Tag Archives: Suzanne Fuentes

New El Segundo City Council Members Sworn In, Council Voted for Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem

Posted on May 4, 2016 by Mike

By Michael D. Robbins

The May 3, 2016 El Segundo City Council meeting began with a proclamation, a commendation, and a presentation recognizing the Election poll workers for their valuable services rendered to the City of El Segundo during its April 12, 2016 General Municipal Election.

Next was a roll call, followed by public communications. Former El Segundo City Councilman Mike Robbins spoke, thanking Mayor Pro Tem Carl Jacobson for his decades of service to the City and citizens of El Segundo, congratulating the newly elected City Council members, and opposing agenda item L-8 to change the traditional method of electing the mayor and mayor pro tem and their terms. That agenda item, requested by Councilman Mike Dugan and Councilwoman Carol Pirsztuk, would change to a rotating mayor and mayor pro tem selected by the City Council with only one-year terms.

The old City Council then conducted a minimal amount of City business, including approving the minutes from the April 19, 2016 City Council meeting. They adopted a City Council Resolution certifying the final election results, declaring the winning candidates, and declaring that Measure B, the 50 percent increase in the Hotel Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT), was passed. … Continue reading →

Posted in California, El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo News, Elections, Politics | Tagged April 2016 El Segundo General Municipal Election, Carl Jacobson, Carol Pirsztuk, City Clerk, city council, city council meeting, City of El Segundo, City Treasurer, Crista Binder, Dave Atkinson, Deputy City Clerk, Don Brann, Drew Boyles, El Segundo, election, Marie Fellhauer, mayor, mayor pro tem, Michael D. Robbins, Mike Dugan, Mike Robbins, Mona Shilling, public communications, rotating mayor, Suzanne Fuentes, Tracy Weaver | Comments Off

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

Posted on April 24, 2014 by Mike

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 April 8 2014 El Segundo General Municipal Election, Beach Reporter, Bill Fisher, Carl Jacobson, City of El Segundo, Dave Atkinson, David Atkinson, El Segundo, El Segundo Firefighters Association, El Segundo Police Officers Association, ESFA, ESPOA, fire union, firefighters union, firefighters union corruption, Letter to The Beach Reporter, Letter to the Editor, Marie Fellhauer, mayor, Mayor Bill Fisher, Michael Robbins, Mike Dugan, police union, police union corruption, Suzanne Fuentes, The Beach Reporter | Comments Off

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

Posted on April 24, 2014 by Mike

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 April 8 2014 El Segundo General Municipal Election, Beach Reporter, Bill Fisher, City Clerk, city council, city council meeting, City of El Segundo, City Treasurer, Dave Atkinson, David Atkinson, El Segundo, El Segundo Firefighters Association, El Segundo Police Officers Association, ESFA, ESPOA, LAPD, Letter to The Beach Reporter, Letter to the Editor, Los Angeles Police Department, Marianne Fong, Marie Fellhauer, Mike Dugan, Suzanne Fuentes, The Beach Reporter | Comments Off

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

Posted on April 24, 2014 by Mike

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 April 8 2014 El Segundo General Municipal Election, Bill Fisher, City Clerk, city council, city council meeting, City of El Segundo, City Treasurer, Dave Atkinson, David Atkinson, El Segundo, El Segundo Firefighters Association, El Segundo Herald, El Segundo Police Officers Association, ESFA, ESPOA, LAPD, Letter to the Editor, Letter to the El Segundo Herald, Los Angeles Police Department, Marianne Fong, Marie Fellhauer, Mike Dugan, Suzanne Fuentes | Comments Off

Recapping the Election – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael Robbins

Posted on April 17, 2014 by Mike

Recapping the Election

Thank you to the 57 percent of voters who voted No on Measure A and to those who voted for Suzanne Fuentes and Mike Dugan. That puts our city on a better footing for negotiating with the city unions and instituting necessary compensation and pension reforms to ensure the viability of El Segundo as a city.

According to FPPC filings, four city employee unions contributed a total of $17,500 to the Yes on A campaign to raise our taxes and their pay: the El Segundo Firefighters PAC donated $5,000 on Feb. 11; the El Segundo Police Officers Association PAC donated $5,000 on Feb. 25; the El Segundo City Employees Association donated $5,000 on Feb. 28; and the California Teamsters Public Affairs Council donated $2,500 on March 11.

There’s an inherent conflict of interest when government employee unions campaign for candidates and ballot measures that will increase their salaries and pensions – and raise our taxes to pay for it. We don’t want people who live outside our city running the city for their own economic benefit.

The biggest spenders were the biggest losers. The Yes on A campaign spent $33,130 for 1,402 votes (43 percent) at a cost of $23.63 per vote. The grassroots No on A campaign received 1,841 votes (57 percent). Bill Fisher spent $19,671 for 1,545 votes (28 percent) at a cost of $12.73 per vote. One winner, Suzanne Fuentes, spent $7,927 for 2,047 votes (38 percent) at a cost of $3.87 per vote. And the other winner, Mike Dugan, spent $2,833 for 1,859 votes (34 percent) at a cost of $1.52 per vote.

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, Measure A - 5 New Taxes and 6 Tax Inceases, News, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Politics, Tax Policy and Issues, Union Corruption | Tagged Bill Fisher, El Segundo, El Segundo 2014 Measure A Tax Hikes, El Segundo City Employees Association, El Segundo Firefighters Association, El Segundo Police Officers Association, El Segundo Supervisory and Professional Employees Association, ESCEA, ESFA, ESPOA, ESSPEA, fire union, grassroots, Measure A, Mike Dugan, police union, Suzanne Fuentes, tax, taxes, Teamsters, union, unions | Comments Off

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

Posted on March 28, 2014 by Mike

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 Bill Fisher, Carl Jacobson, City of El Segundo, councilmember, David Atkinson, El Segundo, golf, golf course, Letter to the Editor, Letter to the El Segundo Herald, Marie Fellhauer, mayor, mayor pro tem, Suzanne Fuentes, The Lakes at El Segundo, Tom Courtney, TopGolf | Comments Off

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

Posted on March 22, 2014 by Mike

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 April 8 2014 El Segundo General Municipal Election, Bill Fisher, Carl Jacobson, City of El Segundo, David Atkinson, Doug Willmore, El Segundo 2014 Measure A Tax Hikes, government, Helen Armstrong, KCET, LA Times, Los Angeles Times, Marie Fellhauer, mayor, Measure A, Mike Dugan, Suzanne Fuentes, taxes | Comments Off

Ballot Argument and Rebuttal Against El Segundo Measure A Tax Hikes

Posted on March 14, 2014 by Mike

by Michael D. Robbins
Director, Public Safety Project, PublicSafetyProject.org

March 14, 2014

The Measure A tax hikes will appear on the ballot for the April 8, 2014 El Segundo General Municipal Election.

Measure A creates four new taxes on residents, nearly doubles five existing business taxes, and creates a new parking tax. Measure A will cost residents and businesses an estimated $6.6 million each year in the first three years. However, all residents will pay the business tax increases that are passed on to them as customers in addition to the four new taxes imposed on residents.

The Measure Tax hikes are permanent. There is no sunset clause (expiration date). It has become clear that most or all of the Measure A tax hikes will go to pay for excessive and unsustainable past and future City employee pay raises and benefits and pension increases – especially for the firefighter and police unions and their managers. Measure A is not intended to help the City engage in responsible spending during a temporary economic downturn. Recessions are temporary, but apparently, wildly excessive and unsustainable City employee union and manager pay raises are permanent.

Measure A was put on the ballot by a vote of the El Segundo City Council. Council Members Suzanne Fuentes and Carl Jacobson requested a sunset clause so the taxes would expire after a few years and the Council would have to come back to the voters for further tax hikes, but they were denied that request by Mayor Bill Fisher and his Council majority including David Atkinson and Marie Fellhauer.

Here are the official Argument Against Measure A and Rebuttal to Argument in Favor of Measure A that appeared in the Sample Ballot and Voter Information Pamphlet mailed out by the El Segundo City Clerk’s office. … Continue reading →

Posted in California, Economy and Economics, 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, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Politics, Tax Policy and Issues, Union Corruption | Tagged Bill Fisher, California, Carl Jacobson, David Atkinson, El Segundo, election, Marie Fellhauer, Measure A, Suzanne Fuentes, taxes | Comments Off

Alert for the Tuesday, April 8, 2014 City of El Segundo General Municipal Election

Posted on March 3, 2014 by Mike

EL SEGUNDO CITY ELECTION:
Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Vote “NO” on Measure A Tax Hikes.

Vote for Suzanne Fuentes and Mike Dugan.

All El Segundo residents should visit the Election Information index page regularly, preferably daily, until the April 8, 2014 El Segundo city election.

Continue reading →