For our faithful PRU readers who enjoy watching our smaller, more efficient Council in action!
Is anyone keeping score on how often the Council defers action? Is anyone keeping score on attendance by Aldermen at Council meetings?
July 22, 2010
City Council Meeting 7-19-2010 Video!
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21 comments:
I kind of feel sorry for the city manager. I read the article in the paper and now watched the video. They all go on and on and get nowhere. He makes good money and the pension is great but I think I would go crazy with that many bosses I would be trying to work for, and most of all these bosses!
Well, the Council is smaller.
Well, this smaller Council isn't getting much done!
All I see is higher taxes, higher fees, less services and less protection for our town.
9:49
Get used to it. The economy stinks right now.
I don't feel sorry for the city manager. The over generous pensions public employees can count on at the end of the road makes up for any aggravation.
If our City Manager isn't happy in Park Ridge maybe he can move to Bell, California. They have an opening.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/07/23/california.salaries.resign/
LOL. Bell, Ca. is what Bach dreams of for our little berg.
Mayor Schmidt again said there should not be any money given to any community groups. I understand the Mayor feels his job is to watch how our taxes are be3ing spent. I feel the Mayor is being too strict about some spending and not trying to do anything about other spending.
There have been people here who have offered suggestions for ways to cut spending but the Mayor only seems to want to hold back money from community groups and even the groups which are charities.
I feel it is ridiculous to talk about cutting out fat from our budget and talk about only spending for essential services but not say anything about the fireworks costs because his friend waws involved.
Mayor Schmidt I voted for you because I felt you were honest and reasonable. I still feel you are trying to be a better Mayor than Howard Frimark was, but I am very disappointed in what I have been seeing and hearing you say.
Anonymous @ 11:57,
If the alderdopes can all manage to show up at the next meeting...and after certain "politicians" get done wanking around on the subject...I'm fairly certain the charitiable organizations will receive the funding that's been budgeted.
11:57 AM:
What are those "suggestions for ways to cut spending" that have been offered "here," and how much money do they represent?
I don't know where exactly the suggestions here are or how much money it was. I do remember reading them here and feeling they were reasonable.
What I remember most is how Mayor Schmidt just said no to everything. I was shocked by that because my feeling was he was acting so differently from when he campaigned to become the Mayor.
5:33 you got suckered! When Schmidt was Alderman he blamed the Mayor for everything wrong! Now that Schmidt is Mayor he blames the Aldermen for everything wrong!
LOL. Schmidt, the Anti-Truman!
Looks like tomorrows meetings are canceled.
For the person who asked about what suggestions were made here for ways to cut spending I found what I had remembered reading.
PRU wrote these suggestions,
Fine Arts - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - $ 13,200
Civic Orchestra - - - - - - - - - - -$ 13,200
Teen Center - - - - - - - - - - - - -$ 22,000
Senior Center - - - - - - - - - - - -$ 35,200
Rainbow Hospice - - - - - - - - - $ 4,400
Meals On Wheels - - - - - - - - - $ 7,040
Historical Society - - - - - - - - - $ 8,800
Cultural Arts Council - - - - - - $ 4,840
Kalo Foundation - - - - - - - - - $ 4,400
Brickton Arts Center - - - - - - -$ 11,000
O'Hare Commission - - - - - - - $165,000
Total Cuts - - - - - - - - - - - - - - $289,080
Another person wrote these suggestions,
Contributions for community groups, $190,080
Airport commission $165,000
Noise monitors $25,000
Citizen Patrol dinner $500
National Night Out materials $9000
Citizens’ Police Academy $1500
Youth Outreach $500
Flu shots for employees $20,000
Consumer confidence report on water $7500
Consultants for streets and sidewalks $8000
Citywide training $4000
Library furniture $7500
Library newsletter $29,600
Library printing $11,500
Library postage $19,200
Reforestation $102,200
Parkway tree trimming $615,000
Cuts this blog talked about that could of been recommended for cuts too are Fireworks $20,000 and the Taste of Park Ridge $23,000.
All of these add to $1,259,080.
As I said, all I've heard the Mayor say he wants is to hold back money from community groups including charities. I have been very disappointed by the Mayor.
Bean,
It's nice to know you feel confident the charitable organizations will get funding. I wish I could be as confident as you seem to be.
I feel the Mayor and the Council have treated them terribly. I feel it is unfair to promise them funding and then waste all this time finalizing a promise they already made.
Anonymous @ 4:48 and before,
I am confident...barring any changes of mind or mood among the clowncil... It's just going to be a matter of each "side" pushing and pressing their preference through the process.
In this instance, you and others might find it all exasperating...but keep in mind, the democratic process works by making sure each "side" gets their due...and at some time in the future it might just be you and others looking to delay, delay, delay in the hope of fine-tuning and/or derailing something...whether your motiviation is practical or philosophical or something else...
This is off the subject but WHEN WILL PARK RIDGE BE ABLE TO HAVE AT&T Uverse LIKE ALMOST EVERY PLACES ELSE????
Oh that is right!!!! Now I remember!!!! God damn Allegretti and the rest of those idiots are more interested in pushing for billboards than doing anything for consumers in Park Ridge!!!! Thanks alot @$$holes!!!!
I am so sick of Comcast and their stupid charges and more stupid charges!!!! More like CRAPcast!!!!
We have AT&T for phone and internet and we could signifigantly save if we could bundle our television into the package too but because the worthless @$$holes in city government are @$$holes we can't because we don't have Uverse in Park Ridge1!!!!
Thanks alot you @$$holes!!!!
Anon@3:05 --
Feel better now that you've gotten that off your chest?
U-verse is, at a minimum, a full year away from being made available in Park Ridge.
If you've had your fill of "CRAPcast" you may want to look into DirectTV, who've partnered with AT&T and you may be able to bundle your services that way.
Good luck.
And you're right -- Allegretti and the others elected to represent our interests should be ashamed at having wasted the opportunity to provide local residents with expanded consumer choices, but especially in light of the amount of effort put forth for issues such as the billboards nonsense.
PRU,
I don't necessarily feel better but thanks for letting me get it off my chest. It's just absurd in this day and age Park Ridge is stuck with only one provider and I see it as a direct result of our officials behavior.
I'll look into Direct. Thank you again.
Anon@4:31 --
If you're devoted to AT&T, at this time DirectTV may fit your preference.
However, Wide Open West is currently installing infrastructure in Park Ridge and will become available in the near future.
Per the City website --
WOW Installation Continues
Wide Open West (WOW) continues to install lines within the City of Park Ridge, working on streets, easements and public right-of-ways. The company obtained statewide authorization, as well as City permits, to start work here in June.
WOW will notify residents when service is available in a specific area. The company offers telephone, cable and internet services. For further information on WOW services, contact WOW directly at wowway.com or 1-866-202-0872.
Material is being distributed to residents by WOW on door hangers to inform them when work will proceed in their neighborhoods. Inquiries about WOW work should be directed to City Engineer Sarah Mitchell or to the Public Works Administration Department.
Good luck again and you're welcome.
Who does Teen Center actually serve?
How many seniors actually are "members" of the Senior Center, and are there any costs they might shoulder from their own contributions?
These two plus the 500-lb. gorilla of the Tilting at Windmills Club more than equal the pitiful pittances to painfully necessary basics such as Rainbow Hospice, Meals on Wheels, etc. C'mon, guys. You may not always be young, strong and gainfully employed.
More to the point, in a $55 million-plus budget, why are we even discussing materially harming the life-and-death charities who get a few grand? Oh, I remember: We're accepting Hock's statements as to what city operations cost as if they are fact.
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