2/29/16 – A Youtube video showing the homeless occupying the abandoned Banning Business Center has gone viral. In only 2 months, the video has accumulated over 81,000 views, indicating that it has received a national audience.

The video shows the homeless improving the abandoned structures with makeshift living quarters, furniture, curtains, a door bell –  even a private strip club is part of the amenities!

Please watch for yourself :

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MOYER AND WELCH LEAD BY EXAMPLE

In watching this video, it becomes clear that Sun Lakes and the Banning Chamber of Commerce are no longer the only ones helping themselves to free utilities (see previous stories here and here). As the video shows, the homeless have followed the example of our City leaders, and have tapped into a public gas line, free of charge.

But can we really blame them ? After all, City officials like George Moyer and Mayor Art Welch both have made it clear that they expect the public to pay for their utilities. These scammers obviously believe that paying for utilities in Banning is only for dummies!

The homeless seem to agree.

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“VISIONARIES” LIKE MAYOR ART WELCH CREATED THE DILEMMA

Located at 8th and Lincoln, the abandoned Banning Business Center’s development dates back to 2006. During this time, Mayor Art Welch was the Chairman of the Banning Redevelopment Agency.

Welch was so enthused about the project, he personally attended the ground breaking ceremony (see picture). But that was not all. This “visionary” also felt that taxpayer dollars should be used to help build the now useless facility.

In  November of 2006, Welch voted to give $500,000 in taxpayer money to the developer. His decision was supported by then-Mayor Brenda Salas Freeman, councilmembers Barbara Hanna, Sue Palmer and  the late John Machisic (see Resolution of Banning Redevelopment Agency 2006-33). An additional $ 610,000 was allocated for traffic improvements.

However, none of these councilmembers bothered to verify that the project’s financing was secure. As it turned out, it wasn’t : after the subsidy was approved, the project failed half way, due to lack of financing. It was never completed.

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YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK – CREATING A HOMELESS CRISIS!

Had Welch & Co been more prudent in giving away our tax dollars to the project’s developer, chances are that the Banning Business Center would not have taken on it’s present form of an unfinished, abandoned project. Most likely, it would have never been started.

Therefore, the current homeless situation engulfing the complex is largely a result of the irresponsible handling of taxpayer funds by 5 geniuses on the City council (i.e. Redevelopment Agency). Again, those responsible were: Welch, Salas Freeman, Hanna, Palmer and Machisic.

The Banning Business Center dilemma goes to show that redevelopment funds can be spent without creating any improvements for the community. To the contrary, this example proves without any doubt, that spending public funds irresponsibly can effectively hurt the community it seeks to improve. The money has now created a homeless crisis for Banning.

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CONCLUSION

With the video going viral, Banning’s local homeless situation has received national attention. No doubt, Banning will now likely attract even more homeless because of it.

It couldn’t be more clear: this extensive homeless problem was created by our own government. Thanks to the irresponsible actions of “visionaries” like Art Welch, Salas Freeman and others, we are now faced with a sophisticated regional homeless encampment, unlike any other in the United States.

It appears that, also evidenced by the Paseo San Gorgonio project, Mayor Welch and his comrades have not learned anything from their past mistakes. Then and now, Banning’s City council majority lacks any “vision” for prosperity, and instead leads the City down an irreversible path of destruction, one step at a time.

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