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The Town of Southwest Ranches, Corrections Corporation of American (CCA), and DHS / ICE want to build one of the largest immigration detention centers in the nation within walking distance of thousands of homes; thus, reducing the quality of our life and our community. We do not agree with the federal government privatizing our immigration detention centers throughout the nation when there is clear evidence that privatizing our prisons creates a clear public safety threat. For ICE to continue to privatize these institutions and bring this safety threat through their "secure communities Initiative" to our community is unacceptable. Depriving someone of their liberty is a non-delegable governmental function and privatizing of such a function is infecting our nation like a virus.

The Town of Southwest Ranches has now entered into it's THIRD Fire Contract within the last year now with the Town of Davie, costing taxpayers $120,000 in ramp up fees. They are now closing several roads in western Southwest Ranches charging the tax payers $80,000 for the gates. They have paid an unknown amount of money for lobbying with ICE regarding this prison. They have several lawsuits against the Town, 1- Involving Open Meeting Violations on a November 5th meeting concerning the ICE Detention Center, 2- Open Records Violations, and 3- The Town is putting together a lawsuit to sue Pembroke Pines for breach of contract because the City utilized their exit clause and cancelled for convenience their Fire/EMS contract which included water and sewer at the last minute for the CCA prison. In the contract it states that there should be no third party beneficiaries. CCA would be a third party in this instance.

CCA has also filed suit in Federal court against the City of Pembroke Pines saying they are denying them water however the City had never seen a water application. The City did file for a Declaratory Judgement in State Court but that has been put on hold until the Federal Court hears the suit from CCA.

Is ANYONE CONFUSED as to why the Pembroke Pines/Southwest Ranches Fire Agreement was cancelled? The Town Attorney Keith Poliakoff attempted to "slip" into the agreement a portion that guaranteed water for the prison at CCA's request. This is something that should have been brought up separately. CCA should have brought it forward on their own in a water application. This is sleight of hand that CCA and the Town attempted to do because they were so afraid of CCA being on the Pembroke Pines agenda.

As of June 2012, ICE put out a statement that the site selection was no longer needed due to the fact that the extra bedspace was no longer needed. READ UPDATE HERE!


Tuesday, August 7, 2012

The Nelson Vendetta

Do you know any of Jeff Nelson's history with Pembroke Pines?


Let us help you better acquaint you with the Mayor's past dealings with Pembroke Pines.  Jeff Nelson started working for the Pembroke Pines Golf course managing the pro-shop for $15,000/year in September of 1983 shortly after the City purchased the golf course and Nelson was later elevated to managing the entire golf course.   Since 1982, when the City purchased the golf course, it had lost about 2 million dollars during 8 of those years Nelson was in charge.  So, the City decided to privatize the golf course in 1993 giving up municipal management.

Incidentally, his father Charles Nelson was a Pembroke Pines commissioner at the time and voted against the privatization.  Is this vote a surprise... but hey, of course he wouldn't possibly want his son to be out of a job.  If his son Jeff were out of a job, then he might have to move back home !! So, the City offered Jeff a job at another facility.  Jeff turned that down and decided to file a lawsuit against Pembroke Pines, instead.  He won the lawsuit and the Judge awarded him $282,000 for his nine years of service for letting a facility run at a loss creating a 2 million dollar hole.  WOW!  If we all could be so lucky!  But, in all seriousness, any business looking at any sort of loss is going to look at replacing the management.  The fact that he walked away with this hefty sum seems idiotic, but that was the judgement.

We don't know about you, but we think that this shows a pattern.  We believe Jeff Nelson clearly has it out for Pembroke Pines now given he has a history of suing Pines.  In addition to his demonstrated litigiousness he also seems to have established a pattern of not being able to manage money.  Why did the golf course lose so much money and what fault lies with Nelson for this?  Consider the financial decisions he's made FOR Southwest Ranches. These range from the purchasing of parks in the Town which at one point saddled Southwest Ranches with over $30 million in completely unfunded obligations, to possible vicarious land deals with Ira Cor, to Richard Rubin's grant writing with wife Diana Wasserman Rubin, or the Prison plans that were not made so public. Also, he was willing to recklessly increase the prison bed count to get increased profits while it isn't in the best interest of the surrounding schools nor residents who have kids going to those schools.  This really shows poor leadership, poor financial responsibility, and poor judgement.

He even lists his specialty as "School & Education" on his bio on the Town Website.  We don't see where he was using these skills when he said "the school board should have looked at what was zoned for that area"..  when asked about the prison plats close proximity to the newly built West Broward High school.  Perhaps Mr. Nelson should have warned Broward County School Board that they were going to build a state of the art $140 million high school 1.1 miles from an immigration prison.  Is this the man you want to be Mayor of OUR TOWN? Do you want someone that is supported by Lawyers, Lobbyists and Private Prison companies just so they can remain in power of the Town and get more $$?

Feel free to review the following references:
Pines Ordered to pay Ex-Worker Sun Sentinel May 3, 1996
City to appeal decision  - Sun Sentinel May 9, 1996
Jeff Nelson recklessly agrees to increase of bed space from 1500 to 2200!! -
Email between Keith Poliakoff, Sam Poole (CCA Atttorney) and Mayor Jeff Nelson
Cash Cow - Broward-Palm Beach New Times, Bob Norman
Ira Cor FBI Sting - Broward-Palm Beach New Times, Bob Norman
Jeff Nelson's Campaign Contributions



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1 comment:

  1. JAQUEBAUERAugust 7, 2012 at 3:42 PM

    Good investigative work. Sooner or later, the rats are exposed. But as rats carry diseases, the other rats in the city Regime must also be infected with the same disease. The only cure for the once fine city of SW Ranches is a rodent control program in the city offices.

    ReplyDelete

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