By Aaron Ochs, on January 16th, 2012%
 Los Osos Internet Troll promotes "healing" This report is based on research that tracked online activity of Los Osos residents since the 2005 recall elections, which effectively stopped the controversial wastewater project on the Tri-W site. The recall was followed by a handful of lawsuits filed by contractors and a local group run by two of the three recalled district board members. Online, there was outcry from anonymous residents who — for more than five years — have conspired to undermine the “obstructionists” who were in support of recall efforts. Their campaign against the “obstructionists” persists to the present.
“Check this out. This is scary,” wrote former Los Osos Community Services District president Lisa Schicker to supporters in July 2006. Elected in November 2004 as a candidate who fought for an “affordable, environmentally superior sewer project,” Mrs. Schicker provided a link in her e-mail to comments made about her by anonymous pseudonyms on a message board operated by The Tribune.
Continue reading The Los Osos Sewer Wars: Fought in Cyberspace →
By Aaron Ochs, on December 21st, 2011%
 Saltwater intrusion ignored On December 13, the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors approved a $7.6 million contract to HDR Engineering, a Nebraska-based global firm that would provide construction management services for the Los Osos wastewater project. This came after District 2 Supervisor Bruce Gibson assailed the project opposition for being “irrelevant” and “in denial” in comments that weren’t directly related to the contract itself.
While the costs continue to rise for the project — despite assurances from County Public Works that they are working within their $174 million budget — the project is once again overshadowed by Gibson’s draconian provocations, and the County’s callous unwillingness to look at the social and environmental impacts that Prohibition Zone homeowners would have to face and ultimately pay to mitigate. The last BOS meeting of the year ended on a note of defiance from the board, with no legitimate reason for them to do so other than to lay down a smokescreen to obscure the many questions and concerns they left unanswered.
Continue reading Gibson Calls Saving Millions “Irrelevant” →
By Aaron Ochs, on November 28th, 2011%
Everyone in the County agrees that the opposition to the County’s planned Los Osos wastewater project is a stubborn bunch of watchdogs. And it’s true. They are.
Because of their unyielding tenacity to present the sewer as a problem on a weekly basis, they have become political fodder for project supporters and outside observers who believe the project should be moving forward.
They have also been accused of desperately cajoling officials into investigating scandals. Scandals between contractors, their own employees, and the relationships between employees and individuals with special interests, any weak link in the chain that is also somehow in some way connected to the Los Osos sewer.
Continue reading Breaking Down the Fragmentation →
By Aaron Ochs, on November 18th, 2011%
 Popcorn Politics (Original photo by the New Times) UPDATE (December 23): According to the RCLO web site, Marshall Ochylski was removed from the board of directors roster.
After our article about ReCreate Los Osos was published, many residents came forward to raise concerns about the non-profit organization, their intentions, and the mystery surrounding the group’s formation. Here is some more information about the organization and its founders.
Continue reading UPDATE: Say “No!” to ReCreate LO →
By Aaron Ochs, on November 7th, 2011%
 The evil engineers of division Razor Online has an exclusive report, detailing a large-scale operation by County officials to discredit Los Osos wastewater project dissent in never-before-seen detail.
When San Luis Obispo County Public Works Director Paavo Ogren attended a town hall meeting on June 19, 2007, he was asked by a resident about working with Dana Ripley of Ripley Pacific Company and the STEP/STEG collection system. He calmly told the resident, “Personally, I’m not a fan of that technology. Besides, [Ripley] and his project is more or less absurd. I don’t want to work with him, and… so what’s the point in complaining, right? We just follow the process. I just do what I’m told.
“It’s part of the game.”
Continue reading Inside The County Sewer ‘Game’ →
By Ed Ochs, on October 31st, 2011%
 Your host for disaster. Welcome to the “Great Seismic Disaster Game,” the only game show in America where you spin the Seismic Wheel of Misfortune and, if you live in Los Osos, you lose your home no matter what!
Continue reading The Wheel of Misfortune →
By Aaron Ochs, on October 20th, 2011%
 New Times sticks it to Los Osos On Thursday, the New Times’ Shredder doubled down on criticism about Los Osos residents, and mentioned Razor Online in a particularly unflattering light.
Continue reading New Times ‘Lame’ Identity Crisis →
By Aaron Ochs, on October 5th, 2011%
 General Grant leads the Uncivil War. UPDATE (9:50 AM): Jim Grant has issued a response to his timing of the report’s release. He tells Razor Online, “As I publicly stated Tuesday before making my statement, I had originally intended to report out after closed session in the afternoon but after thinking about it I thought it more appropriate to report out during the Public Comment period in the morning. There were a number Los Osos residents that were in attendance that are interested in the wastewater project and I knew they would be interested in my review and evaluation of the alleged conflict of interest. I also stated that, if needed, I would repeat my comments in the afternoon.”
When San Luis Obispo County Administrator Jim Grant dismissed the conflict of interest allegations involving Public Works Director Paavo Ogren and former LOCSD director Maria Kelly, there was outrage from members of the public who waited until the afternoon to speak on the issue. In an e-mail written to The Tribune sent on September 30, Grant told the newspaper, “It is my intention to report out after closed session.” Instead, Grant presented his findings in the morning after Los Osos residents had already provided public comment. Some have said Grant did this as an attempt to thwart protests in the afternoon.
Continue reading Ogren Investigation a PR Disaster →
By Aaron Ochs, on October 4th, 2011%
 Time to tie the knot? San Luis Obispo County Administrator Jim Grant has thoroughly dismissed the allegations of conflict of interest between Public Works Director Paavo Ogren and former Los Osos Community Services District director Maria Kelly as having “no factual basis” during the morning portion of Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting. Grant listed each facet of the investigation that he focused on, and stated unequivocally that Ogren was cleared of conflict of interest on all allegations raised by the local media.
Continue reading Ogren Investigation Falls Short →
By Aaron Ochs, on September 19th, 2011%
 Is anybody home? On October 13, 2010, I wrote an article titled “Get The Facts: Ring Paavo’s Doorbell,” which was understandably controversial. The controversy reached a fever pitch when I took on local radio host Dave Congalton, who wrote an article about it. Since then, I spent time objectively analyzing the overall job performance of the County, and their responsiveness to concerns surrounding the Los Osos wastewater project.
Continue reading ‘Ring Paavo’s Doorbell’ — One Year Later →
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