Where Are They?
On FFFF’s last post we got some comments from a frequent FFFF critic who was trying desperately to justify the idiotic Trail to Nowhere, the disembodied, half-mile, $2,000,000 taxpayer funded boondoggle that serves no apparent useful purpose. One sentence in the one of this person’s comments is worth posting about because it so clearly points to a complete failure of the Trail to Nowhere to be a facility that anybody would use.
The inability of its advocates to describe real persons, any real persons who might want to use this trail has been one of FFFF’s most frequent criticisms of it. Instead we have been presented with the same generalities and clichés over and over and over and over again. Trails good. Healthy children good. Poor need services. Trees good. Fresh air. Blue sky. Cars bad. Bikes good. Good things for south Fullerton. Right-of-way conversion good.
But back to our visitor. Here’s the quotation:
“So say you lived in a home near UP Park and wanted to ride a bicycle to the DMV.“
In and of itself this comment is just an absurd disconnect from reality in so many ways; but it points to the inability of Trail to Nowhere boosters to describe real users of the proposed project that could justify its cost; and it’s the reason they stick to useless generalities.
The grant application for the Trail to Nowhere is full of useless general statistics of an area with absolutely no connection to the specific land use of the immediately surrounding area – present or future. From these general numbers (half of which are north of the BNSF tracks and not even germane) our City staff educed all sorts of things that aren’t remotely true. Things like connectivity to businesses, to Downtown Fullerton; connectivity between east and west Fullerton, and between schools, etc. In one of the most breathtaking of outright lies, the creators of the application claim to the State of California that they project annual users at 105,000.
Others, like our visitor, have even relied on the dearest hope of all bureaucrats looking for make-work stuff they can’t justify: if you build it “they” (somebody, somehow, somewhere) will come. Of course there is no accountability when something fails. Suddenly, no one is around anymore to take the rap, even if government culture had a rear view mirror (it doesn’t).
The Trail to Nowhere is the brain child of the long gone, $100,000 per-year pensioner, Susan Hunt. More recently it was shepherded along by Hugo Curiel and the egregious Alice Loya; the former was fired and the latter just retired. Six City Managers have presided over this incompetence from soup to nuts, and the latest can blame the other five if he needs to.
Only in this environment of unaccountability could anybody propose a project without being able to give a specific and credible analysis of who would actually use the facility.
This is reminiscent of all those Redevelopment boondoggles and disasters in Fullerton that nobody was ever responsible for. And like the City Yard fiasco. And the stolen sidewalk.
Things become ancient history in Fullerton the very next day. Move on, nothing to see here. Hindsight is 20/20.
If you actually take the time to go down to the site the VERY FIRST things you ask yourself is who on earth is going to use this and why would they.
Phase 1 has been there for 20 years and NOBODY uses it except gangs and homeless. The trash and graffiti tell the story, money spent here was a total waste, a dead loss.
The problem with government activity is that if it fails nobody is responsible. In this case all the fraudulent statements will go unpunished because no one at the State even cares. Their job is to unload lots of money and how effectively it was spent is none of their concern. In fact if malfeasance and chicanery took place to get it, they absolutely don’t want to know. Knowledge leads to complicity and guilt. Better to look the other way, and if necessary, to circle the wagons.
“Their job is to unload lots of money”
And the city’s job is to take it. We spend a lot of tax dollars, and it is an obvious error not to accept them back and sent to some other community.
All so what? So the city can ruminate on expanding the existing trail? A “wider” plan for the area?
But that would require more land than is allocated.
Maybe someone with property near the trail is hoping ultimately to sell it to the city were the project to be expanded. But that would require the long planned for trail to be scrapped now in favor of some “wider” opportunity later.
If only they were debating this stuff in public instead of plotting behind the scenes.
You might try ruminations on something you know something thing about.
Oops.
It would be good if we could all know more about it. But that would require council majority to stop dissembling and obfuscating and tell us what their actual intent is.
Ask them, don’t ask me. But that would take effort.
“And the city’s job is to take it.”
That’s the job of make-work government employees with nothing better do. You lose.
It’s funny how Zahra adopted this as a pork project for “his” district. Delivering “good things” for his Latinos.
Doesn’t matter if it works.
“More recently it was shepherded along by Hugo Curiel and the egregious Alice Loya”
Yeah Loya was laying down Astroturf for this shit last summer in what was supposed to look like a spontaneous wave of enthusiasm. The council majority knew nothing of this duplicity and the insubordination it involved. Of course they virtually asked for it.
105,000 people. Oh Hell no. Even if the thing were clean, maintained and safe you might get a few gentrifiers a day from SoCo Walk to walk their dogs along it to take a shit. Maybe they already do, although nobody’s ever seen them.
And the locals don’t go to Phase 1 except to buy dope.
Thank you for not mentioning Huggy Bear.
First of all, you have my name, you’re quoting me, but your don’t actually attribute correctly. No idea why, but it’s weird.
Second I was giving a practical example of a use of the trail. The exact opposite of “absurd.” Practical example. Getting from a home by UP Park to the DMV, safely, enjoyably, efficiently by bicycle. Practical. Understandable.
You quoted me, said it was absurd but never showed that it was. Because you can’t.
I wasn’t trying to make an exhaustive list of users and uses. I just gave him an existence proof that there are reasonable uses that are easily imaginable.
Everything beyond that is projections which I do not attempt to make or have the planning tools to do so. It’s someone else’s job.
But my point was perfectly legitimate, supported my argument and again destroyed your framing lie of a “trail to nowhere.”
There’s no way this comment is coming from a real person. The ridiculous made-up name is the first clue. Someone at the observer has created Artificial Unintelligence and unleashed it’s unending vomit on FFFF.
Real person, and you know it.
Which makes you a liar.
Sad manatee.
I think it’s a real person, but you make a good point. Hard to fathom this level of headupyourassness.
“I do not attempt to make or have the planning tools to do so”
But you follow the lead of others who don’t, either. And that makes you the biggest tool of all.
IM N
No I’m not following anyone’s “lead.”
Even if they did a well researched study would you buy the conclusions?
In the end they are just projections and everyone is just going to draw their own conclusions.
We have class 1 bicycle trails all over California. They get used but even the most heavily used trails are not packed with people.
Probably the maximum would be what you see on the SART.
And many of them run along side roads and highways, as we all know. But you’d rather lose than win because your head is shoved so far up your ass.
“In the end they are just projections and everyone is just going to draw their own conclusions.”
No, the people who were giving Fullerton 1.7 million based on nonsense were taking it on faith. Faith that they wouldn’t be lied to. Or maybe they just didn’t care. The Trail to Oblivion was based on a package of lies so bad that somebody belongs in jail.
Huh, wishing jail for a projection you don’t like. I guess my instinct to not make projections is wise.
Yes. A lie like that to get $1.7 million is fraud. Fraud is a crime. Criminals belong in jail.
Aw, wittle Johnnie wanted his name in the paper so mommie would feel so proud.
I guess I get it. I’m credible enough that you feel tasked and compelled to respond to my utterances. But you also realize to do so is to show respect, acknowledgement. Regard. And that frustrates you because to do so is in conflict with your absurd, outrageous ad hominems leveled at me.
So you try to negate that reality by omitting my name.
This is why there are rules and norms around quoting what other people write. To avoid such mistakes.
Damn you you missed the point. You aren’t credible and you use any stupid argument to push a dumbass idea.
Your name was omitted to preserve some shred of dignity for you.
Public education hard at work.
Not buying it. You’re full of shit.
Because you are broke. Get a job.
Well, there goes the shred of dignity.
Ha! I was going to say that.
Anyone reading this can see the reality. Keep blowing smoke up your own ass.
True. Truslow bike riders to the DMV is what you came up with as a plausible trail user? How could that be on ANYBODY’S list?
Christ Almighty that’s desperate. Your ass-blown smoke is coming out your ears, chief.
I wasn’t making a list.
It’s an example. To try to get you to understand the simple concept that a trail doesn’t just get you between the endpoints but is a safe link to points beyond each end.
It’s not that complicated an idea but you all seem to have a problem with the concept.
Pretty short list. You’re not even on it!
No one made a list. And yet somehow the liars came up with 105,000 users a year. But, dear me, don’t hold them to it.
Hoagie, they own you here. Go back to Observer fame with the guy who fell out of the airplane.
I am ride or die Ahmad Zahra. Keep your stinking paws off him.
“The final expansion going into effect Jan. 1 will make approximately 700,000 undocumented residents between ages 26 and 49 eligible for full coverage, according to California State Sen. María Elena Durazo.” “”Medi-Cal is already strained by serving 14.6 million Californians – more than a third of the state’s population. Adding 764,000 more individuals to the system will certainly exacerbate current provider access problems,” the caucus wrote last year.” ABC News 12-29-23. In light of this recent development, the state of California needs the two million dollars earmarked for a half mile trail to nowhere in Fullerton. In the spirit of charity, Fullerton should give this money to Governor Newsom
You don’t like illegal immigrants, and you want them dead or at least with no access to care. Got it. Has nothing to do with a class 1 bicycle trail.
You really are slow. The State is broke. Again.
Clearly you don’t know what broke means. I think we’re still paying our bills.
Just admit you made up shit about a commenter and get over it. That crap flies at the Fullerton Observer and the deadhead Kennedys, but not here.
Nothing to admit. The state of California isn’t broke, and certainly a few billion more for medi-cal isn’t going to be the straw that broke the camel’s back.
And certainly 1.7M is going to be spent even if we don’t want those trees and class 1 trail so that is also not a rational opportunity for immigrant bashing.
Hogerhouse New Year’s Resolution:
I will not write or say anything stupid.
That one will be blasted by the end of the day!
California has $1.2 trillion in unfunded pension liability and a current $62 billion annual operating deficit. Once again, JRH proves that he is: 1) an angry elf, 2) an insufferable twat and 3) dyslexic when it comes to finance and math.
He’s an angry manatee.
Deficits happen. But California is paying it’s bills so it’s not broke.
Governments, individuals, businesses all use leverage. It’s when you can’t pay debt service that you’re broke.
John, your response to me claiming I hate immigrants and want them all dead shows you to be an odd guy. Where in my comments did you decide to publicly proclaim “I hate all immigrants” and want “ them dead”. You need to look at what you wrote and wonder why you would accuse me of hating people to the point of wanting them dead. Maybe it is your unconscious desire and not mine.
He is a dyed-in-the-wool, Observer-type boohoo. He posts comments there as “John.”
The Observers love to dash to extreme conclusions based on zippo. Because yo posted a comment here on FFFF you are obviously evil and therefore you want evil things. So he bashes you for something you never said – which makes him feel good about himself, but obviously misses your point: the State is broke and simultaneously willing to waste money on Trails to Nowhere, probably lots of them. The irony is lost on him because he and his kind don’t do irony. They do self-righteous indignation.
Well. What happens when you don’t have health care?
Stretch yourself. Re-read what this person wrote and then tell us he/she is in favor of dead immigrants.
He/she is right, you are an odd guy. Quite creepy, in fact.
He can’t stretch himself any farther. You can already see right through him.
JRH = Angry Elf. He is a legend in his own mind. It’s his world, the rest of us are just living in it!
Lol. Gaslight away. I know what I wrote and I know what he wrote. You’re ignoring half of one and the other.
Gas. That explains it. Your pilot light went out again and you’re intoxicated on natural gas.