|
||||
|
This work is licensed under a |
Not long ago, the City of Peoria was presuming to speak for itself and the Village of Peoria Heights regarding the Kellar Branch rail-to-trail conversion. They apparently haven’t learned anything since then. In June, the City approved a (supposedly) three-way agreement with Peoria Heights and Junction Ventures that would allow the City and Village [...] I’ve been saying it ever since the sphynxlike Kellar Branch Corridor Corporation first appeared that its clandestine efforts were going to cost the taxpayers lots of money. Now we know just how much: $1,250,969. That’s the amount of money in taxpayer dollars the Peoria Park District is going to pony up to buy [...] On the council’s agenda for next Tuesday, October 13, is a recommendation from the Public Works Department to accept Peoria Disposal Company’s (PDC) bid of $5 million annually to collect solid waste, lawn waste, and recycling for the next five years. I did some analysis of the plan last month, but now I’d like [...] Village of Peoria Heights Mayor Mark Allen has started his own blog, The Peoria Heights Response. It’s appears to be primarily a campaign website, as he is running for reelection this year. But he’s also sharing other interesting information about the Heights. One issue that may be of interest to Peoria residents is [...] A block of Paris Ave. — one block south of War Memorial Drive, between Wisconsin and Illinois avenues — looks like a “war zone” according to Tom Horstmann, Peoria Heights village administrator. Take a look for yourself: Get the Flash Player to see this content. var params = { ‘allowfullscreen’: ‘true’, ‘allowscriptaccess’: ‘always’, ‘wmode’: [...] The Village of Peoria Heights wants Pioneer to clean up the Kellar Branch, and they’re threatening to kick Pioneer off the line if things don’t improve in 60 days. They’ve retained the services of the firm of Vonachen, Lawless, Trager & Slevin, and sent this missive to Pioneer on March 31, 2008: Dear Mr. [...] There have apparently been a lot of behind-the-scenes dealings lately in the City’s effort to convert the Kellar Branch to a hiking trail. I recently acquired a copy of the minutes of the last Recreational Trail Advocates (RTA) meeting. Under “New Business” was this interesting info (interspersed with my comments): Bruce Brown reported that [...] “Results of two public hearings showed overwhelming support for a recreational trail, Mayor Mark Allen said Tuesday,” according to a report in today’s Journal Star. Thus, the Heights will be sending a letter expressing their renewed support for the Park District’s push to eliminate rail service to Carver Lumber and future rail-served businesses in [...] There was a special meeting of Peoria Heights’ Board of Trustees tonight. The topic? The Kellar Branch. They wanted to hear from Pioneer Railcorp and the Illinois Prairie Railroad Foundation (IPRRF) about the possibility of running a trolley on the embattled line. Mike Carr, CEO of Pioneer, gave the main presentation to the board [...] This will be my 94th post in the “Kellar Branch” category, and in all those previous posts I don’t believe I’ve ever once looked at the situation from the viewpoint of Peoria Heights. I suppose that makes me a typical Peorian. Back in the ’60s, right after Peoria’s successful vote to annex Richwoods township, [...] |
|||
|
Copyright © 2013 The Peoria Chronicle - All Rights Reserved |
||||
Comments