Ward 6 Councilmember Steve Kozachik called a press conference yesterday in front of the 1st Assembly of God Church, 1749 E. Broadway, which may be demolished should the north section of Broadway be widened into 8 lanes per the May,2006 Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) voter-approved plan. The church was built in 1950 according to Councilmember Kozachiak also known as “Steve K”.

Blogger Pam Powers (“Tucson Progressive”) announced this event (with an online poll): http://tucsoncitizen.com/tucson-progressive/2012/04/30/public-forum-today-should-rta-knock-down-100-buildings-to-make-broadway-look-like-a-freeway-poll/

The $71 M plan would call for widening of Broadway from Euclid to Country Club, affecting about 115 businesses on the north side, and historic buildings, neighborhoods such as Rincon Heights and Sam Hughes (on the National Historic Registry). Both Presidents of those neighborhoods spoke against the plan.

Speakers last evening at the press conference:

1) Ward 6 Councilmember Steve Kozachik
2) Mark Kerr, aide to Ward 5 Councilmember Richard Fimbres
3) Colby Henley, President of Rincon Hts. Neighborhood
4) Jessica Shuman, business owner of Kismet, 2627 E Broadway
5) John O’Dowd, President of Sam Hughes Neighborhood Assn.
6) Sid Hirsch, business owner of Hirsch’s Shoes, 2934 E. Broadway
7) Rev. Stuart Taylor, Tucson Bus Riders’ Union,
Eight) Demion Clinco, Pres. of Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation
9) District 5 Pima County Supervisor Richard Elias

Video below of the press conference courtesy of John Brakey, Co-founder of AUDIT-AZ:

Also present were: Ward 2 Councilmember Paul Cunningham, former State House Rep. Ted Downing, former Sahuarita Councilmember Rosanna Gabaldon, former Mayoral candidate Rick Grinnell, District 3 Supervisor candidate Tanner Bell, former State Senator John Kromko, attorney Bill Risner, former TUSD Superintendent Roger Pfeuffer, Brian Flagg from Casa Maria Kitchen, Donovan Durband Administrator from Parkwise, former Green Party candidates Dave Croteau (Mayor), Beryl Baker (Ward 1 Council), Kent Solberg (LD 27 House). I estimated the crowd at about 200 people, many of whom arrived by bicycle.

Steve K said that 15-20 neighborhoods were represented at the press conference, and I recognized neighborhood leaders from: Rincon Hts, Sam Hughes, Colonia Solana, El Encanto Estates, Arroyo Chico, Broadway-Broadmoor, Campbell-Grant, Catalina Vista, even Udall Park Neighborhood out east. Aides from the Council offices of Ward 1, 2, 5 and 6 were present as well.

If you feel strongly about this issue, contact the Mayor/City Councilmembers or your Supervisor at Pima County. Supervisor Richard Elias said yesterday that the citizens had to “force change to happen”, if they felt this 25 year old plan to widen Broadway was not necessary. Many of the speakers requested that the historic buildings be preserved, that small businesses on Broadway not be affected by any widening.

Steve K also noted during this one hour (6 to 7 p.m. on a Monday) that there was no traffic congestion on Broadway next to the church. My husband also told me that he was down there on Broadway (between Highland & Park) that same afternoon between 3:30 and 4 p.m. and there was no traffic jam.

Photo of crowd yesterday at press conference, courtesy of Pam Powers Hannley.

Just got an email from the Pima County Election Integrity advocates who claim that something is still wrong with that May, 2006 Regional Transportation Authority election, despite the hand count done by Attorney General Terry Goddard last year.

Here’s what The Brad Blog (blogger Brad Friedman’s article dated7/14/10) reveals about this:
(EXCLUSIVE: Poll Tapes, Other Evidence Discovered Missing in Long-Disputed, ‘Fixed’ Arizona Election).

Breaking news from this blog:

“Out of 368 precincts, 112 poll tapes are completely missing. Moreover, 102 of the “yellow sheets” — certified precinct reports, signed by poll workers, detailing corresponding summary information, such as numbers of ballots received, cast and spoiled, as helpful for important auditing functions at the precinct level — are missing as well.

Furthermore, of the poll tape records that are not missing, 50 of them do not match the results as recorded in the final canvas of the election, according to the Election Integrity advocates who have compared them to the original electronic database numbers…”

The question now is:

Where are those missing poll tapes with the summaries of each Arizona precinct, signed by the respective poll workers?

I wrote about this issue earlier when that “Fatally Flawed” documentary by JT Waldron premiered at the Crossroads Theater (click here) in November, 2009.

Attorney Bill Risner who has represented the Pima County Democratic Party in the lawsuit on this issue, has maintained since that hand count by the Maricopa Elections Division in April, 2009 that the poll tapes had to be checked and verified as well. And they were not, and now 30% are missing. This doesn’t lend a lot of confidence in the Pima County Elections Division, once again.

Pima County Elections apparently owns a print-on-demand Diebold machine that can re-print paper ballots at any time. So the allegations are that the “original ballots” cast may have been replaced, which may have been the ones counted in last year’s hand count. The poll tapes in each precinct box would have verified the electronic database numbers as well as the hand count numbers, but now a year later, many of them are missing.

Questions still remain then about the security of these RTA ballots since the May, 2006 election to the present (the “chain of custody” of the ballots), and what happened to those missing poll tapes? Stay tuned for further developments in this case from the Election Integrity advocates.

For info contact John Brakey at Auditaz@cox.net, 520-578-5678 or 520-339-2696, or Tucson Attorney Bill Risner at 520-622-7494 or bill@risnerandgraham.com.

If you care about election integrity in our own Pima County, mark your calendars for Monday, November 16. “Fatally Flawed” premiered at the Loft Theater on September 16, and exactly two months later it will be at the Crossroads Theater, 4811 E. Grant Rd. at 7 p.m. Admission is only $3. See Off the Marquee’s blog about this movie on 9/11.

“Fatally Flawed” by Tucsonan J.T. Waldron documents the investigation spearheaded by the Pima County Democratic Party and their attorney Bill Risner, with the assistance of election integrity advocates John Brakey (Audit AZ) and Libertarian Jim March (Black Box Voting). These three men became obsessed with seeking the truth about the May 2006 RTA Election that authorized a sales tax increase totaling $2 Billion to fund the Regional Transportation Authority. You can read about the events leading up to making of the film at www.fatallyflawedthemovie.com.

“The film allows you watch events as they unfold through the eyes of seasoned lawyer and activist Bill Risner. As the story develops, it becomes evident that what initially appeared to be a public mandate to expand the city’s roads was a likely case of election fraud. At every step of the way, citizens seeking answers are met with resistance from election facilitators, local politicians and even the state’s own attorney general. Persistent unanswered questions generated by the lawsuit and new evidence of wrongdoing on the part of elections division personnel led to an equally suspicious investigation by the Arizona attorney general. This investigation culminated in a recount conducted under conditions that made meaningful public oversight impossible.” (from the movie website)

I sat in on the Tucson Citizen editorial board meeting (as a “My Tucson” columnist) when these three men came to present their findings in 2008, and I saw the movie’s premier on September 16, which was well attended. Many local Tucsonans are seen in this movie, including attorney Vince Rabago, then Chair of the Pima County Democratic Party, activist Mike Hayes of the Campbell/Grant Northeast Neighborhood Association, and Pima County Supervisor Ray Carroll at their board meeting fighting for transparency in releasing election data files.

If you can’t attend the movie, the cost of the DVD is $25 online.

movie poster

Seeing this locally produced documentary on the big screen is worth the price of only $3. This second showing is sponsored by an independent Tucson group called Voices of Opposition (to War, Racism and Oppression). The Crossroads 6 Grand Cinemas is located on the NE corner of Grant and Swan, behind the Fry’s shopping center.