By Jasen Pesick, Staff Writer Daily Bulletin
Two Rialto city councilmen have called a 6 p.m. town hall meeting today in council chambers to discuss the city's perchlorate contamination and cleanup efforts, but it remains unclear just exactly who will show up or what will be discussed.
A flier attached to a letter signed by Councilmen Joseph Sampson and Ed Scott advertises an "Urgent Town Hall Meeting on Perchlorate" and touts a number of invited guest speakers.
However, many of the guest speakers listed say they were never invited - the flier and attached letter were the first they ever heard of the meeting scheduled for a Friday evening before a holiday weekend.
The councilmen explain that the letter and flier were intended to serve as invitations to the guest speakers, which included assemblymen, county supervisors, as well as school district and local water officials.
"I don't think anyone knew about it until the letter went out," said Davin Diaz of the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice, one of the few guest speakers who expects to attend the meeting.
"We don't think it's the correct way to run a meeting," said Manny Hernandez, chief of staff for City Council candidate Joe Baca Jr. Hernandez said he did not know if his boss would be able to attend due to the late notice, but would try to send a representative.
The letter was issued the night before a meeting between city and county leaders intended to discuss a lawsuit filed by the city against 40 corporations regarding perchlorate contamination in the city's north end. The chemical used in rocket fuels and other explosives has contaminated wells throughout Rialto and is believed to cause thyroid problems. However, that meeting quickly devolved into a bickering match that ended after 20 minutes with nothing resolved.
The invited guest speakers listed in the letter include Carole Beswick, chairwoman of the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board; San Bernardino County supervisors Bill Postmus and Josie Gonzales; California Assembly members Gloria Negrete McLeod and Baca; Diaz; and Sujatha Jahagirdar of Environment California.
Jahagirdar and Diaz said they are likely attend today's meeting. Most of the other invited guests said that while they may not attend, they may send staffers.
The letter states that the purpose of the meeting is to hold "the responsible polluters accountable for the cleanup."
"We didn't try to do anything to hamper people attending it," Sampson said.
Scott, when told of the guest speakers' complaints, said, "They can either show up or not."
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It was obvious to me that they didn't want or care that the citizens that Voted them into power Were there to give them input!! Typical Rialto Politics! Ed Scott wanting to be the dictator, gets his marching orders from the City Attorney, who more then likely said that they city was not responsible for the Perchlorate Poisoning of the grown water, they should blame the county. Owens the Feared Apostle who is a Champion for the cause. and always gives his Client the right Council. Owens may sometimes fudge on the right advice to his client, but he is always the right Council to Propose your problem and then plead your case. Why would you not want one of the highest paid lawyers in the state of California on your side to promote your case.
Never mind that when the City Council the main Client that he has wanted to Change from their 75+ year old Police department to Contract with the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, Owens brought out ever thing that he could, Case law, Frivolous law, full fledged Civil Law, Voter's Registration Law, Voters rights law, He stood before the Judge in Court Four times to be heard or was it five? Well Every time that he was in front of the Judge He presented just a great Case, that he was interrupted in the middle and told that he was not going to listen to Minor case law that was going to disrupt the court and cause a huge scene, so the court was closed and an injunction was placed and each time the High Paid, City of Rialto Lawyer Lost!!
Now rather then work with the County of San Bernardino, and the city of Riverside, and Colton, the City of Rialto has found it in their hearts to fight with the County of San Bernardino once again to try to shovel the cost of the clean up of the Perchlorate from the water to the county from the City Owned Wells (6 City wells have been known to be effected). Rather then try to cut the cost for the services to everyone and clean the water, they want to make it cost more then ever for everyone!!
Why, does Ed Scott, Owens, Sampson, Robertson, Hanson, Garcia, and the rest think that they are not responsible for their wells producing the Perchlorate in their area????The people that are actually responsible have long since past away, and are sitting 6' underground in the Rialto Cemetery, San Bernardino County Cemetery, the Fontana' city Cemetery. Because they were the ones that fought in the world war one. World war two. they are the ones that stored the Ammunitions at the Rialto Airport, Mind I say that they were stored at the Rialto Airport. I know that at one time that was all county land and that might be what their argument is, but again it is a mute argument. lets get on with the project and work for the people that have elected you to the position that you currently hold... NOT Calling LAST MINUTE MEETINGS, SO NO ONE WILL SHOW!!
BSRanch
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