McHenry County Blog

As I reported eight days ago, Algonquin Township Road Commissioner Bob Miller, unopposed for re-election, was trying to take control of the Algonquin Township Board.  Maybe I should say “keep control.”

He contributed $1,000 to Marc Munaretto in his campaign to unseat Supervisor Dianne Klemm. While Munaretto ran a superior campaign, Klemm’s superior name identification led her to a convincing victory.

Bob Miller has supported monetarily stand next to each other on Algonquin Road.

For Township Trustee, Miller contributed another $1,000 to Lowell Cutsforth’s campaign.

Shortly thereafter, signs started popping up promoting a slate of four candidates for Township Trustee:

• Dan Shea
• Lowell Cutsforth
• Neils Kruse
• Bill Bligh

On the other side were three candidates:

• appointed incumbent Russ Cardelli
• Larry Emery
• Melissa Sanchez

As you can see below, those three bested all of Miller’s Trustee candidates.  The fourth winner, who came in second, was incumbent Shea, a former Fox River Grove Village President and McHenry County Board member.

Sitting on the Township Board will be the top four vote getters.

Now, as evidenced by the salary increases approved by Trustees Shea, Cutsforth and Linda Lance, who ran for Clerk against Chuck Lutzow and lost, allies of Miller control the Algonquin Township Board.

After the newly-nominated, but certain-to-be elected, township officials are sworn in, four of five Board members will carry the memory that Miller tried to defeat them.

While the Township Road District is run by Miller with little oversight from the Board, there may be some.

Bob Miller

On January 10th, Algonquin Township Road Commissioner Bob Miller’s Political Action Committee gave $1,000 to Supervisor candidate Marc Munaretto. You read it here.

You may remember the slate of four candidates sign that popped up on the Cary-Algonquin blacktop.

I thought it might be Nick Chirikos’ property, so I asked him.

Here is his reply,

“Yes, that’s my property. I responded to a request from Bob Miller to place the sign yesterday.  I know Lowell well, and Dan Shea is our County’s representative for CMAP and I am on the transportation committee. I trust both of these men and think they will continue to represent Algonquin Township properly. I have not met either Neils Kruse or Bill Bligh but know of their backgrounds.”

It turns out that Miller has donated $1,000 to the Citizens to Elect Lowell A Cutsforth. That was on January 29th.  The slate’s sign appeared about two weeks later.

Now, some of Munaretto’s signs have the slate of four signs next to them.

Signs of candidates that Algonquin Township Road Commissioner Bob Miller has supported monetarily stand next to each other on Algonquin Road.

This banner for Bruce Kaplan hung on the wall.

I got to Bruce Kaplan’s fund raiser in Cary about an hour after it started, so an accurate count of the number attending is impossible, but I’d guess there were 80-100.

In other words, a good crowd for a municipal fund raiser over two months before the election.

Kaplan is in the real estate business, so, not surprisingly, there were a number of real estate people in attendance.

But there were local political types as well.

Lou Bianchi talks to those supporting Bruce Kaplan for Mayor of Cary. The man in the middle is Michael Karnauch.  To the left is Michael Rein.

McHenry County State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi was there.  So was Republican McHenry County Sheriff candidate Bill Prim.

Jack Schaffer talks with Chuck Lutzow’s wife Darlene.

The Bob Miller family was well represented. I counted four family Republican Precinct Committee in attendance, including County Board member Anna May Miller.

Cary Village Trustee Bob Bragg, Cary Fire Protection District Trustee Mark Guerra and Algonquin Township Clerk candidate Chuck Lutzow posed for this picture.

Demetri Tsilimigras, also a GOP Committeeman from Cary was there, too.

Former McHenry County State Senator and Republican Party Chairman Jack Schaffer was also in attendance.

I only saw one Algonquin Township candidate, Chuck Lutzow, who is running for Township Clerk.

A late arrival was McHenry County Board member Joe Gottemoeller, who reminded me that his District 3 contains part of the Village of Cary.

Bruce Kaplan was kept busy greeting supporters.

I asked Kaplan why he entered the political arena.

Before he ran successfully for Village Trustee, the Village requirement of a $95 fee for every real estate sign caught his attention big time.

That had never happened before.

After getting the Illinois Association of Realtors involved, the village dropped the fee to $45, then waived it entirely “for election year,” Kaplan told me and several others.

The back of Bruce Kaplan’s post card.

He also pointed out that before he and his allies were sworn in two years ago, the Village Board denied a homeowner permission to put on a metal roof.

Kaplan said there was no ordinance prohibiting metal roofs, but the Village Board wouldn’t let the man do it anyway.

Such non-written rules are high on Kaplan’s list of things to change in village government.

The address side of Bruce Kaplan’s post card has his talking points. They include continuing to ask hard questions, a low tax levy, making Cary more business friendly and a cohesive board, among others you can see above.

I had a good talk with Brett Coleman. He came up with this marvelous comment about the state of business in Illinois:

“The only business to be in in Illinois is the moving business.”

A well-placed Marc Munaretto billboard coming into Cary from Crystal Lake.

In the race for Algonquin Township Supervisor, incumbent Dianne Klemm is losing the sign race.

Munaretto has bought the best locations that Liberty Outdoor Advertising has to offer and has good color contrast on his billboards and smaller signs.

He will need significant name identification to overcome that which State Senator Dick Klemm and his ex-wife Dianne have built up over the years.

Before winning the post of Supervisor, Dianne Klemm served as Chairman of the McHenry County Board.

Lots of name ID.

Munaretto held two elective posts prior to deciding not to run for re-election for County Board-Township Clerk and County Board.  (Because of population growth, state law prohibited that.)

Both candidates have dipped into their own pockets to finance their campaigns.

$12,000 for Klemm and $4,100 for Munaretto

Reportable outside contributions to Munaretto include

• $1,000 from Road Commissioner Bob Miller’s PAC
• $250 from Bart Murphy of Wheaton
• $200 from former County Board colleague Scott Breeden

Munaretto, however, may not have widespread party and activist support.

Dianne Klemm briefly addressed those attending her fund raiser

On Wednesday night, Klemm held a successful fund raiser at the Cottage in Crystal Lake, ironically located one tote over the Nunda-Algonquin Township line.

Three county officials, Coroner Anne Majewski, County Clerk Kathie Schultz and Auditor Pam Palmer got caught in this photo, along with former Centegra President Paul Laudick.

There was a good representation of folks who had worked with her as County Board Chairman.

Former State Rep. Rosemary Kurtz was sitting next to Recorder of Deeds Phyllis Walters.

Not only countywide officials were in attendance, however.  McHenry Township Supervisor Donna Schaefer, who served on the County Board with Klemm and is unopposed for re-election came with her husband Gary.

McHenry Township Supervisor Donna Schaefer can be seen in the middle of the photo

It was a well-attended event.

Algonquin Township Trustee candidate Larry Emery makes pitch to Cary GOP Precinct Committeeman Demetri Tsilimigras.

Some on the ballot for township office were there advancing their candidacies, like Larry Emery, seen above with a name tag that told he was running for Algonquin Township Trustee.

McHenry County Board member Donna Kurtz was sen chatting with Algonquin Township- Clerk candidate Chuck Lutzow.

Besides Chuck Lutzow, running for Algonquin Township Clerk, and Larry Emery, a candidate for Township Trustee, Nunda Township Road Commissioner Don Kopsell was in attendance.

Don Kopsell was talking with Mr. and Mrs. Mark Daniel.

And there was a candidate for the McHenry County College Board, Tom Wilbeck, who ran for County Board in District 2, but got edged out.  To his right is Bill Prim, a candidate for the Republican nomination for Sheriff in 2014.

Tom Wilbeck, who is running for McHenry County College Board advanced his candidacy by promising not to sell bonds without referendum approval. To his left is Bill Prim, who is running for McHenry County Sheriff in 2014

There were plenty more people there. See if you can pick someone out you know from the crowd scene below:

Holding the camera above my head, here’s the shot of the crowd I got at Dianne Klemm’s fund raiser.

John Reihansperger

Conflict of interest entered the discussion with regard to three McHenry County Board members during Tina Hill’s Committee on Committees meeting Friday morning.

First off was a comment from John Reihansperger, a spokesman for those who live on private roads outside of municipalities.

He urged that Anna May Miller not be named to chair the Transportation Committee, contending there was “a conflict of interest” because she was employed by the Algonquin Township Road District. (Her husband is Bob Miller, the Township Highway Commissioner, who is running unopposed in the Republican Primary Election.)

“Is it the taxpayers or her job and husband [she is representing].

“It’s obvious she is trying to protect her husband’s budget,” he said.

Later in the meeting, Miller responded.

It came up during the discussion of the composition of the Transportation Committee.

“I, too, feel the non-dedicated road issue a real concern here,” Donna Kurtz said.

“I live on a non-dedicate road,” Mary McClellan added. “They (the Nunda Township Road Commissioner’s men) have always plowed our roads. I don’t believe McHenry Township takes care of its non-dedicated roads as well as Nunda and Algonquin.”

Anna Miller explains her position on non-dedicated roads while Sue Draffkorn and Paula Yensen listen.

Miller explained that the Transportation Department staff is rewriting some of the requirements for standards that must be met before County Motor Fuel Tax can be spent on such roads. She pointed out that there will be new Transportation Committee members “that will have missed out on a lot of work.”

“The County has no control over these township road commissioners,” she emphasized.

“The law is what the law is,” Miller pointed out, suggesting that those living on non-dedicated roads should be lobbying their legislators if they want to change it.”

Later she pointed out that a law that allows 50% of MFT money collected to go into an account to subsidize the upgrading of non-dedicated subdivision roads in anticipation of being taken into a township’s road system is set to expire in 2013.

“If there is anyway for us to offer more assistance, I favor it.”

Miller explained that she had been in contact with the State’s Attorney’s Office and had an opinion saying that she was not in a conflict of interest position.

“The County has no oversight whatsoever over township road district budgets.

“My personal employment is not contingent on the non-dedicated road aspect of the (township).”

“I believe [if] the non-dedicated road money comes back to the [subdivisions], all the road commissioners would be losing some of their budget,” Sue Draffkorn added.

Miller pointed out that 50% of township road taxes on property within municipalities goes directly to the cities and villages. [Come to think of it, this is money the municipalities get without being blamed for levying the real estate taxes, much as the cities don't get blamed for the share of the state income tax that is passed on to them.]

McClellan explained that there are restrictions in the County ordinance regarding the minimum width of the right-of-way, some of which are extremely difficult or impossible to meet in older unincorporated subdivisions.

And, Miller pointed out, if the subdivision roads “meet the standards, the township road commissioner can still say, ‘No.’

“I understand their frustrations. The people of McHenry Township have elected Mr. [Leon] Van Every and there isn’t even competition. That’s not place to be passing judgment.”

One the other hand, she pointed out the relationship between unincorporated subdivision residents in Nunda and Algonquin Townships is good.

Getting back to the discussion of who should chair the Transportation Committee, McClellan asked, “Do you feel you would be non-biased in that position?”

“Yes I do,” Miller replied and the discussion moved on to liaison positions.

Pending a change of mind by Hill, Miller will remain the head of the Transportation Committee.

Only Township Assessor Bob Kunz and Road Commissioner Bob Miller managed to avoid a challenge in the late February Republican Party Primary Election.

Everyone seated at the November Algonquin Township Meeting except for attorney Jim Kelly is running in next February’s Republican Primary Election.

Township Supervisor Dianne Klemm is being challenged by Township Clerk Marc Munaretto.

Two are running for the Clerk

• current Trustee Linda Lantz and
• former Trustee Chuck Lutzow

For Trustee there are seven candidates.

Three are currently Trustees:

• Dan Shea of Fox River Grove
• Lowell Cutsforth of Fox River Grove
• Russ Cardell1 of Algonquin

Four are not:

• Neils Kruse of Cary
• Melissa Sanchez of Lake in the Hills
• Larry Emmery of Crystal Lake
• Bill Bligh of Crystal Lake

Of the Trustee candidates, Shea, Cutsforth, Kurse, Sanchez and Emery are Republican Precinct Committeemen.

Bligh applied to be Associate Judge in 2011.

Dianne Klemm

It was tax levy night at Algonquin Township.

“We froze our levy,” Algonquin Township Supervisor stated at the beginning of the discussion of the tax levy for the real estate taxes to be collected next spring.

I wanted to ask if this coming year’s levy was bigger than this year’s extension, that is, the amount that the County Clerk told the County Treasurer to collect.

That because if Algonquin Township “balloon” levied last year, the amount requested could have been higher than the amount allowed or the extension.

We’re doing fine,” the Supervisor announced.

The motion for approval passed 5-0.

Bob Miller

Highway Commissioner Bob Miller made a similar statement.

His Road District is essential a separate unit of government.

“Last year we held the line on our levy.  We plan to do that again this year.  We’re going to hold the levy flat again.”

The motion passed 5-0.

A person in the audience might have thought the two public officials were saying the same thing.

After the meeting, I discovered they may have been using the same verbiage,  the tax implications were vastly different.

For taxes to be constant next year (in the aggregate on current taxpayers), tax districts have to follow McHenry County’s example.

Levy the amount of last year’s extension (the amount authorized to be collected, most of which is), plus new growth, which is about 0.26% of the current assessment base.

Last year the extension for the combination of the Town Fund and the General Assistance fund was $1.812,281.

The levy passed last night was $1,861,000.

Now, the levy this year may well have been the same as the levy last year, but, if so, the levy last year was obviously larger than what was allowed by law to be collected.

So, that means those two funds will get a 2.7% increase.

That’s less than the 3% increase allowed by the Tax Cap law because the Consumer Price Index went up 3%, but it still means a tax hike.

Algonquin Township Road Commissioner Bob Miller, on the other hand, had an extension for the taxes collected last spring of $3,989,082.

His levy was for $3,989,000, essentially the same as the amount collected last year.

Because there is new growth in Algonquin Township (think Route 14 in Crystal Lake), there will be a higher assessed valuation than last year, hence the amount the Township Road District will extract from our pockets will be a bit less than last year (assuming assessments remain proportionately the same).

Let’s assume that the Township Board members and the Supervisor wanted to keep taxes constant.

What can they do now that they have passed a tax hike?

At a future meeting, they can amend the levy to take it down to last year’s extension.

With an election coming up in February, I’m betting that the levy will be lowered at the next meeting.

If it isn’t, challengers to incumbents could be labeled “tax hikers.”

So, “tax hikers” or “tax fighters?”

Which will it be?

Bob Kunz

Dianne Klemm

Bob Miller

I’ve been asking Algonquin Township Officials whether they are running for re-election or not.

So far, those in the big three highest paying posts are planning to be on the ballot again in 2013.

They are

• Supervisor Dianne Klemm
• Highway Commissioner Bob Miller
• Assessor Bob Kunz

Clerk Marc Munaretto has not made his intentions known.

Salaries for the last year they will serve in office follow:

• Supervisor – $64,401.35 (plus $1,000 for serving as Road District Treasurer)
• Assessor – $81,575.05
• Clerk – $17,173.70
• Highway Commissioner – $90,161.89
• Trustees – $2,290.10 each

The Township Board could raise salaries, of course.

McHenry County Undersheriff Andy Zinke has raised $8,640 with a number of $250 contributors listed on his quarterly report filed October 17, the last day for filing.

He spent a bit over 10% of that amount, leaving him about $7,750 in the bank.
At the $250 level are the following:

Undersheriff Andy Zinke confers with McHenry County Board member Mary Donner at the September meeting of the Nunda Township Republican Central Committee.

• John J. Smith, McHenry
• John W. Cederlund, Union
• Ronald Bean & Janet Bean Trust, Lake in the Hills
• Jo Ann Wright, Crystal Lake
• Steven Neidenberg, McHenry
• Kenneth G. Cabay, Lake in the Hills
• Process Engineering Group, Prairie Grove
• Richard W. Graves, Spring Grove
• Tim A. Lane, Chicago
• Alpha Secutiry, LLC, Johnsburg
• Keith C. Wagner, McHenry
• Jose Rivera, Woodstock
• Laura Perez, Kildeer
• Citizens for LeFew, Harvard
• Citizens to Elect Sheriff Nygren, Woodstock

Citizens to Elect Bob Miller, Cary, contribute $500.

Expenditures large enough to list are

• McHenry County Friends of NRA – $360
• Light Center Foundation of Union – $150

You know that I read politicians in parades like tea leaves.

Sometimes I just let the photos speak for themselves.

Algonquin’s Marc Avelar shared some photos he took on Saturday’s Algonquin Founders Day Parade.

The one below may speak volumes about who will be run from the GOP faction headed by McHenry County State’s Attorney Lou Bianchi.

McHenry County State's Attorney Lou Bianchi poses in Algonquin before the parade with the new Chief of his Civil Division, Donna Kelly.

From the picture of Bianchi in the parade, it is unclear whether Kelly was in the car. The name tag probably means she went to the luncheon at Port Edward before the parade. If so, it means she had an opportunity to meet community influentials from Algonquin. Before next spring’s primary election.

The photo I have of McHenry County State's Attorney from the parade shows him waving beside his wife Jean.

Two other countywide officials were in the parade–Pam Palmer, who is up for re-election next year, and Kathie Schultz, McHenry County Clerk. Schultz was elected last year and is in the first year of a four-year term.

McHenry County Auditor Pam Palmer and County Clerk Kathie Schultz were waving to the crowd in Algonquin Saturday.

All the McHenry County Board members are on the ballot next year, but I only got photos of three of them–Donna Kurtz, Anna May Miller and Marc Munaretto.

District 1 McHenry County Board members Marc Munaretto and Anna May Miller rode in one car driven by Algonquin Township Road Commissioner Bob Miller

District 2 McHenry County Board member Donna Kurtz was riding in a convertible behind the two District 1 board members.

Algonquin has seen significant growth into Kane County. This year newly-elected Kane County Board member Maggie Auger was in the parade.

Kane County Board member Maggie Auger was also in the parade.

The list below shows the line-up for the parade. Although I don’t have a photo of newly-appointed State Rep. Kent Gaffney, his name is on the list.  So is Algonquin resident Phyllis Walters, McHenry County Recorder of Deeds.

District 1 McHenry County Board member Bob Bless’ and Robert Novak’s names also appear, but, again, I didn’t get photos of them.  Same with District 5 Board members Tina Hill and Paula Yensen.

Karen McConnaughay, the Kane County Board Chairman who is running for State Senator west of Hansen Road, is also in the parade line-up.  Another Kane County politician, State’s Attorney Joseph McMahon is also listed.

There were, of course, the Algonquin Village Board members and Carpentersville’s Mayor.

Certainly the Algonquin Village officials were in the parade. Whether the others listed for which I do not have photos took part perhaps readers can tell us in the comment section.

Notables at the Algonquin Founders Day Parade made this list. Click to enlarge.

Then came the fire engines.