I was blissfully tripping thru the pages of the Staff Report regarding The Villages. I was making notes in the margins and generally doing what a analyst would do in reviewing a real estate deal. A number of questions were surfacing, however most I had already noticed. Some were new.
When I got to page 53 out of the 54 pages that comprised the Staff Report, I saw something that sent shivers down my spine. On page 53, our proposed "partner" stated they had an earlier relationship with Linda Humboldt, at the City of Desoto. There may have been a Linda Humboldt at the City of Desoto, but I doubt it. I think it was a misprint or a misspelling. Whether the misspelling was intentional, or not, would be conjecture. I think it referred to Lynda Humble, Assistant City Manager, at the City of Desoto. Lynda Humble was Rowlett's previous City manager and in my opinion, one of the worst real estate structure analysts I have ever known for someone in her position. She was most ignorant of real estate law and lien priorities. She didn't understand financial underwriting in the real estate financing business at all. Her loan structuring abilities, all required for good real estate planning, were non-existent. I now know how our "partners" got here. I now wonder if undue influence was used by the city manager in selecting our "partners." I wasn't there. I don't know.
Ms. Humble resigned on July 25, of last year. By the time formal presentation was made to P&Z and then City Council, nearly 11 months later, a considerable amount of time was taken to plan for The Villages. All this planning is reflected on the Packet for City Council on May 20. The packet pages of page 329 to 382 contain the Staff Report for The Villages. The reference to "Linda Humboldt" is on page 381. If one allows the necessary time for all the planning, engineering and design that was presented to City Council, the start of planning had to reach back to approximately the time that Lynda Hubble was still City Manager. This might explain many of the questions and observations I have regarding The Villages. It's my opinion that some sembalance of a deal had to have been made before the planning could start.
If the mayor has already signed the binding documents, it may be too late to change anything.........but we can sure learn something from it. What we learn may cast a far wider net than that involving The Villages. Competence in planning the future of Rowlett's tax base may be at issue.
.
When I got to page 53 out of the 54 pages that comprised the Staff Report, I saw something that sent shivers down my spine. On page 53, our proposed "partner" stated they had an earlier relationship with Linda Humboldt, at the City of Desoto. There may have been a Linda Humboldt at the City of Desoto, but I doubt it. I think it was a misprint or a misspelling. Whether the misspelling was intentional, or not, would be conjecture. I think it referred to Lynda Humble, Assistant City Manager, at the City of Desoto. Lynda Humble was Rowlett's previous City manager and in my opinion, one of the worst real estate structure analysts I have ever known for someone in her position. She was most ignorant of real estate law and lien priorities. She didn't understand financial underwriting in the real estate financing business at all. Her loan structuring abilities, all required for good real estate planning, were non-existent. I now know how our "partners" got here. I now wonder if undue influence was used by the city manager in selecting our "partners." I wasn't there. I don't know.
Ms. Humble resigned on July 25, of last year. By the time formal presentation was made to P&Z and then City Council, nearly 11 months later, a considerable amount of time was taken to plan for The Villages. All this planning is reflected on the Packet for City Council on May 20. The packet pages of page 329 to 382 contain the Staff Report for The Villages. The reference to "Linda Humboldt" is on page 381. If one allows the necessary time for all the planning, engineering and design that was presented to City Council, the start of planning had to reach back to approximately the time that Lynda Hubble was still City Manager. This might explain many of the questions and observations I have regarding The Villages. It's my opinion that some sembalance of a deal had to have been made before the planning could start.
If the mayor has already signed the binding documents, it may be too late to change anything.........but we can sure learn something from it. What we learn may cast a far wider net than that involving The Villages. Competence in planning the future of Rowlett's tax base may be at issue.
.
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