Dee Baucher May 17, 2013 at 10:44 pm
Darius Anderson is obviously playing Monopoly with the town of Sonoma as his game board. He wants to…Read More own it all, by the end of the game. Boardwalk, Park Place, the entire Plaza and even the jailhouse..... to be all run by him, with lots of "houses" and "hotels". And to get what he wants, he will stop at nothing. Wheeling and dealing all the way to his goal. No ethical constraints to hamper his maneuvers. And there are obviously lots of willing creeps, eager to be on his payroll. Too bad so many people are now watching all his underhanded tricks, and keeping track of those who are assisting in trying to railroad his scheme down our throats. Eventually, I believe that everyone will realize that the emperor has no clothes.
Ralph Hutchinson May 17, 2013 at 10:52 am
Didn't Simpson also work for Sonoma Valley Vistors Bureau with Wendy Peterson? Don't they benefit…Read More from TOT taxes? Wouldn't that again be a huge conflict of interest?
Still getting strong speculation of Darius building a casino in Sonoma either at the General Vallejo State Park area next to his Ramekins and Estate/Generals Daughter...or up Valley at Sonoma Development Center.
Could this hotel just be a small distraction or the primer to grease the hands of those in town to realize the real prize? Is the Chamber of Commerce short sided and blinded by the dazzling sizzle of increased tourism?
Larry Barnett May 17, 2013 at 06:27 pm
Need to clarify some math in this posting...
Is the TID a good use of money? Let's do the math; the…Read More 2% TID assessment on all overnight room charges will generate approximately $450,000/year. This money could have been simply added to the TOT collected by the city for use in the General Fund that the City Manager is so concerned about. The 2% increase is an increase of 20% in the room related TOT/TID charge guests pay (it was 10% and with the TID is now 12%); accordingly, the annual occupancy rate would have to rise (at present room rates) above 78% just to generate as much new TOT income as the city could have enjoyed by simply keeping the 2% TID money. 78%-plus is essentially the occupancy rate the large hotels say is virtually impossible. In other words, the amount of TID money being spent on promotion to raise the TOT is greater than the TOT money it will generate. It's what we call a lose/lose proposition, except for the large hotels who get to spend less of their own money promoting their hotels.
Ralph Hutchinson May 17, 2013 at 10:56 am
Does City Manager Carol Giovanotto even live in Sonoma? Will she be impacted by traffic, etc.?…Read More Historical news archives in the Cloverdale news show her lauding comments about Cloverdale freeway bypass bringing peace and quiet to her hometown. also, what investment company does she run working with fire truck? Are there also conflicts of interest there? Have we checked these things out?
Ralph Hutchinson May 16, 2013 at 03:51 pm
Its amazing a Chamber of Commerce group and a City Business Manager can get so lost in the numbers.…Read More This "build it and they will come" is scary to a banker like me who has seen a good many business cycles and real estate boom and busts.
Right now, we don't need hotel rooms, in the future when things pick up, we can think about building again. The values of Sonoma favor small hotels over large ones and the majority of the People want to preserve quaint and peaceful lifestyles.
Whats so hard to understand about that?
Its all about personal gain, profits, cronyism and payoffs in a variety of forms. Everybody on the Chamber group is positioned to somehow benefit from Darius Anderson.
What is he, the Candy Man?
Boards
All Boards » Ralph Hutchinson May 18, 2013 at 08:51 pm
I still say the People will be wise to these bush league tactics and the residents of Sonoma will…Read More vote against the destruction of the Plaza and our small town feel. We won''t sell out like Napa or Healdsburg and certainly we're not like the 101 corridor.
Ralph Hutchinson May 17, 2013 at 09:38 am
Another Cuban party perhaps in the works at the Kenwood Ranch, chompin on contraband cigars, etc?…Read More Grand prize trips to Cuba with Californians Building Bridges and rub elbows with fatcat Politicians? Or maybe Kings tickets?
Ralph Hutchinson May 17, 2013 at 11:37 am
What kind of conflicts of interest are present with Nancy Simpson? She is on the County Landmarks,…Read More formerly affiliated with Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau and Wendy Peterson? Are all these agencies and bureaus interlocked some receiving TOT tax revenues, and all standing to benefit from anything Darius Anderson can build?
Ralph Hutchinson May 17, 2013 at 11:32 am
Is Darius really after a casino in Sonoma either at General Vallejo State Park next to his Ramekins…Read More location or up valley at Sonoma Development Center?
Ralph Hutchinson May 17, 2013 at 11:31 am
Ms. G doesn't even live in Sonoma does she? Isn't it Cloverdale? Wasn't she a big proponent of the…Read More bypass in her town?
sal nero May 15, 2013 at 08:11 pm
The Sonoma Sun's website (but not SunFMTV) has been down for hours. What's happening ?
Ralph Hutchinson May 15, 2013 at 03:25 pm
Did Darius Anderso agree to buyout The Patch and have the archives and comments removed as part of…Read More this new software update?
Afterall "Cows Not Casinos", Measure A Rosewood Hillside hotel, and Measure C Hospital Eminent Domain would be better if the People of Sonoma forgot all about it and let his hotel venture fly easier.
sal nero May 15, 2013 at 03:20 pm
When Bolling "lost" his comments on Sonoma Valley Bank and then the whole archive he…Read More blamed a glitch yet they have never been restored. That has benefitted the Hotel Index-Tribune and allowed a cover up of key historical dates and facts.
Please hurry and restore the Patch's missing blogs and comments ASAP so that the confidence the Sonoma Patch has attained is not damaged. Thanks
Ralph Hutchinson May 15, 2013 at 03:09 pm
The comments to various articles and blogs are also completely missing. Please restore asap.
Dee Baucher May 18, 2013 at 09:37 am
I write about the issue of the BRACA test, because I am someone who developed breast cancer, and who…Read More needed the test. Even though I already had breast cancer, the decision of whether to have a bilateral mastectomy (rather than just a removal of the cancer with a "lumpectomy" or the removal of only one, effected, breast) was dependent upon the results of that test. If I had a genetic marker that indicated I was likely to develop more breast cancers, there would be no reason to avoid having both breasts removed at once. Even though my doctors recognized the importance of getting this test done before surgical decisions were made, the insurance company was resistant to providing coverage for the test. There were many heated phone conversations with the insurance company, and many letters of documentation before I was finally allowed to have the test. The basic test for BRAC I and BRAC II (the 2 main genes identified) cost $3,000. However, there are even more specialized tests for the smaller BRAC genes (rare genes that are less common) that cost thousands of dollars extra, and would have been helpful because of my family history. I was not able to fight with the insurance company for permission to obtain those extra tests, since I was already weak and ill from the chemotherapy, at that time. It is not reasonable or acceptable for women to have to fight to get necessary tests performed, because of excessive charging for those tests, and resistance of the medical insurance companies to provide coverage to obtain them. This situation needs to be changed. I hope that Angelina Jolie's story will bring attention to this issue, and will help our Supreme Court to recognize the unfairness in allowing a company to lay claim on a "patent" of our genes. The main research to provide the exact mapping of our genes was provided by the "Human Genome Project", which was primarily paid for by the US taxpayers, via that extensive NIH study. The Myriad company did some further research to refine knowledge on the BRACA genes; but they should not be allowed a total patent which blocks all other US labs from performing tests on that same part of our DNA. That is unreasonable in terms of the amount of profit they are claiming, and unfair to US humans who should be able to claim ownership of their own DNA.
Dee Baucher May 18, 2013 at 08:50 am
I am not used to Hollywood-types having the type of integrity and honesty, that Ms. Jolie displayed…Read More with her NY Times revelation. I commend her for having the courage to act proactively with surgical removal of her breasts, in addition to the planned removal of her ovaries. She lost her beloved mother to the disease, and she clearly understands the devastation that would befall her own children (if she were to develop the types of cancers that her genetic makeup render her vulnerable to). I agree with her decision, and hope that I would have the same strength, if confronted with the genetic evidence that she was able to have documented with the BRACA testing. Unfortunately, many women who would benefit in the same way, from advance knowledge about their genetic vulnerability to those cancers, are denied the ability to get the tests. The company that "owns" the test, by virtue of their assertion that they "own the patent" on that identified portion of our DNA, charge $3,000.00 for the test. That cost is too high for most women in the US to easily afford, and our health insurance typically refuses to cover the test for most women. There is currently a case before the US Supreme Court challenging the idea of a medical company owning our genes. Many of us are hopeful that the court will halt this company from claiming this patent, so that laboratories all over the country can provide the test to us inexpensively, and therefore it will be available to all who should have it. The costs for the type of very sophisticated plastic surgery/ breast reconstruction that Ms. Jolie underwent, are also extremely high. It is doubtful that insurance or Obamacare will provide coverage for that type of costly prophylactic surgery. Those are battles that women will need to fight in the future, when more women become informed about their personal risks and choices.
sam oliva May 15, 2013 at 05:55 am
racist organization........yet never stops whining about racial profiling!
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