Well, you know, NOTHING about LarryBoy's "Vision"(taxpayers' nightmares) for our city rivals his commitment to that confounded RIVERWALK...
http://www.rrstar.com/news/yourtown/rockford/x1520843463/Money-for-riverwalk-construction-plans-approved
"...As for the criticism the project has come under in the past week, Morrissey said his commitment to investing in the city’s urban core remains strong...."
Look, we've got at least $30mill tied up in the MetroCentre scam, $2mill for 2 STINKING BLOCKS of N.Main(upwards of $5+mill when[IF] it's done)!!! and now $4mill for his monument to
"Our long-term vision is to make Rockford’s riverfront a unique, exciting and attractive community resource that links City residents to our history, geography, economy and culture in mutally sustainable ways."
from http://www.ci.rockford.il.us/uploadedFiles/development/devsubpages/Summary%20report%20final%2020061206.pdf

Prepared by
Hitchcock Design Group(pssst,pinhead, it's MUTUALLY)
already got a lotta confidence in these clowns,sheesh....a PUBLISHED PAPER,big color page w/spelling errors? ever hear of "spellcheck"? If the architects/engineers make a couple math errors, this damn riverwalk could end up in New Milford!!!!!!!!!!And it goes without saying it WILL go over budget...

So anyway, there's fabulous renderings of the "Hallucination" and near as I can figure the projected $4million project’s signature cable-stayed bridge is a small arc into the river from behind the old Armory to Beattie Park,a necessary concession to those TRUE NIMBY's(Not In My BackYard)Indian Terrace residents when original plans upset this handful of "stakeholders"...(on a side note, I would swear the original compromise was supposed to be a "glorified" sidewalk along N.Main...hhmmmm)

"..Morrissey said his commitment to investing in the city’s urban core remains strong..."

commitment to investing
see, back when all these fabulouslyhipurbanWOWfactors were planned,it was all fine, I suppose, when the city's general fund had some $34million surplus, and investments were gaining returns, and we were only paying bond debt on 7 TIF districts,(not 25-30 or whatever it is now)...
So now we are bombarded with raising taxes and fees, cuts in staff that, in turn, reduce BASIC GOVERNMENT SERVICES, rising crime and unemployment
BUT, BY GOLLY, WE WILL HAVE A COMMITMENT TO INVESTING IN OUR URBAN CORE!!!!!!!!!

Wanted to watch that Silly Council rerun tonight ,there was some nonsense going on with spending more TAX$$ on downtown studies, but think this deserves more immediate attention...
"...After working for years with police and this administration, I can say firsthand community policing works. Crime is down. The crimes that happen are lower-level...."
course, the author of this apple-polishing?...

John Weaver, advocate, Coronado/Haskell neighborhood, Rockford
yup,THAT John Weaver with his wife toted "Batman/Robin" signs to Council in support of LarryBoyChiefChet short-staffing policing...
And the reason was a personalized security presence,a security camera to monitor their neighborhood,etc. Sure, THOSE few blocks can claim "...Crime is down..." but who in the Sam Hill do they explain THIS???
"ROCKFORD — Police are investigating two apparently unrelated homicides that occurred early and late Sunday...."

Well,wasn't in their backyard, EVERYTHING IS EXCELLENT!!!!!!!!!!













a

So the other nite,before Silly Council, they were interviewing Director of Public Works, Tim Hansen, asking about the impending snow and the budget.
So as the snow dragged on, I got to thinking...
SUPPOSE the "budget" runs out...does that mean NO plows would hit the streets...
likewise, police and fire budgets...they're running out....no more patrols of Weed'n'Seed???....blazing fire at some downtown establishment...no responders???
Is this what we are facing?
Bet they still pay the HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS in interest payments on all our TIF bonds...wouldn't want to jeopardize real estate "re-development"...or hip,urban lifestyles....toooo important to Rockford's future....

EXCREMENT EVERYWHERE........

So, I see LarryBoy's PR machine been in hyperdrive this past week...

Rockford departments make changes to reduce use of overtime

The thing to take from this story? "....The bulk of Rockford’s savings in 2009 came from the Police Department, which reduced its overtime expenses by $1.1 million. ...Epperson’s overtime drop comes at a time when the department also is reporting a 12.8 percent decrease in the city’s overall crime rate for 2009, according to preliminary statistics. The 2009 numbers are the lowest the city has seen in the past decade...."
Seems in LarryWorld with ChiefChet, crime magically decreases when there are less cops on the streets...huh?
Oh, and lets focus on "A 2010 audit of city-owned vehicles showing the majority of the city’s fleet is in poor condition came as no surprise to aldermen who have been fielding complaints from police officers and other city employees for months regarding the declining condition of vehicles."

See,I used the manhole photo again, custom-designed with the"branded,hip,urban,city logo..."
because they mention these vehicles doing the real citizens' work,(cop cars,fire trucks,public works equipment) but no mention of the dozens of LIKE-NEW cars and vans set aside for city hall suits...I see an entire lot at the se corner of 2nd St. and Walnut, plenty of those new WIFI laptop-equipped slathered allover with that sillywavylinelogo...then there's MORE cars,vans, SUV's sitting in that lot next to the Midway Theater...now so many of these cars sit for DAYS, covered with snow going nowhere...LarryBoy wasted taxe$$ sitting while emergency vehicles rust apart...
EXCREMENT EVERYWHERE!!!!!!!!!!!

And finally, an organized,hand-picked,self-serving corporate welfare whores,
Chairman Peter Provenzano
Scott E. Eckburg
Jeffrey J. Kaney
Danny Lorden
Catherine M. McDermott(Occupation: Campaign administrator, Citizens for Morrissey)
Fred S. Sabet
"...an organization of business and civic leaders formed by Mayor Larry Morrissey and SupplyCore CEO Peter Provenzano...."(guess whose families own numerous downtown properties looking to score)
"...The effort to develop a new plan for downtown is being financially backed by contributions from the Rockford Housing Authority, Greater Rockford Authority Airport Board, Rockford Area Economic Development Council and the Rockford Local Development Corporation...." this is ALL TAX-SUPPORTED QUASI-GOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES with board members ALL APPOINTED BY LARRYBOY!!!!!!!!!!!
EXCELLENT!!!!!!!

Well it just goes on in LarryWorld....
the heated debate over video poker was that stuff of drama,huh?
What Ikind of hoping was a tie vote with LarryBoy casting the deciding vote...now there's a thought...which way would he go?
Keep in mind,
the pro-poker group was, near as I could tell...
"...gambling opponents were outnumbered by the strong building trade presence urging aldermen not to opt out of video gambling. Brad Long, president of the Northwestern Illinois Building & Construction Trades Council..."
WELL?
http://www.elections.il.gov/CampaignDisclosure/ItemizedContrib.aspx

Northern Illinois Building Contractor's Association	1111 S. Alpine Rd. Ste. #202 Rockford, IL 61108	$10,000.00 3/18/2009	Individual Contribution Citizens for Morrissey
Northern Illinois Building Contractor's Association	1111 S. Alpine Rd. Ste. #202 Rockford, IL 61108	$2,500.00 3/30/2009	Individual Contribution Citizens for Morrissey

guess we know....huh?

THEN, a setback for Lar on the choo-choo front...
"...Morrissey was livid that the area didn’t receive more funding...."
(but daddy, I WANT A TRAIN!!!!!)

and finally....
"After fighting for more than three years to keep secret a controversial survey that portrayed the Police Department leadership and at times the mayor in a negative light, Mayor Larry Morrissey released the survey today...The court also ordered the city to pay the attorney’s fees incurred by the police union.
Morrissey said he did not have figures stating how much the city spent in attorney fees in its effort to keep the survey private...."

Why should he have those figures,it's ONLY TAXPAYER DOLLARS in a time of "budget crisis"...

Just such typical a BizarroWorld week in LarryBoy's Empire.........
LarryBoy's hand-picked "advisory"board toots the same horn, Privatize......
check THIS...
"...Rockford’s organizational and staffing structure is similar to what was commonly found in 1950s-era businesses... City staff, in turn, often perform services that have little to do with “core government functions.”...."

What a flippin'concept!!!!CORE GOVERNMENT FUNCTIONS...........imagine that,
HHhhhmmmm, let's think....
PUBLIC safety(police and fire)
PUBLIC works(streets,repairs,water)
that's about as 'core' as it gets.......

see, with these tough economic times, THAT'S where the focus should be,agreed?

So you already know what's next....
".... The estimated $33 million convention center would take public investment...."

Oh, that's right, LarryBoy's 'core government functions' run more towards,bond debt,real estate development(bond debt) and sports team ownership(bond debt)...........

See, when LarryBoy was a mere 'candidate', he railed against the property tax rate, and sold the public on a sales tax increase for property tax relief. See, but every LarryBoy Vision requires MORE stinking new bond sales,paid by..........YOU GUESSED IT!!!!!!! INCREASED PROPERTY TAXES!!
Classic money shot quote..."“We need to think about our future,” Morrissey said. “This is our chance to leave a legacy for our children.” "

DEBT DEBT DEBT screw the libraries,kids don't need BOOKS and READING.......("...nearly 300 jobs in the hospitality industry...") to work part-time making beds and cleaning toilets.........

So this whole New Year thing, folks reminince about the past year,well I was thinking about my original thread, "LarryBoy in his own words, for what it's worth - "
(somehow,I 'lost' access to this forum,yet the 35 pages spanning 2 years of LarryBoy's reign of "Excrement Everywhere" are somehow still available.

See, they had a "view count" and maybe I was egotistical, but I kept count at times and near the end of my ability to use that forum, it was common to log over 1000 visits per day.(shoulda sold advertising)

This here blog, I MAY have 17-20 readers after a NEW post, then fewer as the days go by. Maybe that's why I've failed to be more consistent in weekly observations,I don't know.

But I've decided, whether 2 views or 2000, a critical look at this administration NEEDS to be out "THERE"
(not that MY opinion is all that important, but the way the local media, such as it is,WNTA, Register Star, and even the Rock River Times(once an independant voice) alternately kiss LarryBoy's heiny or stifle the facts....well there SHOULD be a record......
Anyway, my resolution is to return to at least weekly entries, more if incidents desrve follow-up...


You do not lead by hitting people over the head - that's assault, not leadership.
Dwight D. Eisenhower