By: Diane Benjamin
I rarely write about Normal because the citizens never get outraged. What does it take? Bankruptcy?
Tonight:
Chris Koos had to know the Mitsubishi plant was already sold to a liquidator, but took a trip funded by you to Germany anyway:
Hope the Council enjoyed eating at your expense:
Do residents in Normal think all those FREE Uptown events are really FREE? Government sponsored entertainment whether you want it or not:
More government entertainment:
The Bills report shows TONS of credit card spending – see the rest for yourself: Master-1
This is the reason for this story:
A citizen of Normal contacted me about this purchase:
In 2011, the Pantagraph did a story on Ryburn and this property: http://www.pantagraph.com/news/local/article_92c388e2-be34-11e0-a019-001cc4c002e0.html
She claimed then it would cost $1.2 million to restore the property. She had received grants totaling $76,695 and invested $90,000 of her own money.
The article claims $30,000 of the grant money came from the Town of Normal.
That conflicts with the 2015 TIF report filed with the state of Illinois: 15TIF06409531One_Normal_Place-2
The report claims Public investment of $9,633 – not $30,000. It also claims Ryburn invested $359,711 to date.
The article says she invested $90,000 in 2011.
Is there a penalty for filing false TIF reports? For false media reports?
One more:
When Normal buys this property no property taxes will be paid on it. This is what all the taxing bodies will lose:
More questions:
Is the $80,000 listed the lot the City is claiming Ryburn paid $24,000 for?
Why is the net taxable value of this property on $38,053? It’s supposed to be a third of the total.
In 2011, Ryburn thought it would take $1.2 million to fix the property. Normal now claims $200,000 – at your expense.
In the end, the Town will own a Route 66 Tourist site. One stop, nothing around it of interest. Will tourists drive a couple of miles more to Downtown Bloomington, stop again, and tour the History Museum?
Ryburn wants to run an ice cream shop from the location.
Looks like a pot of gold! (cough, cough)
Next, I predict a bike trail branch from the one few people ride now.
Mad yet?
(didn’t think so)
What the heck is Multicultural Leadership for $2500?
Divide and conquer?
So this is what the American dream looks like in 2016. Go to school forever with God knows how much in student loan debt, earn a PhD, writing your dissertation on Route 66. When you finally get out and can’t find a job, you buy a dilapidated building and then start applying for government grants to renovate it. When the money runs out and you’re over budget, appeal to the People’s Republic of Normal to bail you out. Then you’re guaranteed a job of running a gift shop (no need to make a profit) and you can live on government subsidized housing at $120 per month. What a deal! Just sell your sole to the government and live happily ever after, while the rest of us struggle to pay the highest property taxes in the nation to fund your field of dreams.
Wow! You just summarized the truth! You rock 4-H. I want to buy you a drink! Diane your readers are smart!
That they are!
4-H wow that summed this story up quickly.
Up at Waukesha, WI a number of years ago there was a similar building that the local YMCA bought adjacent to the YMCA building. The YMCA wanted to demolish it and put in some type of housing. OMG the local antiquity group just had a fit and it ended up costing the YMCA lots of money to fight them. Their mistake was not having a bulldozer standing by to demolish the place before the ink dried on the purchase contract.
Yip it was another group that wanted to save the building but not a one of them were willing to buy it and renovate. Let the taxpayers foot the bill.
The argument at Waukesha was the building’s exterior had changed so much that it really wasn’t the same place. That’s what I see when I look at this building in NL. Just another dump wanta bee a tourist mecca. Gene’s and Carl’s ice cream probably get more tourist traffic.
Who can beat the deal the city is giving this person.
I’ve yet to figure out what the fascination is with Rt 66. Soon the generation that knew about it will be gone.
Here is a news article on the Waukesha building. A group who jumped in to designate a building as historical site and they don’t even own it but they want to dictate what a private owner should do.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/waukesha/waukesha-ymca-wins-bid-to-strip-building-of-landmark-status-132958873.html
This reminds me of was it Randall Smith who fought the city of Bloomington over his use of a house near Franklin Park a number of years ago. I think he threatened to burn it to the ground. The taxpayers took a soaking on that case as I recall.
Here is some more spending of tax dollars for Rt. 66:
http://www.pantagraph.com/news/local/government-and-politics/county-to-apply-for-more-route-trail-funds/article_36e73b89-677e-542b-85fd-8bfa7c971c4d.html
I can probably count on my two hands the number of people I have seen in a year on the bike trail to Shirley. What a waste of money that was.
Have you ever seen where it jumps across old 66 near Shirley? When they were building it the nearby property owner put a stop to them building where they thought it was going. That was so funny. I think the homeowner threw the McLean County highway dept. off of the property if I got the story correct.
Instead the bikers come out my direction and take their lives in their hands on country roads with hills.
There are bike trails to nowhere in Bloomington but millions are spent by the county and city for a bike path to follow Rt 66 through McLean from Chicago to St Louis. Maybe the bikers can camp out in the parking lot next to the gas station in Normal.
Apparently not, we keep voting these idiots into office! This is what happens when most people stay home on election day. Serves us right.
Anybody want to buy a house in Normal?
Yes, it is really Divide and conquer.
Buy a house in Normal? I’d much rather live in Ulan Bator, Thank you very much! What is convenient or sustainable about Normal, You can’t get from point A to point B easily, it’s crowded, overpriced and uppity. If I want that and MORE I can fly to N.Y.C. and at least catch a show!
Precisely why I want to sell mine. It’s called sarcasm.
Diane,
You should know better than acting like this posting inflammatory stories, trying to find dirt and believing there’s a conspiracy everywhere.
In Eph 5:11 it does state that you should “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.” However, in Galatians 6:1, it states “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”
Is it me, or are you not abiding by the own scripture you claim to follow with your LCMS Christian faith? Would they care that you are sowing discord among your brothers and sisters by the way you are presenting these articles?
Holding you accountable via Matthew 18:15-20 as a fellow Christian.
-mk
I enjoy any anonymous hypocrisy. Thanks for playing.
Nothing anonymous about me. I just found your site via a friend on Facebook. In fact, I take my role as an elder seriously. I might go have a talk with your board and show them this site. Sowing dissension is not something we should do. This is not the conduct befitting of a loving Christian trying to constructively solve issues.
Go for it! Using initials is anonymous! Put on your big boy pants and use your whole name. BTW, my elder is a big fan of this site.