By: Diane Benjamin I don’t see video on either Normal or Bloomington’s website this morning. A sports complex wasn’t mentioned, the meeting was more of a “what we do” presentation by the Chamber of Commerce, the Economic Development Council, and the Convention and Visitors Bureau. The most noteworthy thing I heard was the EDC calling […]
By: Diane Benjamin We know Connect Transit had plans to buy huge electric buses regardless of what the Working Group reported about the size of buses needed: https://blnnews.com/2019/09/27/proof-the-working-group-is-a-joke/ We know Connect Transit fabricated a response in order to delay my FOIA request: https://blnnews.com/2019/09/27/more-proof-connect-transit-shouldnt-exist/ I did receive the FOIA last Friday, 633 pages of the […]
No, I’m not moving to either Bloomington or Normal and I’m NOT running for office. This story is about YOU. I started writing this site in April of 2012 only because I saw how bad the local media was. Today most are even worse. The majority of them hate this site without ever reading any […]
Email received by FOIA: By: Diane Benjamin This ad was posted on September 19th in AppVault: . The Town of Normal is looking for a Communications & Community Relations Director! . The ideal candidate will be capable of translating these values into a robust communication program that supports the strategic plan of the Town of […]
By: Diane Benjamin Just a rumor going around until it is confirmed. I’m hearing an entire department is moving or the department is being outsourced. What have you heard? I assume you heard Unti 5 claimed their property tax base is down this year. It should be for every government taxing body if a lot […]
By: Diane Benjamin Saturday mornings are a big drop off time for recycling behind the Normal Walmart. There are two large bins for cardboard – both were 95% full this morning. The one for containers was totally full, the No Bags sign is immaterial evidently. The one for mixed paper had a little room so people […]
By: Diane Benjamin Definitive proof the Connect Transit Connect to the Future working group is wasting their time comes from the words spoken by member and Connect Transit Board member Judy Buchanan. Agreeing at the last Board meeting to purchase 35 foot electric buses for the next 5 years confirms it. Go back to the August […]
By: Diane Benjamin Yes, this will be a love fest of local elitists. It will be difficult to stay awake, but you need to hear what these people have planned for your life. They wouldn’t have jobs if they didn’t plan for you, so they will be spending your money with or without your permission. […]
By: Diane Benjamin We’ve all seen the empty buses We’ve all seen the inflated ridership numbers We’ve all seen them ignore pleas from people they should be serving. We’ve all seen the huge buses damaging infrastructure It’s obvious they don’t care about anything except their agenda. The agenda we see is to take as much […]
Huge News Coming soon! Stay tuned, I haven’t decided on the exact day yet.
By: Diane Benjamin Source: https://www.pjstar.com/news/20190923/pekin-city-council-approves-3-cannabis-sales-tax Excerpts: The Pekin City Council approved an ordinance imposing a 3% sales tax on cannabis sales during Monday’s meeting. The tax will be in addition to other local sales taxes collected by the city. “Collection of municipal sales taxes on the sale of cannabis would not start until September 2020,” […]
By: Diane Benjamin On August 29th I filed a FOIA request with Connect Transit: Smart Growth America is the “facilitator” they hired for the Working Group in June of 2019. See this WGLT story – $53,000 https://www.wglt.org/post/connect-transit-board-modifies-pink-route-hires-facilitator#stream/0 First Response to the FOIA: The due date of September 6th was extended 5 days. Next I got […]
By: Diane Benjamin My greatest hope is that someday people in the media realize when Tari’s lips are moving most likely he is lying. Scott Miller is the latest to let him spew his own set of facts without challenge. This morning Tari was on WJBC with him: http://www.wjbc.com/podcasts/ (Go to the bottom of the […]
By: Diane Benjamin Veterans risk their lives to protect our freedom and liberty. Locally they have to fight just to not be ignored. 1) Remember the story of the disabled vet with a service dog who just wanted to teach? https://blnnews.com/2019/02/21/disabled-vet-ada-and-juvenile-detention/ He is able to teach now and he is assisting with the Veterans Court. […]
By: Diane Benjamin See the lawsuit here: VerifiedComplaint The lawsuit was filed by a former Board of Trustees member and current graduate student – John Bambenek. As stated in the lawsuit, he is also a recognized expert in digital forensics and computer crime investigations. Excerpts: The lawsuit goes into great detail with the history of […]
By: Diane Benjamin Pantagraph story: https://www.pantagraph.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/connect-transit-to-buy-at-least-electric-buses-over-four/article_63972e20-636a-52ea-81d2-a56849c9cef2.html#tracking-source=home-top-story-2 So many things are wrong with what happened at the Connect Transit meeting, but start with the fake reporting: Stan Nord wasn’t there! Bloomington Alderman Donna Boelen did and she did ask the Board to wait until the Working Group was finished. Did a reporter even attend? Was stating […]
By: Diane Benjamin Link to tonight’s meeting packet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VnNpRDPK7mbHSOgI1fZO2yfmT4yioSrR/view Loss for the month of August: Boarders per hour: Yes, less riders. In August of last year they lost $953,797.79. With a couple hundred thousand more riders they might break even. They will have to be imported however. Cost per trip in August was $4.01, down […]
By: Diane Benjamin You can watch Public Comment on the City website, but I filmed Kirk’s comments from a different perspective. Kirk spoke to Council several years ago and his comments were mysteriously cut – just him – the video worked fine for all the other people. That was one reason I filmed him. Another […]
By: Diane Benjamin The Downtown Task Force was a joke, the vast majority of people did not want to build a new library and bus transfer station by tearing down a parking garage. Tari claimed the Budget Task force was a success, it proved that Council was incapable of making any cuts. Huge success Tari. […]
By: Diane Benjamin I drove by the Creativity Center on my way to the Bloomington Council meeting last night. The signs on the north side of the building are no longer there! City Manager Tim Gleason has not responded to my email. Evidently removing the signs is his response: https://blnnews.com/2019/09/19/remember-the-signs-at-the-creativity-center/ If you watch City […]
By: Diane Benjamin Payments for tonight: https://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=23165 Who did they pay moving expenses for in Administration? More traveling at your expense! The cost of auditing, don’t forget – they aren’t looking for fraud. Can’t announce a new season without a party! I wonder if there is a course in “Right Fit”? What’s happening at the […]
Update: A reader found this information: By: Diane Benjamin Just Bloomington, not including Normal. https://ilbusinessdaily.com/stories/513055916-bloomington-ranked-294th-in-state-for-resident-earnings-in-2017#.XYgF7wwE5dk.gmail Excerpt: Bloomington ranked 294th among cities in Illinois by annual earnings per resident, according to data obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau in August. The median income of Bloomington residents was an inflation-adjusted $33,702 per year. Bloomington had 31,652 households […]
Ward 6 Alderman Jenn Carrillo wants to turn America into Venezuela. Think she doesn’t want to do the same thing to Bloomington? How much time does she even spend in Bloomington? Facebook:
By: Diane Benjamin Kathleen Lorenz claims to be a Republican, so does Scott Preston. It is Republicans like these that made me leave the Republican Party years ago. The days of voting for party are long gone. Base your vote on the CHARACTER of the candidate, not the party. Both Lorenz and Preston know Normal’s […]
By: Diane Benjamin Chris Koos’ bike shop sells electric bikes. https://www.vitessecycle.com/product-list/bikes-1000/ebikes-electric-bikes-1038/ These bikes can reach speeds of 30 MPH, but they are not banned on Constitution Trail. Signs on the trail say “No Motorized Vehicles”, so why are electric allowed? Safety doesn’t matter? Aren’t some bikers on the trail already a hazard? How is “electric” […]
By: Diane Benjamin This story should explain why Tari Renner despises Clarence Thomas. https://blnnews.com/2019/05/25/tari-renner-clarence-thomas-doesnt-act-afro-american/ Thomas is black and successful. Clarence proves being born poor and black in America does not mean you are doomed for life. The same applies to Ben Carson and many other minorities who are living the American Dream because they worked […]
By: Diane Benjamin The local progressives want you to believe all illegals are law abiding citizens. Do you remember former Bloomington Police Chief Heffner telling the Council passing the Welcoming Ordinance will put public safety at risk? https://blnnews.com/2017/12/18/chief-heffner-video/ The Council never passed it in Bloomington. Normal did, one of their residents is dead because of […]
By: Diane Benjamin One more thing happened at Monday’s Normal Town Council meeting that you need to see. First, some background. Both Bloomington and Normal have decided in recent years to write minutes that don’t reflect exactly what happens at meetings. If citizens want to research something that happened a year ago and don’t know […]
By: Diane Benjamin See this story: https://blnnews.com/2019/09/09/why-is-bloomington-allowing-propaganda/ Last week I was downtown so I took my own pictures of the signs in the windows on the Chestnut Street side of the GOVERNMENT owned Creativity Center. Here are the three most offensive and obvious propaganda: I sent these pics to Bloomington City Manager Tim Gleason along […]
By: Diane Benjamin The only hockey that still exist at the Coliseum is ISU. VenuWorks is charging them $2,000 a game – the event report for ISU vrs Bradley shows 120 tickets were sold, 181 people who attended got in free. https://www.cityblm.org/Home/ShowDocument?id=22627 The Flying Aces were charged $5,000 per game. Since attendance was dismal, they […]
By: Diane Benjamin I’ve heard from numerous sources State Farm is not done downsizing their workforce. If local governments don’t tighten their belts, the flight of residents will do it for them. These numbers were complied from what Normal reported to the Comptroller’s office: Source: Normal – Warehouse Note the number of employees. Remember […]
The Constitution was signed on this day in 1787 – 232 years ago. Read it lately? Note: It doesn’t say We the Government . . . Link to the Constitution: https://constitutionday.com/the-constitution-text.html Link to the Amendments: https://constitutionday.com/constitutional-amendments-bill-of-rights.html The Bill of Rights (Amendments 1-10) was ratified December 15, 1791. Teach it to your kids, the schools sure […]
By: Diane Benjamin No one showed up for Public Comment last night at the Bloomington meeting! There is A LOT more to cover about Normal, I will get back to that meeting eventually. First on the Agenda was a presentation from VenuWorks. I have no idea why this presentation is allowed instead of the AUDITED […]
By: Diane Benjamin Normal Town Council last night: First to speak was Craig Stimpert. (4:27) The topic was pensions funding and the constant raising of property taxes to fund them. Craig called this Town practice unsustainable. The Town uses property taxes because they refuse to make pension funding part of the budget. He called out […]
By: Diane Benjamin Last night’s Normal Town Council meeting lasted over 2 1/2 hours, it will take more than one story. Chris Koos declared again last night that he was holding a “business meeting”. Since the Town of Normal produces nothing and only has money they steal from taxpayers, he isn’t holding a “business meeting”. […]
By: Diane Benjamin See Part 1 here: https://blnnews.com/2019/09/15/part-1-why-chemberly-isnt-fit-to-serve/ This article will explain why Chemberly should not be in any elected office deciding how to spend taxpayer money. Lots of people find themselves in difficult spots, what matters is digging yourself out. The only way to do that is cut-cut-cut expenses and/or increase income. Cummings chose […]
See part 2 here: https://blnnews.com/2019/09/16/part-2-why-chemberly-isnt-fit-to-serve/ By: Diane Benjamin The almost 11 minute speech Cummings gave announcing her candidacy for a seat in Springfield made it clear she isn’t running as a public servant. If you watch Normal Town Council meetings you see the same thing. If you missed Chemberly proclaiming herself “the royal fortress”, watch […]
