The city council, to my surprise and delight, decided not to pursue the water buyout tonight on a very close vote (6-5). Here’s how they voted (a “yea” vote was to pursue the buyout):

Yea: Grayeb, Gulley, Manning, Sandberg, Van Auken
Nay: Ardis, Jacob, Morris, Nichting, Spears, Turner

Jacob, who had hardly said anything thus far on the council, made perhaps the most succinct and compelling speech against the buyout. He was concerned about the debt load the city would be carrying and the fact that just adding revenue doesn’t address the city’s root problems with fiscal responsibility or the lack thereof. He and several others who voted against the buyout still are balking at the price. They feel it was appraised too high and isn’t really worth the amount of money we would have to pay for it at this time. There may be legislation and grants that we could use to our advantage if we wait. Another concern of several council members, including Ardis, was that this vote was too rushed; the vote to pursue due diligence needed to be made in May, not August. There simply isn’t enough time to make a responsible decision.

Grayeb made an eleventh-hour, end-run substitute motion to pursue due diligence with the private Peoria Area Advancement Group (PAAG) loaning $250,000 toward the cost of the process. However, it went down to defeat 7-5, with even Manning (to his credit) voting against it.

Thank you to all the council members for their conscientiousness on this issue. Obviously, I’m happy about the outcome, but I know that those in favor of the buyout also had the best interests of Peoria at heart. My thanks again to you all.

Dear City Council,

There seems to be some confusion over the city residents’ wishes regarding the proposed water buyout, so this letter is to give a little clarification. When we voted “no” in the most recent referendum, that meant that we didn’t want the city to purchase the water company. It’s as simple as that.

Since then, there have been all kinds of crazy ideas regarding the voters’ intent. Some say the voters were ignorant of the facts, that too many of us thought the city was going to actually manage the water company, or that what we were really voting against was the price and terms of purchasing the water company at that time.

Wrong. We voted “no” because, frankly, we don’t trust you. Not you personally, but the council that will exist in various configurations over the coming decades. You have a long track record of using our money unwisely (e.g., RiverPlex), neglecting the older parts of town, and favoring big box developers over neighbors and small businesses (e.g., Glen Hollow, MidTown Plaza).

Storm drainage in the Rolling Acres area has gone unaddressed for years. Raw sewage is being dumped into the river near Detweiller Marina. Lord knows what shape the water infrasturcture will be in if the city’s responsible for maintaining it. And why don’t we have the money to fix those things? Because the city has been busy building ballparks, establishing TIF districts for large retail, and giving away a $565,000 railroad right-of-way to the park district to build a money-losing trail, among other questionable decisions.

To plug a budget shortfall that would have shuttered a fire station, you recently tacked $6 per month onto our water bills under the pretense of a “garbage fee” — a political move that allowed you to boast that you didn’t raise property taxes. Why should we believe you won’t use our water rates the same way in the future?

You say that if future councils unduly raises rates that we can vote them out. But that’s little consolation. We voted out the previous council for the $6 garbage fee and for trying to buy the water company, and yet the garbage fee remains and you’re still considering buying the water company. Clearly, voting you out is no deterrent, and voting in a new council doesn’t repeal past increases or release us from past debt obligations. The damage is already done by the time an election rolls around.

It wouldn’t matter what the price or terms of the sale were, we would still say no to buying the water company. It will inevitably end up being another tax on city residents, and no guarantee of better service or maintenance. Let Illinois American Water Company continue providing us water service; we’re happy with them.

Use all this energy you’ve been exerting to do something that will really help Peoria, like attracting higher-paying manufacturing and industrial jobs, improving the infrastructure in the older parts of Peoria, fixing the storm drainage and sewer problems, and continuing to work with District 150 to improve the schools so people stop moving out to Dunlap and Germantown Hills. There are a lot more beneficial things you could be doing instead of pursuing this buyout to which residents have consistently said no.

The first step in regaining our trust is to listen to us. Think about that when you vote tonight.

Sincerely,
Your constituents