News Tribune reports today that the Peru Pool should not be repaired due to safety concerns and it is unlikely it will be opened during the 2010 swimming season no mater what city leaders eventually decide according to an inspection report received Friday by city officials.
Front page of today's paper
16 comments:
My recommendations is the following: Listen to feed back then get another opinion, one that is not influenzed before the start to condemn the pool.
Secondly the meeting held with the inspectors on Monday should be a CLOSED MEETING WITH THE ALDERMEN ONLY IN ATTENDANCE. No Mayor , No city Clerk , No Public.
After all as said many times in this blog, it is the aldermen who run the city . Therefore they asked for an inspection they alone should get the feedback and ask questions without the public glammering down their necks..
If all is true on the condition of the pool , we should close it for good. Finally, To support this thesis we need to have a referendum vote with the public for any new pool with majority of the residents of the city or keep it closed for good. Fill in the hole and plant grass.
News Tribune article May 22nd states: City leaders have attempted to patch the pool for years, but now it appears, according to the report, that the pool needs to be replaced.
Let me try some math.
General Obligation Debt + Electric System Revenue Bonds + IEPA Loan + Plank Road & May Road Project + Municipal Building Loan + Unfunded Pension liability EQUALS about 45 Million Dollars of DEBT.
Now add the Alderman’s recent vote for Gen Sets at $2.4 Million, sprinkle in a Wind Turbine Project for $3.5 to 4.0 Million
All righty then the City of Peru can get to DEBT levels above “50 Million Dollars.”
OOP’S we forgot that NEW Pool for around $4,000.000.00
Don’t worry Peru Residents the pool will bring in $2.00 per swimmer to pay for the 4 Million Pool.
As for the remaining Millions of Dollars of Debt……….Get ready, get set,………open those 2011 Property Tax bills………….Do you think we may need increased revenue?
Finally, Peru residents "get involved" and ask yourself the question:
How much further do you want to go into Debt?
10:49AM
I will take your post point by point
"then get another opinion, one that is not influenzed before the start to condemn the pool"
Opinions from qualified companies are not FREE, so you want to spend
another ten to fifteen thousand and end up with the same opinion.
"it is the aldermen who run the city "
Yes the aldermen are supposed to run the city but they are supposed to be responsive to the people who elected them and make intelligent well thought out decisions when given the facts on what is good for the city as a whole. You know the whole "public good thing"
CLOSED MEETING WITH THE ALDERMEN ONLY IN ATTENDANCE.
This one really hits my funny bone. We the citizens of the Peru are paying the bills and are entitled not only to voice our opinion on any topic we would like and be free to sit in on any committee or council meeting that we want to. In case you don't know there are very few reasons to go into a closed session and believe me a public swimming pool decision is not one of them.
This is the year 2010 and not the middle ages.
And by the way referendums also cost money.
Lois it if was a new ball diamond there would be several volunteers/dads with their equipment moving the ground, planting grass, putting up fences.. Where are these people could the help defer some of the costs?
When is someone going to ask Mr Baker his position or comments on the subject,Pool ? what would he recommend ?
Heavens knows Mr Harl definetly needs help making a decision. Maybe its pride ... Citizens also maybe its pride ! For the sake of the city and the kids along with the taxpayers , HELP
Former Mayor Bakers help is not needed. It was needed in years past but his only answer was patch and paint and in the meantime while the surface was kept looking nice, the foundation of the pool beneath all that pretty paint was literally falling apart.
Mayor Harl doesn't need help, he's doing just fine. He was concerned with the pool long ago and certainly before it crossed the mind of the city council. Let's just thank him for his concern on this one.
Well said Lois 10:18. What upsets me with some of these comments is that obviously they are coming from someone who does not attend meetings. If he or she did they would not make statements that are so far from the truth and reality. They would know that Mayor Harl has been trying to pound into the aldermen's heads to at least wait until the final report was presented. Supposedly, they (the pool manager and her employees) were planning to meet with the SPW at 7:00 tomorrow morning. Hopefully they will delay that until Monday's presentation by Williams Aquatic. It sounds pretty scary to me. How could we have left the pool get into such a sad state of disrepair and safety? I thought we had a certified pool person amongst us. This appears to me to be just another case of patch and ignore and move on.
To Lois 10:18pm
Looks like you are supporter of Mayor Harl no matter what he attempts to do , even when he is wrong.
I would prefer to support the people of Peru. I am afraid what we have seen so far from the Mayor is that he is not for the people but for his own legacy and possible future .
I still question the past people's narrow point of view in the last election. Well I think like others this mayor will be a one term mayor . I hope we can stay afloat.
We (Peru) should accept Mayor Jeff Grove invitation, "our pool is open" (La Salle)
(The La Salle team is literally laughing at Peru Team. What a fiasco! It's a shame )
9:33 AM
I would be happy to share my point of view with you.
Yes I did support Scott Harl during this last election because Peru was in need of new blood in their governing of the city. The former mayor tightly controlled EVERYTHING. He and Judy Heuser were the Mayor, City Clerk, Treasurer and Comptroller for the city. Everyone else was excluded and that includes elected City Treasurers who were not allowed to know what was going on financially.
All this was a very unhealthy financial situation as we are now finding out.
I believe in giving the current administration a fair shot at governing this city and considering all he has been up against down at city hall, I think he is doing a good job. The citizens will have a chance in a couple of years to see whether they wish to re elect Mayor Harl or not. So we will wait and continue to support him at this time.
The Mayor and City Council need to seriously concern themselves with establishing an ordinance for term limits for both Mayoral and Council Member terms, so we don't ever again elect someone who makes being Mayor his life. I hope they will take this into consideration and bring up a discussion and ask for public input on the term limit topic.
Anon 10:49 Just a few questions that I am hoping you will answer. First, who has influenced Williams Aquatics? Please be specific. And second, why should the aldermen be in a closed meeting? Please go online and read the Open Meetings Act. This cannot happen,only certain issues can be discussed in executive. For example employees, wages and so on. Waiting for your answer. Thank you
Good question anon 4:21 - who did influence Williams Aquatics? If I'm not mistake I believe Alderman Ferarri proposed we hire them. Isn't that correct?
The vote for hiring was 3 for Williams and 2 for Burbach Aquatics. "I think" both Mertel and Ferrari went with the Williams group.
Williams is a professional company of engineers and architects and they were not influeced by any one person but only by the facts as they see them.
9:33 AM May 23rd 2010
You wrote:
The La Salle team is literally laughing at Peru Team. What a fiasco! It's a shame.
You are one sad individual to write that Mayor Grove or the La Salle Alderman would laugh at Peru officials dealing with an 82 year old structure in need of repair.
Shame on you and yes, the officials of La Salle will expect to read your apology very soon.
Will you please stop this nonsense about LaSalle-Peru being in competition. We actually should be sister cities with combined government. Just think of all the money that would be saved by combining the 2. The era of competition sort of dates you. LaSalle was the best in years past and then Peru was the best in recent times. Time to grow up and realize we need to combine our resources (fiscal and human)just to survive and prosper.
Thanks for the breath of fresh air on this blog
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