By: Diane Benjamin
The video below is part of the 7/12/26 Normal Township Board meeting. The ARC report proceeded this. If you missed this story showing public commenters weren’t happy about the firing of long time employees at the ARC, see it now: https://blnnews.com/2026/07/29/whats-going-on-at-the-arc/
The Director, Elicssha Sanders, was promoted to that job in April. The Assistant Director, Josh Taylor, was hired July 8th.
Listen to the comments all the way to the end. No one mentioned any problems, several board members close to the end praised the staff. Tanner Starr, Normal Trustee wanna be, is in the video praising the ARC staff before bowing to Krystle Able. Keep reading.
Elicssha and Josh were fired on Tuesday. They never received a list of goals Krystle Able expected them to achieve. Neither were ever “written up” as a warning. Both were blindsided. Krystle obviously wanted “her” people, the board are “her” people, it’s not surprising they didn’t object.The Senior Advisory Board wasn’t consultanted – just like during the last round of firings. The Agenda for Tuesday’s meeting was posted on the Township website, it was not posted at the ARC as is normal.
Kristen Chimach resigned from the ARC on August 6th. She became Executive Director on August 11th. Makes perfect sense.
It gets worse. How was health insurance canceled a month before either was fired? This is what both received when they were fired:
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The entire Board violated the Open Meetings Act. After adjourning the meeting below, the entire board trapsed to the ARC to fire people in person. A road trip isn’t on the agenda.
I filed a FOIA request on Friday at 11:07 am for the video from the Conference Room at the ARC where the illegal meeting was held. I received this response from Krystle Able at 11:22 am Friday:
Please be advised that Normal Township has conducted a diligent search of our records and files, and no records responsive to your request exist or are in the possession or control of this public body. Consequently, your request is denied.
The person(s) responsible for this denial is/are:
- Krystle Able, FOIA Officer
The only “diligent search” was how to hide video from the new camera her boyfriend installed.
Maybe Colin forgot to turn the camera on after he installed it.
Erika Reynolds, State’s Attorney, refused to at least make a phone call.
OMA violations aren’t her job.
This story reminds of the time the former city manager,Peterson called the person that started the children’s museum into his office and fired her then called the person that for almost 20 years ran the local theatre into his office and fired I guess he said that he wanted the theatre to go a different direction.
Amazing the voters continue to support those have 0 scruples or are just plain mean!