Tag Archives: David Atkinson

No more Tantrums and Disrespect – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Sue Capo

No more Tantrums and Disrespect

Voters, now is our chance to remove the two rude, mean-spirited Council members and get five professionals to represent us.

Imagine council meetings where Dave Atkinson doesn’t storm off the dais using curse words when he doesn’t get his way. Or a meeting where Marie Fellhauer and Dave don’t roll their eyes and tell speakers they are wrong, or liars, during public comments. Seriously, would you let your kids behave that way?

Let’s not forget the time Dave and Marie ambushed Mike Dugan during his campaign event at the Moose Lodge two years ago. This behavior wouldn’t be accepted at El Segundo Middle School.

Time to be an example and tell our children why candidates’ character counts.

I know who I won’t be voting for.

– Sue Capo


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Vote Out the Incumbents – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong

Vote Out the Incumbents

Now’s our chance to vote-out incumbents Marie Fellhauer and Dave Atkinson. Both of them, and un-elected Mayor Bill Fisher, are the Gang of Three who staged a coup and ousted Carl Jacobson from the mayor position in the middle of his term, without any legitimate reason. It was a disgraceful, unprecedented, destabilizing power-grab to make Fisher mayor to increase his re-election chances, and advance their agenda.

Fellhauer and Atkinson voted for $1,850+ paramedic ambulance hospital transport fees charged to residents and nonresidents, and many big tax and fee increases, including Measure A – eleven tax hikes in one measure, on residents and businesses.

They voted to bring in CenterCal and TopGolf, and change the golf course driving range into a giant sports bar with the driving range as a back-end, rather than keep it family- and kid-friendly.

The driving range lease requires reconfiguration of the golf course in addition to the driving range. It will take considerable land area from the existing golf course to expand the driving range, making the golf course less challenging and less safe.

Fellhauer and Atkinson voted to extend the driving range lease for up to 50 years, at CenterCal’s option, for substantially less money than was determined using Mike Dugan’s research and analysis. Most voters will be dead before the 50-year lease expires.

El Segundo voters voted-out Bill Fisher. Now it’s time to finish the clean-up job and vote-out incumbents Fellhauer and Atkinson. They don’t listen and are not fiscal conservatives.

– Marianne Fong
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Knows Who She’s Not Voting For Council – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Donna Hooper

Knows Who She’s Not Voting For Council

A little less than three years ago, Spring 2013, Marie Fellhauer and Dave Atkinson joined with Bill Fisher in the sleaziest operation I have seen in the 48 years I’ve lived in El Segundo. They pushed Carl Jacobson out of his position as mayor in the middle of his term and replaced him with Bill Fisher. This is not the way decent people act and therefore I will not vote for either Marie Fellhauer or Dave Atkinson to continue on the El Segundo City Council.

– Donna Hooper Continue reading

Posted in California, El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, El Segundo News, Elections, Letters to the Editor, Political Corruption, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Knows Who She’s Not Voting For Council – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Donna Hooper

April 15 Council Meeting – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Mike Robbins

April 15 Council Meeting

The Council meeting after the election should have been a straightforward ceremonial passing of power from the old to the new Council. However, defeated Mayor Bill Fisher made the meeting all about himself, and then his ally, Marie Fellhauer, made it all about attacking newly elected Council Members Suzanne Fuentes and Mike Dugan.

Fisher used his bully pulpit for the last time. He gave a long-winded speech repeating his campaign material, taking credit for the work and accomplishments of others including Carl Jacobson and even myself. As usual, he stated numerous falsehoods, and without any proof or evidence, accused others of lying even though they backed up their statements with evidence.

Police Union member Marie Fellhauer put an item on the agenda designed to achieve a political end. It read, “Consideration and possible action to discuss the salary and benefits that the City Council members receive and whether such should be reduced or eliminated either voluntarily or through formal action.”

Eliminating Council pay and benefits will make it difficult to attract honest, competent, independent candidates. This will help the Police and Fire Unions elect their own candidates and pack the Council with Union Puppets. It will also help Fellhauer and Atkinson run for re-election with minimal or no competition.

The election might be canceled due to lack of candidates, as in 2006, when Fisher was appointed after potential candidates were intimidated by the unprecedented 2004 campaign spending. It would’ve happened this time, if not for Dugan.

– Mike Robbins


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Posted in California, El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, El Segundo Tax and Fee Increases, Elections, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Measure A - 5 New Taxes and 6 Tax Inceases, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Politics, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on April 15 Council Meeting – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Mike Robbins

Post-election Council meeting – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael Robbins

Post-election Council meeting

The El Segundo Council meeting after the election should have been a straightforward ceremonial passing of power from the old to the new Council. However, defeated Mayor Bill Fisher made the meeting all about himself, and then his ally, Marie Fellhauer, made it all about attacking newly elected Council members, Suzanne Fuentes and Mike Dugan.

Fisher used his bully pulpit for the last time. He gave a long-winded speech repeating his campaign material, taking credit for the work and accomplishments of others including Carl Jacobson and even myself. As usual, he stated numerous falsehoods and, without any proof, accused others of lying even though they backed up their statements with evidence.

Police union member Marie Fellhauer put an item on the agenda designed to achieve a political end. It read, “Consideration and possible action to discuss the salary and benefits that the City Council members receive and whether such should be reduced or eliminated either voluntarily or through formal action.”

Eliminating Council pay and benefits will make it difficult to attract honest, competent, independent candidates. This will help the police and fire unions elect their own candidates and pack the Council with union puppets. It will also help Fellhauer and Atkinson run for re-election with minimal or no competition.

The election might be canceled due to a lack of candidates, as in 2006, when Fisher was appointed after potential candidates were intimidated by the unprecedented 2004 union and special interest campaign spending. It would have happened this time, if not for Dugan.

Michael Robbins
El Segundo Continue reading

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo News, El Segundo Tax and Fee Increases, Elections, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, News, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Politics, Tax Policy and Issues, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Post-election Council meeting – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael Robbins

Council pay procedures – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marianne Fong

Council pay procedures

Marie Fellhauer ruined the April 15 El Segundo City Council meeting, which was supposed to be a peaceful transition for the newly elected Council. She put an item on the agenda to eliminate pay and benefits for elected Council members, but interestingly, not for the elected city clerk and treasurer who are paid significantly more.

Fellhauer falsely claimed the Council cannot cut union salaries and compensation and, therefore, Council member pay and benefits should be eliminated. Obviously, her real agenda is to punish newly elected Council members who support union compensation and pension reforms necessary to keep our city solvent and viable. Fellhauer is angry and vindictive because she lost her Council majority when Fisher lost the election.

Fellhauer demanded Suzanne Fuentes and Mike Dugan give up their $900 per month City Council pay and benefits if she gives up hers. She neglected to mention she is a highly paid police union member in Los Angeles with a lavish pension and benefits, and a cushy desk job, all at taxpayer expense.

El Segundo City Council pay is low. We are fortunate to have Suzanne Fuentes and Mike Dugan on Council. Both are experienced managers from major corporations. It is the overpaid police and fire unions that are causing serious financial problems, not City Council pay.

Fellhauer wants to punish honest, independent, more qualified Council members. Clearly, the police and fire union members who don’t even live in town have a representative in Marie Fellhauer, but the residents and taxpayers do not.

Marianne Fong
El Segundo Continue reading

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo News, Elections, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, News, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Politics, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Council pay procedures – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marianne Fong

Fellhauer is a Union Puppet – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong

Fellhauer is a Union Puppet

Marie Fellhauer ruined the April 15 City Council meeting, which was supposed to be a peaceful transition for the newly elected Council. She put an item on the agenda to eliminate pay and benefits for elected Council Members, but interestingly, not for the elected City Clerk and Treasurer who are paid significantly more.

Fellhauer falsely claimed the Council cannot cut union salaries and compensation, and therefore Council Member pay and benefits should be eliminated. Obviously, her real agenda is to punish the newly elected Council Members who support union compensation and pension reforms necessary to keep our city solvent and viable. Fellhauer is angry and vindictive because she lost her Council majority when Fisher lost the election.

Fellhauer demanded Suzanne Fuentes and Mike Dugan give up their $900 per month City Council pay and benefits if she gives up hers. She neglected to mention she is a highly paid Police Union member in Los Angeles with lavish pension and benefits, and a cushy desk job, all at taxpayer expense.

El Segundo City Council pay is low. We are fortunate to have Suzanne Fuentes and Mike Dugan on Council. Both are experienced managers from major corporations. It is Police and Fire Unions being overpaid that are causing serious financial problems.

Fellhauer wants to punish honest, independent, more qualified Council Members. Clearly, the Police and Fire Union members have a representative in Marie Fellhauer, but the residents and taxpayers do not.

– Marianne Fong Continue reading

Posted in California, El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, El Segundo News, El Segundo Tax and Fee Increases, Elections, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Politics, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Fellhauer is a Union Puppet – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong

Can We Save Mayberry? – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marc Rener

Can We Save Mayberry?

First council meeting after an election “traditionally” has consisted of well wishes and thanking the people for their vote, turned into 30 minutes of half-truths, lies, condescending remarks and placing blame on others that did not vote their way. We have lost our “Mayberry” traditions by self-serving politicians who prefer a “Santa Monica” version of El Segundo.

Ex-mayor Fisher “claims” he had to “jump in” before “the economic time frame door closed”. No time for “traditional” change of Council leadership. It’s my opinion, in 2012, when Mayor Busch decided not to run, Bill Fisher assumed he was the “heir” to the Mayoral throne. But he wasn’t elected Mayor or re-elected Mayor Pro-tem. He became just an ordinary councilman. Thus started the “plot” to obtain his desired title, which he executed 5/21/13.

As for his frequent misstatement of facts, let’s just take Fisher’s repeated claim that the firefighters union took a 9% cut in salary and a 17.5% cut in compensation in 2010. He repeated this claim in council meetings on 3/4/14, 3/18/14, 4/1/14 and 4/15/14. Fisher has never shown any documentation to verify these claims. He’s just talk.

For years Fisher has refused to examine my documents to disprove me. On 4/15/14 during Public Communications, I again produced these documents. Neither Fisher nor his loyal supporters Fellhauer and Atkinson asked to see these documents during or after any of these meetings. Apparently they think repeating falsehoods often makes them true.

– Marc Rener Continue reading

Posted in California, El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, El Segundo News, Elections, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, News, Political Corruption, Politics, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Can We Save Mayberry? – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marc Rener

Thoughts on TopGolf – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Tom Courtney

Thoughts on TopGolf

I’m glad that Bill Fisher has decided to make his support of TopGolf a major campaign issue. Golfers are opposed because the model prices the average golfer out of the market, $30-40 per large bucket at normal, peak practice times. Fisher minimizes the opposition, calls them misinformed and disregards the fact that over 1400 people signed a petition urging the council to keep the Lakes the same, over 300 of which were El Segundo residents.

The deal – a twenty year lease, with six 5 year options, at $425,000 a year , increasing only 10% every five years. There is no sharing in revenues, Wooddale, Ill negotiated a sharing of revenues including alcohol sales, why not here? The lease calls for the facility to be built like that in Austin.

Staff came up with a positive TopGolf economic effect of $332,000 (currently estimated at $ 200-300,000) – repeated by Mr. Fisher as a reason why he voted for it. The truth, TopGolf is a negative for the City-the driving range is highly profitable, $550,000 and rising per year. The city gets to their “positive” number by relying on “assumed” savings of $253,000 and by mistreating overhead allocations, charging the range income but not TopGolf income.

TopGolf is not the answer!

– Tom Courtney


Note by Michael D. Robbins:

I championed construction of The Lakes at El Segundo city golf course and driving range when I campaigned for City Council, and after I was elected to the El Segundo City Council. I followed through diligently to help get it built as had long been promised to the community before I ran for City Council.

El Segundo Mayor Bill Fisher and Councilmembers David Atkinson and Marie Fellhauer, who usually vote in lock-step with Fisher, voted to give TopGolf what is effectively a 50-year lease of the City-owned Golf Course driving range, in the form of a 20-year lease with six 5-year options for TopGolf to unilaterally extend the lease. Most El Segundo voters will be dead before the City can regain control over its golf course property.

A 50-year lease of the City of El Segundo’s golf course driving range property is totally irresponsible and unjustifiable, whether or not TopGolf will to an adequate job providing golf services on that City-owned property.

Mayor Pro Tem Carl Jacobson and Councilmember Suzanne Fuentes voted against the 50-year lease. Continue reading

Posted in California, El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, El Segundo News, El Segundo Tax and Fee Increases, Elections, Letters to the Editor, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Thoughts on TopGolf – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Tom Courtney

No on Measure A – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Helen Armstrong

No on Measure A

Mayor Fisher and his sidekicks, David Atkinson and Marie Fellhauer, want us to believe they may voluntarily reduce our taxes in the future if we approve Measure A and give them four permanent new taxes on residents, permanently increase five existing business taxes, and create a new permanent parking tax.

How can we trust them? They back-stabbed their colleague Mayor Carl Jacobson in a coup they staged at the 5/21/13 City Council meeting. They voted to remove Jacobson from the office of Mayor in the middle of his two-year term, without any legitimate justification!

This break with tradition and decency is unprecedented since at least 1940, and probably in El Segundo history. Jacobson won re-election in 2012 with by far the most votes, despite the sleazy and dishonest campaign against him by fired city manager Doug Willmore, KCET television and the Los Angeles Times.

The Fisher Majority staged their coup so Fisher could run for re-election as Mayor rather than Council Member. This also gives Fisher more clout in negotiating new long-term City employee union contracts and raises later this year after the April election.

I urge everyone to vote “No” on the permanent Measure A Tax Hikes, and for Mike Dugan and Suzanne Fuentes. … Continue reading

Posted in California, El Segundo, El Segundo Herald Letters, El Segundo News, El Segundo Tax and Fee Increases, Elections, Letters to the Editor, Political Corruption, Politics, Tax Policy and Issues | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on No on Measure A – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Helen Armstrong