At one point during the May 5th City Council meeting, I found myself thinking that maybe I had been too harsh on Mayor Churnovic in the past and that perhaps he did deserve some praise. This came after he had spoken on the successful efforts to keep Statesville open, his trip to the Philippines, and his upcoming trip to Las Vegas. These all seemed to show him to be an active and dedicated mayor. It took only moments though for those thoughts to quickly be shattered.
Mayor Churnovic explained his plan to circumvent the City Council and begin the process of hiring a new Police Chief. He then proceeded to scream at Alderperson Convery when questioned about this matter. It is just shameful that a mayor would not only ignore the desires of the City Council and the advice of the just retired Police Chief, but would then throw a fit when questioned.
This show was not enough for Mayor Churnovic though. He next was asked why he had held several events in different wards and not given the alderpersons for those wards a courtesy notice. Meeting with residents is definitely a positive thing to do, but the Mayor should show some courtesy and invite the alderpersons as well, especially if he is inviting other city officials. Instead of taking this constructive suggestion from 3 alderpersons, Mayor Churnovic defended his lack of consideration by being condescending and rude.
Crest Hill deserves a city government that can work together for the betterment of this city. That will not happen as long as we have a Mayor that yells at Council members and treats them with contempt. No matter how hard Mayor Churnovic works to develop Crest Hill, it is all for nothing if he allows his bad attitude and lack of self-control tear the City Council apart and make citizens afraid to question him.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Saturday, May 3, 2008
Almost $2.2 Million Vanished
On Monday, April 28th, an employee of the Treasurer's Office stated to the City Council that the City of Crest Hill had no reserve funds left. She repeated that it was all gone.
According to the Treasurer's Annual Report, had a cash fund balance of $2,191,273.03 on April 30, 2007. This report was published in the Herald News on October 19, 2007.
The city was budgeted to spend $1.1 million of the reserved during this past year. However, based upon the statements from the April 28th Council Work Session, it is clear that the deficit was twice what was budgeted. This is most likely the reason why the Treasurer's Office has refused to give projections for the entire fiscal year, which just ended.
The news is not going to get better by delaying it. I fear that the reason for the delay is that the news may be even worse than this. Has the City dipped into other funds to pay for general operating expenses? Have our increased water and sewer bills been going to fund other departments? Is this why the city refuses to release a capital plan outlining how the new water and sewer revenue is going to be spent?
These questions cannot be answered because the financial information is being kept secret, even from City Council members. It is time to shine some light on the financial situation of Crest Hill. Nothing positive can come from keeping everyone in the dark.
According to the Treasurer's Annual Report, had a cash fund balance of $2,191,273.03 on April 30, 2007. This report was published in the Herald News on October 19, 2007.
The city was budgeted to spend $1.1 million of the reserved during this past year. However, based upon the statements from the April 28th Council Work Session, it is clear that the deficit was twice what was budgeted. This is most likely the reason why the Treasurer's Office has refused to give projections for the entire fiscal year, which just ended.
The news is not going to get better by delaying it. I fear that the reason for the delay is that the news may be even worse than this. Has the City dipped into other funds to pay for general operating expenses? Have our increased water and sewer bills been going to fund other departments? Is this why the city refuses to release a capital plan outlining how the new water and sewer revenue is going to be spent?
These questions cannot be answered because the financial information is being kept secret, even from City Council members. It is time to shine some light on the financial situation of Crest Hill. Nothing positive can come from keeping everyone in the dark.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
