The Ol' Bait-And-Switch

Several months back, registered lobbyist Tom McEnery (didn't he used to have another career? Car salesman or something?) showed up outside City Hall, hat in hand. "I've got a plan," he said. "Lay some cash on me, and I'll make San Pedro Square super great," he said. "It's not for me, it's for the city," he said. Since his pal Dean Munro was at the Redevelopment Agency, and his pal Chuck Reed was the "Mayor", the city stepped up to the plate and decided to invest $6 million in Urban Markets, LLC's venture.

To be fair, though, only $2.5 million of that went to Urban Markets to improve buildings in the area. Yes, a ridiculous amount to give to wealthy developers to fix up their own buildings, but it came with $3.5 million to make actual street improvements. After all, what's $2.5 million among friends? And these guys look like they need the money.


Wait for it...

From a memo from last week that a tipster sent in:


Ah, the great McEnery/Swenson bailout package of 2008. So Barry Swenson, whose net worth is in the low 18-figures, needs our help to make this project work. Let's all pitch in, folks! It's the spirit of the times! Instead of a lousy $2.5 million hand-out, let's crank that up to $5 million. Investing $3.5 million in public infrastructure is extravagant anyway. We can do that for a mill, I'm sure.

I like how the memo (issued by the RDA in advance of the December 8th Council meeting), specifically says, "Rather than abandon efforts to create an urban market..." Why not just cut to the chase, guys, and say, "Rather than abandon Urban Markets, LLC..."? Isn't that a little closer to the truth?

Mind you, half the money is a "loan" from the City. Perhaps, as the tipster notes, this loan will be similar to the loan to Camera Cinemas got. Now renegotiated, they pay pennies on the dollar. At least they show movies. And the Swenson/McEnery loan is at a friendly 3% interest rate, when bonds issued for the RDA return almost 7%. That's a sound investment.

Since no one else is going to do it, we'll call a pig a pig. From a new scoreboard at the Arena, where McEnery is also an in-house lobbyist, to the attempt to convert the downtown fire station into some sort of theatre and apartments benefitting McEnery, to attempts to turn management of the Civic Auditorium over to McEnery's employers, to this $5 million bailout - no one has been more direct at trying to convert political influence into money than Tom McEnery. And yet even today, he sits at San Jose Inside and pontificates on the future of the Valley as though he's just a simple former Mayor, providing humble insight.

Your time is almost up, Tom. Hope the downturn hasn't hurt your 401k too badly, because it's about time you went into retirement.