Sample ballots were included in the News Tribune and were to have a proper and exact wording of the referendum regarding the At Large proposition to be voted on March 18.
I have not seen the ballot (don't get the paper) but was told it said To Redistrict the number of aldermen to six plus two at large. This is incorrect.
IT SHOULD READ SHALL PERU RESTRICT THE NUMBER OF ALDERMEN TO SIX WITH ONE ALDERMAN REPRESENTING EACH WARD, PLUS AN ADDITIONAL TWO ALDERMEN TO BE ELECTED AT LARGE?
We only have 4 wards in Peru which equals 4 Aldermen and we would elect 2 at large which equals a total of 6. (if initiative on the referendum is approved)
Currently we have 8 aldermen, 2 from each ward and none at large.
I understand that the County will correct the ballot.
68 comments:
Isn't it convenient for the local paper to improperly print something that is inaccurate. Especially something that the voters may be watching closely. Let's see how small a story they do on their correction, if they do one at all.
Euclid beverage in peru is on strike! Bad timing since st.pats is so close!
Anon 12:12 PM Mardi Gras is this week end. If beer sales are huge will the strike end in time to reload immediately. Bud L. is No1 seller anyhow.
The Miller products were such great sellers in this area on account of Tony Mautino who was good to everybody.
Euclid's business practices created by local top management has not won the Miller products any friends. Let's have a Bud.
How will this affect the concert at the airport?
See in the paper peru township getting website. They should have a comment section for taxpayers! TRANSPARECY!
voted absentee today. NO on both peru issues; pool and aldermen at large. JOIN me. Vote NO.
@4:51 your vote will be tossed out....Heard ballots will be tossed due to city clerk error
VOTE YES
6:42 WHAT? ANOTHER ERROR IN THE CITY OF PERU! ?
This was not the newspaper's fault. All ballots will be reprinted.
Voting NO.
Who is providing the funding for the initiative to change the city aldermen? I would NOT vote for something unless I understand completely who is behind and funding this. Thank you.
8:55 who you kidding? You don't plan on voting for it anyway. Hahaha
8:55 PM
Glad to be able to tell you that it is a group of local residents who are sharing the funding for this effort. Cost is being shared by a group of people hoping to make this government of Peru more responsible and responsive to its residents. There are no so called politicians or anyone from outside the area.
They are all responsible adults who are trying to make this a city we can be proud of as they are dedicated to Peru. Names are not important but the effort put forth most certainly is. No one is getting paid for their time or effort.
Wow city hall just can't catch a break. First they misplace Operation Prom funds, them boss Harl pays employees under the table , now they try and pull a fast one changing the wording on a referendum petition before it goes to election board. Wow!!
Please remember this: It's not the number of alderpersons, but the quality of them. You also didn't like the previous mayor and look at the buzz saw you got.
Why are the names of the people behind it not important?
10:08 PM
I understand and agree that quality is important. Just as we have a diminishing number of residents interested in and qualified to be in our government, we must face that realization head on. All around me I see my friends families that have left this town and in fact left La Salle County. Specifically I am speaking of their grown children who are now living out of town and maybe out of state raising their families elsewhere. What I mean is that the leaving is greater than those entering.
We expect a lot from our government and specifically to be focused, thoughtful and honest, always remembering they are not in their position to benefit themselves but to represent those in the community. It is time to reduce the size of the government here in Peru. It is no longer the horse and buggy days and our aldermen no longer walk through their ward talking to the residents. They don't know most of them and some residents don't even know who their aldermen are.
We need people dedicated to the city and the people they serve. We no longer need 8 ward aldermen serving a community of 10,000 and going down. This is now a time of needing a few good people to do the job of governing. Nothing ventured nothing gained. If you like the way Peru is now vote NO but if you are ready to try something already in place and working for other cities, be willing to step forward and say YES let's give this a try and see how it works.
Restrict..redistrict poor spelling will cause more legal issues for our city almost embarrassing that the certified copy wasn't check correctly
Who is paying for the reprinting of these ballots on a primary turnout is aweful but now you have to reprint the democrats republicans and non partisan ballots for very registered voter has to be 10,000 at least because you never know what they are gonna pick.
Will this spell a larger legal case for either side in future
Lois
What is your back up plan if this aldermen thing does not work out the way you all expect.
Let me be direct.
Lets say this passes and we are down to 6 aldermen. Then lets say that the current sitting aldermen all get re-elected, even your savior Rodney.
What will change in Peru?
Nothing. That is what I am hoping will happen.
I will still vote no, but I have a back up plan, electable candidates.
Good luck
Bob
P.S.
My wife, children, and neighbors are all voting no also.
Bob
Your comment regarding citizens leaving the area might be valid but the last census put Peru over 10k. It looks like the kids are leaving for jobs...and who wouldn't? Let's hope a prospective job producer doesn't see the Euclid picket line and be scared off. Heard on the police scanner pickets followed a Euclid driver who crossed the picket line and made deliveries. Nothing good comes from that.
The ballot is misleading and so are the signs.
The signs read vote for 2 at-large alderman. This is correct, however it leaves out that your eliminating 2 other alderman.
7:25 AM
You are voting no and that tells the rest of us that you are very content with the state of the city. If that is true, I do question your values. I know that there are many people in Peru who do not see the big picture, the changing demographics in the La Salle Peru area are a concern in the long term outlook of the city. Of course at this point we have not even been able to get the current group of aldermen to look into long term planning. I guess that must be how they run their personal lives also. WOW.
Last night< I heard a well known political commentator Jonathan Turley speak and how our representatives don't see the big picture of how our President is taking more authority upon himself than he should. The same thing we see here in Peru and neither our Congress or our Council appears to be able to take the reins of the government back to do what is right.
And you still think this is alright?
TO 6:42 You are wrong. One should Get the facts before spouting off. Nothing will be thrown out.
Lois
You did not answer my question.
You are as short sighted as the aldermen you complain about.
All you are seeing is getting this
passed, what is your long term plan if it does not pass. Or if the option I gave you happens?
You will take to your keyboard and cry foul, or bad mouth our current edministration.
Nothing will change.
Bob
Lois just because someone votes NO does NOT mean they are happy with the status quo. Someone asked earlier who is paying for this and behind it and you said the names are not important? What???
Sometimes the devil you know is better than the devil you don't know. You are seriously keeping the names behind this "movement" a secret?
Two alderpersons representing 10,000 people is NOT going to provide me with more representation. Whether I always agree with them or not I know who mine are and I can talk to them.
I love how you are only enlightened and an active citizen if you are with the anonymous bloggers and the anonymous people behind this campaign. How ironic is that?
I am a VERY informed citizen and I will be voting NO against the hidden agenda behind this. You don't change the structure of government permanently to get a few people you don't like out. If you don't like the people in, run yourself or vote someone else in the next time. Thanks for letting me share.
This newspaper stuff is ridiculous. They make errors and they will reprint it. It doesn't matter or change the outcome of the election.
Crazy, crazy talk on here. WHO IS BEHIND THIS?
Vote NO.
I have noticed that those signs supporting the referendum are the same homes that have had Harl for Mayor signs. The same old campaign manager that Harl had is putting up the big signs for the referendum to remove alderman. I suppose that those alderman that sent the Mayor to the State's Attorney are going to have some payback.
To Bob - You give yourself away BOB! You make it clear that you hope "nothing" will change. That is an indication that you are just part of the problem. You are against a referendum that will provide an opportunity for "wholesale" change in Peru aldermen and that scares the hell out of you because you are blindly satisfied with the sub-standard representation you get now. You have no clue how to move a city forward and you are happy with aldermen that do nothing of consequence to improve our city.
"YOU" Bob, and your un-informed wife, children, and neighbors are a big part of the problem that must be overcome. Being afraid of anything different than what you know is only proof of ignorance and backward thinking, Bob!
9:49 AM
Names of people who support this are NOT important, it is the idea that is important. When this is voted in, you will have the opportunity then to vote for people who will have names.
At that point you can make your decision as to whether you want the same people in office (yes you can vote for the same people currently in office as I am positive some of them, maybe all of them will run again)
A good possibility that some of the current ward aldermen will decide to run as an alderman at large. Also a good possibility that others not known at this time will run for some of the available seats.
This is an attempt by some savy people to move this city from the doldrums it is in and to bring in new ideas because the old sure as He double hockey sticks is not.
I REPEAT and I will mimic President Obama on this."If you like your old alderman you can vote for him"
We all know how tht turned out, don't we?
No one is telling anyone HOW to vote only that they have options and that is pretty unusual in this city. Some of you must be wearing the same coat you purchased in 1949 because your ideas have not changed.
Wow. No names, no faces, it's not important. Just support because some bloggers and Lois said so. This is transparency? And you quote Obama's campaign slogan to back up your case?
Sorry no one in my house is living in 1949 and there is nothing savvy about this. It is manipulation of the system to take out people who were elected fair and square. I can vote those people out. Nothing about what you are doing changes anything.
VOTE NO.
Sure 11:04 if you are against this you are uninformed right? Yet nothing about what has been proposed fundamentally changes anything. The people behind the proposed change are anonymous. Why?
I don't need MORE people representing me. I will hold my elected people accountable at the ballot box. I do not need anonymous people coming up with some plan to realign government because they could not get their own people elected the last time. That does NOT lead to better government.
People suggest to others to follow how they are going to vote, but people vote how they like at the booth. Simple!
11:04
How do you see 'wholesale' change by this referendum? I pose the same question to you I did to Lois.
What will you do if this referendum passes and you end up with the same aldermen and woman that are currently sitting on the council?
This would be like winning the battle but losing the war.
Your entire agenda hinges on getting your candidates voted into office if the referendum is passed.
So far the only candidate that your group of 10 to 15 people has been able to get elected was......
TaDa 'The honorable Mayor Scott Harl!'
I have never had a problem going to any aldermen or woman, in or outside my ward, and having them listen to me.
It is again your group of 10 to 15 people that are not getting any satisfaction from the alderpersons because they are tired of listening to you all whine and complain.
Everyone knows that this is on the primary ballot, because you know voter turn out is low, and it would be shot down in a real election year.
So, good luck with the battle.
I will look forward to the war at the polls at the real election, if it even passes.
P.S. Former Mayor Baker must not have been to impressed with this idea.
I observed him supervising a sign for the cause being taken down in front of his rental property on 251and SPR this morning.
Bob
To 9:49 am - Please tell me that you are not thinking this referendum is for only "2" aldermen. Please tell me that you are not that incredibly un-informed.
11:00 am,
You could not possibly be any further off the mark.
So, you have been keeping track of whose campaigns signs go in whose yards?
Really? What a queer thing for anybody to claim to know. Are you the person that also creeps around those yards on dark nights?
2:55 PM
Please put your reading glasses on, I have no candidate to support because I have no idea who will be running and neither do you.
I am not supporting any candidate, I am supporting an idea, a vision for a better Peru moving forward.
I could never convince you to analyze Peru and compare to other cities of similar size and know that yes we could do better because you have blinders on and nothing is so true about those who cannot see because they refuse to.
Is it any wonder that our children including mine and most of my friends have moved onto other cities and states that offer a better environment for them to live. Peru has lost several generations of bright intelligent people and many still refuse to see what is happening.
Sorry I cannot help you, there is none available for your conditiion.
VOTE YES!
We are a town of 10,000 +/-. Why do we need so many Alderman to represent such a small town?
I saw Witek stealing alderman signs today has someone called police on this
Mayor Baker is out stealing signs too . Cops were called on him too. He must be on boss Harl's payroll now.
Ex Mayor Baker is a Harl supporter. He ran as a ringer to get Harl in office. He wrote the book on how to run a ringer to split the vote.
Witek and baker working to protect Ferrari....I live in first ward can't we get someone better than 2 we have now?
A Reminder : A voter should be able to get a referendum ballot only without having to declare a political party by asking for a Republican or Democrat ballot.
To those like myself who will or have voted NO , thank God.
To Lois and her cohorts wanting to make a difference I say to stay out of it but to only make the change at the ballot box. even then Look what was done to CHANGE THE WAY PERU WILL WORK, you all supported Harl and Now YOU SAY , I am sorry for the mess we created? When will that wrong be righted? Probably NEVER.
Pathetic. This is absolutely pathetic. Secrecy and NO transparency. VOTE NO!
I heard Baker was supporting this cause it was Waldorf and Ferrari who supported Harl in last election I heard he is funding whole campaign!
Its sad and desperate when signs are placed in yards without the permission of the property owner. You wonder about how ethical a candidate would be if they place a sign without the property owners permission? How would that same person handle elected resposibilities?
10:00 AM
Personally I think that a renter should e able to place a sign of his choice in the yard of the property he pays money to live in.
I think it is really petty for any landlord to remove or ask the renter to remove the sign. It is usually because the landlord has a bitch with the reason for the sign. If we are talking about the sign on Shooting Park Rd, we all know the property you are referring to and it is a petty act on the part of the landlord.
Driving around town most people don't know who is renting and who is not. On the other hand an owner of multiple properties in favor of the sign will offer all of his rentals for sign placement. Evens out.
@10:00 am too bad you have no clue
PERU --- THE BIGGEST JOKE OF THE ILLINOIS VALLEY!!!!!
This isn't even funny when supposedly a former mayor and/or former aldermen are removing a sign from a rental property of one of them because they don't like them. What does this say? Honorable? How low are we sinking in this city? Where is our integrity?
Who the hell ever voted for witczek he is a henchman for the former mayor
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled in the past that political signs are protected free speech...in this instance the landlord can not decide who sign is up unlessspecifically governed by the lease. Mostly applies to condos and apartment communities.
The law is on the renters side in this situation and removal of the sign is theft...if the landlord wanted the sign removed he would have to gain permission from the tenant as spelled out in the lease and remove it. But forcibly removing the sign is theft.
The renter who ok to have the sign in yard should file
A lawsuit against those who took sign. In the court system one can file a lawsuit for anything. Those who actuall saw sign being stolen should write a letter to the editor.
Mayor Baker removed a sign from his rental property. Ha! He lost, and now he shows himself as a loser. How petty. I think it shows that he's worried that the referendum will pass. The renters in that property should sue him. He has no right to remove that sign, unless it is specifically stated in the lease. Maybe the renter should move the at large sign closer to Kinsinger's sign! Vote YES!!!!!
That is 100% illegal for Baker to do. I've never seen a lease signed by renters that specified a signage clause. . Mr.Baker, shame on you, I thought highly of you. Why would you put a mark on yourself by doing that?
I would be fully aware of clauses in a contract before I would question a property owner what he can and cannot do with his own property. Normally you are renting a home and not the rights to erect signage. Observing the location the sign was placed I would think that the property owner is 100% within his rights to erect or take down signage placed.
Whether a property owner has a right to take down signage or not, it sure makes Baker look like a small pathetic man.
Attention all those against "Laying Off" two aldermen and "Shaking Up" the current council structure even if only a little bit. There is only one statement that you should consider to help you understand how you "should" vote on the At-Large issue.
WHAT THE HELL DO YOU HAVE TO LOSE?
VOTE YES! CONSIDER WHAT YOU HAVE AND ASK YOUSELF AGAIN.
WHAT THE HELL DO YOU HAVE TO LOSE?
WHAT DO WE HAVE TO LOSE 7:43???
REPRESENTATION, THAT'S WHAT!
QUESTION: Who is more accessible to you? Your TWO U.S. Senators or your ONE U.S. Congressman?
Answer: Your ONE congressman! You can set up a meeting with him or attend his meetings when he is in town. Your TWO Senators are far away and untouchable. Try to schedule a meeting with one of them and see how that goes!
WHY? Because they represent an entire state, not just a specific area.
The SAME logic applies here on a smaller scale. Most of our aldermen are working people who have jobs and I don't want to replace what I have with one who represents 10,000 people and is only accessible to me the same amount of time.
This is NOT better representation! IF you don't like who was elected in your ward, vote for someone else. We should NOT change the governance structure because of WHO is in office now. This makes NO sense! You need THREE people representing you in a city council? This is somehow better and more efficient???
ALSO ASK YOURSELF.......WHO is behind this? Who is financing the referendum? You don't think there is self interest here? HA HA! Funny!
In a previous post Lois told us that it doesn't matter who is behind it. What? Seriously? It's a SECRET? Who are they and what do they have to gain? Remember, these are the same people that brought you Mayor Harl!
Argue with me. Tell me I am wrong but try to do it without talking about the current people in office.
THEY are temporary. The CHANGE is permanent.
Anon 7:43 AM You understand the "KISS Method of Management" to its fullest and why and how to implement it.
"KISS" - Keep It Simple Stupid"
A YES vote will pay huge dividends in the future of Peru. The vote of "YES" in a short period of time will prove that you had nothing to lose and everything to gain.
To 8:44 am. We have nothing to lose by supporting the referendum.
The reason for that is becuase we do not need 8 aldermen. This is proven by the fact that only 2committees actually meet and those 2 committees oversee more than 90% of all city business. So 4 aldermen are relegated to committees that do little or nothing. This is a fact that you should be man or woman enough to acknowledge. At least half (4) of the current council contributes absolutley nothing more than coming to regular meetings to cast a vote. Peru can only benefit from anything that has a chance to encourage more competition for these aldermenic seats.
Plus, don't forget that every voter will be able to vote for 3 aldermen if the referendum passes.
That's a full 50% of the entire council. That puts a tremendous amount of power right where it belongs, in the hands of the voters. This is a No-Brainer.
Sorry 3:43 pm. Your points are invalid because your argument boils down to protecting those currently in office and that is wrong.
By the way, it is no secret that the supporters of the referendum are Peru residents who are working for, and funding the effort themselves with no ties to local special interests. That's more than 7 of the 8 current aldermen can say as they have proven to be in the bag for TEST and Chamlin & Associates.
8:44 PM
Your posting is illogical!
Since both my Senators and my Representative are in Washington DC and actually when I am expressing a view on a topic which they would be responsible for voting on, I have always contacted by Senator by email.
Actually I am more likely to contact my state senator on state matters and have never contacted my local representative. My senator is more accessible with an office here in Peru close to my residence.
Again I would prefer an at large alderman with issues here in Peru. My aldermen do NOT currently represent me and it has been many many years since the ward has had one who did.
Anon 11:51 Just thinking back to how many years it has been and who I remember as a true representative. Time flies but I always remember Alderman Frank S. to be a real Frank on the Spot with the ability to get things done in Ward One. May God rest his soul, he was such a good man and a real alderman. Do you think that their is anyone out there that would have enough interest in this ward to replace him some day?
8:44 you totally changed my mine. I mean how will I EVER see or get a hold of those two at large Aldermen. They could be WAY over by the igloo while I am at the Mall. They might not see my smoke signal.
There is no limit to the stupid when it comes to protecting the past here.
8:44 am - Of course there is self-interest. I support the referendum becuase I want my self-interest represented by capable and tough aldermen who have a damn clue and good ethics. I see only one current alderman that fits that bill and I want a chance to vote for more. With the referendum I will at the very least have 3 votes in 2015 to cast for aldermen.
Now that is exciting.
Read on the trib web-site a very nice article explaining this referendum. It was written by Mr. Mike Hart as a letter to the editor. Please, voters of Peru, read this article and talk to people involved in this process before you vote. Then make your decision. Get informed.
Anon 8:44 I would find it interesting to witness a vote of 4-2 or 3-3 rather than the traditional, directed and mandatory 7-1. I also have self interest. I also support the referendum because I want my self-interest represented by capable and tough aldermen who have a damn clue and good ethics.
Wouldn't it be great to have 6 individual, free thinkers who stand on their own two feet. I am all in favor of changing to 6 leaders rather than 7 followers and handing these 6 the means and responsibilities of leading. I definitely will vote YES March 18, 2014.
To the person who does not know what he is talking about, I will say to them that the infrastructure committee was dissolved by Mayor Harl when he didn't like solutions and comments by those who know and understand infrastructure better than he ever will. No one was ever removed from it, Mayor Harl refused to gather the group together for meetings.
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