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Security

Today's letter to the editor at Cascadia Daily News: Editor, Security concerns — used by local governments to eliminate open public comment sessions ( CDN, Nov. 1, 2024 ) at council meetings — can be addressed without removing the single opportunity for citizens to address their elected officials orally so others in the audience can learn from each other and come together in common cause. I have written many emails to Blaine City Council and Whatcom County Council, and they have never responded to corruption issues I raise about community planning and public participation. I don’t even know if they bother to read them. The only way to have total security for council meetings is to prohibit the public from attending and asking questions. That sounds like fascism to me. In Blaine, Mayor [Mary Lou] Steward shut down oral public comment on Feb. 12 when a citizen asked questions about corruption involving the mayor and council member Mike Hill. Steward simultaneously announced she was
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Immunity

Today's letter to Blaine City Council: Public officials have immunity from prosecution if they make a mistake. If, however, they knowingly and willfully violate the law, then they are personally liable.  This means the entire city council, planning commission, city manager, and community development director could be sued individually. IMO, Wenger would have to pay more than his puppets on the council and commission. As Mayor Steward's thug, Harmon is a special case.  
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Six Month Recap

In the aftermath of the mayor of Blaine's February 12, 2024 , edict ending open public comment at Blaine City Council meetings, I hosted a community forum on April 6, 2024 , at Blaine Public Library titled, "Ending the Culture of Exclusion at Blaine City Hall." Participants in the forum decided to conduct a public education campaign, and on April 8, 2024 , we staged a silent FREE SPEECH protest at the Blaine City Council meeting. Washington State law requires open two-way discussions where citizens can ask questions and get answers from public officials, as well as offer their ideas. Blaine City Council has adopted a 2024 comprehensive work plan for redevelopment without holding a single town hall.  In my May 5, 2024 , email to Blaine City Council, I called on Mayor Steward to resign for making backroom deals, covering up conflicts of interest, and facilitating self-dealing by developers. On May 6, 2024 , Blaine City Manager Mike Harmon responded to my email accusing me o
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Comp Plan Conspiracy

Today's letter to Whatcom County Council and Blaine City Council: Blaine's conspiracy to subvert the letter and spirit of the Growth Management Act was hatched at the 3/24/2023 Blaine City Council retreat where Blaine City Manager Mike Harmon was instructed by the council to initiate Central Business District text and map amendments without public participation as required by law. This was followed by the 6/4/2023 self-dealing by members of the Downtown Advisory Committee facilitated by Blaine Community Development Services.  On 7/10/23 , Blaine City Council passed Resolution 1923-23 forwarding the illicit Downtown Advisory Committee recommendations to Blaine Planning Commision for review. On 2/8/24 , Blaine Planning Commission recommended increasing building heights and reducing parking requirements. On 2/12/24 , Blaine City Council approved Resolution 1940-24 to increase building heights and reduce parking requirements. You can read more about this criminal misconduct by
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Downtown Height Amendment

Today's letter to Blaine City Council: Ordinance 24-3019 , the Central Business Waterview Text and Map Amendment, is fraudulent. The amendment—based on the illicit recommendations of downtown developers with financial conflicts of interest—violates both state and federal law. You have received the  Common Sense Planning  report from Glen Pentland—former member of the Downtown Advisory Committee—documenting the official corruption by Blaine Community Development Services. Proceeding on the basis of this official criminal misconduct exacerbated by the corrupted planning commission places the City of Blaine in a position of liability.
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Blaine Comp Plan Update

Today's letter to Blaine City Council, copied to Whatcom County : The proposed  Resolution 1955-24  adopting a public participation plan for the purpose of initiating the Blaine Comprehensive Plan update reads much like the pervasive propaganda emanating from Blaine City Hall over the last two years designed to hoodwink state oversight agencies and the public at large. The City of Blaine has not lived up to those promises, and it is unlikely it will honor these.  What Blaine public officials have done is to undermine public participation by design, and to retaliate against individuals who ask uncomfortable, probing questions about official corruption facilitated by Blaine Community Development Services with Blaine City Council's blessing. Public participation in Blaine is a farce and undermines the validity of Whatcom County's Comprehensive Plan update. There will be a day of reckoning as we pursue federal enforcement of the Clean Water Act in Whatcom County impaired by the
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Northern Light Propaganda

Patrick Grubb and Louise Mugar wrote a letter extolling their virtues in this week's issue of their newspaper, The Northern Light. Their claims to "comprehensive coverage of city council meetings" and "ensuring transparency" in local government are demonstrably false. Since January, The Northern Light has knowingly covered up criminal misconduct at Blaine City Hall and self-dealing by developers. Grubb and Mugar's assertion that they are keeping us informed is nothing but propaganda for profit.
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