LaSalle Insider

I wanted to wish everyone who stops by here a Happy  Thanksgiving!  If your traveling to Grandmother’s house make sure you avoid the deer near the highways. I hope the turkey’s not to dry and your football teams cover the spread!  Don’t snore to loud after you eat that you scare the young children on the couch and when you awake make sure you  re-button your pants before you stand up!

We are beginning the Holiday Season of eating and drinking too much so pace yourselves  because you have to make it through January 2nd!

And lastly…take a moment to hug those family members you spend the day with and sincerely thank them for coming or inviting you over.  All of us who attend a family  get together  will note those that are there and those who no longer are with us.  Be thankful we all live in the greatest country in the world …..stay safe.

So I open my paper to B6 on November 20th and I find a full page ad telling me what our Mayor believes.  I’m sorry did somebody ask him?  Will we find out in the coming days what Mayors Harl, Banks, and Torres believe  as well?  Will they spend $2400.00 of their citizen’s money to enlighten us?  If the Mayor wants to tell us what he thinks their are much cheaper ways….How about our city website?  Oops that”s not working yet. Well its only been 6 or 7 months give it time.  I’m sure our  Economic Director is working on it. Funny thing is we had a working website until there was a change in the Mayor’s office.  We could be posting city activities on that site but its still “under construction”.

But back to the point…why did he spend $3300 between the paper and radio to let you the public know about ”Miracle on First Street”? As far as times of the planned events for that day, we can submit it as a news release and the paper would publish that information for free.  I am posting it here on my site for free as well.

If there was council approval prior to the ads being placed, we probably would have approved an ad half that size for half the money at the very worst..but Aldermen Bacidore, Herndon,Demes, and Salazar didn’t want to tie his hands.  Well Mr and Mrs Taxpayer how do you feel about their decision now?

During a time when we are financially strapped, not giving to charities, the Mayor, on his own, decides to spend a total of $4000.00 on this event and $1000.00 on last month’s” Jazzin the Street”.  That doesn’t take in the additional costs of radio and the other promotional ads during the same 3o day period.  If you add those in we are at a total of over $6,000.00

His defense is that we appropriated $45,000 for city promotions.  That’s the same as you at home “appropriating”  $45,000 for your new Lexus or Mercedes….if you don’t have the money you can’t spend it!

I want to leave you with what I believe…

I believe in fiscal responsibility and also

I believe the Mayor could have shown us his belief in the spirit of giving by suggesting we not spend the money on advertising but make a donation to the United Way or Food Pantry.  At least real people in need could have felt a little bit better this Holiday Season.

Let me know how you feel…

I attended the wine tasting event at Oak Ridge on November 13th and had a great time.  It was well attended and I’m sure that the laSalle and Peru  Fire departments are happy with the donation totals.  It has become their number one fund raiser and has been well received.  We have a tendency to take the members (both full time and volunteers) for granted at times and I think that’s a  mistake.  These individuals do a job many of us would refuse at ten times the pay they receive.  They are often putting themselves at grave risk to help and in some cases save our lives.  While speaking with Chief Bacidore he explained that while he is in the press often,whether he likes it or not, its events like this that give the rest of the department some well deserved face time.  It gives the public a chance to know some of these individuals on a more personal level.  If you missed the chance to meet these everyday heroes up close and personal make a note to be there next year.  Its well worth it.  One other thing that I thought would have been nice is if the mayors of LaSalle  and Peru could have jointly made a comment or two introducing the staffs and pointing out all of what they do to make our lives and properties that much safer.  I did see Mayor Grove there , and in his defense, he was on break from his full time job and was limited with time. I did not see Mayor Harl.  If he was there I apologize in advance. I hope we correct that oversight for next year….I do know from people I talked to that your service is greatly appreciated!

LaSalle  and the Downtown Business Association have listed the times for the “Miracle on First Street ” as follows:

8:30 am & 10am   Breakfast with Santa  Lock 16 Visitor Center  $8.50 call 224-1851 space is limited

11 am-1pm   Firetruck Rides   City Hall

1 pm         Free Movie Stage 212

1-3pm     Live Music   Uptown Grill

2-4 pm   Dulcimer Music   LaSalle Library

2-4 pm    Christmas Bingo    Lock 16 Visitor Center

3-6 pm    Free Carriage Rides  First Street

3-4 pm   S’More Making     with LaSalle Fire Dept

3-5 pm  Dollar Bowling Midwest Community Center First Street

5:30–6:30  Tree Lighting Ceremony w/L-P Band City Hall

6:30-8pm   Light the Night : Hegeler Carus Mansion-Music and Wine

Other items of note which took place at last night’s city council meeting…

Mayor Grove without oversight from the council (because there are those who think we would be limiting his ability to manage the City) spent $3500 in October alone with the News Tribune and WLPO in advertising dollars! This at a time when we are not making  ANY charitable donations to those organizations requesting help.  I guess The News Tribune is more important , especially when your getting nothing but positive coverage as Mayor!

Would have been nice to have had that money to put towards the purchase of the leaf vac…..

The park board has decided to reccomend to the Council that no area of parks be designated as a “dog Park Area”.  I raised the request on the floor but it apparently fell on deaf ears.  The feeling is to wait for Rotary Park to open….this may take more than a year…  Dog owners, I suggest you call the Mayor and representatives of the Park Board to make your case.  I would be happy to present a petition on your behalf if enough people are interested.

And those of you who wondered….it was I who suggested naming the new street after our former Mayor.  Twelve years as Mayor and eight as an alderman certainly shows the commitment he had to the City.  The new waste treatment plant was originally brought up by him in 2006 and worked has progressed since then.

Having read the local paper  concerning our council meeting from last night I must question whether they are reporting the news or doing an editorial.

Because I question the Mayor spending your tax dollars foolishly with the paper while we have put a hold on charitable donations, it seems the News Tribune will take every opportunity to  cast me in a bad light, even if it means being less than truthful about what takes place at our meeting.

If that’s what it takes for them to feel good about themselves, fine.  We all know you can’t fight against those who have  barrels of ink and a monopoly on the news to boot.  I would hope that we , as a Council, someday have our meetings available on cable access, like Ottawa, so the people can hear and judge for themselves, what really goes on.

The quote in the paper was inaccurate which stated that I was against a leaf pickup program.  One only needs to read what I stated here on November 8th to know the truth.  If the public wants this service than we should service them.  I questioned the “cowboy mentality” that Mayor Jeff decided to employ.  No conversations with the Council about doing this, committing to using a piece of city equipment which was not built for this type of activity, and then spending $6500 without council consent.

Net result, we end up with one piece of equipment damaged and we decide to spend $15,000 on a 12  year old leaf vac that probably is worth closer to $5,000.    But the paper would have you believe that I don’t care about the taxpayer, only me.  I will let you decide….who has your interests at heart and who really is just about making themselves look good at someone else’s expense (literally the tax payer).

If you went by the paper’s recollection of what took place you would not know that our Superintendent of Public Works, Sam McNeilly, was totally against the leaf pickup program and stated as much on the floor at the meeting. He had warned the Mayor that the original choice of equipment he picked was not meant for that application .  That didn’t matter to Mayor Jeff and end result we damaged the street sweeper and were forced to rent equipment at an exorbatant price.

For the sake of all of you who put their leaves out to the curb, I hope the weather cooperates and we are able to pick them all up before the snow flies.  I also want you to know that the city employees were put in a tough situation by the lack of planning by this Mayor and are doing a splendid job given the circumstances.  Many have shared their thoughts with me, and have stated that we need a more defined format going forward.  I agree.

A closing thought….those who have known me in public life know that I will always be honest with them.  I do not practice political correctness and maybe some will take exception to that.  I have always told you what I think both publicly or privately.  There are those who may not like my answers from time to time, but there is no one who can question my honesty.  After all that has happened with elected officials on all levels of government due to their lack of integrity, you tell me ….what do you prefer?…..I thought  so.

Several items to note:

1) Not much happening on the dog park idea.  When talking to Alderman Lavieri who is our representative to the Park Board he indicated that the board wasn’t keen on using mary hegelar park.  It seems those of us who want to see something  done in this area need to talk to those park board members. Tom Pigati is the board’s president.  A phone call to him might help.

2) Last Monday November 2nd we discussed at length the water issue at Oak Ridge Drive.  The consensus is we need to try to at least come up with a temporary fix if not a permanent one.  We will get a cost figure from our City Engineer and look to get a bid price for the work.  At this point the council is not looking for who, if anyone is  at fault but how we as a city can help lessen the problem.  Stay tuned!

3)And finally …a big thank you to all our veterans for their service to our country!  We can never thank them enough for their sacrifice!

As many of you know by now, the City of LaSalle has started a leaf program.  We are asking residents who want their leaves picked up to call and schedule an appointment.  You , as a resident, are instructed to rake your leaves to the front of your home and make a long thin pile stretching along the curb.  We will bring our equipment and men and dispose of your leaves without you having to bag them or (god forbid) burn them in a safe area.  Seems like a wonderful program and I have to admit that if that’s what the public wants we should try and accommodate them.   Here’s the problem……bad planning!

Mayor Grove first discussed the possibility of setting up this program with the help of the City of Peru.  Both cities would exchange equipment in an effort to save money on duplicating equipment purchases.  Sounds wonderful!  But no agreement had been brought to the council of either LaSalle or Peru by their Mayors.  As of this date the council is still waiting for that ordinance to be created.  The problem came when Fall arrived and the leaves started falling.  Because Mayor Grove promised we would do this this year he decided to improvise and use a piece of equipment not designed for this type of work.  On his own he made the decision to use our old sewer vacuum truck.  This unit functioned Monday and Tuesday but the fan unit burned out on Wednesday.

Because he committed to pick up the leaves which at this point were accumulating on many blocks throughout the city, he instructed our superintendent of public works to rent a leaf machine from a Chicago firm.

The cost to rent this equipment is $6500.00 per month.  The unit is a 1997 (read 12 years old) which we can purchase for $15,000.  A new unit would be $35,000.  I understand we appropriated $20,000 for a leaf vacuum this year.

What’s wrong with this picture?  Why the rush Mr Mayor.  Their is a process we go through on establishing programs for the city.  Mayor Jeff apparently feels the process doesn’t work for him and he has the authority to do things without council approval.  I think this stems from lack of understanding the job of Mayor.  Had he thought before he acted or better yet, worked with the council we may have avoided this mistake.  As it stands we are on the hook for at least $6500 in rental, cost of repair to a piece of equipment which should not have been used in this application, and whatever labor costs that go along with leaf work versus doing other city functions.

Other cities doing this have a schedule and route dictating what streets are picked up when.  We are running all around the city without a plan, just an appointment book.  This will lead to duplicating pickups on the same blocks and at an unnecessary additional cost.

Fall comes at the same time during the calendar year.  6 months would have and should have been plenty of time to set up a program.  If he was involved in other things this plan could have been set up next Fall.  The idea that Peru would have lent their equipment at a time of year that they are using it makes little sense.

I hope the Mayor has learned a lesson and realizes that this city is governed by himself and the City Council not as a dictatorship.  If he has, maybe we will get this leaf pickup thing right next year !

The Real American Hero G.I. Joe Comes to LaSalle!

10/26/09

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Jay Repsel Presents DREAMWAVE Wrestling: “National Security” November 7th, 2009

LASALLE – One of the most iconic and recognizable wrestlers in the history of the business, Sgt. Slaughter, will be coming to LaSalle for DREAWMAVE: “National Security” on November 7^th. Slaughter will be appearing in the main event and greeting fans at “National Security” which will take place once again at the LaSalle Knights of Columbus with doors opening at 6:30PM with a bell time of 7:00PM.
Slaughter made headlines in the 1980’s for appearing in the G.I. Joe cartoon series, which was broadcast on national television, as well as appearing as a regular character in the comic book series. He is also one of only several people who have been created as an actual G.I. Joe figure. Known for his sculpted chin and signature catchphrases, the “Sarge” is also the first former WWE/WWF World Champion to appear in LaSalle, having won the title at the “Royal Rumble” over the Ultimate Warrior in January of 1991 and headlining “Wrestlemania VII” in a title defense vs. Hulk Hogan in the same year. Sgt. Slaughter was also inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in March of 2004.

The main event for “National Security” features Sgt. Slaughter as the guest enforcer for the tag team match featuring Prince Mustafa Ali and “Legendary” Dan Lawrence vs. DREAMWAVE World Champion “Silent Intensity” Austin Roberts and the winner of the Good as Gold Briefcase, “The B-O-Z” Steve Boz. The event also features “Next” Nick Brubaker of the A-List defending the DREAMWAVE Alternative title against “Mr. 450” Hammett. There will also be a training seminar for beginners 18 and older held prior to the show by “The B-O-Z” Steve Boz. For more info, please go to www.dreamwavewrestling.com.

“Slaughter is probably the biggest name that has ever appeared in LaSalle”, said the owner of DREAMWAVE Wrestling, Jay Repsel.  “He transcended the business in the 80’s and became part of pop culture in this country. Very few people hear the name “Sgt. Slaughter” and don’t think G.I. Joe or professional wrestling. We are thrilled that he was interested in being a part of our company and look forward to having him. This is an enormous main event as it is, but “Sarge” makes it even that much bigger!”

With the excitement building and with history in the making, you don’t want to miss DREAMWAVE Wrestling: “National Security” November 7th!

For additional information or tickets to the event, please go to www.dreamwavewrestling.com .

About DREAMWAVE Wrestling

DREAMWAVE Wrestling is the Midwest’s premier independent professional wrestling organization and offers the most economical entertainment value in the Illinois Valley. The company is owned and operated by DREAMWAVE Entertainment, LLC. and headquartered in Oglesby Illinois. For more information, please visit www.dreamwavewrestling.com or send questions or comments to dreamwavewrestling@gmail.com.

DREAMWAVE Wrestling is a trademark used exclusively by DREAMWAVE Entertainment, LLC. in the United States and other jurisdictions.