This blog features observations from Randy Turner, a former teacher, newspaper reporter and editor. Send news items or comments to rturner229@hotmail.com
Monday, July 14, 2014
Wallace-Bajjali: Construction on theater will begin by the end of 2014
A report from KSN's Carla Pesono
11 comments:
Anonymous
said...
We used to have 3 movie theaters and couldn't support them. We have one with 14 screens that doesn't have them all open. Why do we need another one?
Did these people even ask what we want? And I don't mean that little group of power hungry people mucking things up, I mean real people.
It seems that Wallace-Bajjali has done nothing but leave a great big torn up space in the middle of town. Why are we having anything to do with them? They're crooks selling snake oil.
My wife and I no longer support the Joplin theaters. They are too high! We go to the drive in near Carthage or visit the theater in downtown Webb City. Prices are much more reasonable at those two locations.
In the newspaper, the new Wallace local chief operating officer has termed the movie theatre project as a "botique theatre". What the heck is that? It has gone from a multi screen, state of the art high tech digitally formatted theatre leased to and operated by a well known nationally known theatre group which would also provide for special public and library uses, and also pay for the new library through the lease collections, to a "theatre botique". I call it flim flam. The old Mays Drug on East 7th would have made a great library project and is a well built building for a fraction the cost. The old race track has tremendous potential for a combination fair grounds/event center at a fraction the cost. But then these downtown organizers are more hip to meetings, presentations, higher taxes, and wish lists, than putting to good use some of what we already have. Each master update is worth nothing more than a yawn now.
I absolutely agree with 9:21--the library-theater project was the only part of WB initial presentation that made any sense, and now that's gone. What a rip off!
And I, too, no longer support Joplin's current theater because it's FILTHY! Rent a steam cleaner with all the money from 3-D glasses and scrub that cesspit.
I heard that Wallace Bajjalli is buying one of the old schools and putting in low income housing. Does anyone know if that is true, and if so, which school? And, was the public notified? What did the district get?
We'd like to know the truth for once, if that is possible.
Originally, the movie theater at 20th & Connecticut was supposed to be an AMC theater. AMC backed out. Hmmmm. Why do you suppose that happened? Why do you suppose this boutique theater is going to be owned by a WB subsidiary? Why don't the city leaders listen to the actual citizens of Joplin rather than crooks from a distant state? Who is pocketing all the money?
The only "theater" in all of this is the City Council and is known as the genre of "farce".
This is what happens when government gets into the business of business (in this case: real estate development). And what happens? Self dealing, lack of accountability for money as they have no real skin in the game, and contracts with their political cronies.
Eventually the hicks will wake up and realize that they've been taken for a ride. But probably not until after the money is spent. And after all the hangers on are done hanging on in the dead light of the afterglow.
I doubt that Wallace has bought anything with his own money. His whole schtick is spending someone else's money. That is what a public private partnership is. The public supplies the money, and the private take the money. I also ran across a transfer of deed on land behind the Elks Club to the city of Joplin. The land was owned by the Elks and was nothing but scrub mining land with no existing access. The sale price was over 700,000. It isn't worth 100,000 if that. I don't recall any public announcement of this purchase.
As I recall, Turner just posted information about Wallace last week in which Wallace claims he will be able to pay his Ponzi scheme fine by "building part or all of one or more educational facilities" in Joplin. Now, the new schools are nearly finished, so it can't be those, or they wouldn't even be started yet if they were Wallace-Bajjalli projects. So, one has to assume that there is another building project or two on the way. That he is looking at school property for development is curious. It's time to connect the dots. He is infiltrating the school district. Does the board know about this? Are they willing to be partners with a man who is paying off his Ponzi scheme fine with their projects? Don't schools have to be built through a bid? There are many questions to be answered. I hope CJ Huff can stay in town long enough to answer them, should the board ask. I hope they will. School property is public property, and the public should have a say in what happens to it.
A boutique theater is made for eclectic, arty film presentations targeted to a select audience, usually an elite one that finds "boutique" a flattering word. So, the new theater, if it is a boutique theater, won't have current smash hits. It will be much more selective and will probably not seat too many, as indicated by the descriptor. It is not for the masses.
11 comments:
We used to have 3 movie theaters and couldn't support them. We have one with 14 screens that doesn't have them all open. Why do we need another one?
Did these people even ask what we want? And I don't mean that little group of power hungry people mucking things up, I mean real people.
It seems that Wallace-Bajjali has done nothing but leave a great big torn up space in the middle of town. Why are we having anything to do with them? They're crooks selling snake oil.
My wife and I no longer support the Joplin theaters. They are too high! We go to the drive in near Carthage or visit the theater in downtown Webb City. Prices are much more reasonable at those two locations.
In the newspaper, the new Wallace local chief operating officer has termed the movie theatre project as a "botique theatre". What the heck is that? It has gone from a multi screen, state of the art high tech digitally formatted theatre leased to and operated by a well known nationally known theatre group which would also provide for special public and library uses, and also pay for the new library through the lease collections, to a "theatre botique". I call it flim flam. The old Mays Drug on East 7th would have made a great library project and is a well built building for a fraction the cost. The old race track has tremendous potential for a combination fair grounds/event center at a fraction the cost. But then these downtown organizers are more hip to meetings, presentations, higher taxes, and wish lists, than putting to good use some of what we already have. Each master update is worth nothing more than a yawn now.
I absolutely agree with 9:21--the library-theater project was the only part of WB initial presentation that made any sense, and now that's gone. What a rip off!
And I, too, no longer support Joplin's current theater because it's FILTHY! Rent a steam cleaner with all the money from 3-D glasses and scrub that cesspit.
I heard that Wallace Bajjalli is buying one of the old schools and putting in low income housing. Does anyone know if that is true, and if so, which school? And, was the public notified? What did the district get?
We'd like to know the truth for once, if that is possible.
Originally, the movie theater at 20th & Connecticut was supposed to be an AMC theater. AMC backed out. Hmmmm. Why do you suppose that happened? Why do you suppose this boutique theater is going to be owned by a WB subsidiary? Why don't the city leaders listen to the actual citizens of Joplin rather than crooks from a distant state? Who is pocketing all the money?
The only "theater" in all of this is the City Council and is known as the genre of "farce".
This is what happens when government gets into the business of business (in this case: real estate development). And what happens? Self dealing, lack of accountability for money as they have no real skin in the game, and contracts with their political cronies.
Eventually the hicks will wake up and realize that they've been taken for a ride. But probably not until after the money is spent. And after all the hangers on are done hanging on in the dead light of the afterglow.
They came and took down the fencing around the old Irving school site a week ago. Damn.
I doubt that Wallace has bought anything with his own money. His whole schtick is spending someone else's money. That is what a public private partnership is. The public supplies the money, and the private take the money. I also ran across a transfer of deed on land behind the Elks Club to the city of Joplin. The land was owned by the Elks and was nothing but scrub mining land with no existing access. The sale price was over 700,000. It isn't worth 100,000 if that. I don't recall any public announcement of this purchase.
As I recall, Turner just posted information about Wallace last week in which Wallace claims he will be able to pay his Ponzi scheme fine by "building part or all of one or more educational facilities" in Joplin. Now, the new schools are nearly finished, so it can't be those, or they wouldn't even be started yet if they were Wallace-Bajjalli projects. So, one has to assume that there is another building project or two on the way. That he is looking at school property for development is curious.
It's time to connect the dots. He is infiltrating the school district. Does the board know about this? Are they willing to be partners with a man who is paying off his Ponzi scheme fine with their projects? Don't schools have to be built through a bid? There are many questions to be answered. I hope CJ Huff can stay in town long enough to answer them, should the board ask. I hope they will. School property is public property, and the public should have a say in what happens to it.
A boutique theater is made for eclectic, arty film presentations targeted to a select audience, usually an elite one that finds "boutique" a flattering word. So, the new theater, if it is a boutique theater, won't have current smash hits. It will be much more selective and will probably not seat too many, as indicated by the descriptor. It is not for the masses.
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