At 5:55pm yesterday, after our weekly print issue went to press, look what showed up in my email inbox. It’s a letter from Michael J. Looby, legal counsel to the Buffalo School District. Nice of him to stay in touch.

Attached are those highly sensitive financial disclosure papers that I requested on Monday, April 20, and was allowed to see, but not copy on Thursday, April 23.

Is it a coincidence that Looby responded just a few hours after receiving this Show Cause Order?

“Campaigns report required information in eclectic ways,” he writes, “not necessarily using a standardized form. Accordingly, until seeing the actual filings, it is not possible to ascertain if a given report might contain information which we are prohibited from transmitting, or which is statutorily exempt.”

Translation: It took the legal staff of the BPS nine days to reach the same conclusion I came to in half an hour last Thursday—that there were no Social Security numbers included in the 24 pages that constitute the candidates’ financial statements.

Looby then followed up with an email to me at 6:36pm yesterday, asking me to forward the attachment to another petitioner named in the Show Cause Order. It’s the same 24 pages of documents with a different cover letter, asking me again to remit $6.00 for the PDF. So, looks like I’m up to $12 in debt to the Buffalo Board of Education for essentially the same information.

At this rate, he could just fill up my email inbox with the same documents, over and over, until my bill equals any shortfall in next year’s school budget.

Read it and weep, folks. Today’s the deadline for candidates to file their April 30 updated financial disclosures. Prediction: The incumbents drop theirs off at the William Street Post Office at 11:59pm tonight. They will arrive at City Hall on Saturday. On Monday, the BPS legal cousel will begin the laborious task of scouring them for SS numbers. The school board election will take place on Tuesday, so no one will know in time just how much money was poured into the attempt to elect the incumbents to their $5,000/year positions.

Unless, of course, the 11am court date Monday compels them to release this clearly public information in an immediate manner.

Mayor Byron Brown has released his long-awaited poverty plan. It’s late—its author, Donn Brown, was hired to produce it 16 months ago, and the mayor promised in January that it the plan would be released in February.  I’m just beginning to read it, and will solicit opinions on it in the days to come.

Meantime, here’s the mayor’s poverty platform for all to read. I’d welcome feedback from those who have read it.

Thursday’s FREE FOOD NIGHT Highlights Bisons/Bats Four-Game Series at Coca-Cola Field
May 1 is fridaynightbash!® with Fireworks (7:05 p.m.)

The Buffalo Bisons, Triple-A affiliate of the New York Mets, will return home on Thursday to being a four-game series against the Louisville Bats (Cincinnati) on Thursday, April 30 (6:05 p.m.).

The four-game series begins with a night of unprecedented value. The Bisons are offering FREE FOOD NIGHT for their game against the Bats on April 30. All fans in attendance can receive one free meal item, one free small popcorn, one free ice cream sandwich and unlimited Coca-Cola soft drinks. Gates open at 5:00 p.m. with a 6:05 p.m. first pitch on FREE Food Night against Louisville .

The homestand will continue with a fridaynightbash!®, sponsored by Seneca Gaming Corporation, Derby Day as part of a Niagara University High School Saturday and a Family Fun Sunday, presented by Uncle Bob’s Self Storage.

Tickets are available by calling THE-HERD (716-843-4373) or charge-by-phone at 1-866-223-6000. You can also order online at Bisons.com or visit the Coca-Cola Field Box Office (Mon-Fri, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Saturdays, 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.) or any Tickets.com outlet locations.

Louisville Series (April 30 – May 3)
Thursday, April 30 @ 6:05 p.m. (Gates 5:00 p.m.)
-FREE Food Night, presented by Regent Broadcasting of Buffalo, in cooperation with Country 106.5 WYRK, 96.1 WJYE, 93.7 WBLK and 92.9 JACK FM, Coca-Cola Bottling of Buffalo, Zweigles, Midstate Bakery and Sara Lee/ButterKrust, Perry’s Ice Cream and Sanarak Paper and Popcorn Supplies.
-ALL FANS will receive a tear-off card with up to $8.00 in FREE FOOD. Each card will have a coupon for one FREE meal item (either hot dog, hamburger, Italian sausage or kids PB&J uncrustable pouch), one FREE small popcorn and one FREE small ice cream sandwich.
-Unlimited Coca-Cola soft drink products throughout the game.

Friday, May 1 @ 7:05 p.m. ( Pre-Game Plaza Party, 5:00 p.m.)
-A fridaynightbash!®, presented by Seneca Gaming Corporation, is the best night of the week and a weekend tradition in Western New York .
- Pre-Game Plaza Party begins at 5:00 p.m. with live music from the band, Boogie Monsters (Rock covers). Also enjoy $3 specials on hot dogs, hamburgers, Italian Sausage and 12 oz. beers.
-Post-Game Fireworks Show will light up the Buffalo sky.

Saturday, May 2 @ 1:05 p.m. (Gates 12:00 p.m.)
-Derby Day –The Bisons host Louisville on the day of the Kentucky Derby. Get ready for the “Run For the Roses” with some special in-game tributes.
-WNY Red Ribbon Day as Western New York United Against Drug & Alcohol Abuse pays tribute to their ‘Friends in Prevention.’
-High School Saturday, presented by Niagara University . High School students can purchase two tickets for only $12 when they present a valid high school ID.

Sunday, May 3 @ 1:05 p.m. (Gates 12:00 p.m.)
-A Family Fun Sunday, presented by Uncle Bob’s Self Storage.
-Kids’ games on the field before the game, presented by Wegmans. After the Bisons game, children are welcomed down the field for Kids Run the Bases, presented by Tim Hortons.

Although I’ve never been in one, I sure many of you have memories of the cars of the Buffalo Police Department (at least, of the back seat!). There’s a great website, BPDthenandnow.com, which not only features photos of some of the cars from the past, but also other interesting historical facts of the BPD. You can check out the old police cars by clicking here. Once there you can also view the Officers’ Memorial, old badges (including a photo of the honorary BPD badge given to Frank Sinatra), and some amusing photos — my favorite being the burning patrol car in the parking lot of Dickie’s Donuts.

top: 1960 Chevy; bottom: 1965 Plymouth Belvedere (photos from BPDthenandnow.com)

Click here to read the Show Cause Order filed today by attorney Peter A. Reese seeking to impel the release of financial information pertaining to the upcoming Buffalo school board election on May 5.

Five qualified voters are the petitioners seeking, among other things, the release of this public information. The respondents are superintendent James A. Williams, BPS clerk James M. Kane, school board members Christopher L. Jacobs, Catherine Collins, and Florence D. Johnson, the Buffalo Niagara Partnership, Buffalo Students First, and NYS Commissioner of Education Richard P. Mills.

The court date is set for Monday, May 4 at 11am. Hon. Frederick J. Marshall, J.S.C. presiding.

Additional relief sought includes, in the alternative, the filing of revised campaign statements by the incumbents, or an injunction against further participation in school board elections by the Buffalo Niagara Partnership and/or Buffalo Students First.

“Of interest, the section of the education law which allows the judge to order filing or revision of campaign statements contains a provision allowing the judge to grant immunity from criminal prosecution and thus compell testimony. Such a course of action would require further proceedings and take much more time than can be accommodated prior to the May 5 election,” Reese adds.

The petitioners’ primary objective on Monday will be to obtain a bench court order requiring the immediate release of all documents filed with clerk James M. Kane, pursuant to the conduct of the 2009 Buffalo school board election.

Click here for a copy of the three-page report from the State Education Department to Buffalo School District General Counsel Michael J. Looby, dated March 31, 2009, which is written about in today’s Buffalo News. The report is a response to a school board request that the state investigate alleged leaks from board members to Buffalo News reporter Mark Sommer, regarding remarks made during an alleged executive session that took place on January 29, 2008.

Evidence does not support the claim that it was a properly convened executive session in the first place, not to mention the fact that Hon. James A. McLeod and Hon. Craig T. Hannah resigned (on April 15, 2008) from the ethics committee that conducted the ethics investigation—the day after it was pointed out by Artvoice that they were serving in that capacity in violation of the Official Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York.

Note that the school board is so concerned with controlling information that the first two paragraphs of the state report deal with board president Mary Ruth Kapsiak’s failure to include essential evidence to the SED when she requested an investigation back on April 25, 2008, and again on November 20, 2008. The State Education Department did not even receive the evidence supporting the board’s request for an investigation until February 10, 2009.

Once they were provided the information, it only took 49 days for the legal counsel of the State Education Department to offer a determination that “reflects only the practical difficulties inherent in conclusively proving the alleged violations of law, and not vindication of the handling of this matter by either the Board or Williams.”

Imagine the good that could be done for the schoolchildren of Buffalo if the superintendent and school board spent more time thinking about them than they do thinking about their travel itineraries and legal strategies?

The Coalition for Economic Justice has put together an informative piece of literature for city voters, in preparation for the May 5 Buffalo School Board Election, one week from today.

Seven of the original nine candidates responded to questions that were posed by moderator Allison Duwe at the candidates forum sponsored by CEJ at the True Bethel Baptist Church on April 21.

Incumbent Florence Johnson did not attend the event, so there are no responses from her. Challenger Fred Yellen did attend, and provided thoughtful answers—however, he was scratched from the ballot on Saturday, April 25, after a successful signature petition challenge from Herbert Bellamy Jr. and Buffalo-Niagara Partnership Director of Government Relations Glenn Aronow.

Visit the Coalition for Economic Justice Web site to download the School Board Voter’s Guide, or simply click here.

Get educated about the candidates, and get out and vote on Tuesday, May 5.

A tale of two Civics: Euro version (top), North American version (bottom)

Honda sells its popular Civic both here in America and in Europe. However, they’re not quite the same car. For my money the Euro version is much sharper looking. You be the judge. Click here for a better look.

Product placement 1950s' style: the Ricardos and Mertzes head to Hollywood in Ricky's 1955 Pontiac

Now that General Motors has taken my advice and decided to discontinue the Pontiac brand (”The Pontiac Niche” Artvoice, vol. 8, no. 12) let’s turn our attention to Ford. I know, they so far haven’t taken any bailout bucks, but that’s only due to the line of credit that CEO Alan Mulally had the foresight to obtain before this whole “auto industry-on-the-rocks” debacle began some months ago.

Okay Mr. Mulally (and you too Bill Ford, if you want the family name to still stand for something in the coming years), start up the company hacksaw and and make quick work of the Mercury division. Think about it: anyone who wants a Milan can buy a Fusion; Mariner? let me show you an Escape; Mountaineer shoppers won’t know the difference when they climb into an Explorer; Sable seekers who are far-sighted might just as easily step into a Taurus; anyone who simply must have a Navigator probably could either buy a pimped-out Expedition or — what the hell, a Cadillac Escalade, as Navigator sales figures can’t be large enough to make a difference losing a few sales to Cadillac.

I’m not so sure the answer is so easy at Chrysler. There’s a new Chrysler 300 coming down the pike soon. Rental car companies seem to love the Sebring and Dodge Avenger. The Dodge Caliber is a capable compact; and minivans are still holding their own (for now). Although everyone in the automotive press seems to think that Jeep is a huge asset to the company, if gas prices climb again to last summer’s levels Jeep dealers will be holding BOGO sales (”…and if you act in the next 15 minutes we’ll throw in a Ram pickup absolutely free!!”). The Fiat 500 will help if that deal ever goes through. Fiat also has a few more interesting small cars, but they better hope that anyone who remembers Fiat’s dreadful record of service and reliability from their last North American venture is either dead or too old to drive.

Should be an interesting few months for the auto industry.

On Saturday, Fred Yellen was scratched from the list of school board candidates for having insufficient signatures on his nomination petitions. Count this as a win for Herbert Bellamy, Jr., and Buffalo-Niagara Partnership Director of Government Relations Glenn Aronow—whose signatures appear on the specific objections paperwork, filed April 18.

The Buffalo-Niagara Partnership backs the incumbent slate of Collins, Jacobs, and Johnson through a “coalition” they call Buffalo Students First. Aronow claims they have also raised money and donated staff assistance to these candidates.

Challengers Rebekah Williams and John Licata’s petitions were still being challenged as of this morning. In the event they too are struck from the ballot, the field would shrink from nine candidates to six, one week before the election. This would leave Patricia Devis, Rosanna Hampton, and Bryon McIntyre as the only challengers to Collins, Jacobs, and Johnson.

No challenges were ever filed for the signature petitions of the incumbents.

Don’t forget tonight’s candidates forum at the Polish Cadets Hall, Grant and Amherst Street, 7-9pm.

Election Day is next Tuesday, May 5. In the last at-large Buffalo school board election, in 2004, fewer than 13,000 people voted. That’s only around 8% of registered voters. The winners will serve Buffalo’s schoolchildren for the next five years.