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	<title>The City Desk &#187; City Hall</title>
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	<description>Fictional urbanism.</description>
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		<title>City Council Gets Hands In &#8216;Overly Diffused Muffins&#8217;</title>
		<link>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/10/07/city-council-gets-hands-in-overly-diffused-muffins/</link>
		<comments>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/10/07/city-council-gets-hands-in-overly-diffused-muffins/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 07 Oct 2008 13:19:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The City Desk</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[city council]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[food]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Josh Wilson]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thecitydesk.net/?p=353</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Mayor Wilders issued a statement today reminding all bakeries, restaurants and members of the Independent Mobile Food Vendors Association in the city that enforcement of the new regulation against &#8220;overly diffused muffins&#8221; begins next Monday. As passed by the City Council in the spring, all muffins baked within City limits are required to contain at least 18% non-dough-based content, such as fruits, nuts, chocolate or any of the dozens of exceptions granted by the Food Quality Subcommittee&#8217;s &#8220;Pastry Content Exception Document.&#8221; The measure was passed in response to growing complaints that local bakers&#8217; efforts to undercut each others&#8217; prices had lead to widespread filling reductions. Incidents of blueberry muffins with single-digit numbers of blueberries were widely reported. &#8220;In addition to stepped-up law enforcement, we are relying on community enforcement of this regulation,&#8221; said Mayor Wilders. &#8220;Suspicious pastries can be brought to the Food Quality Department at the Department of Health in room 419B of the City Hall Annex. There, spectroscopic analysis can be completed in a few short minutes to determine the filling-to-dough ratio.&#8221; Violators of the 18% limit are subject to fines ranging from $5 to $50, depending on severity of the offense. The Mayor noted that the spectroscopic [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>Union Head Angered About Age of Fire Trucks</title>
		<link>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/07/17/union-head-angered-about-age-of-fire-trucks/</link>
		<comments>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/07/17/union-head-angered-about-age-of-fire-trucks/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 17 Jul 2008 16:03:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The City Desk</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[city council]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fire department]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hoyt Schermerhorn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[safety]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thecitydesk.net/?p=270</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In most major cities, fire trucks are replaced after about ten years or so of service. This is not the case in our fair city. Ryan Kowalski, Union of Professional Firefighters Local 47 president and city fireman at Ladder Company 70, revealed in a press conference yesterday that some of our fire engines are over twenty years old. “Take my firehouse,” Kowalski told reporters. “The ladder truck that I ride on was built in 1987, she is the oldest in the fleet. She is old enough to drink. Our housemates on Engine 20 have it a bit better, their rig was built in 1991, but it was purchased used. These trucks are old and the city won’t maintain them properly. How can my firehouse serve the good people of Fort Ridge with substandard equipment? Mayor Wilders seems to care about his legacy instead of not only the safety of the men and women who voted for him, but also those who come to help them.” Kowalski’s statistics revealed that out of the fleet of 350 fire trucks, there are 42 fire trucks over ten years old, with 20 being older than fifteen years. A map distributed by the union displayed [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
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		<item>
		<title>Mayor Montgomery, Our Own Eliot Spitzer</title>
		<link>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/03/17/mayor-montgomery-our-own-eliot-spitzer/</link>
		<comments>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/03/17/mayor-montgomery-our-own-eliot-spitzer/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 17 Mar 2008 15:02:54 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The City Desk</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[clubs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[RJ White]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[scandal]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thecitydesk.net/2008/03/17/mayor-montgomery-our-own-elliot-spitzer/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The unfortunate situation with New York&#8217;s Governor Eliot Spitzer has reminded some of a similar controversy which rocked our city in the early 80s. Popular Republican state Representative Karl Montgomery was elected to the mayor&#8217;s office in 1980 and had a relatively low-key, yet effective, first year in office. Then, in February of 1982, he suddenly resigned for no apparent reason, at what has come to be known in local political and journalistic circles as The Lunch. On February 2, Montgomery was scheduled to give a speech at the annual membership luncheon for the Pinion Club, an organization for city business leaders. This had been a yearly tradition for the twenty-seven years of the club&#8217;s existence and pretty much ran to the same routine every single time- mayor comes up, talks about the importance of business and commerce, tells a few good-natured jokes, maybe mentions some new policy initiative, serve dessert, end of luncheon. On this day, however, Montgomery took the podium, gripped it nervously and began his planned speech. After the first few sentences, he started railing about the &#8220;jackals of the press amongst us,&#8221; &#8220;certain moral lapses&#8221; and, almost tearfully, said that he hoped it would not come [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
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		<title>Pothole Budget Mistakenly Allocated For Potluck</title>
		<link>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/03/05/pothole-budget-mistakenly-allocated-for-potluck/</link>
		<comments>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/03/05/pothole-budget-mistakenly-allocated-for-potluck/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 05 Mar 2008 14:14:46 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The City Desk</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Brodie H. Brockie]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[food]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[public works]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thecitydesk.net/2008/03/05/pothole-budget-mistakenly-allocated-for-potluck/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Due to a clerical error, city funds earmarked for this spring&#8217;s pothole repairs were mixed up with funds intended for a potluck for City Streets Department employees to celebrate last month&#8217;s groundhog&#8217;s day. Streets Department clerk Debbie Winton, who was in charge of the potluck, admits she was taken aback when she first saw the amount she had to spend on the annual lunch, typically held in Conference Room C in the Malcolm B. Adams Public Works Building on South Haverline. &#8220;Usually we get about 20, 25 dollars for this kind of thing, most people bring a dish to pass and we have a couple of grinders,&#8221; said Winton. &#8220;This year &#8211; well, let&#8217;s just say it would have afforded a much nicer affair.&#8221; Some of the additional planned expenditures at this year&#8217;s Groundhog&#8217;s Day potluck included four six-foot-long submarine sandwiches, an ice-sculpture in the shape of City Hall, a chocolate fountain, fresh lobster flown in from the coast, individual groundhog shaped chocolates, a performance by the surviving members of the band Foghat and an appearance by Brian Doyle-Murray, who portrayed the mayor in the film Groundhog Day. &#8220;I guess I just thought that this year they really wanted to [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>BREAKING NEWS: Actor Enters Mayoral Race</title>
		<link>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/01/25/breaking-news-actor-enters-mayoral-race/</link>
		<comments>http://thecitydesk.net/2008/01/25/breaking-news-actor-enters-mayoral-race/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 25 Jan 2008 15:56:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The City Desk</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Election 2008]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ghostbusters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mayoral race]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[President Heights]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[RJ White]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[William Atherton]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thecitydesk.net/2008/01/25/breaking-news-actor-enters-mayoral-race/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In a press conference this morning in the ornate lobby of the Chandler Building, actor William Atherton (Ghostbusters, The Sugarland Express) announced that he will be running as a democratic party candidate for mayor in May&#8217;s primary. The announcement comes as somewhat of a surprise, as there had been no rumors about his entry into the race. Mr. Atherton has held a home in the city&#8217;s posh President Heights section for three years. He joins these already declared candidates: Democratic Party :: Incumbent Mayor Joseph Wilders :: Two-term City Council member Terence Williams III (Son of the late mayor) :: Leonard Pierce, Fifth Ward party leader (Full disclosure: Mr. Pierce is also a sometime contributor to The City Desk) :: Homelessness/general political activist Perry Holmes Republican Party :: Alan Craw, local real-estate magnate :: Eight-term City Council member Maribeth Cosgrove :: Perennial also-ran Arthur Borden, on his fifth attempt at gaining the city&#8217;s top executive position. Independent (not participating in the primary) :: Lewis Armstrong (Libertarian) :: Louis M. Armstrong (Green Party, no relation to the Libertarian candidate or the late jazz musician) The primary will be held May 6. Debate details to come. - RJ White]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>6</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Friday Facts: Light the Tree, Sell the Books</title>
		<link>http://thecitydesk.net/2007/11/30/friday-facts-light-the-tree-sell-the-books/</link>
		<comments>http://thecitydesk.net/2007/11/30/friday-facts-light-the-tree-sell-the-books/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 30 Nov 2007 14:32:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The City Desk</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[David Andrews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[friday facts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Holidays]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ostahanoc River]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[RJ White]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[television]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[trees]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[weather]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thecitydesk.net/2007/11/30/friday-facts-light-the-tree-sell-the-books/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[:: Number of variations on &#8220;LED&#8221; used by various speakers during Thursday&#8217;s municipal Holiday Fest tree-lighting ceremony at Old City Hall: 7 (&#8220;LDE,&#8221; &#8220;LDD,&#8221; &#8220;LLD,&#8221; &#8220;Lead,&#8221; &#8220;DL,&#8221; &#8220;Leed,&#8221; and &#8220;Magic bulbs.&#8221;) :: Number of killowatt hours saved by the widely-touted switching of the tree&#8217;s lights to energy-efficient LEDs: 1,000/day :: And what of the old energy-inefficient strings of tree lights?: They are decorating the outside of the Faulkner Municipal Maintenance Facility, on Park Street. :: According to the local records, the Ostahanoc River froze over every winter prior to 1979. Crossing the river on the ice was a popular winter short-cut, particularly at Bender’s Bend, near the city limits on the North Side. This was made illegal in 1985, after the Plesser’s Day-Care debacle. The law is still in force, though the river froze over completely only once (1988) since it passed. :: The latest recorded ‘first snowfall’ in the city was December 10th, 1999. :: Number of books released this week by local television weather people: 2 (&#8220;Stormy Weather,&#8221; by NBC12&#8242;s Teri Park and &#8220;I Love the Winter Weather,&#8221; by channel 6&#8242;s Rick Mellers) :: Number of people who showed up for Park&#8217;s book signing Monday evening at the [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Friday Facts: Thanksgiving Parade, Freon, Events</title>
		<link>http://thecitydesk.net/2007/11/16/friday-facts-thanksgiving-parade-freon-events/</link>
		<comments>http://thecitydesk.net/2007/11/16/friday-facts-thanksgiving-parade-freon-events/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 16 Nov 2007 14:38:24 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The City Desk</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Count Film-Ula]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dancing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[David Andrews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Holidays]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jonathan Morris]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[RJ White]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[science]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Thanksgiving]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[urban legends]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thecitydesk.net/2007/11/16/friday-facts-thanksgiving-parade-freon-events/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[:: Number of states represented by marching bands in this year&#8217;s Thanksgiving Day Parade: 5 :: Number of people saved by this year&#8217;s parade Grand Marshal, Janelle Welks, when that van went off of Pier 8 in June: 7 :: Number of candidates for next year&#8217;s mayoral race who will be marching in the parade: 3 :: This year&#8217;s balloons: Farley, a tin soldier, Batman, the Haddon Bros. Meats Tom Turkey :: Number of elves used for the penultimate Santa float: 12 (8 on the float and 4 alternates) :: An upcoming episode of the Discovery Channel series Mythbusters is scheduled to explore the myth that rock candy stored in the back of a refrigerator will absorb free-floating freon molecules and, if ingested, result in a &#8220;serious high.&#8221; This urban legend is believed to have originated with local late night horror tv host Count Film-Ula during a spirited 1978 broadcast. :: Due to a change in their membership’s male/female gender ratio from 19:1 in 1968 to 1:3 in 2006, the 39th annual Sadie Hawkins Day Dance, held as a fundraiser by the Westside Independent Business Owner’s Group (WIBOG) on the third Saturday of every November, will feature a bachelorette auction [...]]]></description>
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		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Friday Facts: Burning leaves, weeping sausage</title>
		<link>http://thecitydesk.net/2007/11/02/friday-facts-burning-leaves-weeping-sausage/</link>
		<comments>http://thecitydesk.net/2007/11/02/friday-facts-burning-leaves-weeping-sausage/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 02 Nov 2007 12:02:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>The City Desk</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Benjamin Birdie]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Courthouse District]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Craig Gaines]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[David Andrews]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[education]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[entertainment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jonathan Morris]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mabel Tripp Gardens]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[restaurants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vandalism]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://thecitydesk.net/2007/11/02/friday-facts-burning-leaves-weeping-sausage/</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[:: The city is home to no less than seven junior and community colleges, one of which (Sparrow Valley Community College, on Cedar Ave and S.Sparrow Valley Dr.) boasts a Zagat-rated three-star cafeteria. :: The large outdoor clock above the main entrance of the City Hall Annex was accidentally set to Standard Time last weekend. On Monday morning approximately 12 employees and visitors were seen waiting outside the building one hour before official opening time. :: Amount of leaves a City resident is allowed to burn per week (by volume): 7 cubic feet :: Distance from freestanding structures (doghouses and meat-smoking lodges excepted, starting in 1989) burning City leaf piles must be: 25 feet :: Times City Code stipulates a resident must wave arms and &#8220;clearly and directly&#8221; state &#8220;I am burning leaves&#8221; before setting leaves aflame, to notify any deaf or blind children who might be playing nearby: 5 :: Times a resident of one of the city&#8217;s six unincorporated areas must &#8220;thoroughly and purposefully&#8221; probe leaf piles with a lawn implement to ensure no children or squirrels have burrowed into the leaf piles before burning: 1 :: An elaborate new storefront window display was unveiled for the struggling [...]]]></description>
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