Tag Archives: mayor

A Response to Mr. Gitz – More Government and More Ordinances Are Not the Solution to Freeport’s Problems!

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Mr. Gitz in his weekly column in the Journal Standard on October 13 talks about new ordinances to regulate noise and other undesirable conduct in the community. He said problems are contagious. He talks about delapidated houses and the impact of living next to one. He states that he would like every street to be a neighborhood of choice. My reponse to you Mr. Gitz is that the City of Freeport is part of the problem. Mr. Gitz and the present city council should also be concerned about the impact of living and driving on streets everyday in this community that are in such bad shape that they are not even safe. No wonder people fail to maintain their homes. For years they have paid high taxes and have seen few results. Mr. Gitz – there are few neighborhoods left in Freeport which are neighborhoods of choice. Mr. Gitz states that property owners have to act responsibly in order to restore our Freeport. The question is – when is OUR government going to start acting responsibly? Those in government believe that more money (which means more taxes) and more laws will solve all problems. More money and more laws are not the solution. The City of Freeport must allocate its resources where they will do the most good for the majority of people living in this community which means fixing the streets and a police department enforcing existing laws.

Oh, by the way Mr. Gitz, where are the ordinances that say the City should maintain city owned buildings such as the Germania, City Hall, and the Carnegie Library? Is it true that intentional neglect and waste is acceptable in the public sector? What a shock – one standard for those in the public sector and another for those in the private sector who pay the bills!

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Freeport Mayor Gitz Has Let Us Down – Freeport Deserves Better

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On August 19 Good Day Illinois stated that Mayor Gitz had been in office for 90 days, and let’s see what he does at the council meeting that evening. Remember he reappointed all department heads upon assuming office for 90 days so he could evaluate each department. At the meeting on August 19 he either reappointed four department heads permanently or on an interim basis for another 90 days. Let’s look at these appointments:

Tom Dole – reappointed Public Works Director. Look at the streets and the condition of this community. Mayor Gitz voted for 4 more years of the same.

Shelly Griswold – reappointed on interim basis up to 90 days as Community Development Director. Again look at the last 8 years and you decide. How long does it take for Mayor Gitz to decide? The President of the United States can choose a Secretary of State faster than Mayor Gitz can find a Community Development Director. Does Mayor Gitz have trouble making decisions?

Jerry Whitmore – reappointed on interim basis up to 90 days as Police Chief. Look at the crime rate in this community and the allocation of our police resources. You decide if you want the same policies continued.

Sarah Griffin – reappointed Corporation Counsel. Look at the Carnegie Library debacle, the Comcast Cable office closing, and the handling of other legal issues. The continual hiring of outside counsel and a City Attorney hired by Ms. Griffin who prosecutes traffic and misdemeanor cases like they are murder cases unless your name is Jesse Jackson (and then he dismisses them). A full time corporation counsel should have time to do the work the City Attorney is now handling, and in addition there should be limited use of outside counsel. Mayor Gitz voted for 4 more years of the same.

The citizens of Freeport by electing Mr. Gitz voted for change. Now as Mayor, Mr. Gitz has reappointed two individuals who were an integral part of the administration of the previous mayor and his disastrous policies. Failure to immediately deal with the Community Development Director and Police Chief does bode well for the future. So much for a new direction for Freeport!

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SURPRISE – THERE IS A REASON THE JOURNAL STANDARD DOES NOT REPORT ON FREEPORT CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS!

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Recently, it was said that Good Morning Illinois would report on Freeport City Council meetings since the Journal Standard did not report on the meetings. There is a good reason the Journal Standard does not report on said meetings – they are not worth a reporter’s time.
Here is summary of the meeting on July 1, 2013:

Public Comments: 4 individuals spoke in support of making Chicago Avenue a two way street. Again a big issue was the placement of the mail boxes on the street.

Public Hearing on Appropriation Ordinance: Absolutely no one commented on it. No written comments and no public comments. No comments from alderman. Enough said. Everything is perfect in Freeport!

Second reading of several ordinances:

Maintaining electric rate tax – No discussion. This Council has not seen a tax it does not like.

Chicago Avenue two way street – much discussion by Council on effective date of ordinance and mail boxes on street. If only this council would spend as much time on the rest of the community considering the problems facing it. For example all of this time spent discussing Chicago Avenue when many other streets in this community are not safe to drive on due to their poor condition. ENOUGH SAID. YOU DECIDE WHAT IS IMPORTANT!

Appropriation Ordinance – discussed by a few Council members. Big issue an increase to the Mayor’s expense account which was approved by the Council. Also, discussion of $100,000 budgeted to tear down houses. The Mayor indicated if they had more revenue than anticipated, it could be diverted to tearing down houses! NO DISCUSSION OF OTHER AREAS IN FREEPORT SUCH AS THE HORRIBLE CONDITION OF THE STREETS. HOW SAD IT IS!

Reports of Department Heads:

Fire Chief – Announced his retirement at the meeting. Freeport thanks him for a job well done.

City Engineer – appears oblivious to problems facing Freeport. He lives in German Valley and serves as a Trustee for that community. Draw your own conclusion!

On a very serious note:

The Mayor and Police Chief discussed the recent murder. Both indicated that it will take the community’s help to solve this crime. Silence will only encourage further conduct of this nature. Unfortunately, one alderman stated that the citizens of Freeport should understand that no neighborhood will be safe in Freeport if this conduct is allowed to continue. How stupid does he think we are. Threats by this alderman in this case are disgusting. Spend less time on Chicago Avenue and more on the real issues facing this community. Talk is cheap – but in this case deadly.

Next Freeport Council meeting is July 15, 2013.