City of Peoria, Peoria Journal Star, Radio

“Outside the Horseshoe” reviews top stories of 2006

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Jonathan Ahl had WMBD-AM’s Dave Dahl and the Journal Star’s Jennifer Davis on WCBU’s “Outside the Horseshoe” program (listen to an .mp3 of the show) this past Tuesday to review 2006. The six top stories they identified and discussed:

  1. At-large Council Elections — Morris and Grayeb are not seeking reelection, so there is a lot of speculation on who might be filling those positions, and if the other three incumbents will remain.
  2. City Budget — No significant changes from last year, despite having a new council that was supposed to fully staff Fire Station 11 and eliminate the $6/month garbage fee.
  3. Snow — The city wasn’t prepared for the big December 1 snowstorm and did a poor job clearing the city streets. Ahl’s panel decided that it wasn’t any one thing that was to blame (it was a combination of factors), but the council, et. al., are looking for one scapegoat.
  4. Crime — 18 murders in 2006, “Target Peoria” crime forum, surveillance cameras, saturation patrols, and whatever happened to the parental-responsibility ordinance idea?
  5. East Bluff Replacement School — District 150 was, and still is, trying to find a 15-acre site in the East Bluff on which to build a new school to replace/consolidate Glen Oak and White schools.
  6. Civic Center Hotel Controversy — I have to admit, I had almost forgotten about this one. It’s been so “underground,” as Jennifer Davis said, that one wonders whether some back-room deals are being made, or if the idea is being abandoned.

After listening to the show, I have to say the panelists did a good job of covering the big stories of the past year. But there were a couple of stories I was surprised they didn’t cover: the PDC landfill controversy (granted, that was a Peoria County issue, not a city issue, but it was still a big story affecting the city) and the proposed Land Development Code for the Heart of Peoria area (which I think is significant because it’s a huge step forward for the Heart of Peoria Plan, which was adopted by the council in principle, and now will have the chance to be adopted in practice).

And I think they should have had a blogger or two at the table just to round things out. Not necessarily me, although I always have fun on the show, but at least Billy Dennis who has been covering Peoria politics for the blogosphere for a number of years now. After all, it’s people like Billy and me who were named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year this year, right? 😉

General News

Amazon.com charity scam?

4 Comments

FootstoolFor Christmas, my dad got my mom a footstool through Amazon.com (pictured at right). It came in a box with some assembly required — basically, you have to screw the legs on and secure each of them with a screw. Once it was assembled, however, it was only a matter of hours before the legs were wobbly and one leg actually fell off. These legs aren’t coming unscrewed, mind you. The whole assembly is coming out of the frame. Basically, it’s a piece of junk.

So my mom writes to Amazon.com and asks about how to return it for a refund, and she gets this e-mail back from “Amy” in customer service:

Thank you for the reply. What I would like for you to do is donate the item to a charity of your choice in our name which is On The Web Marketing Group and fax over the receipt to me @ [phone number]. Once this is received, we will refund the full amount you paid back to Amazon and they in turn will credit your card back in full. Once again, I do apologize for the inconvenience.

Well, the first mystery was figuring out who “On The Web Marketing Group” was, so I Googled it. According to the “Company Info” tab at http://www.otwmg.com/, “On The Web Marketing Group represents a variety of online companies and handles the customer service, order processing and order fulfillment for these fine companies. The company was started in 1997 and is currently a privately owned corporation founded in the state of Nevada.”

Okay, so they’re evidently a third-party company that takes care of shipping products and servicing customers for a number of on-line retailers including Amazon.com.

The second mystery is, why would any charity want a broken, piece-of-junk footstool? Clearly, they wouldn’t — they’re just going to throw it away. So why donate it to charity? I think we all know the only plausible reason:

It sounds to me like their process is to have their dissatisfied customers pawn off their defective merchandise on unsuspecting charities. That way, instead of throwing away the defective junk and taking a loss (the honest thing to do) they can write it off on their taxes as a donation to charity. The junk still gets thrown away, but no return shipping charges are incurred and they get the tax benefits as if it were a legitimate charitable donation.

Something is rotten in the state of Denmark — or, in this case, Nevada. Frankly, I’m shocked and disappointed. And I can’t help but wonder (a) does Amazon.com know of this practice, and (b) is this legal? Anyone else had a similar experience with Amazon.com’s customer service?

City of Peoria, Peoria Park District

Historic designation not the way to save Glen Oak Park

11 Comments

The Journal Star has an editorial in today’s print edition (I haven’t been able to find it online to link to it), headlined “Historic or not, parks are province of Park Board,” that criticizes citizens’ attempts to declare Glen Oak Park an historic site, thus making it subject to oversight by the city’s Historic Preservation Commission. They state:

Any move by Peoria’s Historic Preservation Commission to landmark Glen Oak Park as a historic site worthy of city-enforced restrictions on its use should be considered as an assault on the sovereignty of the Peoria Park District.

This may surprise (and dismay) some readers, but I actually agree with them on that. It would set a dangerous precedent if one municipal body (the city) — whether through elected (council) or unelected (commission) representatives — tried to exert authority over another municipal body.

If the city agreed to make Glen Oak Park an historic site, that means that any and all changes to the park would have to be approved by a city commission. That would make the city the de facto governing body over Glen Oak Park. I think that would be a huge overstepping of bounds.

I have to admit that I have somewhat reluctantly come to that conclusion, because I agree with the sentiment behind the effort, which is to preserve the remaining historic structures in Glen Oak Park (e.g., the parapet) and to keep the park land itself from being reduced by encroachments by the zoo and currently-defunct school siting projects. But the proper place for redress of those grievances is the Park Board, not a city commission. If the Park Board is unresponsive, then those trustees should be replaced at the earliest opportunity.

After all, what if the tables were turned? Should the Park Board be allowed to exert its control unilaterally over all greenspace in the city, not just park land it owns? Should they claim to have jurisdiction over what you plant in your backyard or whether you cover part of your backyard to put in a deck? Sounds silly, doesn’t it?

However, I disagree with the editorial writers when they say this:

The petition has everything to do with District 150’s attempt to partner with the Park District in building a new school on a corner of upper Glen Oak Park.

I think that’s an oversimplification at best. Certainly the school siting attempt lit the fire, but I don’t believe the historic designation attempt is based solely on trying to stop the school. Rather, as a result of the spotlight placed on Glen Oak Park because of the school issue, many people are gaining a new appreciation for the value of the park and realizing the extent of its poor repair. That the parapet and foot bridge have been allowed to deteriorate so badly through neglect is reprehensible. But again, these are things for which the Park Board and its staff — specifically Bonnie Noble — should be held accountable, not usurped by the City.

We need to preserve Glen Oak Park, but we also need to preserve the separation of powers between the City and Park District.

City Council, Elections

The Thetford Files: Kellar Branch conversion

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[In the months leading up to the at-large City Council election, I’ll be occasionally pulling out some pertinent data on Gale Thetford and posting it under the headline “The Thetford Files,” lest we forget why she was voted off the council.]

From the October 22, 2002 City Council Proceedings:

AGREEMENT with the PEORIA PARK DISTRICT to Allow the CITY’S RIGHT-OF-WAY to be Converted by the Peoria Park District to a RECREATIONAL HIKING/BIKING TRAIL Subject to Conditions as Outlined.

Council Member Thetford moved to approve the Agreement with the Peoria Park District to allow the City’s Right-of-way to be converted by the Peoria Park District to a Recreational Hiking/Biking Trail subject to conditions as outlined; seconded by Council Member Morris.

Approved by roll call vote.

Yeas: Ardis, Gulley, Morris, Nichting, Spears, Teplitz, Thetford, Turner, Mayor Ransburg – 9;
Nays: Sandberg – 1

Okay, admittedly almost everyone voted for this and it wasn’t really one of the reasons she lost reelection; nevertheless, I think it’s worth mentioning that it was Thetford who made the motion, which makes her officially the leader of this ill-conceived effort to abandon the Kellar Branch. The city is still paying lawyers to fight for their “right” to squander a half-million-dollar asset by practically giving it away to the Park District to destroy.

City of Peoria

Rumors abound in Peoria

19 Comments

Lots of interesting rumors flying around these days:

  • The Word on the Street column reported yesterday that the rumor is that former mayor Dave Ransburg is trying to buy the Journal Star. When asked if there was “a nugget of truth in all the speculation,” Ransburg replied, “I have no idea,” which means “yes, I’m definitely trying to buy the Journal Star” in Ransburgese. I just hope he doesn’t outsource it to China.
  • Several people have told me that the worst-kept secret at District 150 headquarters is that Superintendent Ken Hinton is planning to retire (again) in February 2007. Speculation is that Herschel Hannah would be the next Superintendent. If that’s true, and as long as they don’t fill the Associate Superintendent vacancy left by Hannah, then I say that’s a good thing. In fact, why wait until February?
  • The aforementioned Word on the Street column also said that City Manager Randy Oliver wants Public Works Director Steve Van Winkle fired for leaving town during the big snowstorm and approving a ridiculous amount of overtime pay for a salaried employee. That seems like a bit of an overreaction at first blush, and it appears the council feels the same way. According to the paper, “a majority of the council seems to be more open to allowing Van Winkle to retire — something he was, we hear, likely to do this year anyway.”

I heard one other rumor (tongue-in-cheek here): that Ray LaHood was planning to run for an at-large seat on the City Council. Seems he’s more interested in local politics than national issues these days….

The Peoria Chronicle

New theme for new year?

4 Comments

The Chronicle is back.

I’ve been looking for a new WordPress theme to change things up a little for the new year. I kinda like this one, called “WuCoco.” It’s based on “Wuhan,” which is the theme I was using before; it’s very similar, actually. I found the featured picture of Peoria online; it’s credited to Christine Wainwright. It’s a great shot of Peoria, but as far as its place on my blog, it’s temporary. I’ll be replacing it with my own picture of Peoria, hopefully soon.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!

Uncategorized

‘Twas the Night Before Christmas

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St. Nicholas as drawn by Thomas Nast

A Visit from St. Nicholas
by Clement Clarke Moore

‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;

And mamma in her ’kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap,
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;
“Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!”

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky;
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of Toys, and St. Nicholas too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.

As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
A bundle of Toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.

His eyes—how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;

He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly.
He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose;
He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle,

But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.”

City of Peoria, Peoria Park District, Peoria Public Schools

Open Thread on Park Board’s D150 denial

18 Comments

Well, I was off by one vote. I predicted that the Park Board would agree to pursue an intergovernmental agreement by a vote of 4-3.

Instead, the Park Board rejected the school’s plan to share park land on the corner of Glen Oak Park for a new East Bluff school building by a vote of 4-3.

I wasn’t able to attend the meeting, so I don’t have any details. If you know any details, please be sure to add them in the comments section below! I’ll add more as they become available.

UPDATE (10:09 p.m.): A friend of mine just wrote and shared these details:

The vote was 4 to 3 with Roger Allen, Tim Cassidy, Stan Budzinski and Jim Cummings voting “yes” to the motion which read” …reject the School Board’s proposal”. Board members Petty, Johnson and Ryan voted “no” So a yes was a no and a no was a yes- Typically confusing, but regardless this is a start in the right direction. […]

It was a packed meeting- standing room only- most of us had to stand in the hall. It was very respectful and orderly. […]

Cassidy was more general in his comments and while he complimented Ken Hinton for doing a wonderful job as Superintendent he said the Peoria Park Board’s responsibility is to protect park property and therefore he had to stick with his ultimate responsibility and vote to preserve the park.

Update (12/21): Here’s the story from a few news outlets:

  • WEEK-TV Channel 25 (best line: “District 1-50 will now have to meet to decide what is next. At this point, officials say they do not have a plan”)
  • WMBD-AM 1470
  • WMBD-TV Channel 31 (best line: “The majority of the trustees say they were elected to protect the park land, not give it away”)
  • Journal Star reporter Clare Jellick has her full story online now (most interesting quote: “District 150 Superintendent Ken Hinton said the vote means ‘another part of the community is going to get the school.’ He said Glen Oak Primary School will not close, and he isn’t interested in using the primary school site for a new school”)
  • WCBU-FM 89.9 reporter Tanya Koonce has her report online, too. (5 minute .mp3 file)

Also, WMBD-TV had this reaction from Superintendent Ken Hinton:

Newschannel 31 talked to District 150 Superintedent Ken Hinton Wednesday night who said he’s disappointed the park district didn’t allow the use of the land, but he’s not discouraged because he says the district has other option[s]. Hinton said he plans on talking to the school board Thursday.

I wonder (along with Billy Dennis, Bob Manning, and others), where is Mr. Hinton’s concern for the children now? It sounds like he’s saying, since he didn’t get his way, he’s going to recommend not building a new school in the East Bluff at all, but “another part of the community.” Is exacting your revenge against the East Bluff what’s best for the children, Mr. Hinton?

Peoria Public Schools

Open Thread on School Board Meeting tonight

25 Comments
  • UPDATE (12/20): I will not be able to make it to tonight’s Park Board meeting. It’s my understanding they will be voting on whether or not to pursue an intergovernmental agreement with the school district to allow park land to be shared with a new school for the East Bluff. Here you can check about some great leaders that school student should know about. I predict they’ll vote 4-3 in favor of it, although I hope they don’t. I hope the “vocal minority” shows up tonight to express their opposition.


You know you want to comment on it — here’s your forum.

Here is the complete school board deliberation (audio only), divided by speaker for ease of listening:

Mary Spangler (12:27)
[audio:http://www.peoriachronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/Audio/1-Spangler.mp3]

Debbie Wolfmeyer (4:46)
[audio:http://www.peoriachronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/Audio/2-Wolfmeyer.mp3]

Alicia Butler (4:45)
[audio:http://www.peoriachronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/Audio/3-Butler.mp3]

Sean Matheson (2:07)
[audio:http://www.peoriachronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/Audio/4-Matheson.mp3]

Jim Stowell (2:26)
[audio:http://www.peoriachronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/Audio/5-Stowell.mp3]

Vice President Martha Ross (3:44)
[audio:http://www.peoriachronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/Audio/6-Ross.mp3]

President David Gorenz (7:21)
[audio:http://www.peoriachronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/Audio/7-Gorenz.mp3]

Superintendent Ken Hinton (2:02)
[audio:http://www.peoriachronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/Audio/8-Hinton.mp3]