All posts by C. J. Summers

I am a fourth-generation Peorian, married with three children.
General News

Black Friday: Consumerism über alles

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The other night as I watched the news, there was a story about some people who decided they were going to skip Thanksgiving — not to show symbolic solidarity with the homeless, or to work for charity, or for any noble cause. They were skipping Thanksgiving so they could be first in line at Best Buy on Friday morning.

Hansen, his friend Jared, and a few others will bear the cold weather just to be the first ones to get inside Best Buy on Friday…They’re thankful to be the first ones in line…thankful enough that they’re not even going home this turkey day. “I’m not going home for thanksgiving my mom’s bringing me out some left over turkey and a miniature grill to cook hot dogs on.

That’s right. These conspicuous consumers got in line Wednesday and stayed there two nights and all of Thanksgiving day. They had tents to sleep in and snacks to eat, and Lord knows where they relieved themselves during all that time. And for their sacrifice they got the dubious distinction of being the first ones allowed to spend their money at Best Buy on Friday morning.

A sad tale of misplaced priorities, but not as sad as the one I heard about today:

NEW YORK — A Wal-Mart worker was killed Friday when “out-of-control” shoppers desperate for bargains broke down the doors at a 5 a.m. sale. Other workers were trampled as they tried to rescue the man, and customers shouted angrily and kept shopping when store officials said they were closing because of the death, police and witnesses said.

The Wal-Mart worker was only 34 years old. What I find most appalling is the callous attitude of the people when told the store was closing because of the person’s death — no sympathy or remorse, but rather anger and complaining about how long they had waited to shop that morning. How selfish and heartless can you get? Who thinks to themselves, “Who cares if somebody died? I want my ‘Incredible Hulk’ DVD for $9!”

Black Friday, indeed.

City Council, City of Peoria, Streets

A few questions about capital funding projects

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The Journal Star reports today:

Five large-scale and expensive capital works projects were excluded from the city’s 2009 budget…. Each project will likely be considered for possible inclusion in a future bond issue, if the city decides to borrow money in order to complete them in the near future.

The five projects, including the Sheridan Triangle, are the following: City Hall restoration, reconstruction of roads within the WeaverRidge subdivision, stabilization of a stream bank between Holly Hedges and Devereux drives, and improvements along Main Street in the West Bluff.

…The council is expected to meet in January to discuss the possibility of a bond issue to help pay for these major capital projects.

First Question: Are we just playing a shell game here with the budget? Is the council simply delaying decisions on capital projects so they can say they have a balanced budget for 2009? If they amend the budget in January to include some or all of these capital projects, where will the money come from to pay on these bonds? Won’t they either have to raise taxes/fees or have an unbalanced budget?

Second Question: Why the heck is “reconstruction of roads within the WeaverRidge subdivision” one of the five top projects vying for capital funding? Are these the worst streets we have in Peoria? The ones in most need of repair? Or are they important thoroughfares that need to be improved in order to incentivize private business development? Or are they really old streets that have been neglected for far too long? No, no, no, and no. So, what is the reason?

Third Question: Why aren’t improvements to Washington, Adams, and/or Jefferson streets included on this list? There are developers waiting to turn old warehouses into loft apartments and condos, which will get more people living downtown, revitalizing the area and creating a market for more retail in our central business district. But the city is continuing to drag its feet here. Why? Are they really committed to downtown revitalization or aren’t they?

Uncategorized

Happy Thanksgiving!

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For flowers that bloom about our feet,
Father, we thank Thee.
For tender grass so fresh, so sweet,
Father, we thank Thee.
For the song of bird and hum of bee,
For all things fair we hear or see,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.

For blue of stream and blue of sky,
Father, we thank Thee.
For pleasant shade of branches high,
Father, we thank Thee.
For fragrant air and cooling breeze,
For beauty of the blooming trees,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.

For this new morning with its light,
Father, we thank Thee.
For rest and shelter of the night,
Father, we thank Thee
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee.

–Author unknown

Crime, Dick Durbin, General News

Durbin wants Bush to commute Ryan’s sentence

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Sen. Dick Durbin has indicated that he thinks former Gov. George Ryan has been punished enough, and will ask President Bush to commute Ryan’s sentence:

“Let’s look at the price he’s paid,” Durbin told reporters. “His family name has been damaged… . He has lost the economic security, which most people count on at his age. And he is separate from his wife at a time when she is in frail health. To say that he has paid a price for his wrongdoing – he certainly has. The question is whether continued imprisonment is appropriate at this point.”

Yes, Sen. Durbin, it is appropriate. Because he gave out licenses to unqualified drivers for bribes, people died. A judge and jury convicted him and sentenced him according to the law. It doesn’t matter that he used to be governor; he’s subject to the same laws and penalties as any other citizen. Commuting his sentence will only reinforce for everyone that there are two sets of laws — one for ordinary people and one for the politically connected.

Incidentally, the same article is on the Peoria Journal Star’s and the State Journal-Register’s respective websites, but the headlines are different. The State Journal-Register says, “Durbin may ask Bush to commute George Ryan prison sentence,” but the Journal Star says, “Sen. Durbin considers asking for Ryan pardon.” The Springfield paper got it right; the Journal Star headline writers apparently don’t know the difference between pardoning and commuting a sentence.

So, as a public service, allow me to explain: When you commute a sentence, you change the penalty, but the conviction stands. You still have a felony conviction on your record. When you pardon someone, you forgive the crime as well as the punishment; your felony conviction is expunged from your record. Big difference.

City Council, City of Peoria

New distance requirements for “convenience cash” stores

5 Comments

The Peoria City Council on Tuesday approved a new ordinance limiting how close “convenience cash” stores can be to each other and residentially-zoned areas:

With a 10-1 vote, the council endorsed an ordinance that restricts new businesses from locating closer than 1,500 feet from each other or any residentially zoned property.

Any changes to allow for a cash store to locate closer than the 1,500 feet restriction will require a special permit granted with approval from the City Council.

The ordinance is designed to keep cash stores from clustering the way they have along University Street between War Memorial Drive and Forrest Hill Avenue, and to keep them from driving down residential property values. At-large councilman Gary Sandberg questioned whether the cash stores drive down values, or if they move into areas where property values are already depressed. He argued that cash stores are a symptom of a bigger problem, not the cause of the problem, and that the council should be looking for and dealing with root causes.

City Council, City of Peoria

4 a.m. liquor license area expanded

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The Peoria City Council tonight voted in favor of expanding the 4 a.m. liquor license area downtown, 8-2 (Nichting, Manning voting against; Jacob abstaining):

Ironically, according to the language of the ordinance, Excalibur would not be included in the 4 a.m. zone, even though that bar and Club Apollo were the two bars the council specifically wanted to provide with 4 a.m. liquor licenses. Whoops. When Councilman Sandberg brought this up, he was chastised by Mayor Ardis for being “unproductive,” and told he should have brought that information to staff sooner, not “when the cameras are rolling.” Sandberg retorted that he had just read the council communication tonight and had just noticed it, and that in any case the legal department is getting paid to double-check these types of things. The motion was amended to include Excalibur.

Coalition of Concerned Citizens representative Sandra Fritz was given the privilege of the floor and spoke in opposition to the expansion. She said her organization had collected 1500 signatures of residents in favor of getting rid of the 4 a.m. area completely and requiring all bars to close by 2 a.m.

City Council, City of Peoria, History

Historic Duroc building doomed

27 Comments

The Peoria City Council denied historic preservation for the AMVETS building, 237 NE Monroe, at tonight’s council meeting. First district councilman Clyde Gulley moved to deny the request, seconded by at-large councilman Eric Turner. The vote was 9-1 in favor of Gulley’s motion to not landmark the building (Councilman Sandberg voted against; Councilman Jacob abstained).

This was no surprise. AMVETS members started lobbying the council before the Historic Preservation Commission even heard the case or made a recommendation, so the vote was practically preordained. Several council members spoke to the issue.

  • “It’s not pro-business or pro-development,” Councilman Turner said about the historic preservation process.
  • Second district council member Barbara Van Auken concurred, but said historic preservation should be pro-business and pro-development and certainly can be; thus, she reported that she has asked Planning and Growth director Pat Landes to look at how historic preservation is handled in other communities.
  • Fifth district council member Pat Nichting gave his time to AMVETS Post 64 Commander Richard Mitchell to address the council. Mr. Mitchell is opposed to historic preservation for this building because it impedes his organization from selling it to Riverside Community Church, which wants to demolish it. Find more info on the building maintenance and facilities services here.
  • At-large councilman Gary Sandberg cited the Easton mansion as an example of a building where a previous owner did not want historic preservation, but was ultimately preserved and is now a beautiful, well-preserved building with a successful business (Converse Marketing) housed in it. He also argued that the item before the council is whether this building meets the standard for historic preservation; it does, and therefore should be landmarked. He also mentioned that, in response to concerns over economic development, not landmarking this building will not give any economic advantage to the city, since it will most likely be sold to a non-profit organization, which is going to raze it.
  • Fourth district councilman Bill Spears doesn’t want to vote against a veterans organization.
  • Mayor Jim Ardis stated his frustration with the last-minute nature of this situation. He also stated that there’s no independent arbiter to determine whether a building is historic or not. This was a curious statement, as I thought that was why we had a Historic Preservation Commission. What is their role if not to be just such an independent arbiter? Ardis also stated that non-profit organizations such as churches improve the area and make it more conducive to economic development, even though they don’t provide economic development themselves.

Les Kenyon was given the privilege of the floor and spoke in favor of landmarking the building, but his pleas were all for naught. The council voted against landmarking this building, not on the merits of whether the building is historic or not, but on the circumstances surrounding the application.

So, Peoria will soon lose yet another historic building. But we can put big pictures of it in the new history museum we’re going to build downtown once that sales tax referendum is passed. Eventually, a museum is the only place you’ll be able to see any historic architecture in Peoria.

City of Peoria, Peoria Mayor

Ardis to run for second term

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From a press release:

Mayor Jim Ardis announced today that he intends to file nominating petitions for another term as Mayor. With solid support from his family, Mayor Ardis is committed to continuing his focus on providing a strong environment for business, maintaining an intense focus on crime and supporting strong neighborhoods with an emphasis on education.

Mayor Ardis will hold a press conference in the coming weeks to outline his re-election platform.

Bradley University

Bradley alcohol policy put to test

23 Comments

I first saw the report on the Journal Star’s website last night that over 60 people — most of them Bradley students — were ticketed at an underage drinking party near Bradley’s campus. This morning, the paper reports that two-thirds of them were Bradley athletes.

Forty-four were listed on the rosters of Bradley athletic teams, including men’s cross country, soccer, baseball and tennis, and women’s tennis, softball, cross country and track and field.

After the deaths of two Bradley students last year, the university stated it was really going to crack down on underage drinking, not so much because it’s illegal, but because it had become a safety problem and was hurting the university’s image. So they came up with an “action plan” that was implemented in April of this year. Now we’ll get to see how effective the university’s Comprehensive Alcohol Action Plan is, especially for student athletes:

Student-athletes found to be in violation of these guidelines will be subject to penalties imposed by the Head Coach and/or the Director of Athletics. Penalties will be in addition to those imposed by the University and/or the Court of Law.

I will be interested to hear what penalties the Head Coach and/or the Director of Athletics imposes on these 44 student athletes.

City Council, City of Peoria, History

AMVETS finance officer: “It is now time to move on”

6 Comments

The City Council will vote Tuesday on whether to make the AMVETS building an historic landmark. The Historic Preservation Commission is recommending that they do. But it appears that even if the council ultimately votes against preserving the building, plans to move the AMVETS Post 64 to a new location are already kaput. Riverside Church has backed out of their purchase agreement for AMVETS’ current location, and the owners of the proposed new location — the old Penguin Tap in Peoria Heights — have moved on to another potential buyer for the property who offered more money.

So finance officer Joe Sharpe, in a post on AMVETS Post 64’s new blog, is suggesting the group move on and make the most of their current location. It turns out that it isn’t nearly as expensive to improve the building as some have thought; and it also turns out that ADA compliance may not be necessary for the group to make some extra money renting out the building:

A major reason for the move is not having an elevator. Ever since I started coming down to the AMVETS I was told that to have functions open to the public we must have an ADA compliant elevator. I even voted to spend $250,000 to put in a new elevator. We do not need a new elevator. I finally took the time to call the city to find out the facts. Currently we are grandfathered in to not have an ADA compliant elevator for public events. However, to maintain our grandfathered status, renovations to the building over a 30 month period cannot exceed $100,000 This fits into a “one floor at a time” approach. This is how a Peoria building inspector interpreted the law. I am currently waiting to hear back from a gentlemen in Springfield that handles this type of issue specifically. Please [view the code] paragraph B6.

I have taken a plumber and a union carpenter/contractor to look at the third floor. The plumber was impressed with the newer copper water lines and suggested new toilets, bathroom fixtures, and an additional toilet to the men’s room. The carpenter suggested laminate flooring and paint for the walls. I did not receive a written quote from either, but the carpenter believed that if we spent over $15,000 on paint and flooring materials we would be wasting [our] money.

High utilities are another supposed reason to move. So far this year our average CILCO bill has been under $2,000. The roof was cited as another reason to move. I have been on the roof and, although I’m not a roofer its condition looks excellent. The point is that we can easily spend less than $100,000 in order to start renting out the third floor ballroom.

Fixing one floor at a time is not enough by itself. We must hire someone able to maintain and actively promote the building to its fullest potential. I think Liz has taught us that one motivated employee can make a huge difference to the club. I am referring to the dramatic increase in daytime business. Linda currently cannot take on further responsibility required to fill this needed position.

I thank everyone that has put time into the move and I share your frustration caused by recent events. It is now time to move on and not let our fate rest in the hands of others.

Joe Sharpe
Finance Officer