Advocates for Bart the Bull continue their fight to save the animal slated for slaughter by Glenview Park District staff. Bart booster Biff Thiele says a Midwest animal sanctuary has agreed to accept Bart and one of his female friends. The only requirement – Bart must be neutered. The University of Illinois would charge $200 for veterinary services and an overnight stay. Transportation to Champaign then on to Missouri in a climate-controlled semi would run $1,700. The sanctuary would charge nothing for Bart’s lifetime care but would appreciate a donation.

Thiele and other members of a citizens’ support group called COWS are already raising money for Bart’s trip, but they haven’t given up on efforts to keep Bart in Glenview. "We are not a Texas beef cattle farm with thousands of animals that must be processed," says Thiele. "We are a community that has saved a piece of our heritage and a handful of healthy animals." He points out that volunteers who devised a master plan for the farm recommended a special bull pen be built so Bart could stay and be seen by the public from a safe distance.

The farm’s manager has said Bart is no longer able to service the cows of Wagner Farm, but Thiele says there’s nothing wrong with the beast. The problem actually lies with the barn where quarters are close. When Bart is paired with a heifer and attempts the bovine bump, Thiele says he ends up banging his head on the rafters.

When the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) nailed Glenview for poor construction practices that allowed massive soil erosion from The Glen into the Chicago River, village officials faced the prospect of a $20,000 fine. To avoid that penalty, an erosion control plan was strengthened and a consultant assigned to keep an eye on this problem. One area of special concern was the Navy Ditch, a channel connecting Lake Glenview to the river. It runs through a heavily wooded area where shade keeps ground cover from growing. On November 5, Glen Redevelopment Director Don Owen wrote to the IEPA with an idea. The village would remove many of the trees and plant native grasses along the ditch. Their roots would hold soil in place. Owen figured the project would cost $40,000-80,000.

Two months later a detailed plan emerged for clearing, seeding, maintenance and construction of a pedestrian trail along the Navy Ditch. In a letter dated January 9, 2001, Owen estimated the cost at just over $250,000.

This week, Owen will ask the trustees for permission to spend $391,407 on the job – awarding it to a firm called McGinty Brothers. McGinty was the only company to bid, and its price slightly exceeds what village engineers thought it should cost to complete the work, but Owen recommends we accept, telling the board: "The contractor has previously provided quality work within the village."

Editor’s note: This may seem a blatant case of wasted tax dollars. After all, we might have gotten off by paying the $20,000 fine, but the problem of erosion would probably persist leaving us vulnerable to future penalties and charges of being environmentally irresponsible. The Watch does, however, question the method used to award this contract. Competitive bidding should produce competition, and we hope the job will be rebid with notices sent to a larger circle of vendors.

County officials will unveil plans for a new and improved Lake Avenue at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the board room of Village Hall. The Glenview Announcements didn’t announce that news, but a local man sent flyers to his neighbors, urging them to show up and speak out.

Frank Luppino Jr., reminded readers that some years ago the county hoped to widen Lake to six lanes and also proposed widening Sunset Ridge Road. "Our village government seemed favoring all of the Lake Avenue/Sunset Ridge Road widening," he wrote. "Fortunately, alarmed citizens mobilized, petitions were circulated and signed and dozens of us attended meetings at Village Hall to voice opposition."

"Now, they are back chipping away at us," Luppino warns. "The planned improvements for Lake Avenue to be made next year will facilitate the widening of that artery. Changes at Sunset Ridge, Harms and Wagner will be but the first steps to widen each. . .The time to take action is now!"

Editor’s note: To our knowledge there are no plans to widen Lake Avenue to six lanes, although intersections are supposed to be improved with the addition of turn lanes. This is a topic that concerns thousands of local residents, yet in the absence of an official mailing, it falls to a citizen to alert his neighbors of an important public hearing. Once again, Glenview has done little to inform residents and is faced with the prospect of an angry mob at Village Hall. When will the trustees and village manager recognize that public information is an important function of local government – that our public safety and public works are of primary concern to citizens and that timely reports on local developments should be a priority?

If you followed Glenview’s last election, you recall all those pledges to make local government more responsive. After the election, village trustees published their e-mail addresses and posted them on GVTV. Most are also listed in the phone book, but not Trustee Jeff Lerner. Maybe that’s why a man who lives next to The Glen sent an e-mail to Lerner: "We were told that the topography of the base would not change," he wrote, but "the house on lot 55 [in the western most part of the James Company development] has a foundation almost three feet higher than the base of the trees. Next door at lot 56 there is a pond of water that when frozen has drawn ice skaters." In addition, he reported that for the first time ever his neighbor’s yard was flooding."

A response from Lerner, the former District 225 school board member, was filled with errors in punctuation and typos including a misspelling of the resident’s name. Lerner wrote: "For future reference, I generally do not open e-mails from names I do not recognize or in the event I do it would be nice if they were signed. It is difficult to communicate with someone you do not know or do not recognize. Obviously the downside to electronic communication is an inability to identify who you are speaking with. In response to you topography question I will make an inquiry to see if there is an explanation. What exactly is it you are requesting be done. If the change is temporary because of unfinished grading or the like that is one problem. If there is no additional flooding because of the new construction that is a different problem. Please be patient, an inquiry may take some time."

The citizen also shared his concerns with other trustees and received phone calls from John Crawford, Donna Pappo and Mike Guinane. A letter from Glenview’s director of building and zoning arrived two weeks later. It offers no word of thanks for calling this problem to his attention but admits a problem. "The foundation of lot 55 was poured at least four feet above the proposed top of foundation," wrote Phil Knudsen. "This mistake has resulted in the need for several corrective measures. First, the siding on this house will need to be dropped down over the excess exposed foundation. Secondly, some of the doors will now need steps added, and the grading between lots 55 and 56 will need to be adjusted."

The summer promises construction on Lehigh Road, which will be moved west to accommodate a new Metra station at The Glen and will dog leg just north of the prairie to link up with Patriot Boulevard. Turn lanes will also be added, but the village plans no sidewalks south of the station.

Cook County will pay $6.5 million for the work, and when it’s done, Lehigh will become a village road. Glenview will also take title to the Lake Avenue pedestrian overpass near Greenwood.

Also on the construction calendar, Harrison, Church and Prairie streets will get water main and street improvements.

While the luxury housing of Hyatt rises rapidly along Lake Avenue and Patriot Boulevard, more modest digs offered by Bethany Methodist at The Glen are behind schedule. Sales are slower than expected, and the company wants 70 percent of the units under contract before breaking ground. The project, known as Chestnut Square, would open in 2004 – a disappointment to prospective buyers who were recently told they could move in next fall. The trustees will debate Bethany’s request for a delay at Tuesday’s meeting.

BILL WATCHING

The trustees will be asked to pay a number of surprising bills at Tuesday night’s meeting, including one to ABC Wildlife – $345 for squirrel trapping service. Are local officials still on the lookout for that rodent who took down power lines in south Glenview last month? The taxpayers will also give Integrated Lake Management $6,045 for a fence to provide goose control at Lake Glenview and some birch trees to provide fish habitat. Really! Shouldn’t someone tell these guys that fish don’t live in trees?

We suspect the dead trees will be dropped into Lake Glenview, providing a natural gathering place for our aquatic friends, but we’ll let you know if there’s some other explanation for this mysterious entry on the municipal ledger. We also hope to supply details on the $39.39 charge for "replacement of damaged jeans."

The village board is again being asked to close streets in and around Swainwood for the annual OL PHun Run sponsored by Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Organizers would begin setting up at 6 a.m. on April 28 and be finished by 10 a.m., but an area resident says Glenview should refuse.

"The policy of allowing private events to close the streets of an entire neighborhood for any period of time is bad policy," says James McKevitt in a letter to Village President Larry Carlson. "In past years, this event has pitted neighbor against neighbor, the residents trying to leave and the recruited security person blocking the car so it can’t get through. It just is not right! The village’s police power when used to support this kind of event is a misuse of taxpayers’ dollars. If the village continues to allow this, then let it be in one of the other neighborhoods of Glenview, not to return to Swainwood until everyone else has had the opportunity."

Skokie lawyer Michael Bender, who lost the Democratic primary for the 17^th Illinois House District to Wilmette attorney Pat Hughes by just over one hundred votes wants a recount. Bender said there were many irregularities in areas that went heavily for him. The winner will face Glenview Republican Beth Coulson in the fall.

Already in the midst of a multi-million dollar renovation, Glenbrook South High School is adding a few more improvements. The District 225 School Board has okayed $1 million to place a telephone in every classroom. Until now, the school relied on a 10-year-old intercom system that provided one-way communication from the office. The district will also spend $140,000 for new baseball and softball fields and $76,000 to remove vinyl asbestos tiles from the floor of the principal’s office.

At North, where a new pool is being built for $5.8 million, the district will spend about $78,000 to retile parts of the old pool after Cook County health inspectors threatened to keep the facility closed this fall. GBN’s principal says the school needs both pools to accommodate swim practices and gym classes, and he plans to allow community use of the old pool.

How is Glenview changing, and what impact will that have on our schools? That’s what organizers hope to discuss at the next open meeting of 34Connect – an effort to involve more citizens in planning the future of Glenview’s elementary and middle school district. The forum is set for 7 p.m. April 4 at Springman Middle School. On April 23, the group will talk about curriculum and instructional programs. For more information, call 847-998-5000.

Glenview’s trustees clashed recently over plans for a laundromat in the new shopping strip at Milwaukee and Sanders. A developer had hoped to include coin-operated games for the amusement of patrons, but Trustee Rachel Cook wouldn’t stand for it.

"As a parent, if I were ever in a situation where I would need to use a laundromat, and I had small children, the base assumption is you can ill afford the money for that kind of amusement, and you don’t need the headache of having temptation for children."

Dad and Trustee Mike Guinane agreed and seconded the motion, but Trustee Mary Beth Denefe disagreed. The mother of three argued there would be supervision of kids playing these games. "I don’t see the harm if the petitioner wants to install them. I think it’s appropriate," she said.

Guinane suggested kids from the area might be drawn to the games, disrupting laundromat business. Denefe thought that was the owner’s problem, but the game police prevailed, voting not to allow amusements while doing wash.

This was no math exercise. The Glenview Announcements reports two students from GBS were disciplined after Principal David Smith learned they had set up gambling pools for the NCAA tournament. Police were notified of the offense, and money was returned.

– Red Seal’s proposed development along Shermer Road got a chilly reception from Northbrook’s plan commission. The company wants to build 295 town homes and condos at the current site of Serfilco and General Fire Extinguisher, but most of the commissioners thought that was too much. Chairman Sheldon Silverman called it "horrendous," and Commissioner Rick Brust said it would be "the barracks of Northbrook." Noting lots of town homes and condos going up in Glenview, Commissioner Dan Boehnan questioned the strength of the market for multi-family housing. A second public hearing will take place April 16.

– Northbrook’s police department will soon offer war-time advice to local businesses and residents. Trustees have approved $75,000 to protect that community’s water plant by installing more security cameras and alarms. Money has already been allocated to improve security at Northbrook’s police station, and visitors to one of the community’s four fire stations will now have to be buzzed in. Northbrook’s Fire Chief Jay Reardon is an active member of the Illinois Terrorism Task Force.

– A 64-year-old Park Ridge resident has been charged with five shootings that have taken place in that community since December. Lester Schwarz was picked up at his home after neighbors reported hearing gun shots coming from the underground parking garage. Officers found two guns in the man’s apartment. They charge Schwarz with shooting at a local dry cleaner, home, parked cars and a cellular telephone tower. No one was injured in those attacks.

– A woman who worked for Maids On Time has been charged with stealing checks from homes she cleaned and cashing those checks at a bank where she had an account. The alleged offenses occurred last fall and may have netted the woman $6,000.

The park board cheered news that Grove director Steve Swanson married his long-time sweetheart in March at the preserve’s one-room school house on the very day that friends hosted a surprise 50^th birthday party for him. In keeping with Swanson’s signature look (he wears Bermudas and hiking boots, even on the coldest day of the year), attire for the party was shorts and Hawaiian shirts.

To Park Board President Doug Kaiser’s claim that most people don’t care about Bart the Bull, Gail Anderson says, "Balderdash! "I watched the tape of the Park District Board meeting last night, and was somewhat surprised by what I perceived to be a lack of understanding on the part of some of the commissioners as to what the voters of Glenview were voting for when they volunteered to raise their property taxes. Aside from the emotional connection the residents at the meeting felt to Bart the Bull and the cows, there is a much stronger connection to the history of the farm and the desire to save it from developers. Many of us remember when there were numerous farms on the North Shore. I even remember dairies in Chicago, where I grew up, although there were no cows in the city that I can recall. I used to have a sense of connection to the farmers and their animals, and I have been more than a bit saddened by the inexorable creep of development which has banished the farms and the dairies from our everyday sight. When I moved to Glenview 20 years ago, I was astonished to discover the Wagner Farm was still there! I have grown, as have many residents, to love the farm, its cows, and all that it makes us recall from simpler times. Despite the pressures of family responsibilities and a demanding job in downtown Chicago, every night when I came home to Glenview I could say hello to the cows and be reminded of the simple lifestyle of our ancestors. When COWS and the Park District asked us to raise our taxes so we could buy and maintain the farm, I gladly voted yes because I thought that the farm, as an oasis of rural simplicity, was infinitely more valuable than another hundred homes. We had a one-time chance to forever preserve for our children and grandchildren the view of the unplowed pasture, the small herd of Holsteins, and the unpainted barn. That’s what I voted for – a humble reminder of our past. I didn’t vote for a sanitized model of efficient farming or a showplace for the Park District. I voted for the Wagner Farm."

James Mueller says Glenview should consider Wagner Farm’s location in deciding its future: "I grew up on a 500-acre dairy farm in Upstate New York and attended the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University. It strikes me that some people have in their minds a nostalgic dream that they want to project onto Wagner Farm. A real farm is fraught with risks and is hard physical labor. In terms of Bart, why keep an animal in an unnatural environment as a tourist attraction. As a youngster, we had a prize-winning bull that one day just decided to maul my father, pinning him in a concrete feed bunker. He survived because my mother was nearby and distracted the bull for a moment. My father's back was seriously injured and required surgery and months of traction. Needless to say, we did not keep the bull.

"I live in Glen Oak Acres and enjoy driving by the farm and am glad that it is restored. However, it is not an operating farm in rural Illinois, and I believe it needs to be adapted to its unique environment for the best interests of the animals and the community."

Dave W. writes from Arlington Heights: "Bart the Bull must not be put out to pasture. (Okay – poor choice of words). What kind of society allows for the elderly to be removed from their home when they "go goofy," are considered dangerous to the general public and are unable to reproduce? Oh, the United States. Anyway, maybe the new Oberweis store could invite Bart over for a public appearance and name a new flavor after him. A suggestion: Bart’s Parts. It could involve some cookie dough and a chunk of sausage or two. Finally, kudos to TJ Brown for pissing off his editor enough to get fired. He'll be glad he did it down the road. You have to love youthful idealism."

MG will gladly pay for some of the organic fertilizer now being produced at Wagner Farm: "I think that is a great idea, and I would bet what is not bought by Glenview residents could be sold to nurseries, landscapers and garden shops. As for the Bart issue, there was a time for Bart, but now it is time for him to go. To keep a healthy herd we need new blood and a new bull. I think if the Wagners were alive today, they would agree."

GB wonders what a survey might show about public opinion on the farm: "While it likely will be necessary and appropriate to let Wagner farm evolve and while it may eventually make sense to let Glenview kids learn a few farming facts there, I'll bet if one of Glenview's famous polls was done with folks who actually VOTED on the referendum (to purchase the property), the vast majority would want the look, the feel and likely the smells of the place to remain substantially the way it is, including 100-year-old technology (leather belts) facilitating machinery use."

Biff Thiele hopes residents will send their thoughts about animal management to Park District Executive Director Tom Richardson by April 8. The address: gvpd4fun@aol.com or 1930 Prairie St., Glenview, IL 60025. He writes, "You don't have to live in Glenview or be a vegetarian to care about these animals," and offers "10 lame excuses to kill Bart:

"1. Bart has bred with all of the livestock. Let’s assume that Bart won’t be breeding with himself, the steer (Bandit), the old cow (Moodonna), the fat heifer (Milkshake) or his four calves. That leaves six heifers and cows that can still breed with Bart.

"2. Bart is sterile. According to his vet, that’s not the case. Staff stopped breeding Bart because he hits his head on the rafters when breeding in the basement where he is confined. The space is too small, and it would be expensive to build an outside pen for him. Fundraisers could take care of this.

"3. It's not fair to Bart to keep him is such a small space. If fairness to the animals is important to the park district here, why do they consider the slaughterhouse a solution?

"4. Bart is too old. Bart is healthy and only seven years old. He could live to be as old as 25.

"5. Bart could become dangerous to staff. Bart is gentle now, and if breeding is no longer desirable, he could be neutered and remain gentle for the rest of his life.

"6. Bart is an insurance liability. That is not the case according to insurance people who deal with the park district and the farm.

"7. The public is at risk when exposed to Bart. The public is never exposed to Bart. He is secure in a concrete basement, and the master plan (written by dozens of citizen volunteers) calls for a reinforced outside pen that would be inaccessible to the public. If safety is such a concern, Bart could be allowed out for view only when supervision is available.

"8. Bart’s sheer size could pose a risk to kids breaking in to his locked concrete stall. Kids are more likely to break into public pools, equipment sheds and park maintenance buildings located all over town. Assuming there are trespassers stupid enough to break into a stall with an 1,800-pound bull, shouldn’t we drain the public pools each day at closing time? Accessible pools, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, tractors, tools, generators and other equipment pose a far greater risk of danger than a bull in a locked barn.

"9. It costs too much to maintain Bart. $1,500 a year is all it costs to house, feed and provide medical attention for Bart. Fundraisers could take care of this.

"10. The Park District doesn’t need a bull. Maybe so, but we have one that came with the farm. He is healthy, gentle, fertile, safe and happy right where he is.

"There is no reason to get rid of Bart the Bull or any of the herd at Wagner Farm at this time."

And GKH and KG wish residents would worry about something more substantial than Bart:"We are amazed at the huge controversy and general hubbub about Bart the Bull. It is a relatively insignificant issue when compared to the trustees' ‘yes men’ attitude toward developers and density issues. The ‘free’ naval air station is costing Glenview taxpayers over $325 million in revenue lost to the TIF. Impact fees are inadequate to meet the needs of our schools. Traffic congestion is a growing problem, and we still need a new post office. Shouldn’t residents also be railing about the decision to do away with the Glenview ethics ordinance in the aftermath of the Enron and Arthur Anderson debacle. That certainly shows a fundamental hubris on the part of village trustees."

EBM is watching the library: "Some months ago, one of your readers asked whether anyone had actually studied the use being made at the library. The writer said he (or she) rarely saw any crowds there and generally saw lots of empty tables and chairs. I started to observe the area when I went to the library, and sure enough, I noticed the same thing. Did anyone make a genuine study as to just what is needed and what is not? Are we just looking at other bigger and fancier libraries and planning to make ours even bigger just for the hell of it? All of us do sometimes run into a full parking lot, but maybe all we need is a bigger parking lot, not bigger and bigger rooms. Any solid facts about this?"

The Watch replies: The library board has repeatedly said that for every new book purchased, one must be thrown away. That suggests a need for more space, but how much is unclear. Maybe the library board is saving its strength for a full-blown campaign in the fall, but we do wish a formal study of library usage would be done, and we think it might be time to poll the public again about location. A survey taken nearly two years ago suggested strong support for construction downtown, but opinions may be changing as residents spend more time at Park Center, Lake Glenview, Little Bear Garden, the golf courses and other spots at The Glen. Maybe Glenview’s newest neighborhood is beginning to feel more like Glenview.

Write to glenviewwatch@aol.com or 3537 Maple Leaf Drive, Glenview, IL 60025. If you haven’t already done so, please consider making a contribution to support The Watch. Non-deductible checks should be payable to Glenview Watch. Thanks for your support and for reading. – Sandy Hausman and Dean Schott, Co-Editors of The Watch.

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