Baldwin County Legal Eagle Consumer Advocates exposing Political Corruption, affiliate of the Ripp Report, a non-profit Association March 30 2015 The lack of education funds is a state wide problem, not exclusive to Baldwin County. Solving the present day situation in Baldwin County by raising taxes goes against all the political pledges from recently elected officials. Our Governor promised no new taxes and in the same sentence said Alabama finances were in good shape and he has saved the state 1 billion dollars in cuts to a bloated system. It only took a few months, after being elected, before the Governor started screaming the sky is falling and that our state finances were 700 million short. Do you really think he did not know that before the election? This is a creditability problem, that the Governor ignores and now is using intimidation to force legislators to support tax increases.

The creek behind Publix has severe erosion problems, in some areas the banks have collapsed over 20 feet down into the creek, depositing tons of dirt and eroded clay. These failed banks have caused trees to collapse into the creek resulting in log jams that back up the flow of water. Until now no one has documented this; Kant and Arthur Corte are ignoring previous damage to Fly Creek from construction of the shopping center while proposing the addition of a project 5 times larger than the Publix shopping center. Let’s not forget about the fire station, now we know what the city has denied for years. This fire station is for the developer’s benefit, including the reduction of insurance rates, and our tax dollars will be paying for that. No Consideration appears to have been given to the danger of having Fire trucks and Emergency Vehicles pulling out on Parker road, where an already dangerous traffic flow has caused numerous accidents and deaths. The city has denied, for years any plan to connect Rock Creek to Parker Road, this project will guarantee that HUNDREDS of cars will short cut through rock Creek, just look at the plat proposal. For forty years the owners of the triangle property were denied every proposed project that they submitted to the city, including a Performing Arts Center. Out of disgust they finally settled with the city, resulting in the city having to purchase the property, as a condition of the suit. This settlement was done in secret, no public participation was involved, it cost us 12 million dollars. Now the city is willing to change zoning to accommodate Mayor Kant’s favorite developer, a complete reversal to a policy that existed for 40 years. Mr Corte the land owner of the proposed new PUD development, and who does not reside in Fairhope, was the root of the problem, swaying the Publix development from the triangle to his property. Our Mayor helped him with that dirty deal and now will help him with this dirty deal. In 2011 a complaint was filed against Mayor Kant and Senator Pittman for grant fraud related to BP funds. It is a fact that a grand jury convened and city employees had to testify. BP as well as the special prosecutor in the Alabama Attorney’s Generals office has these cases currently. Mayor Kant and the good Senator will tell you that the Alabama Ethics Commission exonerated them from any wrong doing, this is totally false. The Ethics Commission refused to look into it, however, the FBI and BP fraud division did. With any justice Mr. Kant and Mr. Pittman could be up for indictment in 2015. In March of 2013 the Mayor commissioned a 30 thousand dollar study by Thompson Engineering, for the Fly Creek Watershed Restoration Project. This cut and paste document could have been prepared by any high school student. The Study never identified the major problems with the watershed, such as the lower section of Fly Creek being full of red clay from the Publix project. The purpose of the study was to apply for upcoming BP grants, you know like the one they are being investigated for, for grant fraud. The city has now applied for Restore Act money under the alluring title: Mobile Bay Preservation and Restoration; Lower Fly Creek Reach (?) Project. This is to include sediment removal from fly creek, the same damn sediment deposited by a private developer, Regency Center/Mr. Corte. The grant also “proposes long term protection from development, adverse storm water impacts, turbidity and sedimentation”. This $14,700,000 project is to “protect from development”, hello out there, 275 apartments plus 15 townhomes, clubhouse, pool, and parking all located on 40 acres, within the fly creek watershed AND sharing the same detention pond as the shopping center. The development alone will probably disqualify the city from the grant, and trust me I will inform the US Treasury Dept of all the details.

NEW SWEEP The Ripp Report 2015 Feb. 8, 2015 The Ripp Report #30 LOCATION LOCATION TOTALLY LOCO LOCATIONS The city of Fairhope has ignored its Comprehensive Plan, Master Plan, violated its own ordinances, recorded wrong plat maps, omitted public participation and made horrible decisions on the location of major venues in Fairhope. Planning and zoning has been a black hole in our city finances, their decisions are made without any accountability, and they have no enforcement powers. This is the number one financial problem the city has faced for the last ten years.

I saw the Fox news team this morning at Parker Road and High ridge Road for what appeared to be a groundbreaking for the Fairhope Fire station. I know you are aware of the controversy surrounding the location. The location favors the land owner and not the city. I understand the pressure of developing stories for Fox News and if this story is a simple "kiss the baby" or filler news with no substance or investigative reporting, then the PUBLIC will see this in your reporting tonight.

I saw the Fox news team this morning at Parker Road and High ridge Road for what appeared to be a groundbreaking for the Fairhope Fire station. I know you are aware of the controversy surrounding the location. The location favors the land owner and developer, not the city. I understand the pressure of developing stories for Fox News and if this story is a simple "kiss the baby" or filler news with no substance or investigative reporting, then the PUBLIC will see this in your reporting tonight.

Dear Higher Authorities: For ten years I have been active in politics in Fairhope, as a concerned citizen, with no political ambitions. Countless times I have attended city council meetings requesting information about council or city actions that affect our community, many others have done the same. Not once has the council or the Mayor ever responded, silence is always the answer. I have witnessed abuses of power ranging from blatant lying to open meetings violations as well as criminal activity, always answered by our Mayor with silence. Mayoral Tim Kant has eliminated Fairhope’s Finance, Environmental and Tree Committees, he has rendered the other committees powerless and/or completely under his control. The city council and Planning and Zoning are firmly in his control and offer no checks and balances to the system what-so-ever. I know the general response to the above would be public participation, however this is also ignored. There is a strong suspicion within the community that our municipal elections have been tampered with, this has eroded any faith in our local government. The Fairhope fire department has been a tool of the Mayor for years, his control has been like a vice, manipulating the department like wet clay. Years ago the Mayor secured $50,000 from the fire department and an additional $50,000 from a city employee that he invested in his private investment company. He was not Mayor at the time, he was working closely with the fire department, all funds were lost, there was no accounting for the missing funds and no one said a word. I am providing you with The Ripp Report #27 that will explain our latest attempt to have some accountability within our community. Our Mayor and the same owner of the land the Publix shopping center was built on, who violated every condition outlined by the planning and zoning board, are now involved in a Quid Pro Quo project that smacks of criminal intent. The Fire Department has received millions of tax dollars to maintain its equipment as well as donations from the public, however we, the public and taxpayers, have been eliminated from any participation in the selection of a safe location for the new fire station. The Mayor has denied any public participation what so ever and the city council has remained moot while the fire department remains equally silent. The location of the proposed fire station is on a dead end street, a violation of the city’s comprehensive plan. It is located on a county road; no notice was given to Aldot or county officials, until we notified them. It is however part and parcel to a new proposed development by the same owner of the property that violated the first phase of the project and subsequently caused the massive damage to Fly Creek, which remains damaged to this day. The owner has now secured a new developer, Professional Equity Management out of Scottsdale Arizona, proposing to build a 300 unit development above the extremely damaged Fly Creek. The owner can now entice the developer with a brand new fire station located on the same site, how damn convenient, all the while keeping the developer in the dark about the sordid past deeds by the owner and Mayor. The owner and Mayor have another plan in place: connectivity to Rock Creek Subdivision. They deny this at the present time, however, once the fire station is in place they will push through the connectivity above the objections of everyone. The citizens of Fairhope have no other alternative than appeal to a higher authority to intercede on our behalf to this blatant Quid Pro Quo Pro. The Ripp Report Francis Paul Ripp CC Adam Milam Attorney.

This document is intended to be an Official Complaint of political corruption, criminal activity, betrayal of public trust and deceit put forth at numerous public meetings. A copy will be sent to the FBI, Alabama Attorney General and the District Attorney for Baldwin County. The complaint is intended to become an official notice to the general public of the continued corrupt activities of Fairhope Mayor Tim Kant. No notice will be sent to Al.com as they have perpetuated the crime. Al.com has written about this ongoing story. Trouble is the fluff stories lack any investigative reporting, any constructive criticism voiced by the general public, omitting critical informational facts; this has perpetuated the criminal activity to the situation we find ourselves in today. Omitted in their stories related to the triangle lawsuit is the fact that the legal settlement was just that, not the purchase of a park. They also coincidentally failed to mention that Fly Creek is full of red clay and has completely lost its channel due to sediment deposited during Publix shopping center construction.

Since 2001, the city of Fairhope has been conducting "reviews" of the comprehensive plan, which is connected to the master plan. These meetings are usually advertised through the city and media, and attendance is good. Citizens are given the warm and fuzzy feeling about taking part in the city's future and their quality of life. Currently a series of meetings is being held, public participation is encouraged, comments and written surveys are recorded. Sounds so Norman Rockwell, however did you know it's costing us 80 thousand dollars for this update by an engineering firm. Remember this is just an update to an already published comprehensive plan. Since the first plan, there has been little change in the minds of Fairhope citizens as to where and what they expect.

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