By:  Diane Benjamin

The meetings last night lasted until a little after 10:00 pm,  The first one started at 5:30 pm.

Public Comment had a lady BEGGING the Council not to use asphalt on Jefferson street downtown.  She wants something fancy!  Maybe she can fork over the money to pay for it too.  See her at 1:13:50.

Most of the other speakers talked about the docks at Lake Bloomington.  Gary Lambert read a hilarious Letter to the Editor – just hit play below.

The only thing you need to know is your government is about CONTROL.  They want to dominate every aspect of your life because they are so much smarter than you.  Don’t forget they are going to license every business.

They need to entertain you with a central park where they can schedule events you need to attend.  It’s all at your expense of course.  The private sector can’t be trusted with your entertainment when they can give it to you for free.  (ha ha)

They want to control who has a dock on Lake Bloomington.   People they think are non-compliant must appear in their Administrative Court to kneel before them.  I filed a FOIA today for “complaints” the City claimed have been filed by people other than government complaining about the docks.

Administration is willing to mislead the Council to get what they want.  Some months back they spent $970,000 for parking lots downtown from Frontier.  They paid cash.  Last night they voted to finance that amount over 10 years to get their money back.  It will add $100,000 to the cost.

Controlling development passed the Council 5-4.  During most of the lengthy discussion the Council couldn’t decide if they were making a general change to the Liquor Code or targeting Circle K.  They were targeting Circle K, the four that voted against the new ordinance feared hampering future development elsewhere in the City.  Aldermen Mathy, Black, Buragas, and Hauman voted against the change.

One note from the discussion:  Alderman Painter does understand that a new gas station will take business from existing ones!  Can she apply the same logic to a downtown hotel?  I doubt it.  See 2:08:50 on the video.

Grossinger Motors Arena continues to bleed taxpayers.   $290,875.00 was approved last night to keep the floor from self destruction because warm water pipes are failing.  Keep in mind you still need to pay for an elevator on the outside of the building to make it ADA compliant.  Meanwhile, the losses continue as well as the prosecution of the former managers and defense of a civil suit filed by those managers against the City.  I wonder how the City will defend themselves with only $35,000 left in the 2018 budget for legal?    https://blnnews.com/2018/04/24/more-from-bills-and-payroll/

Finally:

Some roads will get fixed.  Not nearly enough however to keep your car out of danger.  Yesterday the City of Bloomington sent an email about April being National Distracted Driving Awareness Month:    http://www.cityblm.org/Home/Components/News/News/6887/

Dodging potholes is not listed in the announcement as causing accidents, just your cell phone.

As the size and scope of government continues to expand, it steals your freedom.

Lake Bloomington residents were the target last night.  Businesses were the target at the last meeting.

It’s only a matter of time until you are the target.

Almost 5 hour meetings aren’t scheduled for City business.  They are to wear down the public and clueless Council who don’t have time to see the destruction they are wreaking on the local economy.  Before the budget went over $200,000,000 lengthy meetings rarely happened.

Was life in Bloomington better or worse then?