After a contentious local election filled with heated charges and counter charges, the big news from Glenview should have been political, but Chicago doesn’t give a fig about our election and has barely noticed our $1 billion development at The Glen. Instead, metropolitan reporters read about Bart the Bull in The Watch and beat a path to this suburb with tv cameras and pens poised.

The Wagner Farm Steering Committee had voted 7-6 to banish the bull. Some members felt the animal might pose a risk to the public since bulls can be ornery. Others feared the psychological impact on children who might catch Bart in the act with one of the farm’s 12 cows.

The Park Board’s John Winand was approached outside a local Walgreen’s by a tv reporter collecting opinions from the "man-on-the-street." His colleague, 83-year-old Catherine Crowley, said she was interviewed for nearly an hour by a channel 5 reporter intent on getting the prim senior citizen to say something naughty about Bart and his barn-mates. Crowley finally obliged: "He’s very big, and he’s pretty lusty," she said.

Norma Morrison, who spent more than a decade working to save the farm, also talked with the media about "Bart and his harem." She was featured having a face-to-face chat with the beast, apologizing for her vote to send him away. "I’m sorry, Bart," she said. "You’ve done a wonderful job here. Your children are beautiful, and we’re going to take good care of you."

Afterward, Morrison said she had "bonded with Bart," and would change her vote at the next opportunity. Hers was the original tie-breaking vote to send the bull away. Now, she says, "I think we should keep him."

A Sun-Times poll of readers found 96 percent also opposed Bart’s exile. Park Board member Winand acknowledged the public and most weathermen in Chicago were on Bart’s side but said he would like some expert opinion before deciding if the bull might pose any threat to public safety. Stay tuned. A decision by the Park Board is expected in June.

The Park District says it must close the track each afternoon for cleaning. Officials say the shut down from 1:30-3:30 p.m. is necessary because morning joggers spill water and spit on the track.

In other news:

– Gallery Park, which is owned and operated by the village at The Glen, will not open this summer. Crews have not completed construction of paths around the lake, and some sections still await sod. "I guess we’ll have mud back there until 2003," joked one unhappy member of the Park Board. The public will be allowed to wander the incomplete paths along the lake on Sundays.

– The Park Board has approved plans for a new park along the Chicago River near Heatherfield. Two ball fields will be placed close to the waterway, prompting a plea from some citizens who thought one field would suffice. "This is not a park like any other park," said Heatherfield resident and wildlife photographer Carol Freeman. "It’s one of the few remaining natural areas. As citizens of the planet, we need to respect that."

– Other residents complained that the park sits atop a plateau, allowing the public to peer into their bedroom windows. The James Company was required to donate the land for a park, but did so only after dumping excess earth from its construction sites onto the property. Board members said they would try to landscape the park to provide some privacy for neighboring homeowners.

– Park Center plans to raise its rates by 5 percent in September. The increase will apply to all new and renewing members.

– The Park Board is still unwilling to extend discounted rates to needy senior citizens. Reduced rates for low-income children are available, but officials say they would have to raise rates for other members if they were to give seniors a break. One Glenview resident complained that she could join Wilmette’s fitness center as a non-resident and pay lower rates. Park District staff will continue their search for a way to fund reduced senior rates.

This week the Glenview Announcements tried to boost its circulation by delivering free copies to Glenview residents who don’t subscribe. The special edition showed a little girl sitting in a field of daisies. The headline: "It Takes a Dynamic Newspaper To Cover Such a Dynamic Town."

The question: Is the Announcements that paper? Maybe not. The right column reads, "Enjoy timely and complete coverage of local news with the Times – plus the people and places that make Des Plaines an ideal place to live."

The Pioneer Press, publisher of the Glenview Announcements, produces 48 other suburban weeklies including the Des Plaines Times.

The developer of a championship 18-hole golf course at The Glen wants the village to pay for landscaping to hide the mixed use retail center next door. A spokesman for Kemper said the MURC is in a state of disrepair and the project plans have changed. The clubhouse was supposed to face a tree-lined street of shops and homes. Now, Kemper complains, they’ll be looking at loading docks, service entrances, parking garages and big buildings.

Kemper wants $328,000 from the village and could take the matter to court. Oliver/McMillan, Glenview’s partner in developing the MURC, has set aside $200,000 for landscape along its property line with the golf course, but Kemper says it needs $90,000 for a berm, $180,000 to hide Hangar One and another $258,000 for landscape around the parking garages.

Glen Redevelopment Director Don Owen told the Glenview Announcements that, "It does look pretty rough over there," but Trustee John Crawford seems ready for a fight. He questions whether the site of construction would ruin a good game of golf. He added that Kemper was planning this landscaping long before the village made changes to its MURC plans and accuses Kemper of costing the village money when it failed to open, as planned, in 1999. Early financial projections included $442,000 in taxes from the property.

The subject may come up at the next Village Board meeting on May 1.

The golf course opens July 1. It’s 50,000-square-foot clubhouse will feature 21 rooms where members or their guests can stay overnight, a public restaurant and bar. Kemper says it has hired a chef from The American Club, a five-diamond, four-star resort in Kohler, Wisconsin. Planners hope to open the MURC in 2003.

It’s becoming a habit. The Glen’s Don Owen appeared again at the end of Tuesday night’s meeting of the Glenview Village Board to report on cost overruns. First, he said, the clean-up of an old Navy dump site has "gone well," but "there’s been just the season itself. Winter has caused additional problems of snow melt off. As water gets into the excavation, it becomes contaminated, and you have to manage that." As a result, Owen asked the board for an additional $49,233.80 to pay our environmental consultant, Woodward Clyde. He predicted that environmental insurance would eventually cover the expense.

Owen also mentioned that "quantities of materials have been higher than expected and some items need special handling," prompting Trustee Donna Pappo to inquire about additional charges from the company doing the clean up. Owen said he would probably be back for another $500,000, but said insurance should cover that bill too.

Editor’s note: Shouldn’t our consultant on this project have anticipated the possibility of winter snow and spring melt-off when the job was bid? Once again, there is no accountability at The Glen. No one was asked to explain, and no one took the blame. Money from the TIF flows freely to private contractors who failed to anticipate costs or to recommend preventive measures. Don Owen assures the board that all is well, and everyone goes home happy – everyone except officials from our public schools who will wait even longer for the full benefits of Glen development to trickle down. The TIF will continue to reimburse Districts 34 and 225 for each student arriving from The Glen, but extra tax revenue that would normally flow to our schools will, instead, be used to pay the ever-rising costs of development at The Glen.

Owen also proposed to pay Woodward Clyde $53,790 to plan and supervise clean up of asbestos and lead-based paint at Hangar One. His associate, Amy Ahner, asked the board for $291,906.17 to create wetlands along the eastern boundary of the prairie. Those wetlands were required by the Army Corps of Engineers in exchange for permission to fill existing wetlands north of Willow Road so the Home Depot shopping center could be built there.

For the fourth time since its original $8 million contract was approved, Harza Engineering was back for more money – $132,000 to pay for additional planning and supervision. At the Home Depot site, Owen explained, a new storm water management plan was needed. Neighboring Northbrook charged that a local business was already being flooded by water flowing north and demanded Glenview grade the property so water would flow into Lake Glenview. Unfortunately, Owen said, "Lake Glenview was not designed to handle that capacity." As a result, Glenview will spend even more to rework the site so water flows into the Chicago River.

After a bitter campaign for the village presidency and three trustee seats, Tuesday night’s board meeting was a relatively quiet and predictable affair. Retiring Trustee John Patton Jr. did not attend. He was reportedly vacationing in Florida. Retiring Trustee Kent Fuller challenged the new board to uphold a "high standard of excellence," in managing The Glen Redevelopment. "We sort of bet the farm on this one," he said.

Fuller dismissed the divisiveness of the election. "We form up parties every two years and whack each other with rubber chickens and carry on, but after all is said and done, I think this village has consistently managed to find people that really look to what is the best for this village." He acknowledged on-going differences of opinion but said they were healthy.

Retiring Board President Nancy Firfer thanked her family and the public for the chance to serve. "I’ve loved every minute of it," she said. "It’s been nerve wracking, it’s been stressful, but it’s been fun." She also offered thanks to her predecessors – Tom Smith, Paul Thomas and Jim Smirles. "The only reason I’m sitting on the board," she said, "is that Jim wouldn’t stop calling me, and I finally said yes because it was the only way I could get rid of his phone calls."

Firfer then swore in the board’s new president, Larry Carlson, and new trustees – Mary Beth Denefe, Mike Guinane and Jeff Lerner. They received a round of enthusiastic applause as did Trustee John Crawford when he thanked those who ran but did not win.

"In a two-party election, some unpleasant things are said and done," Crawford said, "but I think it’s a good thing for the Village of Glenview to have a contested election. A lot of people become a little more interested in the business that the board conducts." He said voter turn out was higher this year than in 1999 and noted that those who lost "did obtain a very substantial number of votes. He acknowledged Gail Anderson, Tom Cernek and Grant Ireland and added, "Fortunately, Donna Pappo will continue on the board."

Carlson thanked Crawford "for those fine comments," and began the business of the evening. Complex and controversial items had been removed from the agenda, but the developer of a property at 1771 Dewes appeared to ask for approval of plans for town-home construction.

When he first came before the board, some trustees questioned the historic value of a home to be demolished at the site. Glenview’s Historic Preservation Commission had not yet been appointed, so the Plan Commission agreed to assess the question of whether this property should be preserved. The developer hired an architect who reported the house had little historic value.

Now, however, the Historic Preservation Commission is in business, and Trustee John Crawford wanted the developer to share his plans with the panel. The developer protested, saying the property was more like a "piece of old junk than an antique. It is literally falling apart. . .The floor boards are so rotten it’s like walking on a waterbed."

In a compromise agreement, the board sent the matter to the Historic Commission but allowed the developer to proceed with the understanding that permission could be withdrawn if the commission finds the property should be saved.

Most of Tuesday’s discussion involved president Carlson, veteran trustees Crawford and Pappo. Trustee Lerner abstained on one vote involving a woman who had once been represented by his law firm. Trustee Denefe said nothing except to correct the clerk who twice called her Trustee Defene, and Trustee Guinane spoke briefly about his campaign promise – establishment of a trustee service office. "That office would be available to the residents of Glenview on an every other week basis. We’ve decided on a Wednesday night from 6:30-8:30. I don’t know if we need a motion for approval," he said.

"We need to discuss it, and we need to talk about the hours," explained President Carlson. "Trustee [Rachel] Cook is not here tonight. We want to discuss that with her too." The board agreed to pursue the idea when all of the trustees were present.

V.N. White writes about the birds, the bees and the bull: "The story on page one of this morning's Chicago Sun-Times gave me pause. Headline: ‘No Bull.’ It states that the Wagner Farm steering committee will recommend removing Bart the bull from the farm in order to shield innocent suburban children from observing animals mating. How utterly Victorian! Glenview will become known as the Prude Capital of the Midwest."

And Mary Salm fears for Bart’s safety: "In its story on Wagner Farm’s bull, the Sun-Times quotes a member of the steering committee: ‘I hope they find him a good home.’ I fear Bart’s next home could be Wendy’s, McDonald’s or Burger King."

Dick Feit, a member of the Wagner Farm Steering Committee, sees red over reports that Bart the bull may be exiled: "Bovine celebrity Bart The Bull appeared in the April 17 Sun_Times. Not to miss a celebrity scoop, Chicago's broadcast media scrambled to feature Bart, and he made live appearances on both WBBM and WMAQ on the 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. news. Bart was his usual gracious, well-mannered and well-tempered self for both cameramen and reporters and even prompted sports anchor Mike Adamle to remark that ‘Bart is like most bulls. They are mild-mannered and have nice dispositions as long as they don't have rings in their noses.’ Bart, of course, has always been ringless during his life at Wagner Farm and has captured the hearts and imaginations of thousands of Glenview residents and, now, thousands more throughout metropolitan Chicago.

"While the Glenview Park District Steering Committee narrowly and misguidedly voted 7-6 for Bart to leave on the dubious grounds of safety risks and unfounded fears of public lovemaking with comely heifers, a groundswell of public support for Bart may well force the steering committee to reconsider their vote. As a member of the steering committee, I voted to keep Bart at his home on Wagner Farm because that is the nature of a dairy farm. Holstein cows need a bull to have calves and lactate.

"As a member of the Wagner Farm Buildings Sub-committee, I have spent countless hours with colleagues ensuring that the existing historical farm would be preserved, repaired and restored and that structures for educational and informational purposes would be developed. One of these was an outdoor, heavy-duty bullpen with double fencing. Our design is similar to one at the model farm at the University of Illinois at Champaign. Insurance experts say there is no additional liability if this approach is used.

"So, readers of the Glenview Watch, taxpayers all, express your opinions on where Bart The Bull should call home, bearing in mind that Park District Commissioners, staff and steering committee members all read The Watch."

And Biff Thiele, a member of the COWS Board and the Wagner Farm Steering Committee says, "It’s a farm, stupid! In a Sun-Times poll of readers, 96% were opposed to Bart’s proposed removal. Wagner Farm is, after all, a FARM and that’s where bulls tend to be kept.

"While some steering committee members claimed bulls can get ornery as they get older, Bart is only five years old and poses no threat to anyone. One member of the steering committee who is familiar with insurance issues said that if the public kept its distance, safety would not be an issue.

"As a member of the Buildings & Physical Improvements Sub-committee for Wagner Farm, I can attest to our group’s careful deliberations regarding the construction of a heavy duty protective outdoor enclosure to give Bart more freedom. A second fence to keep people out of reach from the bull pen could also be built, similar to the double fences which contain wild animals in zoos. This could be constructed out of heavy beams or even reinforced steel and would adequately protect the public.

"Another unbelievable claim by some steering committee members is that we need to protect our children from seeing Bart service the cows. While one could argue this is the nature of farm life, it's also a sure bet that the Park District never had any intention of allowing children to view such escapades.

"I hope the Wagner Farm Steering Committee will take a serious look at the realities and consider revisiting this recommendation. Bart has already captured the hearts of many Glenview residents and deserves better. He has done nothing to provoke such consideration."

PG weighs in on the subject of MURC financing: "The numbers can't be as simplistic as presented in the Oliver/McMillan presentation, can they? It sounded like one-half the investment was to be arithmetically paid back to the village. Just look at your mortgage payments times the duration of the mortgage to see what a bad deal this could really be. Maybe I’m missing something, but things should have been explained in a slower fashion, not rushed along."

Your Turn. What's on your mind? Send us an e-mail. We are Sandy Hausman and Dean Schott – GlenviewWatch@aol.com.

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