Community Roundtable

Yes, I liked when the Railroad Days festivities were bigger, and on Main St and the Public Square.  We should try to have more activities to involve more of the community in the celebration.  There should be lots of things to do, not just things to buy; though the fair rides, like Pharaoh’s Revenge (especially), should be kept for the Knox Co Fair.  Local talent in the forms of bands and barbeque near the beer tent was always a big draw; and lots of folks turned out for the volleyball games.  What’s a local celebration without some form of physical competition?  The railroads brought many diverse people together, and we can celebrate that diversity.  The library could host a special film (like: The Boxcar People) or a BIG READ about the railroad coming to Galesburg (for those folks who don’t like the heat on the street or the blokes on the blocks).  To be clear: volleyball in early afternoon, activities on Main St; then band, BBQ and beer tent around supper time.

More cities are incorporating bike lanes on their roadways as more citizens are becoming health conscious and exercising, and in today’s economy many can’t afford a vehicle with all the accompanying expenses.  With the road resurfacing scheduled for this summer, it’s a good time to make the change.  Is it better to have the bike lanes on Sanborn or Fremont?  I’m thinking the lanes should be extended down past Silas Willard school and up to the High School to emphasize the school zones and lower speed limits, and to make a safer crossing area on Henderson Street for cyclists and pedestrians.  There should be plenty of signage; and reflectors required on front, back and bicycle tire-walls.  Any pedestrians, walking on or near streets after dark, should be wearing light or reflective clothing; if they’re not, this presents a hazard to themselves and for drivers who aren’t able to see them well.  This has been an ongoing problem since the city and its residents have stopped maintaining decent sidewalks.  And the schools should go over the bicycle safety rules with their students before summer vacation.

Sounds like a good investment in our community, as it helps the library “stay in the running” for matching funds that would cover 75 percent of the cost of the construction of a new library; and if the library foundation doesn’t get the grant from the state, the city will get their $2 million back sooner.  The library needed to secure $5 million in funds, so with the City Council voting to purchase $2 million of the debt certificates, the Galesburg Public Library Foundation will acquire $3 million of the certificates issued.  Agreed upon stipulations from the city further reduce the risk factor with the loan.  One of those stipulations is that the library must use the grant money it receives before using the money lent by the City of Galesburg.  With all the advances in technology to come, hopefully our new library would be a great research facility with computers and classes, open more hours; and personally, I’d like to see Lonnie Stewart’s statue of Carl Sandburg welcoming all to our splendid library grounds.

The Galesburg Area Chamber of Commerce conducted a survey to gauge the business community’s response to raising Illinois’ minimum wage, wherein 87 percent were in opposition, and 11 percent were in favor of paying employees a more livable wage.  Interesting!    I guess the business community of the burg doesn’t want customers with more money to spend on goods and services.   Keeping so many people at or near the poverty level does not help our economy.  Low-wage workers can barely afford minimal rent, utilities, and food, if that; and the prices for everything keeps climbing, as do taxes!  The federal minimum wage would be near $11 an hour if it had kept up with inflation over the past 40 years.  The growing income inequality situation portends a serious problem for the stability of our nation.  The middle class is shrinking dramatically!  We might as well close the mall now and turn it into a retirement village, with shops for the elderly under one roof.  The wealthier among us can well afford $3 to $4 for a cup of specialty coffee, and can afford to travel farther to shop, or order goods online.  Just leave the dollar stores in the burg for the rest of us!

Illinois public school funding structure is complicated with different formulae for General State Aid computed on average daily attendance figures and percentage of pupils under the poverty level, which is increasing as our nation’s wealth continues to flow up toward the top 20 percentile.  We can count on increased property taxes, which go to the school districts.  And the “temporary income tax increase” slated to expire next January will probably be extended because Illinois’ financial crisis is massive and ongoing.  Decades of mismanaged pension funds and other corruption have led to funds being diverted from schools and social services to pay into the underfunded pension system.  Illinois has doubled the number of charter schools allowed in the state, which require rigorous standards and salaries linked to exam scores.  There is a great income disparity among the 892 school districts; with some barely covering salaries and textbooks, while some “property-rich” are not really in need of the state aid.  So I’m leaning toward the idea of the new funding structure , but I’d like to see Chicago included in the same formula as the rest of the state.  Why is it that Chicago is always treated like a state unto itself?  We all know the answer to that one.

Cooke’s closure after this school year will save District 205 approximately $930,000 a year in building expenses, seven teaching positions, four support staff positions, six non-teacher workers, and two shared positions of principal and outreach worker.  The district was looking at a $4.4 million deficit; their financial state due to an underfunding of state and federal monies, with less such funding expected next year.  Parents and students will most likely be upset by this decision, but with less funding forthcoming, the district may have fewer schools yet.   We’ve seen several grade schools close in Galesburg in the last few decades.  The closing of Cooke was part of a $1.8 million “cost containment plan””, which includes other approved cuts of more teaching positions.  The district can’t defend an almost $2,00 more per student cost to keep Cooke open.  We like to have neighborhood schools, just as we used to enjoy having neighborhood grocery stores, but those also continue to become fewer and larger, and farther away.

I don’t think there’s much the city can do to avoid the dwindling commerce at the ghost town mall.  The trend for most communities across our nation has been the same: downtown specialty shops, department stores, then strip malls.  Next came the “big-box retailers” like Cosco and Wal-Mart  (which also have an Internet presence with sometimes better prices).  It’s been discussed for decades that if we want to continue to have brick and mortar stores in our community, we need to patronize those businesses.  If not, they will be gone.  I feel that I do my part to keep JCP in town.  The new trend is the revolution of e-commerce or online shopping, which will only continue to grow, and more top retailers will be filing Chapter 11.  Borders, Blockbuster, Circuit City, and Tower Records have all given up physical buildings with the rent and other overhead costs.  Now there are “Internet shopping malls”.  The gas stations, grocery and drug stores and restaurants will still be with us, but the future is e-commerce.  Amazon is talking about deliveries via drones.  And I can see Jane Jetson as I speak to her via Skype.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”  The solution has to begin far earlier than trying to stop disturbed people with evil intents.  Society has to take more responsibility for those slipping through the cracks.  Laying off more DCFS workers isn’t the answer.  We need Head-start and preschool, and catching those in peril earlier.  The courts need to quit giving kids back to abusers, and stop perpetuating cycles of abuse.  Schools need an infusion!  The latest research shows that individuals learn differently: auditory, visually, and kinesthetically .  Schools need to teach life skills, like problem solving; and teaching methods need to be geared to how kids learn.  Kids need more physical activity, especially in the younger grades.  Engage them early and keep them engaged!  We need a coalition of schools, nonprofits, and churches to join forces to ramp up youth programs such as The Boys and Girls Club.  Recharge the city’s Youth Commission with those who are truly invested.   Societal measures cost money, but failing to employ them costs innocent lives all across our nation!

Definitely!  I think “Bridge-gate” is the tip of the iceberg that will sink his ship.   I’m confident that the combined investigatory committees will find several charges on which to indict Gov. Chris Christie.  GOP leaders are beginning to call for Christie to step down from his appointment to the RGA.  Former assist. U.S. Atty. Reid Schar, was the lead prosecutor  in former Gov. Blagojevich’s corruption trial, that landed that Illinois governor in prison.  Reid Schar has been appointed as special counsel to advise the New Jersey legislative committee probe on: potential misuse of taxpayer resources for political power, conspiracy, obstruction, and possible abuse of powers, etc. by Governor Christie and his cohorts.   The outcome of the probe will hopefully uncover “what Christie knew and when he knew it”.  I believe that findings will eventually show that Gov. Christie used his power to punish all those who did not support him or his pet projects.  New Jersey has a statute that “prohibits public servants from benefitting or from depriving another of a benefit  through the “unauthorized exercise” of their official duties”.  And who wants such a bully as our country’s President?  Not me!

If “money is the mother’s milk of politics”,  and always has been, it will remain so.   Money has too much influence in every venue it enters.  Money talks loudly, and political candidates must amass huge sums of money to be competitive in our current political system.  In the wake of Citizens United, which basically determined that the political speech rights of American voters and corporate entities are the same, the ultra-wealthy actually have undue influence in political campaigns, as Super Pacs act in House and Senate races as well as in presidential races, but it’s not the last word or Mitt Romney would be our president.  “The times….they are a changing.”  Grass roots support for real values should count for more, and I believe that we’re seeing that throughout our land.  **  Vote – Bustos!  **  Suggested finance reform calls for public funding for federal congressional elections,  which would match at a multiple rate the small contributions received from constituents (like New York City’s successful program), instead of candidates receiving the huge contributions from lobbyists and others advancing their own agendas; it aims to reduce the influence of special interest groups on elected officials and enhance voter participation, which is the key!  Money may buy lots of ads, but votes count more!  Be informed and VOTE!     ******    There’s a lot at stake in this country; this do-nothing Congress needs a wake-up call!  Read about the candidates and vote your values; my vote will be for:  U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, who has a strong record for her first term, looking out for the 17th Congressional District of Illinois and all the rest!