Calm Down Jack!
Despite his defiant tone this morning in the newspaper, rumor has it that Goleta Council Member Jack Hawxhurst will be moving to Florida and not running for reelection next fall. With the possibility of Council Member Margaret Connell retiring from the new council -- there may be a wide open race in the fall. Goleta's "First Mayor" Michael Bennett, former El Presidente Roger Aceves and Santa Barbara Airbus owner Eric Onnen will have a tight race on their hands as challengers for the possible seats -- should they choose to run.
Saying that you had to have a "spine" to face the bogey man of growth and that "It's cheaper to buy elections sometimes than it is to do something better", Haxhurst acted as if he was immediately facing a million dollar media buy targeted directly at him. Chill out, dude! The campaign has hardly started...
His fear tactics won't work here -- the truth is Goleta doesn't have a planning commission because he's all but said that no one else has can be trusted with Goleta growth issues but council. This should have been one of council's main priorities and the City of Goleta won't grow up until it has a commission and a plan in place.
Goleta wants better -- and Goleta also wants more, Jack. Create a planning commission, finish the general plan and put it all on television. The transition from the County hasn't been all that smooth and you know it!
Saying that you had to have a "spine" to face the bogey man of growth and that "It's cheaper to buy elections sometimes than it is to do something better", Haxhurst acted as if he was immediately facing a million dollar media buy targeted directly at him. Chill out, dude! The campaign has hardly started...
His fear tactics won't work here -- the truth is Goleta doesn't have a planning commission because he's all but said that no one else has can be trusted with Goleta growth issues but council. This should have been one of council's main priorities and the City of Goleta won't grow up until it has a commission and a plan in place.
Goleta wants better -- and Goleta also wants more, Jack. Create a planning commission, finish the general plan and put it all on television. The transition from the County hasn't been all that smooth and you know it!
posted by Sara De la Guerra | 3/13/2006 08:39:00 AM
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26 Comments:
The founding Goleta City Council certainly has been amateurish, including the refusal to form a Planning Commission and resistance to open meetings on TV, among other issues.
However, political pundits (professional or armchair) should think back on why the voters approved the formation of a City of Goleta in the first place. Hawxhurst and some of the other incumbents certainly have been unsophisticated politicians, but they are home-grown Goletans and aptly represent their city of only a bit more than 30 thousand residents.
The best force to assure the re-election of the Old-Guard incumbents is for newcomer Goleta Valley Chamber of Concrete President and CEO Kristen Amyx to mount a political drive, and outright PAC, to outst the slow-growther incumbents.
A huge amount of outsided developer money is to be made with more urban growth in Goleta, especially for the Bishop Ranch property, and Amyx and her Chamber PAC will be the epitomy of those developers.
Hawxhurst and his ilk may be lame with their hot-head antics and slow TV coverage of meetings, but that is all pathetically pale in comparison with threats from Chamber of Concrete PAC.
The Enemy of my Enemy is my Friend, and Goleta voters will know who their friends and enemies are with any Chamber PAC and its stooges in the race.
I wish Das lived in Goleta.
sara I usally agree but you're way off base bitching about the tv coverage is lame take a look at what the city of goleta has approved - maining stuff with lots of affordability and their proposed draft general plan which developers hate with a passion has by fare the largest inclusionary aspect of all communities on the south coast. if the chamber folks get in it will be nothing but strip malls and big houses on the goleta foothills. Jack, Cynthia, Jonny and Margaret are not city of sb politicians they actually care about their community and not special interests or their political futures.
jack is unstable. the other two are fine.
Jack is not unstable. He's a good man, with a good heart. He's been instrumental in fighting development-politics and guiding the new city in a proper direction.
If anyone is unstable it is the anons like 5:33pm who throw out unfounded, unsubstantiated, slanderous claims about people who have no opportunity to defend themselves.
Stop hiding behind your anonymitiy...show some SPINE and see if you can be as honorable as Jack Hauxhurst!
Jack is for Jack and Jack only.
Jack is for the people and not the money lenders. Only Das cuts a bolder path than Jack in our community.
Jack is a very rude old man. He should pack up and move on.
as said by bermant and other developers jack's told to move on
Jack is an original; an acquired taste. But calling him names here won't move anything forward.
The fact is, Sara is right. (And sounding much like the news-press on this one.) The City of Goleta never included its many talented residents in the discussion of the city's future. Never had advisory committees (until forced) and never had a real planning commission. Still can't finish its General Plan or hire the people needed to serve the city.
Because of that, Jack and his block may now cause the pendulum to swing the other way---all the way, to no one's benefit, other than developers. Roy came very close to beating Jonnie.
Jack is costing Goleta millions of dollars each year in legal fees. And with the Residents at Sandpiper at the CA Supreme Court soon - Jack's arrogance could cost the City of Goleta the city. A $32 million decision and the court did not take it on to uphold the appeals court - this is a problem.
Without Jack this would not have happened.
Jack is two faced. He was a developer and made a lot on money as one. Check the records about a shotty project in Mission Canyon.
He stand for no one, no thing and does nothing for the public good- if that is goal why not replace him and the planning department with a voice mail that just says not and no office to send applications to -
Private property rights are the essence of our economic system - if you opposed property rights - you oppose capitalism -
Jack opposes your property rights and not his - that is his version of capitalism
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Let's take this argument somewhere else gentlemen -- the topic is November's Goleta City Council Race....
yikes? Sara why do you presume men as the culprits? was it another 2nd District tomcat fight? those boys are rather nasty these days
Am I wrong? Probably not...they are getting rather nasty these days.
There is no such thing as property rights. Only property that can be used for the collective good should be put to economic use. The rest should be left to nature. Jack is a friend to the earth therefore a friend to mankind.
Das has said many times that Jack is a friend and supporter so all of us need to rally around this good man.
looks like "sara" is at her/his censoring again. Sara, are you still looking up ISP's to find out where/who this site's users are.
You want to stay anonymous out of shame for being a Blum supporter, but you want to know the IDs of the people using this site! Ha Ha.
It's amazing what I let stay on this blog actually -- including your own post :)
Censorship? or decency? I only delete when comments get a little out of hand.
As for the ISP issue -- no one can tell exactly who is visiting any site, but you can tell what ISP people are using. I made a point a few months ago that someone at the News Press has been visiting BlogaBarbara.
In any event, please...back to the issue at hand.
I dont like censorship and why would it matter if the News Press was looking at your blog. I think you have been fair but there is no reason to record ISP's. Anyway, Elton has been retired for years in more ways than one. I was shocked that Tom McClintock didnt annouce he would run for Congress. I think he would be a valuable voice within the new GOP which looks alot like the Democrats headed up by Tom Foley pre- 1994. The current House Reps have betrayed the vision of Newt and John Kasich. Tom cant get elected to Lt. Gov so it will be another bright guy wasting his time. Our Party is a mess. We are running on empty. People like Tom need to move up or face just moving out.
Opps. wrong subject, sorry
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