Fair Board Unanimously Rescinds Tel-Phil Termination

UNANIMOUS VOTE TODAY
Sources from the meeting of the 32nd District Agriculture Association (Orange County Fair Board) today advised me that the Board voted unanimously to rescind the termination notice previously issued to four-decade swap meet operator, Tel-Phil Enterprises. Apparently Dave Ellis and Dale Dykema were absent from this meeting. Sounds to me like they were able to wet their finger, stick it in the air to see which way the wind was blowing and decided to absent themselves rather than be seen voting against the majority on the Board - but I don't know that for sure.

RFP FOR NEW VENDORS CANCELED
I'm also told that the next item on the agenda involving Requests for Proposals for a new Swap Meet operator was pulled. Naturally, since it is now irrelevant.

GOOD NEWS ALL AROUND
This is good news for Jeff and Bob Teller who own Tel-Phil, the vendors at the Orange County MarketPlace (swap meet) and the residents of Orange County who visit the MarketPlace each week. It also makes a new tone of conciliation between the Fair Board and those who have opposed some of their recent moves - the sale, etc. Norberto Santana, Jr., in an article in the Voice of OC, HERE, had this to say:

Fair Board Chairwoman Joyce Tucker, who took over the reigns from Ellis, said she wants her tenure to be known for peace, civility and transparency as opposed to the heated debate, secret negotiations and controversy of the past two years.

"The sale is behind us," Tucker said. "We're trying to move forward."

A NEW ERA BEGINS
So, let's see how this plays out. I think Joyce Tucker has it right and that, perhaps, we can put this rancorous chapter in the Fairgrounds saga behind us.

Peace In Our Time At The Fairgrounds?

BARBARA REPORTS A TRUCE
In her column in the Orange County Register today, the vivacious, bodacious and sometimes efficacious Barbara Venezia has reported that there that the rolling boil of antagonism between Jeff and Bob Teller, the operators of the Orange County MarketPlace and their landlords, the 32nd District Agriculture Association Board (Orange County Fair Board) seems to have been turned down to a simmer. You can read Barbara's assessment HERE.

GOOD NEWS
This seems to be good news, especially for the hundreds of vendors who make a living as part of the MarketPlace, for the Tellers and for the tens of thousands of folks who visit the MarketPlace every year.

CAN THEY MAKE IT WORK?
There has been very obvious strains in the relationship between the Board and Tel-Phil Enterprises, Inc., the name of the MarketPlace operating company. Without ripping scabs off old wounds - the result of the drama surrounding the attempt to sell the Fairgrounds a couple years ago - it would appear that the shift in the leadership and demographics on the Board recently has produced some moderation of the political posturing and more reasonable discussions. That's good news, as long as both the Fair Board and Tel-Phil can both make a living based on whatever this new deal turns out to be.

WAITING AND WATCHING
On the agenda for the Fair Board meeting Thursday, November 17th, there are three items on the agenda, HERE, there a couple items directly related to the MarketPlace situation. Item 9A is the Consideration of the 18 Month Notice of Termination to Tel-Phil Enterprises, Item 9B is Swap Meet Request for Proposals and Item 10A, the closed session discussion of Lease Negotiations with Tel-Phil Enterprises and Potential Litigation. It should be a VERY interesting meeting. If you plan to attend, the meeting is scheduled from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. in the Administration Building at the Fairgrounds.

Breaking News! Fair Board Votes To Oust TelPhil

TELPHIL OUT AT FAIRGROUNDS
Joe Serna at the Daily Pilot, HERE, has reported that the Orange County Fair Board, on a 6-3 vote, has decided to oust TelPhil Enterprises as the operator of the Orange County Marketplace on the Fairgrounds site, severing a more than four-decade relationship.

DODGE VOTES NO!
This story is still developing, but it is reported that former Board Chair, Kristina Dodge, voted NO, along with two newbies - Nick Berardino and Gerardo Mouet. According to reports from the site, Dodge didn't join Chair Dave Ellis and the others in their vote to oust TelPhil because they were not in default of their contract.

ELLIS READY TO SPEND BUCKS ON LAWYERS
According to a couple of sources, Board Chair Ellis said at the end, "Well, that's that! Let the lawsuits begin!" Clearly, he's among those in the Orange County GOP hierarchy more than willing to spend taxpayer money on lawyers.



TELLER FURIOUS
It is also reported that Jeff Teller, the operator of TelPhil, addressed the board with heated, accusatory comments. I suspect Serna will flesh out the whole story in a modification of his brief tease posted in the past hour. Stay tuned...

Wa'sup With The Fairgrounds?

NOW ON SIMMER
The boiling tumult that was the sale of the Orange County Fair and Event Center (Fairgrounds) has been on simmer for the the past couple months awaiting resolution of the legal challenges to the sale and to see if New/Old Governor Jerry Brown will use his executive power to halt the sale.

WHO DO YOU BELIEVE?
Parties on all sides of the issue - it's not really a two-sided issue, more like a parallelogram - have quietly jockeyed for position in the arena of public perception, hoping to be viewed as the "real" savior of the Fairgrounds. Jaded members of the public seem unwilling to buy any "I'm really a good guy" argument at this time, but we'll see.

ORANGE COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS PRESERVATION SOCIETY
Sandra Genis' Orange County Fairgrounds Preservation Society remains poised to pounce if it looks like the sale will go through. Over the past couple years Genis has spent countless hours lobbying with government officials at the local and state level trying to quash the sale.


FACILITIES MANAGEMENT WEST - "WE'RE GOOD GUYS"
Potential owner Facilities Management West recently issued a press release in effect telling the world that they are good guys and would be good stewards of the Fairgrounds if the sale goes through. Since President Ken Fait's little tirade before the City Council many months ago folks are having a hard time conjuring up the image of him as a benevolent owner.

PARTNERSHIPS AND PROFIT SHARING
Last week the management of the Fairgrounds, through their CEO, Dr. Steve Beazley, issued a couple press releases. The first, HERE, issued on March 24th "announced several forward-looking endeavors to enhance partnerships and profitability" and went on to talk about its relationship with Barrett-Jackson, including a new 85,000 square-foot exhibit hall to be used for the car auction. It also addressed the plan to find a partner for an 8,500 seat Pacific Amphitheater concert venue - we're assuming this would be a covered building that would deflect any future "noise" issues.

32ND DAA OWNS THE FAIRGROUNDS!
The second, HERE, issued the same day, announced the Fair Board affirmation of its belief that the 32nd District Agriculture Board actually owns the 150 acre site and pledged to halt the sale. The Fair Board has apparently unleashed it's legal counsel toward that end. This is good news.

ELLIS SPEAKS!
Then, today, OC Weekly Chasen Marshall gave us his most recent view of the whole Fairgrounds issue, HERE, and actually got Fair Board President David Ellis to speak for attribution! Be still, my heart! Ellis actually is quoted by Marshall, when asked about the stealth non-profit creation that was at the cornerstone of the controversy nearly two years ago, as saying, "I'll be the first to admit I was in the middle of all that..." You can read the rest of his quote in the article at the link I provided.

BYRON DE ARAKAL JOINS FAIRGROUNDS TEAM
At the end of Marshall's piece today he announced to the world that my friend, Byron de Arakal, has been retained as a public relations consultant by the Fair Board. I've known about this assignment for a little while, but withheld comment until it was officially announced - I guess we're at that point now. I've teased my pal about this assignment since we first began talking about it. Much like Bill Lobdell's assignment with the City of Costa Mesa, Byron is going to have his hands full with this one regardless which way the sale goes. I've teased him about being a "corporate make-up artist", alluding to that old "lipstick on a pig" analogy. One thing I think we can anticipate is crystal clear communications coming from the Fair Board while Byron's onboard. We'll see...

O.C. MARKETPLACE OUT?
And, the fate of the Orange County MarketPlace remains in doubt. Operator Jeff Teller may find himself odd man out regardless which way the sale is resolved. It's clear from public pronouncements that Facilities Management West feels (felt?) that they could operate the upscale swap meet better. And, Teller is currently in "negotiations" with the Fair Board about problems with his rent. The drama continues...

Fairgrounds Appeal Stalls Sale

APPEAL COURT "STAYS" THE SALE
Late this afternoon the Court of Appeal of the State of California Fourth Appellate District, Division Three granted an immediate stay in the pending sale of the Orange County Fair and Event Center to Facilities Management West or anyone else by the State Department of General Services . According to court documents, "the stay shall be in effect until further order of this court. Defendants and respondents are invited to respond to this petition on or before Monday, January 10, 2011." You can read the brief Daily Pilot article on the stay HERE.

FACILITIES MANAGEMENT WEST TO FILE RESPONSE PROMPTLY
Following this news I spoke briefly with Tom Gibbs, attorney for Facilities Management West, who advised me that they will, indeed, be filing a response to this stay. He did confirm that this stay will be in place until the Appellate Court decides to remove it - if ever. When I asked Gibbs what he thought about the prospects for this sale once Jerry Brown takes office he had no comment.

GENIS, TELLER, FOLEY, ETAL NOT AVAILABLE FOR COMMENT
Representatives of Advanced Real Estate Services and the Orange County Fairgrounds Preservation Society could not be reached for comment - they're probably out partying!

DRAMA CONTINUES
So, the drama continues. Instead of a lump of coal in their stockings in the form of a consummated sale this Christmas, the opponents find themselves with new life in their battle to prevent the Fairgrounds from being sold to anyone. Their euphoria may be short-lived, though, since Facilities Management West has proven to be a persistent and aggressive opponent.

HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS
So, let's all just let this simmer for a couple weeks and enjoy our holidays. Frank, if you please...

Fat Lady Warming Up?

CAN YOU HEAR HER YET?
According to reports in the Daily Pilot, HERE, and the Orange County Register, HERE, Orange County Superior Court Judge Michael Brenner ruled against every element of the lawsuits filed to stop the sale of the Orange County Fairgrounds to Facilities Management West.


HANGING BY A THREAD
Judge Brenner did, however, extend the temporary restraining order until late next Tuesday (the Register says 4:30, the Pilot says 4:00) to provide time for petitioners to petition the Appellate Court for a rehearing. Apparently, if that move is successful, the TRO will remain in place until that court makes a ruling. I tried to reach representatives of the petitioners for a comment but have received no reply yet. I'm going to assume they will move briskly with an appeal since they've come this far. If they can get an appeal court to agree to hear this case, the upcoming holidays may drag this out long enough that the new administration will take over in Sacramento and put a stop to the sale, period.

MONAHAN ASSURES US - WHY?
In an interesting bit of juxtapositioning, yesterday former and current Costa Mesa Mayor Gary Monahan wrote a Community Commentary in the Daily Pilot with the title, "Facilities Management will do what's best", HERE. I guess we can blame the incorrect name of the company on a headline writer - the company's name is Facilities Management West. My question is, "Best for whom?"

OK, GARY - IF YOU SAY SO...
In his piece Monahan assures us of the good character of the folks at Facilities Management West that he helped negotiate with during our ill-fated attempt to partner-up with them to purchase the Fairgrounds from the State. He vouches for FMW's "professionalism and integrity in all the dealings we have had together." Hmmm, am I the only one who remembers former mayor Allan Mansoor reading the riot act to FMW principle Richard Dick from the dais for what was described as abusive treatment of our negotiators by FMW's negotiators? Who are we to believe here? Do we not remember that part of our deal was apparently hammered out at Monahan's gin mill? I want to believe Monahan, but....

SIX DAYS LEFT...
So, the clock continues to tick until late Tuesday afternoon, appropriately, the first day of winter, to see if Jeff Teller and Sandra Genis can convince an appeals court to hear this case. If not, next week that fat lady will be belting out a tune - and it won't be a Christmas Carol.
A REMINDER...
I'll leave you tonight with a reminder of the goal of Facilities Management West as articulated to Mansoor by principle Ken Fait last spring.