The public has been in an uproar with the City Council voting to proceed with the utilities expansion...
bringing water, sewer & irrigation at an upfront cost of $17K (financed $34K) to SW Areas 6,7; and water to North 1 through 8 at $6K (financed $10K).
The Nattering One muses... these heady cost estimates are based upon calculations used by the incumbent contractor MWH...
during the last surge in commodities & service prices during 2003.
Rebar, concrete, services & labor all cost far less today than during those halycon boomtown days.
In fact, the city could cut costs by 66%. How?
Fire the carpetbagger locusts at MWH, manage the project, hire permanent employees from Cape Coral & Lee County at prevailing wages to work the project.
Re-estimated costs based on this scenario prove that MWH is attempting to gough the public AGAIN while employing out of area labor at half the going rate.
Taking fiscal responsibility & ownership by bringing this project in house would help to build a durable economic base and save the taxpayers countless millions.
Will the City step up? Will Mark Mason, Terry Stewart & Chuck Pavlos man up? Will the Citzens of the Cape wise up?
COVID 19: Everything's Jim Dandy?
4 years ago
Posts
* Why should a 9.5 acre parcel owned by 1 person be assessed $ 88,000.00 for a water line.
ReplyDelete* If the assessment is going to cost more then the owner could even sell the property for, why should the owner end up on the short end.
* There is something very wrong with a formula that supplies this kind of outcome.
* And how will it get paid for if all you do is drive people out of the Cape because they can't afford the constantly increasing tax load (no matter what you call it ) and they go broke trying to live in the Cape.
* And on top of this, the council wants to add a utilities tax on electric; phone; cable TV; etc.
* Very soon it's going to be Cape Empty, the only ones left will be the "spend more Tax-payers Money" members of the council. Wonder if they're ready to pick up the tab for everyone.
Where the hell is the Obama stimulus package for infrastructure spending? Why is Cape Coral not tapping into stimulus? Is stimulus just a pep talk to keep the dummy's happy or is there actually money out there for this infrastructure project?
ReplyDeletewould like to send you an article and additional materials from Los Osos re MWH and SLO County - please send me an email address -- thank you from Lisa Schicker, past LOCSD President 2004-2008
ReplyDeletehere is the link to recent article and first few paragraphs:
http://www.newtimesslo.com/commentary/3471/sewer-project-would-dispossess-many-los-osos-homeowners/
Commentary
The following article was posted on October 21st, 2009, in the New Times - Volume 24, Issue 12
Sewer project would dispossess many Los Osos homeowners
For about 40 percent of Los Osos residents and businesses, the price of the sewer makes the difference between staying or having to move out.
BY LISA SCHICKER
The Shredder recently poked fun at me about a series of complaints I filed with the Board of Supervisors regarding their recent handling of design-build contracts for the Los Osos wastewater project (“Poo-poo ca-choo,” Oct. 1). The mighty Shredder also took the opportunity to rip thousands of New Times readers who know me, my track record as former Los Osos CSD president, and what I stand for as a person: readers who know exactly what I’m talking about and who know the difference between a joke and a slap across the face.
The Shredder probably thought he or she was being funny. Anyone who thought it was funny probably doesn’t live in Los Osos. It’s no laughing matter for thousands of my Los Osos neighbors who will be forced to move because of the county’s no-bid sewer project; that is, if they can even sell their houses encumbered by $25,000 liens to pay for the sewer. In this low-ball real estate market, speculators are looking to make a killing.
For about 40 percent of Los Osos residents and businesses, the price of the sewer makes the difference between staying or having to move out. No one in the U.S. pays $250 a month just to flush their toilet—it would happen only in Los Osos.
Last March, without explanation, the county eliminated a top-ranked engineering team guaranteeing a 20-percent savings over competitors for building the wastewater project. Instead, they selected the giant multinational firm Montgomery Watson Harza (MWH) as one of three short-listed firms for both major contracts.
The interview panel recommending MWH was comprised of county employees and consultants, selected by Public Works Director Paavo Ogren. These consultants receive regular no-bid contracts from Ogren and happen to be former business partners of MWH. Ogren placed himself and recently-fired Gail Wilcox on the appeals panel. ......
whole article is available at:
http://www.newtimesslo.com/commentary/3471/sewer-project-would-dispossess-many-los-osos-homeowners/