is responsible for work up to the property line. Period.  End of sentence.  That's what our tax dollars go for.  But we are NOT responsible for it after that.  Yet Mr. Huseman at the GEDC meeting when asked about it and if the city was responsible for it responded, and I quote, "sometimes".  SOMETIMES? What if you are liked by him, then yes?  If you're not then no? Sometimes? This isn't a gray area, this is a black and white area.  I'm not sure if I'm more upset at the 'sometimes' or the fact GEDC went ahead and approved the monies.

Last thing I want to bring up is the recent visit by the Army Corp of Engineers and TCEQ here in Gonzales.  Regardless of what Mr. Huseman tells the Corp or the newspapers, there are pictures of the concrete laying right where it is long before the flood came earlier this year.  It's laying right where he had it dumped, in the middle of the Guadalupe River.  Now I told you eventually this would have to come out, and after last weeks visit you and I the tax payer are going to have to pay for the removal of some of this, if not all of it.  It should of never been dumped in the first place!  There is NEVER an excuse to put pipes in the river like we did.  The Corp specifically forbids the dumping of concrete with rebar in the water.  And we've already misused our firemen and their equipment removing some of it. 

GBRA, myself and other concerned citizens filed formal complains because of this dumping, and to be clear the spot we are talking about has nothing to do with the new section that was recently built for the paddling trail.  This is where the city dumped the old St. George street and it's trash 2 weeks before the elections.

Mr. Huseman can claim he contacted the Corp for moving concrete all he wants, but he's just trying to cover his rear.  He's months to slow, and trying to take advantage of a natural disaster.  The problem is the pictures tell it all!

I'm going to put this as clear and simple as I can, Mr. Huseman is lying! He's lying to the Corp.  He's lying to you and I the taxpayers of this town that employ him.  And sadly enough it's not the first lie we've caught him in. 

So Gonzales that's all I've got time for today, but hopefully now with school in full swing I'll get back in a roll here.  So what's your role?  1) let others know what's going on, educated voters/taxpayers are what make the difference. 2) Comment here, there are plenty that read this blog, and your comments, on either side of the issues, will at least get debate going on, and who knows you might make the comment that changes someones mind or brings everyone together. 3) If you know something with the city that needs to be out there, let someone know!  You can email me at dennis@90asign.com or either of the newspapers in town.  Don't dig your head in the sand, make a difference!

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Those that care

I keep hearing for people over and over, "I don't know why you bother, no one cares" or "I don't know why you bother because nothing is ever going to change in this town".  I beg to differ with all those naysayers! There are plenty that care about this town!

When the issue of the 2 year old flags were brought to my attention I made it my personal goal to have them removed.  First of all I let people know what was going on.  Everyone was appalled that the flags were still up.  They honestly hadn't noticed them, was the most common response.

So I went over to Gonzales Lumber and they were well aware of the flags.  I knew they had large ladders because I had rented from them several times.  David over there was more than willing to allow my scouts of Troop 262  to use the ladders to remove the flags.  Unfortunately the large ladder was to large and the other ladder to small, but I wanted to make sure that everyone knew that Gonzales Lumber was willing to help this town look better.

In my disappointment that day I was talking with someone who mentioned that someone else here in town had a bucket truck.  I went over and spoke with the owner of the truck and he was absolutely behind making this happen and getting this eyesore off of our main drag in Gonzales.  So I have a very special thanks to Lorenzo Hernandez of Lo's Auto for loaning us his bucket truck for this.  His son Kenny and grandson Darron came out and took the time to remove them from the poles.  So the picture on the top are the flags removed from the old Quality place.  Please thank all of these guys next time you see them.

So I now have the flags and the scouts with Troop 262 will properly retire them.  It's one of the things we do for community service about once a year.  These flags have served their country well, and will be respectfully retired.

So things can happen in this town.  Someone has to care.  Someone has to follow through and coordinate.

I've seen this with "Liquor by the drink" here recently and even more recently heard about a group getting together to clean up the city cemetery on College street on September 25th from 9 AM - Noon.  No pay.  Not looking for glory.  No real reason other than it needs to be done. It makes my heart feel good to know that all those naysayers are wrong.  Gonzales CAN change! Gonzales DOES care!  There might be those that don't, but I believe all in all Gonzales Cares.

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

The Lynn Theater

OK, I'm going to try to tackle the Lynn Theater issue here in town.  Mind you I've spent a lot of time contemplating this before I wrote because honestly I've been a bit torn on the issue.

Let me start with the simple stuff, Mr. Collins hasn't received a dime from the city or county in cash to line his pockets.  It's one of the biggest complaints I've heard.  "How much more are we going to give him?"  The answer is not a dime.  He hasn't gotten a dime, and not about to get a dime from the city or the county.  As a matter of fact he has spent a good deal of his personal money fixing up the mess that he took over. So unfortunately it's a misunderstanding that Mr. Collins has received anything from the city, county or any other organizations.

Now let me move on to what I consider a huge mistake by Mr. Collins.  In an effort to appease all Mr. Collins took over the previous owners business with debt included to the tune of about $400,000.  The business worth is less than 1/2 of that.  It was a poor decision on his part to accept the current debt, but in the interest of fairness to GEDC and the citizens of Gonzales County and the City of Gonzales he did it.  It was a decision that has haunted his ability to make ends meet.

In addition Mr. Collins agreed to accept a list of demands by the boards that as a business owner I would never have agreed to.  Business owners need to be flexible and the list of demands, while I understand where the GEDC was coming from, are unreasonable.

Now comes the messy part.  We have almost $300,000 in loans by the City of Gonzales through GEDC and an additional $85,000 by the County of Gonzales that are unsecured. Now this is like a house loan where the money went to pay off previous owners and debt holders, not to line Mr. Collins pockets.  So what does the rest of this mean? 

First of all it means that the County of Gonzales has no recourse what so ever in collecting their money. If Cal Collins for any reason defaults, you and I, the taxpayers will be 100% out that money, no if ands or buts about it. And don't think it doesn't effect you, if you live in the City of Gonzales you are also paying taxes for the County of Gonzales. It doesn't matter if those taxes come out of your left or right pocket, we are still paying the taxes to cover that loss. It also means the County will be less likely in the future to make loans to bring jobs and other businesses to the county in the future.

Second the building and business that the Lynn sits in has been valued at less than $150,000.  So anyone in the future who would be looking to purchase the building would not be willing to pay more than $150,000.  The city at that time will be out $150,000 in their loans.

So any closures by the city will cost you and I over $235,000 in real cash lost.  This is money that every taxpayer in Gonzales will be stuck with. No going back, no chance of recovery, just gone. Did you hear the toilet flush, because that's where the money is going.

Now lets consider some of the other options that could occur here.  Mr. Collins could declare bankruptcy  chapter 11.  This means that the city, county, and all others that are owed money will be put on hold indefinitely and Mr. Collins will be able to operate without anything the powers to be can do.  We, the lean holders would probably get pennies on the dollar, and Mr. Collins would still wind up with the theater in the end.  This is still an option for Mr. Collins, regardless of what the City of Gonzales has done.

Mr. Collins could declare Chapter 7 and take months or years to settle up the debt.  During that time neither the city or Mr. Collins will be able to do anything with the Lynn Theater.  It will remain a vacant building as it has for many of the 15 years I've lived here.

Last Mr. Collins could allow the foreclosure to happen without fighting it in some form or fashion.  This would take time, possibly years to get the deed back so that the city could resale it. It would also be very unlikely as Mr. Colins has a personal interest in the outcome on his financial.


Now one last thing on what Mr. Collins has agreed to.  He's agreed to limitations on what he can do inside and outside of the building.  Any major changes have to be approved so that the city keeps the Lynn Theater sign up and lit for the citizens of Gonzales.  It's a great icon for the town square.  Any new owner could come in and immediately remove it.  They are not obligated to keep it as a theater, either live or movies.

So I've been bothered with giving a guy a second chance.  But have found out a couple of more things.  First of all prior to bringing anything to GEDC or the City Council there were studies done by the Small Business Administration on feasibility of running a theater in a town with our demographics.   This group worked with Mr. Collins and GEDC to come up with a way to make this work for everyone involved.  Business 401 if you will was used here to make sure that anything that was purposed would actually work.

Second I found out that prior to opening up Mr. Colins caught up all the taxes and utilities bill that the previous owner had left.  He had also spend a substantial amount of cash in renovating the theater out of his pocket that the SBA has confirmed since the closure trying to get ready to reopen. 

Last I found out how much time our GEDC has spent making sure that the citizens of Gonzales and the county had the best chance of recovering the money on the loans they've issued.  Part of my point here is why do we have a board that has been picked by the council if they aren't going to look at all the facts?  These guys unanimously agreed that the best interest of the City of Gonzales, also taking into consideration Gonzales County, to give Mr. Collins a second, more educated chance, to make this work.

Now I'm not going to excuse Mr. Collins for not communicating to the GEDC when he ran into trouble.  It's been my experience that when I've had large loans the I was required to give the bank a monthly or quarterly financial statement along with my payments. I'm sure this would of been a wise agreement to start with.

As for Mr. Logans antics on "will Mr. Collins please come down", let's get real!  Mr. Collins has sent, I'm sure at his cost, a representative to most of the GEDC meetings.  This is not Mr. Collins primary business, and while it's important to him, no business man in his position would have attended those meetings.  When I ran Kactus Korral I was the one that sat with Pat Frost during all the meetings when we were negotiating loans through Frost Bank.  Mr. Jenkins, the owner, didn't get involved except when it was time to sign papers.  It's how business works.

Would it have been prudent for Mr. Collins to show up at the City Council meeting this last month? Yes, without a doubt.  Part of what Mr. Collins has to understand is in a town like ours, your handshake, and your word are as important as your signature. It's one of those learning curves he should pick up quickly if he wants to make it in a town like ours.

As for the GEDC looking for another buyer at this point it's pretty simple, WE DON'T OWN THE BUILDING!  The deed is to Mr. Collins with the City being a lean holder. GEDC trying to sell it would be like the City saying they are going to sell your house.  They don't own it either.

So where from here?  First of all the City Council could reverse it's decision.  It could follow the recommendation of GEDC and at the next Council meeting reverse the motion they made.

They could stay on course and years from now the building will revert back to the city and we can start the process to sell the building again.

Along those lines there are rumors going around that there is a group that is expecting to take over the building.  Notice I said take over, not purchase.  It would be a rent free or grant type arrangement.  The sources of this murmurs are reliable enough to scare me.  That would not only put the City of Gonzales years out, but $400,000 down that toilet we spoke about earlier, and we'd still not have a movie theater.

So as much as I hate to admit it the best option for the citizens of the City of Gonzales and the County of Gonzales is to let Mr. Collins attempt to make a go of the Lynn under the new arrangements.  Might we wind up here again in the future? Yes we might.  But if there is ANY chance of recovering the most money out of this deal it's with Mr. Collins.

The worst that can happen is that Mr. Collins doesn't make it and we have to go through the above mentioned options, foreclosure or bankruptcy on Mr. Collins part.  The best that could happen if he is given a second chance is that we recover 2x in cash payments than we will ever have a chance to recover otherwise.

One last thing, the Lynn has analogue projectors.  It's a dying technology that will not be supported forever, heck it's not going to be support for long.  That upgrade is a $200,000 upgrade.  Do you really think someone would purchase the existing Lynn Theater and keep it as a theater knowing what they'd have to sink into it to make it profitable?  Not very likely!

This is a bad situation all around.  Not even in my furthest reaches can I not fault Mr. Collins for some of his actions.  But bottom line is that as taxpaying citizens of this great town, our best option is to try to work this out with Mr. Collins and support him when he opens back up.  It can still happen, but it's going to take some work.

Our council will have to be business like for the moment and look at the information that SBA and GEDC have put together on how this can work with some modifications to the current agreement.  Is it the perfect situation? Nope, but I'd rather have a chance to collect on the $400,000 than have no chance at all.


God Bless
Dennis Nesser

Our Housing Board

So how is it that you become a member of a board in the city of Gonzales?  Well if it's the Housing Board, the ONLY board appointed by the mayor himself and not the city council, a good way to get on would be to donate cash to the mayors campaign.

In April Mrs Kacir was accused of a conflict of interest in her workings with the GEDC and Normas House.  Something that the Attorney Generals office reviewed at Mrs Kacirs request and said that it was all above board.  But one of the loudest voices in the hollering should of been looking in the mirror, as she is the epitome of conflict of interest.

How is it that Mary Ann, one of if not the largest contributor to Mayor O'Neils campaign made her way onto one of these boards.  And not just any board, but one of the most powerful in Gonzales, that being the Housing Board.

And how is it that this is the only board that the Mayor is solely responsible for appointing all members of? SECTION 3.07 POWERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL of the Charter for the City of Gonzales states that "(f)     Provide for such additional boards and commissions, not otherwise provided for in this charter, as may be deemed necessary, and appoint the members of all such boards and commissions. Such boards and commissions shall have all powers and duties now or hereafter conferred and created by this charter, by city ordinance or by law."  It doesn't say that the Mayor has that right, but that the City Council does.  So I'd sure like to hear from some legalese as to why and how Mayor O'Neil is doing this appointment without it going through the City Council.

I'd also like to know how there can NOT be a conflict of interest, or inappropriate activities of appointing a major contributor to your campaign to the Housing Commission? I'm at a loss here.  Either the mayor considers us, the people of Gonzales stupid, or he just doesn't care any more.  Either way isn't a pretty situation.

I'm so sick and tired of the "Good Ole Boys" just doing what ever they want without caring for the problems at hand.  Let's scratch each others back is all I hear amongst the elite few as I've called them.  What about the average tax paying citizen of Gonzales?  What about the average Joe that goes out, makes a living, pays his property tax and his sales tax here locally?  When are they going to be taken care of ?  I'm not talking about special services or promotions, I'm talking about the city manager, mayor and council doing everything in their powers to make Gonzales the great place it can be! Not just for special interest individuals and groups.  To run effectively so that the burden on the individual taxpayer and business that support this town are not burdened any more than necessary.

There is more to this story, and I'm verifying some facts, but I promise this is not the last you'll hear of the Housing Board and appointees.

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Victoria College

I was reading in the paper last week that Victoria College is expanding again. What wonderful news is that! As a parent the one thing I want to give my kids is opportunities to better themselves. To expand their horizons and learn new things.

What started out as a nursing school here in town is now one of the best things our city has ever done for this community. We have brought a way for our kids to transition from Gonzales High School to the real world of having to study and meet expectations that include homework nightly, reading a chapter without it happening in the classroom, and constructing sentences with proper grammar regardless of which class they are in (I'm sure some of the teachers over there would love to redline my blog on occasions).

And if you're not aware of it there is a partnership between Gonzales High School and Victoria College where our children can take dual credit classes getting high school credits while they attend college classes. The students then get the credit hours for the class and a college transcript. This cost the students and parents $0 (that's right zero) for books and tuition and that included built in tutoring. When a student leaves GHS they could well be a sophomore in college saving themselves a year of school, and the money that goes along with it.

VC is expanding many of their trade classes. These classes are not just for those who are 18 years old. Adults looking to better themselves or make a career change can attend and watch their potential grow.

So for those who question my one sided negative view of Gonzales I want them to know I see it all, the good, the bad and the ugly. Victoria College definitely falls into the 'good' category in this town!

God Bless
Dennis Nesser

Abuse of our firefighters - Cleaning up the Guadalupe Rebar

Back in April and May I wrote about the City Manager, David Huseman, dumping the old St. George Street into the Guadalupe River. I wrote that he had authorized the dumping of concrete with the rebar still in it and lead pipe into our river. He was quoted as saying, "I didn't think I needed permission to dump into the Guadalupe." Pictures were put into the Gonzales Cannon showing the rebar and pipe.

Official complaints were filed with the TCEQ and the Corp of Engineers by the water authority and private citizens (myself included).

So now that the Corp of Engineers is coming to town to look at the dumping in the Guadalupe River, the city manager, David Huseman ordered the fire department to use it's resources to go clean up his mess this last Monday.

Our firemen were down on the river removing rebar using the equipment that is suppose to be used to pull people out of cars and fallen buildings. What an abuse of power and resources!

How would you like to of been in the car accident and be told, "Oh, I'm sorry but our fire department is busy cleaning up the cities mess, please call back in a few hours and we'll be glad to help."

Now Mr. Huseman has told us time and again that there was nothing wrong with dumping in the Guadalupe river. That the lead and rebar that was in concrete he dumped was for shoring up the shoreline and he was allowed to do all that. So why now is he using city resources to remove it? Why not just wait till the Corp of Engineers gets here and show them he's done nothing wrong? Why is he scrambling?

Second, why would you put anyone in jeopardy by taking our fire department and put them down by the river with all their equipment in use? I know for a fact that the firemen are not happy at all that they were abused for this purpose. This wasn't an emergency, this was David Huseman covering his rear!!!

I would love to of heard that conversation between the city manager and the fire chief.

"Chief I need your guys to run down to the river, pull out those expensive saws of your and get that stuff out of here before the Corp of Engineers gets her next week."

"But we're not road workers, we're firemen. Call City Parks or Road Department."

"Chief, I'm not asking, I'm telling you, get those guys out of there now! They're not union, so I can have them digging ditches if I want."

I would love to know what the chief thinks about all this, but I can't imagine he's at all happy that his firemen were being used not to save lives, but to save the city managers butt.

So 1) were we lied to before and there IS something wrong with dumping in the Guadalupe? (*DUH*) 2) Was the fire department resources misused and misappropriated to clean up what didn't need to be cleaned up? 3) Were we praying that we wouldn't have another major accident while the fire department were pulled away from the fire department to do this task? I know I wouldn't of wanted that lawsuit if someone wasn't rescued because they were busy doing another departments job.

So what is it Mr. Huseman? Is the rebar OK or not? You admitted you put it there in taped interviews, so are you going back on your word now? Oh wait, that's just status quo for you isn't it? Wouldn't it have been nice if Mr. Huseman would of originally said, "Wow, sorry I messed up, we'll get that right out of the river" instead of all these games we have been playing?

Gonzales, when are you going to get pissed about the lies, the spending of your money to clean up the messes, the abuse of power, the ...deep breath...do I get my point across? Call your councilman, let him know you're pissed and we're not going to take it anymore!

I guess the one good thing in this is the rebar is gone. It should NEVER have been put into the river in the first place. It's a safety hazard, and against the law.

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Let's Go Swimming - At JB WELLS!!!

Ok, it's not that we make mistakes that irks me off to no end, it's that we don't learn from our mistakes, you know the ones that we make over and over again. It's almost as if some people in this town believe that if I bury my head deep enough in the sand the problem will go away, and JB Wells is one of those problems!

One of the simplest things I've mentioned to help control the bleeding at JB Wells is to make sure that there are no more swimming pools put up by private citizens. It is unreasonable that for $20 (or less) anyone could fill up a pool, and have unlimited electricity. You and I can't do it as private citizens living in this town, why are this visitor getting this privilege?

I have asked 2 owners of RV parks that are my friends if they would allow an RV camper to put up such a pool in their park, and surprisingly enough, oh wait that's with NO surprise, they both said "no way, it would kill us financially." DUH!

So why is it that even after the city was notified of this shortcoming do we still have 3500 - 7000 gallon pools being put up at JB Wells? It's insane. It's also another incident of the city manager not taking care of business in this town! Will SOMEONE at the city office please do something about this? I'm tired of hearing that my taxes need to go up and my utility bills need to go up when there is total waste going on!

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Respecting our Nations Flag

Recently it was brought to my attention that we have more than an eyesore in our town, we have total and complete disrespect for our countries flag.

Let me start out by saying as a scoutmaster I strive to teach our youth how to be respectful of our nations flag.  Be it during a flag raising, retreat, flag presentation ceremony or proper display of the flag I try to teach the youth how it's done properly.  One of the biggest things I am proud of is teaching the what to do when a flag is beyond repair.  Over the last 3 years we've retired over 500 flags in accordance with United States Code 36, Chapter 10, Section 176 (k) "The flag, when it is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display, should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning."  We've retired these flags from small to large in both public ceremonies and over a campfire in a respectful manner.

So when I drive around town and see a flag that is tattered I'm going to stop and ask if the proprietor will allow me to take it and properly retire it.  Over the years I've stopped by dozens of businesses and asked for their flags, and never once have I been refused.  When I explain that it will be properly taken care of they are happy to let me take it.

So with all that said, we have a situation in town that is beyond belief.  The old Quality dealership left all the flags flying when they left.  17 American and Texas flags are tattered down to 1/2 of their original size flapping in the wind.  It is in the least a disgrace!

To make the matter worse this is on Hwy 90A, our main thoroughfare in town.

So what do passersby think of our town? Disrespectful?  Uncaring? Unpatriotic? These are a few words that I can think of that come to mind that a visitor would think looking at this site.

Now this is contrary to the flag display that the Knights of Columbus put up on 6 of our national holidays, where we have flags flying down streets after streets in our town.

I know that the owners have been contacted.  I know that the city has been contacted.  I know that the Chamber has been contacted.  Yet in the last month since this was brought to our attention nothing has been done about this problem.

Now there are only 2 places I'm aware of that have the bucket trucks that could pull those flags down, and that's the City of Gonzales and GVEC.  So what should be done?  Wouldn't it be nice if the owners just took care of this eye sore and disrespect to the flags that are flying and our city wouldn't have the blemish to deal with?

Second best would be for our city manager to have someone contact the owners and either ask them to remove them or ask permission to have them removed.  Even if city employees are doing this task it's better than what it cost the city in bad publicity.

Last would be for someone at GVEC to take some imitative and get permission to remove these flags.  It wouldn't take a crew 15-30 minutes to get all those flags down with a bucket truck.  That would continue their good corporate citizenship they've shown in the past.

Regardless these flags need to be removed.  Bring them to my place, it's easy enough I'm across the street, and I will make sure that those will be properly retired along with the other 100 I have waiting for the next opportunity to do it properly.

God Bless
Dennis Nesser

Coming down to the wire on Liquor by the Drink

So the first initiative to get liquor by the drink is coming to a close.  The 30 days to get signatures is coming up July 23rd.  It will then go to have the signatures verified and if there are enough sent to the voters.  As of last night there were 1100 signatures turned in, and a lot of petitions still out.

So here's the deal.  If those petitions have another 900 or so signatures on them, this goes to the voters of the county for a vote.  If they don't it will be another dead attempt to help the county grow.  And while I respect those who don't want to support it, I still there there is some confusion.  Let me share a conversation I had with a registered voter:

RV - "We need to do something in this town.  We need a good restaurant that's not  Mexican food.
Me - "Like what kind?"
RV - "Like Roberts"
Me - "Don't you think part of the reason they are what they are is because of the liquor?"
RV - "Yes"
Me - "Then wouldn't you like to sign the petition?"
RV - "No, I don't think so. I just want things to change"
*thump thump* The sound of me hitting my head against the wall.

So you want change, but you don't want to do anything that might bring about change.  So I leave without a signature. Sad, because the person is right, we need some changes, and that is one of the areas we need change in.  They are so close to the truth and yet have their eyes closed.  It's like playing pin the tale on the donkey, they know the donkey needs his tail, they know he's over their, they just can't see where it is that it goes because they are blinded by the Gonzales "we don't want change" blindfold.

So here's the deal.  If you want to see this on the agenda and haven't signed the petition then find one.  I've got them till Monday.  Breitschopf Reality, and Shear Design all have them.  If you have a petition with any names on it, send them in! They need to get these turned in immediately so they can be verified.  If you still have empty petitions walk your block, they'll get signed in no time as long as you don't run into RV from above.

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Get your own chalkboard

You know there are certain things that just go unsaid in society but are understood.  You don't mess around with another mans woman.  You don't kick another mans dog. And you don't go messing around with another mans chalkboard!

Last week I had put up on the board about the city councils not thinking through the TMRS issue.  Mother Nature I guess is a city employee and removed it for me on Thursday.  Her rains made sure I wasn't able to put anything back up before I went on vacation last week. 

So when I get back it had written on it " "....oh wait, I'm not going to glorify the writing by putting it in my blog. But someone had written on my board. GRRRRRR

You know it's bad enough to be 'that crazy guy with the chalkboard' without help from outside.  And I know there are times there is nothing on the board, either from a lack of verifiable information or just so much I can't choose.  But it's my board!

If you would like to get your message out, and you would like to use my chalkboard, then come talk to me.  If I like what you have to say then I'll think about it.  The board is not for rent.  It is only for what I think the town of Gonzales should be talking about.

And as long as I'm on that subject let me stay there.  My opinions and those facts that I point out are for the discussion of all.  We can all look at the same facts and come to different conclusions. We do it ever election.  What bothers me is when we don't bother to look.  We don't ask questions. We don't want to believe the truth.  Those are the things that bother me.  So if we are honest in our discussions, we can have good, open conversations about what is and isn't going on in this town.  We can see both the great things going on, and the things that need to be fixing, and can focus on those things to correct them.

So if you see someone writing on my board and it's not me, let me know please cause I need to introduce someone to Mr. Smith and Wesson. 

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

Why can't we?

So I've run off with my wife since we've got a week of kidlessness and weren't able to celebrate our anniversary last month with everything going on.  We choose a town not much bigger than our own to visit. Yes, we go to Austin, Dallas, New Orleans, Houston and San Antonio sometimes, but when we want to get away, we generally pick some place small to visit.

This time wasn't far, and it wasn't new to us either.  We went to visit our friends Skip and Kate at 2 Wee Cottages up in Fredericksburg.  If you ever want a fantastic get away then I would recommend going to visit them.  Along with all the privacy you can mustard up, you're blocks from the center of town.  You have your own cottage, with a hot tub I might add.  But it's not just that, it's the food fairy that visits often.  You leave to take a stroll downtown and some succulent delight could be awaiting you when you return.  Then at night time your morning breakfast is scurried over to awake you.  If you can wait till breakfast to eat the steaming hot delights your taste buds will never quite be the same. We only make it about 1/2 the time till morning to eat breakfast.  If you call to make reservations mention my name and Skip and Kate will take care of you (she will anyway, but she generally has a something extra waiting for you when you are referred)

But I digress.

So we run over to Fredericksburg, a town that is less that 2000 larger than we are.  My suspicions are that during the months between summer and the start of hunting season this place is less than Gonzales in size.  Another words, without transient residence they are no bigger than we are.

As we drove the streets this weekend, and even this Monday, they are packed.  There are no parking spaces downtown, and the stores are all hustling and bustling with business.  So I asked myself, why can't we become the next Fredericksburg. 

You know the place people want to come, and visit and shop around. To come stay at the B & Bs and spend 2, 3, 4 or even more nights in our city. 

So I looked long and hard at downtown where most of the action is. Here's what I saw.

1) I see restaurants.  Yes there are the obligatory German restaurants, but there are many others.  You want a good, and I mean good steak, it's here!  I can think of at least 2 restaurants that you could get a good steak at The Navajo Grill or the Cabernet Grill will fill that bill for you.  You want a good home cooked meal.  No problem, how about Wheelers or Andys?  You want sandwiches? Guess what, they are here too.  It's not all one type of restaurant that makes this place tick.  And yet somehow they play upon their ethnicity to make the place thrive.  Don't we have a huge Czech and Spanish background in our city? And for the record they have liquor by the drink available at the nicer establishments. 

2) I see businesses that are open, and supporting the community. But they don't stop there.  There isn't many of the places we went to that didn't have a huge internet presence.  Chocolat ships around the world.  They don't rely purely on local business.  The Olive Shop is no different.  Their store front is small, but they don't care.  What the store provides is an outlet to their internet business.  Amish furniture, toys, jewelry, Christmas ornaments and everything else here is for sale on the internet.  So the business comes to town without ever leaving the comfort of their home.  Now I've spoken to at least one business owner in town that would like to have a web presence, but thinks his brother in law can do it. That's small town thinking! You're competing against the world now, so you have to think that way.  Yes, it will cost you, but your ROI has unlimited possibilities if you find that niche. 

3) I see a Chamber that is pushing the town in a manner which draws people near.  They have billed it as a quaint little town to come visit. It's something the entire town has gotten behind and built.  Now we could go multiple ways with our backgrounds.  A great Czech town or the best Hacienda you'll ever visit.  Either way works, but we have to pick one and go with it. And not just for this year, it will take time to get the word out, but it will.

4) I see a city where the roads are maintained in town, trash is picked up, and overall there is an air of inviting anyone that would like to visit.

So my questions is why can't we?  Why is it that Gonzales couldn't have the social economic environment that Fredericksburg has brought to the county? Are we just so small in our thinking that we can't realize that the stagnation that is occurring will only kill our little town?  You can not stand still like so many have told me they want. You are either moving forward or you're moving backwards. It's just the facts. 

So am I just missing all the town hall meetings asking why are we not moving forward?  Why have so many businesses in downtown closed down?  Why we can't seem to get a real and consistent flow of outsiders to our quaint little town?  We're not talking about spending $5,000,000 in tax payers money, we're talking about encouraging business to thrive in our community.  We're talking about showing them how to make a living selling the specialties they have to the rest of the world.  We have so many great ideas in Gonzales, and it seems like we just can't get them going.

So my question is why can't we?  Why can't we build up to have the same pull as so many others have before us?

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

How much for TMRS?

I left the city council meeting on Tuesday a bit miffed over a couple of items that zipped right past our city council.

The first was a request by TMRS (Texas Municipal Retirement System) to increase the cities portion of deposits. Now what was said on the floor (and verified through video) was that it was going from 1.8% to 11.8%.  This is percentage of the entire city payroll.

What was meant to be said is that we're going from 11.5% (a max set by the city previously) to 11.81% to 14%.  So basically we will be paying an additional 2.5% of the total payroll of Gonzales into this fund.

Now the general principal of this is not something I'm upset about.  It's a known fact that government jobs come with some perks, and this is one of them.  A retirement that surpasses most businesses by todays standards.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.

What does bother me is that Bobby Logan, while making his motions, stated that even though we don't know how much this was going to cost, the percentage seemed small enough, so he made the motion, seconded by Tommy Schurig.  Then Aye, Aye, Aye, Aye and Aye was the vote.

So my question immediately after the meeting to 2 other of the councilmen was, "so did you spend $1,000,000 tonight on TMRS?" The answer from both was "I don't know what we just spent."  The 4th councilman told me today that he also didn't know what we were spending on this proposal. Honestly when I showed him the paperwork he was a bit surprised at the percentages we were talking about.

So here is the problem.  Why would we vote on an matter that you don't know what you're voting on? The appropriate thing to of done would have been to send the city manager back to bring the figures prior to voting.  The issue was not of time sensitive matter, and so tabling it for a month would NOT of been a big deal.  Instead we have approved, some amount, that we don't have a clue how much, to TMRS.

You know if I have to fix my house I don't just call up the contractor and say fix the house.  I ask how much is it going to cost and what's it going to do for me, is it a permanent fix or a quick fix? I don't just hand the contractor a blank check!  Unfortunately those type of questions were not asked, and the city council did write a blank check to TMRS.

The second issue was that of a City Council Retreat.  Not one of the councilmen I spoke with could tell me what this retreat is going to cost for the 7 or so people to run off for the weekend and 'set a vision' for Gonzales.  Again, in a time when were were talking about laying off city employees last time budgets came around, and we're going to spend $1000s for this? Really? This is our priority?

It's time we ask the questions BEFORE we approve stuff. This is how a households get in trouble, and this is how our city is in the shape it's in.  I'm hoping that my pointing out to our councilmen, will in the future, lead to the questions being asked prior to the votes.

So back to TMRS, odds are we need to vote to approve this increase.  Again, as city employees generally expect a better retirement than civilian retirement.  Even Tommy Schurig made the comment that GVEC put in 10% (not 11.81% or 14%) for their retirement.  I think these percentages that were just approved were a bit high, even for city employees, but would sure feel better if we had a clue what this was going to cost us.

Oh, and for the record, I think I have more to rant about tomorrow, so come back and visit again then. 

God Bless
Dennis Nesser

I hope I'm wrong

So the day that Greg Little was released from the Gonzales Inquirer my wifes' first comment was "I wonder how long before he has a city job?"

We both laughed, and both sighed at the same time, because behind that laughter there was a moment of realization that both the city manager and the mayor owed Mr. Little a good deal of thanks for their current positions.  But surely not even they would be so blatant as to try to pass that by the citizens of Gonzales as he's the most qualified.

Now all of a sudden Mr. Little is being seen at city functions and meetings.  As a citizen of the city he is entitled to be at these meetings just the same as you and I are.  But me smells a rat in the closet.

I'm just going to say this once, if Mr. Little is hired by the city of Gonzales for any position, it will be purely because of the above mentioned reason.  A political favor.  I will also put on my chalkboard "I TOLD YOU SO GONZALES" when/if it happens.  You won't even have to bother with the blog, because all it will be is pointing back to this one where I am forewarning you. 

The Gonzales Inquirer didn't fire Mr. Little because of his outstanding citizenship in this town, and we don't need him as an employee of our town!

No, there is nothing behind this other than the facts stated above.  I'm hoping (praying is more like it) that this is seeing shadows that aren't there....but every time I've thought that, those shadows have smacked me upside the head.

By the way, after tonights council meeting I have more to blog about ...so come back tomorrow for more.

God Bless
Dennis

FORE - It's coming!

Ok, it's not that we've finished any of the other issues, but let me point out one more.  It's about our golf course.  Now admittedly I no longer play golf. But for almost 20 years I did.

When my eldest son joined the Golf team in high school I ventured out to our cute little 9 hole course.  I can tell you we'll never get a PGA tournament here, but for a 9 hole course it's pretty nice.  I've even taken to walking around it during the coolness of the day.

But after looking I noticed the prices that are being paid by our members I almost choked.  I'm posting our golf course compared to Luling: 

		Gonzales	Luling
Green Fees:	Weekdays	$10	$10
	Weekends	$12 per day	$14
Cart Rental Fees:	9 holes	$8	$6 for 1 person/$12 for 2 people
	18 holes	$15	$9 for 1 person/$18 for 2 people
	Trail Fee	None	$5
Annual Membership:	Individual	$215	$300
	Family	$275	No such thing
	Husband and Wife	$275	$450
	Each Additional Child	$Free	$66
	Individual Child (18)	$Not Posted  I think $50	$92
	Annual Trail Fee	$None	$76

So just the basics, a husband and wife pay $175 less at the Gonzales course, not counting any trail fees.  That doesn't count if you had 2 kids another $132 (now we're over $300 difference, doubling what we charge).  Even as an individual you're looking at almost double the cost by the time you add the trail fees.

Now go way back, and I told you there are some things that the city does for the good of the people.  We need a golf course if you want anyone to come visit.  It's a simple business fact of life.  But there is a reasonable consideration that should be made.

Now let's look at some simple numbers.

$275 for a family of 4 to play unlimited golf
$68.75 each person in the family for a year of golf
$5.73 per person per month for golf
$1.43 per round if the person plays only once per week.

Even if it's just a husband and wife (not a family of 4) that's only $2.86 a round weekly.

Now what other activity can you do for $1.43 every week of the year?  And that's not counting if you want to play extra it just drops that price even more.

In 1985 I had a club membership as an E4 in the army.  During that time our fees were based partially on the rank, and I was at the bottom.  Even then I paid $200 a year.

I'm afraid that this is another example of the city not watching what is going on around them.  I'm not going to mention the numbers I've heard that the course is running in deficit because I haven't seen them personally, but I know it's substantial.  We need to be more aware of what others are doing.  If the average cost is $500 for a family, guess what, we should be too.

I know this is a sore subject for many, because it's a particular group that plays most of the golf down there, but facts are facts, and the fact is there is NO better deal in Gonzales than the one we've allowed to happen at the golf course. Let's manage our city facilities the way they should be.  Raise the annual fees, throw in a trail fee, and get in line with those around us.

God Bless,
Dennis Nesser

More on Liquor by the drink

Ok, so I've gone by and found out more about the Liquor by the Drink initiative. 

First of all we have until July 23rd to have the petitions turned in for verification prior to the August vote.  Do NOT be thinking August, think today!

Second here are a couple of locations to sign the petition that I'm aware of. The Chamber of Commerce (Open 8 - 5 M-F, 9 - 5 Sat, 1 - 4 Sunday), Shear Design, and Breitschopf Reality all have petitions to sign.  For the time being Hector Porres and I have petitions to sign too, so if you see us ask.

You MUST be a registered voter in Gonzales County to sign the petition.  This is NOT just for the city of Gonzales, but the ENTIRE county.  So if you live in Waelder, Nixon or Smiley you also have a dog in this fight. People are needed in these other areas to push the initiative there too.  If you're interested contact one of the above locations.

You do not have to have your voter registration number, but if you do it will make verification easier.  If you sign the petition, please make sure you print your name next to if if you don't have your ID # so that verification will be easier for the County Clerks office.

If we ever want to fill up downtown Gonzales we've got to have a place for the people to go.  This is a good start to revitializing our downtown once again.

God Bless
Dennis Nesser