May 1, 2012 City Commissioner Carolyn Cooper sent this email concerning tree trimming to at least 1,200 Winter Park residents on April 22, 2012. City staff reviewed the city’s tree trimming policies and reasoning during the April 23, 2012 city commission meeting, including this slide presentation. Comparing Ms. Cooper’s email with the city staff presentation, it appears Ms. Cooper is more interested in carpet bombing our citizens with pictures of dead babies than being part of a well considered effort to assure our tree canopy is managed intelligently and with an appropriate balance between aesthetics, public safely, electric reliability, and…
Carolyn Cooper Emails – Exhibit B
May 1, 2012 The following is a message I sent to City Commissioner Carolyn Cooper on October24, 2011 concerning her reaction to draft minutes of the October 11, 2011 city commission meeting and the substance of her city wide email sent on October 9, 2011. There are over 3,500 email addresses on Ms. Cooper’s distribution list as provided to me under a public records request. Carolyn, Here is what was offered in the draft minutes of the October 11, 2011 commission meeting that you conclude “accuses” you of a Sunshine law violation (prior to being modified in today’s meeting): Mayor…
Carolyn Cooper Emails – Exhibit A
May 1, 2012 The following is a message I sent to City Commissioner Carolyn Cooper on August 6, 2011 concerning inaccuracies, incomplete information, and questionable assertions contained in an email message she sent to Winter Park residents in early August 2011. There are over 3,500 email addresses on Ms. Cooper’s distribution list as provided to me under a public records request. Carolyn, Everyone appreciates selfless contributions on matters that impact our city. You may wish to consider, however, that the presumption of contribution may not actually constitute contribution. Your latest “newsletter” (see here) presents a false juxtaposition, “Efficiency versus Your…
National Issues
February 21, 2012 I have started a new blog to address my curiosity about all things political at the national level: americanstance.org. Earlier posts on winterparkperspective.org on national issues have been moved to americanstance.org.
Land Swap is a Positive Deal for You
January 27, 2012 The “no” people are all riled up again. They want to convince you that the city commission decision to swap the land on Denning for the land on Orange Avenue is something connived by the forces of evil (that is, people who do not share their point of view) in the hope you might vote for Nancy Miles, a candidate with no relevant experience and no history of contributing to our city. Steve Leary offered another review of this deal in the current political context that I publish below. The bottom line is that a factual comparison…
Into the Light
January 26, 2012 Jack and John Rogers’ recent letter to the Winter Park/Maitland Observer offers clarity for all Winter Park voters. Jack and John are the defenders of all things “Winter Park” as seen through their righteous eyes. The following is a quote from their letter written by John: The political atmosphere in this town has been toxic for, what, two decades? Each election is a battle between forces of responsible development, thoughtfulness and preservation and the forces of demolition and replacement with, frequently, out-of-scale and lesser structures, whether commercial or residential. My father has tried to stand against this…
The Poison People
January 21, 2012 Must we be continually disappointed by the negative and misleading communications we all receive when there is a Winter Park election? One Steve Lester recently sent around an email claiming he is the holder of “facts” about Ken Bradley and Florida Hospital. Dr. Lester conveniently and intentionally left out the fact that he is a radiologist who has been upset over contract disputes with Florida Hospital for years. One lawsuit he was involved in with Florida Hospital goes back to 2002 (go to the Orange County Clerk’s web site and look up case # 2002-CA-006670-O). That Dr….
I Am Voting for Ken Bradley
January 21, 2012 Ken Bradley has done a fabulous job for Winter Park and we need to thank Nancy Miles for running (not withstanding her negative campaign) because campaigns force us to pay attention to our progress. Read the endorsement of six former Winter Park Mayors: Bradley is Clear Choice. Overall, the financial stability of Winter Park has improved dramatically under Ken’s leadership. Additionally, our housing values have stabilized and our parks, roads, trees, bike paths and downtown area have all improved, securing our unique quality of life in difficult economic times while other communities continue to face challenges. Pay…
The Right, the Wrong, and the Illegal
December 12, 2011 This negative mailer was distributed just before the March 8, 2011 Winter Park city commission election and caused an understandable stir. After the person claimed on the mailer to have paid for it acknowledged he did not even see the mailer before it was sent (Will Graves), I filed this complaint with the Winter Park Police who sent it on the the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida for investigation, seeking to find out who was behind the mailer. The Detective Supervisor for the Circuit Court followed up on June 21, 2011 with this report noting that…
Swap Realities: Risk, Return, and Judgment
November 18, 2011 I received the following message from Winter Park City Commissioner Steve Leary today and thought many citizens would welcome his detailed view of the facts and circumstances surrounding the city’s recent approval of a land swap of the State Office Building property at the corner of Morse and Denning (SOB) for the Progress Point property (PP) located on Orange Avenue. As with many city decisions, this one has its share of disagreements and controversy. While some seek to exploit controversy to engender resentment and foment discord, others are focused on serving our long term interests with respect…