Pitt has Big East flap pulled from Allegheny County to Federal Courts

See the court papers from Pitt about the case.  http://aforathlete.wikia.com/wiki/File:BIG_EAST_COMPLAINT.pdf

Third letter on this blog about the sell off of PPS school assets

October 20, 2011

Dear General Wagner,

I am writing you today as a citizen, and former Pittsburgh Public Schools Board Member, to express my great concern about the sale of a public asset. I am writing about the proposed sale of the former Florence Reizenstein Middle School to the development company Walnut Capital. I believe that this sale would constitute an irresponsible stewardship of public assets by the Pittsburgh School Board and Administration. And that it should be stopped for the following reasons:

1)      According to Allegheny County Assessment Office the Building and Land is worth $22,920,500.00

2)      Sole Bidder bid $5,700,000.00

3)      Bidder announced plans for $119,000,000.00

4)      Bidder has history of seeking tax exemptions, thereby reducing or eliminating tax revenues to City, State, and School District.

5)      There was only ONE Bidder

6)      Bidding process was "fast-tracked". A shorter bidding process from other buildings for sale.

7)      Property is within an area (East Liberty) that has seen great economic investment in the last 10 years(A Target store opened 3 months ago)

8)      Board did not properly (only locally) advertise this property for sale.

9)      Bidder developed property across the street from school.

10)   Property not appraised by a least 3 appraisers.

11)   School building only 30 years old.

12)   School building is used for many community activities.

13)   Building is modern facility with large gymnasium, pool, and air conditioning.

 

I believe that this property should remain a school. There is currently one proposed charter school for East End of Pittsburgh with of others likely. I believe the property's continued use as a school is highly possible and, most likely in the future, necessary.

 

Furthermore, the Reizenstein building is a valuable asset to the East End of Pittsburgh community. This building, because of its central location and access to public transportation is a natural meeting place. Its gymnasium and pool are used by many groups and organizations. It even housed the Pittsburgh Public Schools"Summer Dreamers" education program for hundreds of students.

The taxpayers of the city have invested tens of millions of dollars in this building and property. They should have every right to expect the property to be put to the best use for students and, if this property is to be sold, to receive the maximum amount possible. This sale should be halted for the purpose of determining if this has occurred.

Looking back over the years, I also believe the handling of this property to be a prima facie case(s) of, not only wasting precious tax dollars, but of NO fiscal planning by the Pittsburgh Public Schools.

I placed before the Pittsburgh School Board in April 2008 a resolution to cancel the planned move of students from the closed Schenley High School to the Reizenstein Building. $10 million dollars was slated to be spent to make the facility more appropriate for High Schools students. However, the Board knew at that time the move would be temporary because Business Affairs Director stated "that to make building permanent home for High School students would cost $40 million in upgrades". I asked Board to move those students to an existing High School. The Pittsburgh School Board voted my resolution down. In May of this year, the Pittsburgh School Board voted to send Reizenstein students to that very same existing High School. Yet, it does not end there.

The East End of Pittsburgh is an area that is experiencing great commercial and residential development (Coincidentally, the bidders for Reizenstein are proposing a $119 million dollar residential development). The communities of Garfield, East Liberty, and Highland Park are all doing significant building of new homes. Even the struggling communities of Larimer and Homewood have plans and funding   and are beginning long overdue community re- development. We are already seeing many new families moving into the East End of Pittsburgh, and I believe many, many more will follow. What if the School District of Pittsburgh finds, in a few short years, that there is a need to build a new school for the new families? A new school will cost at minimum $40 million dollars. The East End also has many schools that are over 90 years old. How long will it be before it becomes cost prohibitive to maintain and upgrade these buildings? How long will it be before these buildings are obsolete?  The Reizenstein property would provide a large parcel of flat land in an attractive location. If a new building is ever constructed the existing sports facilities might well be incorporated at significant savings. The lack of planning may cost the taxpayers of the city and state tens of millions of dollars.

 

I am writing to ask your office to intervene and investigate the sale of this building. I believe that tens of millions of public dollars are at stake. Yet, most importantly we are facing the loss of a building that has helped to enrich the educational experience of thousands of students. I believe that a building with excellent amenities make for a well-rounded education.  Pittsburgh has long believed that well maintained facilities are important to a child's education. We have long believed in the importance of pools for our children to learn to swim and large gyms and fields for them to play and grow strong. This current Pittsburgh School Board has forgotten this. My hope is that you will us here in Pittsburgh to remind them.

 

Sincerely,

 

Randall Taylor

Former Pittsburgh School Board Director, District #1

(412) 867-8170

Meet the four Dem Party candidates for nomination for Pittsburgh City Council, District 3. March Debate Videos

From my camera to your brain, thanks to the efforts of the South Side Community Council and the Brashear Assocation, from March 2011.

Each of the 12 parts has the replies from the four candidates, with one miss due to a different camera angle need. The order is mixed among the four with each question.

My opinions are being curbed in this blog post.

Hint: The Viddler video server software is especially valuable as mini-notes can be put into the video along the timeline button. But, to leave a note, you'll need to use a Viddler account and log in.

Part 1: Opening statements:



Part 2: Two problems, quality of life, and realistic solutions:



Part 3: Proposed Neighborhood Improvement District, NID:



Part 4: Saturation of bars on the South Side and the failed attempt to restrict them:



Part 5: Cooperation and relationship with the mayor's office:



Part 6: Cooperation with East Carson Street Business Owners:



Part 7: Best asset of the South Side and its protection:



Part 8: South Side Slopes and Flats distinctions:



Part 9: Parks plans:



Part 10: Bad boy city employees:



Part 11: Keeping tax incomes in the South Side:



Part 12 and conclusion:

Your comments are welcome as part of this blog posting, or at Viddler.com, or best of all, within the timeline of the videos. Click the bead that scrolls along the horizontal timeline and insert your tidbits. Then those remarks show up for others to see as they watch.

Feel free to email this URL to others to have them check out the videos on the Pittsburgh group at Viddler: http://www.viddler.com/groups/pittsburgh .

The direct link to this blog posting is: http://rauterkus.blogspot.com/2011/04/meet-four-dem-party-candidates-for.html  .

Pine-Richland votes for $41.7 million cap on expansion project

Sorry, but this smells bad. I don't approve of phantom budgets and pie in the sky numbers that are not real, only to pass the board. When votes don't mean diddly, nor does democracy.

Pine-Richland votes for $41.7 million cap on expansion project Vice President Richard Herko cast the lone dissenting vote. He said he realized the number was 'imaginary,' in that the board has no intention of spending that amount for construction, 'but it feels like a real one.'

More power to them for fixing up the schools and even moving along on the acceptance of a very large and healthy grant to build an indoor 50-meter swim pool. But, be square with numbers and votes and the process of self government.

Accountability matters.

Analysis: NHL needs more control in Olympics

Frozen brain logic with the Post-Gazette with Olympics, as expected.

Analysis: NHL needs more control in Olympics And it was on cable.
Bettman has pointed out that Sochi is 'eight time zones away from the Eastern time zone' as one concern about the airing of Olympic hockey in 2014, but the more pertinent question would appear to be: If NBC could not be bothered to carry a U.S.-Canada game in Sunday prime time over non-medal ice dancing, what makes anyone at the NHL think it will bother to carry any hockey from Sochi?
So, again, why go?

The only thing worse than NBC when it comes to coverage of the Olympics is the Post-Gazette.

The NHL does not need more control of Olympic hockey as the problem is not that of the Olympics nor the NHL. Rather, the problem, if there is one, is NBC.

The game was on cable. It was on. Cable is widespread. Sure, it isn't universal. But, there is more to NBC than just one TV station. To say the game was not on, except for MSNBC is to say one has a brain freeze. Games were on.

The NHL should continue to go to the Olympics. The NHL should steer clear of efforts to control the Olympic Hockey Tournament. And, if you need to pay the cable bill -- do it or else watch it elsewhere.

To grow the game?

That, too, seems to be happening on its own: USA Hockey's amateur registration is at an all-time high, rinks are popping up across the southern belt, and places like Pittsburgh no longer raise eyebrows when they produce an NHL draft pick.

Let's grow the game in Pittsburgh, in the city of Pittsburgh, here:

Let's cover this roof cave in, P-G, and the failed Request for Proposals from the city years ago too.

From hockey hell

Word on the street: Everyone is entitled to a vacation, by union rules

I had a long-distance conversation in Oakland with a buddy. We were talking over three or four lanes of traffic. I asked him where the mayor goes when he goes to the beach? Jersey? Outter Banks? The Dunes of Lake Michigan?

He replied, "He is entitled to a vacation. Everyone should get a vacation -- by union laws, blah, blah, blah. And, council needs to get to work.

Grant and I take a walk on Brighton Beach in Christchurch, NZ. There is a long pier there where on could take a short walk. From Mark Rauterkus

I posted at Bram's blog:

Folks, there is no way in hell that city council is going to come up with its own five year recovery plan. They members there took about 4 hours to decide if the mayor should be called to a meeting.

Bill Peduto wrote out a plan of sorts. But, council has not even talked about it.

And, council generally talks a lot before it thinks about it.

On Wed's meeting, it took council another hour or so just to delay a bill for 3 weeks. That was the one about the curfew center that the mayor had told people that it would be open by June 1.

Council has more drag than play. It is all about drag.

I'd love to be proven wrong, but then you start the speech by Rev. Ricky Burgess about getting to work and another two days is lost.

Folly.

Council's ongoing failure to act is why OVERLORDS are in Pittsburgh. They've done nothing to merit the removal of the OVERLORDS to date.

Council finding a fix is not even a long shot.

Another favorite beach of ours is in Maine. From beach Maine

Dowd blasts Ravenstahl for contributions from contractors

Getting closer.

Dowd blasts Ravenstahl for contributions from contractors 'On the first day of taking office, I would issue an executive order that would ban no-bid contracts for political contributors to elected officials,' said Mr. Dowd, whose 2007 council run was backed in part by a handful of lawyers and financiers that do business with the city. 'I'm sure at some point we will also say that we will have no no-bid contracts.'

One does not need to ban political contributions for people who have no-bid contracts if you eliminate all no-bid contracts. So, I'd say, as I have said in the past, the city should eliminate all no-bid contracts. There is no place for no-bid contracts in government.

Simple.

Otherwise, I don't like the removal of free speech for some on day one.

Furthermore, all donors to political campaigns can have their names and details visible as soon as the money gets deposited. And, as soon as the campaign spends any money, that gets reported as well. All incomes and all expenses of political action commitees -- starting with me -- can be made visible on the internet in real time.

Dowd blasts Ravenstahl for contributions from contractors: "Pittsburgh Controller Michael Lamb has said he is putting together searchable, online lists of contributions and contracts."

Too little and too late, Mr. Lamb. Get moving already.

Christmas Gift for all Running Mates Blog Readers and Twitter Followers

I wanted to purchase a Christmas gift for all the faithful readers of the blog and the 300 or so who follow on Twitter. But, I was torn at what to get for all of you. And, I'm on a budget. (My W2 for 2008 is going to have $0 income.) Plus, we've got this nagging problem with the global economic meltdown coupled with the news industry/journalism/newspaper meltdown. So, I need to be prudent. Finally, with our amazing trip to Beijing for the 2008 Olympics, I felt it would be exciting to bring you back a gift from the Olympics. We did bring back more than 200 gifts for our family and closest neighbors and friends. But, sadly, until now, we didn't have the capacity to share a gift for all the readers and Running Mates.

The other day my wife and I were chatting about the arriving Christmas cards and letters. Then it struck me. She and I were both tickled by Steven's note. Steven is a chef. He wrote that he had been doing some cooking at home to ready his family for the holidays -- while crafting his letter. Cookies were coming out of the oven and rather than sending everyone a dozen cookies, he sent those on his Christmas list the recepit for his cookies. Bam! Within the letter we had the formula for Steven's Christmas Cookies, a wonderful treat.

Perhaps we'll test and then re-gift Steven's gift in the future -- but now on to your gift.

It's a hat.

It comes from Beijing. No instructions necessary. Great when the sun is high and the heat is around 30-degrees C. Works with all different newsprint, regardless of the language -- sorta multi-lingual. Easy to export and import and does NOT require a hologram insignia of a branded logo.

This is the official gift hat of this blog, Mark Rauterkus & Running Mates, given on 2008's Boxing Day -- a day when all 20 of the teams in the Premier League are in action.

The hat is not so good for the next Steelers games. But, other local blogs have that covered. You might find this a splendid hat for watching the next test match of the West Indies Cricket Team now playing in the southern hemisphere.

Enjoy.

We're at the starting line of our travels

We're on our way. Beijing, China, here we come.

This is our 4th trip to China. Our 5th over the Pacific. Or, around it. To get to Beijing, we'll fly to D.C. Depart early Monday. Then around noon we'll fly to Beijing, direct. The flight path goes over the North Polo. We've never gone from D.C. before.

On the way home, we'll fly to Chicago. Stay a day or two. Then come home. That will be in September.

Did I mention, again, that we have house sitters.

The photo above is on a running track outside a stadium in Chengdu. It is in the common ground area there. Imagine that around PNC Park and Heinz Field. Why not have a 'running track?' Golly. Kids could get some exercies. And, adults too.

China has had the Olympics on its mind for some time. They have put effort into hosting the games -- by making these tracks and fitness elements a part of the parks and landscape. We can learn a lesson about that. Around our stadiums, we're looking for more ways to serve beer and that's about it, if you overlook the casino.

We leave on the 4th. We'll get there on the 5th. The flight to Beijing is as long as four movies and a good long nap.

I've got my iPod loaded with some Free Talk Live radio shows. And, I've got my ear plugs. The kids and Catherine have those soft comfy neck pillows.

Last trip Catherine and I took was to Amsterdam in the spring. We flew in business class. Ahh. Those were the days. Now it is 'coach.' Love that name, coach.

Tickets in Beijing for Olympics -- pack a lunch

Olympic ticket sale in Beijing starts stampede

Thousands of eager fans who had waited for up to two days swarmed sales windows Friday for the final batch of tickets to next month's Olympic Games, knocking people to the ground and bending metal barricades in the chaotic crush.

Competitive Bid raises its head -- again -- but winks, blinks and nods prevail

Pittsburgh's water authority ups debt - Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: After meeting with PNC and authority representatives, council members questioned why the financial work was not competitively bid.

'I don't think that it's been the policy to bid these out,' said State Rep. Don Walko, the authority chairman. 'I think you just try to find the best team.'

Walko said PNC and JP Morgan assembled the authority's separate $25 million bond refinancing in 2007 and that using the firms again would save money.

City Council had them right where they wanted them. City Council folded.

Well, there is always next time. But next time in this instance is in 2042, give or take a decade.

City council blew it. None even asked a question on the day of the final vote. It was a slam dunk to get more debt.

The 'consent decree' to fix the storm water run off calls for certain measures to be made. Little has happened. Why?

Stewardships. Management. Accountability. Solvency.

The PWSA came about when Tom Murphy hatched an idea for a one-time fix of cash. All the Dems when along with it then. All the Dems sustain it now. Meanwhile, the water main breaks around town are everywhere.

Protesting the tunnels under the river to the North Shore

Now they protest. We could have used some protesters before they started to dig that wasteful tunnel.

Politics is about the future.

We knew that they would be tearing apart downtown. We know that the city is on one hand trying to spruce up downtown and on the other hand the city is getting bogged down in its own mud.

Proposal for citywide wireless Internet aborted

Told ya.

Proposal for citywide wireless Internet aborted: "Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's administration has shelved an effort to extend wireless Internet access to computer users citywide.

First off, when Bob O'Connor goes down in history as the one who took Pittsburgh out of the dark ages in the information world -- we've got problems.

Bob wanted WiFi for the All Star game -- so Pittsburgh could show itself off like Spokane and about 30-other cities that had wi-fi for limited coverage at sidewalk levels for 120 minutes of use without charge in an unsecure network.

I called for and wanted free wifi for everyone in the city -- not just downtown locations.

We need wifi in neighborhoods where kids do homework and where people who don't have upscale condos reside.

Putting wifi downtown was the best way to guarantee that it would NOT go anywhere else. They got to pick our cherries -- taking a grant to do so. We got screwed.

And, the downtown wifi carrier deal dried up a few months ago anyway. It went bust. It has failed in a miserable fashion. Use is light. Others have scrambled to pick up the pieces.

The city administration does what it generally does -- nothing. They'll wait. They'll do too little, too late. They'll keep squandering the opportunities. They'll let the digital divide grow wider and deeper.

Plus, they are not meeting about it. They are not calling for open RFPs. They are not trying to instigate anything with open conversations.

There is a new push to make cameras spy on citizens -- at red lights, on public streets -- but no push to make the infrastructure work for citizens, just against us.

Question: How do we get political debates for city-wide elections? And, can the media help at all?

I'm frustrated that there are NO scheduled debates for Pittsburgh's city controller race. Zippo. The Pittsburgh mayor's race might have three debates. We should have 30. Can we get some pressure for media sponsorship so we have debates -- or is this just a lost cause for 2007 local races?

Citizens and the mainstream media have shown some interest in hosting debates for 2008 presidential races. What works in other regions or are candidate debates rare (if not extinct) elsewhere too?

View question as posted at Linked in. (That is my first question with that service.)

Hey Buco! What are you doing for Labor Day? It isn't half as cool as what Ken is up to. And, he needs Pittsburgh's help.

Hear recent podcasts, On Your Mark. Click the top segment in the blue TalkShoe box in the left column.

The Sports & Exhibition Authority is doing too little and it is too late.

Pi Day Statement: We got pucked.

Statement delivered to Pittsburgh City Council on Pi Day, March 14, 2007.

The Penguins / multi-purpose arena deal is behind us. Now it is time to begin to look at the deal, its costs and promises. I've urged others to "think again" throughout this entire ordeal. Frankly, I crave something much better. I think, "We got pucked."

This should not be an US (taxpayers) vs. THEM (elites of governement and sports) face off. Often, life isn't about two sides. I want the third, more creative, best deal -- not one step better than the worst.

The worst thing would have been to offer a ton of subsidization to the Penguins and have them still leave and still build the new arena without a tennant.

Better than the worst is to offer a ton of money to the new arena and have them take it and destroy the Civic Arean in the process.

To grow the region, we've got to expand. Keep the Civic Arena, its pie-like shape and all. Build the new arena elsewhere.

The video above has a different persepctive. What do you think?

Pittsburgh and the City Paper article on the Pittsburgh Promise and the city youth.

Where do we begin? Well, this as fine a place as any.

Perhaps we need a membership site to focus on Pittsburgh parenting with a slant to the schools. 

Wayne Fontana should have resigned post in Allegheny County Council when candidate for PA Senate

No Great Race -- Thanks to Tom Murphy -- stupid Mayor if there ever was one

Boycott against Art Pittsburgh hosted event -- a debate of exclusion