Who is Short Season, LLC? Investors to Fund the Stadium, Make All the Profit
CITY COUNCIL MEETING, AUG. 15
PUBLIC ZONING HEARING BOARD MEETING, AUG. 16
Without a VOTE by the Citizens of Hillsboro to RENOVATE the Gordon Farber Recreation Complex, then Short Season, LLC, aka the Hops, with Kenneth L. Wombacher as president and general manager, will fund the construction of a rumored new Hops Stadium. That means he (and the 26 private investors) will have full control, and manage the venue 100%.
Can the City Of Hillsboro legally give a Publicly Owned building to a Private Enterprise?
From the Oregon Secretary of State webpage, the publicly available Article of Merger, filed on Dec. 15, 2022, here are the names of the 26 Investors, the people who will reap the profits:
Merged into what was previously known as: Short Season, LLC:
From what was previously known as: Hot Corner, LLC
Michael A. McMurray and - signed October 19, 2022
Laura McMurray – signed October 19, 2022
Randall Boyd and
Carol Boyd
George E. Weisz
Jerry G. and
Barbara Sue Landau
Shatisha Wilson, agent for WGOH, LLC - - Wilson’s Garden of Hope, headquarters Georgia
Edward C. Tonkin
Adam Tonkin
From what was previously known as: Sports Enterprise (Hillsboro), LLC
Michael A. McMurray and - - same person as above
Laura McMurray - - same person as above
Jeanette Omsby &
Michael Omsby
Richard F. Taylor – signed OCTOBER 8, 2022
Cynthia Gitt
Paula Mays
From what was previously known as: Baseball Impresarios, LLC
Myron Levin
Richard Simon
Kenneth L. Wombacher - - Hops President, main promoter of the “new” rumored stadium
Peter Norstrand
Bruce Romano
H. Marcia Smolens
Elton Blum
Michael Connelly
Timothy Luberski
From what was previously known as: Perfect Game, LLC
Steven Olson
Joshua Weinman
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The citizens of Hillsboro tax dollars built the Gordon Farber Recreation Complex.
Is it legal for the City of Hillsboro to allow Short Season, LLC to damage the existing Gordon Farber Recreation Complex?
Is there a Conflict of Interest?
At the PZHB meeting, the Hillsboro City Hops Stadium Project Manager, Mr. Morrison, manages the project and communicates with the Mortensen Construction and Real Estate Company. He also works with KL Wombacher, the person who has done such a great PR job promoting a hypothetical building, the rumored New Hops Stadium.
I think that KL Wombacher jumped the gun, going off like a loose cannon before all the estimates were gathered, legitimate costs were rolled up, and issues mitigated. That's gas lighting. It's the Pygmalion effect of "other-fulfilling prophecy."
I think if we took the time to get honest, legitimate, and complete preliminary cost estimates that a Renovation will be far less expensive and will maintain the form, fit, and function of the original Gordon Farber RECREATION Complex.
WE, THE CITIZENS OF HILLSBORO AND WASHINGTON COUNTY, NEED TO VOTE ON THE $122 M PROJECT BEFORE PROCEEDING. NO DIRT WORK UNTIL AFTER A VOTE.
Many years ago, the man, Gordon Farber, went to bat to stop the State of Oregon from building a State Prison near Hillsboro due to "livability" issues. I wonder what he would think to see HIS complex being turned into an Anaheim North ENTERTAINMENT Complex, especially on the whim of the City Council with NO public input? Oh, dear Gordon, I can hear you rolling over in your grave, my friend, RIP.
Public broadcasting channels 2, 6, 8, and 12 have disseminated KL Wombacher's sales pitch about the growing attendance (where's proof of that?) that justifies construction of a 100% new stadium, an ENTERTAINMENT COMPLEX. KL has everyone in the Portland/Metro area hyped up about the "rumored New Stadium, all the concerts, and 350 venues a year."
KL has everyone expecting all this entertainment when we already have the Westside Commons to serve that purpose, on the public transportation MAX train and bus lines. What a great example of "an other-fulfilling prophecy."
A few years back, the City of Hillsboro demolished the 138-acre Washington County Fairgrounds to build a 100-acre Westside Commons, which they also hyped at that time to bring 300 venues and concerts a year to Hillsboro. (And, we used to have concerts, such as the hard rocking Pat Benatar concert in 2018.)
Do we need two entertainment centers competing with each other? That doesn’t make any sense, does it? It’s just plain silly.
Back to the rumored New Hops Stadium, I have a HUGE concern about EVACUATING the stadium in the event of a catastrophe, such as "an active shooter," "a large seismic event (bigger than the Spring Break Earthquake of 1993)," "a suicide bomber and fire," etc. No one can honestly dismiss the very real possibility of something horrendous occurring.
The 2015 Umpqua Community College Shooting in Roseberg where 8 people were killed and another 8 people were injured should have opened everyone's eyes that it can happen here.
The Gordon Farber Recreation Complex is hemmed in by Sunset highway all along the north side boundary line. There's no public transportation anywhere. HOW WILL EMERGENCY VEHICLES AND FIRE TRUCKS GET INTO THE COMPLEX WHILE FIGHTING PANICKED SPECTATORS TRYING TO GO THE OTHER DIRECTION AS PEOPLE FLEE THE EVENT?
Where is the Traffic Study?
Where is the Evacuation plan?
Where is the Environmental Impact Statement?
What happens to the entertainment stadium should/if/when Major League Baseball decides to move to Portland? Has mitigation of this potential conflict been researched?