Andrew Warner is upset that David Pepper accepted a $10,000 campaign contribution from Louis Beck, who has ties to the casino industry and has worked for Ohio Learn and Earn.  Warner suggests Pepper’s support for casino gambling has a causal relationship with that contribution.  Interestingly, Warner has nothing to say about any of Phil Heimlich’s campaign contributions.

You can download both campaign reports here.

I gave the documents a quick scan and pulled out some names of contributors to Heimlich with $10,000 or more—since that seemed a significant rubric for calling out Beck’s contribution to Pepper.  I quickly assembled this list.  If I missed any, please add them to the comments below:

Richard Farmer—$35,000

Michael Valentine—$10,000

David Warner—$15,000

Dennis Bley—$12,500

William Dewitt, Jr—$12,500

James Gardner—$10,000

James Jurgensen—$10,000

Douglas Meyer—$12,500

Mercer Reynolds—$12,500

Michael Valentine—$25,000

E. Michael Zicka—$10,000

E. Michael Zicka is president of Zicka Walker Homes, which seems to own several apartment buildings around town.  I am still a bit unclear on all the details surrounding Phil Heimlich’s various real estate connections.  By now, word is spreading about Three Centurions, Heimlich’s business venture with Christopher P. Finney, Esq.  Additionally, we know that his failed anti-Drake campaign from a few years back was funded by Chris Finney, Nursing Homes, and Real Estate companies (source).  We also know that the COAST cabal’s fixation on property taxes really benefits those with lots of real estate investments.  And finally, if you’ve been keeping an eye out for Heimlich yard signs, big ones can be seen in front of apartment complexes—especially on the East side of town.

James Jurgensen owns the property in Wilder, Kentucky where Castellini moved his produce company after making a sweet profit off the property now known as The Banks (source, and source).  Castellini is also a power player on The Banks Working Group.

Michael Valentine seems to have made his extra money on radar detectors for speeders.  Don’t know what to make of that.

Feel free to dig around on the other names!

So while Warner might have a point about the casino thing—which really only resonates with those who are vehemently opposed to gambling as a way to jump-start the Cincinnati economy—one must also wonder about these several big contributions to Heimlich, and the constellation of connections they start to reveal…

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