--- Eva Young <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Is there similar stuff going on with critics of the > Access/Excess Project? > David Piehl responds:
Almost certainly there is! For example, look at the way one neighbor was attacked by the MCDA only days after she constructed a large banner opposing the Excess Project. Smith Parker / Tom Johnson, MNDoT all knew about the code issues surrounding that project, so probably located an outspoken critic with a conflict of interest to front the issue on their behalf. The FBI has been notified that the dirty politics in Minneapolis and MNDoT may have just gotten dirtier....Time for a major "housecleaning"! David Piehl Central >From the article: > MnDOT is asked not to research critics > Pat Doyle and Dan Browning > Star Tribune > Published Jan. 31, 2003MDOT31 > > A state senator asked a Minnesota Department of > Transportation official > Thursday for assurances that the agency wouldn't > conduct research on > political protesters. > Sen. Scott Dibble, DFL-Minneapolis, referred to a > newspaper report that a > former chief of staff for the department (MnDOT) had > written about hiring a > consultant to research opponents of the Hwy. 55 > rerouting project. MnDOT > says it never hired anyone to conduct such research. > "Can we be sure that with a new era and new > leadership we won't see reports > like that in the newspaper?" Dibble asked Richard > Stehr, director of > program support for MnDOT. > "I hope we never see another project where we have > people swinging out of > the trees," Stehr replied, referring to some Hwy. 55 > protesters in > Minneapolis. "I hope we never have a project that > requires that. And I'm > sure under this leadership we would not see that > kind of investigation." > The exchange occurred at a hearing of the Senate > Transportation Policy and > Budget Division, which is examining reports of > contracting problems at > MnDOT. The Star Tribune last week reported > criticisms of that agency's use > of consultants, and reported that a MnDOT official > in 1999 wrote about > hiring a consultant to research foes of the Hwy. 55 > rerouting. > The rerouting was undertaken in connection with the > Minneapolis-to-Bloomington light-rail transit > project. The project shifted > the road closer to Minnehaha Park, requiring the > felling of oak trees and > causing concern that sites important to American > Indians would be > disturbed. Dozens of people were arrested in the > protests. > MnDOT's chief of staff at the time, Margo LaBau, > sent an e-mail to an > acquaintance that said she had hired a consultant to > do research on the > protesters and would like to learn who might have an > interest in > discrediting the group. > MnDOT said no consultant was ever hired to do such > work. > Sen. Dean Johnson, DFL-Willmar, chairman of the > Transportation Policy and > Budget Division, said the panel would look at a > variety of contracting > practices criticized by the Department of > Administration and cited in > reports by the legislative auditor and the Star > Tribune. > "We believe this is a very important issue in behalf > of the taxpayers as we > implement the contracts, the consulting contracts, > in Minnesota," Johnson said. > Johnson also said he might have been wrong when he > admonished two contract > regulators for Administration, who had complained of > weak oversight, that > they should obey their boss. > He said Kent Allin and Paul Stembler "last year both > publicly and privately > seemed to raise a red flag. My confession is . . . I > said, you two > gentlemen need to listen to your boss, the > commissioner." Johnson also said > he had suggested that Allin's and Stembler's conduct > bordered on > insubordination. > "I've thought about this for a long time," Johnson > said. "And perhaps they > had something they were trying to tell us. If I > erred in judgment . . . > about those two gentlemen attempting to do their job > in the Department of > Administration as they review the contracts, then I > owe them an apology." > -- The writers are at [EMAIL PROTECTED] and > [EMAIL PROTECTED]" > >[EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > Eva Young > Near North > Minneapolis > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Blog is up: > http://lloydletta.blogspot.com > > __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus - Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com TEMPORARY REMINDER: 1. Send all posts in plain-text format. 2. Cut as much of the post you're responding to as possible. ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
