Though she had no power or authority over the Los Osos wastewater project during her tenure on the board, former Los Osos Community Services Director Maria Kelly may have promoted the Los Osos wastewater project on her boyfriend’s — County Public Works’ Paavo Ogren — behalf through election campaigning, word-of-mouth at various community events, and progressive board action that allowed a controversial contractor to participate in the wastewater project. Given the seemingly lopsided results of the Proposition 218 assessment and the community survey, the County of San Luis Obispo benefited from her free marketing.
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 Now playing at LOCSD funhouse CORRECTION (11:47 PM): Marshall Ochylski spoke to Razor Online and has denied that Wright is his insurance agent, and has also denied that Wright is campaign manager. Proper corrections have been made to make the article as accurate as possible. On July 7 Michael Wright was appointed to the Los Osos Community Services District board, assuming a seat that was vacated by former Vice President Maria Kelly, who recently resigned under pressure. Board President Marshall Ochylski, the leading supporter for Wright, openly admitted to reaching out to Wright and convincing him to submit an application for the position. Later it was rumored that not only is Wright the board president’s insurance agent, he was also his campaign manager during his most recent bid for the District 2 seat on the SLO County Board of Supervisors. Ochylski has denied the rumors.  Shhhhhh! The County of San Luis Obispo is unlike most counties in California — and across the nation — because of its distinct preference for silence as a general response to public inquiry. Many inquiries and concerns are raised and have been raised by citizens who demand transparency and accountability. However, many of those inquiries and concerns are swept under the rug without recourse. This is the culture of silence, and it’s rudely counter-intuitive to making progress and uncovering the truth about highly questionable governmental practices that have become standard operating procedure in the County.  Only seven miles to Los Osos Not since Hurricane Katrina have a few politicians toyed so dangerously with the lives of thousands. Recently, State Sen. Sam Blakeslee fought hard for a suspension of the relicensing of the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant until “a myriad of questions regarding the seismic setting at the facility are answered.” Blakeslee rode the headlines from Japan to headlines in the U.S. Yet Blakeslee has remained silent on asking for a suspension of engineering contracts on the nearby Los Osos Wastewater Project, less than eight miles away from the nuclear facility, until a parallel liquefaction study for Los Osos can be completed prior to engineering the sewer project. Any major earthquake in the area is likely to affect both Diablo Canyon and Los Osos.  Don't cry Maria... we're moving in with Paavo! Former LOCSD director Maria Kelly and current Public Works Director Paavo Ogren have been dating for six months. Some allege that their relationship has lasted for two to three years, and the political circumstances surrounding their relationship are extensive. It’s too early to tell whether a conflict of interest between Ogren and Kelly can be proven. However, there is information that illustrates the appearance of conflict of interest. Razor Online investigates the allegations. UPDATE (6/22 10:30 PM): The Tribune is now reporting that Kelly has been dating Ogren for six months, but she “does not base my relationship” on the sewer. UPDATE (6/22 7:30 PM): The podcast is back online. Click on the link below to access it. UPDATE (6/22 12:15 PM): KVEC 92.0, the radio station hosting the Dave Congalton show, has pulled the June 17 podcast, which had Velie discussing the article. UPDATE (6/21 10:25 AM): The County Administrator will investigate the allegations made by CalCoastNews, and Razor Online will report to you the results when that information is available. We didn’t vote for Maria Kelly. Paavo Ogren is not on our Christmas card list. CalCoastNews has a solid readership for their”gotcha!” formula. Love ‘em or not, something is wrong with the CalCoast formula, and it’s in danger of turning toxic when they go after the kids. According to a letter written by the State Water Resources Control Board on May 25, Citizens 4 Clean Water has quietly filed an appeal to Judge Crandall’s ruling of December 28. “While the Central Coast Water Board prevailed, a few parties appealed that decision,” wrote SWRCB attorney Frances McChesney. “Thus the case is currently pending before the Court of Appeal.” Ironically, the appeal to protect Cease and Desist recipients has prevented the CDOs from being rescinded.
Ignoring several, previously unaddressed concerns from residents during the May 17 Board of Supervisors meeting, San Luis Obispo County Supervisor Jim Patterson spoke for a minute about his views on the Los Osos wastewater project. Here is the complete transcript of his speech:  The manana board at another meeting On Tuesday, SLO County Board of Supervisors voted to expand the total Los Osos wastewater project to $173,398,416 in order to accommodate the “Waterwater Enterprise Fund.” The board also voted to increase the designation for future road projects in the Road Fund by $2,200,000.  The County says, "Take my card!" The County is tired of hearing from Los Osos residents about the County’s handling, or mangling, of the sewer project, for which Los Osos is paying, not the County. How tired are they? So tired that Supervisor Bruce Gibson, at a recent after-hours session in Los Osos, narrowed his usual lava flow of caustic, inflammatory comments to two words: “Sue me.” |
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