2nd District: John McCowen campaigns on his record

The Raven has landed.

The title of this story makes an important point. McCowen has a record. His opponent does not. She says what she will do. He says what he has done and from that we can predict what he will do.

McCowen has proven he has what it takes to successfully carry the opposition to the major development plans that would ruin our valley forever. He has backed up his rhetoric with a solid record of action.

And he is not just saying no to everything. He is in favor of a tax shareiung agreement so the City and County can work together on planning so we can have a sustainable economy. No wonder nothing ever happens. the City and County have been fighting each other for years. McCowen has a plan to change that. He is the change we need on the Board of Supervisors.

Second District Voter wrote:

The title of this story makes an important point. McCowen has a record. His opponent does not. She says what she will do. He says what he has done and from that we can predict what he will do.
McCowen has proven he has what it takes to successfully carry the opposition to the major development plans that would ruin our valley forever. He has backed up his rhetoric with a solid record of action.
And he is not just saying no to everything. He is in favor of a tax shareiung agreement so the City and County can work together on planning so we can have a sustainable economy. No wonder nothing ever happens. the City and County have been fighting each other for years. McCowen has a plan to change that. He is the change we need on the Board of Supervisors.

John has a lot of experience he is good at working with others to get things done. He will be a leader on the Board, something we don't have now. I am worried if Clifton gets in, with her lack of experience, we will just see the same dysfunction.

McCowen has a record alright. The 1st District Appellate Court in San Francisco has made some remarks on record regarding John McCowen's performance as chairman of the county planning commission, like his habit of ignoring public opposition to projects, of disregarding CEQA and other state and federal environmental laws, and his recommendations for good ol' boy projects that EIR's were unnecessary.

As planning commission chairman, McCowen's judgments cost this county millions of dollars in environmental damage and legal fees. Promoting him to supervisor for his arrogance and incompetence is Peter Principle rationale.

Dump the good ol' boys. Get some fresh faces and new energy on the BOS or nothing is going to change.

truth_seeker wrote:

McCowen has a record alright. The 1st District Appellate Court in San Francisco has made some remarks on record regarding John McCowen's performance as chairman of the county planning commission, like his habit of ignoring public opposition to projects, of disregarding CEQA and other state and federal environmental laws, and his recommendations for good ol' boy projects that EIR's were unnecessary.
As planning commission chairman, McCowen's judgments cost this county millions of dollars in environmental damage and legal fees. Promoting him to supervisor for his arrogance and incompetence is Peter Principle rationale.
Dump the good ol' boys. Get some fresh faces and new energy on the BOS or nothing is going to change.

truth-seeker? Hardly? I don't remember reading about any of these cases you talk about. Facts please? Citations?

I do know that McCowen guided the Planning Commission to a 4-3 vote that forced U.S. Cellular to take down there Ukiah cell tower on Spanish Mtn. from 150 feet to 75 feet because they lied to get the original application approved.

It needs to be said that you are one of the pro pot lobby and that is why you attack him. Only one issue is important to you.

The truth is, McCowen has a strong record of standing up to the good old boys and that is why they oppose him.

Ukiah Voter wrote:

<quoted text>
John has a lot of experience he is good at working with others to get things done. He will be a leader on the Board, something we don't have now. I am worried if Clifton gets in, with her lack of experience, we will just see the same dysfunction.

Ukiah voter was already being used.John has alot of experience and most of its good, however he votes against buisness and he votes spend spend spend. You need to go the meetings.

McCowen led the charge in the most divisive, divide and conquer ballot measure campaign in County memory - he is not the coalition builder he claims. Though he's soft pedalling now, he has a demonstrated record as a guy that will go to exteme lengths (i.e. "the ends justify the means") in order to further his personal agenda.

Worse, he feels entitled to lay down the law for the rest of us - an elitist. He regards himself as a legitimate member of the ruling class who knows what's best.

Let him finish out his term on the Ukiah City Council, which he promised the voters prior to his election to that office. Vote Estelle

Spanish Mtn wrote:

<quoted text>It needs to be said that you are one of the pro pot lobby and that is why you attack him. Only one issue is important to you.

Only one issue is important to whom? Why does it have to be claimed that anyone is a pro pot lobbyist if they disagree with your point of view?

Just Asking wrote:

McCowen led the charge in the most divisive, divide and conquer ballot measure campaign in County memory - he is not the coalition builder he claims. Though he's soft pedalling now, he has a demonstrated record as a guy that will go to exteme lengths (i.e. "the ends justify the means") in order to further his personal agenda.
Worse, he feels entitled to lay down the law for the rest of us - an elitist. He regards himself as a legitimate member of the ruling class who knows what's best.
Let him finish out his term on the Ukiah City Council, which he promised the voters prior to his election to that office. Vote Estelle

You do know John McCowen.Add that he doesn't listen to people that disagree with hes views and you have John McCowen.

Spanish Mtn wrote:

<quoted text>
truth-seeker? Hardly? I don't remember reading about any of these cases you talk about. Facts please? Citations?
I do know that McCowen guided the Planning Commission to a 4-3 vote that forced U.S. Cellular to take down there Ukiah cell tower on Spanish Mtn. from 150 feet to 75 feet because they lied to get the original application approved.
It needs to be said that you are one of the pro pot lobby and that is why you attack him. Only one issue is important to you.
The truth is, McCowen has a strong record of standing up to the good old boys and that is why they oppose him.

McCowen doesn't stand up to good old boys; he IS a good old boy.

Look up 1st District Appellate court cases for lawsuits against Mendocino County during the time period he was on the planning commission. Educate yourself instead of spouting campaign slogans & rhetoric. It's obvious you don't know anything about who the real John McCowen is.

BTW, back when John McCowen rented to the first pot dispensary in Ukiah, he was "pro-pot" too! I'd guess that means his ideology is flexible and depends on whether or not he's making money off pot sales.

truth_seeker wrote:

McCowen has a record alright. The 1st District Appellate Court in San Francisco has made some remarks on record regarding John McCowen's performance as chairman of the county planning commission, like his habit of ignoring public opposition to projects, of disregarding CEQA and other state and federal environmental laws, and his recommendations for good ol' boy projects that EIR's were unnecessary.

I would love the opportunity to research the case you are talking about.
Can't find anything on the Appellate site.

http://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca.gov/search...

Do you mind being a bit more specific? Name the case

truth_seeker wrote:

<quoted text>
McCowen doesn't stand up to good old boys; he IS a good old boy.
Look up 1st District Appellate court cases for lawsuits against Mendocino County during the time period he was on the planning commission. Educate yourself instead of spouting campaign slogans & rhetoric. It's obvious you don't know anything about who the real John McCowen is.
BTW, back when John McCowen rented to the first pot dispensary in Ukiah, he was "pro-pot" too! I'd guess that means his ideology is flexible and depends on whether or not he's making money off pot sales.

You seem to have all the knowledge about these court cases. Why don't you tell us what you know? Is it because everything you say is a lie?

Also, please give us the details of the pot dispensary. Did you know there was a torture chamber in the basement?

What will be your next lie?

truth_seeker wrote:

<quoted text>BTW, back when John McCowen rented to the first pot dispensary in Ukiah, he was "pro-pot" too! I'd guess that means his ideology is flexible and depends on whether or not he's making money off pot sales.

Do you remember the name (or address) of the dispensary? That's a hot item, I'm amazed it did not surface during the Measure B shixstorm.

Just Asking wrote:

<quoted text>
Do you remember the name (or address) of the dispensary? That's a hot item, I'm amazed it did not surface during the Measure B shixstorm.

No, "truth-seeker" does not know the name or address because it is not true. You are right, I kind of think we would have heard about it before now.

I am tired. I hate the political season. It seems the political season last 2 years before the race.

Spanish Mtn wrote:

<quoted text>
You seem to have all the knowledge about these court cases. Why don't you tell us what you know? Is it because everything you say is a lie?
Also, please give us the details of the pot dispensary. Did you know there was a torture chamber in the basement?
What will be your next lie?

Why don't you ask John McCowen himself?

mccowen@pacific.net

Ask McCown if he rented one of his buildings to a pot club and post his answer.

Haiku girl wrote:

<quoted text>
I would love the opportunity to research the case you are talking about.
Can't find anything on the Appellate site.
http://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca.gov/search...
Do you mind being a bit more specific? Name the case

This case is a good example of McCowen's record:

http://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca.gov/search...

The most damning evidence about how McCowen operates comes from his own mouth on a tape of a meeting in which he describes the Coalition opposing the gravel permit as just "two people and a dog". What he's really saying is the BOS doesn't have to follow CEQA laws because the "two people and a dog" are nothing to worry about. There's also a very damning and revealing letter from McCowen to the BOS that's marked "confidential" which is included in the Administrative Record on file at the courthouse. In the letter he tells the BOS, among other things, that the environmental consultants representing the Coalition are incompetent and don't know the law. The 1st District Appellate Court judges were unanimous in their decision to reverse the BOS's approval for the permit.

John is a good man: intelligent, independent, and ethical. That is why some folks don't like him. Those are traits not often found in local politicians. He will make a great Supervisor.

Realist wrote:

John is a good man: intelligent, independent, and ethical. That is why some folks don't like him. Those are traits not often found in local politicians. He will make a great Supervisor.

And it is the ethical and independent part that really bothers the Employer Council types like Selzer and Mayfield. They are very wealthy men who are use to getting their way. McCowen has stood up to them for years and has put the public interest first. He has listened to the community and he knows we do not want to lose our small town character. They support the strip mall at Masonite. They know he will stop it if he gets in.

Realist wrote:

John is a good man: intelligent, independent, and ethical. That is why some folks don't like him. Those are traits not often found in local politicians. He will make a great Supervisor.

Intelligent? Cunning, yes. Intelligent...not so much.

Independent? McCowen operates from group-think good old boyism on every issue. That's definitely NOT a sign of an independent thinker.

Ethical? If McCowen were ethical, he wouldn't have violated the Brown Act by having his letter to Shoemaker regarding this project marked "CONFIDENTIAL". McCowen is definitely not an ethical man.

Here's an excerpt from McCowen's letter to Shoemaker:

"The legal and "expert" opinions submitted in opposition were riddled with false assumptions, misleading and inaccurate statements, studies that
weren't comparable and conclusions that were speculative at best. The legal and environmental experts failed to note that the narrative
regarding possible impacts contained in the staff report was incorporated by reference into the Initial Study. This led to numerous false statements and conclusions. The presentation by the opponents is completely lacking in credibility and fails to constitute "evidence" regarding claimed impacts."

The "legal opinion" was submitted from Luke Cole, who is one of the top twenty environmental attorneys in the U.S. and also chairman of the U.S. Senate judicial advisory committee on the EPA.

The "expert opinion" on environmental impacts was submitted by J. Phyllis Fox. Her resume is as follows:

Dr. Fox has over 30 years of experience in the field of environmental engineering, including air
quality management, water quality and water supply investigations, environmental permitting,
nuisance investigations, environmental impact reports, CEQA/NEPA documentation, risk
assessments, and litigation support. Her technical education in environmental engineering and
her broad-based knowledge of environmental regulations and industrial and commercial facilities
has been instrumental in her successful management of a wide variety of environmental projects.
EDUCATION
Ph.D. Environmental/Civil Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 1980.
M.S. Environmental/Civil Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 1975.
B.S. Physics (with high honors), University of Florida, Gainesville, 1971.
Post-Graduate:
S-Plus Data Analysis, MathSoft, 6/94.
Air Pollutant Emission Calculations, UC Berkeley Extension, 6-7/94
Assessment, Control and Remediation of LNAPL Contaminated Sites, API and USEPA, 9/94
Pesticides in the TIE Process, SETAC, 6/96
Sulfate Minerals: Geochemistry, Crystallography, and Environmental Significance,
Mineralogical Society of America/Geochemical Society, 11/00.
Design of Gas Turbine Combined Cycle and Cogeneration Systems, Thermoflow, 12/00
Air-Cooled Steam Condensers and Dry- and Hybrid-Cooling Towers, Power-Gen, 12/01
Combustion Turbine Power Augmentation with Inlet Cooling and Wet Compression,
Power-Gen , 12/01
REGISTRATION
Class I Registered Environmental Assessor, California (REA-00704)
Class II Registered Environmental Assessor, California (REA-20040)
Qualified Environmental Professional, Institute of Professional Environmental
Practice (QEP #02-010007)
Registered Professional Engineer
Arizona: Environmental (#36701)
California: Chemical (#40029)
Florida: Environmental (#57886)

Luke Cole and J. Phyllis Fox provided what McCowen describes as "numerous false statements and conclusions" in their comments about the project and were the "experts" McCowen describes as "lacking in credibility".

John McCowen was an incompetent planning commissioner who's unethical behavior and illegal backroom meetings with the BOS have cost the taxpayers of Mendocino County millions of dollars in unnecessay expenses.