Citizen Gets Answer to Nunda Township Highway Commissioner’s Legal Exenses – $6-7,000

Mary McClellan was elected Moderator of the Annual Nunda Town Meeting.

Mary McClellan was elected Moderator of the Annual Nunda Town Meeting.

Arriving a bit late at the Nunda Township Annual Meeting, I was told I had not missed much.

No controversy with adjournment less than a half an hour after the meeting began.

The monthly meeting of the township board was not until 8.  Most waited.

The regular board meeting went peacefully until the public comment period.

Doug Mann addressed Nunda Township Road Commissioner Mike Lesperance (wearing sling for a rotator cuff problem).

Doug Mann addressed Nunda Township Road Commissioner Mike Lesperance (wearing sling for a rotator cuff problem).

Homeowner Douglas Mann, who has objected strenuously to ditching in front of his home performed by newly-elected Road Commissioner Mike Lesperance, took the floor during the public comment period at the end of the meeting.

“The Township has been given two citations for non-compliance of the [County] Storm Water Ordinance,” Mann said.

That has resulted in a court case for which Mann has been seeking the cost of legal fees.

Mann told of filing two Freedom of Information requests, both of which were denied. He appeal the second one to the Public Access Counselor of the Illinois Attorney General’s Office.

“Who of us feels like transparency isn’t a good thing?” he asked audience members.

Lesperance took umbradge.

“You submitted a Freedom of Information request. We didn’t have any attorney bills at the time your request was made.

“The bill for legal fees has been approved tonight.

“We properly and legally responded to it.

“It’s like you’re trying to harass me.”

“How much?” Mann asked.

“Fill out the FOIA request and we’ll reply to it,” Lesperance replied.

“You’ve exceeded your time,” Supervisor Lee Jennings said.

“Somewhere between $5 to $6,000 within a couple of hundred dollars,” Lesperance replied.

“That[‘s what] Mr. Mann’s nonsense has created in legal bills,” the Road Commissioner said.

Next came Lee Stevens of Crystal Lake.

“I don’t even know this gentlemen,” he said, looking at Mann.

He said he had read about Mann’s drainage complaint in the paper.

“Why not put things back the way they were?

“I didn’t think that [reply] was civil.

“I don’t think that was civil at all.

“Look at Grafton Township.

“26,000 down the drain.”

Nunda Township Clerk Angela Koscavage swears in Donald Lechner for another term as Nunda Rural Fire Protection District Trustee.

Nunda Township Clerk Angela Koscavage swears in Donald Lechner for another term as Nunda Rural Fire Protection District Trustee.

In other business, bills were paid and rural McHenry resident Donald Lechner was re-appointed and sworn in as Trustee of the Nunda Rural Fire Protection District.


Comments

Citizen Gets Answer to Nunda Township Highway Commissioner’s Legal Exenses – $6-7,000 — 5 Comments

  1. At least Grafton’s Supervisor Moore did everything she could to stop the waste of the $26,000 for an unneeded audit.

    Trustees LaPorta, Murphy, Zirk and McMahon voted in favor of this audit, Moore voted against it.

  2. If a picture is worth a thousand words….

    In the picture with the homeowner at the podium, you can see a Nunda official appearing to shield his face. His body language speaks volumes as to the magnitude of this situation.

    My lady friends of Nunda and I feel the same way. This isn’t a personal fight between two men. Sadly, this is a contest with no real winner. The loser is us, the tax payers of Nunda.

    If I’ve read the paper correctly, on one side you have McHenry County fighting for procedures that were violated when ditchwork was done without the proper permits by someone within our road district on our tax dollars.

    On the other side, you have our township defending itself on those procedures that may have been overlooked on our tax dollars.

    And the bill is up to $5000-$6000 give or take?

    And when this is over, collectively, what will this cost those of us that are paying into both the county and our township?

    As a Nunda resident, I really don’t want to look at this either.

  3. Wait till county finds out that iron Mike built and installed a mezzanine at the Nunda Township salt storage building without a Structural Engineer or permit from the County

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *