By: Diane Benjamin 33:10 – Mayor Mwilambwe recognized the 4 aldermen that are leaving office April 30th. Mboka gave a short speech and presented each with a plaque. (Remember when Normal totally ignored Stan Nord’s 4 years?) Public comment starts at 44:00. Two speakers thanked their outgoing aldermen. Gary Lambert is a can’t miss at […]
Online submission to the entire Council dated March 10, 2023 Dear Mayor Koos, Since I have not heard back from you, I am resending this letter regarding the Zoning Board vote on Wednesday. Please note, our concern is not about the legality of marijuana. It is about common sense and location. We were appalled by […]
By: Diane Benjamin Sen Dave Koehler is doing Normal’s bidding in the Illinois Senate by sponsoring HB 3337. This is the Chung bill ONLY for Normal that exempts them from complying with Municipal Code for Incorporated Towns and allows them to continue operating with a City Manager instead of a Supervisor. An elected Clerk would […]
By: Diane Benjamin Flashback to April 15, 2019. RC McBride was voted off the Town Council and Jeff Fritzen opted to retire after serving 32 years. (Obviously the Normal voters don’t believe in term limits) Not only did Fritzen get a bike from Koos’ shop at taxpayer expense, both got proclamations for their exemplary service […]
By: Diane Benjamin Watch which local media sources report this story. It will prove who is #FakeNews and who isn’t. Refer back to this story: https://blnnews.com/2023/03/07/normal-buy-local-is-immaterial/ Chris Koos wants Uptown 2.0 built without any natural gas pipelines. Normal thinks that is “sustainable”. It’s also illegal. In Koos world laws don’t matter however. He didn’t want […]
By: Diane Benjamin This meeting was the last one for Stan Nord. NO ONE on the council thanked him for his service or made any recognition of his 4 years of representing taxpayers. Koos made sure RC McBride was put on the Planning Commission when he got voted off the Council. I remember Koos telling […]
By: Diane BenjamÃn Normal: https://www.normalil.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/4622 Bloomington: https://d3n9y02raazwpg.cloudfront.net/cityblm/30c3f027-75a9-11ed-9024-0050569183fa-d854eb82-3702-4140-9de6-ac3a8e3f379d-1681411797.pdf
By: Diane Benjamin All of the emails below were received by FOIA. The redactions were rightfully done by Unit 5, I have no interest in the names of students. This is not the only email talking about “dead name”. This is yet another made-up term your kids are expected to normalize. If a student has […]
By: Diane Benjamin Tax-Rates.org summarizes property taxes by state. Indiana property tax rates as a percentage of home value is less than half what Illinois is. Of course everyone knows schools drive Illinois property taxes. Indiana School Districts: The largest public school district in Indiana, Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) is an agile, innovative educational organization […]
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 HB 3337 was brought up again by Stan Nord. He wants the Council to vote on proposing municipal code changes instead of the Town going behind the backs of most elected officials. Keep in mind this bill ONLY applies to Normal AND permanently recuses the Town from following the current code for […]
By: Diane Benjamin More proof Koosville is not government for the citizens. Normal is whatever Koos wills – kneel now serfs! https://www.normalil.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/4604 The people who serve on Normal’s Boards and Commission don’t work for the citizens – they work for Koos. Citizens aren’t allowed to know who is being appointed until after the Council approves […]
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 Is Koos a narcissist for the heading on this letter? Note how many times he references Our Normal. In other words if you are part of “his” club you can stay, others aren’t welcome. -Do you get to live in a Town property for $120 a year? -Are you invited to the […]
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 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 If you have ever watched a Normal Town Council meeting you know the Council is immaterial. Asking questions that might stop whatever is on the agenda will get you called “Out Of Order”. Government For and By the People is a joke in Normal. Kevin McCarthy proved this point when he went […]
By: Diane Benjamin Let’s pretend you bought a piece of property in Normal. That property has been connected to Normal’s sewer system for a least a decade. You are the 4th owner of this property in that decade. You want to develop the property but the Town tells you to include parts of the property […]
By: Diane Benjamin HB 3337 was heard by the Counties and Townships Committee because Sharon Chung is a member. Duh, the Town of Normal isn’t a County or Township so this bill did not belong in this committee. Even though Republicans on the Committee mentioned this, they were ignored. The committee passed it and now […]
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 The map below was created using a list of vacancies compiled by a citizen. It includes the 1st Floor of 1 Uptown Circle since there is still not an operating business there. Click the link below – each X has a description. Next ask Normal (and Trustees/candidates) what success is. Government buildings […]
By: Diane Benjamin Sharon Chung admitted the Town of Normal approached her to change Illinois law. She claims Normal went to great expense to defend themselves against citizens and doesn’t want to again. She was then asked if the Town Board approved this, of course the answer is no. A lobbyist for the Town of […]
By: Diane Benjamin If you are an insider with the Town of Normal you get deals like a place to live for $120 a year. Review this story on the “Historic” Sprague gas station: https://blnnews.com/2019/08/21/lets-revisit-the-route-66-gas-station-gift-shop/ Normal is going to spend more money on the building. They are requesting bids for asbestos removal: https://www.normalil.gov/bids.aspx?bidId=387 You can […]
By: Diane Benjamin Please continue to file Witness Slips as an opponent to HB 3337: https://blnnews.com/2023/03/22/file-witness-slips-now-hearing-is-1100-tomorrow/ Below are the Committee Members who will hear the bill at 11:00 am today. The Republican Board members are aware of the real intent of this bill, the Democrats aren’t. Sharon Chung doesn’t even know what the bill is, […]
By: Diane Benjamin You need to file 2. Then SHARE! This link is to file against Chung’s 2nd amendment to HB 3337: https://my.ilga.gov/WitnessSlip/Create/148499?committeeHearingId=20041&LegislationId=148499&LegislationDocumentId=186620 This link is to file against Chung’s 3rd amendment to HB 3337: https://my.ilga.gov/WitnessSlip/Create/148499?committeeHearingId=20041&LegislationId=148499&LegislationDocumentId=186917 Review this story if you need help: https://blnnews.com/2023/03/20/do-this-right-now-witness-slip/ Opponent – Record of Appearance Only .
By: Diane Benjamin There wasn’t a hearing on HB 3337 yesterday because Sharon Chung filed an amendment to the bill. That means it has to go back to the Rules Committee before being heard at the Counties and Townships Committee. The amendment was a stall tactic, it didn’t change anything. Maybe she saw the Witness […]
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 HB 3337 is a bill the Town of Normal wants so they can claim a permanent right to deny citizens a voice in government. Kevin McCarthy testified at the first hearing and claimed to represent Normal. The Council never voted, so McCarthy really represented Chris Koos. This bill would not be necessary […]
By: Diane Benjamin 6 people spoke during Public Comment last night. Of course they had to wait until the end of the meeting because the Town of Normal wants to make sure the plebs don’t interfere at the beginning. Luckily the agenda was short so they weren’t sitting around for hours waiting to speak. 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 More on this story: https://blnnews.com/2023/03/11/sharon-chung-screws-normal-taxpayers/ The language of this bill was modified so it has to go back to the Counties and Townships Committee. That will at 4:30 tomorrow. If you see this bill for the sham it is, please file a Witness slip as an opponent: Use this link: https://my.ilga.gov/WitnessSlip/Create/148499?committeeHearingId=20004&LegislationId=148499&LegislationDocumentId=186620 Fill […]
By: Diane Benjamin https://www.normalil.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/4597 PDF page 36: Normal is handing out your money to promote Uptown. More interesting is this paragraph claims Trail East and Trail West are still going to happen. Unless they aren’t telling citizens, nothing is happening with either. The latest developer backed out last November: https://blnnews.com/2023/02/22/proof-normals-staff-runs-the-town/ PDF page 66: The Council […]
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 Follow-up to this story: https://blnnews.com/2023/03/07/normal-buy-local-is-immaterial/ At the March 6, 2023 Council meeting the Water Director, John Burkhart, wanted to start buying parts from a company in Washington Il instead of the local supplier they have used for decades. Here’s the problem: Normal doesn’t stock a lot of parts because they claim they […]
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 […]
