I am hopeful that this purchase by an out of state real estate developer is a bright beginning for our forlorn business district in Peru. As he does his repairs and perhaps some upgrades, I hope we can keep the Design and Review Committee as far away as possible, so they don't mess up another business. Likewise with the Peru Downtown Redevelopment. Since neither committee has proved to me at least that they are able to do anything positive for downtown.
20 comments:
This is great news for Peru I believe a retail space here would be wonderful to start to rebuilding the downtown area. I hope the city looks at this in a positive manner and does whatever it can to help the development goes smoothly. Jobs and growth are what are council should be looking at instead of arguing and fighting.
Let's just hope they don't hire some company from Siberia to demolish it for the secret steel safe in the basement.
Now come on. We need more of those bright yellow stick-on letters or homemade signs in the windows.
Peru could have had the Peru Amcore building and 3/4 of the block for less than $35,000. Instead they have chosen to demolish the light plant building which didn't have to be touched at a cost of hundreds of thousands of dollars. The current city leaders intend to make a city park out of the property on Water Street. This is the furthest point from the center of town and will flood every few years. Gee wonder how many parents are willing to let there children go play there?
What is the future of Peru if we give these leaders another term in office - another 4 years in building demolition (my understanding is that the next target is the city building on Peoria Street).
Do not blame the entire Peru Downtown Redevelopment Committee for the the degeneration of its designated responsibilities . The Mayor chose the head of the committee and other life long members!!! He did not respond to requests by a board member who wanted to get this committee in a positive direction and of value. In fact the Mayor still has not had time to respond to this members E Mails which were sent directly to him. He should have paid attention to these E Mails because they would have enabled the committee to meet which hasn't been done for over a year. How do you change something when no one meets and information is not gathered? Poor leadership by a Mayor and poor direction by his chosen lifelong committee chairwoman.
As with many other campaign promises he has not carried through with his promises. It is not a figure of my imagination that he'd rather ignore 4th Street and contribute all his time to the area of 38th street and Venture Drive. This would be a good topic for a 3x5 card or the next Town Hall Meeting. This, too, was a campaign promise that the Mayor did not follow through. According to his campaign he was to have a Town Hall meeting every 6 months. To-date he is 7 meetings tardy.
How many city trucks were bought at the last council meeting? Great administration that would rather pay more for a new unneeded gas guzzler than a piece of property needed for the redevelopment of downtown Peru.
How much summer help was added, what pay was given to the person running the summer programs that were half of their original job description (oh, wait Peru doesn't do job descriptions!!!) Streets being redone by the whim of aldermen who don't understand dollar and cent construction cost. (Even the contractor said he has told them for years to redo in a straight line rather than haphazardly). Play ground equipment given away cause our numerous employees were to busy to remove and relocate. On and on we go and where we stop -- HOPEFULLY IS THE VOTING BOOTH!
I,ll vote for Patty's Pig in the next election before I'll vote for Harl and his private consulting firm again.
1:48 I AGREE FULLY ! IDOT RETIRES HIRED TO CUT GRASS FOR SUMMER INSTEAD OF OUR YOUTH ! WHAT KINDA SIGN IS THAT ?
I just noticed for Monday's Council Meeting that Dairy Queen is having a presentation about the intersection? OH OH!! Will this be filmed?
I can understand your problem with the Design and Review Committee as their most recent endeavor was to cancel out TEST'S intention of erecting a $1,000,000.00+ building on 4th Street on a lot which they purchased from the city for $81,000.00.
I cannot understand your problem with the Peru Downtown Redevelopment Committee as they previously had been moving forward with modern ideas even though the old guard was attempting to keep things in place (as they had been since its conception). One must realize that the DRC has not been called to a meeting by its Chairwoman for over 1 year. A good reason could be because the DRC holds one up on the power ladder over the Design and Review Committee which certain individuals would like to abolish
as it is evident they are much happier in their new playground at 38th & Venture Drive.
If anyone has time they should take a look at the new board which replaced a 2d floor window on the front end of a business building in the 1800 block on the north side of the street. More than economic times have decreased property value drastically on 4th Street i.e. the lack of business knowledge by the occupants of Peru's City Hall. If it hasn't been willed to them or they weren't appointed by the Mayor, they haven't got it. Take a look and think of how they have obtained what they have. These are far from self made men.
Peru was a better town when leadership made it on its own, gathered dirt under their fingernails and callused hands, achieved success and than took a leadership role in the city. Since 2009 this concept has definitely gone backwards.
7:11PM
Just like government regulations on a national level can stifle business development, the same thing has happened on a local level. The Downtown Redevelopment Committee first needs a new name but that is a minor detail.
Let's encourage new business and not discourage them. First let's get rid of the rules regarding color schemes which you must follow if you wish to open up a business. Let's encourage individuality and creativity so my business does not need to look identical to the one next door to me. If Peru ever is to even come back to the level of even the 1950's, we must encourage the small business owner and allow him to think for himself. The other committee the Design and Review has not proven itself to be a benefit of the city. If I remember rightly, it was Mayor Harl who developed this committee and it was because our Peru Marketplace parking lots didn't look as nice as the one in Ottawa in which WalMart was located and nicely landscaped.
Downtown Peru currently has a smoke shop , a gold store, a church and in the future a martial arts studio. Plus many businesses which are only part time and have limited hours. There are businesses which have had to eliminate significant building improvements because of the misuse of their property by nearby apartment renters for the last number of years.
Would you invest in downtown with its present conditions with all the other opportunities there are in the surrounding area?
Would you invest in Shooting Park to the entire North of Peru with its current trend of patchwork of empty business building, occupied business building and than another empty business building. If there is to be positive future for Peru a foundation would be to hire a city manager who understands finances, economics and business development. Peru presently has none of the above and exhibited a completer lack of vision in not purchasing all of the Amcore bank property for less than $35,000. Peru must realize that it cannot continue to bestow upon people titles who do nothing but wait for it to happen. When your progress is negative do something before everyone else catches you and passes you by. Another very important subject is what is being done to keep the young interested in living in Peru and to entice those who have moved away to return? Progress and prosperity is determined by increase in population, Peru is considerably smaller, 3000 people, in population than it was years ago.
Downtowns have long been in decline in small cities all over the Midwest. The individuals in charge of the development of that area in Peru are desperately overmatched by the challenges. Old school thinking , although quaint, will not stop the blight of low end business development there. The retail environment is non competitive with the high sales tax, the stores are not upscale, the environment is not attractive to professional office space and the healthcare industry is the sole growth area with our aged population.
This is one spot where doom and gloom is not unwarranted. Peru is dying and has been for quite some time. It is almost past the time where a city manager could be effective. Strategic planning must be a top campaign issue, hard work and common sense alone will no longer cut it.
Don't pick on IDOT Retired people.
He does a better job than all Grass cutters of the City.
Have you seen the jobs our teen's do??? Plus just the city workers. What a joke!!!!!!!
Anon 12:41 PM Yes downtown's that are stagnant and allow themselves to become outdated evidently deteriorate. Take a ride 18 miles East and observe a role model for downtown's which have a interest in updating - Ottawa, Illinois.
Ottawa is indeed a decade ahead, 6:31, but they were once in Peru's shoes. I believe things can still be salvaged with proper leadership, vision, commitment, and incentives.
Anon 2:05 PM please explain this to 12:41 PM as I am well aware of the sorry state Ottawa was in, how it arrived there and how it got out of the mess. Along with the proper leadership, vision, commitment and incentives a vast amount of interest is needed. The type of interest which would have to be searched out because it is apparent that the present city seat holders are not interested as shown by recent actions.
3:25
12:41 here, I was talking about Peru, not Ottawa. I am in agreement with you as to what is needed. The culture of the leaders in Peru seems to be one of entitlement, drawing all they can from the residents and businesses for their friends and special interests. They seem more interested in confrontation than compromise, silencing opposition , all while the coffers they have been raiding are going bare.
Ottawa has leaders that are willing to give instead of take. They are sincere in their desire to make the city a better place for all. The business owners in Ottawa have invested personal time and money and LABOR into their town and making their store fronts and sidewalks beautiful areas. Who from the Peru down town has taken any initiative in the last 20 years to make it a better place. Peru businesses are waiting for the taxpayer to foot the bill for anything nice to come to the downtown. We allow too many service businesses and should be promoting retail businesses downtown. We have one restaurant downtown? City employees water a few hanging plants every now and then? That's it? When some of these businesses from Peru downtown roll up their sleeves and start beautifying their areas around their store, then maybe, we'll come back to shop Peru's downtown. But first, where would we shop? Get a plan Peru leaders and follow it. Doesn't happen overnight. Requires a little sweat and endurance you know.
I disagree. Peru's retail is "Up Town"... up by Shooting Park Road and I-80. Downtown property owners need to be incentivised to update their buildings or demolish them and build new ones in order to attract professional services. Doctors, Lawyers, Engineers, Insurance, CPA's, Investment Services, etc. To do this, modern office buildings are needed. So tearing down the old bank building would have been a good start. This might be a bit pessimistic, but I forsee another Westclox on Fourth Street.
Brian when you have this vision are you standing on a mountain?
The only mountain around here is the slag pile in Cherry.
If you are making some philosphical reference... maybe I am. The problem with LaSalle, Peru, Oglesby or even LaSalle County in gerneral is that we do nothing to attrach professionals. We are stuck in the 1970's. Do you know that the most up to date building in Peru - the new City hall - lacks sufficient computer network infrastructure?
Brian
There may be some additional evidence we are stuck in the 70's. I believe that was before then open meetings act, and the music on the local stations seems to still be from the 70's, and I think some of the hairstyles and clothes are from that era as well. The city seems to be trying as hard it can to buy vehicles that get gas mileage more common in the 70's. And isn't the recreation committee still the same as the 70's?
I wonder if that is side effect of mercury poisoning from the old power plant? More later, I have to go buy my leisure suit at Vlastniks now. See you on the world wide inter web, as we call it down at City Hall.
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