OC UNFAIR » Beazley’s Stingers

Another Beazley Victim

OCunfair — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 18:02:05 +0000

First Bob Mosley… Now Mark Entner… Steve Beazley is on the warpath… who will be next?

Here is the letter of resignation from Mr. Entner describing the unethical and potentially illegal behavior by Beazley in an effort to terminate Mosley. After Mosley was gone, he turned his focus on Mosley’s supervisor, Mark Entner, who had refused to take part in Beazley’s persecution of Mosley. For his non compliance, Entner was demoted, harassed and eventually forced to resign.

For a 20-year employee like Entner to resign in the midst of the worst economic recession in the last 50 years, the attacks and harassment against him must have been unbearable. We can only hope that the District Attorney, Attorney General and/or Department of Justice see this letter and move to stop Beazley before he strikes again.

Beazley tries to Muzzle Employees

OCunfair — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 16:12:01 +0000

Steve Beazley tried to muzzle the fair employees and prevent word about his takeover plan with Ellis from getting out. He tried to get his staff to sign loyalty oath papers promising that they wouldn’t disclose his scheme under threat of termination. Here’s a copy of the document along with the backpedaling from HR once they were called on it.

Financial Failure

OCunfair — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:46:52 +0000

The 2009 Orange County Fair was an unmitigated disaster. While the fair in Del Mar and Pomona understood market conditions and lowered prices or offered $1.00 admission days, the Orange County Fair was raising its rates on both its customers and its vendors. Not only did the admission fee go up, but so did the ticket prices for the rides.

Why would anyone raise the rates during the biggest economic recession our nation has seen over the last 50 years? Any first year business student could tell you that is a recipe for disaster. The problem is, Steve Beazley, the CEO of the Fair has never signed the front of a check, only the back. Beazley doesn’t have a PhD in economics… or even an MBA… or even a college degree in business. Beazley is a former fair roadie with a psychology degree. A psych degree may be very helpful when manipulating board members, but it’s not so effective when managing a multi-million dollar event like the fair.

In the 12 months Beazley has spent as CEO he has worked overtime to drive the fair into the ground by squandering millions of dollars that were in reserves, intimidating vendors and firing staff. This psychology major is clearly in over his head.

Beazley tried to convince the board that the 2009 fair was a success, but the vendors who actually worked the fair had a different story. Beazley brought in more vendors, raised the rates and lengthened the time of the fair in order to claim success, but offered no proof other than his word.

That is just the tip of the iceberg. Beazley had to pay out tens of thousands in taxpayer dollars to the Pet Expo folks because he couldn’t deliver what he promised. The buildings and infrastructure needed for this event were simply not done in time resulting in a taxpayer bailout due to Beazley’s incompetence.

It’s time for a forensic audit to see what is really going on behind the scenes.

Beazley’s Power Grab

OCunfair — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 22:50:00 +0000

The Ralph M. Brown Act and Bagley-Keene Act require public meetings and full transparency, which are too much of a hassle for OC Fair CEO Steve Beazley. In an effort to consolidate his nefarious power behind closed doors, he simply disbanded many of the board committees, which have served the people so effectively and openly for the last fifty years.

In the past, there were several committees that worked with staff in an open and public way to provide honest leadership that was in the best interest of the fair and the community.

No more.

Beazley has disbanded nearly every board committee and using his financial signature authority up to a whopping $300,000, he has gone on spending sprees without board knowledge or approval.

He hired Bill Charney and Associates, a Colorado-based consultant specializing in nonprofit boards, to help him restructure the OC Fair Board under a new governance plan, which helped eliminate transparency and allowed him the opportunity to work behind the scenes to spend taxpayer dollars and make decisions without full accountability to the board and the public as a whole.

Under the unquestioned, unelected and unaccountable czarist leadership of Beazley, the fair is spinning out of control, which could be why Beazley and his cabal are scheming to sell the property for pennies on the dollar before their economic chainsaw-juggling act results in catastrophe.

Intimidation of Employees

OCunfair — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 19:16:10 +0000

Make no mistake, if you don’t support Beazley’s regime without question, he will fire you. When 30-year law enforcement officer and long-time fair employee Bob Mosley raised questions about Beazley’s “leadership,” Beazley quickly and publicly fired him without review or discussion.

After dispatching Mosley, Beazley used his dismissal as a warning to others saying, “If you don’t get on board our train, you will be left at the station just like Bob Mosley.”

Beazley may be obfuscating his behind the scenes dealing of an attempted quick-sale of the fair property, but his position on the sale to the fair employees is crystal clear.

“All who oppose us, WILL BE GONE!”
- Steve Beazley

Selling Us Down the River

OCunfair — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 01:55:49 +0000

Beazley is conspiring with long-time political hack, snake-oil salesman and fair board member Dave Ellis to sell the property of the fairgrounds for pennies on the dollar. Fairgrounds throughout the State were tabbed for potential sale during the state financial crisis, but while board members throughout the state worked hard lobbying the Governor to hang on to their fairgrounds, only Orange County Board Members were inexplicably lobbying to try to sell off their site.

Not only that, but the property, which is worth hundreds of millions of dollars is proposed to be sold for $25 – $30 million. About one-tenth of its true value.

THE PROPOSED SALE PRICE OF THE ORANGE COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS
WOULD NOT EVEN COVER THE INTEREST ON THE STATE DEBT FOR 24 HOURS.

Why would they offer the property at such a ridiculously reduced price? Because the board is the buyer AND the seller! Outrageous, and probably illegal.

Politicians in his Pocket

OCunfair — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 22:57:02 +0000

The Costa Mesa City Council claims that it won’t re-zone the fair property to allow for high rises or traffic inducing commercial center, but remember who is pushing this sale
– Dave Ellis.

Ellis has made a career of getting “his people” elected. It may take some time, but he’ll get his three votes on the council and when he does, AEG, which runs LA Live – the shopping and concert zone surrounding the Staples Center in LA, could turn Costa Mesa into “LA Live South.” Not coincidentally, Ellis also has a long-standing relationship with AEG, which we’ve heard has been preselected as the operator of the amphitheatre.

Ellis lives in Newport Beach and couldn’t care less about the quality of life of the residents living next to the fairgrounds. His goal is to line the pockets of his clients and keep the politicians in his pocket to keep his own nest feathered.

The fair board has done this bait and switch routine before. The Pacific Amphitheatre was supposed to be a small 5,000 seat amphitheatre facing away from homes. After the board got its approvals, they turned it into an 18,500 seat arena that blared music into residential neighborhoods.

Now they say that they promise they won’t take out the fairgrounds and replace it with high density housing and traffic clogging malls and retail space. Why should we believe them?