By: Diane Benjamin Two months in a row Renner bought former Alderman Rob Fazzini lunch: http://blnnews.com/2015/10/23/september-eating-at-your-expense/ For new readers, when Fazzini was an Alderman he created lots of news by saying things like “A gas tax doesn’t raise the price of gas”. http://blnnews.com/2014/01/27/culture-tales-bloomington-council-retreat/ Fazzini was also behind the failed attempts for Modified Wards and Paradigm […]
By: Diane Benjamin Of course the Bloomington City Council passed everything Tari Renner wanted last night. It’s all going to be great. Public Comment was stacked with former officials and friends of government who proclaimed the $1,400,000 land purchase brilliant, the east side TIF brilliant, and the downtown hotel brilliant. Except for the one guy […]
By: Diane Benjamin Practically since Tari became mayor, the citizens have been told the Front and Center building can’t be saved. Now Jeff Giebelhausen thinks it can be a hotel. Here’s the problems: Hotels and convention centers are a dime a dozens. Spend time on Google and see all the failures. Bloomington has convention centers: […]
By: Diane Benjamin Did you know Tax Increment Financing (TIF) was outlawed in California? Way too much money was going to developers and campaign contributors and costing taxpayers money – so they were outlawed. (Note: California!) Bloomington wants one on the east side, one downtown, and it’s unclear if the downtown TIF would expand to […]
By: Diane Benjamin The City of Bloomington has a long record of making bad deals. MILLIONS were thrown away on an unused Fire Station. Probably MILLIONS more were thrown away on an unused water tower – someday I may FOIA the actual cost. The Coliseum is a disaster sold to citizens as never costing a […]
By: Diane Benjamin I’ve talked to 3 people who attended the Giebelhausen event last night. Here’s the summary: Not many people attended Opposition far out-numbered supporters No new facts were presented Giebelhausen dreamed of more than one hotel downtown Nothing is going to happen without taxpayers being at risk Profit-sharing is the way he is […]
By: Diane Benjamin You have a chance to start over Tari. Ending the relationship with CIAM will give the Coliseum one last chance. Start telling the truth or the reset will flop. Listen to this the interview Tari had yesterday with WJBC’s Dan Swaney: http://www.wjbc.com/2016/03/07/central-illinois-arena-management-withdraws-from-coliseum-contract-talks/ Tari states he didn’t think anything the City was negotiating […]
By: Diane Benjamin Without tips from readers I wouldn’t know a LOT of what I write about! This is one of them: Meet The Developer/Facilitator Tomorrow – March 8th at 4 PM – 6 PM Show Map 407 W. Front St. Suite 1 Bloomington, IL The man putting this project together, Jeff Giebelhausen, will be […]
By: Diane Benjamin Scott Black was missing last night! More proof the elected Council representing the voters is just a campaign slogan. I had to laugh during a discussion about the proposed storage facility in south Bloomington and the Zoning Board of Appeals. Nobody showed up to protest the ZBA approval, even though the meeting […]
By: Diane Benjamin This document was handed to the Council last Tuesday night. It has since been posted for the public: Giebelhausen-additional information A few things struck me as strange. The words Revenue Sharing are used when what is really meant is Cost Sharing. Yes, the City will see increased revenues if the project is […]
By: Diane Benjamin Random thoughts on last night’s meeting: Congrats to Alderman Lower and Alderman Mwilambwe. They stood up for citizens. Public comment was moved to after the presentation against Lower’s wishes, Mwilambwe forced public comment before the Council “voted” to keep the project alive. Not one speaker supported it. Funny how none of the […]
By: Diane Benjamin David Hales confirmed last night the City will be extending the Coliseum Management Contract with the failures managing it now. Revenue is millions away from what citizens were told to expect. Profits don’t pay any of the bond payments – citizens do with higher Sales Taxes. Reports from before the Coliseum was […]
By: Diane Benjamin Tari talking points: The big picture on the budget is that: 1) we are not doing anything that the city didn’t do three, four or five years ago 2) our revenues were flat and our costs keep going up a little over 2% each year How much truth is in Tari’s statements? […]
By: Diane Benjamin David Hales is bemoaning taking $1.4 million from the General Fund to cover services because the fees charged aren’t high enough to cover the costs. News Flash: You weren’t fooling anybody when you hired yet another consultant to exam the City’s fees! $1,400,000 The General Fund is $94,553,780. That $1.4 mil is […]
By: Diane Benjamin I’m sure you’ve seen Bloomington’s symbol: What the symbol means is listed on the City website and in the presentation for Tuesday night. It isn’t new, no Tari didn’t change or create the definition: According to dictionary.com: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/progressive 1) Favoring or advocating progress, change, improvement, or reform, as opposed to wishing to […]
By: Diane Benjamin Here’s the hotel proposal for next Tuesday. CA 02-16-16 COW No, I didn’t change the name – COW was already in it. I see a number of problems, let me know what you see. Part of Tuesday’s meeting is approving the minutes from the January 19th meeting. Sick Leave Buy Back was […]
By: Diane Benjamin I’ve been reading Pantagraph reports this morning from 2000-2004 pertaining to the Coliseum. If you have a Bloomington library card, you can access ProQuest on-line and read them yourself. Search “Sports arena downtown Bloomington”. Unless you are signed into the library system, the Watchtower links below will not work. Yes, there was […]
By: Diane Benjamin Hire-Back is more correctly called overtime. Last night’s Bloomington City Council Work Session lamented the costs to the City – $130,000 per year. One thing ALWAYS left out is how much money the City of Bloomington makes from all those kids drinking every Thursday through Saturday! Through October, the City collected almost […]
By: Diane Benjamin A few weeks ago the Pantagraph deleted and closed comments on a Letter to the Editor critical of Mayor Renner’s plans to redevelop downtown. http://blnnews.com/2015/11/05/pantagraph-reaches-a-new-low/ Yesterday a story about downtown redevelopment appeared – No Comments Allowed. The Pantagraph is a private company, so they can do whatever they want. However, citizens have […]
By: Diane Benjamin Tonight the Bloomington City Council will approve an Enterprise Zone. The majority will vote yes because they believe government creates economic activity. From the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Activity website: The Illinois Enterprise Zone Program is designed to stimulate economic growth and neighborhood revitalization in economically depressed areas of the […]
By: Diane Benjamin I was obvious at last Mondays Council meeting that some Aldermen think any project in downtown is better than none. A reader found an interesting Facebook page yesterday promoting what looks like the Bentley plan. Here’s how the page is selling it: The Viable Downtown Bloomington Development Plan Yesterday at 2:38pm · […]
By: Diane Benjamin The only way to know what both developers proposed last night is to watch the video of the meeting. Nothing was included for either developer in meeting documentation to the Council. The Giebelhausen presentation was vague. He claims to have 3 hotels interested, but only if they get taxpayer money. Why invest […]
By: Diane Benjamin Bloomington held a Council work session last night to hear plans for downtown. David Sage was absent. Do you have a right to know why your elected representative wasn’t there? 9 people are going to decide the future of Bloomington, if any can’t attend a vital meeting, and you can’t hear […]
By: Diane Benjamin I just finished reading all 124 pages of the Coliseum Contract. Management Agreement CIAM Only around the first 35 pertain to CIAM’s management, the rest are naming rights contracts, a pre-opening agreement, and some miscellaneous this and that. I did find one very interesting page. Below is the projected INCOME for the […]
By: Diane Benjamin This morning Tari was interviewed on WJBC. Listen here: http://cdn.stationcaster.com/stations/wjbc/media/mpeg/Tari_Renner__Bloomington_mayor-1445262152.mp3 Tari claims he doesn’t know all the details of the presentations to the Council tonight by two developers. He also claims Bloomington is “on the move” and that’s why developers are interested in downtown. Tari has been proclaiming since he was elected […]
By: Diane Benjamin Developers have been fleecing taxpayers, while the City of Bloomington watched, for decades. Monday night a new crop of guys in need in business will make their cases for your money. The Council is drooling over their ability to rule from the top down. What citizens want is immaterial. Why don’t developers […]
By: Diane Benjamin I think Tari’s constant focus on downtown comes from sites like this one: “What do baby boomers, families, young professionals and new U.S. immigrants all have in common? They’re driving the reurbanization of America. After decades of flight, cities are becoming the go-to choice of living. Access to amenities—including parks, transportation, restaurants, […]
By: Diane Benjamin Monday night the Bloomington City Council will hear a proposal from David Bentley. He wants to turn the Pantagraph building into a boutique hotel. Tari Renner discussed the idea Tuesday on WGLT: http://wglt.org/post/bloomington-mayor-cautious-about-potential-developer City Manager David Hales mentioned at the last Council meeting Jeff Giebelhausen would also make a presentation. (http://blnnews.com/2015/10/13/next-monday-your-destruction-continues/) We […]
By: Diane Benjamin City Manager David Hales previewed next Monday’s discussion. See video starting at 1:15:00 . Giebelhausen will be back, along with David Bentley. They have new plans for downtown. Hales referred to Steve Friedman, this is his website: http://www.sbfriedman.com/ Yeah, another consultant. Prominently featured on the Home Page is Public-Private Partnerships. Most of […]
By: Diane Benjamin Waukesha Wisconsin has one of their own! See this post from earlier today: http://blnnews.com/2015/10/05/weekend-in-wisconsin/ Guess what? Clarke Hotel in Waukesha faces foreclosure suit A boutique hotel in downtown Waukesha that received $1.5 million in city financing is facing a foreclosure suit. The owners of the 22-room Clarke Hotel, 314 W. Main St., […]
By: Diane Benjamin I was driving west on Oakland during the light rain yesterday. There was flooding, especially in front of storm drains. This pic is NOT on Oakland – I wonder if it FLOODED? Hint Tari: It’s close to your precious downtown! Needs before Wants, remember? I doubt the flamingos are going to clean […]
By: Diane Benjamin Bloomington is going to raise your taxes. They can’t find cuts because everything they do is so vital to the City. Sure. Let’s talk time. How many staff hours were WASTED on Paradigm? Former Alderman Rob Fazzini was working behind the scenes to put the deal together before he resigned. The legal expenses alone […]
By: Diane Benjamin The Bloomington City Council is holding a Committee of the Whole meeting Monday night. The June Committee of the Whole meeting was NOT live streamed or video taped. Transparency? NOPE. That means, you better attend! John Butler and Bart Rogers from CIAM are scheduled to proclaim the greatness of what they have […]
By: Diane Benjamin First the good news: Pantagraph writer Steve Vogel has temporarily learned that telling elected officials to ignore citizens (check your email instead) speaking during Public Comment was foolish. He also learned that using 50+ people to describe how many attended Alderman Lower’s Town Hall was deceptive on the bird-cage liners part, so […]
By: Diane Benjamin Remember yesterday’s story about Renner’s Budget Task Force? http://blnnews.com/2015/07/08/bloomington-your-budget-task-force/ It turns out TWO (2) members don’t live in Bloomington! Deanna Frautschi lives at 2802 Hendrix Dr Bloomington IL. The address is Bloomington, but it isn’t inside the City limits! This is the map of Ward 2: http://www.cityblm.org/modules/showdocument.aspx?documentid=88 Look at the bottom right side […]
By: Diane Benjamin Obviously there are a lot of empty big retail spaces. Tax receipts in both Bloomington and Normal are down. I’ve talked to apartment owners who can’t find renters. This morning I got a call from the personal assistant of an owner of a commercial building. She wanted to know if I was […]
By: Diane Benjamin Bloomington: Alderman Kevin Lower’s Town Hall for ALL of Bloomington. The Mayor and Council aren’t listening, Kevin will. Lafayette Club 7:00 pm – 1602 S Main Street 18th Congressional District: Election to replace Aaron Schock The choice is very easy. If you love John Boehner and establishment Republicans, Darin LaHood is your choice. Boehner threw a […]
By: Diane Benjamin When Alderman Kevin Lower announced his Townhall meeting, he didn’t set an agenda. He merely listed items that could be discussed based on what citizens were telling him. Tari’s email to supporter(s) makes it clear that spending is his highest priority, regardless of the consequences. Tari is Markowitz part 2 – opinions of citizens […]
By: Diane Benjamin In September, I assume City Manger David Hales will be travelling to Seattle for this years ICMA conference. I’m pretty sure he goes every year, you will be paying the bills. Tari just got back from San Francisco at your expense. Maybe the City motto should be changed to “We see the Country […]
By: Diane Benjamin Bloomington Alderman Kevin Lower will be holding a: Town Hall meeting July 7th – 7:00pm New Lafayette Club on South Main Street Bloomington Agenda Items: Public Comment Rules Ordinance Changes for City Council Meetings Downtown Strategic Plan Front and Center proposed purchase / redevelopment project The Budget Task Force This meeting is […]
