Regular readers of this blog may recall the fun we had with a little thing called 30 Days of Jay, which was Kenny Hulshof’s ill-conceived and poorly executed attempt to smear Governor-elect Jay Nixon for one moon cycle. The very first 30DoJ post we wrote about was this little gem about a guy named Tim Conley of Louisiana MO (we don’t use the comma), who apparently had a little problem with a restaurant called “The Eagle’s Nest.” His problem was that then-AG Nixon had apparently refused to follow up on Conley’s complaints about ADA compliance, or something. We weren’t really sure. As it turns out, however, this is quite the little scandal up in Louisiana. We received an email from a relevant party in L-town, and it’s, um, detailed. Full text after the jump.
Here’s part of what Conley originally said:
I have publicly addressed these issues with Nixon, yet he has failed to take action. Despite the glaring safety and non-compliance issues, this business remains open to the public. Nixon has not initiated an investigation into the hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of tax credits received by the investors, and he has made no effort to encourage the local prosecutor to file charges for violation of the state license requirements.
And here’s the response from an anonymous but connected Louisiana source:
Well it sure was interesting to read about the dissatisfaction of Mr. Tim “Queen of Louisiana” (self proclaimed) Conley with our new Governor. Mr. Tim has been busy for a number of years in his endeavor to shut down a viable business in downtown Louisiana. He has cost taxpayers ten of thousands of dollars in his bogus allegations against The Eagle’s Nest Winery, Inn and Bistro. Each allegation has to, by law, be investigated. He knows this! Take the allegation that The Eagle’s Nest Winery was purchasing their wine at the local Kroger, soaking off the labels and applying their own. That complaint along with 6 others to the Liquor ATF boys cost the state over $17,000 to investigate. Results; a missing word on the wine labels of the Eagle’s Nest 6 wines. Complaints to the State Health and Senior Citizens Dept have been unfounded and fell on top of a viable compliance agreement the B&B had with the state. As of today’s date all is in compliance but Mr. Tim doesn’t want to hear that. Then he decided to lodge a complaint with the Justice Dept against the Eagle’s Nest that his aged father could not stay at the B&B because we did not have an elevator. True, but we are on the National Historic Register and had not yet reached the square footage required for an elevator. So here come two interns from Washington D.C. to measure , photo and investigate and cost the tax payers thousands of dollars in travel, lodging and meals. The cost to hire an attorney to defend the position of The Eagle’s Nest was just insult to injury. Today this small business in a small rural town that is struggling to rebuild the downtown is saddled with a huge compliance demand from ADA/Justice Dept. Example: move that toilet 1 1/2 inch to the right….replace all washbowls…add devices for the hearing impaired…expand each side of a double door by 1 3/4 inches…move those pipes back 4 inches…change the entry angle of the sidewalk by 5 degrees….raise the height of the tables by 3 inches…..and on and on and on…. Now each cite has to be answered and either changed or eventually the Justice Dept will close the most viable business in the downtown. Total cost to comply is about $500,000.00 Since Mr. Tim’s house is just up the street this could dramatically affect his house value and that of many others. The Eagle’s Nest encompasses four historical buildings in the very center of the downtown historical district. A local couple put up their life savings to save and restore the buildings and offer the town and it’s visitors a quality destination dining and lodging establishment. If Mr. Tim were to get his way the business would be closed, the couple would loose their home (just what America needs is another foreclosure) and the town would lose the tax base and the attraction to tourists. You gotta ask yourself why Mr. Tim has done this dastardly deed(s)? He can’t stand to be challenged and the owners did just that when he attempted to bully his way with the local Historical Association. He doesn’t get even, he gets revenge!. The sad situation is he hasn’t just singled out The Eagle’s Nest, but many others in this town with constant harassment and the filing of bogus claims of violations. He continues to cause the various levels of government expense to investigate his hissy fits. There should be a system in all levels of government that red flags complaints from people like Mr. Tim, to save government time and money. We must hope that the middle level government employee does not view these kinds of complaints as job security! Additionally just where are the hundreds of thousands of dollars of tax credits this little project received? Yes, tax credits were obtained to assist in the development, but hundreds of thousands????? Wish we had them today. Anybody have an unused elevator they don’t need? Oh yea, he might just be upset because The Eagle’s Nest has a restraining order against Mr.Tim to stay off the property and he missed the opportunity to attend a fundraiser for Jay Nixon and had to stand outside on the corner and shout jabs at the business. The dessert crepes were just delicious!
Alright… we’re not really sure what to do with this information. And we’re certain that our interest in Louisiana activities is just barely above nil, so… do with this what you will. At least everyone has now had a say in the matter, right?
