Various March JPA-related Resources

rev. 12/02/06

INFORMATION & LINKS

Risking Lives and Property -- March JPA's failure to oversee March Global Port's dangerous fueling operations.

Jeff Hill Complaint

Part 1 / Part 2

Web of connections?  Ken Calvert Data Dump

Index to the administrative record in the DHL zoning approval action

SNEL

CNEL

Gumport Report
  Appendix 1
  Appendix 2
  Appendix 3
  Appendix 4
  Appendix 5

March JPA

Various Financials

Adkison form 460 (2005)

Ashley form 700 2006

Busch 460

Busch 700

Buster form 700 (2006) and form 460 (01-03/2006)

Buster form 460 (01 to 06/2005)

Schiavone form 460 (10 to 12/2005)

Schiavone fundraiser

• front
• back

Stewart form 460 (2004 and 01 to 06/2005)

White form 460 (2004 and 01 to 06/2005)

Yarborough 460

Yarborough 700

unidentified attachment

Click here for Latest

December 6, 2006

Dear Mr. X:

 You know,  I wanted to discuss the vision thing with you for a moment ...

Sincerely,

Barrington Daltrey

Planes waking you up at night? Maybe you should be suing in small claims court. (And by the way, it seems that the DHL planes are taking off to the south instead of flying the north departure that March Globalport/March JPA have claimed would be the official route.) So, folks in Murietta, this one may be for you:

Your elected leadership/private enterprise coalition at work:

"Here's your March CargoPort DHL flightpath!"

Here is an archive of some articles and notes I had on this secondary website back in 2004.

Latest Info:

7/11/06 -- The Press-Enterprise reported today that the March JPA Commissioners oppose passenger flights at March. 

 http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_H_march11.1e33007.html

Here's the agenda to appoint a Board of Supervisor's member to the Southern California Regional Airports authority. (pdf)

The Boston Globe runs this AP report that crashes of air cargo flights are more likely to kill people than crashes of passenger flights, because of limited safety monitoring of air cargo planes.

6/30/06 -- The Press-Enterprise reports that the Riverside District Attorney is looking into the March Global Port refueling debacle (unpermitted, unsafe operations for five months -- see CAREE's letter to the California AG).  Considering P/E's editorial disparaging our request to the AG, it's good to see the P/E can nevertheless cover the news that an investigation is actually underway.

For specifics not included in the P/E article, go to today's OrangeCrest Chronicles front page report.

05/18/06--Now what is going on at March JPA? The latest is makes no sense, it's just "nonsense."

Let's take a look at this "no sense" nonsense. The P-E tells us that the March JPA will "stave off a budget shortfall" by "adding more resources and staffing." I don't know how this works at your business, but at mine, budget shortfalls are resolved by either increasing revenue or reducing overhead. I'd sure like to figure out those "John Husing" economics where increasing overhead "staves off" a budget shortfall. (No, John Husing is not quoted in this article. But, to me it looks like his sort of economic analysis.)

The article also tells us that this restructuring resolves previously reported concerns that might have caused the City of Riverside to pull out of the JPA because it might be forced to pay for services the authority can't cover. Oh, right, I understand now. Increasing the overhead will reduce the budget shortfall, so Riverside won't be asked to pony up. Makes perfect sense, don't it?

We also find out that "leadership and management of the March Joint Powers Authority have weathered months of public scrutiny and criticism." Is the storm over? "Weathered" usually implies the storm is over. Is it?

Now here's the real gem -- Riverside County Supervisor Marion Ashley said the county was prepared to pay for "appropriate public safety and planning services." Is Riverside County agreeing to pick up the March JPA shortfalls? Specifically what is Riverside County agreeing to do? How is the shortfall going to magically disappear?

So, reading between the lines apparently the budget crisis is over because Riverside County is going to subsidize March JPA operations? Is that what's going on? (We can't really tell from the information available.) But if that's the case, it may come as a shock to Riverside County taxpayers because there apparently hasn't been any Board of Supervisors action on this. So how is Marion Ashley able to announce the deal has been reached; and how are the March JPA commissioners able to ratify an "overhaul" based on the assumption that the County will pony up and solve the financial problems?

This all seems pretty murky to me ...

Lower on this page you will find links to the Brown Act and the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act. Taken together, these California laws say that public entities have to take action in public with adequate notice and opportunity for the public to comment. And further, that commissioners and elected officials can't privately make decisions among themselves and then just put them on the record later.

So, what are the March JPA commissioners telling us? They are okay with the restructuring because Riverside County has agreed to pick up the tab for all of their $16 million and rising mistakes, and everyone is happy? I guess we'll have to stay tuned and try to find out.

In any event, I wonder when the Board of Supervisors will get around to putting a dog'n'pony show on the actual public agenda and pretending to deliberate and vote on this deal they have already announced.

But, I recommend you file this one in the "stay tuned" department. Another story we're not hearing is how the City and County governments are awash in money from the high property taxes brought about by the real estate bubble. Considering they were both financially teetering a couple of years ago, a really good idea would be to use this windfall manna from heaven to get their financial ships in shape to weather the coming storm as the bubble bursts. (All of you who are old enough to remember 1989 remember what it's like when a real estate bubble bursts, don't you?) Instead, they are wasting your tax dollars, subsidizing insane Globalport/DHL deals that move public wealth directly into a small number of private hands at public expense. Windfall taxes are just another opportunity to move public funds to the favored few, I guess.

Considering under the Evans Report, Phil & Laurie apparently deserve to receive promotions for their incompetence, should we conclude the $16 million (or whatever) revenue calculation screw ups were actually mistakes, as they claim; or were they intentional. Normally in the business world, success is rewarded, mistakes are punished. If the March JPA commissioners go this route, the only reasonable conclusion is that the March JPA commissioners are happy with the misrepresented flight path and happy with the extra $16 million+ globalport subsidy because that was what they intended all along. And if they wish us to believe otherwise, then why aren't Phil and Laurie gone instead of more County funds being poured into the March JPA to make the Globalport boondoggle work?

You know, this stuff must make you the reader really angry, right? (Especially since many of our "readers" are actually people like Phil & Laurie checking to see what we are up to.) But for our other readers, the ones that believe governments are not just giant vacuum machines designed to move tax money to well-situated friends, doesn't this make you angry, also? And if so, may I ask a rhetorical question -- do you ever plan on engaging in democratic process to change all this? Or like our readers from JPAland, do you just like reading up on "what we're doing" for entertainment value?

05/04/06 -- BLACK IS WHITE, Riverside style. What do you do if your support staff withholds information from you causing you to make $16+ million mistakes, commits bodily injury to employees (see Jeff Hill vs. March JPA complaint, Riverside Superior Court) and then fires dissenting staff and misleads both the commission and the public? YOU GIVE THEM A PROMOTION (and apologize for giving them too much to do)! (See Evans Report.)

05/04/06 -- Conflict of Interest, anyone? You be the judge. Here's the law ...

Also, summary of key "open meeting" and "freedom of information" laws:

Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act

Brown Act

California Public Records Act

Freedom of Information Act

04/01/06 -- I know you've been looking to the "Careenews" website for information. We've set that up with a "forum" approach & perhaps we will have more information at that site soon. In the meantime, here's an alternate source for information. I'll try and get it up-to-date.

The CAREE members met 3/29/06 and are planning another meeting in another month when we have a better opportunity to get the word out. Many of our "regulars" showed up for the meeting and we discussed some internal procedural stuff (eg., CAREE will be reforming as a limited liability company, or "LLC"). We discussed approaching various types of legal action and are working on the details.  Given the information that has become public since the unfavorable decision in our last lawsuit, I would say we our position is completely vindicated.

Based on the excellent investigations by Kim Trone and the Press-Enterprise, it has become clear that the March JPA / March Globalport operations are characterized by complete disregard for public safety. No provisions were made for refueling the DHL planes and fuel was stored in rented water trucks until shut down by the county fire department. (We understand that fuel is now trucked in on a daily basis, putting numerous fuel trucks on the freeway, increasing the dangers to commuters.)

It appears that the March cargo operations lack appropriate water permits. There continues to be a serious issue concerning the toxic TCE plume that was disturbed during construction and is making its way toward the Perris and Moreno Valley water supplies, and also into the main storm drainage systems leading from the March area.. The recent rains can only have worsened the situation.

The county (that is, you the taxpayer) are picking up substantial security costs relating to the DHL cargo.

The flightpath, as we all know, was seriously misrepresented to the public.

No EIR was done, despite the view of at least some of the attorneys working for March JPA that one was necessary (see Gumport investigation report).

The "Single Event Noise Level" study was fast-shuffled, preventing citizens in the flight path from knowing their true risks -- that is, if they had any idea where the planes were actually going to fly. Is your property value going down? (Studies show there is a direct correlation between aircraft noise and reduction in property values. A 10% hit on your property, now probably in the $500,000 value range, is a substantial hit).

Are you angry yet? Why aren't you on our mailing list???? (write us at: caree @ fastbk.com).

And -- blatant fundraising request -- if you want change, you are going to have to fund it. Waiting for someone else to take action is a bad choice, because we don't have the resources. You will need to prioritize the significance of this disaster in your life if you wish to make a difference.

There are many proposed activities under discussion and it's time to get started.

• Boycott DHL -- this should be no hardship on your business. Despite low prices, DHL is reputed to have poor overnight delivery completion. If your package is important, you wouldn't be sending it by DHL & now you have a second reason. Put a sign on your lawn and tell the public what you think!
• Make certain you are complaining about each flight that goes over your home to the authorities (we have provided that contact information elsewhere). You need to document what plane went over and when. Note: if your grant deed does not contain an "avigation easement," then DHL, March Globalport and March JPA are engaged in "inverse condemnation of your property. We need to hear from you!!!
• Live in Moreno Valley or Perris? Contact your local water company and find out what they are doing to protect your wells from the March JPA toxic plume.
• Write those letters to the editor. Although the Press-Enterprise has done a good reporting job on this issue, the editorial policy remains decidely hostile to your health, safety and welfare. Since they will only run a few of our letters and proposed "op-eds," you need to bombard them with letters to the editor. Vote with your pen, typewriter, or e-mail. Make certain the press understands you are not merely a small handful of people.
• Appeal your property value assessment on the basis that the assessor is not factoring in the negative impact of the present and future aircraft operations. Don't give the city or county any extra funds to work with, since they are actively engaged in reducing your property values.
• We need to do some serious factual research in to various issues.  If you want to spend some time being an "investigator", let us know.  (But be certain to do any research you undertake in a straightforward, legal way ...)
• Help us find various experts who will work for our standard rate for professionals [   $0/hr.  :-)   ], such as an economist and persons knowledgeable of geology, toxic plumes and the like.
• We need help compiling minutes, records and other documents of March JPA via California Public Records Act requests so that we can have a better overview of what is going on at March JPA.  We can then provide that information to the public in an easy to understand format.

11/04/05 Perhaps you are arriving a bit late to the party. We tried, and failed, to get the Superior Court to require a competent EIR before authorizing the DHL operations. More community support might have made a difference, but we haven't given up.

Now you've noticed the DHL planes flying over your head in the dark of night when you are trying to sleep, and perhaps you are not real happy.

How many air operations can you expect in years to come?

A lot. Long range plans call for significant cargo operations and also significant passenger operations. All of this is a threat to the well being of citizens in the Mission Grove and Orangecrest areas. The government subsidized "giveaways" have been justified on the basis that these operations are "good for our economy." Mostly warehouse jobs, wages will hover at around $10/hr. Of course, as our health detriorates, I guess you could say the added business for local health care professionals will "boost the economy," though at the same time, we will die younger, have a reduced quality of life and miss a lot of work and school because of added health problems.

Latest News

6-30-06 -- Riverside DA investigating the unpermitted March Global Port refueling operations

5-4-06 -- Tom Evans report says Phil & Laurie need promotions!
(attaboy, attagirl!)

4/2/06 -- Press-Enterprise reports March Globalport is expanding to bring in bigger planes & international flights.