A press release from the Village of Lakewood on the date that its village board is scheduled to approve a Tax Increment Financing District at a 7 PM meeting at Turnberry Country Club:
New Website Launch January 27, 2015
The Village of Lakewood is very proud and excited to announce the launch of our new website on January 27, 2015. This new website is devoted to providing in-depth and easily accessible information about our community to our residents and anyone who visits.
The new website will have a completely updated look and simple to use navigation panes.
These will enable individuals to move effortlessly throughout the website and easily obtain the specific information they are seeking. The enhanced site is complete with new functions including a News section, Calendar of Events, and Interactive Forms.
Be sure to visit us at http://village.lakewood.il.us
Will the new website contain all the attachments for board meetings?
Transparent boards post all the attachments for their board meetings.
Even better are when all the attachments for a board meeting are consolidated into one single board packet.
How about video recording board meetings and archiving the videos on the village website, for those citizens who can’t physically attend a board meeting or want to review what was said in the meeting.
And for a proposed $66 Million project (plus bond interest), the board at the very least should have a section on its website dedicated to the project with more detailed information than what is currently available on the village website.
Such detailed history would include an expansion on the parcel level data included in the SB Friedman TIF Eligibility Study which is limited to Count, PIN, and 2013 EAV.
Such expansion would include, per PIN, address of the PIN, 23 year history of EAV and property taxes paid, explanation why the parcel qualifies for TIF status, and estimated EAV growth for the next 23 years.
23 years being the estimated life of the TIF (TIF can be extended an additional 12 years upon expiration or can be retired early).
The taxpayers are not being presented with a first rate proposal, rather a 43 page TIF Eligibility astudy which with no access to the underlying details.
SB Friedman has the details, the village paid for the details, so taxpayers paid for the details, release the details to the public on the village website.
The village on its current website has no attachments for any board meetings ever.