What next??

Here's some speculation from two Anon's....both incredibly coherent I might add:

anonymous said...

I agree with puddin' as well. I think what fuckinfedup is trying to express is the frustration felt when we have seen far more examples of this type of behavior from others, specifically Nagin and Greg Meffert.

OT got rolled on for 15k. Damn. Doesn't make it less of a crime but Muppet claimed to have owned a yacht that wasn't his. I am sure his unfettered use of the yacht amounted to more than 15k. Hell, he (Muppet) charged the Mayor $1,200 for his Thank You cruise.

It's been reported on this site that Muppet is still controlling the IT dept in City Hall. It seems the speculation that the RFP issued in March was to replace Meffert's cronies was just that. Word from a former insider is that the play is to only remove the names of the INV (Imagine/Net Methods/Veracent) principals from the City (i.e. Mark St. Pierre, Scott Domke, Mark Kurt and Paul Hastings).

Mark Kurt is gone. Took a job with Ciber (no surprise) in Dallas. According to the former City Hall contractor, Mark St. Pierre is being removed. So that leaves Scott Domke and Paul Hastings. Their companies are still in the mix according to my source.

Then you have the ride to the Saints game. C'mon man.

If there is a conspiracy to systematically remove Black officials then you would have to think Nagin is in the crosshairs. He is the last politician that stands between the Federal govt and the billions of rebuilding dollars.

I think people just want to believe that Letten's efforts are not politically motivated. Put the screws on Meffert and crew would definitely help calm any perceptions that Letten's efforts are politically motivated.

I doubt if OT would roll on Nagin. However, I am pretty sure Muppet will....

That's an interesting theory....go after Muppet and shore up the racial slant. I have no doubt that they took down OT well before 2010 in order to avoid charges of "taking out the black candidate."

Man, what a snakepit....here's another one:

anonymous said...

Background and where the investigation may be headed

New meters to bring new ways to buy time -- Times Picayune Dec. 31, 2004
December 31, 2004 Friday

SECTION: NATIONAL; Pg. 1

LENGTH: 1709 words

HEADLINE: New meters to bring new ways to buy time;
But they also require hike from car and back

BYLINE: By Frank Donze , Staff writer

BODY:


With a control panel that looks like the dashboard of a state-of-the-art sportscar, they have begun cropping up on downtown curbsides. ATM machines? Gas pumps? Guess again.

They're the latest generation of parking meters, 6-foot-tall replacements for the old-time bubbles on a stick that have eaten dimes and quarters for decades.

City officials insist you won't need a degree in computer science to make them work, though it will help to be thoroughly comfortable with your cell phone. And a certain amount of hiking will be required, from your car to the meter and back again.

But after much anticipation, this much can be said for sure: They're here -- and almost operational.

City Hall's oft-heard promise that new, high-tech parking meters soon will be hitting the streets of New Orleans had taken on the hollow ring of "The check is in the mail" and "Your table will be ready in a minute."

For more than 10 years running, three successive mayoral administrations heralded the imminent arrival of cutting-edge meters that would accept "smart" debit cards, eliminating the dreaded scramble for pocket change that's never quite enough.

The debit cards still are in the offing. But the first of the futuristic meters, which cost about $7,500 apiece, began popping up around town about a month ago, and they eventually will allow motorists to use credit cards as well as coins -- and even an option, the first of its kind in the United States, to pay for parking by cell phone.

Nagin administration officials said this week that they expect the new system to be running by mid-January and pledged that the "smart" cards and cell phone option will be operational later in 2005.

The project is being handled by a 50-50 partnership between Standard Parking, a national firm that has operated parking lots in New Orleans for 25 years, and Parking Solutions LLC, a local minority-owned company with political ties to City Hall.

The Nagin administration has signed a three-year, $2.1 million contract with the joint venture, including options for three one-year renewals. The company is responsible for operation and maintenance of the meters, which the city projects will generate $4.5 million in 2005, a 15 percent increase over this year's take.

Ultimately, plans call for 400 of the new meters to be scattered about the Central Business District, the French Quarter, the Warehouse District, along Magazine Street and in the Uptown and downtown medical districts. About half of them have been installed so far, with the balance of the job scheduled to be completed by Feb. 1.

The joint venture owns the meters but the city will acquire them under a lease-purchase arrangement. Under the contract, leasing fees will come out of the city's monthly payment of $173,000.

The city will own the meters at the end of the six-year agreement. Their estimated life span is 10 to 12 years.

The space-age look of the new meters, which dwarf the old model, has drawn criticism from some residents of the French Quarter, who say the green towers are out of scale for the historic neighborhood.

"We've heard from some people who say the meters are too modern for areas like the Quarter and Magazine Street," said Mark Boucree, Parking Solutions' chief operating officer. "But we think once everyone sees the convenience they offer, they'll get used to them."

Administration officials hope to put the meters in operation in stages, with the first areas set to go on line in about two weeks, after signage is in place and an informational campaign is under way.

In addition to accepting credit cards and debit cards, the new meters -- like the ones now in use -- will take all coins except pennies. Paper currency, which company officials say has a tendency to jam the mechanism, cannot be used.

The city will retain about 1,000 of the 3,600 or so of the meters currently in use. Those meters, though they accept coins only, were designed to accept a "smart card," and officials with the company that installed them said they have long been ready to introduce one. But Nagin opted to go with the new meters instead.

Officials in the administration say a key selling point of the new devices was their ability to offer a "pay and display" system, already used in several U.S. and European cities, that lets motorists buy parking time that isn't tied to one particular space.

Under the system, two meters located in the middle of the block replace the six to 12 devices that now line many streets. Just like existing meters, the new ones will allow a motorist to buy up to two hours of parking time.

But instead of displaying the time remaining, the new machine spits out a receipt. A motorist will have to return to the vehicle and display the ticket -- which will prominently feature the expiration time -- on the dashboard.

Administration officials say the new system offers ancillary benefits: For one, motorists can move their car to another metered space while there is still time remaining on the ticket. Also, the printed receipt provides a handy record that can be used for accounting and reimbursement purposes.

More revenue expected

The administration's increased revenue projection is based on several factors.

Most important, city officials say the new system will bring the city revenue from 4,500 parking spaces citywide, an increase of about 900. Part of the increase will come from charging people to park in areas where parking is now free.

In addition, they say the new meters will allow a few extra parking spaces to be squeezed out of a street because there are no spaces per se. For example, parking areas that now contain seven striped spaces might now fit eight vehicles. But then, there's nothing to stop sloppy parkers from hogging space, thus reducing the number of customers.

Finally, under the new system, the administration says drivers now will take their unused parking time with them. As a result, no one will be able to park for free.

Old meters just paid for

The new meters are arriving just a few years after WorldWide Parking Inc., the Maryland-based company that formerly held the city parking meter contract, finished installing the current generation of meters. In fact, the Nagin administration made the final $400,000 payment on WorldWide's equipment just a few months ago.

WorldWide bid on the new contract, but the Nagin administration selected the local partnership in March, citing technological factors and the 50 percent minority participation.

WorldWide, which had no local partner, went to court to block the award of the contract, arguing that as the lowest responsible bidder, it should have been selected. The Nagin administration countered that the lowest-bid criterion was inapplicable because the contract is for a professional service.

The lawsuit was dismissed by a federal judge.

At the time of the contract award, Marc Meisel, president of WorldWide, questioned the administration's projections that the new meters would increase revenue. Furthermore, he said the meters now on the street likely would last another 25 years.

The new meters are solar-powered, but also have a battery back-up. The system is linked to a computer network that will allow company and city officials to monitor each meter and determine in real time whether it's working, how much revenue it has taken in and even whether it is low on paper for receipts.

Under its contract with the city, Parking Solutions must keep 98 percent of the meters in service at all times or face cash fines. Company officials said the computer monitoring system will allow them to fulfill that requirement easily.

Cell phone innovation

The ability to activate the meters by cell phone is their most radical innovation and a first of its kind in the United States, according to Boucree.

The system, invented by Mint Inc., a company based in Toronto, Canada, allows customers to purchase parking time without leaving their vehicles.

Motorists interested in using the service will first have to phone a number listed on the meter to set up an account that Boucree calls an "electronic wallet." Once a motorist has registered a name and license plate number with Mint Inc., the company will send the customer a windshield sticker that city parking control officers -- using hand-held computers -- can scan to determine whether the parking fee has been paid.

The company also will automatically phone customers a half-hour before their time at the meter expires. If they desire, customers also can call again to obtain more parking time -- up to a legal maximum of two hours.

Boucree said plans call for this payment system to be operating by May.

Chief Administrative Officer Charles Rice said the Nagin administration is looking into a change in the law that would permit a motorist -- for a nominal extra fee -- to park in a metered space for longer than two hours.

Plans call for the "smart" cards to be on sale by the summer.

Parking Solutions officials say they have started preliminary discussions with the Regional Transit Authority to develop a single debit card that could be used on parking meters, buses and streetcars.

Parking Solutions is owned by three local African-American businessmen. In recent months, Nagin has touted the 50-50 partnership as a prime example of his administration's commitment to steer government work to black-owned companies.

Two of the local firm's principals, Keith Pittman and Tyrone Rodgers, have ties to the administration.

Pittman and Rodgers are former business partners of developer Sean Cummings, a Nagin appointee who heads the New Orleans Building Corp., which is responsible for selling or developing certain city-owned properties.

Rodgers is the stepson of public-relations executive Bill Rouselle, who has advised Nagin and who has close ties to the BOLD political organization. Pittman worked as an aide to City Councilman Oliver Thomas, a leader of BOLD.

Boucree recently resigned his management position with Standard Parking, where he oversaw 40 facilities for the company.

This is the second contract the Nagin administration has awarded to Standard Parking and Parking Solutions. In May, the partnership was hired to operate three parking lots for French Market Corp.

Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Was Rice shown the door at City Hall? Times Picayune July 2, 2004
SECTION: METRO; NEW ORLEANS POLITICS; Pg. 1

LENGTH: 1003 words

HEADLINE: Was Rice shown the door at City Hall?;
ALSO: City Hall's revolving door; Power to the worker

BYLINE: By Gordon Russell and Frank Donze and Martha Carr, Staff writers

BODY:


The unanswered question about the departure this week of Charles Rice, the second chief administrative officer to resign during Mayor Ray Nagin's three years in office: Did he jump ship, or was he pushed?

Did Rice go because he was tired of the job's demands, wanted to spend more time with his kids, and had a tempting offer with a law firm on the table? Or did Nagin want Rice out?

The party line is that Rice's departure was completely voluntary, but the truth may be in the middle.

At Monday's news conference, Nagin warmly lauded Rice, a sharp contrast with the tepid sendoff he gave his first CAO, Kimberly Williamson Butler.

The mayor commended him for everything from pothole repairs to new parking meters -- and tried to put to rest any speculation about Rice being forced out.

"This was his decision," he said. "If he wanted, he could come back as CAO tomorrow."

Rice was similarly effusive. In a teary speech, he said he thinks of Nagin "as a brother."

But some people close to Nagin have suggested otherwise. They suggested a story like more like this: Nagin's most important political asset is integrity. Rice, while never accused of any malfeasance, was front and center on a few deals that emitted an odor of patronage -- among them the no-bid deal for trash cans that went to a company with ties to his brother -- leading to grumbling among certain aides and head-shaking from Nagin supporters.

Others say that Nagin didn't push Rice, but that his stock with the mayor had fallen -- and his influence with it. They say the power of an once-omnipotent office, , partially neutered in the Butler days, was further diminished by Nagin's recent tweaks to City Hall's contract-selection process, which shifted more power to the city attorney's office. Seeing the writing on the wall, Rice may have pursued an exit strategy.

But some Rice fans believe he had grown tired of taking the hits for the administration's decisions.

Another slice of the New Orleans political world -- not all of it Nagin-friendly -- saw Rice as a man who could be reasoned with, a breath of fresh air in an administration not always known for diplomacy.

"This is going to be the biggest void," Councilman Oliver Thomas said. "He was the go-to guy for the mayor."

. . . . . . .

Sunday, April 8, 2007
Mayor's top aide quitting to join law firm -- Times Picayune June 28, 2005
June 28, 2005 Tuesday

SECTION: METRO; Pg. 1

LENGTH: 634 words

HEADLINE: Mayor's top aide quitting to join law firm;
Rice cites pressures of politics on family

BYLINE: By Martha Carr and Gordon Russell, Staff writers

BODY:


Confirming a rumored shakeup in the top tier of Mayor Ray Nagin's administration, an emotional Chief Administrative Officer Charles Rice said Monday that he is resigning his post to take a job at a law firm.

Rice, who joined the administration in June 2002 as city attorney, said the pressures of political life had taken a toll on his family, particularly his two sons, ages 8 and 10.

"Probably the most telling point was about six months ago, when my 10-year-old wrote me a letter," Rice said, fighting back tears. "He basically said, 'I want you at home more.' And for me, that was it."

Rice, 41, will remain in his post until the end of July. Nagin said he hopes to name a permanent successor by then. Without mentioning any candidates for the job, he said he plans to look internally first, a remark that fueled rumors he is eyeing Economic Development Director Don Hutchinson for the post.

Hutchinson did not return a request for comment.

Rice will join the law firm of Barrasso, Usdin, Kupperman, Freeman & Sarver LLC, a group that broke off from the Stone Pigman firm two years ago and does mostly commercial litigation. Rice, a former litigator for Entergy, said he has received multiple job offers but that this was the best fit.

"People need to realize when you are so-called 'marketable,' people come to you with opportunities," Rice said. "For me, this was the right time, and I think I'll be wildly successful in whatever I choose to do. Hopefully I'll be able to capitalize on some of the relationships that I've developed here."

Both Rice and Nagin, through his spokeswoman, denied Friday that any such move was in the works. However, Nagin said Monday that he has been aware for six months that Rice was looking for a new job and was just waiting for Rice's final notice.

Nagin said Rice's most impressive contribution was his effort to award a larger share of city contracts to African-American-owned businesses.

"He pushed very hard for minority business to participate at unprecedented levels," Nagin said.

Nagin also commended Rice for helping pass the city's largest bond issue, overseeing 260,000 pothole repairs, revamping the sanitation department, helping balance the city budget and awarding a new parking meter contract: the latter a controversial move that drew plenty of fire.

"I predict that as time goes on, people will say that that was one of the best moves the city of New Orleans has made in recent history," Nagin said.

But the parking meter contract and at least two others awarded on Rice's watch weren't universally viewed as good business.

The joint venture that won the meter contract got the job despite the fact that its price was 62 percent higher than the lowest bid the city received.

Rice defended the deal, saying the "pay and display" meters were technologically superior to the cheaper ones, and that the joint venture's bid was more attractive in part because a black-owned company was an equal partner in the venture.

In another contract flap, without seeking bids, Rice bought 600 trash cans with advertising panels from a company that had a business relationship with his brother, Terrence Rice, even though other firms routinely offer such receptacles for free. The contract also gave the city less of the advertising revenue than is standard in such arrangements.

Rice deflected questions about his brother's involvement with the firm. He said the cans were a better deal than the ones the city had previously used, and said their claim of being "bombproof" made for added safety. More recently, Rice said the contract to sell advertising on the cans would be rebid on terms more favorable to the city.

Saturday, March 24, 2007
Parking Meters -- Times Picayune Editorial April 30, 2005
Copyright 2005 The Times-Picayune Publishing Company
Times-Picayune (New Orleans)

April 30, 2005 Saturday

SECTION: METRO - EDITORIAL; Pg. 6

LENGTH: 229 words

HEADLINE: The best thing ever

BODY:


If only New Orleanians had known the import of the new parking meters sprouting up around the city, they might have demanded them sooner.

Charles Rice, Mayor Ray Nagin's chief administrative officer, put things in perspective this week.

In response to criticism from French Quarter residents about the appearance of the meters and the way parking rules are being enforced, Mr. Rice spoke in sweeping terms.

Not only are the credit card-ready meters more convenient, they will also "bring New Orleans into the 21st century," he said.

Pause for dramatic effect.

"So we can compete with the Atlantas and the Houstons."

New Orleanians surely would be happy to compete with the Atlantas and the Houstons for economic development. Those cities are among the most vibrant in the South, and the New Orleans area has lost some well-paying jobs to Houston.

But who knew that updated parking meters could help with job creation? Obviously, the company supplying the meters will benefit, and so will the people paid to hand out tickets. And maybe, instead of spending all their time looking for quarters, people will have more time for genetic engineering and aerospace research.

Or maybe Mr. Rice is trying to make the meters seem so fabulous in the hope that residents will forget that the city paid too much for them and gave the contract to a politically connected supplier.

Good luck with that.

I know almost nothing about this contract....this is the first info. I've received on it. I know BSJD probably has the 411....send me a link if you have info, David.

One rumor I did hear about 2 months ago was that all the money collected for parking tickets in post-K was being funneled to a company based out of Atlanta and not back into the city coffers. I considered that to be too outrageous to be true so I dismissed it...anyone know anything about that?