Tuesday, March 06, 2007

3CDC, Insults and Obfuscation, plus Jeff Berding Speaks!

Posted by The Dean of Cincinnati

In a recent email exchange with Bill Donabedian from the Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC), Donabedian said The Cincinnati Beacon does not understand “competent and ethical journalism ...” Further, he instructed us that “Journalists should write facts.” We would like to take this opportunity, therefore, to delineate some facts—particularly as they pertain to the obfuscation one meets when trying to learn facts pertaining to 3CDC.

Firstly, it is nearly impossible to get documented facts pertaining to the 3CDC deal at Fountain Square.  For example, a volunteer with The Beacon recently asked for the contract between 3CDC and the City.  When he finally received the contract, it had an amendment—which needed to be requested.  That amendment had an amendment, which needed to be requested.  That amendment had an amendment, which needed to be requested.  And finally, that amendment referenced appendices, which needed to be requested.  Now, our volunteer—who just wanted to know the facts about the deal between 3CDC and the City—has found himself with a small novel’s worth of legalese to sift through.

But Donabedian says we should write facts.

A garage security guard in a 3CDC uniform recently told The Cincinnati Beacon that the extension of hallway between the garage and the Westin was owned by the City, whereas 3CDC owned the garage.  This employee said the waterproofing above that hallway segment was being paid for by the City.  But at a recent council meeting, Jeff Berding mentioned the work on Fifth Street while mentioning 3CDC—making it seem as if they are involved in that development.  And according to an amendment in the City contract, the line between the City’s responsibility and 3CDC’s (in regard to this small section of hallway) cuts the stairwell in half—so that the north portion of each flight is 3CDC’s, while the south section is the City’s.  What kind of nonsense is that?

And by the way, while employees keep telling us 3CDC owns the garage, we were under the impression they just had the lease.

So what are the facts?  Do we listen to our elected leader Jeff Berding?  Do we listen to the employee wearing 3CDC uniform items?

One thing seems certain:  the City of Cincinnati is responsible for the elevator at the Fifth Street side of the garage. 

This is the same elevator that has no inspection certificate on display, the same elevator that is dysfunctional—as documented in this video.

Jeff Berding, at last week’s Council meeting, wanted to make sure everyone understood how the leaks in that hallway were due to construction on the sidewalk:

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Berding says very clearly that the leaks are due to the construction on the Fifth Street sidewalk—and that this construction has brought water into the hallway in question.

This is the same hallway with a dysfunctional elevator with no inspection certificate displayed.

Maybe Donabedian is right.  Maybe, as an “ethical journalist,” I should study every detail of the novel-sized contract and amendments and appendices.  Maybe I should contact various City departments, check the elevator inspections office, call 3CDC, the construction firm, and Jeff Berding—all to find out their position on what I already know:  a broken elevator is in a hallway experiencing lots of leaks due to construction.  During the leaks, and construction, the hallway and elevator were left open to the public.

Maybe there really are some “facts” here that I need to uncover.  But while I do all this fact checking, someone might get stuck inside or injured by this elevator.

So, while Donabedian wants to lecture me on ethical journalism, let’s also talk about ethical development projects. 

Let’s talk about not hiding the money trail inside an infinity of nested corporations. 

Let’s talk about not displacing the poor in the pursuit of the almighty dollar.  Let’s talk about honesty—not buying buildings from owners on the condition that they are purchased vacated, so 3CDC can act like they never kicked people out of their homes.

Let’s talk about some of the neighbors to 3CDC development on Vine Street who are scared to give an interview because they fear retribution from 3CDC. 

Let’s talk about Kevin Armstrong hanging up the phone on Michael Earl Patton—who was trying to ask questions and learn facts—because he heard me and Justin Jeffre talking in the background.

Let’s talk about the time we went to the 3CDC office in the Kroger building, asked if Stephen Leeper was available, and were told he was out of the building.

We saw him walk down a hallway in the 3CDC offices about five minutes later.

Remember, Mr. Donabedian, when I asked you about the final dollar amount (including the loan interest) that will be paid back to lenders if the mortgage at Fountain Square is held for 30 years, or for 40 years?

“I don’t have that information,” you wrote back.  “The garage is now privately owned and like any other private business, that information is not public.”

While we get bogged down in this mire of complicated corporate details, we have a dysfunctional elevator open to the public.  On the surface, it seems the elevator may be messed up due to water from a horrible leak.  The elevator has no inspection certificate on display.

Is it broken?  Is that a danger?  What if someone gets stuck?  What is being done about this elevator?  Is Jeff Berding worried about it?  Is he making sure people riding this elevator are kept safe?  Who will be at fault when someone gets hurt?

And finally, are political games worth putting someone at risk? 

The elevator should be shut down, fixed, and properly inspected.  This needs to be done immediately.

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Anon says:
06 Mar 2007  at  08:21 pm | #

Speaking truth to power is difficult and requires courage and I stand with you. There are a lot of Anons out here and I take the Liberty to speak for them.

You’re making sense again, we can’t have that round here.

Phil Heimlich says:
07 Mar 2007  at  12:04 am | #

Of course, Berding is waaaaaay off base. H aap, Jeffre and Patton have no credentials as journalists.

says:
07 Mar 2007  at  07:57 am | #

Berding says very clearly that the leaks are due to the construction on the Fifth Street sidewalk—and that this construction has brought water into the hallway in question.

If a street in New York City gets a pothole, does it rain in the subway?

Warren says:
07 Mar 2007  at  08:18 am | #

Q - How do you know when Jeff Berding is lying?

A - His lips are moving.

Mike says:
07 Mar 2007  at  09:11 am | #

I’ve seen the video you refer to when talking about the garage employee. You interviewed a kid that was hired as a security attendant, NOT a 3CDC representative, NOT a City ambassador, NOT a politician, and NOT a construction worker. He’s hired to monitor the garage. You expect him to know all the details about the agreement between 3CDC and the City? You are valuing his statements on the same level as Berding. Give me a break. Give that kid a break. How in the world is he supposed to know who’s paying for the waterproofing?

That elevator was never part of the scope of the project. What more is there?

Dean, you’re fishing again.

Anon says:
07 Mar 2007  at  09:19 am | #

and they aren’t lawyers either. They have never been trained to overlook truth for a buck.

Mike says:
07 Mar 2007  at  01:59 pm | #

Q: How do you know The Beacon is lying?

A: They write a story.

Anon says:
07 Mar 2007  at  08:22 pm | #

How much was this paint job again?

says:
07 Mar 2007  at  08:49 pm | #

Q:  How do you know a waste of bandwidth has occurred?

A:  The post is signed “Mike.”

(Gee, what fun!  Now, back to the subject...)

I don’t think it’s fishing to say that someone in a 3CDC uniform forcefully kept trying to tell us details. 

For example, did that guy know what he was talking about when he said that the City would not let them put a sign on the broken elevator?

Was the guy just lying to us?  Why would he do that?

Niles says:
08 Mar 2007  at  06:57 am | #

Dean, how much is 3CDC paying all these people to muck up our fountain?

Anon says:
08 Mar 2007  at  09:38 am | #

Niles,

The answer to your question is, nobody knows. Based on information gleaned from the public record it was estimated that gross revenue from the garage was $1.8 Million annually. 3CDC bought the revenue stream for $3.5 Million. Add to that the annual maintenance charge to the city of $500,000 and the cost to the public is $2.3 Million. In light of new information, that the garage does not include the Fifth Street elevators or hallway, 3CDC has cherry picked the revenue stream and excluded the unprofitable parts, leaving the taxpayers to bear the costs of anything that might impact their income.

Corporate profiteering at its finest. What a bunch of whores we have running Cincinnati. We can’t have the common good standing in the way of making a buck. Profit before people, the new american way.

4CDC says:
08 Mar 2007  at  12:53 pm | #

Anon, good point, but don’t forget that 3CDC already raised the parking rates and their revenues. Plus they raised the fees for having events a lot. We can expect all of these cost to grow a lot more in the next 40 years because of inflation and 3CDC has been given complete control to charge whatever they want without oversight. Sorry Public.

says:
08 Mar 2007  at  01:46 pm | #

In their presentation to Cincinnati City Council, 3CDC said that the cost to renovate the garage would be $14.2 million(p. 86).

They also said that would assume the costs of operating and maintaining the square and garage beyond the city’s present annual cost of $500,000 (p. 89).

I have been trying to find out where that is actually in writing in a contract.  That is where I run into the situation that the Dean described above.  I now have 3 layers of contracts but I am missing at least 3 appendices and one of the contracts states certain contract information as to the warrenties may be in the drawings.  I still have not found the language relating to this $500,000 annual payment to 3CDC.

89 degrees says:
08 Mar 2007  at  08:16 pm | #

Okay.  How much is Leeper and Donbidian making?

says:
08 Mar 2007  at  08:30 pm | #

That’s the problem:  we might know Leeper’s salary, for example, though a 990 form—but does he have any other roles in any of the nested corporations for which he gets paid?  I don’t know.  That information is private.

What does Donabedian make?  Don’t know.  It’s private.

What’s 5/3 making off the loans?  Don’t know.  It’s private.

What are the projected revenues?  Don’t know.  It’s private.

In a few years, how much money will they have made?  Don’t know.  It will be private.

See a pattern here?

Anon says:
08 Mar 2007  at  09:28 pm | #

when asked leeper said it was up to the mayor and city council to provide a committee to oversee 3CDC’s use of public funds. to date the city leaders have been mute when asked about the 3CDC agreements. we get the filtered and spun version of the story from the enquirer.

the power of 5 doppler says:
08 Mar 2007  at  09:38 pm | #

it would seem logical that since public dollars are flowing into 3CDC that their books would HAVE to be public.  Transparency is important here to protect the taxpayers.

Keep digging on this Dean.  You’re making your mark.

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