Letter: Keep Davis on council
To the community,
Tom Davis first came into our lives in the ’70s when he worked at Sahara Tahoe as the pilot for their luxury yacht. He has been very supportive of Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care since the organization started in April 1978, offering his experience and support to help in the growth.
During our time of friendship, Davis has always been a community person. A South Lake Tahoe community person, specifically. His love for South Lake Tahoe has been evident with the 12 years he has served on the City Council as well as the four times he served the city as mayor. His firsthand knowledge of the city is matched by few and his leadership skills have shown him as a proven leader within our government.
He has championed a number of projects within the city that show he can get things accomplished.
We need his continued service on our City Council. Cheryl and I recommend you vote for Tom Davis for City Council on Nov. 4.
Tom and Cheryl Millham, Meyers
No longer being a voter in the City, it’s not for me to suggest how current residents should vote. But folks still seeking the truth about the current kerfuffle over employee health benefits should keep in mind that Tommy, dating back to the mid-eighties, has signed numerous annual Memorandums of Understanding with the employees, agreeing to the terms of retiree health benefits originally proposed and implemented by the City staff (and from which he’s apparently benefited substantially) without once suggesting that perhaps these benefits should be funded.
Tom Davis and Ted Long were for Measure B in 2006 that was the High Growth Measure that passed by only about 800 votes in the County but was rejected by Tahoe voters by 60%. Now we have Measures M and O trying to slow down the gridlock in Placerville.
Tom Davis had insisted for years that the airport needs the subsidy of $400k each and every year that is now in the Millions and evidently is a noose around South Lake Tahoe neck because we are in debt from grant to the tune of $27 Million.
Tom Davis wanted to fight the “Indian” Casinos to the end… well how did that work out and how much was just wasted time and effort that should have been used to actually get prepared and diversify South Lake Tahoe.
Tom Davis thinks that there is not problem with plastic bags because people go out and pick up the trash for free… for ever.
Tom, sorry but no thanks.
No tom davis, no way…
Davis all the way, he really cares about south Lake Tahoe.
Tom was the ONLY council member that listened to his constituents on the paid parking fiasco. He also was the ONLY member to listened to his constituents when we wanted to VOTE on paid parking! My vote goes to the council members that can remember who they represent. Now get out the vote!!
Buck, not to prolong my “outsider” participation here, but your paid parking fiasco was tailor made, albeit perhaps not intentionally, for lightweight politicians to posture and take populist stands. I,likewise, opposed the paid parking craziness from far away Gardnerville, but I actually believe that it was a contest between the local politicians who saw an advantageous issue on which to score some points with their opposition, and the rest who were too dumb to think the issue all the way through. I mean, on what planet do voters actually support parking meters? Nevertheless, were any of them actually providing reasonable support for the public good?
Tom Davis has screwed the City Employees to the point that they are the most un-happy work force in Tahoe, he has gone back on his promise’s for years that he and Hal Cole and others made to them and thinks only of himself and what will benefit him, not what is best for the City residents.
No Tom, YOUR NO GOOD FOR SO.LAKE TAHOE.
The taxpayers of South Lake Tahoe shouldn’t be footing the bill for city employees to ride the government gravy train.
Tom Davis stood up for the taxpayers. He has my vote, and the vote of every person in this community that wants to put an end to unrealistic compensation for employment in the public sector at the expense of the taxpayers.
I doubt tax payers care much about city employee “morale”. Public sector workers are the elite class in this town given their pay and benefits.
We ALL love SLT – so that’s NOT a good enough reason to vote for someone. Tom Davis has had his chance – 12 YEARS already – where he made a heck of a lot of BAD, very EXPENSIVE decisions! And yet voters keep electing/re-electing the same clique. It’s past time for someone new.
Tom Has not done everything wrong or everything right. It is, however, time for new thought and he should be replaced.
Tom is like the guy who claims 20 years of experience at a job, but analysis shows what he really had was one year of experience 20 times.
SLT is a Good-old-Boy town and until this can be amended nothing will change.
Got to get rid of the city council Good old Boy centric style, sooner the better.
SLT needs to quit looking backward, and to look to different ways to prosper. For years the focus was gaming and Casinos, and the era of that is gone.
Total focus on tourism has that same pitfall and what I see is a constant effort to attract and skin the tourists for every dollar in their pockets. This obviously also affects the expenses incurred by those of us who live here.
The tourists will also notice and flee. There are not enough of the “1 percenters” to keep the town alive.
BitterClinger
If you had worked there for 30 years and taken a $1200 Dollar a month cut in pay to have that Benefit I think you would be upset also, Now they have taken that benefit away from those that earned it and Given a large Pay Increase to the already over paid employees. The City Manager makes more in 2 [TWO] months than I make in 1 [ONE} YEAR and she still gets her benefits.
You should learn the facts before you shoot off your mouth. There are about 90 employees that have been retired for 20+ years that earned those benefits and should be Grandfathered in because the big raises started about 1998 when the employees started getting large raises, Check your facts.
Wondering – would you like some cheese with that whine?
Give me a break.
What happens in the private sector is brutal compared with the exorbitant pay & benefits of a public sector job.
I know people who lost pensions and benefits post-retirement due to companies that filed for bankruptcy.
If the benefits & pay at the City of South Lake Tahoe are so bad, go find another job where you can have it better.
Until then, do some research on the real world before running off at the mouth.
A.B.
Sorry A.B. Don’t drink or smoke, I didn’t loose my pension benefits, I lost the medical benefit that I gave up $1200 a month for. Lucky for me that I have medicare that every employee has to go on when they turn 65 so the $1200 a month salary that I lost was supposed to cover my medication that only cost the City $380 a month.
so much for good faith bargaining. I don’t feel that it is exorbitant pay & benefits when you give up $1200 dollars a month for a promise of $380 dollars a month. and if you did your home work you would fine out that the City took millions from the Medical Insurance Reserve that was put away for the retirees, so that they could balance the budget from their poor spending habits that have put them in the position they are in today.
You should fine out what your talking about before shooting off your mouth.
They have lost the majority of there top employees and you will soon see the results of that.
I’m not running off at the mouth, Just giving you the facts.
Have a great Day
I agree with Cranky Gerald. Out with the old.
A.B. Has it right the private sector is brutal compared with the public sector. Lose pay and benefits in the private sector, so what. Happens every day, welcome to the jungle.
it does not matter, all of those folks running are on the same Team.
I have no empathy for public sector employees whatsoever. They are overpaid, over compensated, and if things are so bad for them, they can find another job. They never do, because they’re feeding from the taxpayer trough with no end in sight!
Cranky Gerald, great comment regarding 1 year of experience 20 times. Excellent.
How many chances should SLT give Davis to get it right? When I think of what he has given this community, I come up with vacation rental mayhem, costly decisions on redevelopment, and the list goes on. Can this community come up with new ideas and new blood, rather than giving those like Davis 20 years more of same old… He has moved in like a bad relative and refuses to leave. He sure knows who to schmooze, I’ll say that.