marconews.com Accounts

His real name is Cornelius Harvey McGillicuddy IV (I'm not joking).

He dumped his wife of nine years & mother of his two small children in 2005 while fooling around with Mary Bono who was also married to someone else at the time.

He is a fake, devoid of integrity and has a legislative voting record that makes Bush and Cheney proud.

Vouchers by any other name are still tax payer dollars robbed from the public schools to pay for private schools and worse to pay for religous schools. The state of Florida has twice ruled them unconstitutional and would again even if you called them "freedom passes". Pathetic.

Mack also voted against the reautorization of the health care insurance that would have helped 500,000 children in working class Florida families gain access to affordable health care.

Is this really the best we can do?

Dump Mack or whatever his real name is.

Ed, Thank you for the information. I followed up on it. While the investigation continues and as the article points out, septic systems are also still under review as potential causes, it is instructive to note that the Sanibel Bayou Sewage Treatment facility is privately owned and was found to be not in compliance with requirements set by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

The publicly owned facilities of Marco Island are in our control and a responsible local government such as we have had will insure compliance with State requirements. This is in contrast to privately owned septic tanks which are not monitored. Raising the Sanibel Beach closures as a reason to not support finishing the STRP is weak at best.

Link to Sanibel facility EPA report here:
http://www.mysanibel.com/News/2007/Be...

Latest numbers from the Eagle poll (Looks like it's up to a 3:1 margin for the good guys):
Which four Marco Island City Council candidates are you voting for?
Joe Batte 6% 49 votes
Jerry Gibson 18% 137 votes
Andrew Guidry 6% 52 votes
Roger Hall 6% 47 votes
Butch Neylon 6% 50 votes
Frank Recker 19% 145 votes
Bill Trotter 19% 145 votes
Wayne Waldack 17% 135 votes
760 total votes

You sound worried Ed. Perhaps if you cleaned your septic tank fogged glasses you could see the beauty of Marco Island from the moment you peak the crest of the Jolley Bridge and enter our little piece of paradise. The city managed to complete the Collier Boulevard project on time (actually a few days early) and it is looking very good. The trees lining Collier and San Marco are adding to the tropical feeling. The medians will only enhance the effect when completed.
The housing bust you try to blame on the city is silly. I don't think you even really believe that.
You sound like an angry old man trying anything to wreck his revenge for his early failures. Don't be bitter. Life is too short. Go for a walk on South Collier Blvd. and enjoy the stroll.

Mr. Hall, First of all, you exagerated your claims that the beaches were closed due to a sewer leak in Fort Myers. That was not supported by the EPA or any other monitoring agency. It was an offhand comment of a resident. Secondly, we are not installing sewers that are susceptable to floods. Please stop acting so authoritatively when you do not have the facts.

Ed, I admire your fortitude and thick skin. These angry folks attacking you do so because they have no grounds for a solid argument on the issue of the STRP so they make things up, get creative on ways to try to undermine the representative democracy we have and use personal smear campaigns instead of rational discourse. They don't want to learn or to hear anything that brings forward evidence that the world is round to their flat earth.

It is a shame that they continue to cause such mayhem with no chance of success. For a decision on a capital project by a city council which sets in motion complex funding mechanisms including bonding and contracting to be left to the vicissitudes of a few hot heads would defeat the purpose of a representative form of government and bring to a halt any faith by the lending industry to make a favorable loan to the municipality.

All this trouble may in fact have driven up the overall expense of this project by ultimately making the bonds more expensive.

We cannot possible run a city government under these conditions (and, in fact, that may be their goal…if they can’t win they’ll shut down the city if they can…this is terribly short-sighted and unbelievably selfish).

There can be no one left on Marco Island who does not know that Bedford Biles, pictured above, is the husband of Faye Biles who is the ringmaster of the anti-sewer cabal. Once again we see that that it is consistently the same small group who are behind the failed CARES, Recall, POP, etc. efforts and now ‘friends of Marco’. As perisitant as ticks and just as annoying.

What a bunch of spin-masters. I know you are all smart enough to understand a representative form of government. And I know you have heard this response to your calls to put it to a vote before. So now we see through your argument. You are once again trying to manipulate a situation that you have failed to convince any legal body to agree to. You have failed to sue the city, you have failed to recall the city councilors who have voted with integrity (and were legally elected as our representatives), and you have failed in your so-called asbestos lawsuit. You are just like President Bush who just doesn't know how to acknowledge complete and utter failure. And yet are willing to ruin good lives in order to avoid having to say you have failed and maybe you were wrong after all.
I have a septic system by the way. I will be here a long time and will never forget who you are and what you've done to this island. I honestly can't believe you are dragging up Ed Day again.

You dingbat barfly-the draft is of the accomplishments the city has every reason to be proud of. Obviously, as a positive perspective, not something you can relate to. Note the subject line: Subject: Accomplishment Report

The CARES folks (and the RECALL, POP and MITA folks-all the same people really) must be VERY concerned about their emails sent to Forcht and Keister. And the replys would be interesting reading as well. Did Keister and Forcht share strategy with each other on shared emails from these folks?

There are many companies in the region that recover deleted emails. Law enforcement also has that ability. It is ironic that those folks most loudly accusing others of sunshine violations are now themselves accused and threatening obstruction of the judicial process. There may be justice coming to the universe of Marco Island after all.
(This article was originally posted Saturday but I don't see reference to it here.)

Thanks Don~We needed that. Sometimes we fail to see the humor in the absurdity that has been burying our beautiful island in negativity and selfishness. You continue to bring pellucidity and make me smile. Long Live Marco Island!

(Continued from previous window)
Allegation: "They spent 28 million of our reserves in one year!"

Response: Frankly, I don't have a clue where this number was pulled from. The following data compares information in the 9/30/05 audit report (page 15, Statement of Net Assets, Total Primary Government) to page 14 of the 9/30/04 report:

9/30/04 // 9/30/05

Pooled Cash &
Investments $20,717,620; // $34,978,963
Nonpooled Cash &
Investments 747,153 // 767,865
Restricted Cash &
Investments 14,661,995 // 11,567,049

>From those same reports:
9/30/04 // 9/30/05

Total Assets $156,484,093 // $191,462,090

Total Net Assets 37,496,676 // 65,128,508

Total net assets is the difference between total assets and total liabilities. In the private secto r, total net assets would be referred to as "Equity". Note that total net assets (equity) increased by $28 million from 9/30/04 to 9/30/05. Maybe someone got a little confused and decided that a $28 million INCREASE was a $28 million LOSS.

Forms:FinanceResponse22307

Bill Moss
City Manager

Interesting. I can only count 11 people in the photo. Looks like more inaccuracy and exaggeration, which were obviously needed to beef up this considerable flop of a flap.
There are so many other important matters that need addressing in this world. Why not take the lead from the wonderful volunteer who delivers Meals on Wheels to the elderly or go read some books to children in the public schools to help increase literacy or find a cause that is truly worthy of the mighty energy you have that is just looking for a worthwhile cause.
You can continue to disrupt the city's workings and you can keep Ed Bania feeling relevant but you seem smart enough to actually make a difference in a positive direction instead of all this rancor and personal attacks on individuals with whom you disagree. You seem to be making this sewer protest a sporting event, and shortsightedly missing the profound waste of time and taxpayer resources and personal anguish you have caused and are continuing to cause. When you start thinking that the all the courts in the land are crooked and the legal system is corrupt because it does not support your cause, you might want to take a look at the path you are on and reconsider your options. When your life has become all about sticking needles in the eye of the city management and city council because you are unhappy and want to see them suffer more (you have just sent a letter to the new governor complaining again about your exaggerated ills...the Governor is a little busy right now trying to help thousands of people who have just lost their homes and 19 family members to tornadoes. Those are real problems.)
Your life can be meaningful in other ways. I hope the wives in the photo can help you figure out a way to actually help your community.

Mr. Foster, I hear your house is on the market and you are leaving the area. You have wrought so much anguish on this island with your lawsuits and anger. You singlehandedly prevented so many other people from even listening to you because your browbeating ways were beneath contempt. You are responsible for the inability to have a decent dialogue once you brought suit. You overreacted. You overestimated your own power and undermined the whole effort you sought to lead. And now you leave. You fouled your community and leave us to clean it up.

Is that the campaign you are going to run on?

Perhaps the bigger story on Marco Island in 2006 is that democracy survived another year. The citizens elected the city council members who made representative decisions on our behalf. Their decision on the septic tank replacement program was made honestly and without any possible personal gain to any of them. Their vote was not overturned by a hostile minority.

The Florida Constitution safeguards the public's electoral decisions by specifying the conditions under which city council members can be recalled. In particular the constitution protects against the type of recall efforts attempted here last year. A city council member needs to be able to make a decision based on his or her knowledge and not because of vocal and aggressive pressure groups that threaten to recall them when they disagree with them. In order to recall a city council member there need to be misdeeds of integrity, not because of a disagreement on the decision itself. It would not make sense to be able to overturn a city council election with a minority vote, which is what this recall petition attempted to do.

As the article stated, the other events listed cascaded from the disagreement by some with the City Council’s vote on the septic tank replacement program. The rest of the issues were part of the campaign to overturn the decision of our duly elected city council. There was never really any health and safety threat from the asbestos pipe pieces; it was just another frenzied part of their campaign to discredit the city administration. Just ask Ed Foster who protested the most and yet stored pounds of the stuff in his garage.

They challenged the decision and on all counts they have failed. There is no reason to believe the appeal regarding the equity issue will fare any better.

The role of MITA in all this has not been mentioned, but it was always an integral part laying the attack and using its newsletter as a behind the scenes weapon to whip up the dissent. MITA has not been happy ever since Marco Island became a city. It refuses to acknowledge the good we have accomplished instead perpetuating campaigns to bring about its demise.

While we can celebrate the success of our democratic system to withstand the attack of some vehemently angry citizens, we are left feeling exhausted by it all. The level of public rancor was unprecedented in our small island community. There were public and private personal attacks launched against not only the councilmen subject to the recall but against their family members as well. The city manager, who is not a publicly elected official, was also maligned in personal attacks and subjected to a nasty petition drive aimed at eliminating him. Individuals who stood up on their behalf were personally vilified in the press in a vicious and ungentlemanly manner. We as observers have the mud spattered upon us as well. This was a poorly executed campaign without integrity or scruples.

The government is us. We elected those who govern. The government is not the problem. That you disagree with a position the elected men and women have made cannot be helped. We are not all always going to agree.

How we resolve our disagreements can be an art form by creatively working together to resolve the differences or we can behave primitively clubbing each other to death to see who the last person standing is. When you decided to sue the city, you chose your method and the clubbing began.

Celebrate Marco has not taken a position on the sewer issue but because they do not agree with your tactics you think they are the enemy. Apparently, any who disagree with your tactics of bludgeoning good people until they are bloody is your enemy. The Chamber of Commerce also disagrees with your tactics and has also stated they have no position on the STRP and have become a target of your animosity.

A kind hearted and courageous minister voiced an opinion against your tactics and your fellow clubbers went after her too.

Other respected and normally reserved individuals voice an opinion against your tactics or call for more balanced reporting and they become your enemy and the clubbing continues.

Even in defeat of the ill conceived lawsuits and half cocked referendum attempt the clubbing continues unconsciously like a chicken running around after its head is chopped off.

The recall is also doomed and these last ditch efforts to drum up asbestos materials exposes the depths to which you are prepared to stoop. You have no moral ground. You have blindly attempted to destroy a community in an effort to save a few dollars. Believe it or not, many of us in the ranks of those who disagree with your tactics are on septic systems but find your methods revolting.

October Surprise?
I can't help but marvel at the exquisite timing of the "appearance" of more asbestos material at the same precise time as the recall judge's consideration of the relevance of this in the recall petition.

The recall petitions are relying on the precise accusation of incompetence by the city councilors regarding the handling of asbestos materials at this site earlier this year.

The CARES PAC filed a lawsuit against the city over the handling of this asbestos material at that time. The case was settled recently by mediation with a finding of no fault on the city's behalf. Not only that, CARES was required to write a letter to the city acknowledging the city's competence in handling the whole situation.

The city oversaw the cleanup of the site to the EPA’s satisfaction. If I recall correctly, that included removing the top 4 inches of topsoil, odd that there would be some big pieces just under the surface now.

CARES and the RECALL committee are the same people. They have a lot riding on the outcome of this. Without being able to show incompetence on the handling of the asbestos pipe, they have no case for recall just as they were shown to have no case for their lawsuit against the city.

This turn of events is very disturbing. It is hard to imagine how many laws may have been broken if anyone has planted asbestos pipe on the site at this particular time.

From the earnmarco.com website the wording for the recall petition against Mr. Tucker:

On August 21, 2006, Councilman Tucker voted to extend the STRP to three new districts.

Councilman Tucker allowed a hazardous and unlawful handling of asbestos to go unchallenged resulting in months of possible asbestos exposure to people on Marco Island.

Therefore the undersigned believes Councilman E. Glenn Tucker has shown a blatant disregard of the will and well being of the citizens of the City of Marco Island and request he be recalled on the ground(s) of malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, and/or incompetence.

There is nothing in this petition in regards to your accusations against Mr. Tucker. It appears that you are on a vendetta to get him even if it means using your arguments against him as the basis for trying to get people to sign the recall petition. This petition will also be ruled invalid because the asbestos case was resolved and Mr. Tucker is freed from these charges.

That he may have been told about a photo that may have shown pipe pieces in a place on the vacant lot where none had been seen in preceding days and now cannot produce the photo is not a crime.

There have been so many actions taken against the city management and city council members and, in fact the surreptitious video taping taken at a Celebrate Marco event by Roger Hall’s co-conspirators and the creation of fictitious deceptive websites designed to undermine Celebrate Marco are part of a pattern of behavior that is more descriptive of the CARES-POP-RECALL group. They are far more disruptive and deceitful and harmful to our community than any of the city administrators or councilors.

We are all catching on to you and your tactics. You are the real danger.

From the petition on earnmarco.com:

On August 21, 2006, Councilman Minozzi voted to extend the STRP to three new districts.

Councilman Minozzi allowed a hazardous and unlawful handling of asbestos to go unchallenged resulting in months of possible asbestos exposure to people on Marco Island.

Therefore the undersigned believes Councilman Michael F. Minozzi Jr. has shown a blatant disregard of the will and well being of the citizens of the City of Marco Island and request he be recalled on the ground(s) of malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, and/or incompetence.

Good Grief, is this what all the fuss is about? You guys don't have a chance. The asbestos part by itself was resolved exonerating Minozzi...this petition is a sham. Trying to recall a councilor for his vote on the STRP is not a condition for recall.

This will definitely be thrown out by any judge.

From the petition on earnmarco: On August 21, 2006, Councilman Minozzi voted to extend the STRP to three new districts.

Councilman Minozzi allowed a hazardous and unlawful handling of asbestos to go unchallenged resulting in months of possible asbestos exposure to people on Marco Island.

Therefore the undersigned believes Councilman Michael F. Minozzi Jr. has shown a blatant disregard of the will and well being of the citizens of the City of Marco Island and request he be recalled on the ground(s) of malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, and/or incompetence.

Good Grief, is this what all the fuss is about? You guys don't have a chance. The asbestos part by itself was resolved exonerating Minozzi...this petition is a sham. Trying to recall a councilor for his vote on the Strp is not a condition for recall.

This will definatly be thrown out by any judge.

So the recall IS about sewers isn't it.

Tom, You are mistaken about the source of the bacteria that closed the beaches in Lee County in late September. Unfortunately misinformation like this is too often misused intentionally or not to justify continued use of septic systems over sewer. Please see an excerpt from a News-Press story:
"The enterococcus bacteria that ruined some of Curigliano's vacation plans comes from animals droppings and human waste that were carried to the Gulf of Mexico in stormwater runoff, according to Lee County Health Department epidemiologist Robert South." (From the following: Swimmers anxious, but Sanibel business doing fine. Originally posted on September 25, 2006) For the record, the beaches tested safe and were reopened a few days later.

For goodness sake JW and Ed, you were 100% wrong and there never was a reason to sue the city and try to bring RICO charges against the city management.

CARES went on a tirade and had a full blown tantrum when they followed the Pied Piper head of MITA blindly to their doom, but not until honest men’s reputations were beaten to a pulp.

CARES-POP-RECALL are cut of the same cloth using bullying tactics wasting this gentle community’s time and money and precious energy. You complained incessantly and you still do and you probably always will. There was never a danger from asbestos. You trumped up this charade in an attempt to deceive the more easily frightened among us using scare tactics to sway opinion.

Look at the asbestos settlement. CARES got nothing!! They have to write a letter of support to the city approving of the city’s plan for clean-up, a plan that was devised BEFORE CARES sued. They had to claim they never really planned to charge the city management with RICO violations because their board member and lawyer Sammy could be in deep trouble for falsely filing such a charge.

Someday the Island will reclaim its tranquil ambiance. And CARES-POP-RECALL will be washed from our memories like dead fish on the beach are washed away with the tide.

What a joy it will be to never see these angst riddled posts again hanging off the end of stories like predators looking for prey. Sigh

The City of Marco Island is pleased to announce that the lawsuit filed by CARES has been resolved. Moments ago, the City Council ratified a settlement agreement. None of the defendants acknowledge any wrongdoing and continue to expressly deny CARES allegations. Through the court mandated mediation process all parties agreed to resolve this matter amicably, which resulted in consensus and this settlement agreement.

Within five business days of notice of tonight’s ratification by Council, CARES will file a notice of voluntary dismissal with prejudice. CARES and Gold will be releasing the City and Quality Enterprises from all claims that were raised or that could have been raised in this action. Further, CARES will release the City and Quality Enterprises from any and all potential future causes of action of any sort relating to the Collier Boulevard Construction. CARES and Gold will issue a letter clarifying that at no time was any RICO claim alleged or intended against the City Manager Bill Moss or Public Works Director Rony Joel. CARES will issue a letter of support to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the Asbestos Work Plan and Dust Control and Water Retention Work Plan for Veterans Park.

The City agrees to the creation of Veterans Park Development Board (Master Plan Committee) to develop a master plan for the park. Out of a desire to put our citizens first and end the division in the community the City, Mr. Moss and Mr. Joel have agreed to forgo their right to recover their attorney fees for the frivolous claims that have been brought with the guarantee that this project can be competed without further delay.

The City will also oversee Quality Enterprises to ensure their contractual obligations are met on the Collier Boulevard Construction Program and will pursue the recovery of expenses associated with remediation on Site A, if any, and Site C. Furthermore, Quality Enterprises may proceed to complete the Collier Boulevard project, and removal of the construction material from the Veterans Park staging area should begin soon.

Dearest Dianne,
I also miss the quaint sleepy island. It is clear Marco Island was 'discovered'. Many economic and demographic changes have occurred in the past 10 years, not the least of which is the convergence of low mortgage rates, baby boomers hitting retirement age and investor appetites for snapping up once modestly priced homes on the water, a quickly dwindling commodity in our nation as a whole.

Many of us would not be able to buy our current homes on Marco at today’s prices. Many have sold their Marco homes to ‘cash out’ and retire on the proceeds.

Some investors may be stuck right now with ‘investment’ properties they grabbed up and cannot easily flip because the cyclical nature of the real estate industry has ebbed as have the lowest mortgage rates leaving the investors with high priced homes and equally high priced property taxes. These people are the ones who are also unhappy about having to ante up for sewers on top of this.

(Homeowners on septic can make arrangements with the city to pay over time up to 20 years, or to leave the whole payment plus interest to their estates to handle upon sale of the property.)

But let’s not confuse those forces over which you and I have no control by blaming the stewards of Marco Island, namely the city council and the city management. They are the caretakers of the infrastructure. They have no interest in increasing density, quite the contrary. They are required to reflect the sensibilities of the residents as determined by the elections where city councilors compete for votes.

City management is not responsible for the economic conditions of the island, nor for the sad passing of the bygone days you so miss. They are however charged with making sure that our roads and bridges are safe and improved. They are also following the best advice and guidance available regarding the inevitable replacement of septic systems on our barrier island.

They rest of the commotion is just noise thrown up as a smokescreen by those opposing sewers.

While we mourn the loss of the passing of a sandy little village we need not trample the good men and women of this island who will continue to serve their neighbors as council members and clergy and volunteers. We need to get back to the sleepy little village attitude where mutual respect and caring for our neighbors truly makes life on Marco Island the paradise we love.