Comments by Ken King
May 04, 2008
Always the city's apologist, aren't you Steve? I love your spin that those opposing HMB's development conspiracy are well funded. You're telling it backwards - Orick et al has our blank check to pull out all of the stops for AB 1991. The enviros fight it gratis (that's free, Steve) to preserve California's environmental laws. Let's have truthful disclosure, Steve, that Orick sold this strategy to the city so it will make million$: no wonder Bonnie McClung dodges reporter questions about the cost…
April 30, 2008
If Assemblymember Anna Caballero, chair of the Local Government Committee, had voted against the bill, that would have killed it right there; her words in saying she was going to vote to let it out of committee, but that she was deeply troubled by it and could not guarantee she would vote for it on the Assembly floor should concern would-be early celebrants about AB 1991's prospects. Caballero also told Mullin that he'd better plan to compromise with the environmental groups for it to have any hope…
April 21, 2008
Steve Hyman, fronting as the PR guy for the HMB council, touts the settlement as a financial break for the city because it saved us from the time and expense of appealing the $41 million judgment, which the Great Minds on that side of the Divide tell us was too risky to pursue. So instead of the risk of lawyers' costs for appealing Judge Walker's brash decision, we've got the Orrick squad of lobbyists stocking the halls of the state capitol at $3000 / billable hour; this isn't as risky as appealing,…
April 20, 2008
Steve, you are the one who thinks paying $18 million bucks to Keenan, should AB 1991 fail, is a bargain for the public, but you gloss over the true cost of $50 million including financing the debt. So don't preach to me about the "height of irresponsibility" in risking financial ruin because that irresponsibility has already been reached and exceeded by your associates.
April 20, 2008
"That being said, what could you offer Keenan that would motivate him to settle now instead of pushing for the whole enchilada plus interest?"
It should not surprise you that I would have offered him squat, then appealed and expected an easy reversal. The cost of litigation over two or more years is a speck next to more than 40-years of annual payments of $1.25 million.
April 19, 2008
Steve Hyman: "I think the appeal was a smoke screen to buy time to work out a deal."
Well there is something we agree on, except it was a particularly bad deal. You look to your elected representatives to keep your fiduciary interest primary, not the person's they're negotiating with.
April 19, 2008
Steve, The city chose a law firm willing to carry out its plan to negotiate with Keenan, exactly what its primary constituency, people like you lobbying long and hard for them to settle, not appeal. Given your full-court press (you will do as a surrogate for the development interests on the Coastside) the council did not seriously consider appealing. To claim they were following the best legal advice is a canard, especially now that everyone can see that the Coastal Commission had weighed in offering…
April 18, 2008
Steve Hyman: "The City after advice from an army of expensive lawyers decided to settle also shows that they agreed with the judge." The pro-growth majority picked a firm to do its bidding, which was to negotiate a deal with Keenan; Lawyer John Knox as much as said that was their preference at the January citizens' "workshop" on Beachwood. Anyone with a degree of critical judgment who read Judge Walker's tormented 167 page decision would recognize the decision would not stand up to the scrutiny of…
December 29, 2007
I've written elsewhere that the City's law firm should have focused on Keenan's responsibility in buying 26-acre Beachwood for a bargain discount (water sale?) 1 million bucks - I'm glad to see this mentioned in Julia Scott's Times article. Keenan's lawyer used the word "ridiculous" for the appellate firm raising the notion of moral hazard and Keenan's responsibility in having purchased wet land. Property rights purists, usually avowed conservatives, say individuals should be responsible for their…
December 18, 2007
Who would pay for Charlie's road, especially if the usable part of Beachwood supports a road rather than homes? Goes without saying that Charlie's counting on the Pacific Ridge folks to bail on their settlement with the City of Half Moon Bay and the Coastal Commission, but they're not dumb enough to want to start through that process all over again--it's already been twenty-one years and counting. Charlie and I've argued about placement of Foothill before, with me saying the wetlands make it DOA,…
December 13, 2007
If the City appeals, it will be with a law firm specializing in appeals. It's a complex undertaking, and an expensive one, but the options aren't good either way. The council majority doesn't have a taste for this and might have rolled over much easier for Keenan had the judge not handed him such a one-sided, outlandish victory.
November 05, 2007
Ken, Either Terry mentally resigned before claiming that he doesn't belong to PCF, or he intends to confess his sin the next time he makes his way to the confessional. There is, then, no reason to doubt his basic good intention to put the community first.
November 04, 2007
Darin, I'm sorry to be the one to tell you, but you should not believe everything politically-motivated ideologues aver. Take Ginna at his word? The political calculus of the Rush Limberger crowd is that lies and distortion are justified in the name of the Higher Cause, and that liberals are soft-headed bleeding-hearts who don't deserve any quarter. A conservative friend of mine sent me for comment a supposed speech by Nancy Pelosi being circulated on the Internet. I won't repeat the whole thing,…
November 03, 2007
Terry, or should I call you, Tawdry Glamor? I told you what I thought of the Review's anonymous posting policy, that it encourages rude behavior. If the cost of having to sign your name to each post is fewer posters, that would be a good thing in my book. At least you'd know who you are dealing with. Despite past denials, George Muteff and Brian Ginna post frequently under bogus identities -- both have easy to identify styles, yet follow this practice to create the illusion that others support them.…
November 03, 2007
I take issue with you, Terry, regarding your characterization of TalkAbout's advantages listed in your #2 description of the democracy it promotes for humble and terrified souls. Poppycock. It allows the worst elements of all of us to come out spitefully demeaning others, often at the expense of facts, logic, and fairness. The same thing began to occur on Coastsider, but Barry ended it when he demanded we post under our own names. The result? Your friends abandoned Coastsider wholesale for easier…
September 23, 2007
Innocuous-sounding "Another picture" by Jack Sutton blew my loafers off, my socks along with them. "Wow!" does not do it justice, Jack.
These spectacular birds are still around for those willing to venture into the fields from either Smith Field or south from the Kelly Avenue parking lot.
September 17, 2007
This evening I again parked at Poplar at 5:45 pm and observed 15 Kites from the parking lot, 13 of them north of Poplar either sitting around on the waste-high weeds on the east side of the field (near the homes), or flying about. They are large mostly white birds you will also see in the Monterey Cypress trees both north and south of the Poplar parking lot. Good binoculars are necessary to enjoy this experience because the birds are somewhat spread out or high in the trees. Continuing south over…
September 14, 2007
Today around noon Kathryn Slater-Carter and I entered Wavecrest by way of the road's end at Smith Field and found approximately 35 Kites sitting in the cypress and shrubs 300 yards to the northwest of the parking lot. The best time to see them actively hunting is between 5 and 7 pm. The only other raptors we saw were a Red tailed hawk and Kestrel. Also flushed a Grasshopper Sparrow in fall plumage that nicely posed for us!
July 20, 2007
Thanks for the clarification, Kevin. That's somewhat different from what Naomi described Tuesday night. I wonder what business they'll run out of the 140 square foot first floor room?
If they put a Dutch door in they could sell candy and sodas to kids walking by after school. The kids would learn to look at the house with a fondness the adult neighbors might disdain.
July 18, 2007
Kevin states "the proposed monster house included a tiny amount(140 sq. ft.)of public commercial space," but I think Patridge said 740 sq ft. I queried Adam Lindgren, the city's attorney, after the meeting about his ruling on the wording in the codes like "similar size" and "immediate vicinity," that he said the project complied with and that were too subjective to serve as barriers to the project. (Before going on, I am not arguing on either side, I just was curious about how Adam thought about…
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