John Acardo told the audience at last night’s candidates forum at the Egyptian Theatre that only 238 early votes have been cast for the entire county so far for the April 5th Consolidated Elections. He told me in a brief conversation during the meet and greet session that the state board of elections was downgrading their voter turnout projections statewide to 17% of registered voters.
So that means 83% of registered voters think things are just running along fine and dandy? Then what’s all this talk about high taxes, layoffs and service cuts?
Tonight’s candidate forum, also held at the Egyptian Theatre, will focus on the 11 candidates seeking four seats on the District 428 Board of Education. The district is wrestling with a $1.4 million budget deficit. The tax rate for debt service from the $110 million referendum is spiraling upward as repayment projections based on new growth demographics now must be met by those of near 10% unemployment and 1100 vacant homes due to historic levels of foreclosures.
This new school board will decide how the district will spend $21 million in surprise grant money — or whether to soften what could be a death blow to taxpayers. They will negotiate a new contract with the district’s collective bargaining units. They will likely asked for solutions to more cuts from state and federal revenue sources. They may even face consolidations mandated by the state.
This evening’s forum begins with a meet and greet at 6pm. If there are some tough questions you’d like asked of the candidates its probably best to show up early for the meet and greet and ask them directly. The formal forum begins at 7pm.
Voter turnout in this election may well determine how much longer the economy remains in the tank and perhaps how much longer many families will stay in their homes. Local politicians are half-right when they say the economy is a national problem. It is a national problem because so many communities are suffering from tax rates too high to raise and revenues to low to sustain. The fix is from the bottom up and that starts with Tuesday, April 5th.
Vote.
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7 Comments
Thank you again Ivan, for summarizing our continuing tailspin into the land of undesirability. As painful as it is to read, it all must be considered when making choices when going to the polls. It certainly isn’t pretty is it? I equate it to eating lead paint chips. It’s not the one that kills you, it’s piece by piece that we’re forced to swallow until we arrive at where we’re at now.
While I won’t go so far as to say that one doesn’t have the right to complain if you don’t vote, an opinion doesn’t have the same weight if you didn’t at least take the time to show up to the polls. And for those who say you still don’t have a right to any opinion unless you’ve run for office or shown up to every meeting concerning a particular matter, by that logic you can’t criticize any policy from the president on down unless you’ve tossed your hat in the ring. Which of course, is absurd.
Lastly, opinions are the last thing Mr. Bertrand wants to hear, from anyone.
I like how Bertrand Simpson even stated that he wishes more people would walk up to him and other aldermen in a grocery store and talk to them about city matters. Yeah right! He can’t handle it when he is in council chambers he probably would have constituents arrested for bothering him. I wonder if that statement garnered a chuckle from the crowd.
Mr. Simpson is not running a campaign. He’s on a “Stuff Not to Blame Me For” tour.
You can hear the complete audio from last night’s DeKalb aldermadic debate here: (1 hr and 3 mins)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lF0jbHaG_ds
My Favorite part of the forum is when First ward incumbent Ald Bertrand Simpson referred to his constituents as those who” “rant and rave”. Nice way to earn votes
I agree with everything Mr. Krpan said. I used to think like you Mac – that anyone who didn’t vote should just sit down and shut up. I couldn’t understand why people didn’t realize, like me, that the local elections were actually the most important. Then the last 7-8 years happened. I watched the city council approve developments; tax abatements to developers and businessmen, etc. etc. and our financial picture got worse and worse. Then the school referendum passed. It’s a commendable thing, running for local office. But DeKalb is in dire need of some professional people on the council and the school board who understand contracts, and spread sheets and TIF etc., etc.
I know what it is Mac. People in general have now just settled in with this fact. “You can’t beat City Hall”, and they just may be right. Here are some local examples;
1. School board and referendums.
A. 1st referendum was a NO vote. Dr. Ali still spends $1 million for useless land
B. Last referendum was so full of misinformation that it truly warranted looking
at a redo vote. Since it won, no way. If it would not have passed, we would
have had another one looking at us.
C. School board could have been more responsible and not overbuilt the new
if they just stepped back and refigured their plans with the new updated
numbers regarding declining enrollments, dead halt in housing, and
possibly what will certainly be one of the worst if not worst economic
depressions this country has seen.
D. Plans to spend the $21.6 million grant given to 428 instead of easing the
tax burdens local property owners will now endure due to all other planned
revenue streams promised voters now gone or in negative numbers (EAV)
E. Closing of neighborhood elementary schools and staff because of projected
shortfalls in operating dollars. Closing schools and not able to adequately
staff essential maintenance staff for new $88 million dollar high school.
Great way to start off protecting this huge and costly community investment
F. Spending over $3 million of referendum dollars for a football stadium
promised publicly numerous times to be only built with donated community
dollars. 160 meter indoor track expanded to 200 meter.
G. Saddest part would be that when the new high school opens Fall/2011 there
will be over 1,400 seats empty. How many lockers is that? How many seats
In the commons? Parking spaces? How many basketball courts will remain
unused or will a rotation be used? How many square feet will be
unnecessarily heated, air conditioned, lighted, and cleaned?
H. Heck, can’t even get the district staff to properly mount and operate the
Hydrogen Sufide Meter at the new Cortland Gade School. Why is it on the
ceiling? Should be at childrens face height and helps to be turned on.
How about city hall allowing for idiocy spending on pavered brick parking lots and
sidewalks and then paying premium dollars for winter snowcare. Sidewalk to nowhere, synthetic ICE skating rink (now hidden somewhere). Purchasing of countless properties for a new police station. Maybe we can sell some off now, oops not worth anywhere near now to what taxpayer dollars purchased them for. How about the city buying houses and businesses, paying for tenants to move out just so they could be knocked down never to collect rent from that point.
How about the mayor not willing to investigate under the table contracts for work performed by a former alderman (Wogen-gate), hiring of retired city employees without approval from council to even establish the position, department, or even worst yet, an ordinance.
Mayor and councils refusal to take accountability for Library raising taxes and entering into a contract for purchase of property all behind closed doors. How about how then States Attorney botched his responsibilties and basically ignored the closed meetings violations and sweeping it under the rug. How about this……
A local lead Judge called those on the library board “good people” and agreed to let them go on this. “Good people”, is there a new formula to help a judge and prosecutor determine just who are “good people” and NOT?
The DeKalb County board selling out to Waste Management just to get money for a jail and more importantly t many in a very tight juducial group here in DeKalb County a major expansion of the Courthouse. Now?! During this economy? The County Board sold away the health of citizens and school children for a MEGA-dump. Nice legacy board members. Did the board ever consider going to a night court?
So Mac, this is just some things that locals are frustrated with and really seem not to have any power to change for the better. Higher taxes, more fees, a airport that is sucking money from the city’s general fund, a general fund that keeps getting refilled from the water fund and a water fund that is refilledwhenmayor and council raise and raise water fees every year, not to forget all the other essential utilities we need to survive on.
What will be the tipping point for city hall? It’s not the 1,100 empty homes in DeKalb right now. Will it take 1,500? 1,800? Tough to kep raising water fees when 1,400 less homes (families) are buying the water, right?
It is sad Mac, people are busier trying to survive right now but they really should believe in their power to vote. Take. Few minutes, get pissed and go vote. Vote against those who lied to you, vote against those who didn’t think you would notice, vote against those who have done this community wrong. Fill that car up with your pissed off neighbors and go show them. April 5th is this Tuesday, vote, beat them and smile the next day beause you did it, your vote did make a difference.
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Hi Max, I will say it:
Vote, or you will get what you deserve.
Vote, because nearly a million Americans died over the past 200 years to fight for your right to vote.
Vote, or shut the hell up.
Or, quoting Craig Ferguson from 2008, “If you don’t vote, you’re a moron.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdRVQ4xwwmQ