David Jordan’s Transportation Blog had to be abandoned, according to Mr. Jordan, due to spam issues and the loss of ability to post images. So he’s moved to Billy Dennis’s BlogPeoria Project. It’s called Peoria Station.
I think he’ll like the flexibility a WordPress interface provides. I don’t know how much storage space Billy gives him with a BlogPeoria account, but I hope it’s a lot because David takes a lot of pictures! I’m glad to see this excellent blog move to a better platform.
From a press release:
Joan Krupa holds news conference in front of Pleasant Hill School to discuss Jehan Gordon’s denial of an abysmal attendance record as a member of the school board and Gordon’s lying about canceling her participation in the Kiwanis debate on Wednesday
Krupa: “Jehan Gordon has sent out mailers saying she has learned from her mistakes, but these continued deceptions are disturbing and the voters have a right to know about them.”
Life-long Democrat and former Peoria County Board Chair Sharon Kennedy joined Krupa to praise Krupa’s work on the county board and explain why it is such a breach of public trust to hold a position and not show up.
(PEORIA) When Jehan Gordon deceived WHOI News yesterday by denying that she had an abysmal attendance record as a school board member for Pleasant Hill School, and she falsely claimed to have called to cancel her participation in the 92nd District Kiwanis Club debate, Krupa decided to hold a news conference to air the truth and call attention to the facts.
Gordon also recently sent out two mailers focusing on “character” and saying she had make mistakes but has learned from them. That is hard to believe in light of her prevaricating to WHOI News just yesterday about two separate matters.
Gordon also has failed to explain why she skipped out on two debates she agreed to participate in this week. She called the Peoria Medical Society hours before their debate to cancel her attendance. But for the Kiwanis Club full blown debate for just the two candidates in the 92nd District, she just didn’t show up without notifying anyone, despite her claim of doing so. She left Kiwanis leaders and members hanging as they tried repeatedly to call her when the debate was supposed to start. They continued for some time trying to reach her and then began the program 20 minutes late when they realized she just wasn’t going to show up.
Gordon told WHOI News yesterday that her “opponent does not want to talk about issues that affect people.” Krupa responded today saying, “I would love to focus on other issues, but it is hard to debate those issues when my opponent skipped two scheduled debates in two days.”
Krupa then said, “When you boil down all the problems in our state government in Springfield, it comes down to bad character. As I speak with voters they agree with me that character is a central issue in this campaign.”
Krupa released a Freedom of Information Act response from the administration of the Pleasant Hill School showing Gordon missed 40% of meetings from when she began as a board member into August of this year. Since then the school had their September meeting and a couple special meetings, giving Gordon a 32% absentee rate and being late for quarter of the meetings she did attend.
Sharon Kennedy, former Peoria County Board Chair who served as a Democrat and worked with Krupa praised the work Krupa did on the county board and said “Joan always showed up well prepared and was a model public servant.” Kennedy castigated Jehan Gordon saying Gordon’s missing such a high percentage of meetings was a breach of the public trust and that she let down the students, teachers and administrators who all rely on the leadership of their school board.
Krupa once again noted that if Gordon was a student at Pleasant Hill instead of a school board member she would be classified as a “chronic truant” with such an abysmal attendance record.
Krupa said Jehan Gordon’s lying just yesterday to WHOI about that attendance record and her not showing up at the Kiwanis debate is further evidence that Gordon has not changed her ways that have gotten her into so much trouble.
Krupa detailed aspects of the disturbing pattern of bad judgment and a lack of character in Jehan Gordon, in addition to being AWOL from school board meetings 32% of the time and being late to one quarter of those she did attend, and then denying it to WHOI News.
Gordon, who was a communications major, has played with words before to fool people into believing positive things about her that are not true. For instance, Gordon was forced to pull an ad in the primary election earlier this year that falsely said she graduated from the University of Illinois.
Jehan Gordon was arrested for shoplifting when she was 19 years old, but the disturbing aspect of that is that she only paid the fines associated with that conviction 8 years later, which was only two weeks before the primary. One wonders if those fines would have ever been paid if Jehan Gordon had not decided to run for state representative.
Continuing that pattern of skipping out on making good on convictions, Gordon was arrested for being “unlicensed,” driving without insurance and no valid registration in 2004 and 2005 when she was in her mid-twenties. Again, the disturbing aspect is that it took her years to pay the fines and she did so only when she was in the middle of her campaign for state representative.
Then Gordon had the audacity to criticize her opponent for not debating the issues, which is hard to do since Gordon skipped out on two debates just this week and then denied she didn’t show up without giving notice to the Kiwanis.
Krupa said there are vast difference for the voters to consider regarding the two candidates positions on issues, records in office, accomplishments, character and integrity.
Oh, I know I’m not the first to break this news, but if the Journal Star can say they’ve got the “exclusive” on this when PeoriaIllinoisan already reported it on the 15th, then heck, I can say I’ve got an exclusive, too.
The German-based company Bosch has bought out local sprinkler maker L. R. Nelson, previously owned by former Peoria mayor Dave Ransburg.
It is expected Bosch, the multi-faceted, Stuttgart, Germany-based company, will keep the Nelson business intact, including the company’s 250 employees, as well as the Peoria facility, [Ransburg] added.
Of course, if Ransburg said the employees are safe, they’d better start looking for new jobs. He said he wouldn’t be sending any jobs overseas either, right before he sent jobs overseas. So I wouldn’t take his word on anything.
From a press release:
US SENATE AND HOUSE CANDIDATES FORUMSPONSORED BY PEORIA CHAPTER OF THE AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 25 AT THE GAR HALL IN DOWNTOWN PEORIAThe Constitution and Civil Liberties will be the theme of a forum in Peoria next week featuring candidates for federal office. The event is sponsored by the Peoria chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
The forum takes place from 6:30 until 9:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 25 at the historic GAR Hall, located at 416 Hamilton Boulevard in downtown Peoria. The event is free and open to the public.
Candidates will be asked to comment on issues including the growing power of the presidency, religious liberty, torture, warrantless wiretapping and the USA Patriot Act.
Candidates who accepted an invitation to participate include:
For the United States Senate: Republican Steve Sauerberg will attend. (Senator Dick Durbin was invited.)
For the United States House of Representatives from Illinois’ 18th District: Democratic candidate Colleen Callahan and Green Party candidate Sheldon Schafer will attend. (Republican Aaron Schock was invited.)
ACLU of Illinois communications and public policy director Edwin C. Yohnka will moderate the forum. The program will begin with questions from a panel of local journalists, including Pam Adams of the Peoria Journal Star, Tanya Koonce of WCBU-FM and Dwayne Bartels of the Peoria Times Observer. Written questions will be accepted from the audience.
For further information, contact Paul Miller, President, Peoria Chapter ACLU, 579-3038 or cpmiller12947@yahoo.com.
President Bush came to Peoria last month for one reason: to help Aaron Schock raise money for his congressional campaign. But that visit cost Peoria taxpayers $13,195.63, mostly in overtime pay for police officers handling traffic control, according to a report prepared by the city at Councilman Sandberg’s request.
Why should Peoria taxpayers — including many non-Republicans — have to pay for Aaron Schock’s fundraiser? “No one was billed for the Presidential visit,” the report states. Well, they should be billed. Schock’s campaign should reimburse every dollar associated with this visit.
Just when you thought talk about the museum couldn’t get any more ridiculous, Phil Luciano publishes this story. He interviews Caterpillar executive Mark Johnson about his estimate of how many visitors will be coming to the museum block if/when it’s built. I hardly know where to begin.
Let’s start with this statement:
Johnson bases his estimates on “my common sense. You can look at these numbers until you’re blue in the face. So you look at it with common sense.”
Well, I don’t know about you, but Mr. Johnson’s common sense is good enough for me to commit millions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies to the museum. Hey, can I get a small business loan on that basis? Bank: “Mr. Summers, why should we give you this loan? What market research have you done? What’s your business plan?” Me: “My common sense.” Yeah, that’s the ticket.
Let’s take a look at these “common sense” numbers:
Johnson says annual attendance must hit 360,000. He sees it as 120,000 for the museum alone, 120,000 for the Caterpillar Experience alone and 120,000 who visit both.
Okay, so 360,000 people a year will come to the museum block, and of those, 240,000 will visit the museum (120k museum only, plus 120k museum and Cat visitors center). Got it.
…he sees the same numbers visiting the museum per day as the Caterpillar Experience: 667 (That figure includes overlapping of people who go to both sites. Total daily attendance for both is expected to average 1,000 individuals.).
Same thing as before, just expressed in per-day instead of annual terms.
The annual operating budget is pegged at $4 million. Jim Richerson, head of Lakeview Museum, says admission to various attractions would run $8 to $12. But revenue would also come from donations, room rentals, classes and souvenirs.
Let’s do some quick math here: $12 x 240,000 estimated visitors per year = $2,880,000. That leaves a $1.12 million per year deficit — in order to break even, they’d have to get that $1.12 million from “donations, room rentals, classes and souvenirs.”
But that assumes that all 240,000 visitors are paying adults and they’re all getting charged the highest rate ($12), which we know won’t actually happen. That estimated number of visitors includes lots of children on field trips that will be admitted for free. And tickets to many exhibits will cost the lower price of $8. If 25% of those 667 visitors per day are school kids, and the rest of the visitors paid an average admission price of $10, that would come out to only $1.8 million in revenues per year. And that would leave an annual operating deficit of $2.2 million. That’s a lot to make up for in “donations, room rentals, classes and souvenirs.” Where’s the business plan for that?
Oh, I forgot. No business plan. Just “common sense.”
I’ve been following efforts in the city of Springfield to limit the density of so-called “convenience loan” (payday loans, title loans, etc.) establishments because Peoria is trying to do the same thing here.
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The State Journal-Register reports:
The [Springfield city] council in a 5-4 vote killed the proposal that would have prohibited new payday and title lenders from setting up shop within 1,500 feet of existing ones. […] Aldermen who opposed the measure said they didn’t want to discourage business, especially in a slow economy, nor did they want to establish a precedent.
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“If someone comes next week and says, ‘I want the same thing for fast-food restaurants,’ how do we say ‘no?’” argued Ward 10 Ald. Tim Griffin. […]
Ward 1 Ald. Frank Edwards said he has heard from landlords who didn’t like the idea. “I’ve had business owners approach me and ask, ‘Who do we rent to?’” Edwards said.
Apparently Springfield has the same kind of problem with the establishments as we do here in Peoria. In the same way we have a large concentration of convenience loan places on University street between War Memorial and Forrest Hill, Springfield has a large concentration on their MacArthur Boulevard.
The reaction to the decision in the comments section of the SJ-R’s website is revealing. Here are a couple of comments that caught my eye, pro and con (spelling errors in original quotes):
I hate those payday load places… however, I agree with the results of the cities vote. Its a dark road to go down once you start restricting personal businesses. We dont need that!!
If the payday lenders were forced to be equally distributed throughout the county, they might wind up in such places as Leland Grove or West White Oaks Drive. No, City Council likes them right where they are, clustered tightly around the borders of poorer neighborhoods.
I, of course, also hate convenience loan places because I believe they’re loan sharks that prey on the poor and vulnerable. But the Springfield council’s action and some of the comments have got me wondering if the city’s attempt to regulate their zoning is really the best solution. In other words, I agree with the ends, but I’m not convinced this is the best means.
Maybe it would be better to work on getting state legislation passed that would regulate these loan places, the same way banks and credit unions are regulated.
What do you think is the best solution to the problem?
From a press release:
JEHAN GORDON GETS A “F” FOR ATTENDANCEGordon a no show at two debates in two days but comes late to one in between
Jehan Gordon would be classified as a
CHRONIC TRUANT
if she were a student instead of a school board member on the Pleasant Hill School Board because of her abysmal attendance at school board meetings(PEORIA) As a candidate for 92nd District State Representative, Jehan Gordon is living up to her abysmal attendance record on the Pleasant Hill School Board.
Gordon has missed an astonishing 40% of the Pleasant Hill School Board meetings where she serves as a board member. In addition, board minutes show that she arrived late to one-third of the meetings she did attend.
If Jehan Gordon were a student at Pleasant Hill School instead of a school board member, she would be classified as a CHRONIC TRUANT with that kind of abysmal attendance record.
That kind of attendance record proves that she obviously doesn’t care much about her duties on the Pleasant Hill School Board. It seems clear that she wanted to get onto a school board simply to be able to use that platform to launch her bid for State Representative. Otherwise she would have taken her responsibilities more seriously.
Such an attendance record is a horrible example to the students of Pleasant Hill.
Now, true to that poor attendance record, yesterday Gordon cancelled her participation at the last minute for the Peoria Medical Society’s Candidate Forum which she had formally accepted. Her opponent, Joan Krupa attended as did Congressional candidates Aaron Schock and Colleen Callahan.
This morning Gordon did attend the Chamber of Commerce debate in Peoria—but true to form, she arrived late.
Inexplicably, only hours later Jehan Gordon stood up the Downtown Kiwanis Club for their 92nd District Debate at the Lariat Club in Peoria. Kiwanis leaders had Gordon’s formal acceptance to participate in writing and were furious. Gordon did not even call to cancel, she just didn’t show up for the full blown debate between her and her opponent, Joan Krupa who was there.
So within 18 hours, Gordon skipped a debate she had agreed to attend, then arrived late at a second one and then did not show up at a third debate.
That disturbing pattern exactly mirrors Gordon’s horrible attendance record on the Pleasant Hill School Board.
In recent mailings to voters Gordon says she “has learned from her mistakes.” But she obviously hasn’t changed her ways.
Jehan Gordon’s campaign slogan is: Listen-Learn-Lead. But a Representative CANNOT listen if she doesn’t show up. She CANNOT learn if she doesn’t show up. And she CANNOT lead if she doesn’t show up.
It has been said before: “Some officials vote their conscience, some vote their constituents and some don’t vote at all.” The latter behavior doesn’t solve problems, it makes them worse.
With the legendary dysfunction in Springfield that our state already suffers from, voters ought to be wary about adding to that dysfunction with yet another person who has proven herself unfit to serve.
I’ve had my fair share of criticism for District 150, but I think any critic has to admit that they’re fighting an uphill battle when it comes to the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirements. The Journal Star reports that, even though many of District 150’s schools have made gains in Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), the NCLB standards have risen this year:
This year, 19 of the district’s 30 schools improved in both reading and math. That is compared to last year, when only nine showed improvement in both areas.
But many quickly note that fewer schools – 13 – met federal “adequate yearly progress,” or AYP, versus those that did not, which this year increased to 18 schools. That’s compared to 16 schools that met AYP last year and 14 schools that did not.
So what’s changed?
Federal testing standards. This year the threshold increased by 7.5 percent – from 55 percent to now 62.5 percent – meaning more students must meet or exceed the threshold to meet AYP.
And it’s only going to get harder. Next year, the threshold increases to 70%. Then in 2010 it goes up to 77.5%. By 2014, the standard will be 100%, at which point District 150 will most likely have only one school making AYP — Washington Gifted.
I appreciate and even welcome high standards for our students. In fact, I think it’s making a difference, as evidenced by the higher test scores many of the schools in District 150 have achieved. And I certainly am against the “soft bigotry of low expectations.” But 100%? That seems a bit unrealistic, doesn’t it?
For instance, they expect special needs students to make adequate yearly progress at their physical grade level, not their mental grade level. Are schools supposed to work wonders of nature now, too?
The other problem is a bit more fundamental. I was always taught that I’m responsible for my learning. The school provides the opportunity, but I have take advantage of it because no one can make me learn. But NCLB puts the responsibility for learning completely and totally on the shoulders of the school. That’s unfair.
If you have a student who has no support at home from his or her parents, has been brought up with little discipline, and shows no interest in doing the work that learning requires, why should the school be blamed when he or she fails? The “soft bigotry of low expectations” in that scenario is coming from the parents, not the teachers or administrators. The government apparently expects schools to be surrogate parents, something they’re not designed or equipped to do — nor should they be.
On the other hand, I’m not saying that District 150 is doing everything right and their low test scores are all the government’s fault. But I do think the federal/state standards are rising too fast, and that their final goal is not realistic.
From a press release:
ANNUAL AWARDS SPOTLIGHT AREA BUSINESSES!
Peoria, IL – Mark your calendars and join hundreds of business and community leaders as we “Excelerate For the Future” at the Peoria Civic Center September 18th at 7:30am during The Heartland Partnership’s Annual Meeting Breakfast.
The Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce will present the 23rd annual outstanding small business awards. The chamber will also hand out the Athena Award to a woman who shows outstanding achievement in her profession and not only excels in her chosen field, but is always working to better her community. The Economic Development Council for Central Illinois will present two growth and development awards to companies that make significant contributions to area communities and demonstrate success and growth. The Heartland Partnership will honor a non-profit organization that strives to create a brighter future for our region with the Community Wealth Award.
In addition, we’ll share success stories of The Heartland Partnership Family of Companies and Ken Schmidt, former Director of Communications for Harley-Davidson Motor Company, will shed some light on how he was able to turn the Harley-Davidson Motor Company around and create one of America’s most celebrated businesses.
Media Interview and Photo Opportunities:
Ken Schmidt, featured speaker
EDC Growth and Innovation Award winners
Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce Small Business Award winners
Athena Award Winner
Community Wealth Award Winner
Jim McConoughey, President & CEO The Heartland Partnership
Vickie Clark, COO EDC
Roberta Parks, COO Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce
Steve Jaeger, Director TransPORT, the Heart of Illinois Regional Port District
Kyle Ham, President & COO Peoria NEXTFor more information please contact Renee Charles at 495-5905, 229-7791 or e-mail rcharles@h-p.org.