Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Bang On Mr. Caseley... but "good luck" anyway!

I couldn't agree more with Mr. Caseley's observations that chasing developers away because some NIMBY's http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NIMBY show up certainly sends the message to developers to stay away from developing in that Town... on the other hand there was a recent story on CBC where there was great concern from local citizens that Downtown Kensington was losing businesses and starting to look quite "rundown"...

It's sort of a catch 22 if you want a healthy Downtown then you have to let your Community grow and develop in order to create demand... and that's where Council have to learn to "balance" in the best interests of the overall community... my guess is that the neighbours claim that their real estate values would go down by 25% because the area is going to be more densely populated is a bit of “red herring” as it's been my experience that if your community is growing then real estate values grow with it, but when you stop demand then that's when the values start to go down...  but when you throw those Clowns from IRAC into the equation then it's a safe bet your project is dead as they give more balance to NIMBY’s than someone trying to fuel the economy... but "good luck" anyway Mr. Caseley...

Kensington land dispute before IRAC
Thursday, February 10, 2011
CBC News

The Town of Kensington, P.E.I. sent the wrong message when it rejected a residential development plan, says the man who wants to build it.

Caseley was one of several developers approached by Mayor Gordon Coffin to build more single dwelling homes in Kensington. Caseley put together a plan to expand his Rosewood subdivision, built 20 years ago.

But instead of single family dwellings, he proposed to put in duplexes and one multiplex. Caseley said the cost of building had doubled and multi-units were more economical. The land was never zoned, so Casely went to the town for approval. Much to his surprise the residents of Rosewood opposed the development.

"Quite a big reaction really," said Caseley. "They thought there was going to be more traffic and it was going to lower their property values by 25 per cent."

On investigating the issue, council discovered that wasn't true. In fact, values would likely increase with the expansion. Despite that, council voted unanimously against the plan.

Mayor Gordon Coffin said councillors believed the concerns of residents should be listened to.

Caseley was especially surprised by the opposition to the multi-unit buildings because there are already three six-unit buildings in the subdivision. Caseley said the council vote sends a bad message to developers.

"Kensington has a long history of shooting themselves in the foot," he said. "A developer would look at that and say 'well, guess they're impossible to deal with. We'll just go somewhere else and develop.'"

Caseley has already invested $45,000 in the project and has appealed the council vote to the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission. IRAC is expected to make a decision by the end of this month.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Woof, Woof, Woof... who let the dogs out?

According to Ms. Katrina Berg Sussmeier the plot thickens as she ups the stakes and puts her company, Starlink Productions http://www.starlinkproductions.com/  which consists of Katrina and her 3 Cairn terriers in the same "League" as Live Nation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_Nation  with 21,000 employees and about $18,000,000,000.00 in ticket sales... who knew!!! 

Well we don't know what her sales are but we do know, according to the City of Summerside, that she does at least $1,300,000 a year and that Trevor, Robbie & Fiona (pictured here)
"are standing by to handle any emergency for you!" and that should really comfort Summerside taxpayers...

This is really turning out to be a first class caper and don't be suprised if we see CTV's "W5" driving around Summerside soon... Woof, woof, woof... who let the dogs out?

Promoter says Summerside negotiating with two firms
Published on February 5, 2011

SUMMERSIDE — A California concert promotion company has issued more harsh words toward the City of Summerside, and this time has also aimed its sights at one of the world's largest concert promoters.

Katrina Berg Sussmeier, head of Starlink Productions out of San Jose, Calif., continued to lay blame on the City of Summerside for the failure of a proposed Michael Jackson Tribute Concert under development for the city.

The city has filed papers in the U.S. District Court California San Jose Division, charging Sussmeier with fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, negligent misrepresentation and rescission of contract. The city's claims have not been proven in court.

Sussmeier issued a statement Friday in which she said the city had started dealing with another promoter, while still in talks with her for the same production.

“I have recently learned that, although I have the contract with Summerside to produce this event, they have gone behind my back and been simultaneously soliciting and negotiating with Live Nation (a Los Angeles-based competitor) to produce the identical event,” Sussmeier said in her statement.

She said the addition of the second promoter “sabotaged” her ability to secure Beyonce Knowles and others.

But Riley O'Connor, chairman of Live Nation Canada, said the company has not been approached by the city to undertake any promotion.

“They haven't had any discussions with us, period,” O'Connor said Friday. “There's been no discussion with our company whatsoever.”

Neither Mayor Basil Stewart nor Chief Administrative Officer Terry Murphy could be reached for comment Friday regarding Sussmeier's allegations or if the city is still pursuing a “mega-concert.”


Tuesday, February 1, 2011

"Make no mistake".... there's more to this story!

I was reading with interest Charles Reid's article in the Guardian today about no QMJHL teams filing to have their franchises moved when I happened along this… "Island businessman Tim Banks (and Banks' boast of a $1.5-million guaranteed gate at Credit Union Place in Summerside)"… and I quickly thought where did they get the "twerp" that's writing this... so I checked the record and I said "I'm hearing" this, which is exactly what I was "hearing" and I certainly wasn't going around "boasting" it... further in the article Mr. Reid states that "But Summerside officials have said no deal with Lewiston is on the table."  and Mr. Reid, if you're relying on a forthright statement from Summerside officials then have I got a concert deal for you... I even called the Guardian looking for Mr. Reid but no one seemed to know him?

Some people may have questioned why I waded into a hockey issue but to me it's a much bigger issue as a Summerside taxpayer... Credit Union Place is bleeding like a stuffed pig because it was "overbuilt" and now we're paying for it... and I was hearing from solid sources that there was a move afoot to develop a "scheme" to get a "major" team in the building and I'm pretty sure Gillis Courteau and Billy Schurman weren't in the City to watch the Lobster Carnival parade. I was concerned that the City might be entering into another scheme without the full knowledge of it's taxpayers... the Rocket in the City of Charlottetown, with over twice the drawing capacity, can only average about 2,000 fans a game and even at that, I understand both the City and the Province have to chip in and they’re still losing... so how can one conclude that there's room for two teams here without "more bleeding" put on our taxpayers... Ask Basil or S'Side's management and they'll make no bones about wanting a major junior team... but at what cost?

And make no mistake about it… if the "Concert Fiasco" hadn't broke recently in the news then I wonder if there would have been an application in front of the QMJHL and my guess is "Yes"… and you can quote me on that, but don't say I'm boasting… just say I’ve been around long enough to know that someone should be watching what’s going on in Summerside! 

No QMJHL teams file before relocation deadline

Published on Febuary 1st, 2011
Charles Reid
The Guardian

Well, it looks like all the speculation around some Quebec Major Junior hockey League teams moving to new places for next season may be just that — speculation.

The deadline for teams to apply to the league requesting permission to move relocate came and went, and, said a league spokesman on Monday, the QMJHL wasn’t expecting paperwork from any of its 18 teams.

“We have not received any requests and do not anticipate receiving any,” said Karl Janhke, who spoke for the league. “Deadline was 11:59 p.m. (Monday). We’ll be sending out a release (this) morning.”

It all stems from an assertion from Charlottetown mayor Clifford Lee and Island businessman Tim Banks (and Banks’ boast of a $1.5-million guaranteed gate at Credit Union Place in Summerside) the floundering Lewiston Maineiacs had signed a deal to relocate to Summerside next season.

Lewiston, which moved to Maine in 2003 from Sherbrooke, Que., has suffered from low attendance since landing there — even during its run to the Memorial Cup in 2007.

But Summerside officials have said no deal with Lewiston is on the table.

The move, if true, would put the Maineiacs in direct competition with the P.E.I. Rocket, which moved to Charlottetown in 2003 from Montreal. Serge Savard Jr., Rocket president and governor, has said two QMJHL teams couldn’t survive on P.E.I.

Adding to the talk is the league has an open market in Sherbrooke, Que., and a group headed by former NHL goalie Jocelyn Thibeau is interested in buying a QMJHL franchise and perhaps moving it to Quebec.

Also, QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau visited Summerside in December and Bill Schurman, a management consultant with Lewiston and a former Moncton Wildcats general manager, is a Summerside native.

P.E.I., Lewiston and the struggling Acadie-Bathurst Titan have all been mentioned as candidates for sale as those squads are suffering from half-filled buildings for most home games.