Donald A. Gilmore

Part 2: 2005 – Roll, Baby, Roll

October 23rd, 2008

Well beyond his inaugural year, Commissioner Gilmore started to slip into the comfy incumbent’s political Strat-o-Lounger. Yes, Gilmore was so comfortable, that if he cocked his head just right and squinted his eyes while looking down at his disheveled commissioner’s packet while slumped down in the chair, maybe, just maybe, nobody in the chambers would notice that he was off to z-land.  While some of Commissioner Don Gilmore’s best decisions were made while he was dais napping, most times his decisions were a thoughtless roll of the dice.  And here are just some of his notable and questionable contributions for 2005.

At the January 24, 2005, Commissioner Gilmore voiced his post-orthodox holiday wish list by stating “I was hoping that our Police Department at some time - can start enforcing the loud noises from automobiles and motorcycles.” Commissioner Gilmore even suggested that mufflers be used.  In reply City Attorney Anthony Garganese replied, “We’re getting close to having a real good draft of a new Noise Ordinance which will be decibel-based.” Commissioner Gilmore mysteriously added, “Decibel readings do not necessarily indicate the true issue”.

Translation: Commissioner Gilmore doesn’t have a true issue with the noise as much as he has a definite issue with the types of people who make the noise. Once again, tax dollars were spent to draft another unenforceable ordinance at the behest of one commissioner.

But, you do have to love Gilmore’s suggestion to use mufflers. It is amazing how Gilmore’s professional engineering expertise was shining through on that one.  It makes you wonder, “Who needs a mechanic?” (Will somebody please call North Carolina to see what grade of PE license does Don really have?)  And, of course, don’t forget, Gilmore was expecting the Police Department to enforce his Noise ordinance but ironically, this is the same Police Department that Gilmore didn’t want to fund just 8 months later when he voted down the budget. PFGG thought it would turn up the volume on that fact.  Can you hear us now Don?

During Consent Item 203 at the March 28, 2005 regular meeting, the commission approved without discussion a supplemental appropriation of $13,000 for design work and an annexation study related to the city’s possible reconstruction, operation and acquisition of Soldier’s Creek Park.  Commissioner Gilmore suggested, “I am wondering if we couldn’t consider the ‘Dog Park’ in that?”

Do you remember Commissioner Don Gilmore’s infamous “…when you're sitting up here, you start finding out what the questions are, and it's not so easy.” Well it looks like Gilmore was still having a hard time finding the right questions. For instance, like, “City Manager, why are we always approving supplemental appropriations from the budget under Consent agendas?”  Or, “Gosh Ron, is it just me or shouldn’t we go out for competitive bid on all these no-bid contracts we are handing over to SRI?”  Nope, Gilmore asks about a dog park.

The operative word in Consent 203 is “supplemental”, which means SRI, the no-bid contracting firm, got taxpayer money already before it went back to the well for a supplemental dip. ’What was the result of all this money spent chasing City Manager Ron McLemore’s expansion addiction and one citizen’s dog park Mar-a-lago? Absolutely, nothing. The commission never did anything on Soldier’s Creek Park, which was another financial waste of money at taxpayers’ expense. And while Commissioner Gilmore didn’t raise your taxes, he knew how to squander them. Oh, but that is no loss to Gilmore, we forgot to mention that SRI gave a monetary contribution to his 2008 re-election campaign.

At the May 23, 2005 regular meeting the commissioner discussed Public Hearings 401 which was the second reading of raising utility customers’ monthly stormwater rates by 70 percent

Bottom Line: No matter what Don Gilmore says, he may not have voted for millage increases in front of citizens but he voted every time to raise “back door” taxes behind their backs. Gilmore voted to raise taxes on May 23, 2005 when he increased the monthly stormwater utility fee. He raised taxes in February 2006 when he raised the monthly garbage collection fees. He raised taxes on May 12, 2008 when instituted the new fire fee.

And after Gilmore voted down the budget for the 2004/2005 fiscal year, on May 9, 2005 he voted to approve a supplemental appropriation of $125,000 for legal fees for the City Attorney. Gilmore voted to overspend the legal line item in the 2004/2005 budget by $125,000 after he voted down the same budget back in September 2004.  Well now it is clear, Gilmore is clueless when it comes to planning and spending.

Instead of debating the use of unseen back door taxes to generate monthly city revenue or using unplanned special appropriations, Commissioner Gilmore labored more over spending even more money to send out a mailer to every utility customer to tell them to go to the city website to find out about the rate hike.  What was so coincidental was that the city manager had already written the flyer about the rate hike before the commission even voted to raise the rates.  Was this just another preplanned vote that Gilmore was prompted on by the city manager?

At a June 9, 2005 workshop, former Commissioner Michael Blake gave one of his droning budget lessons called “Real Number to Real Numbers.”  And, Blake suggested to, “Just adjust the revised budget for extraordinary items.” Commissioner Gilmore chimed in orchestra fashion, “A separate line item for that.” And then conductor City Manager McLemore waved his baton and replied, “We can do that!”

Of course McLemore could do that; McLemore wanted to do that and he used his dais dudes, Gilmore and Blake, to make sure it happened. This type of line item, extraordinary items, is exactly where City Manager McLemore hides his extraordinary slush funds. Where else do you find extra funds for benches and lights on Blumberg Boulevard, no-bid contracts, or supplemental appropriations for this, that, and the other thing? Gilmore again was the doormat to McLemore’s threshold of overspending.

On June 23, 2005 a discussion ensued among the commissioners about hiring a fire inspector. Commissioner Gilmore added, “I support an additional person who is specifically trained, educated in Fire Inspection and all of the necessary codes that go with it.”

Question:  Did the job posting for the fire inspector specify it was a temporary position? Gilmore and his dais buddy’s Miller and McGinnis voted to fire the fire department in 2008 after they bilked the public on the fire fee assessment. Contrary to his campaign literature he didn’t vote to “kill” the fire assessment fees; he voted to sunset them because in the next breath he voted to fire the fire department and ship it off to Seminole County. The only thing Don Gilmore has killed is the community spirit of Winter Springs. Has anyone asked lately what is the amount of uncollected fire service fees the city is not chasing?

At the August 8, 2005 regular meeting Commissioner Gilmore advised the commission that the splash pad at Torcaso Park was in dire need of shade.

Result:  City now manufactures shade umbrellas for splash pads. Oh Don, over here, we are in dire need of potable water. Are you going to manufacture that too or just reuse the splash pad water?

At the September 8, 2005, City Manager McLemore told the City Commission, “Next year, I will come to you again with a Budget request for merit increases and in addition to that, the cost of moving ranges.” Manager McLemore then said to Commissioner Gilmore, “I need to sit down with you.”

Even McLemore knew in 2005 that it would take one whole year of one-on-one sit downs to educate Commissioner Don Gilmore on salary compression and merit increases. Of course, the promise McLemore made never happened in 2006, which can only mean one thing; Gilmore still didn’t get it.

During Regular 509 on the November 28, 2005 agenda, Commissioner Gilmore said, “I would suggest that we add this position and Ron (city manager), come back and tell us where the money is, and if we have to eliminate a Fall concert, eliminate the Fall concert.”

Is Don Gilmore interjecting himself into the role of the city manager? This is something he lectured the commission on when funding for police officers were discussed in September 2005? Don’t forget, Don Gilmore voted down the 2005/2006 millage and budget. Two months later, he is adding a position to the budget he voted down just two months prior. No wonder why Gilmore doesn’t care to suggest the position without even knowing how the city will pay for it.

At the December 12, 2005 regular meeting Commissioner Don Gilmore seconded Commissioner McGinnis’s motion to get BIDS for a Feasibility Study on purchasing the Winter Springs Golf Course.

All of a sudden, the City Manager wants to go out for competitive bids!  WHY NOW?  McLemore wanted to tie up this issue long enough so that a town house developer could fly in and buy it. Six months and one $20,000 bogus feasibility study later, the Winter Springs Golf Course, 177 beautiful acres, was purchased for $1.2 million by a California investor who got the deal of the century.  The City of Winter Springs never, ever got to the bargaining table to throw down a deal to take this piece of beautiful land off of the development table.

Commissioners Gilmore and McGinnis were content to sit on their proverbial Strat-o-Loungers just waiting around for a study that came back exactly the way City Manager Ron McLemore wanted it to come out….townhouses and condos.  What a way to blow $20,000 of taxpayer money. Commissioner Gilmore was ineffective on the golf course issue as was Commissioner McGinnis.  The loss of the golf course and the jobs that went with it has become the biggest shame of our city government.  And again, it was Commissioners Don Gilmore and Sally McGinnis who set this failed ball into motion in December 2005 with absolutely no positive results in June 2006.  No wonder Commissioner Sally McGinnis contributed to Commissioner Don Gilmore 2008 re-election campaign.  Was this another reward for Commissioner Gilmore’s job well done?

Coming soon: Commissioner Donald A. Gilmore, Part 3: 2006 – Entrenched in Stench

Upcoming: Commissioner Robert S. Miller -- Bon Voyage