No on Coolidge - Chico Can’t Afford Another 4 Years

𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐨 𝐆𝐨𝐭 𝐑𝐢𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐰 𝐂𝐨𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟖 𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐇𝐞 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐎𝐮𝐭 𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐊𝐢𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬; 𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐚 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐍𝐨 𝐨𝐧 𝐀𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝟒 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬

It should be no surprise that with a shady PAC funded by far-right interests, out-of-towners, and developers dumping $220,000 into our local city council election, Andrew Coolidge would be back in the mix.

When Coolidge was elected in 2014, his first motion was to agendize a discussion of Chico Scrap Metal (CSM). We’re going to have to back up a bit to explain why this was so significant.

CSM was convicted in 2007 of polluting; the Department of Toxic Substances Control found contamination including chromium, lead and zinc, and polychlorinated biphenyl (or PCB). George Scott, the owner, pleaded no contest and was fined $700,000, then began a round of appeals - appeals that dragged through the court system for years.

CSM’s location abuts a residential area and is adjacent to the Chapman Elementary School, so this was not only a horrifying case of gross pollution, it was deeply alarming for families who lived nearby and those whose children attended Chapman.

The city already had concerns about the location of CSM at the time George Scott was charged - in 2006, they had given CSM 5 years to move to a new location. 14 years later, and despite the pollution conviction and proximity to the school and residences, they are still there.

The reasons are simple. One, Chapmantown, which was only annexed this year, wasn’t part of the city and had no real representation. The other reason is the poverty of the neighborhood - there was no money for the fight.

There is no other neighborhood in Chico where a convicted gross polluter would have been allowed to stay for years next to an elementary school, or to have even located there in the first place.

What has all this got to do with Andrew? Well, after his conviction, George Scott had a grudge against District Attorney Mike Ramsey, who brought the charges. In 2010 Scott and a few others created a PAC called Citizens for Economic Balance, and recruited a Sacramento DUI attorney to run against Ramsey. That PAC hired none other than Andrew Coolidge as its public relations consultant.

Although Ramsey won, Coolidge made thousands from that work, and apparently lasting connections.

It certainly says something about the strength of those connections that his literal first motion as a Councilmember in 2014 was a motion to agendize a discussion of Chico Scrap Metal, who was fighting the city (ceaselessly) on the move.

There is no excuse for CSM to remain in its current location. It’s an ongoing and blatant display of money winning over the interests of area children and families. We are hopeful that Chapmantown being a part of District 7, and finally having direct representation will move this issue towards resolution.

We can’t afford to have Coolidge’s shady alliances influencing council decisions again. Chapmantown’s residents and children are too important. Chico's future is too important.

𝐍𝐨 𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐝𝐠𝐞!