NEW LIBRARY DECKED BY COSTS

Determined to build a 93,000-square-foot building and faced with rising projections of construction costs, members of the library board announced last week that they’d like to scrap plans for underground parking. Instead, the panel proposed a two-story parking deck.

Planners have long touted underground parking as a more attractive option, but parking decks are cheaper. The library board says it is more than $4 million short of the funds it needs, and going with deck parking would save about $2 million.

The board also proposed building just 175 parking spaces up from the current 89 spaces but down from their original promise of 206. Proponents said there are more parking spaces around the library since the Epco Paint store and downtown post office closed.

All but one member of the library board agreed. David Johnson, often the lone voice of dissent, said the public was not convinced of the need for such a large library, and cutting back on parking would “break faith” with the people of Glenview.

The library’s executive director, Vickie Novak, was asked to predict parking demands for a new building. Novak declined to provide specifics but said new facilities usually increase circulation.

Meanwhile, a private fundraiser for the library board says he’s received pledges and cash totaling $420,000.

Editor’s note: How does the proposed parking deck square with the new form-based code, designed to give downtown a classy new look? We’ve spent more than half a million dollars on downtown and library planning. Now we’re too broke to build something nice.

MORE MONEY WOES

-- Over the years, Village Hall has charged the library for its portion of auditing fees paid to an outside consultant who reviews Glenview’s finances. Next year, the village will also expect the library to pay for internal accounting costs, bringing the annual bill to about $80,000. Trustee Paul Detlefs told the library board they were getting a bargain but said they were free to shop around for a certified public accountant.

-- Glenview Firefighters’ Pension Fund appears to be in trouble. In 2006, the fund earned $3.4 million. This year, earnings totaled just $1.3 million. Budget Director Dan Wiersma blamed market volatility and said the fund is now getting advice from private financial consultants, but it looks like the village will have to up its contribution to make-up for the shortfall in investment income.

-- Municipal managers across the North Shore are casting a nervous eye at Evanston, which recently lost its Aaa bond rating. Moody’s cited growing unfunded police and fire pension liabilities caused by “investment returns consistently falling short of assumed rates as well as state-mandated increases to benefit levels.”

-- Glenview will get a $94,548 grant from the Northwest Municipal Conference to help offset the cost of its new dispatch and record-keeping upgrade. The computerized system allows firemen, police officers and paramedics to share information as soon as 911 calls comes in and gives first responders critical information about buildings while they’re enroute. Officials say it also maintains data, making it easy to track performance, spot trends and determine future needs.

-- Village Manager Todd Hileman was not pleased to hear that Glenview’s share of a new municipal center could cost more than $14.6 million. By partnering with the park district and School District 34, Glenview had hoped to save money on new office space. Hileman has asked staff to look for better ways to use all village facilities and may recommend the trustees settle for a smaller building.

-- The park district is also taking a second look after learning it would have to pony up $4.5 million. “We were somewhat surprised that the numbers came in that high,” said Executive Director Chuck Balling. “We’d be looking to the village to help finance this. There’s only so much debt we can carry and still maintain our conservative approach to financing.”

DATELINE WILLOW ROAD

-- Egg Harbor has quietly closed its restaurant at Willow and Pfingsten roads after failing to come to an agreement on a new lease at the Glenbrook Market. General Manager John Steinberg says customers are being directed to the chain’s other Glenview location on Lehigh Road, across from The Glen of North Glenview Metra station. “The Glen restaurant is about the same size, and everyone seems to be digging the new place,” Steinberg said. Egg Harbor has a dozen Chicago-area locations and is planning to open restaurants in Libertyville, Lake Geneva and Downer’s Grove.

-- Costco has broken ground for the gas station it hopes to open this spring at Patriot Boulevard and Willow Road.

-- Field’s has closed on nine acres of land at that same shopping center and plans to open Dodge, Chrysler and Jeep dealerships.

THE GREEN SCENE

-- Wrap N Post in Olympic Plaza at Lehigh and Glenview roads will take your Styrofoam packing peanuts and use them again. What’s more, the store offers a discount coupon for mailings to anyone who brings packing peanuts in for recycling.

-- On January 17, the village will host a workshop to explore green initiatives – a list of programs already in place along with ideas for new ways to recycle, reduce energy consumption and save water. The time and place have not yet been announced, but we’ll keep you posted.

-- The village will be picking up Christmas trees January 2-11. Mulch from discarded trees will be used in local parks.

-- Glenview’s park district hopes to promote the new Tyner Nature Center as a suitable place for corporate retreats and could sweeten the package with an opportunity for lunch at The Glen Town Center followed by a round of golf.

-- Cook County’s Metropolitan Water Reclamation District has purchased 30 zero-emissions, all-electric vehicles for use by tradesmen at wastewater treatment plants. The manufacturer, MILES of Santa Monica, California, says the MWRD's buy represents the largest all-electric vehicle purchase by a government agency in the US. For more information, go to http://www.mwrd.org/.

HIGH SCHOOL COMPUTER COLLECTION

Glenbrook South’s Interact Club and United Cerebral Palsy will host a computer electronic and durable medical equipment drive from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, January 12. The following items are needed:

• PC Pentium or higher
• Apple G3 or higher
• Printers
• Monitors
• Modems
• Hard Drives
• 3.5 Disk Drives
• CD-Rom Drives
• Peripherals
• Software (originals only)
• Keyboards
• Mouse
• Power cords and Cables
• Fax Machines
• Cell Phones
• Canes
• Crutches
• Walkers
• Wheelchairs
• Standers
• Therapeutic Equipment

Donations are tax deductible, and if you can’t make it on January 12, bring things to the Student Activities Center at GBS any time before then. For more information, call Mark Gallagher at 847-486-4689 or Greg Grill 708-444-8460 x231

CRAZY JAY FOR CONGRESS?

Congressional candidate Jay Footlik, who served as President Bill Clinton’s liaison to the Jewish community, has sparked his own brouhaha with a campaign mailing to Jewish voters. It features a smiling bald and bearded man, his palms turned up, saying “I’d be meshugana not to support Jay Footlik.”

“Meshugana” is a Yiddish word that means “crazy.” The same mailing also shows Footlik with Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995, with Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres in 1998, at the Western Wall in Jerusalem in 2001 and with his wife Grace “who was raised in Israel.”

Photos are accompanied by hand-written notes: “They let nice Jewish boys from Skokie into the Oval Office,” says the caption under a picture of Footlik and Clinton. “Who knew?”

By the photo of Jay standing next to a tank in Gaza, the caption reads: “Oy, his poor mother.”

The Footlik campaign said the mailing was a humorous way to talk about Jay’s faith and experience, but the Pioneer Press found some Jewish voters were not amused. "I was just offended by the fact that whole piece had nothing to do with the issues," Buffalo Grove resident Jon Altenberg wrote to the editor of the Highland Park paper. "The whole piece is based on the fact he's Jewish. I'm Jewish, and I don't think the fact that someone's Jewish should have any relevance on whether he gets my vote or not. If anybody who was not Jewish used the same terms, I think it would be seen as offensive," he said.

A campaign spokesman claimed the reaction had been generally positive, with some district residents volunteering or making contributions to the campaign. Footlik’s opponent in the Democratic primary, Dan Seals, enjoyed strong support from the Jewish community when he challenged Mark Kirk in the general election. Seals served as an aide to Senator Joe Lieberman, the first Jewish candidate for vice president.

MEANWHILE, THERE’S MARK

Congressman Mark Kirk has voted against banning waterboarding by U.S. intelligence agencies, standing firmly with the Bush Administration. The White House has threatened to veto legislation that requires intelligence agencies to follow Army rules forbidding waterboarding, sexual humiliation, mock executions, the use of attack dogs, and withholding of food and medical care. Thirty retired generals and admirals wrote a letter to Congress urging passage of the bill.

“We believe it is vital to the safety of our men and women in uniform that the United States not sanction the use of interrogation methods it would find unacceptable if inflicted by the enemy against captured Americans,” the military leaders said.

And in an e-mail to constituents, Kirk clearly aligns himself with Republicans who have been ranting about immigrants ruining America. “As you may have heard, the federal government is suing the Salvation Army for letting go two employees who refused to learn English. Most of the less fortunate Americans the Salvation Army helps speak only English. To make sure its employees can do the most good, the Salvation Army requires its employees to learn English within one year of their employment. I do not think lawsuits like these against the Salvation Army are worth merit.”

Editor’s note: No matter how often Kirk claims to be a moderate, in tune with his district, he can’t get away from his roots – far to the right of most of his constituents.

THE TRIUMPH OF TECHNOLOGY AND MANPOWER

-- Glenview’s police department says it has successfully switched to computer-aided dispatch, and the park district reports its new telephone system is working flawlessly.

-- One month into winter, Public Works Director Chris Clark says plowing efforts have gone well. Ten village staffers who volunteered for overtime service manned snow plows. Clark says he was not among them. “I did plow four years ago,” he added. “And we haven’t let him drive since,” quipped Communications Director Janet Spector Bishop.

-- The village has backed away from plans to coat local streets with beet juice. It’s a substance being used by some communities to prevent icing, but Glenview’s public works department is in flux, with many experienced staffers retiring, so Clark says he’ll wait until next year to try something new.

-- Glenview’s police department has plenty of space for detective work, but there are still no suspects in a rash of vandalism at Tall Trees or in a suspicious fire at the former site of a luxury car leasing company across from Village Hall.

SCHOOL NEWS AND BLUES

-- District 34 reports a significant surplus in its education fund – expected to reach $820,000. Officials say tax levies have been higher than expected, and they’ve spent less than forecast for teachers, subs, aides and employee benefits.

-- District 34 has agreed to take a closer look at homework and grading practices at Attea Middle School, where some parents complain achievement levels are lower than those of students at Springman Middle School. The district insists there is no significant difference between the two schools, although Attea has had three different principals in the last five years. Phil Collins, assistant superintendent for student achievement, has promised to provide additional coaching support to teachers, but he warns, “We will need more help to provide the level of curricular support that I believe we should be offering the staff.”

RESIDENTS GIVE DISTRICT 34 HIGH MARKS

A consultant hired to survey 400 registered voters about the performance of District 34 says 53 percent give the schools an A, and nearly 90 percent give them a grade of A or B. “These are among the top of the top scores awarded by North Shore communities,” said Andrew Duttlinger of Unicom Arc. Only 1.5 percent gave the system failing marks, and nearly 85 percent felt they were very well or somewhat well informed about the district. On the other hand, nearly 23 percent did not think the district did a good job of listening, 21 percent did not feel they were getting excellent value for their tax dollars, and about 58 percent thought the district asks voters to approve tax rate increases too often.

Thirteen percent thought the quality of financial management in the district was lower than that of neighbors, and 10 percent thought the district spent less per pupil on students who did not perform as well as kids in neighboring districts.

Top or high priorities for those surveyed included increased support for special education and early childhood programs, reducing class size, increasing recycling and other environmental efforts and offering full-day kindergarten.

Editor’s note: Since the pollsters did not limit their survey to parents who actually know what’s going on in the schools, these results are largely a PR exercise, designed to determine how soon District 34 can ask the voters for more money.

PARK DISTRICT NEWS AND NOTES

-- When park district planners unveiled a final round of drawings for additions to Community Park West, they encountered some surprising concerns. Dog owners protested plans for a four-foot fence surrounding the proposed canine park, saying many breeds can easily jump a four foot barrier, and board member Judy Beck warned against the use of untreated wood. The lone environmentalist on the panel, she said global warming is likely to mean more termite activity in northern states. The district hopes it can open the 6-acre pooch park late next year.

-- After years of lobbying the park district, Glenview’s trick bike community has wiped out. Kids who followed the issue through high school and college have repeatedly asked for access to the community’s skate park along Milwaukee Avenue. They’ve pointed out that dare devil skaters and trick bikers share facilities in Park Ridge and other communities. The Park District Risk Management Association would allow it, but the park board wasn’t willing to take a chance. “If there’s an accident, it’s probably not going to be a little accident,” said Judy Beck. “It’s something we’re going to be really upset about.” Trick bikers have been told the district will consider building a separate facility for them on two acres of open space at Community Park West.

-- The district is now recruiting lifeguards, swim instructors, camp counsellors and other summer staffers. A job fair is set for 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday, December 28 at Park Center.

-- Finally recognizing the cold, hard, bloated reality of New Year’s Day, the park district has agreed to open Park Center Health and Fitness from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Those who have eaten and drunk much too much, resolving to mend their ways in the new year, can work-out and take part in special group exercise classes. The center is also offering a special come-on to new members, waiving the $75 initiation fee.

SAVE THE DATE

-- The trustees will hold a special meeting at 7 p.m. January 10 in Village Hall to discuss the new form-based code for downtown development. Opponents are unhappy with plans to allow four-story buildings on Waukegan Road. For a better idea of just how tall that would be, swing by the new bank building under construction at Lake and Waukegan. The tip of its roof is about 30 feet – some 20 feet shorter than what form-based code would allow.

-- The park district invites residents to comment on plans for renovation of the John’s Park playground at 7:30 p.m. Monday, January 14 in the field house at 2101 Central Road. For more information, call 847-724-5670.

-- Applications for Glenview’s Senior Housing Assistance Program will be available January 2 at Village Hall and Park Center. SHAP is designed to assist Glenview residents with their property taxes or rent.

-- State Senator Jeffrey Schoenberg hosts a Town Hall Meeting at 6 p.m. January 7 at Attea Middle School to get input for his 2008 legislative agenda.

-- The 10th District Democrats invite members of the party as well as Republicans and independents to talk politics at 7 p.m. Thursday, December 27 in Northbrook’s public library at 1201 Cedar Lane. “If you're frustrated with the way this country is headed and you want to let off some steam, join us in the first of a series of coffees to be held throughout the district,” organizers write.

READERS WRITE

Peter Stettler, president of the Tall Trees Association, writes about a new development planned by the General Board of Pension and Health Benefits of the United Methodist Church – “a business office of a tax-exempt organization. The site they have selected in Glenview is a vacant 25-acre parcel bounded by Scott Foresman on the south, the Canadian Pacific (Metra) Railroad tracks on the west, Chestnut and adjoining business on the north, and our neighborhood, Tall Trees, on the east.

“We believe there are issues that affect the existing residential neighborhoods and commercial owners in the surrounding area that should be considered as the proposal goes through the site plan review process. The first is the extreme traffic burden this development will place on Chestnut, an already heavily traveled road. The intersection of Chestnut and Waukegan ranks as the village’s worst in terms of accidents, while the combination intersections of Lehigh/Chestnut/Johns Drive/Metra railroad tracks are also problematic. With the General Board accessing its property from Chestnut, the 250+ employees, deliveries, and visitors, will likely generate between 450–700 additional daily trips through this area, making this situation worse.

“The second overarching issue is that of flooding. As the storms of this past August demonstrated, the Techny Basin, Lake Glenview, and other flood mitigation projects have improved the situation for neighborhoods along the Chicago River. However, had the additional rains predicted at the time occurred, it is likely the Techny Basin would have been breached and downstream communities flooded. In fact village workers went door-to-door notifying residents of such a possibility during the overnight hours and provided neighborhoods with sand bags just in case. While we appreciate these efforts, and are thankful the rains abated, this shows that more should be done to alleviate the potential for future flooding of these areas. As this is the last major parcel of vacant land in the vicinity, we believe consideration should be given to how the development of this parcel can further improve the flood mitigation effort for this section of the village.

“The General Board’s proposal is scheduled for site plan review by the plan commission on January 10. We encourage residents and homeowners associations in the area to review the plans, which are on file with the village planning department, and to make comments and suggestions to village staff and the plan commission, as well as to attend the plan commission meeting on December 11.”

JR responds to village spokesperson Janet Spector Bishop’s claim that it’s standard policy not to cablecast public comments at workshops designed to inform residents about projects or issues: “That kind of thinking is why Glenview TV stinks.”

HS says, “It was interesting to read in the Glenview Watch that the new post office was not subject to local regulations on lighting. Was our obnoxious police station subject to lighting regulations? Perhaps one reason so many of us are complaining about library plans is because of the horrible example that the huge police station sets!”

The Watch replies:  Yes, village construction projects must follow village rules, but federal construction is exempt.

A reader who signs herself “Too Busy to Be Bored,” responds to the resident who felt speeding through neighborhoods was a natural consequence of overbuilding and traffic congestion in the community and said “bored housewives” should not waste the police department’s time by calling to complain: “Why even have a speed limit? Or any other traffic laws? Speeding is a serious issue that the police should deal with. Obviously GV5 has never experienced a near miss with a child darting out into the street or seen a beloved pet killed by a car speeding through a neighborhood. What a rude jab at housewives! Please excuse the mother who doesn't want you speeding through her neighborhood so you can get to work a few minutes earlier. She is just trying to protect her children as well as others. I have lived all over this country and I have never seen such an utter disregard for traffic safety and laws as I've seen here in Glenview. What needs to happen before people will wake up and slow down, stop tailgating and actually stop at stop signs? I agree with GV5 in the sense that this problem is here to stay, but I contend it is because people are too selfish and wrapped up in themselves to think about the adverse effects their actions will have on someone else. I also agree with GV that there needs to be some sort of moderately-priced family dining establishment such as the Olive Garden downtown.”

TJ says amen: “Shame on GV5 for telling concerned citizens to ‘get a life.’ He’s the one who needs a life if having an Olive Garden is at the top of his list of things to get excited about. What I find is worth getting excited about is the increase in cars speeding through my neighborhood. I live on a corner in a neighborhood where the stop signs are flagrantly disregarded. Cars careen around corners, blowing through intersections. At rush hour they barrel down the street at over 40 miles per hour as if they were in a Mad Max road race. And they’re not all cutting through. Some are residents of new McMansions who are too important to get off their cell phones. I have personally seen near accidents involving children and other cars at the intersection next to our house. This happens on a daily basis, and it seems like calling the police department would be the logical thing to do. Stop signs and speed limits were posted for a reason and that, and a rational, caring person should consider violations to be a serious problem.”

Steven and Sheree Kodros write to complain about village dealings with difficult builders: “We were embarrassed to read that G & M Development was allowed to start work on so many homes concurrently and then leave them unfinished -- embarrassed because such a situation screams of village employees not doing their jobs. This builder was a problem on our street in 2003, four years ago. He was cited numerous times, dragged into court several times, destroyed the parkway without restoring it properly and was still given a certificate of occupancy! Today the house is a neighborhood safety hazard because water is constantly pumped into the street to correct a flooding problem in the backyard. This builder is not alone in getting away with breaking building codes yet being allowed to continue to do business. Another one in our neighborhood installed a storm sewer above grade. It’s caused horrific flooding three houses away. Yet a year of tickets and continued hearings could not get it fixed properly until the judge listened to residents who had come to court. Village attorney Eric Patt was present, but if we had not been there, we believe the storm sewer would still be a problem.

“From a resident's perspective, there is never continuity when dealing with the building department staff and handling these problems with builders. Not another penny of the taxpayers’ money should go into giving G&M a chance to clean up their act. We need a ‘three strikes and you’re out’ policy for builders who don’t play by the rules. Their license should be revoked.”

Insider writes to complain about Glenview’s DUI arrests: “They have escalated to 181 this year from 133 last year -- an almost 40 percent increase due, perhaps, to a quota of two DUI arrests per month, per officer issued by midnight Shift Commander Scott Stewart. Meanwhile, acts of malicious and deliberate destruction of private and public property costing hundreds of thousands of dollars have been steadily on the rise in Glenview. Witness the last two issues of the Glenview Announcements describing thousands of dollars of overnight property damage to houses, landscaping and cars by young vandals. And let’s not forget last year’s $100,000 window damage to OLPH School by vandals and the thousands more done to neighborhoods and to several District 34 schools. Clearly, teen vandalism is out of control and on the rise in Glenview and Shift Commander Stewart should be ordering night patrol officers and detectives to ferret out the perpetrators rather than forcing arbitrary DUI quotas on patrol officers. If he won’t, perhaps Chief William Fitzpatrick or village trustees should.”

Terry Wodder and John Ranz, who helped persuade the village to keep its library downtown, are back with another beef: “Members of the library board are wrong when they claim to need 93,000 square feet. We believe PSA-Dewberry – the beneficiary of the library’s $1.5 million dollar no-bid design contract – inflated their estimate of patron seating needs to increase the overall size of the new library, total construction costs, and their design fees. PSA’s recommendation of 366 patron seats is 2.5 times as many as recommended by the American Library Association and library consultant Anders C. Dahlgren at the University of Wisconsin. At 30 square feet per chair, that equals roughly 6,000 excess square feet.

“Our surveys show the average number of occupied seats at the Glenview Public Library is less than 30, so the board’s current plan includes approximately 12 chairs for every patron who is looking for a place to read, surf the net, or just take a nap. The board never bothered to conduct its own patron seating study despite our repeated requests over the past five years. In the private sector a CEO would be handed a pink slip if he decided to expand production capacity without first knowing how much excess production capacity already exists.

“The additional space is not needed; the board knows it, so their fundraising campaign is an illegal attempt to solicit money from unwitting contributors. The board and PSA-Dewberry should be investigated by the appropriate law enforcement agency without delay.”