El Dorado taxpayer Larry Adams, who has accused an employee of the Butler County Appraiser’s Office of lying under oath at a Board of Tax Appeals hearing, is apparently not alone. County commission minutes indicate that a rural Augusta man has accused the appraisal department of intentionally falsifying information on his appraisal. UPDATED 5/1/08, below. Read the rest of this entry »
Most states spend their lottery proceeds on schools. Not Kansas. The Sunflower State blows its lotto “winnings” on economic development and has little to show for it. Now, the City of El Dorado wants to allocate $50,000 a year of sales tax money to economic development. If the question on the August 5 ballot includes this boondoggle, voters should reject the tax out of hand. The sales tax is a great idea, but proceeds should go toward street repair and property tax relief, not to a slush fund for the El Dorado Inkers. Read the rest of this entry »
During the 2007 El Dorado City Commission campaign season, Steve Funk wrote a letter to the editor of the Times. The letter accused then-City Commissioner Mike Fagg of taking his marching orders from, among others, “Andover, Inc.” A letter from former Mayor Connie Phillips’ husband, Jim, that also appeared on March 30, 2007, attacked Fagg for staffing the Andover booth at a Wichita home show instead of shilling for El Dorado. Of course, neither letter mentioned the fact that Fagg works for an Andover bank and was only doing what a good community banker should do.
It is, therefore, worth noting this story that appeared in The Wichita Eagle on Tuesday:
“Six Wichitans are included in the Kansas Chamber’s 2008 Leadership Kansas class, which was released today,” the Eagle reported. “Wichitans in the class are Anna Anderson, Stephen Funk, Shelley Duncan, Sierra Scott, Randy Roebuck and John Pilla.”
Now, last I knew, Funk still lived at 1810 Lawndale in El Dorado — about a block from Fagg’s house. One wonders why the Eagle would report Funk’s city of residence as Wichita rather than El Dorado. Could it be that Funk’s true allegiance is to Wichita instead of El Dorado? Is he ashamed of his hometown? Perhaps, much like Fagg, Funk lives in El Dorado but works in Wichita. But why should we give him the benefit of the doubt? He and Phillips sure didn’t give Fagg a break.
So, on behalf of thousands of El Dorado voters who were taken in by the other side’s line of crap in ‘07, the blog asks: Hey, Steve, what the Funk?
There’s a new place in cyberspace to talk about everything El Dorado. A new forum debuted recently on Yahoo. If you’re new to Yahoo forums, you can remain somewhat anonymous by setting up an e-mail account that conceals your identity on Yahoo or elsewhere. It is an unfortunate reality that many people who live in El Dorado must remain anonymous when expressing their sentiments about local politics because those in power have repeatedly demonstrated that they will retaliate against anyone who opposes them. Here is a link to the new forum:
Recent history is replete with examples of petty crimes and indiscretions that grew into major incidents because the accused tried to cover them up. There was Watergate, Bill Clinton’s dalliance with Monica Lewinsky, and, more recently, Barry Bonds’ indictment for lying under oath about his alleged steroid use. The Bonds case is particularly perplexing because he had been offered immunity from criminal prosecution in return for his testimony to a grand jury. All he had to do was tell the truth.
Butler County officials — Appraiser Elysa Lovelady and county commissioners in particular – find themselves in a similar mess. El Dorado resident Larry Adams claims the county knew about a porch he added to his home in 2004 and adjusted his valuation accordingly in 2005. He has provided the blog with records that sure seem to back up his claim. Even records available online show that the county knew about the 2004 building permit. An employee of the appraisal department, Debra Studebaker, testified at a Feb. 11 Kansas Board of Tax Appeals hearing that the county didn’t know about the porch and that’s why the appraiser increased Adams’ 2007 valuation following an informal appeal he filed. Read the rest of this entry »
Documents indicate that the Butler County Appraiser’s Office knew or should have known about 2004 remodeling work a staff member blamed for a 2007 increase in the valuation of an El Dorado home. The staff member, Debra Studebaker, testified at a February Kansas Board of Tax Appeals hearing in Wichita that at least part of an $8,400 single-year increase in the value of Larry Adams’ home was due to remodeling the county didn’t know about, including the addition of a front porch. But documents submitted by Adams and others available online indicate that the county knew about a 2004 city building permit for the porch and other work and even visited his home on Nov. 5, 2004, as a result of receiving a copy of the permit.
Adams received notice from the county on March 30, 2007, that the appraised value on his home at 1756 W. Third had increased from $39,800 to $44,810. Following an informal appeal hearing on April 26, 2007, the county increased the value even more to $48,200. The written notification from the county cited “multiple data collection errors” and indicated that “the value increase is due to new construction on the property.” The new valuation was sustained by the Board of Tax Appeals small claims division on July 24, 2007. Adams appealed again to the full board, which heard the case on Feb. 11. The board has yet to render a decision. Read the rest of this entry »
The Board of Disciplinary Appeals of the State Bar of Texas has reversed the disbarment of El Dorado City Attorney Andrew Piekalkiewicz. The reversal occurred on December 6. Piekalkiewicz is now suspended from the practice of law in Texas for two years. Read the rest of this entry »
Carrie Rengers’ column in the Wichita Eagle this morning featured an e-mail from Butler County Economic Development Director David Alfaro. Alfaro was bitching because the City of Wichita is moving forward with plans to build a theater at Cowtown for, among other acts, the Diamond W Wranglers.
The Diamond W Wranglers used to be the Prairie Rose Wranglers until Thomas Etheredge filed for bankruptcy last summer. Those wranglers saddled up and moved to the Old Cowtown Museum, which was teetering on the brink of failure itself, and began performing there. Greg and J.W. Johnson bought the Prairie Rose Chuckwagon Supper from the bankruptcy trustee and reopened it just before Thanksgiving with another set of singing wranglers. They told Rengers that the market just ain’t big enough for two western attractions. Read the rest of this entry »
Click on the link, above, and you’ll view the Internet’s newest video star: El Dorado. The video is the work of CGI Communications. CGI produces videos showcasing the positive attributes of communities nationwide. The company then hosts the videos at elocallink.tv. CGI offers similar services to local businesses. Cities then link to the videos from their web sites. According to a letter from City Manager Herb Llewellyn posted on the city’s web site, El Dorado will participate in a three-year promotional campaign with CGI. Read the rest of this entry »
An El Dorado homeowner is accusing a representative of the Butler County Appraiser’s office of lying under oath at a Kansas Board of Tax Appeals hearing. Larry Adams, 1756 W. Third, filed a report with the Wichita Police Department alleging perjury by an employee of the Butler County Appraiser’s office. UPDATE 1:12 p.m. CST 3/6/2008: Adams said this afternoon that the county appraiser’s employee at the hearing was Debbie Studebaker, not County Appraiser Elysa Lovelady. Lovelady has not responded to e-mails seeking comment. The blog will continue to investigate and seek a copy of the hearing transcript if one is available. UPDATE 2:20 p.m. 3/10/2008: Adams said today that a transcript will likely be available from the court reporting service sometime next week. Read the rest of this entry »