Feedback and Questions

[Guest]

I watched last week's City Council meeting on TV. I have a few questions.

I thought that years ago the City Council decided that the Napa Register was the official paper for announcements of meetings in AC. Has this changed? The posting of a notice of a meeting to decide next year's 4th of July chairman should have been more visible than mounted outside the recreation dept.

Ben Anderson made a comment about a button he was wearing. From my couch it was difficult to see any button and am interested in knowing is there really a new button people are wearing around town? And if so is it appropriate for City Council members or Staff to be wearing them?

Someone needs to take Pastor Curry's "poison" pen away. In my opinion, he certainly is not doing the community a service by his continual letters to the editor but instead insighting more discord.

[merryjester]

With regard to the communication issue....I would love to see this forum used by the Council to make announcements, etc. While I fully realize that the denizens of this board don't exactly comprise a plurality of the townsfolk, I think history has shown that a good number of people who care about the city happenings monitor this board with some frequency. And call me naive, but I hope for this board's following to do nothing but grow in the months to come....

Any councilmembers monitoring this board? I think I've seen posts from Ms. Coffee...is there a guideline or law that says that council members can't air their opinions out in this sort of format?

Also - (semi-unrelated) - any Dish Network customers out there? If so, do the meetings air on that as well? I haven't been able to find it.... I'm pretty sure the "Channel 26" references I've seen before are related to cable, no?

[guest]

It's channel 28 on cable, not 26. It would be great if dish users had an option of tuning in.

As far as other items:

Curry has the right to voice his opinion, just like everyone else does. Do I agree with everything he says..No. But censorship is Un-American.
If council members want to wear a button for their cause..I have no problem with that either. If the city charter prohibits wearing them, they need to abide by the laws set forth

The city is at a very crucial point at this time. We have more serious items which need to be addressed than lapel pins and censorship. We need city leaders who want to discuss economic development, land use, capturing tourist $$ and making AmCanyon a world-class destination.

[Paul Maguire]

Sorry, American Canyon will not be a world class destination- those are left for cities like Miami, San Francisco, Paris, New York, Cancun, Maui, etc.

But you are right that we definately can do better than we have, and the issues you raise are all key issues.

The problem here is one of control. Take the fourth of july committee re electing Cori their chairman after last years fiasco, with a public notice on the recreational building. If true as posted, what do we have here?

We have the same committee empowering themselves to elect the same people. Saying in essence, ya, we are in power, and if you dont like it, tough doo doo.

AS long as that continues, little will change around here. These people are about arguing for thier own rightness, vs doing what is RIGHT.

Curry vicious nattering (nagging) all the time is indictative of his own personal issues. If the paper wants to print it, that just reflects on how few letters to the editor they even get, and what type of paper they are.

There is a chance that American Canyon will pull out in front in Napa County as a tourist destination but if, and only if, future public and commercial development is consistant with the needs and wants of the thousands that drive by on the way to Napa Valley. Without that, if will be tough to get those dollars spent in AC instead of up valley.

A Giant WALMART is likely not the venue tourists are looking for while coming to California to visit the second most popular bay area destination

1 San Francisco
2 Napa Valley
3 Monterey Carmel

[guest]

Appreciate your comments but I disagree that AmCanyon can't become a world class destination.
The Napa Junction project includes restaurants, shops etc. We have the ruins as a historical sight, bordering the town center project. This project includes an outdoor ampitheatre for concerts, plays etc.We have wineries which are offered throughout the nation as well as internationally. AmCanyon will have ONE of Two green hotels in the entire country. The hotel will offer high-end spa facilities and restaurants.
We will offer access to the Napa River. The opportunities and potential can only be achieved if progressive thinking people are the ones making the decisions along with visionaries.

The only obstacle which prohibits us from meeting our full potential is one's mindset.

Imagine the following:

Arrive in AmCanyon for a stay in the Green Hotel.($185 nite)
Enjoy a Spa treatment.($100) Take a walk around the ruins and Newell Open Space. Return to your hotel room and enjoy a bottle of American Canyon wine.($ 10-$35)
Make your way to one of the several restaurants we will soon have.(Dinner for two $ 100)Spend the evening on Wetlands Edge watching the sunset as you use the walking trails. My next stop is the NV Casino to play some cards.($50) I head back to my hotel for some night club action and a few drinks.($75.
The next morning after breakfast at the Marketplace,($25) some wine tasting at the wineries in town. Purchase several bottles to take home.($150)


My vision stimulates the local economy by a conservative estimate of $695 for the trip). It includes enjoying the open space and more importantly, encompasses the vision WE NEED to make this a REALITY.

This is how I envision MY American Canyon to be. Maybe I should run for City Council.

[Guest]

Guest...

Will NEVER happen having WAL-MART staring you in the face with traffic congestion, robberies, thefts, vandalism, graffiti and trash,etc. Its not one's mindset here, its an escape... an escape from reality.

Did WAL-MART make Vallejo's PARK PLACE a destination? The surrounding businesses at this location are just a taste of what will be in American Canyon... nail salons, failing burger stops, video stores, discount shoe stores... more of the CHEAPER STORES, INC. mindset that originally applied for our SAFEWAY spot. At least THAT Planning Commission had the good sense to turn them down.

You vision is valid if we had a TRUE mixed use project at Napa Junction and not a shill for the Big Box Boys. If we even had a version of SANTANA ROW in San Jose, you vision would work. But alas....

[myopinion]

The vision from Guest sounds good to me. Sign me up! and yes, you should consider a run at city council. Fresh ideas from open-minded people.

The reply from the other guest who can't get past the Wal-Mart is exactly why we are in the situation we ae in.

American Canyon is more than a controversial store.

If a W-Mart store is built. The solution is easy. Don't shop there.
That doesn't mean the rest of the population can't see beyond the store to see the anticipated dining facilities and other shops= revenue for the general fund for long overdue and vital projects.

[Paul Maguire]

Well, the problem with the Wal Mart is part in its location and its size. AC is really broken up by the overpass at Green Island Road, where it is mostly industrial to the north, and being developed with retail, commerical, medium and high density housing, and a town center to the south.

The size will stick out and overshadow the rest of the city. Soon you will not longer see the hillsides, and the bright REd sign of Walmart will light up Oat Hill.

But the positive view point is appreciated, and the town will certainly improve over time with good planning and good projects.