Health care and scares? Board appointments? The future of downtown? The future of government jobs that threaten to outpace the private sector in salary and bennies?
Have at it. Use this thread to discuss your current local concerns until I can put up a new post later today.
Last year friends visited during Christmas and we went downtown for dinner. They were bowled over by how nice downtown looked all decorated and with the tree at the station and the Santa House. It’s a spirit lifter when outsiders compliment like that.
The last article reminded me about that.
I would like to see a company sponsor the tree lighting ceremony this season. I think the Sara Lee Christmas Tree lighting ceremony has a nice ring to it! I wonder if the EDC would look into this. Instead of an angel on top of the tree we could get Sara Lee to put a huge Sara Lee sign on top of it, so that all of Orchard brook could see it! (just kidding Orchard brook)
Chad, the tree is probably in the downtown chamber or special events domain. But good idea. I do know that the Octoberfest the Rotary Club usually puts on was canceled because of the lack of business support. Really, not enough business support. Everyone is wathchng their dollars.
Looking forward to the kids restaurant weekend in Downers. Lots to choose from Saturday night!!
How about the Police Department eases back on the “click it or ticket” campaign and spends some time educating/citing people that don’t pull over for emergency vehicles! How do these people get a drivers license???? Three times this week alone I saw fire and police vehicles responding to calls with lights and sirens blaring, and people just ignore them! What if it was YOUR relative in that ambulance people!! MOVE OVER… it’s NOT rocket science!
$25 to $26mm for two new football/track/field and Stadium seating for our two highschools….OUCH.
In Houston Tx, they have much larger districts, say like 1/4 of DuPage County would be one highchool district….And they have ONE mega facility like the one at Benedictine University. Indoor and Outdoor and High quality. It turned out to be the most economical way to build everyone a facility that they wanted (top notch), without repeating it on each campus six or seven times. VERY economical and VERY high end. Has our 99 District given any thought to producing ONE utilitarian facility for both schools so that we don’t have to be so repetitive on costs?
I would love an answer to this one DGLifer. Do you have to stop for an emergency vehicle if you are on the opposite side of the road? If the emergency vehicle is traveling east and you are traveling west why would all the traffic going west come to a halt? Just wondering. Here is IL state law.
————————————————————————-
Emergency Vehicles
When approaching a stationary emergency vehicle using visual signals, Illinois law requires motorists to yield, change to a lane away from the emergency vehicle, and proceed with caution. If a lane change is not possible, reduce speed and proceed with caution.
When being approached by an emergency vehicle using audible and visual signals, Illinois law requires motorists to immediately pull to the right side of the road and wait for the emergency vehicle to pass. If stopped at an intersection with two-way traffic, remain stopped until the emergency vehicle passes.
If a driver fails to yield to an emergency worker or vehicle, and that failure results in a crash where an emergency worker is injured or killed, the driver may lose his/her driving privileges for a minimum of 90 days.
————————————————————————–
I don’t see in that law that if you are on the opposite side of the emergency vehicle you have to pull over and STOP. The law seems pretty vague. Either way I don’t see the need to pull over especially in a 4 lane roadway or 2 lane divided roadway.
DGDAD,
I have to respectfully disagree with you. I think the identity of the school itself is compromised then. High school is about pride and school spirit. If you ship the football teams off to a central stadium you take that pride away. Not to mention the other outdoor sports get screwed by not getting a new facility. I think a total remodel of both out door facilities is well over due. It is sad in an affluent community that we let our infrastructure fail so miserably. I was at the mud bowl last night at DGN and I was embarrassed!! Where is our pride? We need new state of the art fields for football, new tracks for cross country and track and upgraded baseball and softball fields.
Here is an unpopular idea.(cuz I love those ideas) Maybe the teachers could take one for the team next contract and prove to us that they have the best interests of the kids in mind. If you froze teacher, staff and administrative salaries for one contract you could save a fortune! Since teachers salaries and benefits are not affected by this down economy they are not hurting as much as most of us.
Anyone who would like to debate me on this please stay away from the our high quality schools is what keeps our home values so high. That is not true in this economy and that is proven. Try a new tactic. Think outside the proverbial box on this one like I am. Have at it socky puppets!! LOL
Are high school teams supposed to have state of the art facilities? They’re football crazy in Texas but know enough that each school can’t have thier own stadium.
If the our outdoor football facilities were state of the art and had turf with a great concession area maybe the school district could lease it out during the summer and times when the high school is not using it. It could be an income generator instead of a depreciating asset. Maybe during the summer you could host concerts, summer leagues, sports clinics or what ever. I am just thinking out loud here. We are always looking for alternative sources of revenue. This could be one.
If you saw the field at last night’s 50 – 6 drubbing of DGN, you’d think they were playing in a front lot of a teardown home. The entire field from 20 yard line to 20 yard was mud/dirt. Absolutely no grass to be seen. So, the girls and boys soccer teams as well as the next couple of games for the football teams get to play on mud/dirt.
I’d like the school districts to develop those fields, but in turn open it up to the village. Sure they would have priority, but allow youth football, soccer, lacrosse time on those fields. If the majority of kids in the youth leagues are DG residents, then I think a managed field would work in everyone’s best interest.
CW,
we need to start thinking a bit more creatively rather than traditionally… Shared facilities are the way of the future….
The Youth football teams already use Dorehoffer’s artificial turf, so to rent it out to them would be redundant. At $25 to 26 mm, we better start thinking outside the box rather than….OH well it is what it is… Shared, HIGH END…I am talking brick, concrete type of stands, high end electronic scoreboards. You can have one end zone painted Trojans and one painted Mustangs. What you could get combining, you could never get by themselves. Other states are way out in front of this. But honestly I don’t think 99 will have the creativity, nor courage to combine into one Mega facility. That’s all I’ll say on it. Its already happening other places.
Ok DAD, I see your point. If you go with the one mutual stadium idea and you could pull off a state of the art stadium facility it could work. It would have to be big. Something that would create pride for both schools and the community. Where would it be built? You couldn’t build it on either existing site. It would have to be on a neutral site. The only other thing to take under consideration is that you would have to work the schedules and you may have to put one team on Friday night and one on Saturday morning. I am warming up on this idea, but not totally sold yet.
I am not saying all answers to the question are there…just trying to get someone to start talking about it…I saw it done in another state’s school district and it was awesome.
“When being approached by an emergency vehicle using audible and visual signals, Illinois law requires motorists to immediately pull to the right side of the road and wait for the emergency vehicle to pass. ”
I would imagine they don’t care if Mr. Chad doesn’t see the point. You have no idea where the emergency vehicle is going … maybe they’ll turn in the street you’re about to pass… maybe the cars in front of them can’t move and they need your lane to drive. Sometimes it isn’t about you (or me for that matter) and we just have to play the way the rules are written.
My high school never had its own stadium. In my dad’s day they held football games and track meets at a local public stadium/ baseball field (which happened to also be the home of the Rockford Peaches later memorialized by “A League of Their Own”).
By the time I was a student, the school board had built a new stadium at another district school, which my school shared. I don’t recall any negative feelings about it, even though everyone from our school had to drive or be driven there.
Games were always on Friday nights — our home games were held during their away games, etc.
Chad… I believe ALL traffic is supposed to stop unless it is a “divided” highway. I will call the police department Monday morning and get the correct answer and post it here!
I called a friend who is an officer and he verified that unless its a divided hwy you should pull to the right and stop. I pull over anyway even though I feel it can be dangerous to do so sometimes. I have almost been rear ended twice this year alone on main street DG by the Jewel on 63rd.
Drivers ignore emergency vehicles and crosswalks! How about some crosswalk ticketing – downtown is terrible, drivers ignore the signs and blow past you. The righth and turn heading east in front of the post office is also terrible – no one stops they float thru right on the heels of the pedestrians trying to cross. I had a car mirror bump my tote bag as she flew past as I was still crossing. Everyone is on the phone and in a hurry.
Thank you Judy Biggert for your hard work on this very important bill! Wasting tax payer dollars needs to stop and this organization needs to be put out of business!!
U.S. Rep. Judy Biggert, R-Hinsdale, recently introduced legislation, the Suspend ACORN Certification Act, aimed at preventing the misuse of public resources designated for federally approved housing counseling activities.
“It’s abundantly clear that ACORN and its affiliates cannot be trusted as a federally certified entity,” said Biggert, a senior member of the House Financial Services Committee. “Given the group’s clear links to illegal and inappropriate activities, how can we knowingly give them federal certification to divert precious resources from legitimate housing counselors working overtime to help struggling homeowners?”
Currently, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development certifies qualified housing counseling agencies, allowing them to access federal counseling grants and leverage other state, local, and private resources using their HUD-approved status.
The funds are intended to provide current and prospective homeowners with no- or low-cost guidance and advice on buying or selling a home, navigating complex financial transactions and mortgages, and avoiding foreclosure now or down the road.
Among those organizations approved by HUD is the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), which has been repeatedly linked to organized voter fraud and more recently made headlines after ACORN employees were videotaped providing advice for criminal tax evasion.
The SAC Act would suspend the certification and funding of housing counseling activities under ACORN and its affiliates pending a comprehensive audit by the HUD inspector general. The audit would examine the use of HUD funds by ACORN and its affiliates — including state chapters and organizations sharing staff, directors and finances.
“The IRS and Census Bureau have already cut ties with ACORN,” said Biggert. “It’s time for HUD to do the same. It’s the responsible thing to do. Those who go to a HUD-approval counselor for help with their personal finances shouldn’t have to question the integrity or political bias behind the advice they receive. Let’s let the inspector general do his job and shed some much-needed sunlight on how these public funds are being used.”
According to a minority staff report by the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, ACORN has received more than $53 million in direct federal funding since 1994. Furthermore, the group has likely received substantially more indirectly through states and localities that receive federal block grants.
Kelly reminded me of something I’d love to tell the new moms and nanny’s of Downers Grove:
When you are walking your child in a stroller, hang up the phone. Children learn speech development from you. When you are taking a walk, talk to your child not your phone! Passive speech doesn’t count!
It breaks my heart when I’m driving and see these caregivers on the phone ignoring their charges. This is the most important part of your child’s life.
(thanks for the chance to vent!)
sh
That is a great point! I would like to add Ipods to that piece of advice too!
ouch. I only speak about things I know. You don’t hear me talking about football fields, or healthcare, or budgets. It was my understanding that is what this thread was for.
A special thanks to the volunteers, teachers and that amazing DJ/MC who organized and staffed the Daddy Daughter Dance last Friday night in Lincoln center. As Frank once sang, it was a lovely way to spend an evening. Thanks everyone!
I have vented on this blog many a time sh, have at it!
Sorry, Sh. I had no intention of posting that comment and had spiked it as soon as it came in. Somehow it got lost in the next bunch of comments and I approved it by mistake. It’s gone now. Personal attacks don’t get to see the light of day. Sorry for my snafu.
BTW, I did a column about the excessive and questionable use of cell phones four years ago after catching myself bicycling down the street with the cell phone clamped to my ear.
I asked some friends for their input and one offered this comment about strolling-pushing moms: “What could be a great opportunity to communicate, point out trees and animals and buildings, is wasted because they’re talking to someone else.”
However, my favorite anecdote was provided by a friend who saw a father and daughter riding their horses on a California beach: “I couldn’t believe it — on a horse, on a beach and on his phone!”
Just some info that I got in the email bin today. I guess the people bank rolling the Democratic party are getting scared!! Read this propaganda they are passing around.
Dear MoveOn member,
All year, FOX has worked 24/7 to block President Obama’s agenda—repeating lies about “death panels,” promoting Tea Party protests, and whipping up fake political scandals.1
Now, President Obama is fighting back. The White House communications director said FOX is a “wing of the Republican Party…let’s not pretend they’re a news network.”2 To draw attention to its biased coverage, President Obama will not appear on FOX for the rest of this year.3
It’s about time Democrats stood up to FOX! Can you sign this petition asking Democrats to support President Obama’s stance by staying off FOX as long as he does? We’ll deliver it to Sen. Burris and Sen. Durbin. Clicking here will add your name:
The petition says: “Democrats should support President Obama’s effort to call out FOX. Please stay off FOX for as long as he does.”
Democrats often appear on FOX in hopes of reaching out to conservative viewers. But FOX cuts off their mic, distorts what they say, or runs biased headlines at the bottom of the screen.4 In the end, Democrats always lose on FOX.
FOX insists there’s a difference between its news shows and its right-wing opinion shows with Glenn Beck, Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, and others.
But in August, FOX’s so-called news shows “aired 22 clips of town hall meeting attendees opposed” to Obama’s health care plans and zero in support. CNN and MSNBC were more fair and balanced.5
In another “news” story, FOX passed off a GOP press release as its own research—typo and all.6
FOX executives now describe the channel as “the voice of opposition” to Obama’s agenda. FOX president Roger Ailes—a former adviser to Nixon, Reagan, and George H.W. Bush—said, “I see this as the Alamo.”7
But a Capitol Hill newspaper reports, “In the House and Senate, Democrats who pledged to follow the administration’s near-boycott of Fox were hard to find, although many expressed support for Obama’s stance.”8
Democrats will only find the courage to join Obama if they hear from enough concerned voters. Sign this petition to ask Sen. Burris and Sen. Durbin to stay off FOX.
Thomas Jefferson, you have just moved into the pantheon of Art Jaros posters. Love the media op/ed.
Hey, I hope Art’s doing well these days.
Chad, quoting your quote; “When being approached by an emergency vehicle using audible and visual signals, Illinois law requires motorists to immediately pull to the right side of the road and wait for the emergency vehicle to pass.”
It does not specify if approaching from behind or head on. Just pull over.
I have had to make evasive maneuvers several times because people pull out either in front of me or at me from the side because they either don’t see/hear our rigs or just figure, like you appeared to in your 1st post, that they don’t NEED to stop. I know you stated in your second response on this subject that you do pull over, but the point is that everyone needs to move over.
As a rreminder, when you do move over, it’s TO THE RIGHT. For some reason, on Ogden especially, people LOVE pulling into the median/turn lanes to get out of our way. Please stop doing that! That’s our escape route if somebody pulls out in front of us.
Drive safe, hang up your phone!
Thanks Zig, good advice. Still think the law is vague and should be updated to be more clear. Any lawyer could talk his/her way out of that one easy. Either way my driving record speaks for itself. I have no violations on my record in almost 20 years. Been pulled over but 2x. Both supervision.
Since living here, we’ve often wondered how some Main Street storefronts stay in business and what draw they hold for the community. Muriel Mundy, for example, seems so out of place and yet, it remains viable. A real estate company commands prime storefront. And the number of Italian restaurants, within walking distance, begs questions of planning and vision. And yet, we also know that economics plays a role and the market will eventually force what’s working and what’s not.
Looking ahead, I’m hoping that there’s more communication with the community about what’s wanted and needed … and perhaps less let’s-get-it-in-here-because-we-need-to-fill-storefront-and-show-that-something-is-getting-done strategy. The latter is short-sighted and will eventually prove more costly. I’m all for getting it right the first time and building a Main Street that we can all support.
Going out on a limb has valid points but what struck me was the last statement,”..a Main St. we can all support.” The problem is our community needs to support our Main St. businesses. Yes it costs more to shop locally but when I buy a book at Andersons I know that my money is going to help support Downers through sales tax going back into the Village, creating local jobs and supporting local business owners, and of course supporting a business that gives back to the community. Money spent at Amazon or Barnes and Noble will never get me all of those benefits. If Downers residents want a vibrant,diverse downtown then they need to support one.
Exactly.
I know I can get that bottle of wine for a few dollars cheaper at Sam’s or Binny’s but I would rather walk down to the Cellar Door.
Re T.Karam’s comment – Isn’t Barnes and Noble in Downers Grove (although not on Main Street)? I consider it local. (I shop at Anderson’s too, but not exclusively. Each book store has its strengths.)
We actually support downtown businesses at every turn; not a week passes when we’re not buying something from Anderson’s. But with perhaps a more strategic vision, Main Street can morph into a destination location for more than residents, who live within walking distance. I’ll drive to LaGrange just to support a bakery and a Thai restaurant; because owners rent, there’s an incentive for quality. They’re not there simply because they own the building. Granted, LaGrange benefits by a broad tax base and financing, different from Downers. We like Downers. A lot.
That said, perhaps we should voice our thoughts about it more often, yet it seems that we’re met with a let’s-stay-positive-and-things-are-getting-done response than an honest conversation that yes, there are different ways to approach planning and that it’s not personal. It seems many are entrenched in their roles as officials or representatives and that new voices are heard with an internal rolling of the eyes … that only leads to apathy and business as usual. This conversation, actually, reminds that going out on a limb should happen more often. Thanks for your thoughts.
You know I was reading in the latest Reporter Newspaper that both North and South has failed to meet NCLB national standards among minority/disabled students. There are restructuring plans that are in place at South. North will be working on one soon. Seems to me the problem is not with how we are teaching the students. The real problem is motivation and support at home. It is seen a not cool in some social circles to be successful at school. That is what needs to change not the teaching methods. Our teachers are doing just fine!
My brother is a youth prison guard in St. Charles, IL. The population at this facility is majority made up of minority children. He tells me stories of how the kids he deals with have no moral fortitude, no motivation to get an education and no real supervision at home. He sees a lot of good in some of them but this good is smashed by peer pressure to be a thug or criminal. This is unfortunate but sadly true. It is time for America to wake up and realize that there are socioeconomic factors that are very powerful and influence our children. Its those factors that we need to change. I think that certain minorities do a better job of stressing education than others. I liken it to the immigrants who moved here years ago. You got a job as early as your could to make money for the family. That is still true today in some families. I think the focus should be on re-educating the families on the importance of education rather than the students. The major hurdle with any plan of this magnitude is that you need the cultures to buy off on the idea. We also have to realize that the number of students we are actually restructuring our whole educational system for is fairly small. Also, on those standardized tests minority students can be double counted in the low income students or even disabled students. So the numbers are padded some to the negative. There really aren’t that many kids in these minority groups doing that poorly. It only takes an handful to throw the numbers off. NCLB doesn’t work and should be thrown out. The tutoring offered by the district is great and very much needed, but if the parents are not reinforcing the importance of an education at home it doesn’t matter what we do as a school system. We need a national education plan that focus’s on support at home.
Chad,
I tackled the back-story on this issue a month ago, which backs up some of the points you make:
http://www.dgreport.com/index.php/2009/09/21/a-moving-target/
Thomas Jefferson… are you happy with the results of 8 years of GOP rule ?? Why should anyone appear on FOX ??? Even their local Ch. 32 can’t construct an accurate map. Their weather map shows an I-390 in place of I-355. Will this “Amy Freeze” person ever fix it ?? I bet this stays messed up for months.
Thanks EJ I will take my crusade to that post!!
Don’t know if anyone noticed. Chicago is looking at every asset as a possible privitazation sale to plug its leaky ship. This includes the water system. What is our risk of increased water rates if they sell it?
FoxNews is the only channel who gets it right! The others just wag the dog!!
Everybody panic!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091024/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama_swine_flu
According to fearless leader it’s a pandemic and they are running 90% behind on vaccines. Good work guys, with this kind of leadership and results, health care should be a piece of cake.
If Daley sells our water supply to a private for profit company there’s no risk rates will go up-it’s a certainty.
The good news is that the parking meter sale went well……
When there is no extravaganza, where can I recycle batteries and water filters (fridgr and pitcher)….?
I’d be interested to hear what other Dist 58 parents think of the new “grading” system enacted in the elementary schools? A recent information meeting ran over two hours and parents still had questions.
Post on this is coming soon. Had an interesting exchange with one of those parents.
I recall reading an article about the new report card system a while back and if I remember correctly the district spent a large sum of money on this new report card. Do you have any figures on what this cost the district, Elaine?
Wheaton, among other respected school districts, have been using the standards based evaluation for students. It appears proven, albeit, very different than what we all grew up with. Making teachers work a bit harder though. Not a bad thing.
I like the idea of tracking student progress in relation to standards. My only concern is the standards themselves. Maybe national standards is not the way to teach? Just a thought.
Chad-
Are you serious about FoxNews? I agree that most mainstream media is garbage, but FoxNews is a joke. To call themselves “Fair and balanced” is nowhere near the truth. It is one sided conservative baloney that college that are highly respected in journalism (NU, etc.) have been using as an example of what not to do for about a decade.
Their constant mistakes and attacks (often racial) are listed at the following website:
http://mediamatters.org/
Not Sure,
I am so tired of the poor argument spawned by the liberal leaning fringe media. Everythingâ??s racial with us conservatives isnâ??t it. The Dems are the most racist group of people on the planet. Martin Luther King himself was a registered Republican. The KKK was created by southern Dems who didnâ??t want blacks to be equal under our laws. Guess who freed the slaves…Republicans(conservatives). Guess who voted overwhelmingly for equal rights for blacks, Republicans. Here is the vote on the civil rights act of 1964.
The Senate version:
Democratic Party: 46-21 (69%-31%)
Republican Party: 27-6 (82%-18%)
The Senate version, voted on by the House:
Democratic Party: 153-91 (63%-37%)
Republican Party: 136-35 (80%-20%)
Dems even filibustered this bill to try to defeat it. The real party who fights for the peopleâ?¦all people is Republican.
Come back to me when you have your facts straight. Thank you come again.
Here is a link to re-educate all you Dems out there. Donâ??t believe the Obama hype!
http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=16500
4 lanes open on 355! Wow, what an improvement. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you Tollway Authority! Next step is to remove the tollbooths and dissolve the tollway authority – this would be a good chance to go out at a highwater mark. Well, you could finish 88, too.