Could Rep. Young's controversial $10M Coconut Rd. earmark pave the way for Boston Red Sox?

The News-Press in Fort Meyers, Florida, reports that property in south Lee County, owned by Michigan developer Daniel J. Aronoff, is one of five sites under consideration for development of a new Boston Red Sox Spring Training Complex by 2012.

Aronoff's Florida land is under consideration because the Red Sox want a new complex with a stadium and practice field. In their current situation, the Red Sox play their games in downtown Fort Myers at City of Palms Park but hold early-spring workouts several miles away.

However, nothing is ever quite that easy. And, neither Aronoff or the two-square miles of wetlands property which sits along Interstate 75 are without controversy

See, both are at the center of a federal corruption investigation involving U.S. Rep. Don Young (R-AK) who earmarked $10 million for a Coconut Road interchange study after a 2005 Estero-area fundraiser, which Aronoff attended, netting Young about $40,000.

Capitol Hill Lobbyist Richard Alcalde (Potomac Partners DC) is also at the heart of the Coconut Road earmark investigation. Alcalde represented Aronoff's Landon Companies and Alcalde has been identified as one of a select group of "A-Team" lobbyists who are especially close to Young.

Alcalde represents another Michigan developer, Michael J. Malik, Sr., and Malik's casino gaming affiliate MJM Enterprises. Malik and a partner, Mrs. Marian Ilitch, are behind plans to advance several Indian casinos across the country. Alcalde represents one of their Native American partners as well, the Shinnecock Indian Nation of New York.

Like Aronoff, Malik and the Ilitch family have contributed and raised thousands for Rep. Young's committees and flown him around in their private aircraft; and in return, Young has helped advance plans they back for an Indian casino in Port Huron, Michigan.

And there's another Major League Baseball (MLB) connection too. Marian's husband, Mike Ilitch, owns the Detroit Tigers.

BNSF retiree helps railroad secure funding as Mayor of Barstow

from the BNSF's Barstow LMIT employee newsletter, December 2002

Lenwood Road grade separation study coming

Despite state budget shortfalls, funds remain intact to conduct a grade separation study of the BNSF tracks at Lenwood Road. Barstow Mayor Lawrence Dale, retired director LMIT, said the city’s portion of the study will be $50,000.

Preliminary work began with review of access needs for nearby businesses and residents. The study will reveal whether an overpass or an underpass will be most efficient for traffic flow. Dale said he was pleased the project moved ahead even when many similar studies in Southern California were eliminated due to budget constraints.

Completion of the study will occur sometime next year, Dale said.

You may also want to review these related posts:

• Barstow likely to lose fifth city manager in four years; Mayor blamed
• Did earmarks guarantee exclusive casino developmen...
• Federal Earmark: Lenwood Road Grade Separation, Ba...
• Barstow's Official 2008 Lobbying Priorities
• Did Wal-Mart & Detroit casino financiers influence...
• Members of Congress aren't the only elected officials flying around in the private aircraft of Detroit casino syndicators
• Barstow Industrial Park LLC acquires property with a $22,500,000 mortgage

Ilitch casino frontmen doing damage control again

Marian Ilitch's casino frontmen are at it again.

Before news could reach Barstow that U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) has issued a new ruling indicating off-reservation casinos must be within a 25-mile radius from an Indian tribe's headquarters, Ilitch's Lansing-based PR man Tom Shields and Shane Chapparosa, a member of the Los Coyotes Band of Indians, made an appearance before the Barstow City Council to "unveil" their third plan in five years for a casino in the Mojave Desert town.

There are several acceptions to the new 25-mile rule but it does not appear that the Los Coytes Band of Indians who are headquartered in north eastern San Diego County, more than a 150 mile drive from Barstow, meet any of those exceptions.

Using such tactics to head-off bad news during Barstow's local election campaign cycles have become a strategic political mainstay for Ilitch political strategist Tom Shields.

Barstow's Mayor Lawrence Dale has guaranteed exclusivity to BarWest since his early in his first term and has taken extreme political measures on BarWest's behalf. BarWest principals and agents may have helped Dale secure federal earmarks for his other pet projects from Rep. Don Young and others.

Dale was first elected to office in November 2000 when he upset the incumbent Mayor. He was re-elected again in 2004 and is running for a third term as Mayor in November. Each time he's pledged to make economic development his top priority for the Desert town and the failed BarWest casino resort has been the cornerstone of his plans.

Ilitch and a partner, Detroit-based casino syndicator Michael Malik, formed BarWest and using that entity have been pursuing plans for a Barstow casino since 2001. They made their first plans public in 2003. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger denied their first plan in 2004. The California Legislature failed to ratify a second proposal during back-to-back legislative sessions in 2006 & 2007. The U.S. Department of Interior rejected the second proposal in 2008 after kicking off an Environmental Impact Study (EIS) three years earlier.

You may want to review these related posts:

• Did earmarks guarantee exclusive casino development rights for Young's pal?
• Did Wal-Mart & Detroit casino financiers influence Young's support for Barstow earmark?
• Young used a generic highway earmark as vehicle to slip through approval of Michigan Indian casino

Barstow's Official 2008 Lobbying Priorities

The Desert Dispatch reported these 2008 lobbying priorities as set by Mayor Lawrence Dale and his Barstow City Council:

State Lobbying Priorities

• Funding for the Lenwood Road grade separation project
• Assistance with the proposed destination resort or casino
• Provide continued funding to the Veterans Home of California in Barstow

• Support the widening of State Highway 58
• Support Barstow’s military bases and their role in the Department of Defense
• Review any legislation or administrative actions affecting water issues in the Mojave River Basin

Federal Lobbying Priorities

• Funding for the city’s sewer master plan

-- 2005 Earmark $240,000

-- 2007 Earmark $500,000

• Funding for the Lenwood Road grade separation project

-- 2005 Earmark $1.2 million
• Provide continued funding to the Veterans Home of California in Barstow

• Support Barstow’s military bases and their role in the Department of Defense
• Review any legislation or administrative actions affecting water issues in the Mojave River Basin

Did Wal-Mart & Detroit casino financiers influence Young's support for Barstow earmark?

The Desert Dispatch has reported an update on the plans to build a one-million square foot Wal-Mart Distribution Center is Barstow, CA. As disclosed in the Desert Dispatch, Wal-Mart's regional warehouse for both dry and frozen goods will be built along Lenwood Road north of Jasper Road and southeast of the High Desert Estates housing area in Barstow.

View Larger Map

A review of a map provided in the Desert Dispatch illustrates the Wal-Mart project's proximity to the site of a railway bridge/grade separation project that's being funded with a $1.2 million earmark that Rep. Don Young included in the 2005 highway spending bill -- at the time, Young was chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. That construction project, "Lenwood Road Grade Separation," includes lowering the existing grade of Lenwood Road where it intersects with the BNSF Railway and building bridge across Lenwood Road to accomodate railroads.

Clearly such a project is necessary to accomodate all of the large truck traffic that will be coming and going from the Wal-Mart's planned distribution hub.

The "Lenwood Road Grade Separation" is one of Barstow Mayor Lawrence Dale's two pet projects . The other is a casino resort project proposed for Barstow by Detroit-based Barwest LLC. Michael Malik and Marian Ilitch formed Barwest LLC in 2003 to promote their various casino proposals in Barstow. They would build and manage any Barstow casino resort.

Dale, a retired BNSF employee, has taken extreme measures to guarantee Malik/Ilitch exclusive rights to any future casino development in Barstow. His passion for Barwest suggest Malik & Ilitch have offered other incentives for Mayor Dale to back them exclusive -- like using their influence with Young to get $1.2 million for Dale's other pet project.

Malik and Ilitch family members are linked to Rep. Young and have influenced Young to back other projects like their proposal for an Indian casino in Port Huron, Michigan. Young attempted to advance that project for Malik/Ilitch using earmarks inserted in SAFETEA-LU 2005.

In 2005, BarWest paid nearly $6,000 to fly Young in a private jet. Malik (MJM Enterprises) has employed several of Young's "A-Team" of lobbyists (Rick Alcalde/Potomac Partners D.C. and Billy Evans, Kessler & Associates) and paid their firms nearly $1.5 million.

Malik and members of the Ilitch family were among Young’s top donors during the 2005/06 election cycle. They have personally contributed more than $23,000 to Young (and his Midnight Sun PAC) and helped raise thousands more in additional funds from their associates. They've contributed more than $95,000 to the two GOP committees responsible for re-electing GOP Members of Congress and at least $50,000 to the Republican National Committee.

Taxpayers for Common Sense previously reported that Young's 2005 bill (SAFETEA-LU 2005; so named in honor of Young's wife Lu) included a $34 million earmark for the widening and extension of a road in Bentonville, Arkansas, that is the main access point to the headquarters of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. According to TPM Muckraker, Young collected $14,000 from Wal-Mart's PAC and executives around the time the 2005 bill passed.

On his own merit, Barstow Mayor Lawrence Dale wouldn't have the juice to line up the $1.2 million Lenwood Road Grade Separation earmark. So the question is how much influence did Wal-Mart and/or Michael Malik assert with Alaska's Rep. Don Young?

And further, did BNSF Railroad rely soley on the volunteer lobbying effort's of a retiree, Mayor Lawrence Dale; or did BNSF lobbyists also weigh in? BNSF lobbyist Jack Ferguson -- another of Young's "A-Team" lobbyists -- joined a small group, that included Malik and Acalde, which contributed a total of $17,000 to Young on 3.31.08.

You may also want to review these related posts:

• Did earmarks guarantee exclusive casino developmen...
• Federal Earmark: Lenwood Road Grade Separation, Ba...
• Barstow's Official 2008 Lobbying Priorities
• Barstow Industrial Park LLC acquires property with a $22,500,000 mortgage

Young used a generic highway earmark as vehicle to slip through approval of Michigan Indian casino

Rep. Don Young (R-AK) was chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee through 2006.

Under Young's leadership, a $100,000 earmark for a Port Huron transportation study was inserted into a bill (H.R. 3550) that would eventually become the 2005 federal highway spending bill. The earmark was actually intended to quietly slip through congressional approval of a Port Huron Indian casino backed by Michael Malik, members of Detroit's Ilitch family, so-called "A-Team" lobbyists close to Young (Richard Alcalde, Billy Evans, Williams & Jensen) and the Bay Mills Indian Community.

Here's an excerpt from the bill that was reported out favorably by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chaired by Young:

H.R. 3550

To authorize funds for Federal-aid highways, highway safety programs, and transit programs, and for other purposes:

CONGESTION PRICING PILOT PROGRAM.
SEC. 1209. (e) Port Huron, Michigan –

(1) Traffic study- There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $100,000 for a traffic study to be conducted in Port Huron, Michigan, in connection with economic development that may result from the implementation of the agreement of the State of Michigan resolving a title dispute concerning certain property, executed on August 23, 2002, and filed with the Michigan department of State on September 20, 2002.

(2) Ratification of agreement- The agreement is hereby ratified.

(3) Treatment of certain lands- The alternative lands described in the agreement shall be treated as meeting the requirements of section 20(b)(1)(B)(i) of Public Law 100-497 (25 U.S.C. 2719(b)(1)(B)(i)).

(4) Trust- The Secretary of the Interior shall take the alternative lands into trust for the benefit of the non-State party within 60 days of the non-State party's acquisition of the land described in section 4 of the agreement.

(5) Extinguishment of claim- Upon implementation, the claim to the lands of the non-State party described in section 1 of the agreement is hereby extinguished.

Note: the language is carefully crafted so that there was no reference to IGRA, the Bay Mills Indian Community, Charlotte Beach Land Claims, casino development or other key words that would be a tip-off to those who might be tracking or interested in the approval of an off-reservation casino in Port Huron.

You may also want to review these posts:

• Tribe hoped language slipped into Transportation Bill would grant approvals for Port Huron casino
• Tribal leader admits lobbyists were trying to sneak casino plans through Congress without alerting opposition
• A-Team lobbyist's firm was quietly paid $665k to lobby Young on behalf of Michigan casino scheme
• Rep. Don Young's "A-Team"
• Barstow Industrial Park LLC acquires property with a $22.5 million mortgage

Federal Earmark: Lenwood Road Grade Separation, Barstow, CA

NOTE: This project benefits the City of Barstow and provide corporate welfare for BNSF Railway and Wal-Mart which has plans to build a 1 million square foot Distribution Center located 1/4 of a mile from the project site.

2008 Federal Funding Request: $2.5 Million
2005 Federal Funding Appropriation: $1.2 Million

Estimated Total Project Cost: $19 Million

The project is to provide grade separation between Lenwood Road and the BN&SF rail tracks. Lenwood Road is one of the few road crossings over the Mojave River between Lenwood, just west of the City of Barstow and State Highway 58. It is utilized by a disproportionate volume of truck traffic due to this crossing being a “chokepoint” for travel.

This grade separation is part of the Alameda Rail Corridor (East) project that has examined the consequences of additional frequency and train length impacts on local communities.

Lenwood Road is a major truck traffic connection between State Highway 58 to the north of the Mojave River and the community of Lenwood to the south. State Highway 58 carries significant levels of truck traffic from other states via I-15 and Las Vegas and from I40 and points east. Main Street, otherwise known as National Trails Highway (NTH or Route 66) provides access to Barstow and Victorville.

Although there are very good highway linkages between the freeways and State Highway 58, Barstow is a logical stopping point for many truck drivers, either for changing drivers or for mandatory rest stops. Lenwood Road is a route of choice for these trucks.

Significant safety issues that will be mitigated upon completion can further support Lenwood Road grade separation project. The distance between the at-grade crossing and the traffic signal at Main Street is relatively short. Any signal delay, created by maintenance or by an accident may easily cause a “backup” of southbound traffic to the crossing. Although the crossing is “gated”, the potential for error in blocked traffic, leaving a trailer on the tracks with no room to maneuver is high. The reduction in traffic congestion and improvements to air quality may be quantified to demonstrate a high benefit cost ratio for this project.

Project Description: Provide grade separation between Lenwood Road and the BN&SF rail tracks. Funding is requested are to re-implement the environmental documentation through S&E (Plans, Specifications and Estimates).

http://www.sbcounty.gov/legislativeaffairs/documents/2008FederalLegislativePlatform.pdf

Rep. McKeon secures $500,000 for Barstow sewer improvement project

6.27.07

Funds for community project expected to pass the U.S. House tonight

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. House Representative Howard P. "Buck" McKeon (CA-25) today announced that federal dollars are set to be approved by the U.S. House tonight for the revival and advancement of the City of Barstow sewer system. The 2008 Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act includes $500,000 specifically for the City of Barstow Sewer Master Plan Implementation, Phase II.

"The Mojave River Basin has been severely over-drafted throughout the years, and as a result, the quality of the drinking water has been severely declining," said McKeon. "While the directed funds for this community improvement project are modest by comparison, they will significantly improve the quality of life for the residents of Barstow."

City of Barstow Mayor Lawrence Dale, said he was thankful for Congressman McKeon's assistance in securing these funds, especially because of the firm timeline the city faces for water improvement.

"This money comes at a critical time." said Dale. "A Cease-and-Desist Order has been issued by the State Water Quality Control Board requiring us to have measures in place [to reduce contamination of the water table] by June or July of 2009."

Since the 1960s, the City of Barstow's Water Reclamation Facility (WRF) adjacent to the Mojave River has released secondary-treated runoff to seep back into back the water table. In order to comply with the State Water Quality Control Board, the City of Barstow is working to implement Phase II of its Sewer Master Plan. Phase II will expand and upgrade the city's WRF to Tertiary Treatment, allowing the reuse of up to two million of the three million gallons per day currently being treated, and alleviating both the serious overdraft of the Mojave River and contamination of the water table.

Dale went on to say that he "certainly appreciates Buck's efforts to secure funding for the City of Barstow Sewer Master Plan Implementation, and would like to thank him for all his efforts for the community."

House passage of the 2008 Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act bill is expected Tuesday evening.

Submitted by Lindsey Mask, Press Secretary, Howard P. "Buck" McKeon (CA-25)
---------
Posted at http://www.inlandempire.us/news/2007/06/mckeon-secures-500000-for-barstow-sewer.html