Moving

I am moving this over to Wordpress. www.indg.wordpress.com ...in Downers Grove

I am keeping the same name, but I just can not get the "more" function to work properly here, and over there it is easy.

I would like to see DGreport, Elaine Johnson's much larger effort, be a success, and will always try and contribute to the dialog there.

Schillerstrom to DG: it is good to be king

After a half year of asking and being ignored, the Downers Grove Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DGACOCAI) Legislative Council met Monday with DuPage County Board Chairman Bob Schillerstrom, looking to get a commitment that part of the $20 million in newly minted sales tax revenues ($40 million next year) could help move the Belmont Avenue underpass forward.

As reported by Mayor Sandack and Commissioner Waldack, and verified by several others: it’s good to be King (Bob)…

Waldack painted a fairly grim assesment of DG’s prospects of getting any of those millions earmarked for transportation. Sandack put a game face on and vowed to keep pushing forward looking for money solutions, and DG business leaders and elected officials hung it out there trying to get an $8.5 million shortfall covered so the funding can be locked in for good and the project can finally, after 10 years, finally begin.

Schillerstrom pretty much said “I’m all for it, I’m all ears, cooperation is important.” But offered no concrete commitments for even Dollar One of the $40 million (each year) sales tax bonanza rigged up by Gov. Blag to bail out public transportation.

Why? Because DuPage County Board Chairman Bob Schillerstrom got three little words put into the transportation bill, “and public safety“, and that means he doesn’t have to use the tens of millions of dollars, earmarked for transportation projects, on actual transportation projects-like the Belmont underpass.

Now, he can spend it on his favorite pastime, making county government bigger.

Faced with an out of control budget due to so many facets of poor public policy and disgraceful public management that minds numb merely contemplating the scope, DuPage County Board Chairman Bob Schillerstrom did what any self respecting king would do: he changed the rules and looted the treasury for his own needs . The County Sheriff and the county Prosecutors office will be able to keep themselves fully staffed. No job cuts or budgets trimmed now that there’s all this money-supposedly for transportation-that they can now use to make government bigger and fatter.

This year, a $20 million windfall; next year $40 million. That is a lot of taxpayer cash to cover up some pretty big problems at County. But not a dollar, not a dime for a transportation project that is crying out for funding. So the Blemont Avenue underpass, after 10 years, in view of the finish line to get it locked in and get it going, is stopped short and is gasping for wind.

And DuPage County Board Chairman Bob Schillerstrom, as he drove by, said he was all about cooperation, but hasn’t offered any real help to get it done.

But he waved as he drove by…

No more flag lots

Council voted unanimously tonight to amend the muni code so as to ban further flag lots in Downers Grove. Commissioner Tully said he was looking forward to this day for seven years, and he had much to do with shepherding the ban through to approval.

Pierce Downer’s Heritage Alliance came out early in support of this ban, citing four main reasons, which we wrote up and sent in to the Village Manager for inclusion in the public record.

My comments tonight are as a director of the Pierce Downer’s Heritage Alliance. We have written a letter, agreed to unanimously by the board, to support the ordinance before you tonight banning flag lots from Downers Grove. It’s nice for us all, residents and government to be together on the right side of this issue at hand here tonight.

The stated purpose of flag lots in our current code – to provide best use for irregularly shaped lots – is no longer applicable. The historical use of flag lots – to provide rural areas with development opportunities – no longer applies here either.

By eliminating flag lots the village will realize several benefits:

• Trees will be preserved that would have fallen from construction. This inadvertent but welcome presage of a private tree ordinance would prevent unwarranted clear cutting of property for what council clearly acknowledges is unwarranted development. As supporters of our nature areas and for supporting education about our surrounding nature, such as the Little Sprouts Park District program for 1^st graders we help fund each year, PDHA are pleased by this tree preservation.
• Stormwater problems will not be aggravated in the neighborhood by removing said trees, and also by making a large percentage of the former backyard impermeable, as well as paving an impermeable driveway of considerable size. “Do no further harm” should be a watch phrase of future development, and this is a strong clear first step to codify that simple yet laudable goal.
• Property values will be enhanced rather than reduced, as the neighborhood character is protected rather than compromised. Deep lots with private back yards have a proven extra value. A large backyard area also adds desirable character to a neighborhood. Having a house next door or two doors down in the neighborhood’s backyard area reduces privacy, reduces value of the neighbors’ property and the EAV of the entire block, and negatively impacts the character of the neighborhood.
• As Commissioner Neustadt has already ably pointed out, the safety of the particular flag house, neighbors houses, and the neighborhood are compromised with unwarranted flag lot development.

Pierce Downer’s Heritage Alliance has provided a letter to the Village Manager which, while it need not be read here now, we would request be placed in the public minutes, as written, to show our unanimous support for what staff is recommending, for the language of the ordinance amendments as presented before council for your consideration and, hopefully, for council’s passage tonight.

On behalf of the Pierce Downer’s Heritage Alliance, I thank you for your time, consideration, and hopefully for your approval of this ordinance tonight.

So that was a win situation for both residents and government. A hat tip to staff for being responsible to the public trust.

X Chords

The University of Illinois a capella group The Xtension Chords (known as the X Chords) are competing Saturday night in the midwest ICCA semi finals at Northwestern University. My son Brian is in the group, as is Phil and Paula Vettel's son Ed. Brian went to DGS, Ed went to DGN; both sides of town are represented by this very talented, funny group.

The X Chords are not supported by the U of I, they are mostly not music majors; they just like to sing, are good at it, and enjoy it. They all crashed at our house last night. I fed them all breakfast at the crack of 11:00am, and will be cheering them on tonight.

UPDATE: X Chords finished second in the competition. Northwestern's Purple Haze advances to the finals competition in April.

Climate Change Seminar

The Northern Illinois Conference of United Methodist Churches will sponsor an informational seminar on Global Warming in response to the current scientific data indicating that climate change will have a significant impact on human kind. Anyone interested in understanding more about global warming are invited to attend.

An array of subject matter surrounding the issue will be presented by well qualified speakers.

• Dr. Jan P. Hessler, Research Professor at IIT will address the science of Global Warming and Solutions,
• Rebecca Stanfield, State Director of Environment Illinois, will speak on Climate Hazards,
• Brian Urbaszewski, Director of Environmental Health Programs, Respiratory Health Association of Metropolitan Chicago, will address the Public Health Impact,
• Christy Smith of United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) will give perspective on disaster relief, and
• Dr. Jonathan Dean, Associate Pastor at Downers Grove First United Methodist Church will speak about the Theological Basis for Addressing Global Warming.
• Participating in an action panel discussion and question and answer session will be Rebecca Stanfield, Environment Illinois, Lonnie Morris, Sierra Club, Rev. Clare Butterfield Executive Director of Faith in Place, and Dave Schulz Co-chairperson of the Environmental Stewardship Committee at Downers Grove First UMC.
  

The event will be held on Saturday, April 19, 8:30 AM – 1:00 PM, at First United Methodist Church, 1032 Maple Ave., Downers Grove. The event is free of charge, but attendees are asked to pre-register for planning purposes by calling the church office, 630-968-7120.

Things We Left Behind

Relative Measures Per Resident Part Two

I rarely get many comments, but DGDood scraped a nerve here, saying in comments:

You should post this over at DGreport. More people need to see how we overpay. One reason local government wants to get this big stormwater public works project going is so they become indispensable cogs in that gravy train.

and three days later:

You still haven't put this over at DGreport. Chicken? Don;t want to upset anyone? I'll do it if you won't. Where did you get the info?

This is where reports are put on-line at Daniel Hynes Office of the Comptroller. Municipalities are required to file annual standardized reports. It piqued my interest because DG has yet to file their 2007 report.

My original intent was to examine how very high debt like Hoffman Estates can effect budgeting due to TIC's (Total Interest Cost)of carrying debt. I found the tangential staff comparisons interesting because some municipalities like Wheaton seem to get by with less.

2006	Wheaton	Downers Grove
Population*	55,416	48,274
Total Appropriation	83,669,691	78,362,884
Total Debt	52,455,000	50,526,332
Interest Payments	2,032,558	1,807,619
Principle Payments	2,345,000	650,000
Employees FT	274	360
Employees PT	106	75
Employee Cost	18,020,489	31,617,304
EAV	1,807,481,291	2,057,634,957
Miles of Streets	165	165
Land Area Sq. Miles	11.52	14.4
Acres of Parks	800	600

There could be further breakdown to find where the differences are by department, but I do not have a driving interest in stirring that pot.

Be my guest DGDood. Do your own research and blog it wherever you like.

Somebody is getting it right...

On March 10 at the village council workshop, staff will forward new language and changes to Section 20 of the municipal code that will effectively end the practice of "flag lots" in Downers Grove.

Flag lots are usually permitted in rural and developing municipalities to allow development of back-land areas while still maintaining their rural character. We have long since passed that point, and flag lots have created the unusual presence of homes seemingly in other peoples back yards. While the flag house usually faces the rear of the house in front of them, they also impinge upon the backyards of homes to either side, and these are usually the residents who show up at Plan Commission meetings protesting flag lot partitions.

The last flag lot was approved in DG over 5 years ago, and the council has has consistently voted not to approve requests for flag lot splits.

While I have spoken about staff's inability to craft good ordinances, it does not take much to see that the changes and deletions requested by staff here are spot-on. Very targeted in what they are trying to accomplish, the code language is clear, to the point, and beyond debate.

There appears to be a strong rational basis laid out in the background information provided by staff. That is also a good sign; changes that have a strong rational basis hold up under court challenge.

Someone is on their toes here, clearly thinking ahead. Eliminating flag lots eliminates the possibility of large homes in backyard areas causing new water problems for the neighborhood. It also eliminates the need to take out large areas of backyard mature tree growth-trees that help us in many ways. All good.

Heritage Tree Ordinance Part 4

For staff who wants it put off because they are just too busy, they sure got busy in just one week.

UPDATE & RECOMMENDATION

This item was discussed at the February 26, 2008 Workshop.

Staff recommends approval of the motion to delay further discussion of this matter until the summer of 2008 as part of the Strategic Planning process. Based upon the Council’s discussion staff would propose the following prior to Strategic Planning:

• Scheduling a presentation at a future Workshop meeting by the Morton Arboretum to provide information to both the public and Council regarding this matter; and
• Schedule and promote a virtual town hall meeting on the Village website to allow for public comment regarding private property tree preservation; and
• Schedule and promote a town hall meeting to allow for public comment regarding private property tree preservation.

The good news is Morton Arboretum will make a presentation. They have advised most communities who have a Heritage Tree Ordinance (HTO), and will provide a ton of information on the benefits of large trees, why they should be preserved, why a village tree canopy is important enough to be critical, and why even private property trees should be preserved.

The next step is for the Council to determine if there is consensus to direct staff to prepare a private property tree preservation ordinance for consideration. Staff would ask for a minimum of 90 days to prepare a recommended ordinance. Policy details that would be established in a recommended ordinance include:

• Definition of Heritage trees (e.g. Heritage trees could be defined as the oldest, largest and most important native component of the Downers Grove urban forest such as oaks and sugar maples over 24 inches in diameter and hickories over 18 inches in diameter)
• Determine relevance, if any, of tree canopy coverage
• Creation of a public hearing process for private property Heritage tree removal in the absence of building construction activity
• Determination of what level of private property improvements/building construction activity would trigger Village review of a privately prepared Tree Survey and Tree Preservation Plan (for the purpose of identifying Heritage trees and the impact of private property construction activities on said trees – such surveys and plans are prepared by a private, licensed arborist)
• Determination of application fees for Village review of Tree Survey and Tree Preservation Plan
• Codification that removal of private property Heritage trees would be permitted, however property owners would be subjected to a financial penalty when removing Heritage trees
• Determination of appropriate financial penalty for removal of Heritage trees.

The bad part is then it is up to staff to decide what gets covered, and whether what Morton will tell them has any relevance to what staff wants to see in an ordinance.

Also note that now they have actually gone ahead and chummed the waters with references to fines and procedures that residents must follow: well, you all can read the above and the whole text of the green sheets here, and listen to what council had to say on Feb 26th at the workshop, or read it here in the minutes, and listen to what they said here at the council meeting on March 3rd.

Those who stand guard for private property rights will be well advised to begin circling. I will be thrilled if we ever have an HTO that prevents unwarranted* clear cutting of property by developers. Instead, here we go; a major undertaking for writing a complex ordinance that creates new processes, new procedures, new responsibilities for residents, new fines, all that directly impact the resident-where there is no problem.

And that, in a nutshell, is the problem. If council sticks their head in the sand and does not define what the ordinance needs to cover, and instead allows staff to put forward a complex convoluted ordinance, they will get it wrong: they have a strong recent history for getting it wrong. Putting this off to the strategic planning process (no longer being considered for the TCD3 citizen summit?) moves it to an already crowded agenda with a short time frame from start to finish.

In order to have an effective HTO that addresses our needs and does not trash resident rights, we will have to turn out and be heard. We will have to do the heavy lifting again, just to make sure we do not get trampled in the rush to do nothing.

* un·war·rant·ed (ŭn-wôr'ən-tĭd)
adj. Having no justification; groundless: unwarranted interference.
See Synonyms baseless, indefensible, undue.

Relative Measures Per Resident

I got the idea for this from Evanston Now, who ran a significantly more in depth analysis among Evanston and two nearby communities.

This is the populations as per the official 2000 census. The populations for all 5 communities, according to the individual websites, have remained relatively constant, and roughly similar.

This graph shows the 2007 total appropriations for each community. Note that Hoffman Estates has a large appropriation to service huge debt. DG is pretty middle of the road here.

The above shows the appropriation expressed on a per resident basis. Given most of these communities have a similar package of services, except for the shuttle, it is a reasonable measuring yardstick to see how we stack up. This does not include any of the $75 million initial stormwater borrowings that could occur this year.

Again, here we are in the pack. Note that Hoffman Estates has almost a quarter BILLION dollars in debt. That will also be us in a couple years if we go 'all in' on the stormwater plan.
Expressed on a per resident basis.
This graph shows the Total Staff Payroll for the communities.
Not only does Downers Grove pay more for similar sized staffs,
once the per resident costs are factored in, our village government staff costs are by far the highest of any similarly sized community.

Heritage Tree Ordinance Part 3

Some residents say we do not need any ordinance, that there is no problem with clear cutting property. Even lawyers suddenly do not remember definitions of words like unwarranted when facing the complexity of a simple ordinance.

I would ask this: Do you live next to a clear cut lot that was built out and now, as a direct result, have water problems? I have talked directly to residents who do now have water problems, and they do live next to, or near, property that has been clear cut and built out. It is not a coincidence: it is a direct connection.

Since it did not happen to me, there is no problem, and no need for a solution, is a novel, but not new, way to look at things.

Trees are irrefutably linked to reduction of flooding. To think otherwise is to deny the suns' rise in the east. The village is asking taxpayers to shell out $340 million to fix all the past water flooding problems caused by innocent ignorance and willful irresponsibility. To then not try and minimize future problems in even the smallest way is fiscally and socially irresponsible.

I am an alumni of Northern Illinois University.
Three of my many classes were held in Cole Hall.

My sympathies and prayers go out to those families
and friends who had loved ones there that sad day.

Heritage Tree Ordinance Part 2

"Go away. We're busy."

The Village Manager and staff have decided the “Heritage Tree Ordinance” (HTO) is not going to happen right now. Unless someone on council takes exception to it, it will be left on the back burner. That is too bad. We need a responsible, moderate, heritage tree ordinance now, so we can measure and adjust it if needed in the future.

First and foremost, this is not a case of the Village barging in and stealing property rights. Why? Because we do not have a problem with tree removals outside of construction. We should not fix what is not broken. This is not a property rights issue. Residents consistently rank protecting and maintaining trees and tree canopies as a top concern.

A decently written conservative HTO for private property should only affect trees on private property in four situations:
1) If a demolition permit is requested;
2) If a major addition is undertaken;
3) If a new subdivision is planned (not likely anymore); and
4) As part of the Planned Unit Development process.

Trees have a very real fiscal and environmental function and impact. Trees affect air quality, reduce the urban heat island effect, reduce energy demands, assist with stormwater management, benefit public health (emotional and physical), and have a positive economic impact on property values in a community.

Trees make money.

Trees are good business. Very large trees are very good business. Large trees increase property values. Ask any realtor: all other things being equal, which sells for more; house with big trees, or house with no trees? It is not a coincidence that many realtor initiated redevelopment projects save trees where they can. Big trees add a sense of permanence and quality to any home. A McMansion set in big trees looks less like a McMansion.

Maybe a realtor can add a comment on that, but one of the reasons we have higher property values is the tree canopy.

Trees save us from ourselves.

6CO2+5H2O = C6H10O5 + 6O2
Read Part 1 for more. The conversion of carbon dioxide to oxygen is extremely efficient. Plugging the numbers into the equation, 600 gallons of water that a big tree can absorb in one day, about 2 ½ tons, combines with about 7 ½ tons of carbon dioxide and gives off about 5 ½ tons of oxygen, transpires a variable amount of water as water vapor (why it is cooler under the tree) and adds a ton or so to the weight of the tree above and below ground. Did I mention trees are huge carbon sinks?

Quit stalling.

Staff does not feel staff is up to this right now. Come back in six months. That's stalling. Nothing will have changed in 6 months. The village will be neck deep in construction, up to their eyeballs in anothger excuse to do nothing. This relates directly to our poor current building and construction codes. I would urge the council to direct staff to do a bit of multitasking, and come up with a modest proposal that covers the four points outlined above. It would require only minor modification of the original proposal written over three years ago. Staff does not have to reinvent a totally new ordinance. They have even done the homework of looking at the key features of more than a dozen other cities and villages that already have this type of ordinance. We do not need a grand slam home run, we just need to get on base.

We do not need perfect that covers every contingency, we need a solid ordinance that gives us a starting point, that gives the village a mechanism to preserve trees that should be preserved, that clearly lays out expectations of builders, that protects trees that have been around for far longer than we have, and have every right to be around far longer than we will.

Heritage Tree Ordinance (Part 1)

6CO2+5H2O = C6H10O5 + 6O2

Trees take in carbon dioxide and water, both things we have too much of here in DG, fix the carbon to the water to make...more tree (cellulose), and exhale the remaining oxygen. Most trees have root structures that are wide and shallow to gather nutrients and water, and maybe some soil based carbon. A fully grown tree can absorb up to 600 gallons of water in a 24 hour period. Once the soil surrounding a root structure has been flooded or saturated, that ability is greatly diminished; that is why many trees die if their surroundings get too wet.

Some trees, like swamp oaks, red maples, river birches, keep soaking up water whether or not the ground is saturated. They adapted to the marshy lowland prairies where we now live. Willows are the midwest champs for soaking up water, but they grow fast and are weak, and tend to fall over in high winds.

Shade trees have expansive canopies for several reasons; to collect gaseous carbon dioxide (greenhouse gas), to collect sunlight as the trees' power source for the chemical reactions, and to transpire out the oxygen and excess water vapor.

Oak, maple, hickory, can get very big and live a long time. There are many in Downers Grove over 100 years old, very large, usually over two feet in diameter at chest height (Diameter Breast Height, or DBH). They do a lot for us besides keep us in shape picking up fallen sticks and branches every spring and raking leaves every fall, and providing homes for birds and squirrels and other wildlife. When Pierce Downer moved here, he set up his homestead near a grove of trees. No trees, no Pierce Downer, no Downers Grove.

By blocking direct sunlight and transpiring water vapor into the air, trees provide a cooler shaded area. A big enough tree shades one or more homes, effectively reducing energy costs to cool a home in summer. They act as wind breaks, reducing energy costs of heating in winter. They soak up water, reducing the effect of heavy rains. They slow the movement of water run off. They clean up water by acting as a natural filter. They exhale oxygen into the air. In a village with stormwater problems that cost many millions to fix, and in a world obsessed with global warming and greenhouse gases, that matters.

In 2005, the village enacted specific measures to protect public and parkway trees. Proposed by the Village Forester, it was a direct response to development killing trees, primarily by damaging the root structure and the tree trunk. Before, trees were in the way; now, trees must be protected to their drip line with a chain link fence, and no materials or vehicles can damage them.

At that time, the Village Forester also proposed similar protections for "heritage" trees on private property that were deferred for future consideration. In a few weeks staff will bring council a "heritage" tree ordinance that will effect large, mature trees of a specific type, size and age. Last time, two years ago, the proposal was fairly extensive and ambitious.

Most communities use a tree preservation ordinance as a tool when working with developers. Rules and requirements are clearly set down in writing so there is no misunderstanding of the expectation and intention to preserve large "heritage" trees. Builders in communities that have such an ordinance cannot simply clear cut properties and then design a project. Instead, there is a survey of trees on the property, and, in meetings with staff, decisions are made regarding what happens to the "heritage" trees.

What matters is trees help us and contribute to the desirability, the livability, of the village as a whole. We will lose our ash trees to the Emerald Ash Borer: a certainty that is no longer a discussion topic for all but the most grossly uninformed. That 18.6% of our public tree canopy goes away is not trivial; ash trees are efficient helpers that will not be replaced for many years. We have no more margin for error. We need all of our trees, or as many as we can keep to help our village through the next 40 years: not just trees on public land, all trees.

There has been significant talk by residents about what such an ordinance should and should not do; whether it is needed or not. Everyone likes trees, but a tree ordinance that crosses over to private property collides with personal property rights. No one wants government interfering with their personal lives, wants being told what they can and cannot do on their own property.

When the village publishes the green sheet information on February 22 we should have a better idea of the scope and purpose of the proposed ordinance.

Interview With Mayor Sandack

Note: This started as an offshoot of discussions and postings here and at DGreport.com. I specifically would like to thank everyone who participated with questions, whether I used them or not.

We all can have different opinions, but in the end we all have something akin to affection for the village we live in: that is why we care, and that is why we share common ground.

Mayor Sandack, thank you for participating in this on-line interview, and let’s jump right in.

What do you see as the top three agenda items for 2008 now that stormwater is being addressed?

Storm-water implementation; other important capital projects like roads, sidewalks and water-lines; Village budget; and the Belmont Underpass (yes, I know that’s four).

What’s been the toughest campaign promise to follow up on?

The revised ethics ordinance was fairly challenging as there was some spirited debate. But that’s a good thing—high-minded policy discussion is what our Village deserves on important matters.

Is your leadership style more like:

Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck, or Captain Jean luc Picard?

Why would anyone suggest these two?

What is your early take on the PACE circulator plan?

Conceptually it is interesting. But from a financial perspective I believe it may well be impossible to implement without being cost prohibitive. I am not jumping to any conclusions and will wait for all of the information. Admittedly, I am skeptical it is doable as conceived.

What’s your favorite beer at Emmitt’s?

1 a.m., and the other ale (can’t remember its name).

Do the people you work with ever razz you about being a mayor?

Sure. That’s natural, isn’t it?

Will we ever see a Belmont underpass?

I believe so and am working feverishly on it. See the article I wrote for The Grover if you want a thumbnail sketch of the history and present status.

Thank you, Mayor, that ends our interview…and now,

The Lightening Round! 20 Questions!!!

1. Ready?

No. But have at it.

Correct.

2. Mayor of Woodridge?

Mayor William F. Murphy.

Correct.

3. What item was purchased for fire and police vehicles in 2006, but that the village hopes never get used?

AED’s Automated Electronic Defribulators. If they get used that means it’s a life and death situation. They been used successfully and they are affectionately called the “George Board” after my friend, George Nicholaou.

Correct.

4. Population of Downers Grove?

50,616 give or take.

Correct.

5. Airspeed of a fully laden swallow?

African or European?

Correct.

6. Who said “The great thing in this world is not so much where you stand, as in what direction you are moving.”?

Oliver Wendell Holmes

Correct.

7. What kind of car do you really want?

An American well-used one. My wife rides in luxury, not me.

Incorrect. You want a used Yugo with racing stripes.

Wait, no I don’t…

8. Think you will ever grow your beard back?

That depends. My wife prefers that I don’t so it may not re-appear.

Correct.

9. Mayor of Lombard?

William J. Mueller.

Incorrect, Lombard does not have a Mayor, they have a Village President.

That’s a trick question.

Correct.

10. Sox or Cubs?

People who know me well know the answer. Pass.

Correct.

11. When was the last time you saw a liar with his pants on fire?

Never?

Correct.

12. Is U of I the best school ever or what?

Yes.

Incorrect. School of Rock is the answer I was looking for.

13. If you were Matt Hasselbeck, and council was your offensive line, how many times would you get sacked by the NY Giants?

Many times.

Correct.

14. What is it about Chad Walz?

Chad, who?

Correct.

15. How many TIF Districts in Downers Grove?

Two.

16. How many alternate fuels does DG use in their fleet?

Four

17. How many eggs in a half dozen?

Six

18. What number comes after 7?

Eight

19. Who do we appreciate?

Quite a few, my family, friends, our village…

Correct.

20. Will you accept this certificate of good sportsmanship for the first ever DGreport official officials interview?

Can’t. That would violate our ethics policy. Thanks anyway.

Correct.

17 out of 20 correct with one bonus correct question. That sets a very high bar for the next official interview. Your pick: who would you like to see next?

Is it okay if I get back to you on that?

Are Blogs The Knife That Cuts Too Deep?

Everyone has read or been involved in lack of government transparency at some time in their life. Why didn’t someone tell me? When were they going to tell us? What reasoning went into this? Why? WHY?

In 2007, I was point in a skirmish with our local government over a lack of transparency, of deliberate opaqueness. This was the C&D issue; you would have to be deaf dumb and blind not to know about it. I gave up on the demand for transparency when the outcome was favorable.

Although many credit me with a so-called win, I do not know what went on to change every council members vote. I want to think it was me; that my sheer tenacious diligence won them over, but I know better. My efforts would have been useless without help behind that opaque curtain, help that changed the direction and outcome. The village acquiesced to what had become a combined resident/business community concern over the issue, but I was not sure how it happened.

During the whole time, I blogged furiously about everything I learned, everything I researched, everything I thought about. I ended up with a cacophony of a blog site, markthoman.googlepages.com, that was out of sequence, jammed with information, hard to follow, and packed with facts, presentations, commentary: a wild and woolly assault on not only the villages mistaken attempt to short circuit the EPA, but on orderly discourse, and rational organization. More than one friend said it was so hard to follow, it itself was guilty of not being transparent because of the effort it took to sort through it all.

What about blog transparency? I have been at the table in the blog backroom with Elaine Johnson, EJ as her site followers call her, creator and driving force behind DGreport.com. I cannot speak to her reasons for starting it, but it started during the 2006 election cycle. That contentious election, for mayor, for 58, and for 99, got people talking like never before. DGreport provided a public house on-line setting where candidates responded to questions that in turn were commented upon by any and everyone who wished. EJ also pumped out commentary and reports on politics and other topics, and any and all could have equal say.

At the same time, Bill White started up Wired Grove. He had multiple pages for different topics, and had a set of rules for posting that forbade personal attacks. There are still some posts up, in particular exchanges between Wes Jaros and a sock puppet, and Bill White, where the sock puppet ignores proper behavior, and an exchange between Bob Lemke and Phil Labat that shows the type of acrimony that ran as an undercurrent to the 99 campaign.

Bill attempted to impose fairly strict rules on his website, yet the only posts of any consequence were the aforementioned comment shouting matches. The site was poorly attended by candidates, most of whom failed to respond to his fairly straight up requests. His insistance an strict behavior, and those requests failing to hold, may have kept involvement down. The site has been 'dark' since May of last year.

On DGreport, EJ started out with similar restrictions, but was very adamant about her belief in free speech, and spoke directly to the need for manners and responsibility in "Runaway Train" where she picked her ideas and desires apart in front of her readers. She asked that people not get carried away with personal attacks, and was pretty much ignored by everybody, including Bill White from Wired Grove. The knives came out quick and often, and they cut away at both mayoral candidates failure to act on problems in their four and eight years on the dais. Proxies for both candidates traded blows on a regular basis.

A key difference for DGreport was the single main page topic track, and the (added later) single DGtalk track that made posting more concentrated, and easier to figure out. Some of those early topic starters had pretty sharp edges. EJ has kept DGreport.com up and running, adding news and commentary ever since, in addition to her column in the Sun, and her job as Mom. That is a lot of work for one person.

EJ is concerned that her blog, her baby, has become for too long too rough a playground. I sympathize with her concern. Some of the rough and tumble of the election has continued; not much, but what has continued, the most vitriolic, has bled into several discussions where it does not belong, and that is enough to cause concern. The knives have come out, and the cuts still get personal. Where EJ had sought exemplary transparency, she was, in some cases, getting oblique postings, sometimes near accusation of ulterior motive against some elected officials, in particular Mayor Ron Sandack and Commissioner Sean Durkin. At the same time many posters who appeared to use their real names seemed to drop off, leaving a core of real named, and a cast of anonymous, posters.

AP stopped taking any comments to their news stories years ago. The Tribune just recently ended comments on political topics. AP couldn't handle the amount of anonymous negative feedback to their articles, especially about the middle east. The Tribune never seemed to moderate at all; on-line article anonymous comment responses often descended into name calling.

Part of the implied deal when a site shingle gets hung out is that good and bad are part of the mix, and it is up to the moderator to act as sheriff. At DGreport, it is EJ's ‘e-village’ and she is the law. If you cannot live with that, move on.

I support my local sheriff, and I like the e-village. DGreport.com has some rough parts to it but it is growing up, and posters are growing up or moving on. As near as I can tell, most are growing up.

I’ve also been in the email back room with Mayor Sandack, talking about the propriety of anonymity and attack posts, about his desire for fact over fancy, of content and character over baseless rumor and ‘drive-by’ character assassination. These are legitimate concerns, and there are examples of both, the good and the bad, on DGreport.

I support my local mayor, and I like the village. Sandack has gone on public record in support of what he calls ‘ a fearless political environment’. As near I can tell, from personal first hand experience, he has walked the walk as we butted heads over procedure and intent on the C&D issue, and as we have talked about blogs and on-line commentary.

Sandack and Johnson are not alone nor incorrect in sizing up DGreport as a potential minefield for local government officials. Commissioner Martin Tully, as I have noted before, is one who has successfully negotiated this minefield on several occasions. I’m not surprised; he is a lawyer and a litigator. Part of his day job is successfully navigating legal minefields in the courtroom, with the other side’s litigators lobbing legal mortar shells at him as he does it. He chooses his words carefully, and makes considered comments.

Contrast that with, say, me. Ready, aim, fire, becomes ready, point in general direction, fire, check accuracy, aim, fire for effect: a mutated six sigma that usually has a misstep or two, but once I get zeroed in, I saturate that target.

The posts on DGreport vary from ready, aim, fire, all the way down to just FIRE! With no getting ready, no aiming, no concept of what the intent or outcome might be. That needs to change. As part of the growing process, posters whether they use their real name or not, need to up the goal of their comments and posts, myself included. That doesn’t mean we all become Dostoevsky, or Goethe, but that means we take a moment to consider the blowback of what we might say.

Contributions to discussion of topics and issues that effect us all can come from the dais, from the blogs, from the citizen groups, from the business community; I do not know them all. It takes time, it takes effort, it is worth it, and Elaine Johnson is trying to get a handle on it so it is fair; so that it does not result in posts and comments that hit too personal and that cut too deep. Does a poster make a point, or is it slashing and stabbing without thinking?

Acceptable: “I can’t believe Thoman thinks the shuttle should stay.”
Unacceptable: “Thoman is scum currying the favor of shuttle commuters.”

The difference, I hope, is obvious.

Acceptable: “Thoman’s actions are those of an arrogant spoiled child.”
Unacceptable: “Thoman is an arrogant spoiled child.”

This example is shaving it pretty fine. The acceptable comment draws an analogy to what a set of actions appear to be, the second merely calls names. There is a difference between ‘sticks and stones’ name calling, and sticking a knife in.

That does not mean there is no room for disagreement and dispute, or that any negative comment must be squashed. That is counterproductive to a main tenet of a website like DGreport: a fearless environment anyone can speak to anything, regarding Downers Grove or something else.

I intend to keep at it; I hope you do too. Along the way, if some more people notice, drop in to say their say, and even become regulars, that is a very, very good thing. In the meantime, put the knives away.

But as the saying goes, keep your powder dry.

The Ice Festival

Here's a couple pictures from this year's Ice Festival. There was a pretty good turnout. Lots of kids out with their parents, shaking off a little cabin fever.

This is an art form that guys like. Why? Two words: power tools...

To be more specific, instead of brushes, these artists use chain saws. Can there be any higher art form? Did not think so...

The Sea Turtle was looking pretty good.

I have to go back Sunday and see this one finished. The artists starts out with cubes of ice and ends up with perfect spheres to be used as balls for his sculpture.

The dragon guys were shaving down their creation prior to attaching the wings. If you look in the background, Egg Harbor was rolling around carts with complimentary coffee and hot chocolate. I heard plenty of comments that people will eat there when it opens.

Pretty jumping on what normally would be just another dismal February weekend.