The Other Fist in NRH!
by Ron West
Private Property Destroyed With Tax Money - Without Legally Required Compensation to Owners!
This letter was received from the NRH City Secretary in response to an Open Record Request for information relating to the use of taxpayer money to destroy private property of local businesses in NRH. I find it to be shocking! In the letter, the city admits to using tax money to cut down and destroy signs in our city WITHOUT any legal ordinance to allow such use of our tax money. The funds obviously come out of the $4.8 Million Slush fund of Mr. Cunningham. The following excerpt from the letter shows my request for information followed by the admission from the city that there is and was no ordinance "responsive" to authorizing the expenditures for such purposes.
This appears to be the city at its' worst. The specific situation is that the city has provided documentation of expenditures of $5500 dollars used to cut down pole signs on private property - owned by businesses in our city - without offering compensation to the owners - and without complying with state law regarding the removal of such signs. Further, they are spending tax money from a slush fund without any legal authorization or directives for this purpose.
Regardless of whether you like or dislike pole signs, these illegal actions of the city are more examples of runaway government and uncontrolled spending. State law provides clear and specific examples of how cities are supposed to regulate and control all signs. The current "sign ordinance" in NRH is in clear violation of the state law but our city leadership authorizes continuing strong arm tactics to force compliance with sign rules that vary from business to business. They will deny certificates of occupancy, threaten or write citations and otherwise harass business owners in order to cause the removal of pole signs. If the city was in compliance with state law, all of this could be done legally but the city would have to fairly compensate the business owners for the value of the signs removed. Our city chooses to operate outside the law under the direction of our Mayor, Council Majority and City Manager.
Check out the following documents received from the Open Records Request:
1) Memo's regarding Mobley's Car Wash - notice the implication that they would not even allow him to paint out the sign faces while he was facing a lawsuit from Classic Car Wash regarding his continued use of their name because the city wouldn't let him change the sign face. They "convinced" him that even painting out the sign would not be allowed - even though that is and was a common requirement for other businesses with similar signs.
2) Legal Gobblygook - This is a new document that required Mobley to "convey" his sign to the city so they could cut it down. This is simple blackmail.
3) Invoices for Mobley's and Other Pole Sign Destruction - paid for with your tax money without any legal ordinance or public discussion to allow such use of tax funds. $5500 of your money paid to destroy private property without the legally required compensation to the owners.
4) Letter from City Secretary Responding to Open Records Request - notice the important paragraph that admits the City had no legal authorization to spend tax money for the purpose of destruction of private property.
Recently the city also sent the sign company to visit the DejaVu Salon on Bedford-Euless Road with instructions to cut down the pole sign owned by DejaVu. The owner of this establishment told them that they could not cut down the sign without first providing written documentation of the cost to the city on the advice of her lawyer. The company left and has not returned so far.
This roughshod treatment of our small businesses in NRH is the reason many are closing and leaving. Under our current administration, NRH has become the city of the privileged few under insensitive and aristocratic control. Under the guidance of legal advice that bends all interpretation of law to protect such things as the destruction of records and defiance of state requirements, small businesses cannot afford to locate in NRH unless they are simply willing to roll over to illegal and unreasonable local requirements. Code enforcement is very heavy handed and apparently unsupervised. If a business does not yield to their demands, they have to expect costly legal challenges.
NRH was founded in 1953 and is a city of many faces. Some may not be as pretty as others - but all are residents and businesses with rights that need to be respected. There is no justification for "beautification" or "revitalization" that warrants the roughshod abuse of citizen and business rights. NRH used to be a really nice city to live and work in. We all need to work together - under both the intent and letter of the law - to restore our city to a real city of choice - rather than a city of abuse by local government.