Doan Doesn't Bedazzle; Will Elk Grove Mayor Gary Davis Save Doan's Hide Tomorrow?



March 24, 2016 |

At last night's Elk Grove City Council meeting, Economic Development Director Darrell Doan gave his first full-fledged presentation since assuming the discretionary position last year. The presentation was a rehash of data generated by an outside consultant listing historical employment data for Elk Grove.

If Doan's presentation were a movie, a quote from the late Roger Ebert is apropos. In his review of Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles, Ebert wrote "I've seen audits that were more thrilling."

While presentations certainly don't need to be thrilling, but to paraphrase Ebert, they should at least be meaningful. Doan's presentation was not.

Now we cannot entirely knock Doan given the product he is working with and his bosses - a generic Central Valley bedroom community led by dullards whose ideas of economic development is building rooftops, installing wayfinding signs for all the tourist flocking here and approving massive billboards along our freeways. Not coincidentally, as we were reminded last night by Council Member Steve Detrick, any idea that seems reasonably sound is usually appropriated from a constituent sans credit by one of the dullards. 

What's an economic development guy to do but rehash meaningless information, and to make matters worse, provide no coherent analysis. 

What was most amazing about Doan meaningless presentation were the accolades laid on him by Detrick. At one point Detrick exclaimed "great report!" 

Why the dullards continually praise the highest paid group of employees in the city for simply doing the work of the taxpayers will forever be a mystery, but we digress.  

And not to be outdone, probably on the instructions of one of the dullards, within minutes of Doan concluding his report, the city's public information officer emailed a press release touting the historical data as if somehow three-year-old data is breaking news. The whole spectacle was nothing more than a dog and pony show to provide cover for the dullards in an election year.

Of course, all of this could be negated with tomorrow's much-anticipated announcement from Mayor Gary Davis about a game changer employer from Silicon Valley opening in Elk Grove. Perhaps the mayor will make it all right tomorrow.   

Well at least The Mayor was able to joke about being "laser focused." 









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6 comments

Anonymous said...

Steve “The Mentor” Detrick was certainly on exhibition last night. Even though Inez Whitlow of Chicks N Crisis has long deserved recognition, the over-the-top showering of appreciation was embarrassing. It was pandering at its worse, using a fine charity as a political ploy.

Detrick, once again, proves he has no shame and will use anything and anyone to further his own self-aggrandized ego.

He even took credit for Darrell Doan finally coming forward with his report; a report which was hollow at best.

SteveB6509 said...

Sorry but I feel the need to jump in. While a certain amount of economic development activity can be evaluated, I think those who post here want to know every little thing that Doan is doing including all the possible deals that he has had discussions about. That is the best way to kill a deal (and who knows, maybe the people here want that). These things need to occur behind closed doors and often take a long time to come to fruition. As you noted also, Elk Grove is not publicly the easiest sell. We have some great attributes but also some difficulties in trying to compete with other regions and even other cities in the Sacramento area. We spent many years focussing on housing and shopping centers and now the City is (finally) focussing on more sustainable employment. You can't turn that ship around overnight and there are many people in the City (in the government and outside) working on turning that ship.

Just came in off the turnip truck said...

I think it is fair to say that the five electeds were put there to vote yes on land deals. The deals that come forward by the financiers are rooftops and retail. Anything else, the five are on their own. Besides, you can't blame Doan any more or less than Randy Starbuck. If public patience starts to make the five electeds squirm, then any city employee is fair game and will be thrown under the e-tran bus. The fact that Doan is still here means the five are not squirming.

Connie said...

Hi SteveB6509,

Yes, the EGN readers are very involved in the community and we do ask questions. We also have come up with some great ideas as well as it pertains to economic development.

He won’t mention it but I will because the idea was a great one and Dan has been talking about it for a very long time.

The owner of this site, Dan Gougherty, been a longtime advocate of Elk Grove being the hub for microbreweries, both in the agriculture, the farm to form movement as it pertains to growing hops locally, and the potential for the all ancillary businesses that would follow – meaning more jobs for our city.

Dan has gone so far as to email the Elk Grove City Council and staff several time with what would be an excellent, untapped [pardon the pun] opportunity for our community by way of economic development.

It is interesting to note that Dan’s exact ideas were brought up at last night’s Elk Grove City Council meeting.

Toni Fallon said...

Wait a minute!!!!! You mean that wasn't Steve "The Mentor" Detrick's idea?

Oh, I forgot, The Mentor hasn't had an original idea since being elected to the council. (Actually, even before being elected.)

(Side Note: EGN, can you PUHLEEZ add a sarcasm font?)

Seriously, Detrick the Dolt is found guilty of using his campaign funds illegally, the FPPC calls him out as a liar when he does not pay back the money after saying he did and then he steals someone's idea and presents it as his own. Um, hasn't he preached honesty and integrity from the dais?

Time to go. The City of Elk Grove and its checkbook can't afford your kind of mentorship and you are certainly not the role model anyone would want for their children.

SteveB6509 said...

I'm not meaning to say the citizens should not come up with good ideas (and I love the beer-related idea!). It is just that some in Elk Grove get mad with the lack of development reports and all I am saying is that many times, some developments cannot be discussed.

Bravo for the brewery idea. I look forward to that growth in our town!

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