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A D V E R T I S E M E N T
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A D V E R T I S E M E N T
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Suspicious Minds
Remember back in the late 1990s when Dallas City Manager John Ware led negotiations with Tom Hicks to build the American Airlines Center? Dallas taxpayers paid for half of that arena and then cried foul after Ware quit his job with the city to start his own company — with Hicks as his major investor. It all smacked of sleaze and corruption at the expense of taxpayers. So, naturally, some Arlington residents wonder if City Manager Chuck Kiefer would strike a similar deal with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. After all, Kiefer led negotiations with Jones, and then announced his resignation shortly after Arlington taxpayers voted to pay for half of the Cowboys stadium. Kiefer said he was going to kick back and relax awhile, and then pursue other career opportunities, including possible “consultant work.” Hmmm, folks wondered, would Kiefer become a paid consultant for Jones?
Don’t count on it. Kiefer proved himself a fellow with principles during his 26 years at Arlington City Hall and said he would “absolutely not” take any job connected with Jones or the Cowboys if it were offered. “It wouldn’t be appropriate or ethical for me to take a job with the Cowboys organization,” he said. “It would create the appearance of impropriety, and I wouldn’t do that. I’ve conducted myself very professionally as a city manager, and I just wouldn’t do that. There have been no overtures or contact on that.”
Blue Christmas
Arlington has been struggling with declining tax revenues for several years, but city leaders know more than one way to skin a cat or, more precisely, to skin a taxpayer — loose the cops on ‘em. Police are pulling motorists over with increasing regularity and writing a slew of tickets. In fiscal 2004, records show, police issued 23,496 more tickets than in the previous year, for a 16 percent increase. One long-time resident named Dave called Static recently to say he thinks Arlington cops are feeling the resulting heat from angry motorists — and that it’s starting to show. A cop recently cited him for rolling through a stop sign in his neighborhood, even though Dave swore he came to a full stop. When Dave started to protest, the cop became irate and told him to tell it to a judge, he said. Maybe the city’s slogan should be, “When the budget’s in the red, we turn to the blue.”
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