Author Archives: M_Blank

An Interesting Response

I submitted a public records request to the governor’s office.  I asked for the documents that were supposed to have been sent to them from the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority (FKAA) regarding Bob Dean’s residency issue.  Here is the response … Continue reading

Posted in Bubba System, FKAA, State government | Tagged , | Leave a comment

More Good News!

Updated to include a link to the judge’s ruling.  Yay! The swap agreement between Monroe County and the Key Largo Wastewater Treatment District (District) cleared another hurdle today.  The bond validation hearing went smoothly. Four years after I raised the funding … Continue reading

Posted in BOCC, Bubba System, Key Largo Wastewater Treatment District, Key Largo's contribution, KLWTD, Wastewater | Leave a comment

Toppino Project History

Richard Toppino of Charley Toppino & Sons has recently been appointed to the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority (FKAA) board.  He will  replace Melva Wagner who resigned in September after it became publicly known that she no longer lived in the Keys … Continue reading

Posted in Bubba System, Conflict of Interest, FKAA, State government | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Silver Lining

Keys government needs a good scrubbing.  There’s no doubt about that.  What’s happening at the school district right now is incredibly disheartening. Even so, there are School Board members and Audit and Finance Committee members who are expressing strong disapproval and … Continue reading

Posted in BOCC, Bubba System, Monroe County, School District | 1 Comment

Connecting the Dots – Richard Toppino

Richard Toppino’s appointment to the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority (FKAA) board is, in my mind, extremely questionable. Mr. Toppino was very clear in his application for the position.  He is an officer at two companies that do a significant amount of … Continue reading

Posted in Bubba System, Conflict of Interest, FKAA, State government | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Gambling With the Future

A few days ago, I wrote a blog post about the county administrator’s contract renewal.  While I acknowledged that the county administrator had done a good job in some respects, those successes have been overshadowed by inexcusable failures.  The taxpayers are still paying … Continue reading

Posted in BOCC, Bubba System, Monroe County | 1 Comment

Interesting Choice

Gov. Rick Scott appointed Richard Toppino to the seat vacated by Melva Wagner on the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority Board (FKAA).  It’s an extremely interesting choice as Toppino’s family business does a lot of work with the FKAA.  Potential conflicts … Continue reading

Posted in Bubba System, Conflict of Interest, FKAA, State government | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Great News!

SENATE PANEL OK’S FLORIDA KEYS STEWARDSHIP ACT, FUNDING WATER QUALITY, PROTECTION.  

Posted in Florida Keys Stewardship Act, State government | Leave a comment

One Week From Today

My understanding is that the bond validation hearing will take place on December 10, one week from today. The bond validation hearing is the next step in putting the swap agreement into action.  The swap agreement will allow for the … Continue reading

Posted in BOCC, Bubba System, Key Largo Wastewater Treatment District, Key Largo's contribution, KLWTD, State government, Wastewater | Tagged | Leave a comment

It’s Time For a Change

From KeysNews.com:  Gastesi requests contract extension. I don’t care much for Gastesi.  I think he’s sleazy and I don’t like how he operates.  He’s been caught in numerous false statements and questionable acts – more than enough to terminate him for cause.  In my … Continue reading

Posted in BOCC, Bubba System, Monroe County | 1 Comment