By: Diane Benjamin The only reason to have TIME LIMITS for Council discussion is to limit discussion. It started under Tari Renner, Mboka is continuing it. Common Sense should tell your elected officials discussions should take as long as somebody has something to say. Instead they stop and have a vote to extend the time. […]
By: Diane Benjamin Last nights meeting was over two hours long, it will take more than one story to cover. You will find out next week why the Water Park won’t open this year when 4 presentations will be heard at the Committee of the Whole. Grant Walsh revealed the Water Park during budget discussions: […]
By: Diane Benjamin Kelby Cumpston does a good job recapping Bloomington’s agenda on Facebook before meetings. I like reading his views since they can be insightful. I have no idea why Greg Koos made the comment below because the Bloomington Election Commission isn’t on the Agenda. Does Greg know BEC couldn’t tell candidates how many […]
By: Diane Benjamin Tonight’s Agenda: https://d3n9y02raazwpg.cloudfront.net/cityblm/25885a08-7d4f-11ed-9024-0050569183fa-791fe512-602c-4d20-98c8-ecdbbed39134-1680815202.pdf PDF page 56: Police buying 3 drones. See this link recapping an early morning crime spree on 4/2/23: https://www.bloomingtonil.gov/Home/Components/News/News/9507/1394 At least drones are cheaper than a helicopter! PDF page 66: The Lake Bloomington Maintenance Facility burned down in March of 2019. Now 4 years later bids are being rejected […]
By: Diane Benjamin March 28, 2023 meeting: https://www.connect-transit.com/file/1222/03%2028%202023_BoT%20Meeting%20Packet.pdf Connect had an operating deficit in March of $1,231,478. Every Fixed Route passenger was subsidized $5.13, celebrate though! February was $6.23. Every ride on Mobility was subsidized $34.75. Celebrate again because in February it was $34.90. Read the Congressional Update starting on page 13. It details the […]
By: Diane Benjamin FYI: The Vote Yes people committed more electioneering at ISU on Tuesday. Of course no prosecutions will happen, they were eventually kicked out by the election judges. Winning is all that matters to the left, breaking laws or lying is immaterial. Keep reading for proof. This is what happened, I hope Cities […]
By: Diane Benjamin The driver of the vehicle that ran a red light and crashed at 7:20 AM last Sunday at Washington and East Streets was charged with DUI. Bond was set at $250,000 (10% applies) The accident killed the passenger Kudeidrea L. Stewart. The article below doesn’t have the condition of the other driver […]
Most people do not vote in local elections. That means the elites can get anyone in office they want. They REAL extremists are the ones who make plans with your money on non-essentials while underfunding essential services. Failure to vote keeps them in office. Tuesday is another chance to fix local governments. Only because I’ve […]
By: Diane Benjamin Democrats in Illinois prove they are the party of DEATH. Their goal is to kill as many babies as possible through abortion. SB 1909 just passed the Illinois Senate is now headed to the House. It targets crisis pregnancy centers. They want to fine any organization that helps women who find themselves […]
09/21/2022 – 03/23/2023 KayLee passed away due to SIDS on March 23, 2023 at only 6 months old. She left behind her mother, JusLee Bukowski, her father De’ondre Loyd Sr., and a brother De’ondre Loyd Jr. Miss KayLee was a very happy little girl. She always was full of laughter and always willing for a good […]
By: Diane Benjamin More on this story plus the NEW Ward 6 map: https://blnnews.com/2023/03/30/ward-6-cody-hendricks-violates-law-but/ The Democrat Party held an event for Hendricks. Note his opponent Jordan Baker wasn’t invited. Don’t forget Democrats Dave Koehler and Sharon Chung held a fundraiser for him too: https://blnnews.com/2023/01/17/its-official-local-elections-are-partisan/ Obviously Hendricks is running as a Democrat in a nonpartisan election […]
By: Diane Benjamin The person this was sent to is not going to participate. Does this have anything to do with funding Pritzker’s transgender agenda? https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/the-money-behind-the-transgender-movement/
By: Diane Benjamin In Illinois there are rarely any penalties for people who break campaign laws. Evidently CODE based on State Law is just a suggestion. (Heard any electioneering charges yet?) Keep in mind Hendricks teaches CIVICS at Olympia, somebody please check what version he teaches! Bloomington Code: https://ecode360.com/34402871 It violates City Code to run […]
By: Diane Benjamin This website is funded by the Democrat Party with money Pritzker is pouring into local elections. Non-partisan doesn’t exist and hasn’t for a LONG time (if ever). https://defendourschoolsil.com/ Below are some bills the Democrats just passed they say who the extremists are: HB 3093 – Requires all public restrooms be stocked with menstrual […]
By: Diane Benjamin Thank you Nick Becker for asking why the Bloomington Election Commission exists and why this redundancy needs to continue. See 1:57:45. Donna Boelen was acting mayor last night. She claimed she couldn’t vote, I remember other acting mayors voting in Bloomington. She is still an alderman so not voting meant her Ward […]
By: Diane Benjamin Wow – 3 Public Hearings where likely no public will show up to speak: That last one will lead to approval of that Annexation Agreement. I’m the first one to admit I am map challenged, but this sure looks like the land on the SW corner of Ireland Grove and Hershey that […]
By: Diane Benjamin I’m pretty sure most of you got a card in the mail from Responsible Cities telling you who to vote for. Guess who also got a card in the mail addressed to “Responsible Citizens at . . . .”: Me I can’t vote in Bloomington elections -their preferred candidates are on the […]
By: Diane Benjamin h/t a reader This pic below is a card mailed by the Unit 5 Teachers Union. Is this why testing scores are decreasing? Teachers can’t spell or proof read? It’s also misleading – reversing recent cuts has NOT been promised! Voting for representatives the Union wants means taxpayers aren’t represented.
By: Diane Benjamin Thankfully Bloomington’s Monday meeting was short. Most of it was the annual report of the Public Safety and Community Relations Board. The Board only had 3 cases to review for the entire year. In one case the Board made a policy recommendation the police did adopt but in all three cases the […]
By: Diane Benjamin This is going to take more than one story. I have to start with proof Chemberly Harris isn’t intelligent enough to be a Trustee. The Town did vote to end the Use tax when purchasing a vehicle. The tax is .0075 of the net selling price. Obviously this wasn’t about saving taxpayer […]
By: Diane Benjamin Besides Public Comment approving minutes: SUBJECT: Presentation and Discussion of the Public Safety and Community Relations BoardAnnual Report, as requested by the Administration Department.
By: Diane Benjamin This comment was made today to a story from November of 2019: Unit 5 indoctrinating kids with CNN. I am printing it because most people won’t see it. It breaks my heart that some Unit 5 teachers are doing this to kids. I know some schools have banned To Kill A Mockingbird. […]
By: Diane Benjamin Besides the fact that Weikle has known about the “structural deficit” for years and did nothing to fix it, she is either allowing illegal activity or promoting it. Anyone believe how she runs Unit 5 is perfectly legal? She is hiding what is really being taught to your kids. What did Dr. […]
The below is compiled from data on the Illinois Sate Board of Education. More in this story: https://www.illinoispolicy.org/policy-shop/the-policy-shop-how-to-fix-illinois-public-schools-falling-test-scores/ Quality of Education is going down. More money isn’t going to reverse this course. Electing the people who caused the problems won’t either. Don’t get excited about Unit 5 being above Statewide average. Illinois is BELOW the […]
By: Diane Benjamin Everyone endorsed by this PAC have an agenda. That agenda isn’t doing what’s right for taxpayers, it’s doing what THEY want done regardless of your opinion. Did you want a $30 million pedestrian underpass in Normal? I hope you are noticing what electing progressives means. They work for government, not you. Dave […]
The two video below are from West Side Neighbors Facebook page. They are evidently inviting a few candidates at a time to speak to their group. Brad Wurth and Mollie Emery were also there. Since Danenberger and Hendricks skipped a forum I attended, these videos will allow you to hear both for yourself. Both think […]
By: Diane Benjamin Budget book 2 – PDF page 132 https://www.bloomingtonil.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/29127 The paragraph below sure sounds like the City let Grossinger Motors off the hook for naming rights long before the contract was over last summer. Grossinger is still on the building anyway. The City still refers to it at Grossinger anyway. The EXCESS reserves […]
By: Diane Benjamin Watching the video is much more difficult than listening. The mouths and the sound continue to not match. Spending millions on IT evidently can’t get quality video. Most of the meeting was reviewing the budget again. You can page through the presentation slides beginning at 17:40. See 20:24. Unit 5 thinks the […]
By: Diane Benjamín Bills and payroll: https://www.bloomingtonil.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/29123 IMRF wouldn’t have required this payment if some pension wasn’t spiked: . . Agenda for tonight: https://d3n9y02raazwpg.cloudfront.net/cityblm/25841e19-7d4f-11ed-9024-0050569183fa-791fe512-602c-4d20-98c8-ecdbbed39134-1678461338.pdf The meeting is mostly budget. PDF page 30 might be interesting. Take a look. .
By: Diane Benjamin https://www.unit5.org/domain/3810 Unit 5 is busy posting lots of fear porn, the above is one of two pages. This one is my favorite though: Must be Common Core Math. (anybody else see four things?) Keep what going? Is this English? 35% of students going on the college need remedial education, I think this […]
By: Diane Benjamin Your tax dollars in Normal are paying for advertising on Connect Transit buses. Connect shows advertising revenue when this is merely rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Maybe we can get to a point where government funds other government instead of fleecing citizens! Just keep passing around the same bucks. Connect […]
By: Diane Benjamin Thanks to WGLT for this story on Ward 6: https://www.wglt.org/local-news/2023-03-08/bloomington-ward-6-city-council-candidates-share-visions-for-downtown They made the choice easy between Jordan Baker and Cody Henricks. Don’t forget democrats threw a fundraiser for Henricks, very non partisan: If you don’t know what Ward you are in, find out here: https://www.bloomingtonil.gov/government/city-council/ward-map Henricks wants to “radically transform” downtown. That’s the […]
By: Diane Benjamin Ward 4: You next representative could be elected by a few hundred people. You deserve better – Vote by Mail, Early Vote, or in person April 4th! If you don’t know what Ward you are in, find out here: https://www.bloomingtonil.gov/government/city-council/ward-map Only Wards 4 and 6 have contested races. DEMOCRACY! 😏 Now read […]
By: Diane Benjamin Total Revenue: Bigger loss: Not included in this loss are new electric buses: Fixed route ridership is up: Mobility ridership is up: See PDF pages 17-24 for a list of all bills pending in Springfield as reported by Cornerstone Government Affairs who was hired by Connect Transit to track them. If you […]
By: Diane Benjamin The McLean County Museum of History is owned by McLean County. That makes this Facebook post electioneering. Candace Summers is also wrong. If the referendum passes there is no guarantee field trips will be in the budget. There is no guarantee any cuts will be restored. The only guarantee if the referendum […]
By: Diane Benjamin Two things in the budget you won’t know unless you watched last night. Chemberly Harris is getting $19,000 for her Youth On A Mission. Pam Reece has a $750,000 slush fund. Of course it’s for contingencies (wasn’t needed for the previous 2 years). https://www.normalil.gov/DocumentCenter/View/21181/Town-of-Normal-2022-23-to-2027-28-Five-Year-Operating-and-Capital-Investment-Budget PDF page 121 Nothing aggravates citizens more than […]
This is the group putting up billboards:
By: Diane Benjamin Unit 5’s own data shows controlling costs isn’t happening. They have a spending problem, not a revenue problem. Start with this chart complied from OpenTheBooks: https://blnnews.com/2022/04/01/unit-5-did-esser-funds-inflate-salaries/ Compared that chart with the one below compiled by Unit 5 – PDF page 15 https://www.unit5.org/cms/lib/IL01905100/Centricity/Domain/51/CAC%20Financial%20Presentation%2002-02-2022.pdf Why did PERSONNEL costs (blue line) skyrocket since 2015? The […]
A little birdie told me today the guy who removed and hid the literature at the union hall for the 4 conservative candidates was: Ben Matthews Who is Ben Matthews besides a typical leftists who doesn’t want union members to hear more than his side? (Free speech not allowed!) More Info from LinkedIn: He was […]
