League City reportedly tries to shut down range

[seamusTX]

According to the Galveston County Daily News, the League City council paid an attorney $6,000 to find ways to shut down a shooting range. The range has been in operation for more than 30 years. It was originally outside the city limits, but has been annexed. A developer has shown interest in the land.

This range is one of two public ranges in Galveston County. There are two membership clubs and a range in the Coast Guard facility on Galveston Island, which is not open to the public.

I find it very interesting that the newspaper (which is not a wholehearted supporter of the RKBA) could not find a single resident to complain about the range.

http://news.galvestondailynews.com/stor ... ed91b2d80f

- Jim

[SC1903A3]

Looks like Boss Hogg moved to League City.

[HighVelocity]

City employees scheming with developers. That's a new one.

[LarryH]

If I thought I could do so without going into "rant and rave" mode, I'd sign up for my five minutes to address the council at their next public meeting.

The next step will be to vote for whoever runs against Jerry Shults in the next city election.

[seamusTX]

If I thought I could do so without going into "rant and rave" mode, I'd sign up for my five minutes to address the council at their next public meeting.

If you write up your remarks in advance and rehearse them, you might be able to pull it off.

A few residents showing up at a city council meeting have a huge effect. City councils like to get things done on the QT. They are allergic to controversy.

- Jim

[Kalrog]

City employees scheming with developers. That's a new one.

I'm not sure if that was sarcasm or not... because this certainly isn't new. There was even a SCOTUS case about it (Kelo) a couple of years ago. And Texas has sure been using it to great extent in the Austin area with the new toll roads - built mostly with public money but sending all of the profits to a private foreign company.

Most certainly a soapbox issue.

[Charles L. Cotton]

I would also point out that when an attorney and client meet, the client (city) enjoys the protection of the attorney-client privilege. Since the client here is a city, some information may nevertheless be discoverable in an Open Records Request. However, as soon as you bring a third party into the discussion (developer and/or his lawyer) then the attorney-client privilege is waived and everything is discoverable.

Chas.

[G-Ma]

This is out of today's Galveston Daily News. Though not usually the most reliable news source, even the worst of them stumble on a real story now and then! This infuriates me, and I hope it does you, also. If the bicycle racks and porta-potty that the City Council had set up next to the Police Station, so that the developers could have easier access to illegal workers weren't enough proof, I think that the Mayor, some City employees and perhaps some members of the City Council have now been caught with their pants down and BOTH hands in the cookie jar! What a mind picture!

It's time for these folks to be forced out of office and taught that the citizens of this town didn't elect them to pander to developers! Or any other special interests, for that matter! As I read this article, I could see at least 3, maybe more, criminally actionable offenses. From this story, it seems that Jerry Shults, Chris Reed, Sam Boyd, and Dick Gregg were working secretly to drive an independent businessman out of business, so that they could make his land available to a developer. At the very least, this violates the Open Meetings Act, which was enacted to prevent just this kind of crime.

Thanks to Paulisson and Barber for being on the alert and protecting the taxpayer's interest. They will take a lot of "hits" on this one, so they need our support. There are a bunch of members of the City Council that are in the pockets of the developers and will make life a living hell for these two. Let's let them know that we are behind them. Let's also let Shults, et al, know that they'd better straighten up and fly right. We need to vote them out at the next
election. They are crooked by this report!

Most of League City is in Zip Code 77573. You can go to Page 9 of the List of CHL's:

http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/administra ... Issued.pdf

issued by Zip Code and find that this Zip Code issued 414 CHL's in the past year. Far above the normal single digits reported for most other Zip Codes. Why? Because League City has become a Sanctuary City, thanks to our City Council, many of whom have been bought off by developers and have been placed in office through developer contributions. Citizens no longer feel safe in this city.

There have been numerous citizen complaints about the hazards and dangers posed by the illegals that gather by the Police Station and the little convenience stores, but City Council has ignored them all. I have made several complaints, including appearing in person before Council, to tell them about the attempted rapes that I have survived by the illegal lawn men and the dangers that they pose to the women, especially elderly women, which the perps seem to prefer, in our community. All our complaints have fallen on deaf ears. When I told a local Policeman that I saw illegal alien lawn men trying to buy guns at a Gun Show in Pasadena, he said that they knew that the lawn men had guns in our neighborhoods and carry a lot of cash ($2000-3000), because they don't use banks, and they steal from each other ... in our neighborhoods! If the Police know this, and it is illegal for an illegal to have a gun in the US, why doesn't our City Council do something about it? Just more proof that they are more loyal to the developers than they are to the Citizens of League City, which they are sworn to serve and protect.

So, here's my question: If League City has more gun license holders per capita than any other Zip Code, wouldn't City Council want to keep an established business that allows gun owners to maintain their skills and safety, thus enhancing public safety? Not to mention all the voters that those gun owners represent, who would vote against the Mayor and his cronies in the next election! There is power in numbers, and the Zip Code info shows that gun owners have the power in League City. Hmmm..... Wonder if Shults knows this? Or, is he just so arrogant that he doesn't care?

We need to show up en masse at the next Council meeting and let them know how we feel about this. All City Council meetings are now televised. Citizen comments at these meetings embarrass the Council and seem to be the only thing that they react to in favor of the citizen taxpayers.



There is power in numbers!

The next League City Council meeting should be 1/8 at 6 pm, because of a break for the Christmas and New Year's Holidays. Citizens of League City are allowed to make comments, however, others are allowed to attend to support citizens making comments. The audience shows up on the cameras, and a huge attendance would serve to make a point. Here's what the City Council report says about citizen appearance and comments:

"CITIZENS REQUEST FOR HEARING BEFORE CITY COUNCIL

The privilege of speaking at this time is limited to the following persons: residents, persons having an ownership interest in property or a business located within the City, or their attorneys.

(A statement of no more than 3 minutes may be made on items of general relevance. There will be no yielding of time to another person. State law prohibits the Mayor and members of the City Council from commenting on any statement or engaging in dialogue without an appropriate agenda item being posted in accordance with the Texas Open Meetings Law. Comments should be directed to the entire Council, not individual members. Engaging in verbal attacks or comments intended to insult, abuse, malign or slander any individual shall be cause for termination of time privileges and expulsion from Council Chambers.)"

According to what I read in the City Code:

"ARTICLE II. CITY COUNCIL

Sec. 2-31. Time and place of meetings; notice of meetings.
(a) Regular meetings of the city council shall be held on the second and fourth Tuesday of the months of January through October beginning at 6:00 p.m., in the city council chambers; however, city council shall have the option to change, by resolution, the regular meeting dates in the months in which CCISD Spring Break occurs to begin at such times as resolved by city council in the city council chambers. Regular meetings in the months of November and December shall be held on dates as resolved by city councilat 6:00 p.m., in the city council chambers. Special meetings may be called in accordance with article II, section 10, of the Charter.
(b) Notice of all meetings shall be given as required by the Open Meetings Act, V.T.C.A., Government Code § 551.001 et seq.
(Code 1968, § 2-12; Ord. No. 178, 9-22-1977; Ord. No. 252, 7-24-1980; Ord. No. 82-14, 5-27-1982; Ord. No. 95-62, § 2, 5-25-1995; Ord. No. 96-04, § 2, 2-6-1996; Ord. No. 96-70, § 2, 10-10-1996; Ord. No. 2003-48, § 2, 8-26-2003; Ord. No. 2003-66, § 2, 10-28-2003; Ord. No. 2006-14, § 2, 1-14-2006; Ord. No. 2006-59, § 2, 6-13-2006)"

The next City Council Meeting of the League City City Council must be:

January 8, 2008 at 6:00 pm. You have to show up early and sign up on a book at the lecturn in front of the City Council to be allowed to speak. If you don't get there in time to get your name in the book, you don't get to speak. Please, let's all attend and let Mayor Shults and his cronies know just what we think about his underhanded treatment of our friend, our 2nd Amendment rights, and the good taxpaying citizens of League City. Will you join me? Maybe, this time, they'll listen, when we tell them that there were 414 CHL's issued in just the past year, alone, and I believe, that is in direct response to City Council's cow-towing to the developers at the expense of the safety and security of the citizens of League City.

[seamusTX]

I'm impressed.

- Jim

[G-Ma]

Fine. But will you join me?

[seamusTX]

Fine. But will you join me?

I have no standing in League City. I don't live there. I'll certainly help with research or drafting remarks.

One comment that popped into my head is that the right to keep and bear arms is not too useful if you can't practice legally anywhere in the city. It's also an inconvenience for hunters who will have to travel somewhere else to sight in their rifles.

- Jim

[WildBill]

Fine. But will you join me?

I'd be glad to join you. I am a fairly new resident of League City and have never been to a City Council meeting in my life! I did some checking and Ernest Randall has owned the shooting range for 30 years. He's had a stellar career at NASA and has been a member of the League City Chamber of Commerce and Business Association. He sounds like an upstanding person who deserves our support.

[DoubleJ]

City councils like to get things done on the QT. They are allergic to controversy.

- Jim

that anything like the DL (DownLo)?

[seamusTX]

http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-ont2.htm

- Jim

[DoubleJ]

interesting read, Jim, thanka!