McHenry County Blog

State Senator and Republican gubernatorial candidate Kirk Dillard speaks to mainly women at Crystal Lake's 1776 restaurant.

Billing himself as the only non-millionaire in the race for the Republican nomination for governor, State Senator Kirk Dillard spoke to mainly women at Crystal Lake’s 1776 restaurant Tuesday morning.

He related having received this advice from his former boss, former Governor Jim Edgar:

“You must find a way to attract women and Latinos.”

State Senator Kirk Dillard greets Cathy Danca after the 1776 breakfast hosted by his colleague State Senator Pam Althoff.

Jobs, education and safety are the approaches Dillard said he was taking for both demographics.

My friend Pete Castillo and I arrived during the question and answer session for the 45 or so McHenry Countians in attendance.

Dillard reflected on his ability to work with newly-elected Senate President John Cullerton:

“We work on things we can get along on.”

In answer to a question about the pension debt hanging over Illinois, Dillard came out in favor of a two-tiered pension system with new employees not being guaranteed a certain amount each month.

(Government pensions are typically called “defined benefits.” They guarantee a certain amount each month and, in the case of Illinois, a 3% increase each year whether inflation is lower or higher. Private enterprise has moved from the defined benefit approach to a “defined contribution” approach in which the employer agrees to put so much a pay period into a pension pot. The amount available for retirement depends on how the money is invested and whether and how much the employee sets aside his or her own money for retirement.)

Dillard said he thought he was the only one who could pull that off (not his words). In a telephone town meeting with Andy McKenna, I heard his rival take something of a similar approach to reforming future pensions.

Dillard pointed out that the pension problem is not just one for state taxpayers. Local governments’ police and fire protection personnel have similar problems of under funding.

“We can’t sustain” the state pension situation, Dillard said. If something is not done about the pension system, “we will have no money for education, (hospitals and other functions financed by state government).”

Why does Dillard say that?

Because the Illinois state constitution pretty much says that pensions get paid first. At least as long as members of the Illinois Supreme Court get pensions like other state employees.

Prairie Grove Village Administrator Jeanine Smith and former State Representative Rosemary Kurtz listen to GOP gubernatorial candidate Kirk Dillard.

“I’m the person who has the political courage to get it done),” the state senator said, indicating he would tell state employee union leaders,

“If we don’t make these changes, we’ll go insolvent and a Federal bankruptcy judge will (impose) them.”

A question was asked about providing “tax credits up to a certain level” for contributions to not-for-profit organizations. Credits are subtractions from what one owes in state or federal income taxes.

Dillard indicated his support for such a change in the income tax law because not-for-profit groups provide better services cheaper than state government.

Touching on the precarious nature of state finances, Edgar’s former chief of staff pointed out that bills were paid in 17 days when the former governor was in office, but now a nursing home in his district hasn’t been paid “in more than five months.”

More tomorrow.

In one of the first county board fund raisers of the year, McHenry County College Board member Donna Kurtz gathered supporters at The Cottage at the corner of Crystal Lake Avenue and Brink Street Thursday night.

Kurtz is running to replace either incumbent County Board Chairman Ken Koehler or member Lyn Orphal in the early February Republican primary election.

Crystal Lake City Councilman Jeff Thorsen introduced the candidate.

“I am very, very, very enthusiastic supporter of Donna Kurtz,” he said. “We need someone with her honesty and integrity in county board government.”

Kurtz said she was inspired by her mother former State Rep. Rosemary Kurtz’ concern for environmental protection and former State Rep. Cal Skinner’s fiscal conservativeness. Rep. Kurtz defeated Rep. Skinner in the 2000 GOP primary election.

Former State Reps. Rosemary Kurtz and Cal Skinner, plus McHenry County College Board member and County Board candidate Donna Kurtz. (Jeff Thorsen commented that this should be sent to Ripley's Believe It or Not.)

“As many of you know, the world goes full circle.”

Kurtz said she running for the board of directors of a $260 million organization, McHenry County government.

Reflecting on her service on the McHenry County College Board, Kurtz said it had taught her this lesson:

“You gotta do your own research. Everyone’s got their own agenda.”

She didn’t say she was reflecting on her support of building a minor league baseball stadium on college property and, then, changing her mind with the announcement being at the Crystal Lake City Council meeting the night re-zoning was being discussed, but that might be a good guess.

“My courage was driven by my thought I couldn’t stand not to do the right thing,” she stated.

Besides Thorsen, City Council members Carolyn Schofield and Brett Hopkins were in attendance, as were park board members Mike Walkup and Richard Sexton.

McHenry County Recorder of Deeds Phyllis Walters, who actually lives in District 2 in the tiny bit of Algonquin in the district was also in attendance, as was Nunda Township Supervisor John Heisler.

Members of A-LAW, the Alliance for Land, Agriculture and Water were in attendance. The group recently proposed strict potential conflict disclosure rules for county elected and appointed officials.  The Alden Road Alliance was also represented. District 3 county board candidate Craig Steagall, who actively opposes the location of the proposed Ridgefield Metra station on Country Club Road, also was present.

Touchdown Sponsor

• Tamara Kurtz

Field Goal Sponsors

• Erv & Louise Lecoque
• Dr. Robert & Carol Minkus

Safety Sponsors

• Jeannine Thoms
• Connie Zukowski
• Scott Summers
• Jewel Hahn
• Jill Hartman

Extra Point Sponsors

• Keith & Marge Nygren
• Phyllis Walters
• Bill & Alice Howenstine
• James & Diane Gesler
• Lou Ann & Jerome Majewski
• Jean Plews
• Patricia Floeter
• Brett & Tina Hopkins

The Associated Press highlighted the well-funded Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund yesterday.

You know why it has enough resources to pay the pensions local government employees have earned?

One reason is that forty-some years ago, it required participating governments like McHenry County to sign an agreement to agree over the next forty-year period to put enough money into the IMRF to enable the pension fund to have enough money to, as they say, “fully fund” the pensions of its participants.

It happened in the late 1960’s when I was McHenry County Treasurer, not that I had anything to do with the agreement, except signing the checks.

So, the IMRF has 100% of the money it needs to pay the obligations that have been incurred.

The five state pensions are funded at 63%.

Guess who gets to make up the difference.

You’ve got it.

It’s Illinois taxpayers.

And, lest I seem ungrateful, thank you for paying the taxes to pay my pension.

Recently, the Chicago Sun-Times pointed out that former State Senator Carol Ronan had used a loophole in the legislative pension plan to increase her pension by $38,000 a year for eight weeks work for Governor Rod Blagojevich at the annual salary rate of $102,000.

Ronan wasn’t the first to do that.

I remember that after State Senator John Friedland (R-Elgin) he took a lobbyist job with the Elgin Sanitary District for a couple of months at about the same salary and similarly jumped his pension.

Legislators appointed sanitary district trustees, myself among them during the 1970’s. We who were not from Elgin deferred to the recommendations made by Friedland, however. So, the people Friedland appointed gave him the job.

Earlier in his career, Friedland earned a figurative “Badge of Honor” for standing up to Governor Richard Ogilvie. Friedland refused to vote for the income tax Ogilvie proposed. Ogivie decided to make an example of Friedland, but, fortunately, for the concept of separation of powers, failed.

Blagojevich is merely following in the foot steps of former Secretary of State George Ryan, who allowed former Republican State Rep. Roger Stanley (R-Streamwood) a little work job that similarly boosted his pension.

Stanley admitted to various felonies and served time in federal prison. Among his admitted misdeeds was a postal fraud charge in which Stanley fronted for Lee Daniels’ House Republican Campaign Fund and created a fake organization that mailed out the hit piece reprinting the then-Northwest Herald’s Amy Mack’s reporting of my ex-wife Robin Meridith Geist’s false divorce court charges.

And, speaking of hiking legislative pensions, in the summer of 1999, Daniels chief of staff Mike Tristano asked me at Daniels’ DuPage County office if I would like to be assistant Auditor General. The salary would have been over $100,000, with a massive pension boost to follow.

In return for the appointment I would have to agree not to run in 2000.

I told Tristano if the offer were to be Auditor General, I would think about it, but not the assistant’s job.

I was later told that Daniels got to decide who filled that job in the deal to make Bill Holland Auditor General. I was told Daniels even put his former travel agent in the post. When she found out she would have to go to work, she decided she didn’t want the job, the story went.

After I lost the 2000 primary election to Rosemary Kurtz, another offer was made via Tristano. It was to be assistant director of the department where my former state legislative colleague Jack Schaffer had been director during Jim Edgar’s terms. The pay was about $96,000, with understood subsequent pension boost.

I decided to retire instead.

The Associated Press highlighted the well-funded Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund yesterday.

You know why it has enough resources to pay the pensions local government employees have earned?

One reason is that forty-some years ago, it required participating governments like McHenry County to sign an agreement to agree over the next forty-year period to put enough money into the IMRF to enable the pension fund to have enough money to, as they say, “fully fund” the pensions of its participants.

It happened in the late 1960’s when I was McHenry County Treasurer, not that I had anything to do with the agreement, except signing the checks.

So, the IMRF has 100% of the money it needs to pay the obligations that have been incurred.

The five state pensions are funded at 63%.

Guess who gets to make up the difference.

You’ve got it.

It’s Illinois taxpayers.

And, lest I seem ungrateful, thank you for paying the taxes to pay my pension.

Recently, the Chicago Sun-Times pointed out that former State Senator Carol Ronan had used a loophole in the legislative pension plan to increase her pension by $38,000 a year for eight weeks work for Governor Rod Blagojevich at the annual salary rate of $102,000.

Ronan wasn’t the first to do that.

I remember that after State Senator John Friedland (R-Elgin) he took a lobbyist job with the Elgin Sanitary District for a couple of months at about the same salary and similarly jumped his pension.

Legislators appointed sanitary district trustees, myself among them during the 1970’s. We who were not from Elgin deferred to the recommendations made by Friedland, however. So, the people Friedland appointed gave him the job.

Earlier in his career, Friedland earned a figurative “Badge of Honor” for standing up to Governor Richard Ogilvie. Friedland refused to vote for the income tax Ogilvie proposed. Ogivie decided to make an example of Friedland, but, fortunately, for the concept of separation of powers, failed.

Blagojevich is merely following in the foot steps of former Secretary of State George Ryan, who allowed former Republican State Rep. Roger Stanley (R-Streamwood) a little work job that similarly boosted his pension.

Stanley admitted to various felonies and served time in federal prison. Among his admitted misdeeds was a postal fraud charge in which Stanley fronted for Lee Daniels’ House Republican Campaign Fund and created a fake organization that mailed out the hit piece reprinting the then-Northwest Herald’s Amy Mack’s reporting of my ex-wife Robin Meridith Geist’s false divorce court charges.

And, speaking of hiking legislative pensions, in the summer of 1999, Daniels chief of staff Mike Tristano asked me at Daniels’ DuPage County office if I would like to be assistant Auditor General. The salary would have been over $100,000, with a massive pension boost to follow.

In return for the appointment I would have to agree not to run in 2000.

I told Tristano if the offer were to be Auditor General, I would think about it, but not the assistant’s job.

I was later told that Daniels got to decide who filled that job in the deal to make Bill Holland Auditor General. I was told Daniels even put his former travel agent in the post. When she found out she would have to go to work, she decided she didn’t want the job, the story went.

After I lost the 2000 primary election to Rosemary Kurtz, another offer was made via Tristano. It was to be assistant director of the department where my former state legislative colleague Jack Schaffer had been director during Jim Edgar’s terms. The pay was about $96,000, with understood subsequent pension boost.

I decided to retire instead.

At last Thursday’s meeting of the McHenry County College Board, former State Representative Rosemary Kurtz addressed the board during the brief time allowed for public comments.

I included some of what she said, but asked her if she would send me the entire text. She has and it can be read below.

You can see why newly elected student trustee Tom Kendzie was so impressed with what she said.

Good Evening.

There’s a wise saying that makes me think of Erv LeCoque, your former Board Trustee and Foundation member.

“A bird in the hand is
worth more than 2 in the bush.”

At your December meeting he reminded you of his initiative to set up a fund, called the “Promise” which would provide tuition to any needy high school graduate who wanted to go to MCC. There are some Big Donors who have set a goal of $4 million as the first step.

Mr.LeCoque then announced that these donors have $2 million in hand right now to contribute to the “Promise” for student tuition.

How noble!

How generous!

These extremely successful business men and women, these donors, from their vast experience say that the College Board and President should drop the Minor League Stadium enterprise because this is a business that they know nothing about.

If the Board goes back to the business it was created for by the voters, which is EDUCATION, then these new donations of millions of dollars from these generous industrialists will be a “win-win” situation for the students and for all of us in McHenry County.

How did we end up with this business of a Stadium?

It is just a year ago when you were about to plunge into this unknown venture of risky investment with a Limited Liability Company.

To me it seems like “hedging your bets,” like buying into a hedge fund for us the taxpayers.

Investors don’t know what their hedge fund manager is doing.

His decisions are secret and it’s like a CLOSED meeting at the College. The investor is in the dark.

He may know the manager takes a big percentage, but it’s worth it to take the risk.

Every good economic advisor will tell you,

“if it’s too good to be true,
then it probably is.”

The message:

BEWARE.

Referring to the shady world of hedge fund management, I believe that the Public, the people who pay the bills for MCC have been forced into the same kind of secrecy by your Closed Meetings.

According to the Open Meetings Act and conversations I have had with the Attorney General’s assistant,

a unit of government does not always
HAVE to go into Closed Meeting.

The Act says that the officials “May” close the people out of certain discussions; but they are not mandated to do so.

I don’t believe that you had to go into secret session when you were entering into a relationship with the Stadium developers.

We were kept in the dark for 5 months until it surfaced with the petition before the Crystal Lake Planning and Zoning Commission.

In the future, I hope you restore the trust we the Public had in MCC from the time we voted the College into existence.

I hope you will open up those meetings to the Public because YOU TRUST THEM and YOU RESPECT THEM.

They only want what is best for this Place of Learning.

INDIVIDUALS, among Your Public, are EXPERTS in areas that elected officials and your loyal staff are not aware of. This County College deserves to hear that expertise in finance, construction, and land use in OPEN Meetings.

In conclusion, please reflect on Erv LeCoque’s business advice and his offer of millions for your students.

Please remember you Don’t Have to go into secret session (closed meetings) as often as you have done in the past. Put some Trust in Your Public who is very well-intentioned.

WE Care.

= = = = =
Newly elected McHenry County College student trustee Tom Kendzie is in the head shot at the top. Former State Rep. Rosemary Kurtz is see addressing the MCC Board. The other photographs of Kurtz were taken earlier. Crystal Lake retired investment banker Barry Glasgow is at the bottom.

At last Thursday’s meeting of the McHenry County College Board, former State Representative Rosemary Kurtz addressed the board during the brief time allowed for public comments.

I included some of what she said, but asked her if she would send me the entire text. She has and it can be read below.

You can see why newly elected student trustee Tom Kendzie was so impressed with what she said.

Good Evening.

There’s a wise saying that makes me think of Erv LeCoque, your former Board Trustee and Foundation member.

“A bird in the hand is
worth more than 2 in the bush.”

At your December meeting he reminded you of his initiative to set up a fund, called the “Promise” which would provide tuition to any needy high school graduate who wanted to go to MCC. There are some Big Donors who have set a goal of $4 million as the first step.

Mr.LeCoque then announced that these donors have $2 million in hand right now to contribute to the “Promise” for student tuition.

How noble!

How generous!

These extremely successful business men and women, these donors, from their vast experience say that the College Board and President should drop the Minor League Stadium enterprise because this is a business that they know nothing about.

If the Board goes back to the business it was created for by the voters, which is EDUCATION, then these new donations of millions of dollars from these generous industrialists will be a “win-win” situation for the students and for all of us in McHenry County.

How did we end up with this business of a Stadium?

It is just a year ago when you were about to plunge into this unknown venture of risky investment with a Limited Liability Company.

To me it seems like “hedging your bets,” like buying into a hedge fund for us the taxpayers.

Investors don’t know what their hedge fund manager is doing.

His decisions are secret and it’s like a CLOSED meeting at the College. The investor is in the dark.

He may know the manager takes a big percentage, but it’s worth it to take the risk.

Every good economic advisor will tell you,

“if it’s too good to be true,
then it probably is.”

The message:

BEWARE.

Referring to the shady world of hedge fund management, I believe that the Public, the people who pay the bills for MCC have been forced into the same kind of secrecy by your Closed Meetings.

According to the Open Meetings Act and conversations I have had with the Attorney General’s assistant,

a unit of government does not always
HAVE to go into Closed Meeting.

The Act says that the officials “May” close the people out of certain discussions; but they are not mandated to do so.

I don’t believe that you had to go into secret session when you were entering into a relationship with the Stadium developers.

We were kept in the dark for 5 months until it surfaced with the petition before the Crystal Lake Planning and Zoning Commission.

In the future, I hope you restore the trust we the Public had in MCC from the time we voted the College into existence.

I hope you will open up those meetings to the Public because YOU TRUST THEM and YOU RESPECT THEM.

They only want what is best for this Place of Learning.

INDIVIDUALS, among Your Public, are EXPERTS in areas that elected officials and your loyal staff are not aware of. This County College deserves to hear that expertise in finance, construction, and land use in OPEN Meetings.

In conclusion, please reflect on Erv LeCoque’s business advice and his offer of millions for your students.

Please remember you Don’t Have to go into secret session (closed meetings) as often as you have done in the past. Put some Trust in Your Public who is very well-intentioned.

WE Care.

= = = = =
Newly elected McHenry County College student trustee Tom Kendzie is in the head shot at the top. Former State Rep. Rosemary Kurtz is see addressing the MCC Board. The other photographs of Kurtz were taken earlier. Crystal Lake retired investment banker Barry Glasgow is at the bottom.

For the second meeting in less than a month, I left the room whistling,

“Ding, dong the witch is dead. Which old witch? The wicked witch…”

And, this time I even came up with appropriate words before I got home from the McHenry County College Board meeting.

The reason that minor league baseball promoter Pete Heitman’s pitch was dead?

After an embarrassingly inadequate 3rd party analysis by Dave Stone of Economics Research Associates of Heitman’s and his buddy Mark Houser’s projected figures and probing questions by MCC Trustee Donna Kurtz, MCC President Walt Packard read the following statement:

“The presentation we just heard makes a case that this project was put forward on a sound basis. It suggests that if the Board choose to move forward with just the Health Wellness and Athletic building it has potential for supporting itself.

“That being said, I am recommending that we not move forward with this project in its current form.

“Furthermore, I would propose that we take formal action to sunset this specific project at our April Board meeting.

“The Board should be proud of the fact that it has successful(ly) taken action that will allow us to purchase the Gilger property. It should not be lost on any one that this is a major step for our college. And the Board should be applauded for having made an historic, forward thinking sound business decision.

“The Board also took our Facilities Master Plan and made a valiant attempt at implementing a portion of it in a manner that we believed might very well have allowed us to add much needed facilities to our campus without going to the tax payers as the source for funding.

“For a variety of reasons, this does not appear to be a time when we can bring that plan to fruition.

“Therefore, I am recommending that we

• terminate the combined HWAC stadium project;
• take a fresh look at our Facilities plan and
• aggressively commit ourselves to identifying a sound fiscal approach for making needed facilities become a reality.”

The statement was evidently put together at the last minute. President Packard was kind enough to provide copies after the meeting. I tried to correct the typographic errors.

It was evident long ago, of course, that the Frontier League baseball stadium proposal was melting, just like the wicked witch.

The unanimous rejection of MCC’s re-zoning proposal by the Crystal Lake Planning and Zoning Commission during our supremely wet summer gave a clue.

So did the public defection of two articulate board members—Donna Kurtz and Scott Summers–at the Crystal Lake City Council meeting.

And the subsequent rejection by the Crystal Lake’s City Council of Mayor Aaron Shepley strongly stated support.

Plus, the public reaction of the MCC Board majority’s 4-3 censure of the two trustees who announced their change of opinion at the re-zoning meeting.

Then, Geraldine Cowlin made known that she thought the junior college had gone so far off target by involving itself in minor league baseball that she withdrew a $1 million pledge of scholarship money.

After the statement, several trustees made comments.

“For a number of months,” Summers said, “I have had misgivings and anxieties about this project. I will spare the public (my reasons, considering President Packard’s announcement). Candidly, (I remember) with bitterness six months ago (when) two trustees were censured for taking a position not dissimilar from the recommendation (by our own) president.”

“I take umbrage with Mr. Summers (remarks),” MCC Board President George Lowe interjected. “You had an opportunity to vote on this and you did. Then, you changed your opinion at the last minute.”

Committee of the Whole Chairwoman Frances Glosson said that the lesson to be learned was to get community input first.

“Thank you for all of your passions,” she said to those in the audience who had taken part in the debate.

“I think we need to prove ourselves to the public when it comes to the HWAC,” Kurtz added. “To try to get it done without community input (won’t work),”

“I’m glad you’re coming to this late to the table,” Lowe said with a raised voice.

“I want respectful comments,” Glosson chided Lowe.

“Do you want me to leave?” Lowe replied. “I’m fed up!”

The next item on the board agency was “non-violent communication,” which Glosson thought was appropriate.

I stood up, turned around and shook Rosemary Kurtz’ hand. Then, I went out to talk to the Harvard baseball team promoter, whose stadium will be privately financed.

The pitch had melted.

Oh, yes.

The other meeting where I left whistling, “Ding dong the witch is dead,” was the McHenry County Republican Central Committee convention. The analogy was not as good a fit as last night, but I assure you it wasn’t completely irrelevant.

= = = = =
On top, the man taking a picture of me taking a picture of him is baseball promoter Pete Heitman. Next comes Economics Research Associates analyst Dave Stone explaining how ERA agrees with Heitman’s projections. Dr. Walt Packard is the man with his left arm outstretched. Under his picture are EquityOne’s Mark Houser, Pete Heitman and Frontier League Commissioner Bill Lee being led from Packard’s office last spring to a secret meeting. The three Crystal Lake City Councilmen who put the kabosh on the McHenry County College’s appear next. From left to right, they are Ralph Dawson, Brett Hopkins and Jeff Thorsen. Below, in descending order, are MCC Trustees Scott Summers, George Lowe and Donna Kurtz.

And, who should show up after the meeting but my father.

True he was only on a plaque, but the new Board Secretary found his picture in a drawer and brought it out for me to see. He was elected to the original MCC Board and served from 1967-70.

For the second meeting in less than a month, I left the room whistling,

“Ding, dong the witch is dead. Which old witch? The wicked witch…”

And, this time I even came up with appropriate words before I got home from the McHenry County College Board meeting.

The reason that minor league baseball promoter Pete Heitman’s pitch was dead?

After an embarrassingly inadequate 3rd party analysis by Dave Stone of Economics Research Associates of Heitman’s and his buddy Mark Houser’s projected figures and probing questions by MCC Trustee Donna Kurtz, MCC President Walt Packard read the following statement:

“The presentation we just heard makes a case that this project was put forward on a sound basis. It suggests that if the Board choose to move forward with just the Health Wellness and Athletic building it has potential for supporting itself.

“That being said, I am recommending that we not move forward with this project in its current form.

“Furthermore, I would propose that we take formal action to sunset this specific project at our April Board meeting.

“The Board should be proud of the fact that it has successful(ly) taken action that will allow us to purchase the Gilger property. It should not be lost on any one that this is a major step for our college. And the Board should be applauded for having made an historic, forward thinking sound business decision.

“The Board also took our Facilities Master Plan and made a valiant attempt at implementing a portion of it in a manner that we believed might very well have allowed us to add much needed facilities to our campus without going to the tax payers as the source for funding.

“For a variety of reasons, this does not appear to be a time when we can bring that plan to fruition.

“Therefore, I am recommending that we

• terminate the combined HWAC stadium project;
• take a fresh look at our Facilities plan and
• aggressively commit ourselves to identifying a sound fiscal approach for making needed facilities become a reality.”

The statement was evidently put together at the last minute. President Packard was kind enough to provide copies after the meeting. I tried to correct the typographic errors.

It was evident long ago, of course, that the Frontier League baseball stadium proposal was melting, just like the wicked witch.

The unanimous rejection of MCC’s re-zoning proposal by the Crystal Lake Planning and Zoning Commission during our supremely wet summer gave a clue.

So did the public defection of two articulate board members—Donna Kurtz and Scott Summers–at the Crystal Lake City Council meeting.

And the subsequent rejection by the Crystal Lake’s City Council of Mayor Aaron Shepley strongly stated support.

Plus, the public reaction of the MCC Board majority’s 4-3 censure of the two trustees who announced their change of opinion at the re-zoning meeting.

Then, Geraldine Cowlin made known that she thought the junior college had gone so far off target by involving itself in minor league baseball that she withdrew a $1 million pledge of scholarship money.

After the statement, several trustees made comments.

“For a number of months,” Summers said, “I have had misgivings and anxieties about this project. I will spare the public (my reasons, considering President Packard’s announcement). Candidly, (I remember) with bitterness six months ago (when) two trustees were censured for taking a position not dissimilar from the recommendation (by our own) president.”

“I take umbrage with Mr. Summers (remarks),” MCC Board President George Lowe interjected. “You had an opportunity to vote on this and you did. Then, you changed your opinion at the last minute.”

Committee of the Whole Chairwoman Frances Glosson said that the lesson to be learned was to get community input first.

“Thank you for all of your passions,” she said to those in the audience who had taken part in the debate.

“I think we need to prove ourselves to the public when it comes to the HWAC,” Kurtz added. “To try to get it done without community input (won’t work),”

“I’m glad you’re coming to this late to the table,” Lowe said with a raised voice.

“I want respectful comments,” Glosson chided Lowe.

“Do you want me to leave?” Lowe replied. “I’m fed up!”

The next item on the board agency was “non-violent communication,” which Glosson thought was appropriate.

I stood up, turned around and shook Rosemary Kurtz’ hand. Then, I went out to talk to the Harvard baseball team promoter, whose stadium will be privately financed.

The pitch had melted.

Oh, yes.

The other meeting where I left whistling, “Ding dong the witch is dead,” was the McHenry County Republican Central Committee convention. The analogy was not as good a fit as last night, but I assure you it wasn’t completely irrelevant.

= = = = =
On top, the man taking a picture of me taking a picture of him is baseball promoter Pete Heitman. Next comes Economics Research Associates analyst Dave Stone explaining how ERA agrees with Heitman’s projections. Dr. Walt Packard is the man with his left arm outstretched. Under his picture are EquityOne’s Mark Houser, Pete Heitman and Frontier League Commissioner Bill Lee being led from Packard’s office last spring to a secret meeting. The three Crystal Lake City Councilmen who put the kabosh on the McHenry County College’s appear next. From left to right, they are Ralph Dawson, Brett Hopkins and Jeff Thorsen. Below, in descending order, are MCC Trustees Scott Summers, George Lowe and Donna Kurtz.

And, who should show up after the meeting but my father.

True he was only on a plaque, but the new Board Secretary found his picture in a drawer and brought it out for me to see. He was elected to the original MCC Board and served from 1967-70.

Having nothing but coincidence to do with the fight over Crystal Lake’s watershed involving McHenry County College at Tuesday night’s city council meeting, the McHenry County Soil and Water Conservation District will host a 7 PM meeting at the MCC Auditorium for Peter Annin, author of the book Great Lakes Water Wars.

Annin will talk about his book, which deals with the increasing social, economic and ecological challenges being placed upon the Great Lakes.

Pollution, international treaties, overuse and politics will be just a few of the discussion topics.

A veteran conflict and environmental journalist, Peter Annin spent more than a decade reporting on a wide variety of issues for Newsweek.

For many years he specialized in coverage of domestic terrorism. He also covered droughts in the Southwest, hurricanes in the Southeast, wind power on the Great Plains, forest fires in the mountain West, as well as the “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico.

Since January 2000 he has worked as Associate Director of the Institutes for Journalism and Natural Resources, a nonpartisan national nonprofit that organizes educational fellowships for mid-career environmental journalists.

“Don’t miss this free forum to learn about the ongoing struggles over the Great Lakes and how they may affect the future of McHenry County’s water resources,” a district spokesman said.

A related story that some might find of interest:

What Mayor Aaron Shepley Refused to Let Rosemary Krutz Say

There is another meeting on water being held in Algonquin at the same time Thursday night at Beans & Books Coffee Shop in downtown Algonquin (directions in the linked article).

The McHenry County Defenders are sponsoring it. Cindy Skrukrud, chairman of the Defenders’ Water Resources Protection Committee, plus Clean Water Advocate for the Illinois Chapter of The Sierra Club, will speak on McHenry County’s water resources.

Having nothing but coincidence to do with the fight over Crystal Lake’s watershed involving McHenry County College at Tuesday night’s city council meeting, the McHenry County Soil and Water Conservation District will host a 7 PM meeting at the MCC Auditorium for Peter Annin, author of the book Great Lakes Water Wars.

Annin will talk about his book, which deals with the increasing social, economic and ecological challenges being placed upon the Great Lakes.

Pollution, international treaties, overuse and politics will be just a few of the discussion topics.

A veteran conflict and environmental journalist, Peter Annin spent more than a decade reporting on a wide variety of issues for Newsweek.

For many years he specialized in coverage of domestic terrorism. He also covered droughts in the Southwest, hurricanes in the Southeast, wind power on the Great Plains, forest fires in the mountain West, as well as the “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico.

Since January 2000 he has worked as Associate Director of the Institutes for Journalism and Natural Resources, a nonpartisan national nonprofit that organizes educational fellowships for mid-career environmental journalists.

“Don’t miss this free forum to learn about the ongoing struggles over the Great Lakes and how they may affect the future of McHenry County’s water resources,” a district spokesman said.

A related story that some might find of interest:

What Mayor Aaron Shepley Refused to Let Rosemary Krutz Say

There is another meeting on water being held in Algonquin at the same time Thursday night at Beans & Books Coffee Shop in downtown Algonquin (directions in the linked article).

The McHenry County Defenders are sponsoring it. Cindy Skrukrud, chairman of the Defenders’ Water Resources Protection Committee, plus Clean Water Advocate for the Illinois Chapter of The Sierra Club, will speak on McHenry County’s water resources.