Date: 26 Feb 2001
From: Michael Idrogo

"AGENDA FOR BUILDING SAN ANTONIO..
INTO AN ECONOMIC POWERHOUSE"
-- Michael Idrogo, Candidate for Mayor, City of San Antonio

"We are tired of the lies..
We want..
We need THE TRUTH..!"

We need to move forward into this Our New Century with an "AGENDA FOR BUILDING SAN ANTONIO INTO AN ECONOMIC POWERHOUSE." We must, with proposals from Michael Idrogo, Candidate for Mayor, provide Ability, Flexibility, and Leadership for true direction that citizens of Our City are still searching for from Our local government.

1. A NAVAL AIR STATION
We must establish a Naval Air Station in order to compensate for the Air Force's closing of Kelly Air Force Base. The Navy has taken over at least one other Air Force Base and the Navy is in need of more aviation training to regain air readiness that it has lost with recent years of downsizing.

2. A MARINE CORPS FACILITY
We must establish a Marine Corps facility in order to compensate for the Air Force's closing of Kelly Air Force Base. The Marine Corps has taken an excessive hit with recent years of downsizing.. and appears it needs once again to increase its facility needs. We should attempt to establish a Marine Corps facility from anything from a Marine Corps Air Station to any other type of camp facility the Marines may need.

3. JOB CREATION
We must seek to create every opportunity for more jobs. Higher paying jobs. Jobs that stay in San Antonio. We must not put all our eggs into one basket. The current administrations are relying wholly on the tourism industry to save Our City from the closure of other industries.. I have lived in Florida (and Hawaii and California).. Florida is probably the number one tourist destination for the entire country.. and believe me.. tourism is the FIRST to suffer and decline when the economy goes bad.

4. AN INDEFINITE MORATORIUM ON ANNEXATIONS
Of all the motivators which can cause Our City to fall into ruin is a most foolish policy of continued expansion. Let history be our educator.. the fall of the Roman Empire.. was also due in large part, to the uncontrolled policy of continued expansion of that empire. WE MUST FIRST TAKE CARE OF WHAT WE'VE GOT before we go off running to further and distant lands. WITH THIS NEW MOTIVE.. we will have reason to build Our City into a magnet that will attract people instead of drive them away.

5. CRIME ELIMINATION
We must eliminate crime. Michael Idrogo knows of how we can go about doing this so that we can bring crime down to almost ZERO and almost overnight. Michael will seek to implement high-tech "smart systems" for the purpose of bringing crime, violence, drugs down to near zero percent. It's time to just stop REACTING to crime and it's time now to move ahead with MICHAEL in order to prevent and eliminate crime.

6. LOWER UTILITY BILLS
It costs less to live in the City of Converse than in the City of San Antonio! Their utility and cable bills are lower! Same providers of service! We must also do everything possible to LOWER, not raise, our utility bills. There are ways that this can be accomplished. Let this past few months of extremely high gas/electric/water bills be a warning of things to come, IF YOU VOTE FOR ANY OTHER ADMINISTRATION, __they__ will continue to raise the rates on you!

7. LOWER CABLE RATES
When the cable company first came in here.. we were told by local government that eventually there would be a number of cable companies and that competition would keep cable rates low.. HAS THAT EVER HAPPENED? NO! Rates have continued to climb! I propose lower cable rates. They have lower rates in the City of Converse and its the same provider as for the City of San Antonio!

8. 10-CENT PAY PHONES
I propose that pay phones be lowered back to 10 cents per call. The City Council is the authority that regulates these rates.. the council has continued to raise the rates again and again while less and less service has been provided. I also propose to pass a resolution requesting the U.S. Department of Justice launch an investigation to see if there has been any price-fixing or anti-trust activity by and through the increased pay phone rates in order to peddle "CELL PHONES" to our local public.

9. CITY PLANNING THAT WORKS
We must work to put into place some city planning that actually works.. from the need for more parks, to better roads, to synchronized traffic lights for improved fuel efficiency, to many other needs. We need a plan that has a unified vision and that will be analyzed throughout before implementation instead of some usual city planning that merely takes public monies to spend for some one's private benefits.

10. REDUCTION OF TRAFFIC CONGESTION
We must strive to reduce the congestion of traffic in and around Our City. Less congestion means much better fuel economy. And better fuel economy means less money spent from our pocketbook.

11. SAFER SCHOOLS
Michael is knowledgable of programs, systems, and equipment that can Our Schools safer. From Michael's personal experience in various states across the country, to personal experience with six-day school sessions in Japan, and from his personal experience with school systems across Europe.. Michael is ready to help Our School Districts so that Our City can benefit from safer schools.

12. BETTER ECONOMIC DISTRIBUTIONS THROUGHOUT OUR CITY
Unfortunately for Our City of San Antonio, most of the economic concentration occurs only in certain parts of Our City. Michael will strive to utilize better planning and to provide incentives for better economic distributions throughout our city (and not just to certain sides of town but for improvement to all areas).

13. IMPROVED CITY SERVICES
Our City of San Antonio (at least it's current leadership) has seemed to have fallen into a "small town" "19th century" mentality whereby improvements and higher technology are not only not considered but it appears that the administrations operate with a "head in the sand" motivation -- i.e. the less they learn -- the better off we are.. and the less that needs to be done. Fortunately for us, there are many, many improvements, higher technologies, and better ways of doing things out there in the rest of the world -- and Michael will see to it that many that he's aware of (and many others) will be implemented in order to provide more economical and efficient CITY SERVICES to you the residents of San Antonio. But you can't do it or get it unless you first act.. by voting.. and voting in the upcoming Mayor's election.

14. ECONOMY
We need a patent and trademarks repository in Our City. Houston's got one.. and I believe Dallas and Austin do too. The United States has succeeded in the past century at being a leader in commerce.. and to maintain leadership.. with ideas and patents! We must establish a patent repository library in Our City, in order to help encourage every patent possible.. and to bring wealth from elsewhere to Our City and local area.

15. ECONOMY/EDUCATION/QUALITY OF LIFE
An internet terminal in every home. Michael will seek to work with telephone/cable/satellite providers in order to seek a method for low-cost or no-cost (to the home user) of an internet terminal in every home as common as a telephone. The economic generation potential for our local economy from such an implementation will offset the costs.

16. CORRUPTION
Michael will seek to establish a Committee to weed out Corruption and Graft. To seek out and report on Corruption and Graft at all levels of city government. It's time to stop the spending of public monies for the private benefit of a few. It's time to begin to cut the tax-costs instead of allowing uncontrolled escalation of those costs.

17. ECONOMY/LABOR/TRADE
Small, island nations do it. They have a worldwide trade and economy and they are prospering! We could no doubt improve our economic/labor/trade if we embark an aggressive plan to improve Our Own Local Economy with participation in worldwide trade with active participation of Our local labor and Our local economic potential. We can do it. Michael is knowledgeable about what trade and markets are ready for San Antonio's labor force.. and Our labor force need NOT leave town in order to participate!

18. ECONOMY/LABOR/TRADE
As Our Nation no longer maintains control of the Panama Canal; the need for a strengthened transcontinental railway for the purpose of maintaining lines of communication during any period of national emergency is intensified. We have the oldest continuously operating transcontinental railway passing right through San Antonio -- the Sunset Route. The Sunset Route flanks (goes around the Rocky Mountains along a southern route -- from southern California across southern Arizona, southern New Mexico, El Paso, Del Rio, Houston, New Orleans, and across to Florida. FURTHER, a high-speed passenger rail is in planning in Florida with extension currently envisioned to New Orleans and Houston. IT WILL BY-PASS SAN ANTONIO as the high-speed rail is continued on out to California (most likely by going to Dallas instead of through San Antonio) --- unless we act now! We must seek to plan for a high-speed passenger rail line THROUGH San Antonio. (France is test running trains at 350 mph.) Already, AMTRAK has began operating a high-speed rail line in the northeastern U.S. (with plans of it's expansion south to Florida). The time for San Antonio to plan for this system is now! Michael Idrogo is pro-active about the implementation and use of passenger rail lines -- he used them often in Europe, Japan, Korea, and even traveled the passenger rail lines in the U.S. when possible.

19. ECONOMY/LABOR/TRADE
San Antonio and Bexar County lead the nation in train-automobile collisions. Do we have to wait for a catastrophic train-school-bus collision in order to react? We need "zero tolerance" for railroad crossing collisions -- we need to require and build that every rail crossing be an underpass or overpass of a road under or over a rail line where never the two shall meet. Railway viaducts. Such is already being done, and has been done in some European countries for decades -- and as was necessary for implementation of their high speed rail lines. See for example: http://freewebs.com/rr21stcentury. Michael will seek to improve.. all railway safety, all airline and aviation transportation safety, all automotive and ground transportation safety, all emergency vehicle (and police, firefighter, etc), safety WITHIN OUR CITY; all with science, high-technology, and all other means available.

20. DIRECT FLIGHTS BETWEEN EUROPE AND SAN ANTONIO
I will seek to have airlines initiate discount, direct flights between Europe and San Antonio.

21. SUNSET PROVISION
A "Sunset" provision -- whereby city agencies are reviewed every 7 years to determine whether or not that agency should continue to operate or be systematically shut-down, i.e. "the sun will set" on that agency. Purpose: to reduce waste and eventually reduce costs on tax-payers.

22. KELLY AIR FORCE BASE CONTAMINATION
We must work with the Federal government to have the Kelly Air Force Base contamination declared a SuperFund CleanUp Site.. we must help to relocate the people away from the contamination.. we must clean up the contamination! No more delay!

23. WE ARE TIRED OF THE "DOG AND PONY" SHOWS
We are tired of the "dog and pony" shows from our recent administrations. Some people may be fooled all the time.. but many others of us are just tired of them. Michael will seek to get the truth for you the tax-payers and voters. Purpose: an efficient government costs less to operate.

24. AND MANY OTHER IMPROVEMENTS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS We need many other improvements.. many of which are long overdue. Michael will seek to bring you all economic development and all the improvements necessary.

25. PRISONERS OF WAR / MISSING IN ACTION
On a seperate note, I also believe the P.O.W. / M.I.A. flag should be flying at City Hall. They shall not be forgotten.

Respectfully,
Michael Idrogo, Candidate for Mayor, City of San Antonio