As readers can see, our cover story this week features the first anniversary of DavenportOne. While congratulations are definitely in order, it was somewhat shocking for me to note the enormous weight DavenportOne gave to the City of Davenport's deal with Sentry Insurance as somehow being a feather in its own cap.
Where oh where is our new Davenport city administrator? It has been over three weeks since Mayor Phil Yerington announced his choice of Craig Malin for the position, amidst some dissention from players at DavenportOne and several of the aldermen, namely Aldermen Sherwood and McGivern.
I've known Mike Dassie for well over 20 years. Mike passed away last Thursday, June 28, after 57 years of a truly great presence on this earth. Mike was manager of the Davenport Country Club for thirteen years, owned O'Meara's Pub in downtown Bettendorf for five years, and then went on to operate his own successful catering business.
On June 16, 2001, the world dimmed when my friend, Chris Wightman (50 years young) passed away. Chris was not your average bear. He was the epitome of kindness, gentle compassion, and true friendship. As one acquaintance put it, "Chris was a blue chip guy.
On Monday, June 18, Davenport Mayor Phil Yerington announced that a candidate has been chosen to fill the vacant position of city administrator. Craig Malin, currently the Douglas County Administrator in northern Wisconsin, has a long list of favorable credentials responsible for a unanimous recommendation from the 14-person search committee appointed by the mayor to find the best candidate for the job.
Hopefully, the public has been watching Super Wal-Mart as it has proceeded, at times allegedly unlawfully, toward its ultimate conclusion. The last leg of this development travesty was the "dark store agreement" conceived and perpetrated upon Davenport taxpayers by Alderman Bob McGivern, who only further demonstrated his lack of understanding of business matters so crucial to the proceedings.
A friend of mine attended a luncheon recently, at which a spokesperson for MidAmerican Energy told the audience that her company was preparing its customers for the same cost increases next winter as those we experienced this past season.
There is no more denying it. It is time to take the blinders off and face the discouraging truth about the current Davenport City Council. With the sole exception of 5th Ward Alderman Wayne Hean, this council betrayed us for the second time by voting for development along or near 53rd Street, giving developers a leg up utilizing public financing tools meant for blighted and neglected neighborhoods.
The Davenport City Council proceeded with approval of two rezoning petitions on behalf of THF Realty for a Super Wal-Mart located at Elmore and 53rd Street without several of the conditions of the zonings in writing.
The opinions of the Quad City Times editorial board are often a source of amusement for those of us who bother to educate ourselves on the issues that concern Davenport taxpayers. This entity's blanket support of Self-Supporting Municipal Improvement Districts (SSMIDs) for THF Realty to pay for infrastructure improvements that provide access to their own development of a Super Wal-Mart and Home Depot is but one more confirmation of the QC Times' editor's philosophy, that ads are news too.

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