Disqus - Latest Comments for TheTruthisOutThere

Re: City considers allowing microbreweries - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 05:45:55 -0000

TRB tried to come to Auburn first......

Re: Auburn subcommittee moves to censure Council's Haugen - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 03:00:03 -0000

Sounds like Virginia needs to go to law school and become and attorney. Then she can take the risk of suing the city instead of telling everyone else to do it on her behalf. I know she always takes credit for Game Farm Park as well. Well Virginia, the grass needs to be aerated, thatched, and mowed so if you have all this spare time..........

Re: Auburn sues Walmart for breaking deal - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 02:54:41 -0000

I do not believe that Walmart is responsible for pushing out all those "antique" stores which all generally just glorified garage sale junk. If someone wants to bring a unqiue store downtown that fills a need, people will go. When all you have is gently used items, used books, and some other highly overpriced stores, it makes it hard to draw customers. Walmart is no more guilty as Lowe's or Fred Meyer. For that matter, who doesn't drive the 4 or 5 miles to Federal Way or Covington to go to Costco or Home Depot. Heck, even Bonney Lake has more to offer than Auburn does. We need to catch up and pass these cities if we hope to have a future here!!!

Re: Auburn's Danny Shelton chooses UW | Football - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 22:10:59 -0000

This is awesome news. Welcome to UW Football Danny!! Go Huskies! Help us beat those Ducks!!

Re: Auburn's Danny Shelton chooses UW | Football - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 22:10:27 -0000

This is awesome news. Welcome to UW football Dan!! Go Huskies!

Re: Auburn, agencies look to create a regional shooting range - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 02:02:57 -0000

What is particularly eerie about this article is that is about the same context as the Pacific Raceways article. The range was there first, but now the citiens want it shut down. Where do you want the police to train? We want them to spend more money to go farther away to train? We want the government spending more money to make a quieter indoor facilty because the free outdoor range can be noisy about 50 days of the year? Where is that money supposed to come from?

Re: Residents wary of Pacific Raceways expansion - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 01:58:42 -0000

I for one, am all for the expansion of the track. We need more businesses that are willing to take risks and do what is needed to increase business. I have seen what a boost to our economy an active track can be. Millions of dollars pours into the Kent, Auburn and Covington area when races are being promoted and conducted at the track. The teams, officials, and the fans all flock to area hotels, restaurants, and more during race weekend and they are spend thousands of dollars. This is much needed revenue for these small cities facing the budget crisis. That track has existed since before I was born and I have become accustomed to hearing the cars from miles away. They are just like planes and trains. You get used to it after a while and it is not like they will be racing at 3am!!

I know that several local police departments enjoy the venue as a training location for police officers to practice their high speed skills as well. Having lived with the "noise area" of SIR/Pacific Raceways since I was 8, I say bring it on friends. I would love to see the improvements, more regional and national events, as well as the much needed $$ to my community!!!

Re: Latest trash talk: Garbage workers go on strike; Auburn area affected - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 03:03:23 -0000

This is a huge mistake by the union. They are risking jobs and benefits packages worth nearly $110,000 per year. On the bright side there are 1600 people willing to do their job for half that amount of pay and that could save all of us hundreds of dollars per year on our garbage bills.

Re: City reorganizes, eliminates 22 more positions - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 21:12:54 -0000

I do not know where you get your information from but the city is paying 45% for the shuttle-not 1/5th as you state. I will support the money for the shuttle when we have the businesses in place to support it. And if fixing sidewalks is more important to you than keeping our employees, then you have clearly missed the bus altogether. In budget crunches, we need to keep vital, essential services first and foremost. What jobs would a police concession saved? The officer I talked to said they gave up $100,000 already and were being asked for another $140,000. Sounds like the salary of 1.5 to 2 employees?? Out of 22???? If you are a "long time business" I think you can do better math than that.

Re: City reorganizes, eliminates 22 more positions - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 21:06:07 -0000

Don't get me wrong people, I am a Pete Lewis supporter. I do not see why my comments regarding back to back articles in the Reporter make me a Haugen supporter all of a sudden. As a citizen and a voter, I have to question the decisions ( and I have the right to do so) about when our council takes steps to eliminate jobs in one breath, and then commit hundreds of thousands of dollars in the next breath. I also know that the police union has been at odds with the city for several months and have been continually making efforts to negotiate with the city to assist with budget issues, however, the city does not want to negotiate anything. They do not want to abide by the contract that they signed and have made their position quite clear to the police who protect and serve us. I believe the officer I talked to told me that the officers conceded $100,000 in 2009 and the city wanted them to take a reduced healthcare package in 2010 that would have cost each officer several hundred dollars more than their personal budgets can bear at this time. I guess a phone call to the police station could clarify this.

By Mayor Lewis saying that these layoffs "will streamline" and make the city "more efficient" is clearly not the case but he is a politician and he says what he thinks he needs to say. We need these people working for us and for the improvement of Auburn. Budget issues have hampered these efforts and the city needs to find a way to increase revenue to match the levels of service that we have all come to expect from planing, permitting, police etc...

As far as the warehouse issue, I know that SST makes warehouse businesses "undesirable" but when you have a warehouse with 100-200 employees working in it, you still have 100-200 people that are working in our city. They will buy gas is our city, they will eat lunch in our city, they may do other shopping in our city. We need people to spend their money here just as much as we need businesses to sell stuff here.

There is no quick, overnight solution, but I am a full proponet of getting as many businesses in town that we can so that we can expedite our economic recovery. We need Super WalMart, Target, Barnes and Noble, Costco, along with a bevy of destination places such as great restaurants and entertainment centers. How about another bowling alley? How about a Harley Davidson dealership? How about a Bass Pro Shops? How long will Red Robin remain the "best restaurant" in town?

I expect our city leaders to be asking-and answering these questions. SOON.

Re: Let Virginia serve on committees - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 02:56:17 -0000

I recall hearing Ms. Haugen say at the debates that she learned long ago that meetings are a huge waste of time. Shocking how she does not participate nor prepare herself for any of them. I pray that she is a "one and done" because we have so many more people in this town that care about its future much more than Viginia ever will!

Re: City reorganizes, eliminates 22 more positions - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 02:49:41 -0000

Laying off 22 people the same week that they commit $500,000 to Metro and a downtown shuttle van. I personally like the signs that Auburn put up stating that "we" are building an "inclusive community". Unless of course you are a warehouse business. In that case, we will "put the businesses where we want them, when we want them". This is becoming more than I imagined on a near weekly basis! I can't wait for next Friday's edition.

Re: County, city OK shuttle service - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 02:36:59 -0000

Last week an article about how the police department unions need to give salary concessions, this week an article about committing $500,000 to a shuttle bus. Something doesn't smell right with the finances of the city...................

Re: Marine agency threatens to sue City over flood protection measures - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 03:17:22 -0000

I know what to tell them!! So let me get this right, let the river flood and let all those protected salmon start trying to survive while swimming down Central Ave and Auburn Way N....lots of food and all, and then we can watch them go down the sewer drains as the water recedes. Last I checked, saving people took precedence over some fish. Fish is food...............Maybe they should come to the river and pull all the salmon they can out and ship it to another river that won't flood. Send them a letter Pete...tell them they have 2 weeks to pull them all out!

Re: Candidates clash in mayoral debate at the Ave - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 01:47:12 -0000

Seriously...Having been there, Ms Haugen was very unprepared, did not have answers to any questions and voluntarily took off her shoes even though they were flats. Haugen started each of her answers with "A long time ago I went to a meeting" or " A wise man once told me". Some of her answers were simply to call "Barack" and tell him to send us money. Haugen made it quite clear that she can not "run the city" on her own and that she would need to hire and surround herself with people smarter than her. She also commented about making changes but never articulated what changes she would make or why. By the end of the debate she praised Mayor Lewis for being an honorable man and that she felt closer to the Mayor now that they had the debate. Put that in your pipe and smoke it!

Re: To be on board? Mayoral candidates differ - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 02:51:58 -0000

It is not the city's job to save you or protect you. They will....but when you have been given 10 months notice as well as 48 hours notice of water being released at the dam, you better have prepared yourself, your family, and your belongings for movement to a safer location. This is not Katrina where people had a matter of days to get out...however, it is like Katrina in that you have been fully warned of what could happen if you do not take steps now to protect yourself.

Flood insurance is guaranteed to all that want it through the government. Only some of the smaller private companies have been refunding premiums and canceling coverage.

As far as explaining where all the money went and why the county and the city is struggling....we all have Tim Eyman to thank for that. The cost of providing services to residents continues to increase while the income to pay for the expenses is going down and has been going down for the last several years. You are fooling to think that line A and line B would never cross if we continued to vote no for tax increases and fees to pay for all these needs that the public demands.

The city desperately needs more retail businesses as this is the only way that the State fully allows the city to make money on a consistent basis (sales tax). These stores need to be destination locations where people want to go, a lot! We already missed out on Costco, Barnes and Noble and Cabela's. Those would have been huge shots in the arm for our local economy. Walmart and the Supermall can not carry the load alone.

Re: Hire a city manager? - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 02:34:56 -0000

The city in essence does have a city manager, however, they are not "titled" as a city manager for what amounts to be technical legal reasons. Virginia would, in essence, be hiring a whole new position to attend all the meetings that she has been quoted as saying she is "not qualified" to attend.

Re: Support Haugen - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 02:31:01 -0000

First off, everyone that lives in Lakeland belongs to a homeowner's association. It is required. Secondly, anyone from any neighborhood and invite a city councilmember to a meeting. If you want, you can invite her to the neighborhood clubhouse and advertise it on the Lakeland Living website. Not once has Mayor Lewis or any of his volunteers knocked on my door to ask for a vote and I have lived in Lakeland for 9 years and worked in Auburn for over 20 years.

The truth is, Ms. Haugen is constantly unprepared for meetings, and this includes council meetings and municipal services meetings. A quick read of the notes from these meetings makes this clearly apparent. Ms. Haugen consistently makes statements in public that make me wonder if she actually listens at what happens at these meetings. How many council members do you know that that vote "no" for federal grant money?

As far as the parking is concerned, there has always been a law about blocking mailboxes (ACC 10.36.255 that was last updated in 2004). I have seen that she likes to park illegally at a house in Lakeland on occasion....

Mayor Lewis is the clear choice for Mayor.

Re: Keep KCACC open - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 02:38:42 -0000

I reallly do not know what world Mr. Triplett is living in. KCAC Officers have long been shorthanded and have failed to respond to calls for service for years based on not having the officer and/or resources needed to handle all the calls. It was not too long ago, and may still be today, that there is only 5 officers covering all of King County (as far as call responders go). I have called in the past and been told that there were only 3 working "in the entire county today". So from Auburn to N Seattle/Mill Creek was only 3 total!!?? There is no way all these cities can afford this service on their own so it will have to once again be a group effort by a conglomerate of cities to take more work away from the county government. The only thing that King County is really doing is working the county down to bankruptcy. They seemingly lose money in every department that they manage. Who do we send the thank you cards to? Tim Eyman or Ron Sims?

Re: Mayoral debate set for Oct. 15 - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 02:30:33 -0000

Well now, the City was right! They are bringing comedy back to the Ave!!!!

Re: GRCC President Rich Rutkowski to retire next June - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 02:25:53 -0000

This 2nd retirement should save the State about $175,000. I recall him retiring a few years ago, only to be "re-hired" at the full salary, allowing him to draw his retirement and salary at the same time. He found the loophole and soaked taxpayers for 5 extra years. His 2009 salary is $14,911.11 per month. For comparison purposes, he makes more money than the mayor and more than any of your supreme court justices.

Re: Primary results: Lewis holds commanding lead; Haugen in second - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 03:13:29 -0000

So, Shelley has "spent millions" fighting the good fight against Lewis. Here is the quote, "My lawsuit against the mayor has to do with the mayor lying to me about policies and illegally holding
up permits and costing me millions of dollars, while being mayor or our city." Just how much money does a small tanning and nails place bring in on a yearly basis? Millions? Really? Millions. Shelly, did you also help Haugen put up the "Lights Out" Sign on the railroad tracks? Seems you both want people to leave Auburn. You keep forgetting that you have been to several public meetings and everything you say is remembered by many.

I have been to several of those meeting as well and have yet to hear Mayor Lewis provide any false or misleading information about any topic. Yes, there are problems and things need attention resolve. This alone, makes Mayor Lewis the clear choice to maintain his position as Mayor and lead this city to the success we have been thirsty for. AND, if you and Haugen don't like it, this is America, and you are free to move to any other city you want.

Re: County wants to sell Public Health building for $950,000; city angry - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 02:53:05 -0000

The county is $50 million in debt. I would expect the city to do the same thing with an unbalanced budget. Sell to highest bidder! The last thing the city needs to do right now is buy more real estate and then leave it empty.

Re: County wants to sell Public Health building for $950,000; city angry - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 02:50:13 -0000

What the city needs to do is buy the building for $40 and then sell it for $950,000!!! If I was the county I would be doing the exact same thing. They are deeply in debt and can not afford to remove it from its inventory for $20. I would think the county has a financial responsibility to the residents of the county and selling this property for market value would be the right thing to do. The last thing I want to see Auburn do is buy more real estate with no foreseen occupants.

Re: MAYORAL RACE CLOSE-UP: Shelley Erickson - Auburn Reporter

TheTruthisOutThere — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 00:57:19 -0000

It was just a few short weeks ago I saw Shelley with a sprinkler on during the middle of the day watering the trees in the center of her asphalt parking lot. Last I checked, asphalt does not grow when you water it. Don't know why the hose couldn't have been set next to the roots rather than casting rain over 200 sq ft of nothing. Oh, and this being done while the city was in water conservation mode. That observation alone spoke volumes to me.

Now reading these comments, wow! Shelly, if you ever run again, might I suggest you do not engage in public debate on a local website unless you know the facts. Guess that makes you and Virginia as TWO people who do not read all the information before publicly making comments about what we should do.. Maybe you can go form up a Auburn Reporter Committee and come up with some ideas on how to properly respond to your blatant waste of water at your business. Oh, and whether you were present or not is not an issue. You are the owner, so thusly responsible.