Hometown Matters

By Pauline Masson Candlewick Lane traffic, storm water plan and industrial park covenants and restrictions were challenged as developers of a new multiple lot industrial park off Industrial Drive pushed to move the their project forward. The Planning and Zoning Commission reluctantly approved a Storm Water Plan / Final Site Plan Review for Phase 1 for Pacific Logistics Park on Tuesday after Steve Myers, community development director told commissioners that City Attorney Bob Jones had advised that they had no … Continue reading “P &Z Gives Nod to Industrial Park Final Plan After Steve Myers Said City Attorney Advised they Had to Do It”

By Pauline Masson –  Aldermen experienced a new level of administrative muddle last Wednesday when two aldermen, Scott Lesh and James Cleeve, asked why the key cards that they had been issued to open the city hall doors didn’t work – or, when they would be working. Presumably the key cards were issued so aldermen could enter the building when it was not open to the public. But when Lesh and Cleeve asked when they would be working Mayor Heather … Continue reading “Aldermen City Hall Key Cards Don’t Work / Mayor Asks Why They Need To Get In the Building”

Is this any way to persuade aldermen? By Pauline Masson –  Pacific Police Chief Scott Melies responded to questions about a proposed law putting him and his department in charge of occupancy violations with a rant against people who post comments on social media about the bill, and against the homeless – aka unhoused – aka squatters. The incident occurred at the July 5 board of aldermen meeting. Aldermen questions – about where it came from and need for a … Continue reading “Aldermen Question Need for Occupancy Law / Chief Melies Throws a Tantrum / Lesh Fires Back”

By Pauline Masson – Months after aldermen turned down a request from Police Chief Scott Melies to empower him to criminalize homeowners who allowed anyone, including themselves, to occupy an RV or tent on their property, the chief is now seeking special authority to police the condition of private homes and who lives there. At the Wednesday evening board meeting, aldermen will be asked to approve a first reading of a new law, Bill 5206, that authorizes the police chief … Continue reading “After No Go On Banning RVs on Private Property, Chief Melies Seeks Authority to Police Condition of Homes and Who Lives There”

By Pauline Masson –  Dan McClain has added a new lighted inflatable to his July 4 front yard display this year and it shouldn’t surprise anyone that it’s “Thank a Vet” message, ties the Stars and Stripes to Pacific’s reverence for all military veterans. It’s impossible to know how many flags there are in Pacific. Jeannie Bandermann has a stash of flags. Carol Johnson has a stash. The Boys Scouts have a stash. The Lions Club has a stash. The … Continue reading “July 4, One of the Days When the Flags Come Out in Pacific / There are Others / We Love Our Flags”

By Pauline Masson –  The Black Madonna Shrine, a historic walking garden graces a gentle slope in the picturesque LaBarque Hills 15 minutes south of Pacific. Open to the public and free, the shrine offers a welcoming stroll on any day in good weather. The historic retreat, which was built to offer solace to laborers and patients of a now abandoned infirmary, is a surviving reminder of a once thriving pioneer enclave of Irish immigrants. To this day the communities … Continue reading “Fifteen Minutes South of Pacific, a Historic Shrine Still Welcomes the Faithful and the Curious”

By Pauline Masson –  Advice from Former Public Works Commissioner: Changes in the atmosphere at city hall set one former official thinking of a city on the move. Former public works commissioner Ed Gass, who orchesrated two of the largest land purchases by the city in recent memory – or maybe ever – came to city hall June 20 to urge officials to rethink its bond issue plans. If the city wants to buy and build, it should forget about … Continue reading “No New Pool: Buy and Clear Lazy Larry Site, Spend Every Week Wooing Companies to Look at Pacific “

By Pauline Masson –  As we gear up for the Pacific Partnership’s 21st annual downtown Car Show, the number of people to thank for this popular shindig may surprise you. The Pacific Partnership as we know it, actually got its start at the death of a farovite son – local artist Joe McHugh. On Joe’s death in 1999 he bequeathed his half of the McHugh-Dailey Building at South First and Orleans streets to his two nephews, Jim and Bill McHugh. … Continue reading “Car Show: How Many People Does it Take to Make a Partnership? The Answer May Surprise You”

By Pauline Masson – As the Pacific Swim Club launches into its 25th season it might be timely to note that this club was the brainchild of a young police officer who disagreed with people who said there was nothing for young people to do in Pacific. “We have a swimming pool,” he said. “Why don’t we organize a swim club?” As I remember it, it took a couple of years in the 1990s for the idea to take shape. … Continue reading “Cop Who Liked Kids Left a Legacy: Pacific Swim Club / D.A.R.E. Program / Resource Officers in School / Police Explorers Club”

By Pauline Masson –  The four progressive aldermen prevailed on key issues June 6 in their quest for change in the way the city does business, but it was a tough slog. I concluded in my recent post that after City Administrator Steve Roth declared in writing that he would not acccpt additions that individual aldermen requested for the Board of Aldermen (BOA) meeting agenda that the progressive aldermen might just move forward without mentioning Roth’s insurrection. Which is exactly … Continue reading “No Surprises: Pro Change Aldermen Prevail on Key Issues / But Status Quo Officials Slow Proceeding”