Monthly Archives: March 2011

City Council, City of Peoria

Peoria City Council 3/22/2011 (Live Blog)

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Good evening, everyone. I’m live-blogging from home tonight, as I have had a terrible head cold the last couple of days — especially last night and this morning. So, I’ve got my Kleenex handy and lots of fluids nearby, and my radio tuned to WCBU 89.9 FM. This is probably a good time to encourage everyone who appreciates WCBU’s live coverage of the Peoria City Council meetings to make a donation to them — you can pledge online here.

This is the last council meeting before the April 5 at-large election. There are a couple of controversial issues on the agenda tonight: the low-income elderly housing facility proposed near the corner of War Memorial Drive and Sheridan Road (Item 3) and the East Village Growth Cell and Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district (Items 4-6). If you’re following along live, be sure to refresh your browser every so often to get the latest updates. The meeting starts at 6:15, and begins with a few proclamations, so it will be a few minutes before we get into the agenda.

One of the proclamations was a touching commemoration of the life of Les Kenyon. May he rest in peace.

And now, without any further ado, here’s tonight’s agenda:

Continue reading Peoria City Council 3/22/2011 (Live Blog) →

City of Peoria, Peoria Fire Department, Peoria Mayor

Ardis pooh-poohs city-run ambulance service, but explanation raises more questions

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The City Council candidates are often asked at forums what ideas we have for generating more revenue for the city. Gary Sandberg has suggested that the City should provide its own ambulance service, severing its contract with Advanced Medical Transport (AMT). The way he sees it, we already have a professional fire department that is first on the scene and capable of providing basic life support (BLS); it would not take much to have these guys trained to provide advanced life support (ALS) as well.

Mayor Jim Ardis apparently heard about this and took up his pen to write an editorial in the Journal Star. He says:

During the current campaign for City Council, some candidates have suggested that the city consider starting its own ambulance service. As a 14-year veteran on the council, I have studied this question time and again and the answer is always the same. A city-operated ambulance provider will require a taxpayer subsidy from our general fund and lose millions of dollars each year.

AMT doesn’t receive a taxpayer subsidy. In fact, AMT pays the city a dispatch fee that generates $100,000 per year. We have a good medical emergency response system. It is not broken and meets the highest national standards defined to date. Private studies have provided the same conclusion.

Start-up costs to begin transport would be nearly $3.5 million for equipment and training. AMT writes off more than $2 million per year as uncollectable, bad debt. The company also discounts $5 million for Medicare and Medicaid. The city could not afford to lose a penny of revenue and still wouldn’t run this operation in the black. Simply put, transport is not a core service for our citizens.

…Our ambulance service agreement with our professional fire department is an idea that works. Adding to our already strained payroll is an idea that does not make sense.

I’m not going to dismiss Ardis’s criticism out of hand. But this explanation leaves a lot to be desired. Given the numbers put forth in this editorial, one has to wonder how AMT didn’t go bankrupt years ago. Why is AMT able to operate in the black, but the City of Peoria couldn’t? Since AMT is a not-for-profit organization, I took a look at its Form 990.

According to the 2009 Form 990 (the latest available), AMT’s total revenue was $11,696,795. That revenue went up every year from 2005 ($9,224,551) to 2009. Total expenses were $10,776,223, including the executive director’s salary of $256,549, the assistant executive director’s salary of $113,612, and the controller’s salary of $110,651. Considering they’re a non-profit company, and thus their services are priced accordingly, I’d say they’re doing pretty well, and have been for a number of years.

Again, I’m not saying that Ardis is necessarily wrong — I’m just saying his article doesn’t explain why AMT is able to make almost a million dollars a year and pay handsome salaries to its top brass, but somehow the City would lose money hand over fist if it provided the same service. I’m also unclear why we would have to “[add] to our already strained payroll.” Why couldn’t the existing personnel who are already BLS-trained also be ALS-trained? There would be training and equipment costs to be sure, but why couldn’t those costs be covered by the revenue the City would receive the same way AMT’s training and equipment costs are covered by the revenue they receive?

We need Paul Harvey to give us the rest of the story.

Census 2010, City of Peoria

A picture of Peoria’s shifting population

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From the City’s Planning and Growth Department, here are a couple of pictures that show the migration of Peoria’s population from the older neighborhoods to the south into the newer neighborhoods to the north. Areas in red and orange saw a decline in population, whereas areas in yellow and green saw an increase. As you look at these, take particular note of how large the area is that is losing population versus the area that is gaining population. Here’s a map that shows the change just over the past ten years:

And here’s what the change looks like over the past forty years:

Here are some other revealing statistics:

Year Population Area
1970 126,963 40 mi.2
2010 115,007 49.84 mi.2

That means that, over the past 40 years, there has been a 9.42% drop in population, and a 24.6% increase in land area that has been annexed into the City. In other words, our city has gotten physically bigger, but the burden of providing city services to all that land is falling on fewer taxpayers.

Now, to be fair, we had large population losses from 1970 to 2000, but have seen a slight population gain between 2000 and 2010. So let’s compare just the changes in the past ten years. Population increased from 112,936 to 115,007, or 1.83%, yet land area grew from 44 to 49.84 square miles, or 13.27%. If it takes over 13% growth in land to net a little under 2% growth in population, I would submit that we cannot sustain such a policy.

These charts illustrate that we have to find ways to get people moving back into our heritage neighborhoods. Northern growth alone is demonstrably insufficient to pull the city out of its fiscal crisis.

Peoria Public Library

Peoria Public Library limiting access to local history and geneaology section (UPDATED 2x)

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The good news is that the Peoria Public Library is finally reopening its Local History and Genealogy section that was closed for a while due to the $28 million remodeling/renovation/building project. The bad news is, it’s only open limited hours:

Peoria Public Library opened the new Local History and Genealogy Room at the Peoria Public Library Main Library on Tuesday, March 15 at 10:00 a.m.

The new facility is on Lower Level One. The room, enclosed with glass walls, will be open from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and from 9:00 a.m. to noon on Saturday. During construction, the department was located off-site and materials were moved back in January and arranged in the new space.

Wait a minute. The taxpayers just spent $28 million for a library “expansion,” and now we’re being told they’re limiting access to arguably the most vital section of the library? Only certain days? And then only a portion of those days?

I was just looking over the library’s strategic plan. I’m wondering how reducing hours will “increase value to customers” (objective 2.1), or “enhance and optimize facilities” (objective 4.1). Or how going from a full-time research library to a part-time research library jibes with the library’s vision: “To advance learning, knowledge, personal growth, and the quality of life in the greater Peoria area.” Does “advance” mean “go backwards” now?

“The Peoria Public Library,” the strategic plan promises, “will strive to provide … innovative services and collections that are readily accessible [emphasis added], easy to use, and relevant to community needs, and that are known and valued by every segment of the community.” Does “readily accessible” mean taking materials that used to be available every day and hour the library was open and putting them on a special floor that’s now only open limited hours?

Perhaps the library’s stated mission should be recast from “Bringing people and information together,” to “Bringing people and information together only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10 to 4 and Saturday from 9 to noon,” or “Bringing people and information together less often.”

Library Director Ed Szynaka has not responded to my request for comment.

UPDATE: I received an e-mail this morning from the library director. Apparently he did try to write me earlier, but transposed a couple of numbers in my e-mail address, which is why I didn’t receive it. Here’s his response:

Thank you for contacting Peoria Public Library. I am unable to tell from your communication whether you have been to visit our new Local History room which has only been open to the public for two hours as I write this. If you have visited I believe you will have noticed the many physical improvements that have been made both to care for the collection and to offer it more easily to our visitors. As you may be aware, so much of the collection is unique and one-of-a-kind and our objective was to offer as much access as possible in a controlled environment that would protect it. We believe we have succeeded.

You have stated that Local History is the most valuable resource Peoria Public Library offers. Certainly it is unique, but it is not the resource in the widest demand nor the sole purpose of the library. As Library Director in these tough economic times, I must balance the needs of the entire community with our operating budget. The operating budget is a separate issue from our bond measure. Our $28 million building project created structures that will enable our community to have the very best library service for the next several generations. It is unfortunate that at the time Peoria Public Library is reopening, operating funds are not as readily available and we must live within our means.

We are just now entering a new era of library service which will reach its full potential as the remainder of our buildings reopen in 2011. As with any new venture, we must have a starting place from which to launch operations and as public usage and demand show what hours of operation work well for our community we will adjust. In the meantime, we offer 21 hours of open access to the collection as well as online databases that can be used in any Peoria Public Library and some from home 24/7 with a library card. Many local history questions can be answered through our reference department if immediate answers are required. Our Local History collection has a wonderful new space that will protect our holdings and volunteers from The Peoria County Genealogical Society are helping to staff the room.

I thank you for input and assure you that we are keeping close watch on usage and demand for all our library services.

Sincerely,

Edward M. Szynaka
Director
Peoria Public Library

UPDATE 2: Here is my response to Mr. Szynaka:

Dear Mr. Szynaka,

Thank you for your response. I still vociferously disagree with the decision to restrict hours to the local history and genealogy section.

Taxpayers were assured at the time of the referendum (and many times subsequently) that the library would be able to staff the branches adequately even with the addition of a new branch on the north end. We were told that the new open floor plan downtown and self-checkout devices would allow the library to maintain the same level of service with fewer staff members. In fact, the library’s strategic plan states explicitly, “A new, revitalized Main Street Branch will be able to offer better service with a smaller staff.” [emphasis added] We were told that operating costs would be further kept in check because the upgrades would provide better energy efficiency. We were told the library would actually make more materials directly available as they would be moved out of the basement onto the shelves. Now you’re telling me and all the other taxpayers of Peoria that you can’t afford the operating costs resulting from your capital improvements/expansion after all? And that as a result you have to restrict access to even more materials than were previously restricted?

Let me put it bluntly: I never would have supported the library referendum if I had known the Local History and Genealogy section would be locked up and inaccessible over 60% of the library’s operating hours. I even wrote a letter of support for a grant application for the library that specifically singled out the local history resources as being a vital asset to our community. Now you’re effectively taking that asset away from the working community.

You asked if I had visited the new Local History room. The answer is no — not because I don’t want to visit, but because I can’t visit due to the restricted hours. I work during the day, like most people in Peoria. I note that the room is open for three hours on Saturday, but in the summer when the branch closes on Saturday, even that won’t be an option. So the materials are now effectively inaccessible to the working community.

You mentioned that this resource is “unique.” That is precisely why I feel so strongly that it should be available whenever the library is open. Unlike novels, movies, and even computers that can be accessed from several sources, the local history information in your collection is only available in one place: the Peoria Public Library. If patrons want to search pre-1991 editions of the Peoria Journal Star or historic City Council minutes archives or the expansive vertical file, there is no other place this information can be accessed.

I respectfully and earnestly request that the library keep its promises to provide better service by making the Local History and Genealogy section fully accessible to the public again.

Sincerely,
C. J. Summers

2011 Election

Peoria 9/12 Project candidate forum cancelled

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The candidate forum scheduled for this evening has been cancelled. The candidates received the following e-mail today:

Dear Candidates,

Tonight’s Meet the Candidates scheduled for Wednesday, March 16, 6pm, The Peoria Theater has been Canceled.

Due to lack of confirmation for participation of the audience, we are canceling tonight’s event.

“We respect your time. If we cannot guarantee good attendance, then we are reluctant to continue forward with the event.

We wish you the best in your campaign and look forward to working with you in the future.

Peoria Public Schools

Big changes being considered at District 150

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Here’s a summary of the changes that were proposed at the District 150 Board of Education meeting Monday night, from the Journal Star:

  • Closing Columbia Middle School and splitting the students among Calvin Coolidge and Sterling middle schools; or reassigning all of Columbia’s students to Sterling.
  • Closing Garfield Primary School and sending about 50 of the nearly 300 students to Harrison Community Learning Center and the remaining 250 to Trewyn, which would change from a middle school to grades K-8.
  • Change part of Whittier’s boundaries back, alleviating some population there, increasing Harrison’s enrollment by 94 students, including those from Garfield.
  • Closing the Greeley and Peoria Alternative High School buildings and moving the programs to the former Woodruff High School, which also would serve as a career and technical education center. Relocate students from the Knoxville Center for Success to Woodruff and use the Knoxville site as a suspension respite program for high school students.
  • Severing ties with Edison but maintaining the program’s longer school day and additional professional development.
  • Eliminating Apex Learning, an online curriculum, in favor of expanding Compass Learning, which was just adopted at several schools last year.
  • Incorporate a 90-minute literacy block at primary schools using guided reading materials. Also include a daily schedule of a 30- to 45-minute intervention/enrichment period.
  • Increase graduation requirements from 18 credits to 22 for Richwoods and Peoria High School; and 28 at Manual, which has a block schedule.
  • Eliminate high school study hall in lieu of a “study skills” class that focuses on study and organizational skills and prepares students for life beyond school.
  • Alter how class ranking is weighted.

WEEK-TV has some additional information:

  • Those from Peoria and Greeley Alternative would head to a new proposed program in the former Woodruff High School building. It would be called the ‘Woodruff Career and Technical Center.’
  • District officials proposed restructuring Trewyn Middle School to accommodate it for grads K-8 and making it an International Baccalaureate school. That would result in the ‘release’ of the entire Trewyn Staff.
  • They suggested establishing a ‘Parent University’ to offer community resources to district families.

    • […]

  • Under the proposed changes, those schools would offer advanced Physical Education classes for credit, and revamp the traditional study hall. It would be called a ‘study skills’ class, and students would receive credit for that as well.
  • Officials recommended establishing bilinigual classes at Manual High School.

WEEK also states that the changes would “result in layoffs of at least 15 faculty members” and “save the district more than $1.4 million annually.” We all have two weeks to take it all in before the school board votes on the changes at their March 28 meeting.

City of Peoria, East Bluff

EBNHS board full of vacancies, website out of date only four months after getting tax funding

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The East Bluff Neighborhood Housing Service (EBNHS) gets its funding from taxpayers living in a special service district on the East Bluff. Because of past problems with the EBNHS, the City Council decided to approve levying the tax on an annual basis hopefully to increase their performance accountability.

The FY2011 tax levy was approved in November 2010 after the EBNHS gave an update to the Peoria City Council showing all the progress they had made. Their accomplishments included having a “full and complete EBNHS board — all 13 positions filled,” publishing the monthly minutes and agendas on their new website (http://www.ebnhs.com/), and having a “loan committee actively meeting and pursuing creating proper loan criteria and documents with object to begin loan process again in near future.”

Upon reviewing the website, it’s interesting to note that the last minutes published were December 2010, and the last agenda published was January 2011. It seems that after they received the tax money, their diligence in keeping the site up to date waned almost immediately. It kind of makes it difficult to determine if they’re following through on their commitment “to begin [the] loan process again in [the] near future.”

There are now three vacancies on the board according to the website, so the “full and complete EBNHS board” was rather short-lived as well. In fact, the EBNHS gave their report to the City Council celebrating their full board in November, then created two vacancies as of the very next meeting, according to their December 2010 minutes. It appears those vacancies have yet to be filled.

What we do know from the website is this:

  • They gave $643 to Boys and Girls Clubs to sponsor an East Bluff child for a ski trip to the Ski Snowstar Winter Sports Park in Andalusia, Illinois, in January.

  • They paid Williamson Blind & Drapery $3,945 to make custom window dressing for the EBNHS House at Nebraska and Wisconsin. This house acts as the EBNHS office, and also the home of the EBNHS Executive Director Peggy Shadid, who receives a $43,191 salary and stays in the house for free, courtesy of the special service district taxpayers.

Speaking of the Executive Director, as the only employee of the EBNHS, and the one who has “general direction over the operations of the Corporation” according to the bylaws (including the responsibility to “keep the permanent minutes of the meetings” and “see that all notices are duly given”), one would assume it would be her responsibility to keep their website up to date with the latest minutes and agendas. However, there is no requirement in the bylaws that the website be kept up to date.

My guess is that the website will eventually get updated — at least by November, when it’s time to ask the City Council for more tax money.