A look back: "Why I boycotted the Casino groundbreaking at the beach"

The blog post below is originally from May of 2011. Read what follows and then click this link to see the latest. Then think about all the potholes and road repairs that could have been made had all those millions of dollars not been wasted in the first place:

I took a page out of the Cara Jennings' playbook and boycotted the groundbreaking ceremony today. My Facebook status was that I was busy shampooing my hair and couldn't attend. I understand from those that attended it was all about how this project represents the City's effort at preserving history. I choose not to be there this morning as I did not want to contribute to the widespread fraud that this project represents. Here's a short list of reasons why this is the case:

• The building that is there now has historic value and would be eligible for listing on the National Register. Due to the deteriorated state of the building, the existing building is being DEMOLISHED. What we will see when the project is finished is a new building in an "old" style, but it isn't old.
• Current commissioners campaigns were won on the theme of "Restoring the Casino Building" which is not what is happening.
• The City will be pouring $6 million plus into this building that will be built on an existing slab foundation that will wash away in a major storm event. By not calling this "new construction" as termed by the building official, the city is getting around the requirements for the building to be built on pilings as required by the city's own Zoning Code.
• This is contrary to the "managed retreat" talked about in former Commissioner Cara Jennings' presentation which was about the importance of moving the building behind the coastal construction line.
• The City has an active lawsuit related to a previous plan to redevelop the property and has spent a quarter of a MILLION dollars defending it, with no end in sight. The City may end up paying a large judgement for breaking the contract with its private sector partner. Could the library use $250,000? Yes, it could.
• Construction is being financed by the City's "cash portfolio" and will be taken out by a yet-to-be-defined permanent loan.
• Former citizen Christopher McVoy, now a commissioner, peddled a petition around the City to repeal the land use and zoning designation of "Beach and Casino", which never went to a referendum, but was used as a tool to propagate and spread myths about what was gong on in the City and used it as an accomplishment in his campaign literature for his commission seat.

This video summarizes the hypocrisy associated with this project, including it being used as a way to keep John G's in its current location: