Inside sources say longtime Community Development Disservices Director Kirk Girard will no longer run the Building and Planning Divisions. He will retain control of Economic Development and Natural Resources, at least for now.
No specific reasons were given for the change–probably because the list is too damn long. Girard’s recent cock-up over the multifamily housing rezone was likely just the last straw.
So what does this mean for the Community Development Disservices Department? Will Girard continue to draw a full salary for half the job?
And who will run the Building and Planning Divisions? Will those functions be outsourced to the private sector as some have suggested?
Most important–What will become of the General Plan Update? No one’s ever accused us of being very smart, but the answer to this one seems obvious even to us:
It’s game on, bitches.
Update:
The matter might be tied to this item on the Supervisors’ closed session agenda for Tuesday:
New and Improved Update:
After hearing two McKinleyville and Cutten residents remind the Supervisors of their personal experiences dealing with a rude Girard and his inability to actually hear the people he is forced to listen to, County Counsel Wendy Chaitin reported in the afternoon meeting that the board met in closed session to discuss Girard and unanimously voted to punt the issue to the Oct. 11 meeting.
Filed under: Humboldt County | Tagged: Community Development Disservices Department, Empire Falls, General Plan Upchuck, Kirk Girard |
The Humboldt Mirror 
Listen carefully and you can actually hear his wings getting clipped!
No more Bonnie to protect him from what should have been done a long, long time ago.
Go Trolls go. Can’t you find something else to pass the time away beside feeding your ridiculous obsessions?
RA in third comment. Not quite a record. Are you just playing with yourself or are you really that stupid.
10 years and no plan. Cannot answer a question from board or public straightly. Shit just flow from his mouth, he has real problems telling the truth, ever.
I would say Tuesday BOS closed session may leave a mark.
[…] Linking to the Humboldt Mirror, with some caution that the Mirror makes an abundance of satirical posts. But this one isn’t reading like satire, and it references a closed-session BOS agenda item for tomorrow. For those of you coming out of a long coma, Kirk Girard currently heads up the County Building and Planning Department. […]
Okay Humbug. Is this for real, or am I missing some Onionesque subtlety in your post?
Well Eric, we don’t really pretend to know much of anything, but this bit of news has been kicked around water coolers far and wide. Let’s just say that tomorrow’s report out of closed session might be interesting if what we’ve been hearing is true.
And a point of clarification, Girard heads up the entire Community Development Services, the overarching agency of the Building and Planning departments, as well as Economic Development and Natural Resources Dept. That’s a pretty big swathe of bureaucracy to manage for one guy who can’t claim many successes in the past decade or so.
Remember the Redevelopment debacle that enraged and motivated every single person from Redway to Orick?
Okay, but whatever has been discussed around the water coolers can’t have been discussed by the people who would actually make the decision – the BOS, or three of them anyway. Not without a water cooler violation of the Brown Act. So if you’re reporting that there are those in the know who are aware of an impending push for that particular outcome, that would make some sense. But do these insiders have insight as to the minds of at least three Supervisors?
I’m sure there are people who would love to see your outcome come to fruition. Others would probably love to see him out altogether. But the prediction, from your insiders, seems very premature.
Time will tell. Time will tell.
I don’t think the Bugs are “reporting” anything Eric. This seems to be some wild accusations that will probably play out just as they have been discussed. I’ve heard this rumor about Girard from several people and the writing is on the ol’ wall for Girard.
completely false, but hell, it’s posted on the Mirror so that’s being redundant
put him on as a grant writer, hire Pee Wee Herman to finish his job on the GP. A 1000% inprovement.
I bet the Barnum’s would just love to have all that power that Anonymous believes they have. Someone’s conspiracy theories have gotten loose on this blog.
I don’t think the Bugs are “reporting” anything Eric.
Uh, what do you call a post which begins with “Inside sources say…” if not “reporting?”
I’ve heard this rumor about Girard from several people ….
Oh, well that settles that then!
Oh shit. Anyone in county gov and who have been paying attention to this idiot knows he’s been begging to keep his job (f’ing up) by lobbying (not in closed session at all) to have the dept split and him keeping econ development. Only stoners are out of the loop on this one. Girard is in full “flush” (that is circling the drain) mode.
The only Supervisor w/a pair is Ryan Sundberg. Virginia is too busy kissing staff’s ass every week & telling Kirk she loves him.
Virginia has a diff pair.
I have long wondered how a person can screw up soooooooooo many times and keep his job. Any administrator that fails in so many ways should have been fired years ago.
RA? How’s that troll? Seems like the bon bon’s death grip on the county is over. She did so much to plant incompetent shites on us like Girard. I would be happy to see Girard on unemployment.
“Virginia has a diff pair.”
For $90k, she better go buy a bigger pair. Maybe Mark will lend her Cliff’s. I hear he keeps them in his purse.
I think that Mark wears his wife’s panties.
I’m sure Cherie A can give offer Virginia some references Alvarez
$90k might be good enough for a down payment
DING…DONG. The witch is dead?
Just love Mr. Lovelace’s comment on the attacks on “good planning”, so how does bad management equal good planning?
Good planning my ass. I agree Ben, bad management is Girards legacy.
Marks comments in today’s rag are over the top. Of course no one will call him on it. What ” concerted attack”, what “good planning”. Ten years to develop a plan and nothing. He lies, distorts the truth, and changes numbers at will. He is just doing a terrible job. Bonnie is gone, need to get rid of the residual crap.
I haven’t heard this specific rumor, but I find Lovelace’s comment to be particularly interesting – there’s more than one idea of what makes ‘good planning.’
Mark’s is the “infill” idea – designed to drive you all into your cubicles, stacked up like cordwood – because living on the land is “sprawl” y’know – and he was well paid to help steer the Planning process that way. Secretly. Pretending to be ‘just another concerned citizen.’
He overplayed his hand over the TPZ debacle, a day when the Board of Supervisors, stripped away private property rights, in one day with virtually no notice. So intent was he on dealing a death blow to his nemesis (PL) that he allowed the carefully constructed mask to slip away. His troops filed up one by one to address the Board – each armed with their three minute portion of the message. each praising the Board for their “courage” – meaning for doing what Lovelace and Ken Miller and Co. wanted.
It’s only when you aren’t toeing the “progressive” line that you awaken his “concern.”
It makes his life difficult when people stand up for their rights – as McKinleyville is now, and others.
He continues to paint those who are standing up for themselves as evil obstructionists – who have lost their soul. But it must be eye-opening to be on the other side of the podium now.
We left a little present for ya’ll in light of today’s T-S article and Marky Poo’s comments…because he really does believe he’s smart and talented enough to be coach, player and referee in the game of county policies.
Rose Welsh, straight off the Tea Party Express
Does anyone else find it odd/interesting/lame that Donna Tam wrote in her article about Girard’s review in today’s T-S that there is “some speculations surfacing that Girard would no longer oversee planning” but stopped short of naming any source. Am I left to assume that she is alluding to the Mirror?
An anonymous blog? WTF?
Was a Mirror post enough for her to launch a “news story” that essentially allows Mark Lovelace the opportunity to open his big yapper and vomit out the same tired alarmist shit that has fueled the left’s “chicken little-esque” fear of developers or growth in this county?
Donna, please don’t be a tool for the left.
I believe Donna probably has other sources. I don’t claim to be an insider or in the know. However I have heard much of what is on the mirror today from several different sources over the last 2 weeks, people who should be in the know.
Donna Tam is hard to figure out, but very nice to study visually. Maybe she thinks she is doing the job expected of her by the rag where she works. Mark does not need a forum in which to launch his dribble. He has many of them. I hope Donna does not go to the dark side, if so it would be their most attractive supporter.
Check out the prog blog. Already the attack is in full swing. Attack Estelle, RA, then associate them, lie and repeat the lie, sounds like the strategy of that hump Salzman. He learned right from the master.
I wouldn’t try and lump Rose in with the Tea Party. That doesn’t necessarily seem to be her angle.
But hey Anon 10:09, trying to smear someone or marginalize them by simply associating her with the Tea Party “Express” isn’t working these days. They are a large, diverse and politically powerful segment of voters that is increasingly being viewed as legitimate — even by the far left media.
Regardless of one’s particular political leaning, the Tea Partiers have legitimate concerns and issues with the way politicians on both sides of the aisle have lost touch with basic accounting principles and spending fundamentals with taxpayer money.
More power to them. They will help shape the way this country moves forward in a pretty dire state of affairs. Open democracy is sorta what makes this country great. They are one of the most formidable “third party” movements to come along. Stronger and more influential than the Green Party.
That being said, quit trying to slime Rose and change the topic. This post was about Girk Kirard, right?
You don’t think Rose is a member of the Tea Party Express?
Just read her other blog for her point of view on national politics
http://www.thecoffeeshopblog.net/
Well, I guess what I meant to say Anon 12:45 and 10:09 is that I don’t give a shit about your comments. Go back to Heraldoville.
We need a good Tea Party. The commie red coats are controlling the economy and trampling our freedoms. Do you have a permit for that? Do you have a license for that? Do you have insurance for that? Do you have a union card for that? Have you paid the fees for that?
Well as long as we are way off topic, let me explain the Tea Party to
y’all–
The ants are tired of the grasshoppers.
I am afraid the whole Donna Tam sub-issue here and what her affiliationsmay be with the darkside are moot; she works for the sub-standard and includes the dribble she is fed by the county through her editor in all of her articles… She unfortunately does not understand what being an investigative reporter means, nor does she apparently understand our system of checks and balances or two sides of the same story. Sad really.
To the main issue: another nice guy who is really too chicken s_ _ t to do the right thing. J. Smith keeps blathering that he is committed to work really hard on the general plan or to work really hard to fix the Planning Department’s problems…it is GIRARD’s responsibility to work hard you dolt.. As an elected Supervisor it is YOUR JOB to fire his butt when he ic BAD for the coutny!!! SNAP OUT OF IT AND DO YOUR JOB!!!!do the
Punt what issue?
Was Security National able to hold the Ward lines for the 4th District? Will Rex still be able to run in the 4th? Thanks for all your efforts B. Mitchell.
I just think the dip shits from Heraldo are soooo very funny when they come over here to troll. 8:24 must have smoked his bong instead of having the traditional cup of coffee this morning. That, or he doesn’t know the difference between the First and Fourth Districts.
CNN doesn’t seem to mind being associated with the Tea Party – co-hosted the latest debate, even. Even let people ask the questions. Probably the best debate yet.
Are you really that dense Erik? For whatever reason, Girard was spared the rod for a month, but his time of reckoning is coming. Wait for it, wait for it, wait for it……
Kirk G is incompetent. It shows in so many ways. Now he can be rewarded with being the head of some other department that will get totally fucked up because, oh yeah, he is incompetent. And a liar. If you have ever dealt with him you would know that to be the truth. Just fire him. He will still get a pension paid for by us taxpayers.
sad, but true.
There was one clear spoken soul that called the midget on his total BS remark in the TS. Thank you cowboy!
Yes, 9:37 you are correct. We watched as Markie-Mark sat there with egg(shit) on his face. We all remember what a cheese curd he is and his humboldt watershed payed lobby job to sell(good) planning to us rubes. Hats off to the cowboy and the middle diget to the midget.We also watched Kirk talk shit out of both sides of his mouth at tonights PC meeting. Can this turd!
Kirk Girard is actually very intelligient – just not applied for the benefit of the community. Maybe Arcata will hire him back for a position once someone leaves Arcata for the county (remember Conlon for Girard, separated by 2 years of hush hush time). Watch for the musical chairs that separate but connect governing jurisdictions. Humboldt County is isolated politically in such a manner as to keep the internal workings of communtiy fraud and public tax dollar launderings on the hush, hush.
JL
1st time the HOJ has made any sense.