I know that the Peru CSO puts up the decorations with the assist of the city electric trucks but my question is who is responsible for buying them. How old are the current ones and how often should they be replaced. If the CSO does pay for the purchase of Christmas decorations, I have a suggestion for them. Instead of blowing up so much money with fireworks on July 4, save some of the money and purchase new lights for Route 6 business districts.
July fireworks are gone in the blink of an eye but the Christmas decorations are up for at least 6 weeks. Many homes in Peru look fantastic with their brilliant light displays but downtown is another story. We drove west on 7th street and the homes toward the west end look super nice. I know there is not a lot of spare money but surely we can do better than this years Christmas display.
If you know of a particular street in Peru that looks very Christmasy, please share with us.
35 comments:
as a business owner in downtown peru i trully agree the decorations look terrible, the city must do better
Happened to be in Cherry this morning and for a little town, they have some very bright colorful decorations in town, very nice.
The Peru CSO has a very proud history and has served the community well. The organization seems to be anchored in a by-gone era that was less complicated and demanding and it is unfortunate that they cannot offer fund raisers that would be more acceptable to todays residents of Peru.
Their primary fund rasing event in past decades was their annual picnic. The proceeds from this event was the major source of income for purchasing Christmas decorations for the City. For the last 15 years, due to social and demographic changes, attendence has been declining annually to the point where the event is really not very profitable anymore.
While I am a very proud of what the CSO has done and continues to do for the City, change is sometimes difficult to not only accept but to understand and implement.
Most of the Christmas decorations have seen their better days but without someone stepping forward the decorations will not change.
2:59PM
Thank you for the information and hopefully knowing that we can move forward and find a way to fund some new and brighter decorations in the business districts.
Is it not true that the CSO spends thousands of dollars on fireworks? Maybe they could cut back a little each year and use the savings to start replacing XMAS decorations? While change may be difficult I do believe it is necessary. We need to start working together to make changes that will move Peru forward. Other towns are doing it so can we.
Just came home from a very nice Xmas parade in Spring Valley. While driving on Shooting Park Road I noticed Xmas decorations that are so faded and dull I didn't even realize they were there. I just can't believe we can't afford to do something about these decorations.
The CSO contributed money for the 2010 fireworks because it was a special event. But they did not spend ONE PENNY for fireworks in previous years. The fireworks are purchased by the Park Board with the help of the city.
Christmas Decorations!, another GREAT contribution by your Mayor leading the city. Look at Hegler park in La Salle along Joliet street, look at the city of La Salle decorations.
Well, I guess, the Peru Mayor is only concerned about drunk drivers in the city(stated in the News Trib) but then he supports city employees plowing snow somewhat under the influence after the PW Christmas party. Where is the equality here ??????? I guess it is, do as I say but not as I do!
Thank God for the votes this past mayoral election, lets change that the next time !
10:29 AM
The decorations in Peru are old and down town LaSalle and Peru look about the same, dismal. I do admit that LaSalle City Hall has decorated their lawn well whereas Peru has done nothing that I am aware of. I guess the well has run dry in Peru. And the rest of your post was the same stuff you continuely put out and it is pretty worthless IMO. I am eagerly awaiting the city elections on April 5 and adding some new faces to our stagnant disagreeable city council.
ANON 10:29 You make no sense what-so-ever! Are you trying to insinuate that would another mayor been elected we would have new and better Xmas decorations? For 44 years we had the same mayor yet no new decorations. Do you understand how our government works? The city council is responsible for and makes and votes on all decisions for the city of Peru. In case you are unaware of the current situation you should realize that they pretty much do not support our current mayor. Since they vote on and make all decisions ask them why our decorations are so old.
New faces on the city council will get us NOWHERE.
It is leadership by a knowledgable Mayor is what we need.
I hope we hold all of the current aldermen because this Mayor cannot lead a new bunch of faces to make this city better.
What I do believe is that this Mayor can lead a bunch of new faces for the city RIGHT INTO THE GROUND AND BACKWARD.
Let others comment as well if you will .
This info is only worthless because you cannot support the obvious..
12:23PM
If my conversations with fellow Peruvians are any indication of the general feeling in town, I say with absolute certainty that there will be new faces on the City Council.
Where exactly did this city council get us? I believe we are in major debt, our pool is disfunctional, our xmas decorations are antique, our infastructure is collapsing, our roads are a disgrace, we've lost La Salle as a supporter of PVAS, we denied support for our library. These situations did not develop over night. They are a direct result of years of neglect.
My point to all is that this Mayor Harl has no understanding nor does he have any leadership SKILLS TO TAKE OUR CITY IN A POSITIVE FORWARD DIRECTION.
Further support of him will take our city down the tubes and raise our taxes. THAT IS THE FACTS BASED ON THE PAST TWO YEARS .
Open your eyes .
People I speak with are just biting there tongues and praying for the next election because Mayor Harl is destroying our city .
Change is coming alright and it is not what we got with Mayor Harl.
Some of the folks running for aldermen are frankly PUPPETS FOR THE CURRENT MAYOR. So if that is the change you support, Heaven forbid.! Not for ME and others of my friends that is CERTAIN.
Blame PVAS on the old mayor is quite a jump. Raise taxes is the Harl Way. I can't wait till we get new council members from his bandwagon. Lois get your checkbook ready, you think $5.00 is out of line? And they will tell you that we had to raise your taxes and fees because the employees needed raises, other council would not raise taxes, and tell you the finances are bad. And tell you that these situations did not develop overnight. I have seen no layoffs, no cuts and no leadership from the mayor. Sitting in front of a room is not make you a leader. Do you really believe the city council has the ability to lead the city as once a week paper stampers? This mayor is the manager of the city! He is the one that controls personnel, day to day spending, operations. With no control or direction than the residents pay.
8:46AM
Not a jump at all. Are you interested in reading the bylaw? Its all in there.
When Mayor Harl came into office we were over 40 million in debt. How you can blame that on him is some very strange math. Interesting how it was cleverly kept under cover by the previous administration. You should be thanking the Mayor for putting the information out there for the residents to see what we have to pay off that was incurred by Mayor Baker and cohorts (city council).
Go to the council meeting and put those alderman, mayor on the spot about the deficit. Ask them how we got in debt. Get answers and post their comments.
Oh, come on now... The C.S.O. simply bought the wrong bulbs this year. That's all. They bought those stupid LED lights. Next year, I'm sure they'll buy the standard red, blue, green & yellow bulbs and everything will be fine.
The C.S.O. raises money from the picnic and from a membership mailer. They spend money on Christmas Decorations and American Flags.
The C.S.O does not routinely contribute towards fireworks.
The Peru C.S.O. also puts aside monies to save for Centennials, Bicentennials & Sesquicentennials, etc...
Lois: This question doesn't belong under this topic but I didn't know where else to put it. I just read the news tribune article regarding the replacing of Peru's generators. Do you or does anyone understand why we would be replacing generators that are only 6 years old. And, what is going to be done with the only ones? Peru seems to have a lot of dealings with generators (remember the ones we bought back after the fire and lost money on).
To 7:29 a.m. - It is a sad reality that there will always be people such as yourself who will remain uninformed and unable to accept the facts about why Peru is in financial distress. Change and truth are much harder to accept for some than others and you seem to be struggling with it. Please accept some friendly advice in advance of the upcoming election next April.
Search for the strength to accept those things you cannot change because you are going to be very disappointed. A wave of change is about to wash over you in the form of new and exciting "first term" council members.
Try to be strong.
Steve, are you telling us we are going to experience Chicago style elections next year? You sound mighty sure you will win and other friends also. Your message sure sounded like a threat.
Steve, you should be proud of your work in getting Mayor Harl elected? Why don't you discuss all the great ideas and costs savings programs he has put in.....0...0...0. You seem to be link at the hip,same thoughts and same ideas. Did you really meet with city workers to help promote the Harl agenda? A number of times. Did you really want to be the Public works Super, and the Mayor blamed the appointment on others. Did you really tour the water treatment plants interested in that job also? It sounds to me that your looking out for your agenda and not the residents. Can you fool the voters again? Was PAC a campaign tool for your coffers? The blogs were a good way to destroy others. We now have you and your public service record. Did you get the Harl endorsement and campaign cash from the Joliet locals?
8:46AM
"Do you really believe the city council has the ability to lead the city as once a week paper stampers? This mayor is the manager of the city! He is the one that controls personnel, day to day spending, operations. With no control or direction than the residents pay"
If the comment above is true I do wonder why we have 8 aldermen scattered about on 8 different committees and it is at the committee meetings that decisions are made by the aldermen and then they decide what they will bring to the full council.If you have forgotten the names of the committees and members of each, you will find them at the bottom of the page. Don't try to fool the residents by saying the council is only a bunch of "paper stampers".
I am often mystified by those who refer to the word "leadership". I would appreciate the person who keeps claiming Peru is under poor leadership, to explain what they mean by leadership. I want their interpretation of what a leader means to them.
I am sure that the term expands with the experiences one has endured in ones life. I am also sure that if ones experiences are limited, the greater opportunity they have of confusing leadership with popularity and giving in easily to win the majority over. Remember in describing your meaning of a leader....Hitler was one of the greatest leaders of his time! Although he was a true "devil" on earth.
To 7:44PM and your unposted comments. You should know by now that I will NOT post your comments when they become not only ugly and mean but also personal. If you have something to say to either Steve or I, you might use the telephone to express your sentiments because I will not desecrate this blog with your disgusting comments. I tolerate so much and when you cross the boundaries, you are out of here.
Lois 9:37PM
Reading your response to someone seems to encourage a wonderment what someone would say that you do not agree with. Was it something that was against the disgusting bias comments that Steve makes or was it something against the Mayor.
It seems that it is these subjects that you object to in the past . Probably this comment is also something that will not be posted because it may be off color.
What happen to free speech !
8:39AM
Posts are frequently removed from ALL blogs if they are inappropriate. Even the N.T. and other news organizations make that choice. It had nothing to do with agreeing with me and was just a poster trying to make themselves look important while demeaning someone else.
To Theatened - If you are unable to distinguish between a threat and a prediction concerning the outcome of an election........
Your skin is pretty thin.
To 3:18 - My goodness. So many misleading questions coming from someone who obviously feels very threatened right about now. I have no problem responding to your questions.
Yes, I did meet with city employees prior to the last two mayoral elections in Peru. That is called campaigning. No, I did not want to be Superintendant of Public Works in Peru. I did however submit my resume for the sole purpose of aggravating the aldermen on the screening committee. Needless to say, I succeeded. They were quite aggravated and very threatened by the idea. If you're asking if I am qualified, I would answer, yes. However, I have a great job and have no intention of leaving it. Yes, I have toured Peru's Water and Wastewater Treatment Plants and I plan on revisiting and learning a great deal more about these operations in the coming years. I am a water and wastewater industry professional and I am very concerned about the amount of money we pay TEST, Inc. to operate the property of the citizens of Peru. The voters of Peru were not fooled and they will rally again in April 2011 because they understand the cause of the inaction and gridlock at city hall. No, I have not and will not accept any contributions from the Peru Action Committee. I believe Mayor Harl knows that I have much to offer the city as an alderman, although he would never endorse me publicly, nor do I need his endorsement. No, I have not recieved campaign cash from any local unions. Since you neglected to ask if I will accept campaign contributions from unions or union members if they offer? You bet I will.
Thanks for asking and stay informed.
Steve, I do know the differences between predictions and threats. But my question was, are we going to see Chicago style elections next year? You know, overt actions to steal the votes. How will we know the truth? Some talkers are smooth and can convince the gullible. As far as unions contributing, anyone can and should contribute. But, will dues paying members money be used to support someone they themselves don't support?
2:43PM
Please give your definition of Chicago Style Politics. Are you as concerned about your vote during National Elections as you seem to be in Peru?
I personally feel that we are just beginning to see the light after so many years of things taking place in the back room. Now that was Chicago Style.
No one can steal your vote. No matter what you say publicly or to someone's face you, and only you, know how you voted in the booth. Justice prevailed in the last election hopefully it will again.
To the voters of Peru, beware of the mischief of this administration and their followers.
Do not be gullible and see through the garbage they are peddling and VOTE THEM OUT OR DO NOT VOTE THEM IN.
We do not need supporters of this Mayor to ruin the city more then what they have done these past two years.
Stay alert , aware of the facts . Remember your VOTE is the mighty sword that will bring sanity to the city so we can face the future and be progressive.
This administration and the supporters are regressive and will doom our city, just like the ghost towns of the west. Get set to fight for the future of Peru.
3:42PM
I have to admit your post was so funny that I had to post it so everyone could have a chuckle, after all laughter is good for the soul! :)
I was reading LsSalle Insider and read that the large wreaths that line St Vincents Ave at Hegler Park were formerly on light poles and Ameren does not allow them to be placed on the poles any more. It did not say "why".
To Threatened - You should direct your questions about "overt actions to steal votes" to the LaSalle County Clerks office. They oversee the election process. I'm not sure what you are saying might happen but I have faith in the system and the people who run the elections. In regards to union members political contributions vs. local union political contributions. My understanding of the laws that regulate PACs is that union PACs are not allowed to direct union dues to their Political Action Committee funds. And, I don't believe that union members are required by their locals to contribute to the union PAC. It is voluntary. If members do contribute, someone else is going to decide where to contribute that money. You would have to assume it will be given to candidates who represent the best interests of that local union.
To 3:42 p.m. (Debbie Downer) - Could you please provide some specific information regarding your comment such as? What "mischief"? Also, what "ruin"? Finally, what "regressive" policies will doom our city? Why do I get a sense that you may have been around long enough to have actually lived in an old west ghost town?
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