This blog is maintained for the sole purpose of allowing the people of Peru and those interested in the cities of the Illinois Valley to express their views.
“It doesn’t take a majority to win, just a tireless minority that will keep starting brush fires in the mind and hearts of their fellow men.” Samuel Adams
I think it is amazing that the paper puts such a wonderful spin on this "near disaster" for Peru. It does not matter that the city got involved with contractors who were obviously not financially sound. What if the contract had been for actually building something of tearing it down? How confident would the new tenant be that it would only be another hundred grand to make it safe and sound? Maybe we should always hope a city contractor goes broke so we can get free work done. They say you get what you pay for. That reminds me , was this Mayor free?
Good thing the city attorney checked into these companies. And if I remember correctly every time the discussion was brought up the attorney said all was good and the bond was good. This was brought up at least 6 times in the last year by council members making sure we weren't going to get shafted on the deal. Now all the recyclable material is gone and now the citizens get to deal with it. I say we stop paying Schweikert and make Harl and Taylor go down there with shovels and finish the job. So much for waterstreet park!
9:17 maybe I was not clear. It looks like the city is going to make out great, not paying for hundreds of thousands of dollars of work already done. We will see how that all plays out, but the point I was making was when you contract a major job, you should really choose contractors that won't go bankrupt on the job. Seems like sound policy.
Yes now the City gets left to deal with the pools of Mercury and PCBs from those buried transformers-sounds like a great deal! The contractor knew exactly what they were doing and when to walk away. Why does everything Schweickert touch with environmental issues go to shit and end up in worse than when the City started? Kings Inn, Westclox, Water Street power plant?
Kristy What is the mercury from? Do you know? I was aware of the PCB risk but not mercury. Environmentally safe demolition in old buildings is a tricky business. Not an area for amateurs, so the city should have thoroughly researched the company doing it. Sloppy demolition spreads contaminants like heavy metals and PCB. If the proposed future use was a park it becomes just crazy. Contaminated soils are becoming almost impossible to afford to send for offside treatment, and on site treatment is also very expensive. Just look to the fiasco in DePue.
The old plants generated lots of solid waste products including fly ash,bottom ash, and flue-gas sludge, that contain mercury, uranium, thorium, arsenic, and other heavy metals. I would guess any contractor hired for decommissioning a coal fired plant would have tested for them thoroughly especially when they purchased it only for the metal salvage. The environmental reports the contractor had done at the transfer would tell the tale about any contamination at the site. Asbestos would be the most obvious problem but not necessarily the most costly one. The city should pay for a decent study before they take title to this place again. They could be signing on to a big clean up tab.
What do you think will happen when the owners of the Westcolx site declare bankruptcy and we find out that the insurance will not pay the entire cost of clean up? They have had eight months to hide their money.
Hellooo....I think we just found a perfect spot for pickleball ! No neighbors. High visibility. Plenty of parking for cars and one bike. Refreshments a few doors away. Security maintained by the constant flow of city employees riding around. Within a comfortable driving distance of the Ambassador's house.
I believe the EPA was notified of the mercury. Also, it was my understanding that the bond/insurance policy for the water street cleanup was paid for last year. The City shouldn't have to pay anything toward this cleanup. Pull up your minutes and make the mayor explain this. Unless something shady happened since the original contract was signed, the insurance policy bought by the contractor should cover everything.
In thirty years of experience I have not seen many environmental insurance policies pay for clean ups without a fight. Environmental indemnification is almost always dependent on who has the deepest pockets, who generated the waste, and who owns the land in question. I actually am hopeful that the city does not have to battle with anyone to get the clean up finished. People always think that having insurance for events is some kind of preventative measure. You should always hope that insurance payouts do not enter into it, because it means something unforeseen or disastrous happened.
6:06 PM - If you believe that, I have some beach front property in Arizona I'd like to sell you. We will pay out the ass for this just like the city is going to pay to clean up the Westclox site.
One of my fears is the possible claim of fraud based on the performance of the contractors in question. Some insurance companies might take the stance that the contractor misrepresented the project and their intent to the insurance company. If they can prove that the contractors did not exercise proper environmental procedures causing additional release of toxics, and that they never could have reasonably taken on the job with an intent to finish, it could go to court. Apparently the contractors have been paid in steel all along but have gotten no payment from the city. The actual transaction where they purchased the property could be challenged, although that would be more difficult.
We drove by the plant tonight and since everything is unsecured, who has the liability for an accident occurring to some unsuspecting individual wandering in? Will this be secured with at least some type of fencing? Does the city now own this problem?
Perhaps Harl could contact the City of LaSalle for advice on how to properly demolish buildings? Pohar did a fantastic job with the new Dollar General site and besides for the Union hold-up at the Mathessian building; that too progressed nicely.
The reason things like this take so long in Peru is because even the simplest business deal turns into a convoluted mess. This wheeling and dealing only serves to delay and complicate things. In the end, a seamingly simple thing like demolishing a building takes years and the savings looks insiginficant when looked at in the context of completing the goal. The wheelers and dealers are hard at work in Peru. Look at the Pool. It could have been demolished for free this summer, but there is "some other deal and union problems preventing this."
The last I heard on the pool is that we are waiting on Michelini's available time and that no one gave a bid to haul away the debris. Actually some talk of saving the bathhouse which I believe has been nixed as we would not save money with trying to repair what has been damaged. Many of us would like to see it gone and others want the reminder in front of them so we don't forget to build another pool.
GREAT IDEA 2:36. Hey, city planned on putting a park on this beautiful site (HA), can you imagine that? The parks we have now can't be taken care of!!!!!! And let's not forget the obstacle course that waterstreet is when driving to avoid alll the potholes and beveled asphalt!
Brian I agree with your statement regarding excessive dealing and politics slowing down decisions. But some demolitions are more complicated than others. An old coal fired power plant carries much potential environmental baggage with it. You don't get many buyers for one in the best of circumstances. Razing it and properly disposing of the debris and soil would demand an experienced demolition contractor. It SHOULD be expensive. It seems , from the outside looking in, that a deal was made with an inexperienced, fiscally unsound and unqualified scavenger. Maybe I am wrong and the contractor did many similarmsuccessful deals in the past, but grossly underestimating the clean up cost and salvage value makes me think otherwise. A single bad project does not usually cause a construction company to fold. It seems as if it was penny wise and pound foolish arrangement at the start. The westclox site may have many clean up issues as well. There were many old building components that were exposed to very high temperatures, with toxic decomposition products. When planning a demolition, you do not usually use fire and steam as a part of the process.
Oh the westlox problem has been brought up over and over again to Taylor in council meetings too . And he always says all is good too . Just like Schweikert said about the water street clean up . It takes alot of money to live where Taylor lives and he cant support that with only his knowledge of figuring out the size of a 2x4 . All the money under the table to let it slide a few more months helps out . And when the company that owns westclox does file bankruptcy Peru will be left with a toxic dump like Depue . If you check into it the company that owns westclox has been selling off assets ... getting ready to file bankruptcy ? Hmmm , something else for the citizens of Peru to deal/pay for . No wonder we cant afford a pool . The elected officials need to get their heads out of their rearends and get rid of Taylor and Schweikert and replace him with educated men with a backbone !
9:40 - I think we are in agreement. I may not have expressed it correctly, but instead of wheeling and dealing around the reality of a complex demolition, the City would have been better off hiring a reputable firm to perform the cleanup. It would have been very expensive, but we would have proof the cleanup was performed correctly and the lot would be empty now. The whole thing could have been finished a few years ago. But instead, we trip over dollars while trying to pick up pennies.
what the heck would kristy know what is in a building? can't beleive anybody would think she has any credibility about any subject?? have any of her stories come to fruition? think about it.
There are so many accusations of malfeasance on these blogs it makes me wonder why more citizens are not bringing their concerns to the attorney general. Sometimes I think people prefer to live in a corrupt city and just bitch at bars and on blogs. It is what they are used to here over so many years. If you know or suspect payments or bags of cash changing hands, take some damn action. If you think corrupt politicians will change their ways because you yell at them in caps or throw out accusations of deals and back room meetings on a blog, think again. If you have gossip keep it to yourself. If you have facts, gather them then look up the attorney generals email and speak up. That's how it happened in Dixon. The Attorney Generals office does not sit there and wait for the next blog post. If enough citizens complain about things, then they commit the resources to investigate.
Anon 10:34 Wasn't this part of the campaign "Change in 09"? To run for office with this slogan and to not continue to attempt to succeed indicates change was not of need or that it was only a means to be voted into office. I'd presently like to submit the first 3x5 card to the blogs public comment: Mayor is this what you meant by transparency? Why would anyone involved in 2012 political environment involve themselves in such a senseless controversy? Especially a city leader. Doesn't he realize that straw ballots are what he has all his highly paid dummies around city hall for?
11:28 Just because you may not know about any of Kristy's stories coming to fruition does not mean much. Her FACTS have presented many issues for individuals to think about, vote on, learn more about and decide to take action on. Also, sometimes I wonder when bloggers here attack her or Lois on general credibility or sanity issues if those very same bloggers may actually be very much aware of some things that may have come to fruition, as you say. Btw, there is quite a bit of mercury on that site, unless it was the most unique coal fired plant in the world. I am sure the contractor properly disposed of it. I wonder where it was manifested to? I guess we will see, won't we?
I research and investigate to present information, facts, and documents to the public so YOU can become educated on information that is sometimes "buried" far from the publics reach.
The AGs office along with numerous other State and Federal agencies are well aware of events in Peru and their decisions to act or not act is knowledge that the citizens of Peru are unprivileged to so our voices must be heard at the ballot box not in a court house.
Now 11:28 I share much information on the blog with the readers so do try to imagine the vast information I have acquired over the years that I have not shared with YOU or ANYONE for that matter? That is what should scare you IF/WHEN it ever came to fruition...just a thought from little know-nothing me.
Which will take place first the signing of next years fireworks contract or the re-re-re-re start up of the Peru power plant demolition? Just thinking out loud of which should have been demolished first the swimming pool or the power plant? Instead of making a new park on Water Street why not start maintaining the parks we already have? Hopefully the idea of raising the sales tax another per cent is not successful or Peru will have a sales tax of 8.5% until the recent 1/2% sales tax raise for roads is eliminated when its sunset of 5 years is reached. I believe it was a 5 year sunset that Mayor Harl initially proposed. In years in which the 1/2%sales tax to build Parkside is more than what the yearly bond payment calls for what becomes of the balance left over? Does the school continue to receive the excess sales tax or does it revert back to the city? If it is going back to Peru what are they doing with it?
9:00 Who exactly are they taking from? That office has prosecuted more cases than any in recent history. They have a pretty good bi partisan prosecution breakdown as well. If Peru is paying off the AG office and everyone else too, then I guess there is much more income in this town than I thought. Enforcement looks the other way a lot , but it is not always corruption. They play politics too, and if enough people complain, action gets taken.
8:57 With the original contractor bowing out, you assume that the premiums were paid and that the claim will be considered valid. Based on my observations, if I represented the surety I would fight like hell against the validity of the claim, claiming fraud by one or both parties. And you are also assuming the penal sum is even close to what the final demolition and restoration of the brownfield will end up costing the city. Even if they had accurately estimated the environmental portion, which I seriously doubt, the project has taken so long the estimates are likely low. There is a very decent chance this is going to be a major blip in the city coffers. One time I really hope I am wrong.
Blogs are made on gossip. Courts are based on facts. Many of us get mixed up on gossip and facts. The AG office will be involved in facts. Some of us use facts to validate gossip. Example...site has debris...site is toxic dump..site will be the next Depue! Two out of 3 statements may be false.
People the AGs office is suffering from Illinois budget crisis and I believe employees in that office were going to strike if a deal was not reached in the contract-so once again is Peru potential suffering at the hands of the union?
Regardless there is no money in the AGs office investigating bankrupt environmental companies especially if toxic concerns are located. The cleanup adds a financially strain on the State so we in the community (no different than DePue) suffer.
The EPA and the AGs office has been well aware of the Westclox debacle since atleast 2006 and again I had personal correspondence with the office in 2009. Now the fire in 2011 and the building is at a standstill? Although it is my understanding a storm water prevention plan has been implemented since the fire which should have been implemented back in 2006. I believe Senator Obama and Durbin also receive the same information because I SENT IT. So is this a "Chicago" democrat issue why are communities can't get cleaned up?
Site has debris - Ok fairly obvious Site is toxic dump- Your words not mine, and words that are pretty ambiguous. It is a debris field and likely brownfield, and likely is contaminated with PCB and mercury/heavy metals. If site assessments were done as they should have been at title transfer, paid for by the primary contractor since no bank was probably involved, the city should have copies for them for you to review. Then you can decide if it meets your toxic dump criteria. Site will be the next DePue- again your words not mine. DePue illustrated how difficult and expensive it is to handle contaminated soil in large quantities if you must haul it away for disposal. People talked about turning this into a park, so it would have to be pretty clean for that. Also , there is a tendency to haul fill around the valley without thinking and fill from this site should be tested pretty thoroughly before it ends in a park, playground or anybody's food.
Some observations are true whether you write them on a blog or state them in court. Trust me, you would rather hear them from me on a blog than in a courtroom. IEPA has not had its budget slashed so much it cannot handle enforcement. Lets just bite the bullet and make sure this job gets completed safely and in an environmentally acceptable manner.
Not too happy with unions these days. One of our grandsons worked part time at a grocery out of state and now that school has started and this is a union shop, he must work 20 hours at least and can't as he is in H.S. If he would work the 20 hours and no less and signed some paper he could continue to work. He is a good worker and would have liked to continue for less hours so he could maintain his high scholarship ranking but is now out of a job. All because of a union. How happy am I about that, not very!
1. How are UNION jobs created if regulations are not able to be enforced because UNIONS are holding those offices "hostage" that enforce those regulations? Cake and eat it too...
2. Do you believe ONLY Unions have the Right to Work/Jobs in Peru?
Unions do not represent their own membership equally or fairly. In many cases the representation is at best of poor and uncaring quality that is self achieving and only interested in their own inflated pay check. Unions collect a percentage of the employees wages as dues which amount to huge sums of money when all considering all must pay. Illinois is a closed shop state whereas most new jobs are in right to work states. Teachers contribute to their own retirement and have union representation. Why hasn't this representation done better with the teachers pension money?
Teachers' pensions are controlled by TRS (Teacher's Retirement System).
www.trs.illinois.gov
You should be able to identify two problems just by looking at the above URL! If my retirement savings were being managed by my local union representation, I would feel much more comfortable than I do with pension dollars being managed by Illinois' elected leaders.
MAYBE SOME PEOPLE CANNOT READ BETWEEN THE LINES. IF A UNION IS TO REPRESENT A GROUP OF PEOPLE DON'T YOU BELIEVE THEY SHOULD BE INVESTIGATING THIS GROUPS PENSION AND ASKING WHY IT IS PART OF A $83,000,000,000 DEBT ALSO. IT IS NO WONDER UNIONS ARE DIPPING BELOW 11% OF THE WORKFORCE. SPEAK TO THE MAJORITY OF THE YOUNG AND MENTION UNIONS AND THEY WILL LAUGH AT YOU. THEY ALSO DO NOT WANT PART OF THEIR DUES TO BE DONATED TO A POLITICAL PARTY THEY DO NOT WANT TO SUPPORT, AND THEY DO NOT WANT TO PAY REPRESENTATION WHOM THEY ARE SMARTER THAN FOR THEIR ARCHAIC IDEAS WHICH ARE NOT FITTING INTO A GLOBAL MARKET. MAYBE SOMEONE WOULD LIKE TO EXPLAIN CATERPILLAR AND ITS UNION STATUS IN GENERAL AND JOLIET CATERPILLAR AND THE RECENT JOLIET LOCALS CONTRACT IN PARTICULAR. YOU MIGHT WANT TO START WITH THE TIER PAYMENT AGREEMENT SETTLED AT JOLIET YEARS AGO. THAT WAS HEADS UP REPRESENTATION.
When it comes to enforcing the environmental laws, I am not sure what anybody is expecting? Here is the way the EPA operates (or IEPA for RCRA, and I think CWA, CAA). The attorney general is not going to get involved with most problems, especially investigations. The agencies do that with their enforcement divisions. Politicians do very little to speed or hinder these investigations, so writing to them just keeps their staff busy. With the Clean Water Act, there are many more enforcement/legal options available, which is why it has been so effective.
Informal response. agencies can simply notify the source about its violation and request that it come into compliance, without taking any further formal legal action. They may request that the source operator certify in writing that it has come into compliance.
Formal administrative enforcement. government agencies can also issue an administrative order to compel compliance, and in many cases can administratively impose a monetary penalty for past infractions.
Formal civil/judicial enforcement. EPA, through the U.S. Department of Justice, can initiate a civil lawsuit in the federal courts against a violator. Such a lawsuit may seek a court order compelling compliance and imposing a monetary penalty. Civil lawsuits are more cumbersome than formal administrative enforcement proceedings, but carry greater weight since the courts can enforce their own orders more effectively than can EPA. Similar avenues are available to most of the state agencies.
Criminal enforcement. In egregious cases, such as a knowing and wilful violation, a criminal enforcement action can be initiated. The violator here runs the risk of being imprisoned.
6:54 I don't even know where to start to dissect your comment.
First off, part of what is wrong with the political system is that many politicians "do very little" in regard to addressing or acknowledging actual concerns of their constituents in their district and that is a problem. A wise politician appreciates all contact from their constituents (positive or negative) because that is a direct indication of the level of contentment of your voters which is in correlation to your job performance. Nobody is perfect (especially politicians) and if they do not receive negative feedback on occassion that is a concern in itself that perhaps people have lost faith in your abilities.
Second politicians SHOULD appreciate all correspondence from constituents because who better to relate issues in a community than those who live and work in that community? Sometimes politicians depend on legislative aids for assistance without a thorough review of the aids community involvement and this leads to biased agendas being addressed.
Regardless it is our duty as Americans to hold those we elect accountable and our responsibility to play an active role by questioning, writing, and communicating our concerns with those who represent us. If fail to see the importance of this communication than you are part of the problem that is plaguing our political system.
You do not need to dissect my comment, especially since I agree with yours. I do not disagree that contacting the politicians SHOULD have effect, I was just stating my personal observations that they have had very little influence in moving environmental enforcement actions or investigations either to get them dropped or started.. I also applaud you letting them know.
They do get very involved in stopping effective environmental legislation though, and in funding and directing enforcement efforts at a higher level. They should never be let off the hook. I am just suggesting you hold some other feet to the fire within some different agencies if you want action on specific sites. For all I know you already have. Keep it up!
UNIONS RAN ALL THE BUSINESS OUT FROM NOT ONLY THIS AREA BUT THE WHOLE COUNTRY. THE GREATEST MAJORITY OF PEOPLE WORKING FOR UNIONS DON'T EVEN LIKE THEM. IT'S THE BLOOD SUCKING LEACHES THAT WRECK IT FOR EVERYONE (UNION HEADS, BA's, AND THE BIG MOUTH IDIOTS THAT WANT TO WORK THEIR WAY TO THE TOP FOR THAT LAZY BLOOD SUCKING JOB SO THEY CAN LIVE OFF OF EVERYONE ELSE AT THEIR EXPENSE.
45 comments:
I think it is amazing that the paper puts such a wonderful spin on this "near disaster" for Peru. It does not matter that the city got involved with contractors who were obviously not financially sound. What if the contract had been for actually building something of tearing it down? How confident would the new tenant be that it would only be another hundred grand to make it safe and sound?
Maybe we should always hope a city contractor goes broke so we can get free work done. They say you get what you pay for.
That reminds me , was this Mayor free?
Good thing the city attorney checked into these companies. And if I remember correctly every time the discussion was brought up the attorney said all was good and the bond was good. This was brought up at least 6 times in the last year by council members making sure we weren't going to get shafted on the deal. Now all the recyclable material is gone and now the citizens get to deal with it. I say we stop paying Schweikert and make Harl and Taylor go down there with shovels and finish the job. So much for waterstreet park!
9:17 maybe I was not clear. It looks like the city is going to make out great, not paying for hundreds of thousands of dollars of work already done. We will see how that all plays out, but the point I was making was when you contract a major job, you should really choose contractors that won't go bankrupt on the job. Seems like sound policy.
Yes now the City gets left to deal with the pools of Mercury and PCBs from those buried transformers-sounds like a great deal! The contractor knew exactly what they were doing and when to walk away. Why does everything Schweickert touch with environmental issues go to shit and end up in worse than when the City started? Kings Inn, Westclox, Water Street power plant?
Kristy
Kristy
What is the mercury from? Do you know? I was aware of the PCB risk but not mercury.
Environmentally safe demolition in old buildings is a tricky business. Not an area for amateurs, so the city should have thoroughly researched the company doing it. Sloppy demolition spreads contaminants like heavy metals and PCB. If the proposed future use was a park it becomes just crazy. Contaminated soils are becoming almost impossible to afford to send for offside treatment, and on site treatment is also very expensive. Just look to the fiasco in DePue.
I believe one reason for the mercury may have been usage in the meters at the plant.
Kristy
The old plants generated lots of solid waste products including fly ash,bottom ash, and flue-gas sludge, that contain mercury, uranium, thorium, arsenic, and other heavy metals.
I would guess any contractor hired for decommissioning a coal fired plant would have tested for them thoroughly especially when they purchased it only for the metal salvage. The environmental reports the contractor had done at the transfer would tell the tale about any contamination at the site.
Asbestos would be the most obvious problem but not necessarily the most costly one. The city should pay for a decent study before they take title to this place again. They could be signing on to a big clean up tab.
What do you think will happen when the owners of the Westcolx site declare bankruptcy and we find out that the insurance will not pay the entire cost of clean up? They have had eight months to hide their money.
Hellooo....I think we just found a perfect spot for pickleball ! No neighbors. High visibility. Plenty of parking for cars and one bike. Refreshments a few doors away. Security maintained by the constant flow of city employees riding around. Within a comfortable driving distance of the Ambassador's house.
I believe the EPA was notified of the mercury. Also, it was my understanding that the bond/insurance policy for the water street cleanup was paid for last year. The City shouldn't have to pay anything toward this cleanup. Pull up your minutes and make the mayor explain this. Unless something shady happened since the original contract was signed, the insurance policy bought by the contractor should cover everything.
In thirty years of experience I have not seen many environmental insurance policies pay for clean ups without a fight. Environmental indemnification is almost always dependent on who has the deepest pockets, who generated the waste, and who owns the land in question. I actually am hopeful that the city does not have to battle with anyone to get the clean up finished. People always think that having insurance for events is some kind of preventative measure. You should always hope that insurance payouts do not enter into it, because it means something unforeseen or disastrous happened.
6:06 PM - If you believe that, I have some beach front property in Arizona I'd like to sell you. We will pay out the ass for this just like the city is going to pay to clean up the Westclox site.
One of my fears is the possible claim of fraud based on the performance of the contractors in question. Some insurance companies might take the stance that the contractor misrepresented the project and their intent to the insurance company. If they can prove that the contractors did not exercise proper environmental procedures causing additional release of toxics, and that they never could have reasonably taken on the job with an intent to finish, it could go to court.
Apparently the contractors have been paid in steel all along but have gotten no payment from the city.
The actual transaction where they purchased the property could be challenged, although that would be more difficult.
We drove by the plant tonight and since everything is unsecured, who has the liability for an accident occurring to some unsuspecting individual wandering in? Will this be secured with at least some type of fencing? Does the city now own this problem?
Perhaps Harl could contact the City of LaSalle for advice on how to properly demolish buildings? Pohar did a fantastic job with the new Dollar General site and besides for the Union hold-up at the Mathessian building; that too progressed nicely.
Kristy
The reason things like this take so long in Peru is because even the simplest business deal turns into a convoluted mess. This wheeling and dealing only serves to delay and complicate things. In the end, a seamingly simple thing like demolishing a building takes years and the savings looks insiginficant when looked at in the context of completing the goal. The wheelers and dealers are hard at work in Peru. Look at the Pool. It could have been demolished for free this summer, but there is "some other deal and union problems preventing this."
The last I heard on the pool is that we are waiting on Michelini's available time and that no one gave a bid to haul away the debris. Actually some talk of saving the bathhouse which I believe has been nixed as we would not save money with trying to repair what has been damaged. Many of us would like to see it gone and others want the reminder in front of them so we don't forget to build another pool.
GREAT IDEA 2:36. Hey, city planned on putting a park on this beautiful site (HA), can you imagine that? The parks we have now can't be taken care of!!!!!! And let's not forget the obstacle course that waterstreet is when driving to avoid alll the potholes and beveled asphalt!
Brian
I agree with your statement regarding excessive dealing and politics slowing down decisions. But some demolitions are more complicated than others. An old coal fired power plant carries much potential environmental baggage with it. You don't get many buyers for one in the best of circumstances. Razing it and properly disposing of the debris and soil would demand an experienced demolition contractor. It SHOULD be expensive.
It seems , from the outside looking in, that a deal was made with an inexperienced, fiscally unsound and unqualified scavenger. Maybe I am wrong and the contractor did many similarmsuccessful deals in the past, but grossly underestimating the clean up cost and salvage value makes me think otherwise. A single bad project does not usually cause a construction company to fold.
It seems as if it was penny wise and pound foolish arrangement at the start.
The westclox site may have many clean up issues as well. There were many old building components that were exposed to very high temperatures, with toxic decomposition products. When planning a demolition, you do not usually use fire and steam as a part of the process.
Oh the westlox problem has been brought up over and over again to Taylor in council meetings too . And he always says all is good too . Just like Schweikert said about the water street clean up . It takes alot of money to live where Taylor lives and he cant support that with only his knowledge of figuring out the size of a 2x4 . All the money under the table to let it slide a few more months helps out . And when the company that owns westclox does file bankruptcy Peru will be left with a toxic dump like Depue . If you check into it the company that owns westclox has been selling off assets ... getting ready to file bankruptcy ? Hmmm , something else for the citizens of Peru to deal/pay for . No wonder we cant afford a pool . The elected officials need to get their heads out of their rearends and get rid of Taylor and Schweikert and replace him with educated men with a backbone !
9:40 - I think we are in agreement. I may not have expressed it correctly, but instead of wheeling and dealing around the reality of a complex demolition, the City would have been better off hiring a reputable firm to perform the cleanup. It would have been very expensive, but we would have proof the cleanup was performed correctly and the lot would be empty now. The whole thing could have been finished a few years ago. But instead, we trip over dollars while trying to pick up pennies.
what the heck would kristy know what is in a building? can't beleive anybody would think she has any credibility about any subject?? have any of her stories come to fruition? think about it.
There are so many accusations of malfeasance on these blogs it makes me wonder why more citizens are not bringing their concerns to the attorney general. Sometimes I think people prefer to live in a corrupt city and just bitch at bars and on blogs. It is what they are used to here over so many years. If you know or suspect payments or bags of cash changing hands, take some damn action. If you think corrupt politicians will change their ways because you yell at them in caps or throw out accusations of deals and back room meetings on a blog, think again. If you have gossip keep it to yourself. If you have facts, gather them then look up the attorney generals email and speak up. That's how it happened in Dixon. The Attorney Generals office does not sit there and wait for the next blog post. If enough citizens complain about things, then they commit the resources to investigate.
Anon 10:34 Wasn't this part of the campaign "Change in 09"? To run for office with this slogan and to not continue to attempt to succeed indicates change was not of need or that it was only a means to be voted into office.
I'd presently like to submit the first 3x5 card to the blogs public comment: Mayor is this what you meant by transparency?
Why would anyone involved in 2012 political environment involve themselves in such a senseless controversy? Especially a city leader. Doesn't he realize that straw ballots are what he has all his highly paid dummies around city hall for?
11:28
Just because you may not know about any of Kristy's stories coming to fruition does not mean much. Her FACTS have presented many issues for individuals to think about, vote on, learn more about and decide to take action on.
Also, sometimes I wonder when bloggers here attack her or Lois on general credibility or sanity issues if those very same bloggers may actually be very much aware of some things that may have come to fruition, as you say.
Btw, there is quite a bit of mercury on that site, unless it was the most unique coal fired plant in the world. I am sure the contractor properly disposed of it. I wonder where it was manifested to? I guess we will see, won't we?
11:28
I research and investigate to present information, facts, and documents to the public so YOU can become educated on information that is sometimes "buried" far from the publics reach.
The AGs office along with numerous other State and Federal agencies are well aware of events in Peru and their decisions to act or not act is knowledge that the citizens of Peru are unprivileged to so our voices must be heard at the ballot box not in a court house.
Now 11:28 I share much information on the blog with the readers so do try to imagine the vast information I have acquired over the years that I have not shared with YOU or ANYONE for that matter? That is what should scare you IF/WHEN it ever came to fruition...just a thought from little know-nothing me.
Kristy
Most mercury pollution is a by-product of burning coal.
A Surety Bond in the amount of the estimated demolition costs would have done the trick.
The AG office is as corrupt as Peru.
they're on the take and that's why they do nothing! !
Which will take place first the signing of next years fireworks contract or the re-re-re-re start up of the Peru power plant demolition?
Just thinking out loud of which should have been demolished first the swimming pool or the power plant?
Instead of making a new park on Water
Street why not start maintaining the parks we already have?
Hopefully the idea of raising the sales tax another per cent is not successful or Peru will have a sales tax of 8.5% until the recent 1/2% sales tax raise for roads is eliminated when its sunset of 5 years is reached. I believe it was a 5 year sunset that Mayor Harl initially proposed.
In years in which the 1/2%sales tax to build Parkside is more than what the yearly bond payment calls for what becomes of the balance left over? Does the school continue to receive the excess sales tax or does it revert back to the city? If it is going back to Peru what are they doing with it?
9:00
Who exactly are they taking from? That office has prosecuted more cases than any in recent history. They have a pretty good bi partisan prosecution breakdown as well. If Peru is paying off the AG office and everyone else too, then I guess there is much more income in this town than I thought.
Enforcement looks the other way a lot , but it is not always corruption. They play politics too, and if enough people complain, action gets taken.
8:57
With the original contractor bowing out, you assume that the premiums were paid and that the claim will be considered valid. Based on my observations, if I represented the surety I would fight like hell against the validity of the claim, claiming fraud by one or both parties. And you are also assuming the penal sum is even close to what the final demolition and restoration of the brownfield will end up costing the city.
Even if they had accurately estimated the environmental portion, which I seriously doubt, the project has taken so long the estimates are likely low. There is a very decent chance this is going to be a major blip in the city coffers. One time I really hope I am wrong.
Blogs are made on gossip. Courts are based on facts. Many of us get mixed up on gossip and facts. The AG office will be involved in facts. Some of us use facts to validate gossip. Example...site has debris...site is toxic dump..site will be the next Depue! Two out of 3 statements may be false.
People the AGs office is suffering from Illinois budget crisis and I believe employees in that office were going to strike if a deal was not reached in the contract-so once again is Peru potential suffering at the hands of the union?
Regardless there is no money in the AGs office investigating bankrupt environmental companies especially if toxic concerns are located. The cleanup adds a financially strain on the State so we in the community (no different than DePue) suffer.
The EPA and the AGs office has been well aware of the Westclox debacle since atleast 2006 and again I had personal correspondence with the office in 2009. Now the fire in 2011 and the building is at a standstill? Although it is my understanding a storm water prevention plan has been implemented since the fire which should have been implemented back in 2006. I believe Senator Obama and Durbin also receive the same information because I SENT IT. So is this a "Chicago" democrat
issue why are communities can't get cleaned up?
Kristy
Kristy, back off these rules create union jobs and we need union jobs in Peru!
9:35
Site has debris - Ok fairly obvious
Site is toxic dump- Your words not mine, and words that are pretty ambiguous. It is a debris field and likely brownfield, and likely is contaminated with PCB and mercury/heavy metals. If site assessments were done as they should have been at title transfer, paid for by the primary contractor since no bank was probably involved, the city should have copies for them for you to review. Then you can decide if it meets your toxic dump criteria.
Site will be the next DePue- again your words not mine. DePue illustrated how difficult and expensive it is to handle contaminated soil in large quantities if you must haul it away for disposal. People talked about turning this into a park, so it would have to be pretty clean for that. Also , there is a tendency to haul fill around the valley without thinking and fill from this site should be tested pretty thoroughly before it ends in a park, playground or anybody's food.
Some observations are true whether you write them on a blog or state them in court. Trust me, you would rather hear them from me on a blog than in a courtroom. IEPA has not had its budget slashed so much it cannot handle enforcement. Lets just bite the bullet and make sure this job gets completed safely and in an environmentally acceptable manner.
12:03 PM
Not too happy with unions these days. One of our grandsons worked part time at a grocery out of state and now that school has started and this is a union shop, he must work 20 hours at least and can't as he is in H.S. If he would work the 20 hours and no less and signed some paper he could continue to work. He is a good worker and would have liked to continue for less hours so he could maintain his high scholarship ranking but is now out of a job. All because of a union. How happy am I about that, not very!
12:03
1. How are UNION jobs created if regulations are not able to be enforced because UNIONS are holding those offices "hostage" that enforce those regulations? Cake and eat it too...
2. Do you believe ONLY Unions have the Right to Work/Jobs in Peru?
Kristy
Unions do not represent their own membership equally or fairly. In many cases the representation is at best of poor and uncaring quality that is self achieving and only interested in their own inflated pay check. Unions collect a percentage of the employees wages as dues which amount to huge sums of money when all considering all must pay. Illinois is a closed shop state whereas most new jobs are in right to work states.
Teachers contribute to their own retirement and have union representation. Why hasn't this representation done better with the teachers pension money?
Teachers' pensions are controlled by TRS (Teacher's Retirement System).
www.trs.illinois.gov
You should be able to identify two problems just by looking at the above URL! If my retirement savings were being managed by my local union representation, I would feel much more comfortable than I do with pension dollars being managed by Illinois' elected leaders.
MAYBE SOME PEOPLE CANNOT READ BETWEEN THE LINES. IF A UNION IS TO REPRESENT A GROUP OF PEOPLE DON'T YOU BELIEVE THEY SHOULD BE INVESTIGATING THIS GROUPS PENSION AND ASKING WHY IT IS PART OF A $83,000,000,000 DEBT ALSO. IT IS NO WONDER UNIONS ARE DIPPING BELOW 11% OF THE WORKFORCE. SPEAK TO THE MAJORITY OF THE YOUNG AND MENTION UNIONS AND THEY WILL LAUGH AT YOU.
THEY ALSO DO NOT WANT PART OF THEIR DUES TO BE DONATED TO A POLITICAL PARTY THEY DO NOT WANT TO SUPPORT, AND THEY DO NOT WANT TO PAY REPRESENTATION WHOM THEY ARE SMARTER THAN FOR THEIR ARCHAIC IDEAS WHICH ARE NOT FITTING INTO A GLOBAL MARKET. MAYBE SOMEONE WOULD LIKE TO EXPLAIN CATERPILLAR AND ITS UNION STATUS IN GENERAL AND JOLIET CATERPILLAR AND THE RECENT JOLIET LOCALS CONTRACT IN PARTICULAR. YOU MIGHT WANT TO START WITH THE TIER PAYMENT AGREEMENT SETTLED AT JOLIET YEARS AGO. THAT WAS HEADS UP REPRESENTATION.
When it comes to enforcing the environmental laws, I am not sure what anybody is expecting? Here is the way the EPA operates (or IEPA for RCRA, and I think CWA, CAA). The attorney general is not going to get involved with most problems, especially investigations. The agencies do that with their enforcement divisions. Politicians do very little to speed or hinder these investigations, so writing to them just keeps their staff busy. With the Clean Water Act, there are many more enforcement/legal options available, which is why it has been so effective.
Informal response. agencies can simply notify the source about its violation and request that it come into compliance, without taking any further formal legal action. They may request that the source operator certify in writing that it has come into compliance.
Formal administrative enforcement. government agencies can also issue an administrative order to compel compliance, and in many cases can administratively impose a monetary penalty for past infractions.
Formal civil/judicial enforcement. EPA, through the U.S. Department of Justice, can initiate a civil lawsuit in the federal courts against a violator. Such a lawsuit may seek a court order compelling compliance and imposing a monetary penalty. Civil lawsuits are more cumbersome than formal administrative enforcement proceedings, but carry greater weight since the courts can enforce their own orders more effectively than can EPA. Similar avenues are available to most of the state agencies.
Criminal enforcement. In egregious cases, such as a knowing and wilful violation, a criminal enforcement action can be initiated. The violator here runs the risk of being imprisoned.
6:54
I don't even know where to start to dissect your comment.
First off, part of what is wrong with the political system is that many politicians "do very little" in regard to addressing or acknowledging actual concerns of their constituents in their district and that is a problem. A wise politician appreciates all contact from their constituents (positive or negative) because that is a direct indication of the level of contentment of your voters which is in correlation to your job performance. Nobody is perfect (especially politicians) and if they do not receive negative feedback on occassion that is a concern in itself that perhaps people have lost faith in your abilities.
Second politicians SHOULD appreciate all correspondence from constituents because who better to relate issues in a community than those who live and work in that community? Sometimes politicians depend on legislative aids for assistance without a thorough review of the aids community involvement and this leads to biased agendas being addressed.
Regardless it is our duty as Americans to hold those
we elect accountable and our responsibility to play an active role by questioning, writing, and communicating our concerns with those who represent us. If fail to see the importance of this communication than you are part of the problem that is plaguing our political system.
Kristy
Kristy
You do not need to dissect my comment, especially since I agree with yours. I do not disagree that contacting the politicians SHOULD have effect, I was just stating my personal observations that they have had very little influence in moving environmental enforcement actions or investigations either to get them dropped or started.. I also applaud you letting them know.
They do get very involved in stopping effective environmental legislation though, and in funding and directing enforcement efforts at a higher level. They should never be let off the hook. I am just suggesting you hold some other feet to the fire within some different agencies if you want action on specific sites. For all I know you already have. Keep it up!
UNIONS RAN ALL THE BUSINESS OUT FROM NOT ONLY THIS AREA BUT THE WHOLE COUNTRY. THE GREATEST MAJORITY OF PEOPLE WORKING FOR UNIONS DON'T EVEN LIKE THEM. IT'S THE BLOOD SUCKING LEACHES THAT WRECK IT FOR EVERYONE (UNION HEADS, BA's, AND THE BIG MOUTH IDIOTS THAT WANT TO WORK THEIR WAY TO THE TOP FOR THAT LAZY BLOOD SUCKING JOB SO THEY CAN LIVE OFF OF EVERYONE ELSE AT THEIR EXPENSE.
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