Cline lost my vote day he gave away millions when approving the Bohannan project.

I'm not about to vote for any of the incumbents. It should be obvious by now, that the City Manager they hired was a very poor choice. they have thrown away about one million on the downtown plan, which is in complete disarray. (I just read the viewpoint article in the Almanac)

At least Boyle has had the courtesy to step down. Cline and Robinson must go also. Robinson with his now attacking garbage rates; what a joke. Where was he when this was decided?

Here come the no growthers. They had their own guy Andy negotiating and they blame others. Classic.

No real facts but lots of opinions about how to get money in a development negotiation.

If these guys have their way, you are talking about no gym, no hotel on Sand Hill, no downtown plan ever, no Gateway, no Derry, no 1300...

The grand ambiguous argument about what "they would of and could of" done...

Although Cline is the most moderate of the aligned 4 member council majority, he is still part of that group. He has consistently voted with Fergussen, Cohen and Robinson against Boyle. He was backed by the unions in the last election accepting money and their volunteer time walking precincts for him. After his election he approved the utility tax to help pay for a 30% pay raise and retirements at 55.

He ran with Robinson and Vince Bressler, a radical no growther, in 2006. Bressler was then rewarded with a spot on the planning commission and has been making it difficult for applicants ever since. Cline may now understand the error of his earlier ways, but it is too late.

Most moderate of all five.

How can anyone tell what Cline is? He spends most of his time fretting and worrying about making a decision. And when he makes a decision it is the decsion not to make a decison. It is ironic that the best council member, John Boyle, decided not to run again. If we had five people like John we would have a City Council to be proud of.

This forum is hilarious. Yeah, there's a 4-1 split on the Council- 4 people who listen to everyone, really think about things and make up their minds on their own. Then there's 1 who pretends to listen, and then either just does whatever an extremist council of 'advisors' (most of whom don't live in Menlo) says to do, or crankily abstains. Cline and Boyle are definitely part of the 4. Any guesses who the 1 is?

Cline, Robinson, and Fergusson have done irreparable harm to our city by placing the interests of the employee unions above the interests of the residents. Cohen and Boyle are advocates for the residents.

For the good of Menlo Park we need to vote out Cline and Robinson.

Voice of Reason- Cohen is NOT an advocate for the residents. He is an (ineffective) advocate for whoever whines to him the loudest. When he's not reading off a sheet of paper Collacchi/Speer gave to him, he's defending the wealthy out-of-towners Couperus/Flegel. Give me a break.

I wonder if voters will kick him out of office. I hope so.

[Post removed; same person posting under different names on same thread.]

His campaign platform:
1 - I promise to ignore the Brown Act
2 - I won't make any decisions that I can send to the voters
3 - I won't even think about trying to save $7 million/year by outsourcing police services

Hey Peter, that campaign platform for Cline you propose is 100% better than anyone in Atherton can offer!

Rich if this thread is typical, it looks like you've made few friends in this town. Maybe you should should withdraw your papers and retire quietly into the traffic and red ink you have supported.

Hey Rich,

If things don't work out with your run for City Council I can bring you on board. Same goes for Heyward. I owe you both big time and won't forget how you both came through for me in the clutch.

Is anyone going to ask the obvious question?

If you watched recent meetings, then you saw public comment around Gateway and the letters from Andy's henchmen wringing their hands about Cline and Robinson.

When is Andy's little minion of Don and Morris and Speer and Elias and Chuck and Vince going to stop hiding in the shadows and put up their name to run? These guys sit in dark corners and write their letters under names like Menlo Voter and Concerned and interested, but they always hide like weasels and Andy does their bidding.

See traffic, development and planning as topics and there they are denouncing folks who had the guts to serve, while they hide. Two of them were rejected in elections already.

Stop hiding in forums and step up and run. The clock is ticking and you can actually run now. I want to see people of courage stand up and debate the incumbents like adults. If you think your platform and your ideas are better, than step up.

It is that easy. Stop insulting respectable people when you haven't the courage to do something about it.

Peter, I don't know you, but you have stooped awfully low recently with your comments. I would think someone of your esteem would have more respect for local elected officials and the amount of work they do.

If the rest of your rant is as accurate as your assertion that I know any of the people you listed, or have been in any way insulting to the the Council Members on this forum, then I can assure others they may disregard it completely.

We want to know:

clearly you don't know. I am none of those people you mentioned. I am also not interested in running for office. I have too much to do just to keep up with my bills. If I did want to serve though it would because I actually wanted to do the job and I would apply myself and actually make decisions. Something some of the current council seem incapable of doing.

By the way, it's interesting you are denouncing others for posting under a pseudonym when you yourself don't have the courage of your convictions.

Please please please let some combination of Don/Morris/Elias/Chuck form a "Killer B's" slate for Council! If you thought the "check V" campaign from 2006 set a new standard for social awkwardness, you haven't seen anything yet.

"Peter, I don't know you, but you have stooped awfully low recently with your comments. I would think someone of your esteem would have more respect for local elected officials and the amount of work they do."

Yea, We Want To Know, you don't know Peter - his comments are par for his course.

Read the 7/27 council agenda packet with YTD quarterly budget report. Sales tax revenue $350K below expected YTD 6/30, TOT in the toilet, another $350K from reserves, from prior years reserves, still owed to Downtown/ECR "consultants" on their $1.2 million contract.
Time to cancel the downtonwn/ECR contract which is a total waste of time and money, vigorously opposed by downtown merchants and store owners.
Pretty tough for fiscally imprudent incumbents to get voter support for another 4 years come November.

this just in, tanking revenues, runaway expenses -

From your lips to God's ears!

Unfortunately, I'm betting the MP incumbents will be swept into office by people voting for familiar names... just as always.

Sad.

Polyanna Fergie will just throw another Thur. nite block party and everything will be Dorothy in Kansas all over again!
No worries, Nero's running the city!
Golly gosh!

We want to know states:"Peter, I don't know you, but you have stooped awfully low recently with your comments. I would think someone of your esteem would have more respect for local elected officials and the amount of work they do."

Having been an elected official for 8 years I have deep respect and understanding for local officials who DO what they were elected to do - govern, decide, lead. I have no respect for elected officials who do not govern, not decide and do not lead. How hard someone works is irrelevant, what they accomplish is all that counts.

There is now a great replacement for Cline - Peter Ohtaki, who currently serves on the Fire Board, has decided to run for the MP Council.

He is talented, dedicated, financially wise and conservative. His tenure on the Fire Board was marked by team work and he is demonstrating strong leadership skills in his current role as Board President.

He will not take union money or endorsements.

I am confident that the voters in Menlo Park can and will select their new council members without my input.

That said I don't intend to relinquish my First Amendment rights to speak out in support of candidates who have demonstrated their ability to balance $30+ million budgets without using reserves or raising taxes, who have refused to capitulate to union demands for excessive pay and benefits, and who have a record of working well with their elected colleagues. And I won't hesitate to speak out against candidates who flout the Brown Act, can't balance a budget and won't confront the unions.

In the end the Menlo Park voters will decide.

Peter, I totally agree with you about Peter O. However, the remaing
candidates are marginal at best, we need decision makers, not take
it to the voters (literally). If you are using Menlo Fire as a bench mark, their contract is still not agreed too, 2 1/2 years, numerous law suits. If would be cheaper to give them a CPI raise, than have to pay out all of the litigations on both sides, and more to come I am sure.

Voter states:"If you are using Menlo Fire as a bench mark, their contract is still not agreed too, 2 1/2 years"

IF you are going to stand up to the unions then you need to be prepared to say NO - this is not a failure, this is a significant achievement. A significant salary increase, they are asking for 11% for the FIRST year, is forever. Any law suits are a one time expense - and I predict the Fire District will win them all.

Labor peace at any price is a very bad bargain.