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Double Tax Toll Roads, Conflicts and Bankruptcies
Submitted by Staff on Wed, 2005-01-19 12:00.
Sal Costello
The CTRMA, the toll authority for Central Texas, the first RMA in the state, is made up of mostly Williamson County (WilCo) people, even though WilCo is one-third the population and most the toll roads are in Travis. Should Williamson County be tolling Travis County? Should Texas be placing tolls on roads we've already paid for? Robert Tesch, CTRMA chair, has real estate interests in Williamson County that will benefit from the tolls on 183A, the CTRMA's first toll road. Tesch defaulted on "personal, business or student loan(s)" as disclosed in his "Governors Appointment Application," not to mention a bankruptcy in Dallas and pending foreclosure in Plano. James Mills, CTRMA Board member, has a bankruptcy and his real estate interests can benefit from the tolls. The CTRMA board hired Mike Heiligenstein, as Executive Director, even with a bankruptcy in his past, at 120,000 a year (plus car expenses). Mills and Heiligenstein have been doing land deals together for years. Yes, they're both from Williamson County! Should those who have failed in their own finances (i.e. had bankruptcies), be in charge of an unpopular 2.2 Billion toll system? Numerous ties to WilCo convicted criminal Amos "Pete" Peters have recently been found. Peters 20 year criminal record includes check swindling, criminal mischief, DWI, larceny and four fraud convictions. He's spent two years in jail and also earned $4,000 a month from WilCo's road bond budget. Records show, TxDOT's District Engineer Bob Daigh met with Peters many times in 2004, at times alone and other times with Mike Weaver of Prime Strategies, Inc. Weaver has hired Peters company, The Communicators, for bond projects in Williamson County before. Mike Weaver's Prime Strategies, Inc helped create the CTRMA and continues its' contracts today. CONTACT:
Research as of 1/19/05 Research from records with leads from a current TxDOT employee and an anonymous Williamson County person. All documents are available. Robert E Tesch CTRMA Board Chairman Appointed by Gov. Rick Perry BANKRUPTCY #1 - 81-03527 (Houston, TX) (Plano, TX) Published reports said that an August, 2004 foreclosure was pending for The Inn at Orchard Park, an assisted living facility owned by The Inn at Orchard Park, Ltd. whose general partner is Robert E. Tesch In the "Office of the Governor Appointment Application" Robert Tesch admits to the Bankruptcy and also states that he has defaulted on "personal, business or student loan(s)." One portion of the application asks for him to "Describe any litigation" he has been involved in, he fails to describe any of the several civil suits he's had over the last 25 years. CONFLICT OF INTEREST: Tesch's real estate interests on and near road 1431 and the new 183A (listed below) are valued at millions of dollars. The CTRMA's 183A Toll Road and it's free alternative roads and exits are in close proximity to his real estate interests and Tesch will clearly benefit. WIFE: Sandra L. Tesch AFFILIATED BUSINESSES: Bob Tesch Properties, Inc REAL ESTATE INTERESTS: [Total approx. $7.8 million] R-17-W017-0000-0038-0008 CEDAR PARK PROPERTIES LLC James H. Mills CTRMA Board Member and former assistant treasurer of Pete Peters "Roads Now PAC" Address: 1900 CR 103, GEORGETOWN, TEXAS, 78626 BANKRUPTCY (91-13787-LEK) Mills was forced to abandoned the following finacial interests through bankruptcy: 248 Joint Venture, Branchwater Joint Venture, Steck II Joint Venture, Brady Joint Venture and Draper Tract Joint Venture. WIFE: Lavon Hudson Mills AFFILIATED BUSINESSES: Co-Op Ventures REAL ESTATE INTERESTS: [Total approx. $3.4 million] R-20-0556-0000-0052 MILLS, JAMES H Mike Heiligenstein Bankruptcy (90-14004) CTRMA Executive Director ADDRESS: 502 OAKLANDS DR, ROUND ROCK, TEXAS 78681 Records show Mike Heiligenstein working real estate deals with CTRMA board member James Mills and through S & H Joint Ventures (Sheets & Heiligenstein) with Round Rock City Attorney Stephan Sheets as far back as the 80's. AFFILIATED BUSINESSES: Co-Op Ventures Amos "Pete" Peters III WIFE: Karen B. Peters Home Address: 1309 MARSHALL Lane, AUSTIN TX, 78703 According to TxDOT District Engineer Bob Daigh's meeting calendar, convicted criminal Pete Peters has met with Bob Daigh a number of times in 2004, at times alone and other times with Mike Weaver, Howard Falkenburg and/or Manuel Zarate. It is illegal for convicted criminals to lobby in the State of Texas. Amos "Pete" Peters criminal record spans 20-years Texas, it includes a dozen charges of check swindling, credit card abuse and criminal mischief. He's pleaded guilty or no contest to three felonies and three misdemeanors. He's been convicted of Larceny and DWI. Peters has been convicted of Fraud four different times. At one point he was sent to prison for two years. "Peters' company earns about $4,000 a month from Williamson County's bond budget, mainly for work promoting the roads project. He bills the county for meeting with the media, for preparing news conferences and press releases and for discussing the project with state politicians, among other tasks. But he is so closely tied to county Republican politics that he sometimes seems to wear two hats at the same time. A brochure Peters crafted at county expense last year displayed the names of every commissioner and included quotes from each touting his involvement in the roads project. Last summer, the county paid Peters more than $600 for three meetings with American-Statesman Editor Rich Oppel -- meetings Oppel said didn't happen." "In Williamson, politics, roads and money mix" — Carter Nelsen, AA Statesman, 1/29/2002 AFFILIATED BUSINESSES: The Communicators Stephan Sheets (RR City Attorney) AFFILIATED BUSINESSES: S & H Joint Ventures (with Mike Heiligenstein) Charles Crossfield (RR Attorney) Crossfield is Williamson County's road / land acquisition attorney, and Stephan Sheet's current partner in Sheets & Crossfield PC. Greg Boatright (CAMPO BOD) Records show that Williamson County Commissioner Greg Boatright voted for an extension of Parmer Lane when he held real estate interests, which would give the "Boatright Parmer Land" an economic benefit. As per government code, Commissioner Greg Boatright is to abstain from voting and disclose the nature of his interests. He failed to do so. Senator Steve Ogden (CAMPO BOD) Ogden Resources - oil & gas company Treasurure for "Yes on 14" works at "Ogden Resouces" HNTB (CTRMA CDA gave $20,000 to 14 SPAC) Dannenbaum gave 10K Yes on 2 & 15 (McCart, Friend of Rick Perry SPAC) gave 15K Michael Robinson Mike Weaver AFFILIATED BUSINESSES: Prime Strategies, INC |
SHHH... TESCH
I'm not the type of person who normally vents his frustration with all these pigheaded bastards on or in any public forum like this,but......
I have had the displeasure of doing some contract labor for one of the above mentioned (Bob Tesch) on one of his questionable properties. To keep it fair the blunt of my problems were not with Bob, also I'm at fault as well for not getting the proper paperwork in order before starting my work. But the whole deal has cost me time, money, and a world of frustration. He is like working with a child a selfish brat. To agree on a price and to start to crawfish and wine to get a better price after the fact is bull----!the man has more money than Ben Gump and to try and squeeze a fellow for a couple hundred dollars is crap. I'm out of pocket over 2 grand & he wont pay until i spend a little more. Well i don't have more and i don't trust him as far as i could throw a post hole.
When a guy like Tesch says keep this to yourself it's not public info you tend to shut-up and listen, telling us he has part of his property on R.Reagan Blvd zoned commercial and plans to build storage buildings. You look at the road in front of his place and there are two crossovers side by side and hear of his future plans, it all smells like chicken----!
I am pissed off the more i think of it. How fellas like him can keep treating people like second class folk, when they wouldn't know the truth if it bit'em on their crooked little ass
[Removed shouting and cleaned up spelling a bit. --MJ]