http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ Discussion Forum for Riverside Illinois en Tue, 07 Feb 2012 00:45:05 +0000 http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers/page/2#post-6589 Wed, 01 Oct 2008 15:54:25 +0000 spatny 6589@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>Well I asked Mr. Wachtel, the Trustees present, and the Long Term Finance Commissioners - if that is what they are - to give a true and complete picture of where this money went - everything spent - soup to nuts - for these various initiatives - as far back as it takes to go and get them, but they all seem to say we can't (or won't) do that. Since they are asking for MORE TAX DOLLARS, then they should be able to show where they spent what they already have been given by the taxpayers. It's called accountability. </p> <p>Look - if they wanted $4 million to fight gypsy moth and plant new trees or fix sewers or whatever, they could list the programs they wanted it for and go to the voters and say this is what we need it for. They would probably get it. But just to give them more money to play with on worthless projects and Planned Unit Developments is wrong. This is public money. It is not theirs to satisfy some misguided whim. It's amazing that once we raised the subject of the Rec Department's bloated salaries, and the Board threatened eliminate that department if they didn't get their way on this referendum, the Rec Board themselves - to their credit - came up with a proposal to cut their own expenses. So there is "fat" in the budget that can be eliminated. To me, it seems that if the Rec Department has 5000 "customers" as they claim, then let everyone of them pay a yearly fee of $20 and that's the initial $100,000 they want right there. The users pay for it - what's wrong with that? If I want to rent a field, I pay for it. If I want a tank of gas, I pay for it. I don't ask someone else to do it for me. What's wrong with that?</p> <p>A referendum for capital projects would stand on its own merit - people would judge whether it was indispensable or advisable and vote accordingly. Nobody wants to leave a run down Village to their kids. But when the grounds for this referendum were "enhanced" with all kinds of "extras" and there is nothing binding on this Board, or any future Board to use these funds for these items, why should the voters back that. If, as Trustee Shields told me last night "there is no cost to putting a referendum on the ballot, let them transfer the million dollars that they put in the capital budget back to the General Fund, and put another referendum for defined capital improvements on the ballot after the new Board comes in. Then the voters will know who is aking for what, and presumably get what they are paying for. That's the right way to do this. </p> http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers/page/2#post-6588 Wed, 01 Oct 2008 14:59:16 +0000 MikeT 6588@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>To be precise, Consultants fees is only component in the total cost of the initiatives such as TOD, TIF, and rezoning, from the last few years. John Q Public is asking, 'where did the money go?' </p> http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers/page/2#post-6584 Wed, 01 Oct 2008 12:02:35 +0000 spatny 6584@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>So it appears that the true total numbers for these projects - TOD, son of Tod, TIF, rezoning, etc. will never be divulged. "We just don't have them., " sang the chorus. </p> http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers#post-6495 Wed, 17 Sep 2008 16:22:05 +0000 Catherine 6495@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>The administration's accounting of consultant (including legal) expenses from 2004-2008 is now available at its website, click news, click the unlikely title Year to Date consultant expenditures.</p> <p>There are no totals, so add them up and make of them what you will.</p> <p><a href="http://www.riverside.il.us" rel="nofollow">http://www.riverside.il.us</a> </p> http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers#post-6494 Wed, 17 Sep 2008 12:07:48 +0000 Catherine 6494@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>Thanks, Cheryl. Actually 4 board members will be up for re-election in 2009, so there is an opportunity for a new majority if some independent candidates not selected by the Caucus are able and willing to endure.</p> <p>The current village manager has been there 10 years, from what I have heard, and they signed a new contract with her the duration of which I cannot recall.</p> <p>I am looking but not yet seeing the transparent disclosure of 2004-6 spending on consultants (including lawyers.) </p> http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers#post-6491 Tue, 16 Sep 2008 06:18:22 +0000 cherylb 6491@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>Mr. Spatny,<br /> I for one thank you for being present at the town meetings and reporting back on forums such as this. As a person that works way too much for what little money I get to keep, I believe that it is important that we have people like you and Catherine and others who attempt to keep our village in check. It is sad to see that we have a number of years left with this current board, but the upside is that it should give potential candidates a little bit of time to prepare to run against the current regime. Assuming that we will continue elect our officials in the usual democratic fashion. How does the Village Manager get to the seat of power? How long has she been there? Sadly, I have not lived in town long enough to know enough about the key players, but I have lived here long enough to see my taxes go up a third and to have RB force through another increase on the heals of a recent tax increase on their behalf. I believe in good schools, don't get me wrong (no flames please), and I think that RB is among the best. But I also believe that we need an accurate system of checks and balances in addition to having those that we hired to represent <ul>us</ul> actually be responsible enough to do what is right for the village. Cook County is bad enough, do we need to have that level of misappropriation in town too?</p> <p>So thank you to all who can go to the town meetings, and those that speak up in my behalf. You are doing an important job. I intend to sit next to you at these meetings in the near future. For now, I have to work to pay taxes to fund wayward projects. </p> http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers#post-6490 Mon, 15 Sep 2008 23:24:11 +0000 spatny 6490@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>At tonight's Board Meeting I asked for the true consultant expenditures for 2004-5-6 and was told they will be posted on the website. So check there later and see what they say. We were told that the Board stopped paying Camiros but the Planning Commssion engaged their services and so Camiros is being paid on their behalf, so some such nonsense. When one of the Commission members called that a scam we were treated to another soliloquy from Trustee Sells who brands us as unreasonable and worse. He seems to believe that it is wrong to question the Board members because they are all good citizens attempting to do what they think is right. Granting he is correct, it still seems it is correct to question the information we are given and their choice of priorities. Once they adopted that TOD study as the official "vision" for the Village this Board solidly stood behind what we think are some misguided and WRONG directions for the Board to pursue. This is not Belarus, so we are entitled to speak out and not accept the oft times lame excuses or evasions we are given. If Trustee Sells chooses to write letters and speak his mind at the meetings where he has the bully pulpit, and in doing so brand us as unreasonable, then he has become the spokesperson for the views we oppose, and by default becomes one of those we are against. All these people, I believe, were OK'd or sponsored by Caucus, so from the opposition point of view, they are all part of the same problem. "If you walk like a duck, and quack like a duck... " Is that so difficult to understand. There are a lot of people in this Village who have told me to keep arguing against the misguided policy represented by the VC, the TIF and the TOD Study. Since the members of this Board voted for those policies (and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in pursuing them, and since the same Board spent the money to buy the Burlington properties in pursuit of development, and since this Board gave incentives and were planning to give more for development projects that are now a blight, I think we must deny them more funds that they could use at their discretion to possibly further these plans. Get a new Board, maybe a new RESIDENT Village Manager, and we can look at raising taxes for some of the good causes that people agree would benefit Riverside. Give this Board a blank check - no way. </p> http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers#post-6477 Sun, 14 Sep 2008 00:14:27 +0000 Catherine 6477@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>No, no release of that study through the many means. Did the people give the "wrong answers"? Will someone have to file a FOIA request for that too? </p> http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers#post-6476 Sat, 13 Sep 2008 12:46:02 +0000 spatny 6476@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>True - but they still paid them a last payment. And Canmiros is a different kettle of fish. Their "opinions" and judements have been used as reasons for many of the worst decisions that have been made. No one should forget that the TOD study goals were adopted by the Board as the official plan of the Village, so some such. Despite the fact that it was roundly criticized and rejected by the majority that saw it and attended the workshops. BTW, where are the results of the "survey" they did twice? Anybody seen what we got for that $16K or whatever it cost? </p> http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/topic/consultant-numbers#post-6471 Sat, 13 Sep 2008 11:50:02 +0000 Catherine 6471@http://www.riversideinfo.org/forum/ <p>I recall they told her to stop talking to them about the TIF. But as you know, I cannot endure most meetings. </p>