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Keller, Reynolds gigged by investigation

Posted by matsublog

Posted: June 17, 2008 - 12:06 pm

From Mat-Su editor Joseph Ditzler:

An investigation by Denali Law Group finds Wasilla Mayor Dianne Keller and the city economic development director, Casey Reynolds, acted improperly in their handling of the Meritage development project.

The report, delivered today to city hall, concludes evidence suggests Keller and Reynolds at worst committed "attempted coercion" when they wrote the owners of businesses neighboring Meritage property and used veiled threats of eminent domain.

"The only reason to conspire to send out letters of this nature would be to motivate the unwilling private sellers to enter into negotiations with the developer," the report states.

Prosecution would be difficult and unlikely, according to the report prepared by former prosecutors.

Six Robblee's, one of the affected businesses, resisted selling property to facilitate rerouting Sun Mountain Road at Hermon Road. Rerouting was meant to ease the increased traffic expected when Meritage completes a commercial development adjacent Six Robblees and the Windbreak Cafe.

The report concludes that no city official acted maliciously or for personal gain. "The administration simply wished to obtain a better and safer frontage road option."

Mat-Su reporter Rindi White is combing the 51-page report. Look for updates here shortly.

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11 June 24, 2008 - 9:11am | Houstoner

LOCAL POLITICS

TOO OFTEN ELECTED COUNCIL /CITY OFFICIALS THINK IMPLEMENTING THEIR BRIGHT IDEA FOR DEVELOPMENT OR PROGRESS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING. LET THIS BE A LESSON TO ANY ELECTED OFFICIALS THAT BECAUSE IT CAN BE DONE DOESNT MEAN IT SHOULD BE DONE AND OPTIMALLY THE PEOPLE SHOULD BE ADVISED AND DECIDE WHAT KINDS OF DEVELOPMENT THEY WANT AND WHERE AND UNDER WHAT CONDITIONS..
IT DOES NO GOOD FOR ANY OF US TO DISREGARD THE INTERESTS OF EXISTING OWNERS. SOMETIMES ITS BETTER TO BE THE TORTOISE THAN THE HARE.

10 June 17, 2008 - 11:41pm | Abarger

traffic safety

If the report above is right and the city was trying to solve a traffic safety issue before it happpened then I say its about time. I almost died turning out of Walmart this winter and the parking lots at fred meyer and carrs are horrible and unsafe. Dont let these business people get in the way of good safe roads, in Wasilla we need them badly.

June 24, 2008 - 8:15pm | ak1patriot

Take a driving course

There are a lot of options to the driving issues you are having. A drivers training course. You can't tell me that taking away these business properties is going to solve traffic problems. Drive the lines, drive the speed limit, read and heed the signs, pay attention and hang up your cell phone. Shop during slower hours, etc. Move to a nice, quaint little town where courteous and friendly people live. You know! How Wasilla USED to be before the big box stores moved in and we used to drive into Anc. when we needed to have a traffic fix.

9 June 17, 2008 - 11:01pm | wasillawoman

progress is coming

I dont neccessarily like the mayor, but I want to see development and it seems to me the windbreak people are just gettin in the way of progress. If the report says the city was acting only for public saftey reasons then Im ok with it.

June 24, 2008 - 8:28pm | ak1patriot

Slow down the progress

I've met the mayor, and she can be a very nice person. Getting in the way of progress because you like to see development? What are you the Borg? "Resistance is futile"! The valley hasn't run out of space yet that we need to bow down to a developer because they can make the most bucks there. The USA is already bowing to foreign countries taking our parks, etc. and a price will have to be paid someday. I personally eat more often at resturants and don't need a new fishing pole every week. Already have lots of them. And you don't want to eat fishing poles when the fishing is gone. Look at the closures. There's more coming. Seen it down in the states. Love your need for such extreme progress.

8 June 17, 2008 - 10:09pm | risk_reduction

jack Barrett

is as crooked as the Mayor.
What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.

7 June 17, 2008 - 8:32pm | asawp2

Investigation is a Political Move

The city officials were acting in the interest of public safety, the report clearly states this. They are not acting in their own personal interest or the interest of the developers. Lets face it, the intersection is a mess and the city will have to use eminent domain at some point. Citys always use eminent domain in the case of roadways and especially for public safety. It would have been better if they fixed the intersection before the development went in. It would have been cheaper and easier.

There were 13 charges filed and only one had the slightest merit. However, it's not even prosecutable. This seems like a political move. This is being blown out of proportion because Steve Menard is just trying to get re-elected.

June 18, 2008 - 10:26am | moreofsame

Investigation was not Political Move

Doesn't attempted coercion by your elected officials bother you?

It appears to me the traffic issue conveniently came up after the developers decided how much expensive commercial property they wanted the city to gift them.

On top of that, do you really want the city in the business of aiding one for-profit business at the expense of another? I'd welcome a new shopping center here, but I don't see what's wrong with expecting a developer to put it on his own land at his own expense. We have great demographics, we are a growing community, and we currently charge no property tax. How much more incentive do you really think an incoming retail establishment needs?

If safety was the only issue I believe this would have been handled much differently.

At an October meeting on this issue at the MUSC, Alaska Dept. of Transportation staff indicated that while they would have preferred to have more room between the frontage road and the Parks from the beginning, they did not consider the problem serious enough to warrant the taking of property. Likewise, the actual accident statistics available didn't indicate a particularly high volume or severity of accidents at this intersection.

In any case, if the city were truly interested in traffic safety, they would have requested that Target leave open the corridor between this new development and the light at Fred Meyer, which is also on the Official Streets and Highways Plan and would have reduced the traffic at both the Hermon Road/Parks intersection and Palmer-Wasilla Hwy/Parks intersection for greater safety and efficiency in the future.

There are more issues here, as well, such as the $2 million plus in Federal Hwy Administration funds we as citizens might have had to pay back if the exchange (which hadn't even been presented to FHWA yet) was not approved. Did they ask you if you would be willing to foot this bill for a new shopping center? I didn't think so.

As a member of the Shadowood neighborhood, this whole affair seems like more of the same to me. Three years ago we found out this Mayor's administration was so into development at all costs they wanted to cram a development down our throats that wasn't even legal. When we protested, they tried to sneak a last-minute change of the law onto the books, and keep the city attorney from weighing in at a crucial juncture in the proceedings.
We learned the hard way then that certain people at city hall were not to be trusted.

Isn't it time we expected higher standards of those whose salaries are paid with our tax dollars?

As to Mr. Menard, let me assure you this is no political move on his part. Several people started looking into these events and found the documentation quite disturbing shortly after the August 24th letter went out. Let me remind you that it was a unanimous vote of the council to pursue the matter, not simply Mr. Menard's vote. It is also my recollection Mr. Menard was undecided as to whether he would be running at the time that vote was taken.

Dianne Woodruff
Wasilla, Alaska

6 June 17, 2008 - 6:45pm | munroent

put it to rest.

The only crime I see is spending money on a 51 page report. looks like to me the developer is getting the shaft. let them do there development
so wasilla has more jobs and more places to shop. people can't afford to go to anchorage anymore. keep the money in the valley.

June 17, 2008 - 8:35pm | asawp2

You're right

You're right munroent. It seems like a bad idea to spend money on a 51 page report that says nothing was done wrong.

I would much rather stay in Wasilla than go to Anchorage.

June 17, 2008 - 7:31pm | ak1patriot

No rest for the Wicked

Howz about we take some of your property an put in another rod and reel shop while the Valley streams still have a few fish? As long as it isn't your land eh? Driving thru Wazilla the other night I noticed you could see some of those unsightly mountains pokin thru. We need to build taller stores and parking garages. LOL
It's a shame that folks like you want to look away and let anything go. No more accountability for the political elite. The only thing good is, there is only a few of your kind for the moment.

5 June 17, 2008 - 6:27pm | denisem_alaska

more corruption...just more 'localized'...

..."committed "attempted coercion" when they wrote the owners of businesses neighboring Meritage property and used veiled threats of eminent domain"...

4 June 17, 2008 - 2:22pm | Deep_Throat

Of Course

Nothing will happen. This issue is over and quietly put away. The city council will do nothing but wait till she is gone in the fall. What they should be doing is taking this proof of manipulation by city hall and start a complete audit of the city, How much money has been spent and to whom? We know who some of them are, Burkhart/croft are one of them, with major ties to Diane Keller political contributors and Howdie Construction to name a few. How much money has the city funneled to these two contractors? Including the current kitchen addition to the sports complex, something that was supposed to be installed in the begining anyway and we are paying twice for. And how is it that the city denies it's departments what it needs by way of staffing and equipment but they can afford new employee's at city hall? Lets get rolling Council members and get this city back on track!

3 June 17, 2008 - 1:52pm | Valley_Trash

Hardly news worthy

This issue was brought up long ago and anyone who has been paying attention knew that the illustrious Mayor and her crew were trying to strong arm business owners. I'm sure a well planned canned statement will follow stating that this never occured.

God help us get through Wasilla.

2 June 17, 2008 - 1:42pm | rfn

Prosecution?

The story notes: "Prosecution would be difficult and unlikely, according to the report prepared by former prosecutors."

Presumably that speaks to the question of possible criminal prosecution. But how about a civil case? The report seems like it might at least draw the attention of a contingency-based law firm.

1 June 17, 2008 - 1:26pm | helltamer

report

Post a link so us lowly residents can read through it, too? Please?

June 17, 2008 - 1:58pm | matsublog

Soon as..

...it becomes available, we will. City hall tells us their Web guru isn't in today and so the report may not be online before Wednesday

June 17, 2008 - 8:28pm | Starpoint12

Report and attachments are now posted

The Wasilla City Clerk's Information Memorandum, the Denali Law Group report and the four (4) attachments (A - J, K - P, Q - DD and EE - TT) have been posted at www.cityofwasilla.com. You'll see them on the right side of the page about half way down. I apologize for not getting them out there sooner as I was in Anchorage since early this morning for training and did not have access to a pc until I returned to City Hall this evening a little after 6:00 p.m.

Thank you.

William Miller
Purchasing/Contracting Officer/MIS Manager
City of Wasilla

June 17, 2008 - 10:38pm | helltamer

Thank you

Thank you for putting this information out there! Nice to see leadership coming from one of the city's employees, but don't worry we won't tell and ruin the reputation of Wasilla :-)

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Keller, Reynolds gigged by investigation