Obama08 Kick Off

I am hosting today March 31, 2007 an Obama Kick Off Campaign Party. As an independent, who runs for political office is an important issue for me. I am questioning leadership constantly on where is the inclusion part of your agenda? Where is the grassroots level of participation? And too often deeds did not meet words coming from the majority of these political leaders. Soundbites.

But today, I have hope. Hope in a individual who laid his application on the table and stated he was running for the nomination for President. It was Senator Barack Obama. I watched from afar. Obama is a Democrat and I am an Independent. In my heart, I believed Obama was a plant another Jesse Jackson. But I watched. I was seeking a change. But I never believed he would run.

I watched the courage of Obama. Obama was qualified but his skin color would be an issue in his bid. Oh people will say today the world is colorblind. But they are dreamers. I see color every day I wake up. And Obama caught my attention because of his skin color. But his qualifications is what kept me watching. And it happened I caught the Obama fever and I decided to do something.

Today, I will join other supporters. Supporters who have caught the Obama fever. I originally planned for a small group of 12. At first I did not think I would get the 12, a few dropped off ,but others soon joined. I reached my maximum, and soon began to receive phone calls with request from others wanting to join the group. I could not turn them down. After call this is what they call the Obama fever.

Those who can not attend my event, you can make a donation by going to my donation page found here. Change requires action. I dare you to donate and link this post in support of Obama. Those who are members of the afro-netizens, I dare you prove that we make a difference in the blogosphere, by donating to my fundraisers today. We talk the walk, but are unwilling to walk the walk. I have the audacity to believe that Obama can win with a blogosphere campaign. Please join me in supporting Obama08 today.

Shaqanda Cotton will be free-March 31

Electronic Village has these little sayings that sits in a corner of his blog. I love them. And at the top is a little box that tells you how many users are online. The top of his blog is like a little bulletin board.

I rush down to read his post, and at the end, he challenges you to share your thought, I usually don't. Tonight, I am tired, but I go back to the top, and I see something new. It says, Shaquanda Cotton is free. Shock. Disbelief. What does that one sentence means, as I click on the link and see.

Howard Witts writes:

HOUSTON -- Shaquanda Cotton, the black teenager in the small east Texas town of Paris whose prison sentence of up to seven years for shoving a teacher's aide sparked nationwide controversy, will be released Saturday morning, prison officials confirmed on Friday.

Amazing Grace.

May Creola Cotton and Brenda Cherry be encouraged..nobody said it would be easy.
Keep the faith.

Now here's a fact. for these folks, who had to wipe the egg from their faces...just the facts as we pray for them.

Quiet Please

My youngest is in town. She like to go go go. Maddening. She is wired. I mean wired. She drives with no hands on the steering wheel because she is texting folks on her phone. Maddening. I close my eyes and say a silent prayer, as she places the steering wheel between her knees.

I tell her to take a power nap..but she does not like for me to tell her anything. She sleeps with her cellphone that rings, beeps, and whistles..who knows what else. Will she ever go to sleep? Drives me crazy.

She has a concert scheduled and a vehicle to purchase on Saturday , not here but in another state. She's fly to Chicago. Wired. I'm stressed just listening to her. She has movies for us to watch together..but it ends up being only me as she answers call after call.


And to top it off I can't get to my computer because she is using it. Please child please go to sleep. But nope, I hear talking on the cellphone as I blog.

Tuskegee Airmen Congressional Gold Medal Award Ceremony

March 29, 2007 Thursday 1:00 p.m. C-Span3 coverage will be taped and played later here. This is unfair C-Span.

Read more about Fort Wayne Tuskegee Airman H.L. Gaulden, here, here, and the act for awarding the Congressional Gold Medal here.


Update March 31 White House video

Pictures of event honoring veterans

Tuskegee Airmen--Refuse to forget

To see video and read more click here.

No Letters..Hear our Voices

Fort Wayne Police Department Southeast Crime Statistics for 2006

From the No I don't want any Fries with my shake letter:

The southeast quadrant has experienced a cumulative crime decrease of 22.23%.

During 2006, ten (10) homicides occurred in the southeast quadrant-seven (7) fewer than during 2005.

This represents a 41.2% reductions in homicides occurring in the southeast.

We also saw significant decrease in aggravated assaults, when simply stating are assaults (or batteries) where to victim's injuries require medical attention. during 2006 the number of aggravated assaults occurring southeast was reduced by 19%.

The southeast quadrant experienced a 5% reduction in the number of non- fatal shootings last year. There were 19% fewer incidents involving family violence in our quadrant during 2006.


We are continuing to work closely with ATF in their Safe Neighborhoods initiative in an attempt to get more guns off the street and, through federal assistance, to prosecute to the fullest those responsible for gun violence.

During 2006, the 85 FWPD officers assigned to the southeast division were successful in removing 342 guns from the streets. South east crime for the first months of 2007 is down almost 22%.

Below is the rest of the letter:

Gun Crime Reduction Program

Project Safe Neighborhoods grant gun crime reduction program

A summary of the federal program is the following
Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is a nationwide network designed to create safer neighborhoods by reducing gun violence and gun crime, and sustaining that reduction.

The program is led by the U.S. Attorney in each of the 94 federal judicial districts. United States Attorney Joseph S. Van Bokkelen Northern District of Indiana located in Hammond, Indiana is our attorney. Locally, PSN will be coordinated by the Sheriff of Allen County Ken Fries.

The area targeted for gun crime surveillance and investigations is determined by gun crime statistics from 2004-2006, per grant guidelines. The statistics include all homicides, homicides by gun, robberies by gun, and aggravated assaults by gun.

We will measure our performance by percentage of targeted sites reporting a reduction over the previous year in the number of homicides with a gun.

We will also count the number of aggravated assaults and robberies committed with a gun with the targeted Project Safe Neighborhoods site.

The PSN Gun Crime Reduction Program will be a joint effort of the Allen County Police Department and the Fort Wayne Police Department. There will be 3 officers from each agency working a predetermined shift at a targeted site.

The city and county already partner on tow other federal grant projects, Justice
assistance Grants (equipment grant), and Fatal Alcohol Crash Team (overtime to respond to and investigate crashes involving OWI).

Uniform Crime Reports Statistics

Reverend Michael L. Latham

Reverend Michael L. Latham is the pastor of Renaissance Baptist Church, Fort Wayne, Indiana. Latham was born in Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 1960 and moved to Fort Wayne in 1970. Pastor Latham was converted in 1974 and called into the Gospel Ministry in 1977. Pastor Latham confessed the call to preach and was licensed to preach the Gospel in 1980. Latham preached his trial sermon the fourth Sunday in March 1980 and has been preaching the Gospel over 26 years.

Reverend Latham was ordained in 1989 after God called him to organize Renaissance Baptist Church. Latham was ordained by his Pastor, Reverend Dr. Samuel Walker, Jr., of Jerusalem Baptist Church, Fort Wayne, Reverend Latham has been the "under Shepard" of Renaissance Baptist for over 16 years.

Pastor Latham's ecumenical service includes serving on the Faith Based Advisory committee for the State of Indiana. Latham is a member of the Fort Wayne Area Seekers Pastors Group, the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance of Fort Wayne, and Concerned Ministers of Fort Wayne. Reverend Latham is also 1st Vice Moderator of the Northern Indiana Missionary Baptist Educational District Association and Founder of the United for a Change Youth Organization.

Reverend Latham is also employed by the State of Indiana, Family & Social Services where he serves as the Chaplain for the State.

Reverend Latham has been the President of the NAACP Fort Wayne-Allen County since 1999. As a community leader he also services on the State of Indiana Juvenile Justice Task Force, as an Allen County Jail Chaplain and Fort Wayne Police Department Chaplain, and is a League for the Blind and Disabled board member.

Pastor Latham has received the Peace & Justice Award and Outstanding Service in the Community awards from the Associated Churches of Fort Wayne-Allen County. Latham has also received the Black History Leadership/Service Award, the Community Award form the Fort Wayne Police Department, Paul Harris Fellow Award from the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International, Renaissance Deacons "Dedication to Calling & Community Service" award, and the Pastor of the Year award from the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance of Fort Wayne.


Reverend Latham's education includes the Seeker's Sabbatical at Union Theological Seminary (New York), Fort Wayne Bible College (now Taylor University Fort Wayne Campus), Simmons Bible College Fort Wayne and Marion, Indiana). Pastor Latham graduated from of Northrop High School, Fort Wayne, in 1979.

Shaquanda Cotton's Protesters.

Rickey Smiley and other supporters of Shaquanda Cotton rallied for her release. Despite the rain, a crowd of on 350 strong turnout in Shaquanda Cotton behalf.

However cries of racism, has been attack as the mother, Creola Cotton, just playing games.

Dennis Eichelbaum, an attorney for the Paris school district, said the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights has vindicated the district by finding no evidence of discrimination in three cases the agency has closed. Five other investigations remain open.

Eichelbaum said Creola Cotton is preventing the district from fairly defending itself by refusing to let the school district make her daughter's entire records public.

"Mrs. Cotton has been wrongfully attacking the character of the district," Eichelbaum said. "She's being disingenuous with regard to her daughter being an innocent child."

"She's playing a game," the attorney said.

Really now.. and what game is that?

That's not what the people of Paris Texas are saying.

Local residents responding to a civil rights rally outside the Lamar County Courthouse on Tuesday were in one accord — saying love and justice for all needs to prevail in Paris, Texas.

They said public protests are necessary and most problems are with the school system and law enforcement.

Condra Ridley

Fort Wayne Allen County Main Library is impressive. But something is missing. Three weeks ago, I learned that something was someone, Condra Ridley. At the grand opening, Couniclperson Glynn Hines was searching for her office in hopes of finding her. Taking a break before joining my volunteer tax group, I was told by someone, that Condra Ridley had cancer.

Cancer.

Today, once again, I was told that Ridley was indeed not in her office because she has cancer. And I stumbled upon this article. I join the many of the community, by saying God Speed in your recovery.

Sometimes folks stumble onto my blog through a search. And being the curious person I am I sometime follow the search terms. The term Fort Wayne Sport Corporation lead to the law firm of Barrett and McNagny. It goes to the community involvement statement and its partners.


I found several of the partners' community involvement very interesting.




Thomas Niezer

Fort Wayne Sports Corp. - Board Member and Vice President
Housing and Neighborhood Development Services, Inc. - Board Member
Bishop Dwenger High School - Board of Education - Member and President
Downtown Blueprint Plus/City of Fort Wayne - Steering Committee Member
The Learning and Development Center, Inc. - Legal Advisor
Three Rivers Festival - Past President
Leadership Fort Wayne - Graduate

I remember reading about Thomas Niezer here.

Niezer also addressed allegations that the amount of government money received by NHP and reported on its tax returns did not match the amounts reported by the city, which awarded them. Niezer said the city reports the amount of money that was awarded, while NHP reports the amount of money actually received and in hand because the awards are only paid to the agency as the money is spent.

Niezer said he takes issue with city councilmen who have called NHP's loans "predatory," saying the interest rates the Partnership charged were always below market value, in some cases lower than 1 percent.

Niezer listed the actions of NHP, pointing out that all 3,000 loan applicants were enrolled in homebuyer training courses, even if they were not approved for financing, the agency did not charge mortgage insurance and did everything it could to help clients avoid foreclosure.

And here, here, and only eight (8) sues, and here, and the Indiana Attorney General says where is the money? The money? The money? The Money?

Samuel J. Talarico, Jr.

City of Fort Wayne Common Council - Elected Member
Fort Wayne - Allen County Economic Development Alliance - Board Member

Talarico, Jr. is big on the Harrison Square Park.

To tack on interest is like saying I bought a $150,000 home for $400,000,” Talarico said.

Interesting, huh Hardball Capitol, Jason Freier. This alone explain why only $2 millions dollars of private investment was spent downtown..why use your own money when you can use OPM. It's a tradition in Fort Wayne, called using other people money.

Fort Wayne seeking property tax release

Senate bill by Thomas Wyss is requesting to designate certain areas in Senate bill 369 as housing maintenance areas. Fort Wayne's bi-partisan coalition zoing body, have their fingers crossed that this bill after being revised over at least for time with pass the senate.


Summary of Legislation: This bill allows a municipal legislative body to designate an area within the municipality as a housing maintenance area. It provides that the total territory of all housing maintenance areas in a municipality may not exceed 5% of the territory of the municipality. The bill provides that a person that makes certain maintenance expenditures on qualified residential property in a housing maintenance area is entitled to a credit against municipal property taxes.


This bill provides that the maintenance expenditures are eligible for the credit only if they are paid to a contractor licensed by the municipality. It provides that the credit equals the result of: (1) 50% of the amount of the person's maintenance expenditures; divided by (2) the number of years for which the person may claim
the credit and provides that the credit may not exceed 50% of the person's municipal property tax liability.

The bill requires an ordinance designating a housing maintenance area to specify: (1) the categories of residential property that are eligible for the credit; (2) the number of years for which a taxpayer may claim the credit (not to exceed ten years); (3) the municipal department responsible for administering the credit;
(4) any limits on the eligibility of a person to claim a credit because of unsafe building violations or health and safety violations; and (5) the types of maintenance for which a credit may be claimed.

This bill would be effective in January 2008.

Harrison Square Park is No South Town Mall

What did you say Mad Anthony? Fort Wayne is still stealing land, but this time its not from the Indians. And you've think folks need to keep an eye on Mayor Dick.

"Cities that don't know how to be cities, or don't want to be cities, build downtown stadiums, catering to car owners, corporate box owners, and wealthy ticket holders. Tax-draining stadiums serve the very people who deserted the city. To think that stadiums can provide a salvation or even a mild assist to the ills of downtown is pure folly, especially when most games are played at night." (38) Robert Brandes Gratz with Norman Mintz. Preservation Press 1998. From Harrison Square PowerPoint Presentation 2007.

Claim and Reality

" The Claim, existing facilities are "inadequate", a new stadium would facilitate efforts to redevelop an urban core BUT...no inducement for independent retailers to invest in adjacent businesses." The rest of the reality.

From CEDIT funds $19.84, CRED $11.25 m, Park Bond $1.5, Current Credit Bond $5m. Cash Reserves, $3.55 m = $42.14 million

Present value of of the total funds CEDIT $12.62 m, CRED $7.14m, park bond $950 thousand, Fund $1m, current credit bond $$5 m, and cash reserves $3.55=$30.26


From Jefferson Pointe TIF $25.2m and Jefferson Pointe TIF cash on hand $6m = $31.2m
Present value of the total funds Jefferson Pointe TIF $16m and Jefferson Pointe TIF $6m=$22.0m

From Harrison Pointe TIF $19.1m and Belmont purchase $2.1m=$21.20m
Present value of the total funds Harrison Pointe TIF 12.12m and Belmont Purchase $2.1m=$14.22 m

The totals: $73.6 m and the present value is $52.26 m. The number changes when Harrison Pointe TIF dollars are collected to a total $94.8m and the present value $66.48m.

Source: Harrison Square: WHERE the MONEY COMES FROM and WHERE IT COULD BE SPENT, 2007.

Tom Smith we are working on the riverfront

TOM Smith is going to vote for the Baseball Park, he just playing to the crowd. Others will vote based on ego like Tim Pape a vote for his children's future, Sam Talarico for his children's future, John Crawford, leader of the pack, Tom Hayhurst, to keep his friends employed, and Glenn Hines, because he can use something else instead of the Southtown Centre mantra and Renaissance Pointe, to tell African-American voters, they have a future in low wage jobs.

Oh I forgot Tom Didier, where ever the Republican says to sign, so will he go, so that's a total of seven. Forget how much it's going to cost the taxpayer. It's a place where they all hang out together, ain't that special.

Tom Smith is already campaigning for the next project; Riverfront. That leaves the two senior guys. John Shoaff and Don Schmidt, well it makes sense, the elders know how to think for themselves and that makes a big difference when it comes to real leadership.

From the DID website: Municipal Riverfront Improvement District/ CREeD. An infill strategy for the downtown core is being developed that will weld these two sets of incentives to grow mixed-use projects, featuring first floor retail/restaurants and upper floor housing as well as integrating arts and culture into a number of smaller developments. Setting the conditions to spur creative industries is the key goal of the strategy.

Loft Competition: We are working to finalize construction numbers on the development of four lofts.


Community Based Development: The mixed-use development that the DID has helped conceptualize for Superior Street adjacent to Club Soda is being pursued by a local development team. Environmental issues are currently being studied to see how they
will impact development at the site.The DID is working to spur housing in two buildings with for-profit developers. Both rehabs would produce cool loft product, but it has not been determined whether units would be ownership or rental.


UEA / DID Collaboration: John Stafford has agreed to facilitate detailed discussions between the DID and Urban Enterprise Association boards, about how the two agencies might become more intertwined. Recommendations to the full boards are expected in time for consideration at April meetings.