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<DIV>Thanks again to David Johnson of the Lewiston Tribune for an insightful
article on an important regional topic. </DIV>
<DIV>DJ’s piece on the Hawkins deal (below) explains both the hubris of the
commissioners and their rejection of the legal concerns.</DIV>
<DIV>The commissioners have raised economic development to a religious fervor,
and no reality will be allowed in the way.</DIV>
<DIV>BL</DIV>
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<H1><FONT face="Times New Roman"><FONT style="FONT-SIZE: 18pt">Whitman County
attorney is wary of Hawkins deal </FONT></FONT></H1>
<P><STRONG><FONT face="Times New Roman">By David Johnson of the Tribune |
Posted: Tuesday, January 10, 2012 12:00 am </FONT></STRONG></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">COLFAX - A cautious Whitman County Prosecutor
Denis Tracy said Monday barring a legal challenge, the recent decision for the
county to spend another $5.9 million on shopping center infrastructure is a
"done deal."</FONT></P>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">This despite Tracy outlining prior to a vote 14
major problems with the amended contract.</FONT></P>
<DIV style="DISPLAY: none" class=tncms-restricted-notice>
<DIV
class="restricted-text ui-widget ui-widget-header ui-state-error"></DIV><FONT
face="Times New Roman">"I do have to be a little careful because I am still the
attorney for the board," Tracy said, "although I'm not their attorney
individually."</FONT></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">County Commissioners Greg Partch and Patrick
O'Neill last week voted to fund what amounts to $15 million to further entice
Hawkins Companies to build the mall adjacent to the state line.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">Commissioner Michael Largent, citing a need for
more legal review, asked unsuccessfully to have the measure tabled and then
voted against passage.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">"They've signed the contract and bound Whitman
County," Tracy said.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">In a Dec. 28, 2011, memo sent to county elected
officials and judges, Tracy asserted the proposed amendment to the initial
contract with Hawkins was illegal. He also called it a risk "equivalent of
taking the kids' college fund to Vegas."</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">Tracy wrote it is "unlikely" the county could
make payments on the kind of loan necessary to pay for the
venture.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">Hawkins wants the county to pay the lion's share
of costs for infrastructure, such as streets, water and sewer services. The
county would own the improvements while Hawkins would be able to offer a better
deal to potential mall occupants, like Lowe's home improvement, which has been
named as one of the possible anchor businesses.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">Jeff DeVoe, spokesman for Hawkins, last month
requested the additional $5.9 million in infrastructure during an open
commission meeting. But after that meeting, the amended contract was drafted and
eventually passed with no public hearing and little or no public
input.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">Partch, the commission chairman, would not allow
any oral input, even from Tracy, at last week's meeting.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">This despite much public discussion, a public
hearing and solicitation of written public comment prior to when the first
Hawkins contract, worth $9.1 million for infrastructure, was adopted.
Information was also posted on the county's website the first time
around.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">More than two dozen people attended last week's
meeting, but were told by Partch they could not speak. He said the meeting was a
"business meeting." Tracy attempted to speak, but was denied the
floor.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">The commissioners, Tracy confirmed, met
individually with Hawkins representatives prior to the vote.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">Those meetings, Tracy said, were allowed by law,
as long as the commissioners didn't share their discussions with each other,
either directly or through a third party. Tracy said the law requires
commissioners discuss all business between themselves in open
meetings.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">Asked if he, as the commission's attorney, would
have preferred commissioners to have met with Hawkins representatives in public
and hammered out an amendment to the original contract, Tracy said, "I think I'm
prohibited from answering that question."</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">He did, however, offer a timeline for his own
involvement with the commissioners.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">"They first came to me on Dec. 14th and asked me
to look at it (the proposed amendment to the initial contract)," Tracy said. "On
Dec. 27th, I gave them a seven-page memo along with approximately 50 pages of
attachments outlining what I felt were major problems with this
deal."</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">On the following day, Tracy said he gave the
commissioners another two-page memo outlining additional problems with the
proposal. Tracy declined to disclose specifics in the memos.</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">"I also specifically requested to review any
changes," Tracy said. "They came up with their revised proposal, which partially
addressed two of the 14 major problems that I see with the
proposal."</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">Legalities aside, Tracy wrote in his memo he
doubts the county will have the financial wherewithal to recoup its costs. "As
far as I can tell," he wrote, "from all the information provided, there will
probably not be enough tax revenue generated to pay for the bonds the county
will have to issue to fund this gamble."</FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV class=encrypted-content>
<P><FONT face="Times New Roman">The county, according to Tracy's memo, could be
obligated to pay nearly $23 million in principle and interest payments over the
next 20 years. The entire deal, however, is moot if Hawkins fails to begin
development by 2014, according to the
contract.</FONT></P></DIV></DIV></DIV></BODY></HTML>