By: Diane Benjamin It looks like Bloomington has to be destroyed by government spending before people realize local elections matter. Or, maybe only the people who can’t move will be left paying the bills which are about to get much bigger. Monday night the Bloomington will see the results of doing “Wants” before Needs. MANY […]
BY JMKRAFT ON SEPTEMBER 14, 2017 • ( 1 COMMENT ) STANFORD, IL. (ECWd) – This is a story of a Village, or maybe an attorney, who appears to have tried to take the easy way out of a problem by allegedly filing false paperwork with the McLean County Recorder’s Office. Thanks to local Bloomington, IL. investigative journalist Diane Benjamin, of […]
By: Diane Benjamin Tari’s Downtown Task Force mostly consists of people who had their hand out for your money and Council people dying to give them more. The entire rest of Bloomington has no representation. Maybe that’s why moving the library and adding a bus transfer point got shredded at the meeting Monday night. See […]
By: Diane Benjamin Below are excerpts from an email I received yesterday from a current State Farm employee: So…the story about State Farm. There are a lot of management level employees in our IT shop. Percentages of people whose jobs will move or be eliminated range from about 20% to 50% depending on the area […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 13, 2017 Contact: Katie Simpson, City of Bloomington Planner, 309-434-2341 Tricia Stiller, Downtown Bloomington, 309-829-9599 PARKING DAY COMES TO DOWNTOWN BLOOMINGTON BLOOMINGTON, IL– On Friday, September 15, in cities around the globe including right here in Downtown Bloomington, artists, activists and citizens will transform parking spaces into temporary public parks […]
A reader sent me this: https://atlanta.curbed.com/2017/9/7/16264644/state-farm-atlanta-perimeter-dunwoody-development-construction He added this: It looks like we are headed for a chalk outline of BN taxpayer… See this story too: From a SF Employee ________________________________________________ By: Diane Benjamin State Farm announced to their employees they will be moving 7% of IT out of Bloomington and cutting management company wide […]
By: Diane Benjamin Watching the Council spin themselves into the ground felt a lot longer than 23 minutes! Most of the conversation was on whether to build a metal retaining wall or concrete so the City Hall annex can be demolished. The difference in price was around $61,000. The Council was handed some revised numbers […]
Sorensen is responsible for your property taxes going up. Just a reminder.
By: Diane Benjamin I wonder if the judge who sentenced Matt Sorensen to only 1 year in jail knows he is still telling everyone (but the judge) he is innocent? There is another question that still hasn’t been answered: Who is the 3rd person? Remember the un-named co-schemer? http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2016/01/05/393755.htm Two pled guilty meaning #3 […]
Correction: Karen Schmidt did report that Diana Hauman was sick By: Diane Benjamin Alderman Hauman and Mayor Renner were both absent last night. Not a word was spoken about either. That means 20% of the people you elected were missing. Progressives evidently don’t think they have any responsibility to citizens. Of course watching them in […]
By: Diane Benjamin When you pick progressives to run your City you will pay more in taxes. You picked their vision to “keep moving Bloomington forward”. Fiscal responsibility and Needs before Wants aren’t ever discussed. Send this article to the local leftists so they know what progress looks like: Why Are Liberal Cities So Unaffordable Alderman […]
By: Diane Benjamin David Sage decided to have an opinion last night, but the media probably missed it. It didn’t happen during the regular meeting – it happened during aldermen comments before adjourning. What was Sage outraged about? Moving the library! He pulled the minutes of the joint Library/Council meeting in June (that wasn’t live […]
By: Diane Benjamin I’ve written MANY times about the joke that is Bloomington’s Enterprise Funds: Garbage, Water, Sewer, Storm Water, and Grossinger Motors Arena. All of these funds are expected to have positive balances, except the Arena of course that probably never will. If the others don’t have enough money in them – your taxes […]
The writer is reflecting on the Editorial printed by the Pantagraph September 7th. See it HERE Do you ever hold out just a speck of hope that there is some integrity left in the Pantagraph? Find it a bit hard to relegate it to the graveyard of American institutions dying a tortured death? Well the […]
By: Diane Benjamin Remember when Tari thought he was going to be attacked at his Open House and sent out a call for help? Note the name – David Parker is running for McLean County Board District 9. David Parker is another Biss for Governor- supporter. You remember Biss – the guy who picked a […]
By: Diane Benjamin Monday night the Council has bills to pay, massive pension payments to approve, and a little misc stuff. http://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=14583 See page 285. A consultant came up with a “Branding Concept” for downtown: . That means signs: Payment to KMA design of $62,190 was approved in 2016, Monday they get another […]
We won’t know until you take the survey! . Click Here: Local News Survey . . No, this is not a BlnNews survey. . . .
By: Diane Benjamin Monday is RAISE your TAXES day! The fund balances aren’t enough! You must pay. Be compliant, stay home, cuss at the Council from the safety of your couch. Or, you could quit eating out as much and paying the outrageous food and beverage taxes. Or, you could buy more on-line and save those […]
By: Diane Benjamin I did finally receive my FOIA for the General Ledger entries to the Sister Cities accounts. Travel expenses is sometimes in “Travel” and sometimes in “Community Relations”. The accounts are full of transfers and memo entries that make it difficult to determine what is happening. The Sister Cities program is supported by […]
By: Diane Benjamin Media is reporting a slight drop in enrollment at ISU. Here’s the proof that numbers lie and liars use numbers. Incoming freshman – down 342 students (9.3%) Transfer students – down 239 students (11.7%) Those are huge percentage drops, the source is WGLT which happens to be part of ISU: http://wglt.org/post/freshman-enrollment-falls-illinois-state-university#stream/0 Incoming […]
By: Diane Benjamin Today an editorial writer is attempting to rewrite the history of Japan, Tari Renner, Margot Erhlich, and PCards. I have the minutes of the Sister Cities Committee. Margot is NEVER listed as a member or attending a meeting! The editorial claims she is a member and everybody should ignore the law! If […]
By: Diane Benjamin Now I have reports of 2 incidents unbecoming common decency. Until either or both are confirmed by somebody on the trip, I can’t do a story. I am told the Council most likely knows about at least one of these. I wouldn’t be posting this list if any of them had confirmed […]
I just got a tip that Tari Renner came close to creating an International incident while in Japan. He didn’t realize one of the hosts spoke English. Anyone with information needs to contact me! [email protected] Sources are of course protected! I hear the people on the trip are afraid to talk because it might damage […]
By: Diane Benjamin Nothing coming from this Council or Tari’s Downtown Task Force should surprise anybody. Vote for Big Spenders and you get the same policies that has the State with $15 Billion in unpaid bills! (after the tax increase) The people Tari appointed to plan downtown spending think just like him. (Are any on […]
By: Diane Benjamin The financial statements and Financial Trend Report aren’t posted on-line yet. They were discussed during the Council meeting last night, for now that’s the only information available. Below is one of the slides presented. NO council members asked how Revenue is a Significant Concern, but Expenditures are No Concern. Yes, your taxes […]
By: Diane Benjamin Before Tari took a “medical related” leave, he publicly announced his support for Daniel Biss – Democrat candidate for governor: Recently Biss announced his running mate: Chicago Alderman Carlos Ramirez-Rosa If Chicago Alderman isn’t bad enough, Rosa is a member of the Democrats Socialists of America: http://chicagoist.com/2017/08/07/chicago_dsa_convention_helps_build.php Maybe Tari’s support of Biss explains […]
By: Diane Benjamin Tuesday night the Normal Council will accept the audited financial statements. Once again, required disclosures are not included See page 82: http://www.normal.org/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/2708. The Government Accounting Standards Board issued a statement in June of 2015 requiring the disclosure of future liabilities for post-employment benefits (healthcare). Since the financial statements being released are as […]
By: Diane Benjamin It’s getting harder and harder to see that ANY laws matter, at least for government. Officials can twist facts, feign illness, and violate the law knowing nobody is going to prosecute. The Town of Normal Council is doing their part Tuesday night: I don’t know if this “planning session” has taken […]
A Facebook poster reported seeing Tari at Target Sunday moving along quite briskly. _____________________________________________ By: Diane Benjamin The story broke on July 30th of Renner’s personal use of a government Purchasing Card. https://blnnews.com/2017/07/30/do-we-have-a-prosecutor/ On August 16th WGLT did this story of the Council being concerned about Renner’s erratic behavior. Reading the story though shows them […]
By: Diane Benjamin Last week the Nazi comments were directed toward the ISU Republicans and a guest speaker. This week it’s against a group called Turning Point USA. The President of the ISU chapter, Andy Byars, sent me pictures of the vandalism to chalked messages and posters they hung on campus. […]
By: Diane Benjamin Thanks to a reader, the tree the Bloomington City Council is fretting over is this one: The property owner wants it cut down. The Council spent over 15 minutes last Monday discussing changes to the “Shade Tree” ordinance. A vote on the changes will take place at a future meeting.
Read this story – then read what WGLT wrote about the sermon: http://wglt.org/post/eastview-pastors-sex-sermon-called-offensive#stream/0 _____________________________________________ By: Diane Benjamin At the very end of last Monday’s Council meeting Alderman Scott Black made some comments about an “event” he found offensive. He never said the event was a sermon. Evidently this sermon was advertised. It took place at […]
