Peoria Pundit

Diane Vespa me sent me a notice about Monday’s protest outside the District 150 board meeting, available here.

She also notes on her blog that parents have already started voting their their feet: Enrollment for next year is down.

From Elaine Hopkins’ Peoria Story:

The fast tracked push to cut 45-minutes from most
Peoria primary schools in Peoria School District 150 has little educational rationale but possibly a serious financial reason: almost $1 million in “questionable” expenses wrongly charged last year to the $10.1 million federal Title I program.

An audit of federal Title I grants sent to the district in 2006-07 found $995,378 in questionable expenditures for items such as cell phones, parties and even excessive pay to administrators and teachers not linked to the poverty programs covered by Title I.

The district has agreed to refund some of the money directly. Insiders say it must change its budgeting to take the other questionable funds out of its other tax funds, leaving a shortfall in these funds, apparently between $645,000 to $810,000, figures mentioned by district administrators as the savings from the cutbacks.

Elaine learned of the over charged via a Freedom of Information Act request that was released Friday afternoon, too late int he official business day to contact anyone for comment.

Gee, you would think one of the many $100,000-plus-per-year administrators working there would be available to take a phone call on the weekend.

Kudos to Elaine.

There’s a letter in the Journal Star from teachers on Peoria’s South Side urging reconsideration of the decision to cut 45 minutes from the primary school schedule:

District 150 administrators and board members have touted the need for a longer school day at Edison schools, the restructured Manual High School, and the proposed Glen Oak and Harrison schools. Now they expect us to buy their new argument that less is more for our students. While they have cited research to support the educational benefits of providing teachers with time to collaborate, they have not provided any proof that a shortened day for students is beneficial.

I received a reply from Mayor Jim Ardis to the email I sent regarding the allegation against City Attorney Randy Ray:

Bill

As far as I know, I’ve always would respond to your questions and appreciate the opportunity to do so here. Having that opportunity on the front end would be even more welcome.

I never asked Randy Ray if he made the offer you mention to Mr. Szynaka. The idea was not credible to me. I heard it floated and dismissed it immediately. It would make no sense for the Library to get itself involved in such a controversial issue and I never felt it would be pursued, therefore, not credible.

And Mayor Ardis is right: I should have tried to get his side earlier. But I still think there’s something behind it, somewhere, because as I wrote earlier, there’s just too many people telling the same story.

UPDATE: C.J. Summers has posted the list of 49 questions submitted by the council. Some are unrelated to the issues, but many are valid and are the type I would expect the council to ask of the board and director during public consideration of the proposal. Which didn’t happen because the council voted to defer consideration of the proposal.

So here’s what the library board and staff ought to do. Answer the questions. In writing. At length. Put the ball back in the council’s court and give them no room to maneuver.

Throughout his career on the Peoria City Council, Gary Sandberg has been the gadfly, the fly in the ointment, whenever schemers met behind closed doors to perform some outrage on the public.

And always, the schemers just rolled their eyes and said “That’s Gary being Gary.” Sometimes, the schemers had allies in the local media.

Last night, Gary Sandberg released to the media and the blogosphere the content of the letter he sent resigning as council liaison to the Peoria Public Library board. In this letter, he said that City Attorney Randy Ray tried to get the board to consider l0cating a new branch library at the site now occupied by Elliott’s Cabaret. If the library board used its eminent domain powers to grab Elliott’s, then three council members opposed to approving a $35 million bond would switch their voted to “yes.”

The Journal Star’s Web site now carries three articles on the Elliott’s angle. Here’s a quote from one of them:

On Friday, Sandberg said “all roads lead” to 5th District Councilman Pat Nichting as one of three people involved. He declined to name the other two. “I cannot say with 100 percent surety because Randy did not say who the three were.”

Nichting said Sandberg’s allegations about him were “Gary being Gary.”

Then I suppose that fellow council member Jim Montelongo is just “Jim Being Jim.” He told the Journal Star he confirmed the story from other sources. I suppose that library board president Mike McKenzie and library director Ed Szynaka were just “Ed and Mike being Ed and Mike.”

And I note that Nichting never really denied it. In fact, I’m not reading any denials. I’m reading a lot of non-denial denials.

And here is what Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis said about it:

Mayor Jim Ardis said he had heard about the suggestion with Elliott’s but it was “never presented to me as a serious proposal.” It’s unclear where the strip bar-turned-library suggestion originated.

“To use that as anything credible, is not credible,” Ardis said, adding that neither he nor anyone else on the council had considered it.

First, I’m glad the mayor at least seems to be suggesting that the eminent domain idea of isn’t credible.

But it was presented … but not as a “serious proposal.” So who presented it? It’s “unclear.” But that’s OK, because “neither he nor anyone else on the council had considered it.”

So, I guess Ray was acting as a free agent when — not acting as the city’s in-house legal adviser — when he suggested three votes were available for adopting the plan. which was “not a serious plan,” “not credible,” not “considered” and of “unclear” origin.

Here is what is unasked in these stories: Did Mayor Jim Ardis, at any time since he was made aware of Sandberg’s allegations at least one week ago, ask City Attorney Randy Ray if he did in fact make any comment to McKenzie and Szynaka that could possibly be interpreted as suggested their proposal could pass if they used eminent domain against Elliott’s?

The Journal Star tried to ask Ray, but he wasn’t available.

I’ve emailed Mayor Ardis and asked this question. I’m sure he’ll reply soon. And I’ll post as soon as I get one.

I meant to write about this last night, but I was busy writing about other things.

I caught Jen Christensen’s coverage of the young boy in Roanoke with cerebral palsy who was denied the ability to on a class field trip to a zoo because it involved a train ride on Amtrack, and the train they would use ont he way home would not be wheelchair accessible.

The scholol district was, of course, all apolagetic for not going the extra mile to make sure an alternative mode of transportation was available. The superintendent blamed it all on the ever-so-convenient excuse of lack of communication. Actually, what happened was they didn’t do their job.

But Jen followed up by demanding an explanation from Amtrak. Turns out the train they would be using was wheelchair accessible. So why the mix up? Lo and behold Amtrak has a problem communicating as well.

No doubt both entities v ow to do a better job … aw, who are we kidding. No one got punished in way was for denying this  kid his rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act. So it will happen again, and will be blamed on lack of communications.

And then Jen followed up on her blog, something that’s almost non-existent here in the Peoria churn-it-out-and-move-on news media. One again, Jen demonstrates that she had got the kids beat covered.

The following is the letter At-large Peoria City Council Member Gary Sandberg submitted to Peoria Mayor Jim Ardis. The bold face type is my own:

27 May 2008
Mayor Jim Ardis
419 Fulton Street
Peoria, Illinois

Dear Mayor,

Please accept my resignation as the City Council Liaison for the Peoria Public Library effective at [blank space] PM on 27 May 2008. It is abundantly clear that you do not value my participation as Council Liaison by recent events. At this point I am not sure you and a majority of the Council share mine or even a common vision for Peoria. From my perspective based on behind the scene deals proposed on the 16th of May by Corporation Counsel Randy Ray such as “three negative Council votes would convert to positive votes if the Library would use it’s eminent domain powers against the Elliot’s Site (7807 N. University Street)” is totally over the top and morally, ethically wrong, if not totally illegal. Combine that with the total lack of communication regarding “unanswered questions” appearing at the last moment (after 4:00 on this day) and a last minute deal yet to be offered by Councilman Nichting at 5:30, it is clear that my views and values at it relates to public service and more importantly the public process are of no consequences to you or the Council.

The Library brought forward a product which was the result of a totally transparent process, objective criteria evaluation, careful analysis and recommendations from professional consultants that was totally within the criteria contained in the 2007 advisory referendum. To entertain debate on the merits of that product is healthy, but to politically sabotage those efforts thru these sorts of antics is totally unacceptable to me, so therefore I wish to separate myself from the Council majority that feels actions like these are appropriate.

The past year has been a wonderful experience working with the Library Building Committee, the full Library Board, and the professional Library Administration. They accepted each and every challenge to produce objective recommendations and a multi-faceted program within the referendum budget. I became completely convinced that the public interests were served by their open, transparent and inclusionary actions. The involvement raised my opinion of public service and it’s assurance that with public participation, everyone’s best interest is served. It is sad that the same opinion of public service and it’s transparency is not the rule of the City Council.

At my age, I value time and by the actions of a majority of the Council, they do not share the importance of one’s time. I do not wish to waste their time nor mine by continuing as liaison.

Sincerely

Gary Sandberg, City Councilman At Large

My two cents: My remarks must be tempered by the fact that I do not know which three council members let it be known to City Attorney Randy Ray that their votes on whether to approve $35 million in bonds for the library construction and renovation project could be swayed by a decision to site a new North Peoria branch at the site of Elliott’s Cabaret, the owners of which have sued the city over it’s constant refusal to grant them a liquor license to the establishment. I do know that Sandberg says he confirmed it via two sources. I do know that some of those opposed do so for other, more legitimate reasons.

I will say this: One of the reasons I so strongly backed the election of Jim Ardis, Barbara Van Auken and Robert Manning back in 2005 is that their predecessors were quick to use eminent domain legislation at the behest of developers. The city had been literally taking homes away from widows and turning their land over to developers of strip malls.

And for the most part, I have been happy that during the last three years, there have been no eminent domain actions taken, at the behest of strip mall developers or otherwise. Indeed, I’m aware of projects that have been floated and have gone away before of a lack of adequate votes on the council.

I’m not opposed to using eminent domain to take property to build public projects, including libraries. I am opposed, however, to using it to go after a business out of revenge for their having won in court against the city. I am also opposed to using eminent domain as a way to make oneself appear more electable to small, and narrow-minded segment of the population.

The property on which Elliott’s sits is NOT one of the many sites the library’s board, staff and hired consultants have carefully studied and vetted over the course of a year.

And I am astounded that three council members, at least some of whom need the votes of 5th District residents to remain on the council, would hijack the long-sought North Peoria branch library project in order to appease a bunch of prudes who cannot stand the idea that someone, somewhere, behind closed doors, is looking at a naked woman.

UPDATED: Oh sweet babbling Jesus.

The Journal Star’s article makes it clear they have a copy of Sandberg’s resignation.

But there is not one mention of Ray’s statement that there are three votes available if they go after Elliott’s.

They didn’t just bury the lede. They stepped over its body like they didn’t notice it. Which is kind of hard to do, considering the rancid smell.

For brevity’s sake, I’ll post the letter I sent to C.J. Summers in reply to his email:

Here’s what I know. My server on which blogpeoria.com sites are hosted was experiencing heavy loads all day yesterday. I submitted five trouble tickets on the issue, one each time the server was down.

I was beginning to discuss moving my sites and data bases to another server, when moments ago, I noticed the entire site was suspended. This can happen for a billing issue, when required by law because of illegal content, or because one particular account was slowing the entire system.

I suspect it is the latter. Moving Peoria Pundit to blogpeoria.com may have stressed this server.

I’ll do what it takes to get blogpeoria.com back up. It might required moving the site to a dedicated server or a virtual private server.

UPDATE: Suspicions confirmed. I’m running a script somewhere that uses “delated inserts” into the MySQL databases. They’ve restored the account. I’m looking for the plugin that’s causing this, and have a trouble ticket out with the fine folks at WordPress Mu.

The solution MAY be to upgrade from a shared server to a Virtual Private Server. But I would be responsible for management of the thing 24/7. Which is fine when things are running smoothly, but not so much when all goes to Hell.

Granted, this news is of more interest to local newsies (especially Journal Star alumi) than it is the general public, but here it is anyway:

Los Angeles-based Creators Syndicate announced it will buy the Copley News Service, a 53-year-old wire service that distributes news, political cartoons and opinion columns.

The agreement is the latest sale by The Copley Press Inc., which has been shedding newspapers and other assets to focus resources on its flagship publication, the San Diego Union-Tribune, which cut 10 percent of its staff in December.

Copley, which is family owned, sold nine newspapers in Illinois and Ohio to GateHouse Media Inc. for $380 million in March 2007.

And thus, the consolidation of American journalism continues at breakneck speed.

Via C-Net, the reason folks foolish enough to rely on Comcast for email were denied that service yesterday:

The hackers apparently changed Comcast’s registrar account at Network Solutions, which altered the DNS servers that were used to direct Comcast.net requests. In other words, the hackers essentially redirected traffic destined for the URL Comcast.net. Instead, the traffic went to IP addresses in Germany and elsewhere, reported the blog Broadband Reports.

Comcast has stopped the traffic from being redirected to bogus servers, but users were still having trouble accessing the page as of 11:30 a.m. EDT. The reason is that it could take hours for the redirected traffic to propagate through DNS servers throughout the Internet.

Actually, as I understand the problem, the blame for this goes to Network Solutions, which insists on tossing ads for it’s services on “page cannot be found” messages when folks try to access pages that don’t really exist on a particular domain.

As I told my mother today: Never, ever use the email account your ISP gives you. It is good for nothing. Use Web mail. It follows you wherever you go, whatever ISP you are using.