By: Diane Benjamin
Review this story about the underpass, it has lots of the underpass history: https://blnnews.com/2024/11/27/normals-underpass-history/
See the email in that story. The underpass SAVES 50 FEET for the low cost of $40,000,000+.
Tonight’s Packet PDF page 76: https://www.normalil.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/5414
Social media comments have destroyed Koos and Company ever since this idea was floated:
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I find it funny that Normal declared war on itself instead of Bloomington by making their tax rates higher. Do they really think people won’t notice eating out costs less in Bloomington? Hotel rooms cost less in Bloomington?
Bloomington and Normal have always had an unwritten policy of passing the same tax rates at the same time. They want equality. Somebody should have written that policy!
I see comments from Normal residents who state they are afraid to speak at a meeting.
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Normal is not only wanting to borrow $12 million more, they want to refinance other bonds. Why would Normal get a lower interest rate now than when these bonds were issued? Aren’t interest rates still higher than years ago? See PDF page 191 for details.
The TIF reports were submitted to the State. This is the Uptown report:
See PDF page 8:
PDF page 192:
4 of those bonds are Uptown debt.
“Staff” thinks the underpass will spur investment south of the tracks. Uptown north of the tracks has development only because government owns 2 buildings and had to heavily invest in the 3rd to “fill a hole” on the circle. The other 2 buildings will not get built unless the Town does the same.
Emailing the Council won’t make a difference. If you don’t show up a voice your opposition to the underpass – the Council will raise taxes.
Tonight will prove how many people care or don’t care in Normal. $40 million – 50 feet people!
This sets a new all-time record for the most wasteful use of taxpayer money. It is time to quit wasting staff time and resources and bury this absurd project.
The problem is staff is for this because King Koos and Queen Reece are for it. It’s why Reece had to tell people to stop talking the truth (saving a small distance).
Listen to the Uptown Business owners who call out that there is a lot of work to do with what exists and a lot of debt to pay off. Seems like there could be a lot of affordable housing that could be built with a fraction of this as incentives. However, will that housing be needed as Rivian cuts numbers?
I sent this story to all Town Council members 4-YEARS AGO, before they approved this black hole tunnel. Stan Nord voted against it, and only one other Council member even replied back to me with why she was voting, Yes. Sadly, it looks like the same cost overruns are happening here on a much greater scale…
https://www.winonapost.com/who-is-paying-the-extra-cost-for-wsu-s-pedestrian-tunnels/article_faef6719-c4d4-52a8-baff-d22484741725.html
Toll roads are the usual way to pay for exclusive passageways that people can choose to use or choose not to use. Make it a Pay-to-walk tunnel with toll booths. Call it the Koos Pass.
2,000,000 pedestrian visits to uptown Normal per year (AI estimate)
maybe 10% would use the Koos Pass. = 200,000
Koos Pass toll cost $1.00 = $200,000/year
Koos Pass total cost – $40,000,000
Koos Pass payoff in 20 years.
Would need to close off the bypass and funnel visitors through the Koos Pass.
$40 mil to dig an oversized swimming pool with extra concrete? This is going to rate as the absolute dumbest most expensive boondogle in the Town of Normal and King Koos/Reece regime in history. Looking forward to some national news outlet to get ahold of this. At this rate, that cost is right up there iwth the California monorail system going nowhere except into other peoples bank accounts.
THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN PEOPLE VOTE FOR A UNELECTED CITY EMPLOYEE TO RUN THE TOWN. AND CONCIL MEMBERS AT LARGE ! NO ONE REPESENTS THE PEOPLE ! SO SUCK IT UP NORMAL YOU VOTED FOR THIS
So King Koos Town already brings in about $3.5, mil per year or $80.5 mil since 2002, the first implementation of the food and beverage tax. Funny how citing no increase since 2003 but ignoring no existence before 2003. Anyway taxing the idea of food and drink, $80.5 mil the Town has recevied but wants more.
So says the King and his council, it’s only another .25%, a mere pittance from your pocketbook. Right it’s only a mere .25%. Right so you don’t need it. No Kings should start right here as the worst of the worst Kings were taxing the people to death.
(Feel free to check my math, it was an guestimate.)
This just means that people will eat out less. It also doesn’t account for the increases in prices. That tax rate has stayed the same but not food prices. Avanti ‘s just raised prices again. People aren’t going to be able to eat t places like that when it’s constant price increases and tax increases.
A cooking school might make money since eating out is unaffordable
I can give you two more places that I can say is ruined. College Avenue from White Oak Road to Rivian Motorway (or whatever it is called now) is a disaster area. I wanted to see if that stretch was open. When work was being done you can only go east on College in that area. Today you can go west, but only one way. You can’t turn onto Wylie Drive because that is still blocked off. And when you get close to Rivian and the roadway, it is a hot mess considering it is to be open now. The other is the College Avenue over by Kroger, College Hills mall area. They think they made it easier to turn getting into Chick-Fil-A? Those roads, turns just made this area worse.