The City’s Pulse Newsletter 
Coeur d’Alene’s Mayor Bloem spoke about the Education Corridor today… but just a little bit. It was in a tiny, crowded room in Post Falls. She didn’t give an explanation of the Ed. Corridor, she merely answered the question that both PF Mayor Larkin and I posed: Why has the public been left out of the decision making process on this important issue? There have been no public meetings.
Mayor Bloem’s answer was that the public knows about the Ed.Corridor because she has mentioned it in her speeches over the past few years. She went on to emotionally describe how she is 4th generation from Coeur d’Alene, as are several others on the CdA City Council, she said, and they are determined to build the Education Corridor in CdA because it will be like the next Tubb’s Hill. That was it. That was her answer to bringing the public into the process.
Perhaps our Mayor and Council don’t trust the public. Perhaps they don’t think we can understand all the factors involved in this big decision. The Education Corridor will change the look and flow of Coeur d’Alene forever. It will cost countless millions of taxpayer dollars over the years. And within the next few months, irreversible decisions will be made that will commit the taxpayers of Coeur d’Alene, Kootenai County and the State of Idaho to this project for the long term. All we, the people, are asking for is a seat at the table. We want public meetings. We want information. We want our vote to count.
When speaking about decision making by the people, Thomas Jefferson said: “…if we think them not enlightened enough, the remedy is not to take the power from them, but to inform them by education.” This quote should be on a plaque, permanently set in the new CdA City Council Chambers.
Open government has been the goal of generations of Americans, with varying levels of success in communities large and small across our country. We are struggling with this ideal right now in Coeur d’Alene. That’s why a small group of citizens, of which I am one, have started a new web site for open and honest information about local issues.
OpenCdA.com is in it’s second week of action and has attracted hundreds of readers. People are hungry for information about what’s happening in our area, and many want to engage in discussion of the topics as well. But the discussions are not gossip, not juvenile attacks, not subversive plots or plans. The conversations are an honest exchange of information and opinion, where no one is absolutely right or wrong, and free expression is kept within the boundaries of good manners. Does this sound interesting to you? Just visit https://opencda.com and give it a try. It’s free. Everyone can read the information posted on the web site and, if you want to comment, you need only a valid email address to register. You can use your real name or a made-up pen name, but your ideas will add color and texture to the community discussion. Are you ready to become part of the solution?
The immortal journalist, Edward R. Murrow, famous for his tenacious pursuit of honesty in government, had this observation: “A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves.” Let’s not just follow along, let’s stand up for our right to be involved in important local decisions. CdA City Council, NIC Board, we want public meetings about the Education Corridor. We want to see maps. We want you to explain the plan, the options and the costs. And we want to be involved before the decisions are made. Please don’t worry, invite us in, educate us, we have a lot to contribute.
My biggest question, why hasn’t the city council and LCDC been prosecuted or charged with any corruption? I have sent information to the State Attorney General and the FBI and as of this date, have not received a response. There is clearly corruption, ethics violations, conflict of interest, etc. going on. If anyone has any type of answer to my question, I’d sure like a response.
Comment by steve — February 28, 2008 @ 7:25 pm
Why has the public been left out? The short answer is that the Mayor does not want to give the public the opportunity to (1)ask probing questions, (2) demand honest answers, and (3) object if the public feels the project is not in the best interest of north Idaho. That’s the best interpretation of her motivation. It goes downhill from there.
Comment by Bill — February 28, 2008 @ 7:38 pm
I agree, Bill. And at the meeting today it was evident the questions asked by those present were not really answered. I think everyone left with more questions than at the start.
Comment by mary — February 28, 2008 @ 8:33 pm
Mary, in as much as getting answers seems difficult, especially in snippetts from questions asked at various meetings, perhaps a public fourm, sponsored by OPENCDA, should be scheduled for the purpose of getting answers to all of the questions about the Educational Corridor. Invitees should include, CDA Mayor, A County Commissioner, Pres. Bell, U of Idaho, LCSC, Marshall Chesrown, LCDC (preferably Charlie Nipp), Mayor Larkin, Luke Malek. Questions to be asked should fall into catagories of Plan, Paticipation, Ownership, Funding, Remediation, Sewer Plant, Parking, Traffic, Housing, Waterfront Public Access, Waterfront Use, Buildings, Educational Focus (ie, target deciplines,). Have I missed anything?
Comment by yabetcha — February 28, 2008 @ 9:21 pm
I am with Steve on this – why hasn’t anyone been charged?
This morninings CdaPress stated in the article:
Why the North Idaho Mayor’s Coalition? Douglas should go out with a bang – and look into it. He has his complaints, right?
Comment by Stebbijo — February 29, 2008 @ 7:07 am
steve and Stebbijo,
I’ll try to answer your basic question about why “someone” isn’t investigating.
First, neither you nor I know that “someone” is or isn’t investigating, nor should we expect to know. If any agency, particularly federal, has launched an inquiry or an investigation, I would hope they would keep it quiet so the bad guys don’t get wind of it. Often and correctly, the first the public hears of an official investigation is when search warrants are served or indictments are issued. By the time it reaches that stage, the investigation is less likely to be compromised by prematurely released information.
There’s an even better reason why an ethical and professional agency should not tell the world it’s launched an investigation: It should not want to defame anyone. A person’s reputation can be tarnished irreparably by investigative information and innuendo. Remember Richard Jewell?
A criminal investigation is a very serious matter that should never, never be used as a bludgeon or a tool of political retaliation. No reputable agency should “number up” or launch a formal criminal investigation without a substantial amount of verifiable evidence that a criminal violation within its jurisdiction has occurred.
Second, major investigations take a long time and require man-hours and money. How long? Remember the November 2007 FBI and Secret Service raids in three cities that scooped up allegedly illegally minted dollars? Based on the inappropriate release of an FBI agent’s alleged affidavit, one news account reported that the FBI had agents undercover for two years.
There is no crime of “corruption.” That is a term most of us use to describe the aggregate of illegal behaviors in which some public officials engage. Corrupt public officials often get caught up by committing singular crimes such as wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering, tax evasion, and soliciting or accepting a bribe or gratuity. To get some idea of the breadth of these investigations, see the Internal Revenue Service’s Examples of Public Corruption Crimes Investigations FY 2008.
I hope this helped answer some of your questions, but please ask more if you have them.
Comment by Bill — February 29, 2008 @ 8:23 am
Yabetcha–I like your idea! Higher Education in North Idaho is a regional issue and should involve people representing the whole area. As someone told me, our community college is called North Idaho College, not Coeur d’Alene College. Your list of discussion topics was great: “Questions to be asked should fall into catagories of Plan, Paticipation, Ownership, Funding, Remediation, Sewer Plant, Parking, Traffic, Housing, Waterfront Public Access, Waterfront Use, Buildings, Educational Focus (ie, target deciplines,).” Public Safety could be added to the list because of the limited ingress, egress from the Fort Grounds sector and the wastewater plant, which uses highly toxic chemicals that are delivered regularly by truck through the center of the campus. Anyone else agree with asking for a public forum?
Comment by mary — February 29, 2008 @ 10:15 am
Bill, thanks for such an informative answer about investigations. Your expertise is terrific.
Comment by mary — February 29, 2008 @ 10:17 am