PLAN 1. GET RID OF CITY MANAGER BILL MCGUIRE (MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.)

PLAN 2. CHANGE THE FORM OF GOVERNMENT (WORK IN PROGRESS.)

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July 8, 2009 Editorial www.nevadarevealed.org

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The City Council and previous City Manager Bill McGuire discussed bringing the city Comprehensive Plan up to date.  City Manager McGuire knew the update should be supervised by Professional Consultants so the end result would be a quality product. He budgeted for such an expense, but doubted that the Council was going to approve the budgeted item and the city staff told him they thought they could update the plan “in house.” He asked members of his city staff consisting of Mark Mitchell, Annette Crews and Johnna Williams, Secretary of the Planning Commission, to submit a list of committees and Chairmen and members for each committee for his approval.

Upon noticing that Carol Branham was listed as one of the committee Chairpersons, he informed the staff he could not approve Carol as a Chairperson, but she could serve as a member of a committee.   We understand that Carol was most unhappy and provoked. This occurred in September or October 2008. Mr. McGuire was released from his duties November 21, 2008.  I guess Mr. McGuire stepped on the wrong toes.

Now we have a complete turnabout. A steering committee headed by Mayor Hutchens at a meeting on May 12, 2009 was “excited” to ask the City Council to pass a Resolution to hire an outside consultant to guide them. Now that the Mayor is involved it is a good idea.

 Carol Branham has now been appointed Chairperson of the Facilities Committee.  I asked her who appointed her Chairperson of the Facilities Committee?  Her reply was “Staff” with no explanation as to who “Staff” is. Was it Mayor Hutchens or possibly Annette Crews?

An article appeared in the April 29, 2009 edition of the local newspaper announcing that one of the subjects to be studied by Carol Branham’s committee is:

“EVEN THE CITY’S CHARTER FORM OF GOVERNMENT AND WHETHER THE CURRENT FORM OF GOVERNMENT IS WORKING AND DOES IT NEED TO BE CHANGED.”

 THE CHARTER IS NOT A FACILITY; IT IS A LEGAL DOCUMENT AND SHOULD BE STUDIED BY A GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE AS WAS DONE IN THE 1984 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN UPDATE.

WHO COULD BE A MORE INTERESTED CHAIRPERSON FOR THE FACILITIES COMMITTEE THAN CAROL BRANHAM, A MEMBER OF THE SHADOW GOVERNMENT? CAROL MEETS REGULARLY WITH THE MAYOR; HAVE THEY DECIDED THAT A MAYOR/ COUNCIL FORM IS WHAT NEVADA SHOULD HAVE? PUTTING THE STUDY OF THE CHARTER FORM OF GOVERNMENT UNDER THE FACILITIES COMMITTEE CHAIRED BY AN EX-EMPLOYEE WHO RESIGNED DURING THE FINANCIAL CRISIS COULD PROVIDE AN EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY FOR PERSUADING THIS COMMITTEE TO RECOMMEND PUTTING THE WHEELS IN MOTION TO CHANGE IT.

 If the current form of government isn’t working, Mayor Hutchens need look no further than himself.  In my opinion he really doesn’t want it to work. He is more interested in working for himself and certain ex-city employees than in working for the welfare of all the citizens of Nevada.

There was a nice article in the paper recommending that the new Community building be named after Franklin Norman. He was one of the town leaders after World War 11 who ousted the corrupt Nevada Mayor/ Council form of government, and worked for a City Manager form of government, fighting more than one battle to maintain it.  If he were still alive he would be fighting tooth and nail to get rid of this “Shadow Government”.

 Nevada prospered under our present form of government until 2000 when traveling all over the country at city expense, outlandish legal charges, buddy- buddy contracts, “cooking the books” and numerous other nefarious extravagances were allowed by the City Administration.   Then a State Audit petition was obtained, but the shortage of money that was discovered was covered up by a Keystone Kop investigation (I have a copy), and the perpetrators were never held accountable. In April 2006 a new City Council was elected, and the then City Manager, who literally spent this town into near bankruptcy, was forced to resign or be fired.

To explain powers which the Shadow Government ex-city employees had under the Hubler regime I refer you to a paragraph printed below taken from the City of Nevada Missouri State Audit Year Ended December 31, 2003 page 21:

The city's checking accounts require two signatures; however, six individuals
(City Manager, City Clerk, Finance Director, Parks Director, Economic
Development Director, and the City Manager's Officer Director) are authorized to
sign checks. ANY TWO OF THESE SIGNATURES CAN CAUSE THE CHECKS TO BE NEGOTIATED, and the City Clerk has custody of the facsimile stamps of the Finance Director and Parks Director, and occasionally uses these stamps to sign checks. Checks are typically signed by the Economic Development Director and the Parks Director. Strong internal controls require limiting the number of authorized
signatures, and allowing the use of the facsimile stamp diminishes the control
intended by multiple signatures.  (Emphasis Ours)

 

The City Clerk during the audit period was Robin Fisher and the Parks Director was Carol Branham both of whom attended the secret meeting in May 2008 referred to in Chapter 2 of the Shadow Government expose. The City Manager’s Office Director was Annette Crews.  Just think of the power they had.  Together they could sign all city checks and the Parks Director could sign payroll checks, purchases for the parks department and all other departments of the city.

 

Now the ex-city employee Carol Branham is the Chairperson of the Facilities Committee and she has announced that she and her committee will study whether or not Nevada’s form of government should be changed! The form of government is not the problem. The problem was the abuse of the system by City Manager Hubler and a few key employees in City hall before and after the 2003 State Audit. In my opinion the problem now is our Mayor who ignores the City Charter and Codes and sometimes acts on his own without the permission of the City Council.  In my opinion, all indications lead to the conclusion that the abusers now want to take back the city government with Mayor Hutchens in the driver’s seat.

 

INCIDENTALLY, CRAIG HUBLER HAS BEEN SEEN IN NEVADA IN THE COMPANY OF CAROL BRANHAM AND SOME OF THE “OLD GANG” OF THE 2000-05 YEARS SEVERAL TIMES THIS YEAR. Does the fox want back in the chicken house?

In the weeks before Mr. McGuire was “railroaded” out of town, Carol Branham was seen in the City Clerk’s office many, many times. It is interesting that since Mr. Moore, the interim City Manager has been here the number of her visits to City Hall has dwindled.

There is an interesting story about my request for records from City Clerk Julie Lewis. On Tuesday February 10, 2009 I sent the City Clerk a request for records. I asked for Ordinance No. 7488 and a complete copy of the Resignation and Settlement Agreement between the City and Mr. McGuire and requested that the information be mailed to my home. I received the documents in the mail February 13, 2009. The envelope was addressed to Joe Kraft 405 E Park Nevada, Mo. 64772. There is no 405 E Park in Nevada. There is only one block of E Park and it is a drainage ditch.  The rest of the land east of Washington is pasture and wooded area.

Was this an obvious attempt to tamper with and delay the delivery of the United States Mail?  If so, it didn’t work because the post office immediately delivered it to my house. Was this another example of the kind of petty politics and harassment which was used against Bill McGuire?

In my opinion, the events leading to the McGuire resignation are disgraceful and will affect Nevada’s ability to obtain a good professional City Manager. Any person that is considered for the job must be told the true facts about his departure and the Secret Shadow Government.  I don’t think Mr. Moore was told the whole story before he came back as interim-City Manager.

A very good committee has been formed to help the City Council obtain a new City Manager. I sincerely hope they are successful in this endeavor so that Nevada can again be a great town to live and work in.

There is now a crucial Council seat to be filled and our future depends on who is elected. Will it be a member of the Shadow Government or one of their friends? If so, they will have a majority on the City Council and the people of this town will have to face that fact and decide how to deal with it.

GRAND JURY NEEDED

I sincerely feel that the only way the continuing problems and the constant blatant violations of the City Charter and City Code will ever be resolved is the convening of a Grand Jury with the State Audit ending December 31, 2003 and the Management of Cash Receipts Audit dated September 2, 2004 No. 2004-66 being the starting points.

 

Joe Kraft

Footnote (1) ARTICLE X. PLANNING COMMISSION

The planning commission, from time to time, shall recommend to the city council and other appropriate public officials means and methods for promoting and carrying out the city plan and necessary revisions and changes in such city plan. The commission may make reports and recommendations relating to the city plan and to the development of the city to public officials and agencies, public utility companies, civic, educational, professional and other organizations and to citizens. It may recommend to the city council and to executive officials of the city programs for public improvements and the financing thereof. All public officials shall, upon request, furnish to the commission, within a reasonable time, all available information it requires for its work. The commission and its members, in the performance of its functions, may enter upon land to make examinations and surveys. In general the commission shall have the power necessary to enable it to perform and promote municipal planning.

(Code 1998, § 2-44; Ord. No. 3237, 11-6-1979)