All posts by C. J. Summers

I am a fourth-generation Peorian, married with three children.
City Council, City of Peoria

City mulls over cuts to basic services, giving $37M to hotel developer

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According to this Journal Star article, the City of Peoria is looking for ways to cut basic services like sidewalk and sewer improvements due to a nearly “flat projection” in sales tax growth. Meanwhile, according to this other Journal Star article, developer Gary Matthews is still pitching his hotel plan which relies on $37 million in TIF and sales tax revenue. That figure is down from the $39.3 million originally proposed (and approved), but the project is smaller now, too. There are 70 fewer rooms and “[i]t will be designed so that another 100 rooms can be added later, if needed,” according to Matthews.

“It has taken me a lot longer to reach this point than I expected. I didn’t see the recession coming, especially one that deep. Even so, I never thought it would be so tough to finance a project that is 50 percent equity,” Matthews said.

He didn’t see the recession coming when he submitted this project for council approval in December 2008? Really? That’s funny, because the recession started in December 2007, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. Yet despite this striking admission, we’re still supposed to trust his judgment with our $37 million in tax money. And the City has such a great track record of choosing economic winners and losers… well, at least losers. Cub Foods. Firefly Energy. A few more “self-supporting” projects like those, and we’ll be completely bankrupt.

It’s time the City stopped acting like a bank for entrepreneurs who can’t get private financing because their projects are too risky, and started doing what they’re supposed to be doing, which is providing basic services for the residents of the City. It’s past time, actually.

Peoria Public Schools

Should principals be empowered leaders or branch managers?

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The extent to which mechanistic thinking is corrupting our culture might be illustrated in relation to any number of fields of activity. For instance, our educational system suffers disastrously from the dominion of the administrative mind, which is, by the very nature of modern administration, generally mechanistic in its thinking (and therefore unfitted to overlook strictly human affairs). It is a well-worn, but none the less just, joke among teachers that education is now a minor by-product of local authority administration. Classroom work is overlooked by superfluous local organizers. A county’s schools will be run from the authority’s central office rather as a ring of chain-stores is run from headquarters. As the grip of the administrator tightens, the authority and influence of the teacher and headmaster are correspondingly reduced. The headmaster is increasingly prevented from regarding himself as the leader of a vital community of persons. The telephone stands on his desk to remind him that, like the manager of a branch-store, he is in charge of one among a network of mechanisms operated from headquarters. The headmaster, who ought to be the link between school and parents, is now the link between the school and the local authority’s offices. The wheel has come full circle. Men of personal conviction, with vision and purpose, are often considered too “dangerous” to be appointed to headships. Some appointing authorities seek “safe”, mediocre men who will sit meekly at the far end of the telephone wire and do what they are told.

So wrote Harry Blamires (a student of C. S. Lewis) in his 1963 book, “The Christian Mind.” He was talking about the schools in England at the time, but his words could just as easily be applied to the schools in Peoria in 2010. It wasn’t that long ago that the District 150 Board of Education changed a student’s grade over the objections of the teacher and principal due to political pressure brought by the student’s parents. And the top-heavy nature of administration at District 150 has been demonstrated numerous times.

The usual solution proposed is to cut a number of administrators so that it’s more proportionate to the number of teachers and students, but otherwise to keep the basic organization the same. The question is, is that the best solution? Or might a better solution be something more radical — like decentralizing District 150 completely?

Imagine if each principal were made responsible for his or her own school. The money would follow the students, and the principal would be in charge of decision making and resource allocation. The principal would also be held accountable for meeting or exceeding state/federal academic performance standards.

To a great extent, this is how charter schools are organized. But what if, instead of turning a school over to a private organization, the school district simply empowered its own principals, and gave them the same freedom and responsibility it has given the charter school? To be sure, some principals — the mediocre ones Blamires described as nothing more than branch managers who do what they’re told — would have to be replaced. But once competent leaders were appointed to each school, couldn’t the results be at least as good as what is hoped for from the charter school experiment?

School autonomy is not untried. School districts in large cities such as Houston, Seattle, and Cincinnati have tried it, and England has moved toward decentralization since the 1990s. They call it “Local Management of Schools.”

With the arrival of a new superintendent, perhaps the time is right for a new paradigm in District 150.

For further reading: “Schools take a lesson from big business” (USA Today, 3/9/2006); “Decentralized Decisionmaking for Schools” (RAND Corporation white paper)

Peoria Public Schools

Another D150 administrator put on paid leave

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District 150 Director of Technology and Library Media Services Mary Ward has been put on paid administrative leave as the district performs an internal investigation. If past is prelude, taxpayers may be paying her to do nothing for a long time. The last administrator to be put on paid administrative leave, Mary Davis, has been getting paid for nothing since September 2009 — a full six months and counting. Granted, if she’s found guilty, she’ll have to pay it all back. I wonder if that will include interest.

Despite how slowly the process is going, I’m happy to see District 150 doing all these investigations. It’s about time.

Peoria County, Peoria Journal Star

“Word on the Web” has Urich news conference video

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The Journal Star recently started a new blog based on John Sharp and Karen McDonald’s Monday column “Word on the Street.” The blog is called “Word on the Web,” and so far it has been very good. New content is added regularly, and the information is much more timely than the weekly print column. Case in point: today’s post on Peoria County Administrator Patrick Urich’s press conference. It includes video of the whole meeting, which was basically a question and answer session about Firefly flickering out. Very informative.

Nation/World

Transportation Secretary speaks out on . . . health care reform?

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Talk about your full-court press from the Obama administration. Even Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood is advocating for the administration’s health care bill now:

Yesterday, I voiced my support for health care reform with an op-ed in the Chicago Tribune using testolone. I am grateful to those who saw my speaking-out for what it was: a former legislator reaching out to Congress to step up and solve one of our nation’s greatest problems. As I told FoxNews, “It’s a matter of voting for a good bill.”

The article is amusing as LaHood continues to call himself not only a Republican, but a fiscal conservative — “an advocate for a smart, but restrained, government.” Sure. That’s why he voted for the first stimulus bill. That’s why he defended and liberally used earmarks. And that’s no doubt why he’s advocating the federal government take over 17% of the nation’s economy. He’s all about “restraint.”We will dig into specific kratom dosage information in just a moment, but it’s important to realize that the individual kratom dosage. To know more details about kratom dosage check it out here . Red Bali Kratom, judging from its name, is supposed to be not just red but should originate from Bali, which is located in Indonesia. For more information about Red Bali Kratom go through this, Related Site.

Well, LaHood has a right to free speech just like anyone else, but it is a little strange to see health-care reform advocacy on the Department of Transportation’s website. Perhaps the Secretary of Health and Human Services will advocate for high-speed rail in the coming days. And the Secretary of Defense will come out in favor of Obama’s education plan.

Peoria Public Schools, State of Illinois

Note to D150 employees: Illinois offers whistleblower protection

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Another potential scandal at District 150 was revealed last week by the WEEK-TV news team:

Sources tell us district 150 security this week was notified of employees possibly selling District 150 computers illegally over the Internet.

Those sources say there was a raid at the district’s Ricketts Center and several shredders and computer hard drives were confiscated.

Meanwhile, the State’s Attorney office is still investigating the circumstances surrounding Julie McArdle’s termination nearly one year ago. McArdle made multiple allegations of misconduct in a lawsuit against District 150, Academic Officer Mary Davis, former Superintendent Ken Hinton, and former Human Resources Director Tom Broderick.

In light of all this apparent corruption at District 150, I’d just like to offer this public service announcement to District 150 teachers and staff members: Illinois offers whistleblower protection. Julie McArdle not only made her complaints to the police, but also to former Superintendent Hinton, and it was her disclosure to Hinton that allegedly led to retaliation against her. But you don’t have to tell District 150 what you know. According to the State of Illinois’ website, “Your identity as a whistleblower is kept confidential, except in rare circumstances where disclosure is required by law.”

I would encourage any teachers or staffers at District 150 with knowledge and evidence of corruption to tell what you know through the State’s whistleblower process. It will protect you from retaliation, but be a huge benefit to students, parents, and taxpayers. Here’s that site again: whistleblower.illinois.gov.

City of Peoria, Peoria County, Peoria Journal Star

More historic quotes about Firefly

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“In terms of company stability, Caterpillar owns 35 percent of Firefly, and Cat is a company that does its homework. This battery technology is unique and promising enough that Firefly had little trouble raising $20 million in private equity. Company officials figure 80 percent of that money is spent locally, so there’s economic spin-off.” –Journal Star Editorial Board, May 22, 2007

The Journal Star said the risk was worth taking, and endorsed the loan guarantee. I just thought this quote was notable because there’s this attitude in Peoria that if Cat invests in something, then it must be a sure thing. Obviously, Cat didn’t get as successful as it is by making a string of poor investments, but the Firefly bankruptcy does show that Cat isn’t perfect, and their investment is no substitute for municipalities doing their own due diligence. Then again, Cat did tip its hand even in 2007. A May 23, 2007, article carried this ominous statement: “Although Caterpillar Inc. owns 35 percent of Firefly, it wasn’t clear Tuesday why it wouldn’t guarantee the loan.”

“The Firefly package was being worked on for a number of weeks between Firefly, the county and the city,” Ardis wrote in an e-mail. “The proposal went through various stages and changed a number of times. It would have been difficult to update people on financial discussions when they were fluid and evolving into what was the final proposal. Once made public, there wasn’t anything hard to understand about the deal.” –Mayor Jim Ardis, quoted in “Word on the Street,” Peoria Journal Star, May 28, 2007

This was Ardis’s defense of “dropping the deal late on the public — [and] his council colleagues — and pushing the vote” with very little deliberation and without any policy discussion. The whole article is interesting. It recounts the story of how former Mayor Dick Carver was in town to talk to the City Council about the Kellar Branch rail-to-trail initiative, and during his stay here, he set up a meeting between Mayor Ardis, Rep. David Leitch, and president of G&D Integrated Joe O’Neill. They met at Le Peep restaurant for breakfast, and, “Over toast, these four men toasted a commitment to finding a solution that would keep Firefly Energy Inc. in Peoria.” Firefly moved into the former Foster & Gallagher building on Galena Road — a building owned by O’Neill’s company — and “O’Neill also hopes his Morton firm will eventually secure contracts with Firefly to build the high-tech core components that would then be shipped to battery plants in Missouri and Ohio,” the paper reported at the time. Leitch was a VP at National City at the time, the bank that provided the loan to Firefly.

“Ultimately, this is new ground for Peoria County.” –Peoria County Administrator Patrick Urich, quoted in Journal Star, June 1, 2007

The news article added, “But he [Urich] told the committees it was a worthwhile investment because the company has promised to keep its headquarters here and may manufacture in Peoria its high-tech components, parts that would then be shipped to battery plants in Missouri and Ohio.”

“I see it as one of the safest loans that we could make. If I had the money, I’d make it myself.” –County Board Chairman Bill Prather, quoted in Journal Star, June 10, 2007

If it were really that safe, why did National City require the City and County to guarantee the loan? If it were really that safe, why didn’t Caterpillar guarantee the loan? Well, now we know.

“I’m happy to be doing what I can to get them these defense dollars. In the end, I want them in Peoria. That’s going to be the icing on the cake for us.” Then-Congressman Ray LaHood, quoted in the Journal Star, June 10, 2007.

LaHood helped Firefly get millions in defense contracts. Icing on the cake? What cake?

“This is the highest and best use of this money that we have.” –Peoria County Board member Allen Mayer, quoted in the Journal Star, June 15, 2007

Note to future board candidates: Mark this quote for your campaign literature.

Before someone else says it, I concede that hindsight is 20/20. But I’m more concerned about another proverb: Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Will our elected officials take this very hard and expensive lesson to heart and stop using taxpayer money for risky private ventures?

City of Peoria, Peoria County

Firefly closes, taxpayers left holding the bag

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In May-June 2007, the City of Peoria and Peoria County pledged a combined total of $6.6 million as a guarantee for a loan from National City Bank to Firefly Energy, the darling Caterpillar spin-off and “poster child” of PeoriaNext. The source of the funds breaks down to $3.3 million in utility tax revenues from the City, $1 million in Keystone revenue and $2.3 million in Personal Property Replacement Tax Revenue from the County.

Today, WEEK-TV reports that Firefly is closing down its operations and filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. That’s not like Chapters 11 or 13 where they reorganize. Chapter 7 means they’re kaput and they will be liquidating their assets, and that means taxpayers are on the hook.

[Firefly’s CEO Ed] Williams said, “After 15 months of unsuccessful attempts to raise $20 million in equity capital, in the midst of this world-wide financial crisis, funds that would have enabled the Company’s transition to full production and commercial sales, the Firefly Energy Board has decided to cease operations and voluntarily file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.”

So, what happens to the taxpayers? The City and County released the following joint statement:

In May 2007, following the significant investment of the private sector and the state and federal governments, the City and County of Peoria unanimously joined in a community partnership to guarantee a $6 million loan to Firefly Energy, Inc. by PNC National City Bank. Unfortunately, after 3 years of extensive efforts to make a commercially-viable alternative to the traditional lead-acid battery, Firefly has not been successful. Along with our state and federal partners, the City and County did everything we could to help Firefly succeed and bring technology-centered, specialized manufacturing jobs to Peoria. It has long been a goal of both private sector and government in the Peoria area to take ideas spun off from Caterpillar to create jobs and commerce in the Peoria area.

As guarantors, the City and County are determined to exercise their full legal rights to protect their interests. In the worst case, the City and County might lose their $6 million guarantee. In the likely case, the governments will pursue by legal means the pledged collateral, the physical and intellectual assets of Firefly Energy, Inc., to reduce any investment losses that may be realized by the City and County. We believe that the value of these assets is considerable and will reduce any amounts that may need to be paid by the City and County as guarantors. Furthermore, we expect that the lender PNC National City will fulfill its legal obligation under the loan agreement to protect the interests of the guarantors and maximize the value of the collateral. Again, the City and County intend to exercise their full legal rights to protect the interest of the tax payers of the City and County of Peoria.

Not to be nit-picky, but the guarantee was for $6.6 million — $6 million for the loan, and $600,000 to cover accrued interest. Regardless, the bottom line is that it’s going to cost taxpayers. Four million dollars of the loan was to be used for equipment, and the rest for working capital. So it looks like we will be on the hook for a sizable chunk.

I love how they are saying they intend to “protect the interest of the tax payers.” You know what would have really protected us? Not guaranteeing a $6 million loan for a risky start-up business in the first place.

Not quoted anywhere is Rep. David Leitch, the former VP at National City who is credited with orchestrating the public-private partnership. He was quoted in the Journal Star back in 2007 as saying this deal was “the most exciting thing Peoria had done since building the Civic Center.” But my favorite quote was what he said after the City approved its half of the guarantee: “This will be a moment we can all look back on and say, ‘Wow.'”

Well, he was right about that. $6.6 million potentially down the drain. Wow.

General News

Fresh Market to open in Peoria

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The Journal Star reports that The Fresh Market is going to open a store in Westlake Shopping Center in the former Circuit City space. Fresh Market is a “specialty grocery store chain” based in North Carolina, and is similar to Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. Their prices are high, but so is the quality of their food. Many in Peoria have stated they want to have a gourmet food store like this, so I’m happy to see one is finally opening in the area.

On the other hand, they apparently require a very large sign in front of their store, and don’t want to screen their dumpsters (see Item 4, 2/23/10 City Council meeting). That’s regrettable.

Peoria Journal Star

Psst! Hey, Journal Star staffers, past and present!

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Have you heard about this story?

Cathy Gilbert, the managing editor of a small newspaper in South Carolina . . . not only quit, she also took her entire staff of employees with her to start a competing paper in Manning, S.C., according to a WLTX, a TV station in Columbia.

Just imagine if all the Journal Star employees — those still working as well as those who have been let go over the past several years — all banded together and started their own cooperative newspaper to compete with the Journal Star. It’s so crazy it just might work. Who wouldn’t abandon the GateHouse-Media-ravaged Journal Star for a superior new paper with all the knowledge, experience, and contacts of established beat reporters, editors, printers, sales agents and webmasters? Who wouldn’t want to pick up a paper that is locally-owned and customer-focused? Who wouldn’t want a paper with enough reporters to adequately cover the tri-county region and beyond? I think the community would flock to it.

A revolt would be good. GateHouse can’t compete against you. Start having some secret meetings, put a business plan together, and set a date for the big departure. Peoria deserves a better newspaper than GateHouse is providing. The men and women at the Journal Star deserve a better employer than GateHouse. Don’t say it can’t be done. You can do it!