Omaha Forums

Ha.

http://journalstar.com/news/local/govt- ... 8fcbb.html

Omaha’s new mayor Jean Stothert was boasting last week about paying her chief of staff 10 percent less than Jim Suttle's current chief of staff. Boasting.

Marty Bilek will receive an annual salary of $112,500. But he’ll also be getting about $70,343 in his retirement income from the sheriff’s department.

Lincoln’s Mayor Chris Beutler also hired retirees to head the police and fire departments. But he is paying the two men the difference between their retirement income and the salary of a chief.

Police Chief Jim Peschong’s city salary is around $65,700.

Fire Chief John Huff is making around $79,400.

Both had intended to retire when Beutler asked them to continue working as chiefs.

With their retirement pay, their total annual incomes are in the $130,000 range.

No double dipping here, by design.

So I see now the council wants to give negotiating power back to the Mayor after they were the ones who took it away last year.... “The City Council did a good job representing the taxpayers, but negotiations should be the responsibility of the executive branch.”

I wonder if anything else will be reversed.

Uffda wrote:So I see now the council wants to give negotiating power back to the Mayor after they were the ones who took it away last year.... “The City Council did a good job representing the taxpayers, but negotiations should be the responsibility of the executive branch.”

I wonder if anything else will be reversed.

It's straight out of The Phantom Menace... Palpatine manipulates the Galactic Senate to strip the Supreme Chancellor of power and assumes his position.

Just replace "Galactic Senate" with City Council and "Supreme Chancellor" with Mayor.



...Oh and swap "Palpatine" with Darth Stothert.

Well, judging by the reactions of the Fire union following Stothert reminding Fire Chief McDonnell (and others) that he's a city employee and can't just go running his mouth, I would guess that under Suttle there was concern that he would have let the Fire Department set the City up for bankruptcy under a new contract agreement.

jessep28 wrote:Well, judging by the reactions of the Fire union following Stothert reminding Fire Chief McDonnell (and others) that he's a city employee and can't just go running his mouth, I would guess that under Suttle there was concern that he would have let the Fire Department set the City up for bankruptcy under a new contract agreement.

Funny, I could've sworn Stothert triumphantly negotiated the most expensive fire contract in history over Suttle's smaller tentative agreement.

OWH wrote:What happened to transparency?

Days into the job, Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert is ordering city department heads and other employees not to talk to the press — and therefore, the public — without clearing it with her office first.

The mayor, who campaigned on the promise of running an open administration, needs to retract this gag order immediately.

http://www.omaha.com/article/20130614/N ... nnecessary

Lamest, controversy, ever.

I heard it wasn't a gag order, it was just a "let me know what you are going to say so I can respond to it" order.

I could care less.  Every Job I have had in my life has had a paragraph about not talking to media without permission.

Brad wrote:I heard it wasn't a gag order, it was just a "let me know what you are going to say so I can respond to it" order.

I could care less.  Every Job I have had in my life has had a paragraph about not talking to media without permission.

The vitriolic disdain towards Stothert amongst Democrats in a way mirrors that of Republicans towards President Obama. It's funny.

Speaking as a Democrat, this is a non issue.  Any smart office holder would do the same thing, at least until he or she got comfortable with all of the department heads.  I'm sure the "gag order" will be relaxed in short order.  The important thing for any office holder is to make sure their administration speaks with one consistent voice.

Stothert won the election, fair and square.  Let her govern.  In time she will make mistakes, and everyone can criticize.  I believe in giving every office holder at least a 90 day honeymoon from sniping and criticism, unless they do something truly boneheaded right up front (like Jim Suttle managed to do right out of the starting gate).

jessep28 wrote:

Brad wrote:I heard it wasn't a gag order, it was just a "let me know what you are going to say so I can respond to it" order.

I could care less.  Every Job I have had in my life has had a paragraph about not talking to media without permission.

The vitriolic disdain towards Stothert amongst Democrats in a way mirrors that of Republicans towards President Obama. It's funny.

Humored, I am not when it comes to hyperactive partisanship.

How is this a partisan issue??  The amount of vocal opposition by many of those who supported her in the election says otherwise.  


Of course, the left isn't going to be thrilled with it, however, there's a sizable amount of criticism coming from the right.  The World Herald editorial is pushing for a retraction.  The majority of Omaha.com comments are unsupportive, including my favorite...

"Ok.. I voted for her.. Is it already time to start the petitions for impeachment? Not a good way to start things off."

Tom Becka is against it, hardly a bastion of the left.



As to whether or not its a gag order.  I think the following is pretty clear.


"Effective immediately, all interaction with news media by any Department Directors or any staff member of any city department regarding matters of City government will first be previewed and approved by the Mayor's Chief of Staff or The Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications."

The city has a right to restrict the speech of its employees in certain instances. I don't see a problem with this. Fahey fired the police auditor after she released a report before he reviewed it.

jessep28 wrote:The city has a right to restrict the speech of its employees in certain instances. I don't see a problem with this. Fahey fired the police auditor after she released a report before he reviewed it.

In this case, I think its more because of what the report had in it.  If it glamorized OPD, she'd not have lost her job.

If anyone saw this coming... well that would be really weird foresight.

http://www.omaha.com/article/20130622/N ... 29906/1685

Axel wrote:If anyone saw this coming... well that would be really weird foresight.

http://www.omaha.com/article/20130622/N ... 29906/1685

Well, the lovely people at pride were very respectful. I hope this isn't just a one time thing. How wonderful would it be if we could have a mayor that isn't having partisan spears tossed at them daily or fighting recall efforts and such.

President Bush 43 went to a NAACP rally once a year and spoke.

jessep28 wrote:President Bush 43 went to a NAACP rally once a year and spoke.

I don't think that is true.  I can find that he first spoke to the NAACP IN 2006 after not going for the first 5 year of his administration. He might have given a speech  in 2007 & 2008 bu I can't find that.

Uffda wrote:

jessep28 wrote:President Bush 43 went to a NAACP rally once a year and spoke.

I don't think that is true.  I can find that he first spoke to the NAACP IN 2006 after not going for the first 5 year of his administration. He might have given a speech  in 2007 & 2008 bu I can't find that.

You could be right. It's been a long time and I just remember hearing on the news that he gave a speech at the NAACP that day.

Clearly, the mayor extended a symbolic olive branch to the LGBT community.  We will see if this marks a trend or an aberration.

Mayor orders fire chief to keep quiet on budget

In the context of making any commentary to the public or to the media, all questions relating to the budget and the impact of the budget on public safety shall be referred to the Mayor.  This directive is not intended to limit any commentary you make on your own time or as a private citizen.  However, absent specific permission, under no circumstances are you or any member of your staff permitted to comment on the budget or the impact of the budget on public safety during work hours, while in uniform, or in any way holding yourself out to represent the City of Omaha or the Fire Department.

So maybe she is trying to set him up

The fire chief, however, is among a small group of specially protected city directors who can be dismissed only for cause. City code refers to cause as anything that reflects discredit on the job “or is a direct hindrance to the effective performance of the city government functions.”

Such employees, according to city code, can be subject to discipline, including dismissal, for such reasons as criminal behavior, habitual use of alcohol, insubordination, incompetence or negligence.

Uffda wrote:insubordination, incompetence or negligence.

yes, yes, and probably not.

2 out of 3 should be enough to get rid of him.

Insubordination is likely easier to prove, especially since notice has been given with regards to how he can communicate as the Fire Chief.

On a second note, since this election thread has shifted to city politics in general, maybe this should be renamed or the Stothert Administration stuff moved to a new thread.

Who saw this coming?

Stothert: 'We need a new chief'

KETV wrote:“I don't think there's any secret that we need a new chief, and it would be better lead and better run with a new chief,” Stothert said. Stothert said of all the department heads, the fire chief has been the least cooperative.

It's not surprising.

Coyote wrote:Who saw this coming?

Stothert: 'We need a new chief'

KETV wrote:“I don't think there's any secret that we need a new chief, and it would be better lead and better run with a new chief,” Stothert said. Stothert said of all the department heads, the fire chief has been the least cooperative.

Why do I get the feeling there were a couple of unsaid words in the following statement?

I've made it very, very clear that I need a change. I want a chief that I can choose and that I trust, AND CONTROL” Stothert said.

Also she sent out a memo saying dept heads could not talk to the press without her office knowing about it first. Now she has said all the depts have been told verbally that they can speak with the press.  I don't blame the fire chief for wanting the release in writing.

I think this accurately describes the state of city government at the moment.

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Omaha's design standards have shaped numerous projects, but are they too tough?

Erin Golden: World-Herald staff writer wrote:Mayor Jean Stothert, who has goals of shaking up the Planning Department and removing hurdles for development, wants more flexibility for developers and is urging caution about the city's design rules. While she supports having design guidelines, she worries that the city may be asking too much — and driving companies to go elsewhere.

Stothert said the city's design standards were a key factor in a developer's decision last fall not to build a new Sam's Club near 147th Street and West Maple Road in northwest Omaha. She said she plans to reach out to the company with a clear message: My administration will not handle this the same way.

“I want to see if there is a possibility of getting them back, saying we have a new mayor now, new leadership in the Planning Department,” she said. “We want to approach things differently, and we do want to make things happen.”

Coyote wrote:Omaha's design standards have shaped numerous projects, but are they too tough?

Erin Golden: World-Herald staff writer wrote:Mayor Jean Stothert, who has goals of shaking up the Planning Department and removing hurdles for development, wants more flexibility for developers and is urging caution about the city's design rules. While she supports having design guidelines, she worries that the city may be asking too much — and driving companies to go elsewhere.

Stothert said the city's design standards were a key factor in a developer's decision last fall not to build a new Sam's Club near 147th Street and West Maple Road in northwest Omaha. She said she plans to reach out to the company with a clear message: My administration will not handle this the same way.

“I want to see if there is a possibility of getting them back, saying we have a new mayor now, new leadership in the Planning Department,” she said. “We want to approach things differently, and we do want to make things happen.”

Anyone know what the stumbling blocks were for the developer?  I did a google search of SAMs club building and it looks they a few different styles.

OMG, is the Mayor actually grieving over losing a Sam's Club?  Seriously?  How many do we already have in the metro?  We certainly don't need one on every corner....

The ironic fact about this statement is that the reason we have Omaha by Design is because of the 132nd and L St Wal-Mart.

Coyote wrote:The ironic fact about this statement is that the reason we have Omaha by Design is because of the 132nd and L St Wal-Mart.

You mean the elephant graveyard?  

This mayor is insane.

icejammer wrote:OMG, is the Mayor actually grieving over losing a Sam's Club?  Seriously?  How many do we already have in the metro?  We certainly don't need one on every corner....

One. Two if you count the Council Bluffs location.

icejammer wrote:OMG, is the Mayor actually grieving over losing a Sam's Club?  Seriously?  How many do we already have in the metro?  We certainly don't need one on every corner....

She's trying to keep the sales tax inside city limits, instead of Sams building at 180th and Maple (or wherever). It's a smart move.

The mayor should not have any more say than you or me over the city's design standards. The standards should evolve periodically through a process of community consensus. Otherwise, we're going to have different standards every time a new mayor is elected. On the other hand, design standards can become too restrictive, much like neighborhood covenants in some cases.

You don't believe the mayor of a city should have an interest in whether or not current design standards are affecting the business climate of their city? By that logic, they should preside over nothing, as everything can change as mayors change.

I know you all love to hate Stothert and all, but, in this instance, she's correct.

S33 wrote:

icejammer wrote:OMG, is the Mayor actually grieving over losing a Sam's Club?  Seriously?  How many do we already have in the metro?  We certainly don't need one on every corner....

She's trying to keep the sales tax inside city limits, instead of Sams building at 180th and Maple (or wherever).

Omaha would just annex it there.  :D

Uffda wrote:

S33 wrote:

icejammer wrote:OMG, is the Mayor actually grieving over losing a Sam's Club?  Seriously?  How many do we already have in the metro?  We certainly don't need one on every corner....

She's trying to keep the sales tax inside city limits, instead of Sams building at 180th and Maple (or wherever).

Omaha would just annex it there.  :D

You're probably right

Seem to recall a WSJ story about other cities getting tough building guidelines that made construction prohibitive and this pushing people out.  Sam's Club is one of the touchiest, but others followed.

Could be that she is trying to keep that train from pulling out of town.