Day: September 13, 2006

What’s up with downtown?

Everybody and his brother and sister seems to be on board to discuss and explain Downtown OP (Marion St.) development tonight, 9/13:
Desman Associates [planning consultant, leading the meeting]; Ross, Barney & Jankowski, the architects designing the parking garage; The Lakota Group, which is responsible for area planning and streetscape; and Metro Transportation Group, working on transportation and parking issues.
I could be wrong, but it seems that this was already discussed and on the way to being done when the village board changed hands two years ago.  Are all bets off?  Some?
 
Later, from a well-placed source:
 
Tonight’s meeting is an extension of the Crandall-Arambula plan for downtown, which was not specific about downtown proper — Harlem-to-Forest, Lake-to-North Blvd.  Trustees have picked up where they left off a year ago, planning now for the North Blvd. garage and the streeting of Westgate and Marion.  The problem remains what to do with the Colt Building.  Trustees will decide that issue in their 9/21 meeting.

Tangled Web woven

“The business of knitting and crocheting seems headed into a downward cycle,” says Tangled Web Fibers owner Elin Thorgren, who’s closing up on OP Ave. across from St. Edmund Church, adding, “And you know, there are some things going on in Oak Park, development-wise, that make it untenable to try to ride out the storm.”  Of course.  A biggie is coming across the street and down the block that will utterly transform the OP-South Blvd. corner. 

Davis tripped by inadequate info?

Congr. Davis repeats to the Wed. Journal that he did not know Tamil (terrorist) Tigers funded his recent trip to Sri Lanka. 
Davis . . . said neither he nor anyone on his staff were aware that any money from a terrorist organization was used to pay for his trip until the story broke in the Chicago Tribune. [He] said he first learned of the charges when a Tribune reporter called his West Side office before the paper’s Aug. 24 story. The Tribune followed up with another story four days later on Aug. 28. On Aug. 25, the paper wrote a scathing editorial concerning the trip and politicians, such as Davis, who take “junkets,” or trips taken by government officials and paid for with public funds.
 
Davis said the trip was public and that “there was nothing secretive about the trip.”
 
He said some of his Sri Lankan constituents urged him to visit the country. As reported by the Chicago Tribune, the U.S. Census shows 44 people in the 7th Congressional District who identify themselves as Sri Lankan or part Sri Lankan.

D97 hurt by other taxers?

Here’s someone who may be viewing a TIF as hurting the schools.  Compare with my most recent column in which I pick up briefly on Trustee Milstein’s cooperation model as calling first of all for giving TIF $ back to schools.  This 9/12 opinion piece, by Joel Ostrow, does not quite say that, however.  In fact, it’s mainly a (cogent) defense of Dist. 97 as responsible spender, except for teacher contracts, a big “except,” and argument for its deserving an ok on its coming referendum — which could not come at a worse time, with all the complaints about higher taxes. 
 
Another view-giver, Rex Burdett, does not agree.  He opposes a Dist. 97 referendum, accusing it of over-spending, nailing the League of Women Voters, whose
proposed solution (greater state funding of education) fails to quantify inevitable massive individual state income tax and, worse, ignores the root cause of the current dilemma-namely out-of-control local school expenditures due to salary increases far in excess of inflation and staffing increases disproportional to enrollment trends.
It’s certainly true that schools-supporters have a mantra here, which he attacks, namely that it’s the state’s fault.  Maybe so, but this alternative view is in order.

Peraica has a hot issue

He’s demanding investigation of beating of 77-year old man by County Security Guards across the street from Stroger Hospital.  He cites Fox news report, wants:
 
The identification of the security guard, his suspension pending independent investigation, dismissal of charges pending against the beaten man also pending independent investigation, return of cell phone of county employee who videotaped the incident on her phone subsequently confiscated by police,
 
According to a Fox report [nowhere linked], the man was approached by the guard, who asked “if he was a Mexican” and if he “was legal” and was then removed from his car and beaten as he reached for his wallet.
 
He is hospitalized at Stroger hospital with chest pains and puncture wounds.