In an effort to continue to expose John Hoff's dishonesty and alliances by which he appears to be benefiting personally from, I wrote the following letter (in an email) to Jeff Skrenes, who is the Hawthorne Housing Director. The Hawthorne Community Council has close, working relationships with NRP, CPED, Hennepin County and the City of Minneapolis.
Mr. Skrenes did in fact reply to my email however, he did not offer an answer to my question. Posted below the copy of my email is a copy of the follow up email I have sent him.
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Jeff,
I am writing to ask you this simple question in hopes that you will address it while it is still me asking & not well known reporters, State officials or ultimately.... Hawthorne neighborhood residents.
As you are fully aware, John Hoff who lives at 2226 Bryant Ave. N, has an abundance of personal and professional issues surrounding him. I am only interested in seeking your opinion as Housing Director of the Hawthorne Neighborhood about the conflict of interest that exists with John Hoff's house status and the fact that he is also a Hawthorne board member.
There are currently two years of unpaid property taxes as well as a long list of repairs that were to have been completed by January 11, 2009 but, are still unresolved.
Are the board members not expected to adhere to the city and county rules and laws? As the director of the neighborhood, do you not feel this sets a poor example for other residents when they see a board member virtually ignore the agreements they accepted when they purchased their property?
I urge you to consider the ramifications such behavior from a leader has on the residents in your community when responding to this email. I will be sharing your opinions (or lack thereof) with your residents as well as neighboring communities and their residents. I hope to hear back from you very soon.Thank you
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The response, at Mr. Skrenes request, was off the record and unresponsive to the pointed questions outlined in the letter. It is apparent that Mr. Skrenes and his lack of disclosure can lead to only one conclusion. The conclusion is that there is an intense, ongoing relationship between John Hoff, Jeff Skrenes and other community leaders along with others employed by or associated with the City of Minneapolis. That relationship deserves to be exposed.
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Mr. Skrenes the question needs to be answered:
As the Hawthorne Neighborhood Community Housing Director, are you for or against an individual completing their Truth in Housing Required Repairs in a timely in accordance with the timeline spelled out within the City ordinance (90 day from the date of closing)?
Mr. Skrenes: There appears to be 3 directions you can go here.
1. Stand up for what is right and Agree that the ordinance should be followed.
(Calling out your close friend John Hoff and admitting he is guilty of non-compliance)
2. State the ordinance is unfair and should not be adhered to in your neighborhood.(Thus calling into question your legitimacy as Housing Director)
3. Provide no response or be elusive to the question.
(Expose yourself as too close to John Hoff and that you continue to hide behind his curtain. Calling John out as having one set of rules for his co-conspirators and another set for those that oppose him or merely question his dealings)
Mr. Skrenes the choice is yours. I will give you a final chance to answer the question by Tuesday at noon, April 20th, 2010 or I will have no reason to expect that you intend to address the question and that you have simply chosen option # 3 as stated above.
Thank you
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Remember what the purpose is behind keeping after Johnny Northside... Rules are rules and laws are laws. John Hoff, Johnny Northside, Jeff Skrenes, the Hawthorne Hawkman and residents alike, all need to adhere to the rules and laws that have been set forth.
We are talking about a Hawthorne Community BOARD MEMBER that is simply NOT conducting himself in a lawful manner! Hawthorne residents need to hold their elected officials accountable and Hawthorne staff members such as Jeff Skrenes, needs to see to it that the council members abide by the rules. If residents can't depend on people like Jeff to maintain and enforce the rules, then the residents have a right to replace those who are "looking out for them."
Stay tuned people!
