"Filner also insists that TMD executives be prohibited from earning an annual salary of more than $160,000. The current President and CEO of the TMD, Joe Terzi, earns $435,000 per year, while Vice President Margie Sitton earns over $203,000. Two other executives earn over $170,000.
“Nobody would tolerate that if it were city employees making (close to) $500,000 per year,” said Filner, pointing to the vitriol toward public employees during the Prop B campaign last spring."
According to the Comparative Analysis of Mayor Filner's Alternative Draft Contract on Pages 1, 34, and 35 "In the 32 page agreement, he added a total of approximately 600 words."
The difference in Mayor Filner's draft TMD Operating Agreement includes Terms of Agreement is "Up to Five Years" instead of "Five Years", restores indemnification for Elected Official, and "requires more robust disclosure of operating documents on the SDTMD website and requied Public Records Act accountability."
Of course the Hotelier could have voted for the draft, then the draft would go to the City Council for a vote, and then the Hotelier could vote again and sign the official amended TMD Operating Agreement.
City Attorney Goldsmith approved the City Council decision to move booking and sales of the Convention Center to the private Tourism Authority was made through a Quid Pro Quo arrangement in 2012. The No-Bid Contract did not follow Managed Competition guidelines.
The deal included that the Hoteliers would not vote against the new 2 percent TMD or 3 percent Special tax in exchange for moving Convention Center Booking to the private Tourism Authority.
The Hoteliers have stated they wanted to move the lucrative smaller medical convention from our public Convention Center (that pays down our annual $14 million public debt for Phase 2) to private Hotels owned by Tourism Authority Board Members. Major Conflict of Interest. It would be great to see the new Booking of the Tourism Authority since there takeover on July 1, 2012. Did the Hoteliers move the lucrative Medical Convention for their own private financial gain, at the expense of Taxpayers?
How about a news story on the reasons why the Convention Center staff had to take back Booking and Sales of the public Convention Center from the private ConVis in 2004? Was not the Booking and Sales move back in 2004 due to lack of transparancy and incompetence? Between 2004 and 2012 the public Convention Center staff did a great job and exceeded goals for Booking and Sales, but instead were rewarded with Pink Slips and a new private Tourism Authority bosses.
Actual watch the video of Goldsmith's Press Conference.
City Attorney Goldsmith approved the City Council decision to move booking and sales of the Convention Center to the private Tourism Authority through a Quid Pro Quo arrangement. The No-Bid Contract did not follow Managed Competition guidelines.
The deal included that the Hoteliers would not vote against the new 2 percent TMD or 3 percent Special tax in exchange for moving Convention Center Booking to the private Tourism Authority.
The Hoteliers have stated they wanted to move the lucrative smaller medical convention from our public Convention Center (that pays down our annual $14 million public debt for Phase 2) to private Hotels owned by Tourism Authority Board Members. Major Conflict of Interest.
For the new Tourist Market District (TMD) vote, the City mailed out 1,379 Ballots. 127 Ballots Voted Yes. 218 Ballots Voted No. 1,034 Ballots did not vote on the TMD issue.
The votes are Weighted according to an unknown formula developed by the Hoteliers, supposedly based on rooms and revenue. For one ballot-one vote, the TMD failing with only 37 percent ballots approving the new tax. However the Weighted Vote approving the new San Diego TMD was 94 percent.
One ballot from the San Diego Marriot Marina with 1,362 hotels rooms alone allowed the new 2 percent TMD tax to pass.
The lame City Council is still putting us in this terrible position. Just let us vote on increasing Hotel Taxes.
Maybe the new Councilman Kersey will champion the public’s Right To Vote issue to finance our public infrastructure needs. For example: A 5 percent increase in TOT for public infrastructure, advertisement, and marketing, that can include a maximum of $520 million in public TOT funds for a contiguous convention center expansion.
Part of the City Council’s giveaway to private Hoteliers also includes any Incremental TOT Increment from the existing 10.5 percent. For Fiscal Year 2013 the existing legal TOT brought in $86.3 million.
Therefore if San Diego adds additional hotel rooms or increase hotel prices in the future, then all of the incremental 10.5 percent TOT revenue above the $86.3 million FY2013 baseline will go towards paying for the Expansion on top of the addition $520 from the Special Tax.
If the Convention Center is not built, the money is split 50-50 with the City, but includes legal loopholes for 100 percent Tourism Authority and zero percent City.
There may also be a way for the proposed 500-room Hilton Bayfront addition to be paid with these new private taxes and any public Tax Increment on existing TOT. The financing issue is murky.
The City gave away a No-Bid Contract from the public Convention Center to the Tourism Authority as part of the Conspiracy to increase Hotel Taxes without a public vote.
According to the Hoteliers, they want the small lucrative conventions moved from the downtown Convention Center to their own private luxury hotels.
An easy way to verify is to see what Convention business moved from our public venue (which pays down our public debt) to private venues owned by the Tourism Authority Board.
Fights for a public vote to increase Hotel taxes so the annual $80+ million (5%) is used for the good of both the public and Hoteliers, and all legal issues are resolved.
The Hoteliers do not want to share the created $80+ million wealth with San Diegans.
Mayor Filner wants a public vote before increasing Hotel Taxes for Marketing/Advertisement and the Convention Center Phase 3 Expansion, as required by our State Consitution.
Advise to the City Council and Tourism/Visitor Industry - Why did you believe your attorney's advice that you could increase Hotel taxes without the required public voter approval?
How much time and money has this conspiracy cost the City. An annual $80+ million, 5 percent, is being left on the table, due to bad legal advice, and lack of cooperation from the City Council and Hoteliers.
The Tourist Marketing District, City Council, and City Attorney are not only destroying themselves, but also stopping a legal way to finance the needed Convention Center Expansion.
The easy legal way to pay for 2 % advertisement/promotion for the Hoteliers, and the 3 % Convention Center Expansion is to formally put a 5 percent TOT increase from 10.5 to a maximum of 15.5 on the next citywide ballot for 2/3 public approval. The Hoteliers and City Council have already pre-Approved a 15.5 percent Effective TOT though a private Hotelier-only vote.
Why would the Hoteliers, City Council, and City Attorney try to increase Hotel Taxes without a public vote as required by our State Constitution? What would they have to gain by their votes?
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Edison Says One Of San Onofre's Reactors Could Run At 100% Power for 11 Months.
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March 19, 2013 at 8 a.m. ( permalink )
Filner Offers New Deal To TMD, TMD Rejects It
http://sandiegofreepress.org/2013/03/...
"Filner also insists that TMD executives be prohibited from earning an annual salary of more than $160,000. The current President and CEO of the TMD, Joe Terzi, earns $435,000 per year, while Vice President Margie Sitton earns over $203,000. Two other executives earn over $170,000.
“Nobody would tolerate that if it were city employees making (close to) $500,000 per year,” said Filner, pointing to the vitriol toward public employees during the Prop B campaign last spring."
March 18, 2013 at 5:47 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Filner Offers New Deal To TMD, TMD Rejects It
According to the Comparative Analysis of Mayor Filner's Alternative Draft Contract on Pages 1, 34, and 35 "In the 32 page agreement, he added a total of approximately 600 words."
http://media.utsandiego.com/news/docu...
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/m...
The difference in Mayor Filner's draft TMD Operating Agreement includes Terms of Agreement is "Up to Five Years" instead of "Five Years", restores indemnification for Elected Official, and "requires more robust disclosure of operating documents on the SDTMD website and requied Public Records Act accountability."
Of course the Hotelier could have voted for the draft, then the draft would go to the City Council for a vote, and then the Hotelier could vote again and sign the official amended TMD Operating Agreement.
March 18, 2013 at 5:38 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
San Diego Dismissed As Defendant In TMD Lawsuit
City Attorney Goldsmith approved the City Council decision to move booking and sales of the Convention Center to the private Tourism Authority was made through a Quid Pro Quo arrangement in 2012. The No-Bid Contract did not follow Managed Competition guidelines.
The deal included that the Hoteliers would not vote against the new 2 percent TMD or 3 percent Special tax in exchange for moving Convention Center Booking to the private Tourism Authority.
The Hoteliers have stated they wanted to move the lucrative smaller medical convention from our public Convention Center (that pays down our annual $14 million public debt for Phase 2) to private Hotels owned by Tourism Authority Board Members. Major Conflict of Interest. It would be great to see the new Booking of the Tourism Authority since there takeover on July 1, 2012. Did the Hoteliers move the lucrative Medical Convention for their own private financial gain, at the expense of Taxpayers?
How about a news story on the reasons why the Convention Center staff had to take back Booking and Sales of the public Convention Center from the private ConVis in 2004? Was not the Booking and Sales move back in 2004 due to lack of transparancy and incompetence? Between 2004 and 2012 the public Convention Center staff did a great job and exceeded goals for Booking and Sales, but instead were rewarded with Pink Slips and a new private Tourism Authority bosses.
March 15, 2013 at 11:22 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Goldsmith Doesn't Want Office Lawyers To Go To Mayor Filner's Office Alone
http://www.10news.com/news/mayor-bob-...
Actual watch the video of Goldsmith's Press Conference.
City Attorney Goldsmith approved the City Council decision to move booking and sales of the Convention Center to the private Tourism Authority through a Quid Pro Quo arrangement. The No-Bid Contract did not follow Managed Competition guidelines.
The deal included that the Hoteliers would not vote against the new 2 percent TMD or 3 percent Special tax in exchange for moving Convention Center Booking to the private Tourism Authority.
The Hoteliers have stated they wanted to move the lucrative smaller medical convention from our public Convention Center (that pays down our annual $14 million public debt for Phase 2) to private Hotels owned by Tourism Authority Board Members. Major Conflict of Interest.
www.tinyurl.com/20121126b
For the new Tourist Market District (TMD) vote, the City mailed out 1,379 Ballots.
127 Ballots Voted Yes.
218 Ballots Voted No.
1,034 Ballots did not vote on the TMD issue.
The votes are Weighted according to an unknown formula developed by the Hoteliers, supposedly based on rooms and revenue. For one ballot-one vote, the TMD failing with only 37 percent ballots approving the new tax. However the Weighted Vote approving the new San Diego TMD was 94 percent.
One ballot from the San Diego Marriot Marina with 1,362 hotels rooms alone allowed the new 2 percent TMD tax to pass.
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/weblogs...
March 14, 2013 at 9:09 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Judge Holds Off Final Ruling on Convention Center Financing Case
The lame City Council is still putting us in this terrible position. Just let us vote on increasing Hotel Taxes.
Maybe the new Councilman Kersey will champion the public’s Right To Vote issue to finance our public infrastructure needs. For example: A 5 percent increase in TOT for public infrastructure, advertisement, and marketing, that can include a maximum of $520 million in public TOT funds for a contiguous convention center expansion.
Part of the City Council’s giveaway to private Hoteliers also includes any Incremental TOT Increment from the existing 10.5 percent. For Fiscal Year 2013 the existing legal TOT brought in $86.3 million.
Therefore if San Diego adds additional hotel rooms or increase hotel prices in the future, then all of the incremental 10.5 percent TOT revenue above the $86.3 million FY2013 baseline will go towards paying for the Expansion on top of the addition $520 from the Special Tax.
If the Convention Center is not built, the money is split 50-50 with the City, but includes legal loopholes for 100 percent Tourism Authority and zero percent City.
There may also be a way for the proposed 500-room Hilton Bayfront addition to be paid with these new private taxes and any public Tax Increment on existing TOT. The financing issue is murky.
March 13, 2013 at 3:50 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
San Diego Hoteliers Win First Court Battle Against Filner
The City gave away a No-Bid Contract from the public Convention Center to the Tourism Authority as part of the Conspiracy to increase Hotel Taxes without a public vote.
According to the Hoteliers, they want the small lucrative conventions moved from the downtown Convention Center to their own private luxury hotels.
An easy way to verify is to see what Convention business moved from our public venue (which pays down our public debt) to private venues owned by the Tourism Authority Board.
March 6, 2013 at 7:58 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Mayor Filner Weighs In On Sequestration And More
Hotel visitors do not pay the 8% Sales Tax for a Transient Room Rentals, instead in San Diego they pay 10.5 % TOT.
March 4, 2013 at 8:33 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Filner And San Diego Hoteliers Clash Again
Fights for a public vote to increase Hotel taxes so the annual $80+ million (5%) is used for the good of both the public and Hoteliers, and all legal issues are resolved.
The Hoteliers do not want to share the created $80+ million wealth with San Diegans.
Mayor Filner wants a public vote before increasing Hotel Taxes for Marketing/Advertisement and the Convention Center Phase 3 Expansion, as required by our State Consitution.
Advise to the City Council and Tourism/Visitor Industry - Why did you believe your attorney's advice that you could increase Hotel taxes without the required public voter approval?
How much time and money has this conspiracy cost the City. An annual $80+ million, 5 percent, is being left on the table, due to bad legal advice, and lack of cooperation from the City Council and Hoteliers.
March 4, 2013 at 7:44 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Mayor Filner Weighs In On Sequestration And More
The Tourist Marketing District, City Council, and City Attorney are not only destroying themselves, but also stopping a legal way to finance the needed Convention Center Expansion.
The easy legal way to pay for 2 % advertisement/promotion for the Hoteliers, and the 3 % Convention Center Expansion is to formally put a 5 percent TOT increase from 10.5 to a maximum of 15.5 on the next citywide ballot for 2/3 public approval. The Hoteliers and City Council have already pre-Approved a 15.5 percent Effective TOT though a private Hotelier-only vote.
Why would the Hoteliers, City Council, and City Attorney try to increase Hotel Taxes without a public vote as required by our State Constitution? What would they have to gain by their votes?
March 4, 2013 at 12:46 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )