Committee Structure in Peru today:
Accounts and Finance:Potthoff and Radke
Public Works(electric, water, street & sewer): Waldorf & Lukosus
Public Property and Recreation, buildings and grounds : Perez & Mueller
Public Health and Safety:(police, fire, esda and ambulance) Ferrari & Sapienza
Next week, the last 2 committees will be eliminated and the aldermen taken into the remaining committees.
Here is a little history of Peru and the aldermanic committees. Prior to the tenure of Mayor Harl, there were as a rule 3 aldermen per committee. After Harl had been in office for 2 years, he decided to reduce the size of all committees to 2 which did not make sense because then if the 2 aldermen did not agree, the mayor said to send to the city council for a vote. Now if all goes as planned he will make 2 committees (the first 2 listed) and put 4 aldermen on each plus the Mayor who will also be on each committee.
What happens to the problems that were being worked upon by the 2 disappearing committees will be anyones guess. At first glance, it appears to be a matter of control by the mayor.
We are not as a city working well at all and this certainly is not going to improve what takes place.
For new readers, I will add that currently the Chief of Police is also co superintendent of Public Works and Jeff King, our Fire Chief is the other co superintendent of the department along with being building and zoning inspector and head of the fire department. They are also head of ESDA. The electric department is also without a department head and is supervised by both chiefs.
Of course we can always depend upon Chamlin engineering and TEST to be skilled in what they do.
In all my research, I have not been able to come up with a city that operates with 2 committees. The mayor is also a part of the Design and Review Committee, so he is definitely wearing the biggest hat. We the residents are not particularly thinking any of this is very good for the city as a whole. The city is composed of many areas of concern that will be neglected more than it is at present because there will be no oversight. Giving the aldermen responsibility within the government of the city is why we elect them and now that responsibility will be lessened Perhaps the people who opposed the reduction of aldermen might want to rethink their view.
#citygovernment
#cityaldermen
#MayorHarl
#executivepower
39 comments:
I wonder how Waldorf feels about adding 2 new aldermen into his committee? He's used to running those committee meetings and can be quite rude when things do go his way during the meeting. I also wonder if Harl just decided this himself or if all aldermen were in agreement with the change. The last two committees didn't do much anyway, and most of the public property issues were taken away and given to public works.
I disagree that the city is not running well. I believe from what I have seen and heard personally it is running better than it ever has.I am sure it will even get better in the coming months. I have literally taken the time to sit down with the chiefs and Mr. Bartley and asked for a complete overview of how things are currently and was extremely impressed.There has never been better management then now. I asked one of them has Lois or any of several others been in to really sit down and ask for an overview. I was told no. Lois please set an appointment with them and go in and see what is being done.You will be pleasantly surprised I think. It is irresponsible not to do that. If you still think things are so bad then at least you can point to specifics. I am a longtime supporter of you and the positive movement but I also am being honest.When things are bad lets call them out but when they are not lets call that as well. After all if I am right you deserve a lot of credit for moving things to such a positive place.
If this is true Peru government will become even more dysfunctional then it currently is. If these aldermen have any sense of duty and responsibility to the citizens of Peru they should oppose this "power grab" by Harl and refuse to accept it. It makes no sense to consolidate power this way. How is this in any way good for the citizens of Peru? This is proof that Harl has no clue about the need for "seperation of powers" between Executive and Legislative branches of government. If these aldermen go along with this sillyness and fall in line behind Harl the Peru City Council will essentially cease to exist as a real governing body. They will officially be a Committee as a Whole council with Finance and Public Works controlling anything and everything. They may as well just dissolve all committees and let Harl, Hylla, and the Co-Supers make all the decicions. Hell, why have any aldermen at all?
Peru appears to be poised to reach an unprecedented level of "laughing-stock" of the Illinois Valley.
I have to agree with Lois' last sentence in this topic. Sounds like 8 aldermen are not needed, and I agree with 8:24 a.m. do we really need aldermen?
This situation allows the mayor to be the deciding vote on any issue that results in a tie.
To 8:07 am, Please. Have you stopped and considered for one second the "sources" of the information who informed you that all is just fabulous in old Peru?
Really? I can't even believe somebody would be so easily sold. If you did actually take the time to "sit down" with the three city officials you refer to, I hope your chair was elevated off the floor becuase the bull-shit was getting pretty deep in that room.
OMG, if you are serious I feel bad for you. But, I would also like to sell you some beautiful riverfront property on the south shore of the scenic Illinois River in Peru, IL. This property is suitable for development of single family residences and contrary to rumors you might have heard, it is not subject to flooding. OH BROTHER!
7:31 You can rest assured knowing that not all aldermen were involved in this decision. If any were it would be the select ones (the finance and public works members).
Whose bed is who sleeping in? 8:07-a spell has been cast upon you if you believe your comment. How is the world can the city be run better then even when appointments were made by Harl to people who had no qualifications/certificates of expertise or many years of job experience to be able to oversee departments? It a fact! I'm not impressed by you blog or will not be swayed in your thinking. Did you 8:07 ask those who you said you have spoken with regarding their qualifications? Expertise? etc.? I suggest you do. Look forward to your answers.
I have your back 10:07 brother. You hit the nail on the head. This city is unbelievable. Makes me sick to my stomach. Come on people, you can't be that stupid. But then again, you can't fix stupid!
Maybe, Harl should put a few outside people on the Public Works committee to get some more expertise and call it the infrastructure committee.
No council discussion? Immediate change? Why now? Seems unreasonable to me. Any feedback or explanation from anyone? We all know what aldermen the mayor favors and those who could care less about. Is this his way of discouraging them and putting his selected ones in charge?
What do committee structures have to do with the reduction of aldermanic positions?
We need to change our form of government to Council Manager IAW the Illinois Municipal Code.
With 5 people on each committee (4 aldermen and the mayor) it takes 3 of them to agree. Can you see any of them letting Perez do anything and agreeing with him? Perez will be shut down. Mission accomplished Scotty!
10:37 How many times have you gone to the voting box and selected the most qualified and experienced candidate? Probably none. Next time look at the individuals background, profession, education, experience, and then the ability to make a sound decision. In every city you have some strong officials that keep the city moving. From what we have seen over the years Peru has and has had many of those with the desired qualifications.
2:59 PM
We have all made mistakes in the voting booth and I will be the first one to admit so. Sometimes we are influenced by others and sometimes the one we vote for seems the lesser of evils available to us. But I will say when it is a mistake, I don't make the same mistake twice.
I just heard something interesting from a reliable source. Mayor is very concerned about Perez's stance on marijuana center moving to Peru. My source alleges the conversation arose when Harl was questioned about Perez bringing up the fireworks location. Since Alderman Perez chairs that committee with Alderwoman Mueller he was afraid of what they would attempt with the fireworks and the pot center. Mayor told my source it was time to make change and put Perez where he had no authority in committee. What is Harls reason for completely displacing an entire committee? Is Harls hatred for Perez so bad he is becoming wreckless? Is there an update on the FBI vs Harl saga? Or is that over? Or is it not over and perhaps Harl is scared straight and plans to ruin the city before he leaves office in shackles? Harl sure seems destructive and he is pulling the wool over everyone's head.
Wake up people!!!!!!!
8:07 goes and meets with people and reports back that maybe not everything is as bad as it seems. The usual suspects here rip the person for thinking such things. I commend 8:07 for doing so. Why is the burden of proof on him or her to say anything else? They are simply expressing an opinion.
Peru is a good city with many things going for it. It is far from perfect. I do not agree with all decisions. But the negativity on here does nothing except isolate the few here and the candidates they support. Why do you think Rodney has disappeared from here? Because he realized he votes with the rest of the group 99 percent of the time and elected officials should not comment on anonymous blogs anyway. If Rodney stays off of here he may eventually get my vote back and some others as well.
People here just rip on everything from our police department to public works to the fire department. Nothing positive to offer. The same people saying the same things. Huge conspiracies. All of the aldermen are getting rich. Really? No. Not really. We actually have a lot of very good people involved. If 8:07 is such a joke, why don't you follow their example and go meet with someone and ask questions.
NO! Because then we might actually learn something. It's much harder to post hateful things about people you don't know with nothing to back it up.
What I will never understand is why those of you who trash our city don't do something productive. Why do you not run for office? Take out a petition and run! Or get your neighbor to! What are you afraid of?
Lois I will add this to the long list of similar posts that you won't let through. You aren't interested in improving Peru. You are interesting in catering to a disgruntled minority that likes to think it is a big majority. The more you talk and the more foolish things said here the better the city leadership that you helped put in place looks.
Great legacy.
Yes that is it 5:11. Harl wants to destroy the city. He may not be a strong leader, but I'm pretty sure that is not his intent.
5:17 PM
I communicate with all departments and department heads when needed and I don't have a problem with talking with them. I know enough about this city and the people involved that it is not necessary for me to make an appt but I assure you that I do communicate.
Except with the mayor, that is one of his big weaknesses and that is his inability to communicate and to talk with those that do not agree with him and to understand that he is not always right with his decisions.
Lois, I appreciate your response and that is very well said. I appreciate the fact that you provide a forum, but sadly the comments on here are so ridiculous that is just a joke for anyone who looks at it. I was not referencing you speaking to people because obviously you do. But most of the people who make these horrible comments on here have never talked to anyone. As for what you said about the mayor, I absolutely agree with you. Thank you for posting and thank you for the kind response.
Sounds to me the alderman took advice for reduction that was tried in spring...is Waldorf going to send out phoney bs cards maybe he will get baker to tAke out full page ads
9:53 PM
About silly and thoughtless comments, I post them sometimes because it might be something someone is really concerned about and sorry their method of communication is not the greatest but it is the best they know how to use. Sometimes I use it as a jab at a situation that needs to be taken care of and the blogger again just speaks in that manner. Always remembering that the world is full of lots of different kinds of people and we deal with them in our lives everyday and this is no different.Repetitively rude is not Ok, occasionally sometimes will pass the test.
9:53, some bloggers have spoken to the aldermen and mayor and know very well the situation at city hall. I am one of them. I think there are more people blogging who are "in the know" than you think.
Switching gears...does anyone know why the St. Bede nursing home construction is halted?
To 5:17 pm, As someone said earlier, you must consider the source of information that you recieve regardless of which side of the argument you find yourself.
Peru is a small town with an endless supply of hear-say, gossip, rumor, inuendo, and a little truth mixed in there somewhere. We all have friends and acquaintances and we all talk. You have chosen what you want to beleive and others do the same. Those of us (myself included) who have very dependable information sources from employees in every city office and department hear a very disturbing description of how Peru is currently running. I guess it all depends on what we hear and who we hear it from. You try to trivialize or dismiss those of us who repeat what we are hearing becuase you have made up your mind that Peru runs just fine. Based on my sources I have a very different opinion. We will likely never agree but I would put the accuracy and credibility of my sources against yours any day of the week. I say that because I have a sense that your sources are current or past elected officials and or current or past department heads, and there is no more biased source of information than elected officials or department heads. I'm sorry you don't understand that Peru is currently in a considerable state of chaos as a result of a massive void in leadership. You need to get out more and talk to the folks who are "in the trenches" both literally and figuratively in Peru. You are being terribly mis-informed if you think this city is moving in the right direction. I'm really sorry to have to tell you that.
There is something I would like to say, in which history has proven correct. It is a fact that intellectuals have always been the "opinion molders" of society. If this blog and the individuals involved would like to pursue some real change for the better, then I would suggest contacting people of not only high intellect, but ones with sound and direct verbal skills. Bickering back and forth doesn't constitute change, especially if the "change" you are pursuing can be easily discredited by someone of sound knowledge. Just something to think about.
To:5:17
From:Rodney Perez
Just FYI... I still visit the blog I just haven't seen a real need to post. I have a pretty good following on my Alderman and personal Facebook page. Lois and I communicate frequently through Facebook; if Lois has a question she knows how to find me along with anyone else. If anyone has a question or concern on the blog I'd be happy to answer it as long as I come on here to catch it.
The public also has open access to my Alderman Rodney Perez FB so please feel free to contact me there also.
Thank you!
Rodney Perez
815-245-7566
@3:16 PM Where have you obtained your information from in regards to change? I ask because I would like to study this viewpoint.
Most literature I read claims that radicals are responsible for change which supports the thought of bickering and individual thinking.
Non the less to have contact with intellectuals and those who have frank, open and original thought would have a positive effect upon all.
Ya take that anon 5:17 maybe Alderman Perez is telling you either he's calling your bluff and you're probably not in his district to vote for him anyway or maybe he's telling you he doesn't need your vote anyway if you're going to not vote for him because he blogs on here? That's crazy and you're best to stay out of the ballot booth if you vote that way. Alderman Perez has done more for that city and I'm sure more for his district than all city officials put together. To me reading your post was a very sneaky way to try and send a subliminal message. Clearly the alderman never bought it.
When you look throughout history you will notice that intelligent people who voice their opinions are the ones responsible for the best change for the better and the ones who can best discredit bad ideas. Look at Isaac Newton, Confucius, Socrates, Marcus Aurelius, Artistotle, Voltaire and Leo Tolstoy. The list goes on. You are correct to say that radicals have changed the world, but Adolf Hitler was a radical. We need sound minds who will change it for the better. Thank you.
@8:04 AM == 11:54 AM in response, Your Welcome and I also Thank You. Your comment is thought provoking and appreciated.
Yes, "We need sound minds who will change it for the better".
Could you please name a few of the recent examples who you believe in the future will be included with your outstanding examples.
What we must remember is that what one does on a small scale such as a block, neighborhood change, or a town change may be the motivating factor which results in a county, state, nation or world change.
The Little Mouse that Roared will always be in existence.
A little mouse with some common sense please. That is what is lacking on the Peru City Council.
to 9:10 I currently do not have an example of individuals who would best fit those qualifications, those names may be better expressed from Lois's point of view since she has been involved longer in the Peru political spectrum than I have. Since she ends up being the definitive poster in this blog I will also ask her: Lois, who do you feel could be a potential candidate to help lead the city? I, along with many others, would like to see you make a definitive stance and stick with it. Ignoring the question will equally be noted. Thank you.
3:44 PM
I am not going there now and it certainly is not my position to identify the leaders in this city. Each to his own. If you are interested in the job, go for it, and the people will let you know whether they approve or not.
807 Are you someone's wife.? You can' be serious this city has become a dictatorship do those few men really think they can handle public works electric and god knows. What else? I think if we had a small disaster here in the city they wouldn't have a clue what to do talk about flooded streets no power look out is sad they think they know so much
5:31, I will also ask 8:07 a question. 8:07, since you personally have sat down and talked to some as you mentioned in your post, during your talk, did you ask those people what their qualifications were and their certifications for their expertice for their appointed jobs given to them by Mayor Harl? I think this is valid question to be asked and I also believe taxpayers have a right to know. This has been asked many times and nobody has answered. I wonder why? Alderman Perez hasn't even taken the plunge to answer. With given no answers it makes a person to think maybe they have no qualifications for their appointed jobs. Such simple questions with no answers.
The hiring of teenage boys for your department for the hopes of personal gain is "abuse of power". Just ask our fire chief!
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