I read Mr. Johns' post also and Mr. Buckheit's assessment is spot on.

Alamanac editors - why was that post deleted? It appeared to be in compliance with your terms of use.

I saw it also, and I must ask why is it Vanished

This is to confirm that the information I posted about Mr. Gruber staying at a 4 star hotel was obtained via a public records request. I have forwarded to Mr. Gibboney and Ms. Batti the Town's response to my public records request.

When I am on the road, the comfort inn or any other hotel costing between $100 and $150 per night is fine with me. This means that I usually stay in a 3 star hotel, one in the category of best western comfort in or homestead suites. This rule applies whether I am travelling domestically or abroad.

It is also worth mentioning that I attended only one conference at the town's expense during my six year tenure with the Town. Mr. Gruber attended 3 in the past year. Meaning no disrespect to Mr. Gruber, I would assert his time would have been better spent attending to Atherton's problems instead of networking with his colleagues from around the State.

Additionally, I have submitted a public records request for Mr. Jerry Carlson's and Mr. Marsala's expense reimbursements.

It would seem reasonable to me that if the Town is going to pay for the cost of preserving the value of Mr. Carlson's home on Mt. Vernon Lane by suing High Speed Rail, the least he could have done is foot the bill for his hotel stay.

An editor removed Mr. Johns' post earlier today out of concern that the information might not be accurate and couldn't be quickly verified by our staff. Since then, Mr. Johns has provided documentation, for which we are grateful. The thread has been re-posted and can be viewed at

Web Link

You've gotta love it. Even the Almanac couldn't believe Gruber would charge such outrageous hotel bills to Atherton in the midst of a budget crisis, and deleted the post assuming it had to have been made up!

AS USUAL-- NO ONE BELIEVED THE DEAD MESSENGER MR JOHNS
I THOUGHT AT LEAST THE ALMANAC WOULD HAVE FIGURED OUT BY NOW THAT JOHNS WAS ABOUT THE ONLY ONE EVER TELLING THE TRUTH ALL ALONG
IF HE EVER DOES POST A FIB IT WILL BE OUR FAULT FOR NOT BELIEVING THE TRUTH FOR SO LONG

Scandalous! They attended a conference in Carlsbad and chose to stay where the conference was hosted:

Web Link

Seems to me part of the value was the networking opportunities with other California Cities attendees. Staying at the hotel would be beneficial to meeting that goal.

Perhaps the better question is why did the League of Cities put on the meeting at such a nice place?

But, let's stay on topic. Dismiss that possibility outright. No, they should have stayed at the Motel 6 and shared rooms too!

John Johns has uncovered yet another extravagant expense by Town employees. Keep up the good work.

Tera P – does the networking benefit Gruber, Carlson and Marsala, or the residents of the Town of Atherton? I don't want to be paying for Jerry Gruber or Charles Marsala to find their next job opportunity.

In very hard times, any conference attendance should be scrutinized as whether it's absolutely necessary. Further, if they do go, an effort should be made to stay in economic lodging even if it's not the suggested lodging right at the heart of the conference. As Mr. Buckheit pointed out, this is done in the business world all the time. Of course, there's a profit motive and a natural check and balance in the business world. Here in the public sector it seems anything goes.

Bill Conwell once told me he used to take red eye flights to Chicago when he had his business so he didn\'t have to pay for a hotel. He did this when he was young and continued to do it when he was old, simply out of being in the habit of being cost conscious.

If we still had people like Bill Conwell on the City Council, the Town probably wouldn\'t be in the terrible financial shape that it is in.

Jerry Carlson has presented a self-portrait of being a champion of fiscal responsibility.

It will be interesting to see what kind of hotel he stayed at when he accompanied Gruber to the conference. It will also be interesting to see who paid for it, he or the Town.