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So what are we going to do about illegal immigration?
Some of you may be saying “huh?! Aren’t you for illegal immigration?”
But, I want the “reform” to be done right; at the right level — the Federal level. A fairly recent development provides a good reason why this needs to be something led by the federal government.
Back in May, the House of Representatives voted by a margin of 411 – 3 to pass the “Safe American Roads Act of 2007″ (H.R. 1773) which they presumed would have stopped a demonstration project by the U.S. Department of Transportation allowing Mexican trucks to cross the border and haul anywhere in the U.S.
Right now, those trucks are only allowed a 20-mile radius inside the U.S. border to unload cargo, which is then loaded onto U.S. trucks to be shipped across the U.S.
A condition of the project is that U.S. trucks be able to long-haul into Mexico. Essentially opening the U.S.-Mexico border, as early as tomorrow (Sept 1).
The requirements for the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Mexican Truck Demonstration Project have been met, and some 37 Mexican trucking companies have been approved to run their long-haul rigs through the U.S. starting as early as Sept. 1, according to a Mexican government report.
Apparently, though, it has been delayed until at least Thursday.
The Bush administration is pushing to start the experiment as soon as possible as a step toward a wider opening of the border to commercial traffic, as required in the North American Free Trade Agreement.
But, what effect will it have on the root of illegal immigration? My guess is that it will allow additional people to come across the border. And, that’s precisely the problem.
The issue is a federal one; one which the Bush administration is turning its back on. So long as we continue to push this issue onto state and local governments, while the federal government gives lip-service to its actions and creates loopholes to allow it to continue, the cause will not be resolved and thus the effects will remain — costs will overrun not simply because of added illegal immigrants, but because of enforcement of whatever laws and ordinances are enacted that will be required to be paid at the expense of the local taxpayer.
Larissa Chinwah of the Daily Herald reported on last night’s meeting of the Audit and Finance Commission which was called particularly to review the $40 million capital improvements program, which President Sarto referred to in his State of the Village Address on Tuesday night.
We have embarked on the most aggressive plan of infrastructure improvements and
repairs ever witnessed in the history of Carpentersville.
Resurfacing and reconstruction projects this summer have included
- Navajo Drive from Sioux Avenue to Papoose Drive;
- Wren Road from Hazard to Sparrow Road;
- Cleveland Avenue from Wilmette Avenue to Carpenter Boulevard;
- Delaware Street from Helm Road to Sioux Avenue.
There is definitely more work to be done, though, and some may wonder when the fixes for their street are coming.
“Once a street has fallen apart, it costs 10 times more than resurfacing a street that is still in good condition,” [Village Engineer Scott] Marquardt said. “The costs are going to stay the same until we have the funds to get in there and reconstruct the street. The less streets we construct, the better for the village.”
This is the reason why maintenance is so important. Once these roads are reconstructed, it will be important not to neglect them, not to let them get to that point again.
Village President Bill Sarto said although streets and sidewalks have been neglected for years, officials are making steady progress in efforts to improve the village.
“We are rebuilding Carpentersville, that’s really how you have to look at it,” Sarto said.
Cal Skinner writes at McHenry County Blog about two new bridges being built to cross over I-57 in Central Illinois — one near Mattoon and the other near Champaign.
Coles is a county that had an estimated 50,949 people in it as of 2006.
It has lost 2,247 people–4.2% of its population–since the U.S. Census in 2000.
But, it gets a new bridge.
The other overpass is being built in the Champaign area.
At least Champaign County has grown.
Its population is up 3.3% during the first six years of this decade. Up 6,013.
Not only is it getting a new overpass. It is getting an entire new cloverleaf.
Huntley can’t get half a cloverleaf on Route 47, but Champaign gets one of I-57.
Priorities, you know.
So, by comparison, what’s happened in our area …
McHenry grew by 20.1%. 53,296 more people lived here in 2006 than were here in 2000.
Kane increased its population by 89,616—a 22.2% increase.
And, local officials are saying we should finance this new bridge with tolls?! The Bolz Rd/Longmeadow Bridge/Parkway should be fully funded. The Western bypass in Algonquin should be fully funded. In fact, a bridge crossing north of Rt 62 (Algonquin Rd) should have also been allocated and funded … in addition to a major branch of Interstate through this region, so that all the traffic doesn’t have to flood southward before it can head east.
Cal wraps up by spelling out the bottom line …
142,912 more people in McHenry and Kane Counties, but no new bridges financed by state government.
How pathetic.
Pathetic indeed!
Last weekend in Gary, IN., 3 people died from carbon monoxide emitted from a gas-powered generator they were using after power went out at their home from storms last Thursday.
On Tuesday, a homeowner and his family in Carpentersville could have also died when he fired up a gas-powered pump in the crawl space of his home to remove flood water.
“If this family had gone to bed with these high levels, a very tragic outcome most likely would have occurred,” [Carpentersville Fire Chief John] Schuldt said.
Now, the Village and other agencies are issuing reminder warnings about the deadly dangers of carbon monoxide. On January 1st, a new law went into effect in Illinois requiring that homes have carbon monoxide detectors, within 15 feet of bedrooms.
One thing that neighbors might be able to do, especially in flooded areas or areas without power for extended periods, is to check up on each other. Just go around and knock on doors and talk with each other about the flooding or power outage, and get a general feel about how everyone is coping/dealing with the issue. If someone is thinking about a generator or gas-engine pump, perhaps offer help or remind them not to use it indoors. That few minutes it takes to do that can be much better than seeing the ambulance and fire crews show up later to a dire situation.
Not to mention the fact that it will help make your neighborhood a friendlier place.
With about 50 people gathered in the Village Hall Board Room to listen, including the Trustees (with exception of Paul Humpfer), State Senator Michael Noland, Kane County Board Member Hollie Kissane, Kane County Board Member and Dundee Township Republican Chairman, John Noverini, Dundee Township Democratic Chairman, Judge Robert Steffen, and a handful of Village staff members, Carpentersville Village President Bill Sarto gave the first State of the Village address in anyone’s memory on Tuesday night.
Illinois statutes allow municipal leaders to give an annual address, but few seem to take advantage of it. With all the negative attention focused on Carpentersville in the past year, it was good that Sarto took the time to highlight the numerous accomplishments in the Village over the past 2 years, since he took office.
When first announced, there was concern by some that only the positive would be addressed in the speech, but in reality there truly was no room for negatives in the 38-minute address. Some might even say that the positive atmosphere in the Village Board room was refreshing. One can hope that it will carry over to next week’s meeting of the Village Board.
At approximately 7:02pm, with Village Trustees Ritter, Hinz and Ramirez-Sliwinski settled in their seats at various places around the Board room, Sarto began. Trustee Sigwalt arrived about 4 minutes into the address, followed by Trustee Teeter about 5 minutes later, each taking a seat in the back row.
As your Village President, I come before you this evening to report that the State of the Village of Carpentersville is strong and moving forward.
Though stumbling on his words a few times, Sarto provided details of the achievements of the various Village departments, including the areas of Public Safety, Economic Development/Planning, Public Works, Engineering, Finance, Information Technology and Volunteer Comittees and Commissions. Rather than attribute these things to any one person or department in the Village, Sarto spread the love. This felt far from a “look what I have done for you” speech.
Our success and future success can only happen with dedicated hard work and with a concerted team effort…
No one person, acting alone, can get this Village where it ought to be.
Sarto showcased the many ways the Village is working to address the concerns of residents; concerns that some feel can only be addressed by establishing illegal immigration ordinances (which he never mentioned at all, even in passing). In each case, Sarto offered a number of examples of the good that Village staff is doing for residents.
Looking to the future with hope, based on what has been accomplished in the past 2 years with the effort and determination of everyone, Sarto concluded his address by saying:
Our future is up to you and me. It’s up to us. We can make a difference.
[It would probably be wishful thinking to say the bolded and underlined "can" was a subtle homage to this blog ... 
Continuing on...]
My hope for Carpentersville is the same as yours. We must never stop dreaming with the enduring confidence of the ages knowing that through hard work and perseverance that dreams do come true.
Provided that the Board can work together on these items, it seems that Carpentersville is in a good place. Perhaps this Board, with Sarto sitting in the President’s seat, isn’t as bad as the one issue that has been continually gnawing at everyone in the town. Hopefully businesses will see the significant improvements in the Village — although admittedly much work remains — and will see the opportunities there.
[Read the 2007 State of the Village]
I’ll probably have some more analysis of the content tomorrow …
[Wednesday A.M. UPDATE: Links to Newspaper reports ....]
Courier-News: Sarto says state of C’ville is ’strong’
Daily Herald: Sarto emphasizes positive in Village
Of course, it should come as no surprise, especially to those that have ever attended a Board meeting, that Trustee Sigwalt was the only one to speak in the negative. Sounded like sour grapes to me. It might have been good for Sarto to mention some of those others … but he sent the right message, and had a large number of examples to back it up, so it wasn’t all just a “feel-good”. That was the focus. And, it was to emphasize that much more work needs to get done — these good things need to continue.
I’m sure Sigwalt will have to make some complaint about it in her Trustee Report on Tuesday night, though…
On Friday, the City of Hazleton filed a notice of appeal in Lozano v. City of Hazleton.
The document, identifying several grounds for appeal, was filed in federal court Thursday. But the appeal will have to wait at least six months before it is heard by a panel of three judges at 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia.
One of the things that is being appealed is the fact that Judge Munley allowed several plaintiffs who were in the country illegally to join the case anonymously. This is apparently a rather common thing, such as in Plyer v. Doe (1982).
Now, the 3rd District Court of Appeals has only overturned about 15%-17% of cases in the past 2 years and “12% in the past 10 years”, so some are saying the odds are stacked against them. But, even if Hazleton lost on appeal, its not over.
Still the expectation is that this will not be decided for at least several more years, with both sides vowing to take it all the way to the Supremes.
So, can we expect several more years of public comments periods of 1-2 hours, sending Board meetings into the midnight hour? Or, expect several more years of leaving this in limbo, to cause folks to move out and businesses from ever coming in? Will discussion of an item really be tabled for several years?
Another reminder … around the river can be a dangerous place … so be careful, or be safer by staying away.
Chicago Tribune – Woman rescued from swollen Fox River
A woman slipped into the swollen Fox River in Carpentersville early today and clung to a branch until firefighters rescued her, authorities said.
Just a reminder about the State of the Village address, tonite, 7:00pm at Village Hall. I believe this to be an important speech for residents to hear about what else — besides illegal immigration — has been going on in the Village in the past few years.
Otherwise, not much posting planned today … look for a wrap-up and analysis of tonite’s address tomorrow, and hopefully folks will be willing to share their impressions, etc in the comments.
If you’ve got the time, take this lull as an opportunity to catch up on some of the past posts and comments.
Is it possible that the Daily Herald’s Chris Bailey actually believes her own words?
Or, are they cover for an agenda that accepts and promotes prejudice?
On Sunday, an editorial appeared in the Daily Herald, that sought to capitalize on what I believe is a misrepresentation of President Sarto’s position by creating a false dichotomy.
Only two possible conclusions can be drawn from Sarto’s position. Either he believes Hispanics should be exempt from following the laws of society or he believes that we shouldn’t enforce laws that are being violated with impunity.
First, I don’t believe that Sarto is saying either one of those things. He’s never said that laws should be suspended for Hispanics. In fact, he’s been quite consistent in stating the our current laws should be properly enforced. So, it simply doesn’t follow that objecting to the expanding of an existing law that boasts of creating an additional revenue stream translates into giving law breakers a pass.
Then, I think Ms. Bailey should not be so naive as to think that those are even the only two options available. It is also quite possible that Sarto is working diligently to heal a community significantly wounded by the actions of some Board members who are insistent on ridding the town of Hispanics, under the auspice of an “illegal immigration” crackdown, which the Daily Herald seems to feed by editorials such as these. Had Trustees Sigwalt and Humpfer not made the comments they did about about their discomfort with Hispanics in their town (i.e. feeling the Hispanic bakery was not friendly, not being able to have a cup of coffee with Hispanic neighbors, and that stores in town “cater to only one culture”, etc. ), those other members of the Board would likely not have to consider suspect a proposal such as this.
Furthermore, it is no secret that establishing or expanding towing and impound ordinances in communities around the country are aimed directly at dealing with illegal immigrants, which, as I’ve shown above, is intended to target Hispanics. It doesn’t take much to connect-the-dots to see the undercurrent of prejudice running through these actions, so one should wonder why Bailey and some others haven’t taken the time to do so.
After all, these are the folks that say “it’s not about race. It’s about what’s legal”, but everything they say and do contradicts that.
Now, apparently we are supposed to believe this is merely about “safety”?
And what of Sarto’s comments? While perhaps ignorant, he is only verbalizing what Sigwalt appears to also believe by the actions she is taking.
An email written by resident Richard Grass was forwarded to Carpentersville Action Network by one of the original recipients. (For the record, it was not Bill Sarto.)
The email uses a Daily Herald article regarding a proposal to impound the vehicles of those who are found driving without a valid license or without insurance, published earlier this week, to again take aim at President Bill Sarto.
Folks may recall earlier this year when Grass (also a reader and commenter on this blog) and Sarto got into a heated email exchange as Grass used another article — also published by the Daily Herald about Sarto’s divorce in 2000 and his relationship with his ex-wife — to attack Sarto. The exchange between Grass and Sarto led to a police investigation into a threat alleged by Grass, which police later declared there was no substantive evidence for.
Apparently, Grass liked the attention he received the first time and seems to have started up Round 2. Sarto, however, seemed to learn his lesson and apparently did not respond to this email by Grass.
Mr. Grass makes the following comments in this latest email, which — according to the addresses attached to the forwarded email — was sent to Sarto, and about 30 other email addresses, including all of the Village Trustees:
- So Bill, is insinuating that Hispanics break the law more often than others ?
- And How does this become a Hispanic thing, Bill! how do you know? Maybe you also know how many of them are Illegal?
- Bill, That is Racial Profiling not to mention Ignorant, and your worried about the Police doing the Racial profiling. I am more worried about someone causing an Accident with Injuries and not being Insured let alone under insured. But that’s OK with you Bill, as long as your happy while us Insured Motorists flip the bill once again for the lack of Good Local Government. While you protect your lawbreaking Hispanic (so you say) Drivers.
- I do not care who drives without Insurance, Bill! It’s against the Law!
- Bill, I see your work in Government all these years has taught you respect for the Laws, NOT!
- All I here from you, it’s not my Job, it’s the Federal Government, or Oh that’s just picking on one Group. You are a man of many Excuses and no solutions.
- Well, all we have left is a little less than a Year and half of your Lame excuses of why you cannot do your Job.
- Maybe after the next Election when you Lose! You can be the Poster Boy for La Raza.
Setting aside any potential merit of the attempted arguments made against Sarto here, this type of commentary has no business taking up the time and email space of the Village and its Board members. It is similar to the potshots and digs that some residents take at Board members during the public comments portion of Village meetings before they get to what they actually came to speak about. Just like those comments don’t belong, neither do these. Further, by clogging up Board members’ email boxes, legitimate emails have the potential to get lost in the crowd and not addressed as quickly.
This is the kind of garbage that has gone on for too long in Carpentersville. The divisiveness, name-calling and dirty pool have kept the town in the muck and mire; from residents and, often, the Board alike. It could certainly be a reason for the regular shifts in Village leadership and staff over the past 10 years, that has, in turn, caused some — even those who have begun to move Carpentersville forward — to simply give up. It needs to stop. Now.
While this blog may at times offer up opinions of a similar form, I do not go emailing my postings to the entire Board. (Which I hope Board members are appreciative of.) Emails sent on behalf of Carpentersville Action Network have been more inquiry than indictment.
I have said on this blog recently that I would make it an aim to be more constructive and work toward suggestions for improving Carpentersville. That is my purpose in making this posting — so that the resources of Village leaders and staff may be fully available to address the legitimate concerns of residents, and that folks would get past their personal vendettas so that work on the real problems that face the town may be worked on, creatively and efficiently.
Experimenting with a new look for the blog …
Let me know what you think (or whether you even care).
UPDATE:
Ok, I’ve restored things to the “Connections” theme, since everyone seemed to like that … particularly the header picture of Old Town Main Street.
All the same things should still be available in the sidebar, but you might have to scroll a bit to get to them. If there was something there that you don’t see anymore, let me know.
Wanted to point out that a Press Release from the Village has been posted regarding the storms that came through Thursday evening, including information about road closures do to damage/high-standing water, and other relevant information for those with flooded basements, and where sandbags can be obtained to protect property from flood waters, especially as the Fox River continues to rise.
Note, too, that some roads are barricaded for safety reasons. Drivers who go around the barricades (excepting those who are going to their homes on those streets) will be ticketed.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich cut nearly $463 million in what he referred to as “pork” out of the State budget via line-item veto and line-item reductions … however he approved the following appropriations for Carpentersville …
- Carpentersville Police: $25,000 for gang prevention activities
- Carpentersville Police: 7,000 for establishing a gang intervention program
- Village of Carpentersville: $40,000 for street lighting costs
Additionally, $2.8 million has been appropriated for the Longmeadow Parkway Bridge.
Today, August 24th — effective 9:30am this morning — due to the heavy rainfall and strong storms that passed through the area on Thursday afternoon/evening, President Bill Sarto declared a local disaster situation in Carpentersville [PDF].
The Governor of Illinois, also today, declared the counties of Kane, Cook, McHenry and Lake to be state disaster areas [Daily Herald report], allowing people to file for assistance and alerting local disaster management teams to the area.
Sometimes, there are spam comments that get caught in the filter that are just too humorous to simply delete. I offer it here for your enjoyment.
My name is Elena. To me of 20 years.
I would like to get acquainted with you if you not against.
I Look forward to hear you soon with impatience.
I think she likes me … but I can’t be sure. 
Ok … so technically this is not related to Carpentersville news or government, but it is probably of interest to many in Carpentersville …A McHenry County judge issued a restraining order today at the request of Holiday Inn’s owners to ensure that the meeting will not take place at the Crystal Lake hotel.
Were the Illinois Minutemen considering attempting to hold the meeting despite previous notice from Holiday Inn and Crystal Lake police? Or, is this simply a further reporting of events that began to unfold yesterday?
It doesn’t seem that way …
Citing concerns that guests and workers would get caught in the crossfire, the Holiday Inn’s owners went to court Thursday asking McIntyre to ban the Minuteman Project from the hotel.
That is unfortunate that the event was canceled so close to its scheduled date, which obviously probably does not allow the Illinois Minuteman Project the time to find a new venue for the meeting to go on. However, there is indication that, had Director Rosanna Polido notified the hotel that event was an Illinois Minuteman function, it may not have been approved and thus a new venue could have been found much earlier.
Pulido, Alliss Powers [Attorney for the hotel] said, never wrote Minuteman Project on the application for a conference room, instead labeling the applicant “Sheriff Dan Beck – Immigration Conference.”
In response to statements that this hindered them in determining there would be protests …
Minuteman attorney Suzanne Walters argued that the hotel, knowing the seminar dealt with the immigration issue, should not be surprised by the likelihood of protests.
While this might seem a reasonable argument, the way the event was labeled on the application, it may have been considered a police-sponsored event, or a law enforcement meeting. (Of course, not seeing the application in full, that cannot be said without absolute certainty.)
Still, on the matter of First Amendment rights, I absolutely agree that people need to have the right to speak and discuss issues — especially those that are controversial. I do not support the squashing of anyone’s rights, so long as they are exercised appropriately and at the proper time. One cannot say that they have the right to speak, but deny that of those who would oppose them.
At the same time, that must be tempered with business owners rights to protect themselves from situations where they may incur liability — not only for their patrons but also for their employees.
Given that they have already sold out this event, it would be good if they could simply find a new venue, without requiring the type of advertising of the event that could create concern over potential conflicts.
[Read the whole Daily Herald story]
What will Carpentersville get of the $1 million Riverboat pie?
The Salvation Army of Elgin requested $100,000 to establish a Carpentersville office and develop a literacy program to serve the village’s sizable Spanish-speaking population. The committee recommended funding the full amount of the request.
“There’s no question that there’s a need in Carpentersville for this program,” said committee member John Noverini, a Republican who represents the area.
The State of the Village address information was posted today on the Village’s website, with details posted here.
I would like to take a moment to thank Village Manager Craig Anderson for his quick reply to today’s inquiry about this item, and Village staff’s quick response in posting this notice.
Manager Anderson provided the following information:
In general most updates to the Village website are done on Thursday.
One should also take note that the Border Patrol Ad matter has been resolved, and the posting no longer appears on the front page of the Website. Kudos, folks!
Cal Skinner at McHenry County Blog writes about his experience navigating Huntley Rd – from Rt 31, west to Randall … and it might explain why Huntley and Randall is one of the worst intersections in the Chicago area.
The reality is that everyone needs to stop dabbling with widening this road, and do something to make it 4 lanes (with turn lanes) all the way to Randall — regardless of whether Longmeadow Pkwy and Bridge could be coming soon or not.
Due to previous commitments I was unable to attend last night’s Village Board meeting. I was, however, able to obtain some information to pass on to readers of Carpentersville Action Network.
Apparently, the discussion over the TIF district study was a lot tougher than one would have thought it would be, especially with there being two other TIF districts in the Village. Finally, Village Attorney Jim Rhodes had to explain the way TIFs work. (Perhaps with the way the Board has conducted business in the last year, there was some confusion over whether this was a study in “tiff’s” rather than to authorize a study for TIF districts.)
The discussion stretched further as Trustees Paul Humpfer and Judith Sigwalt disagreed with other board members about what a TIF actually was, prompting Village Attorney James Rhodes to compare the village to slices of pie and to lead trustees through ad hoc tutorial on how TIFs work.
Also, it sounds like President Sarto heeded some of the advice posted previously regarding public comments, as two were gaveled and shown to their seat for showing disrespect and/or aiming to attack a member of the Board.
I also appreciated hearing that Trustee Hinz seemingly broke ranks and voted against the impoundment of motor vehicles ordinance. However, it was a non-issue because Sigwalt, Humpfer, Ritter and Teeter voted for it. Keep watching how Hinz votes in the future, particularly on issues that may be controversial, to determine if there is anything to this.
All in all, it sounds like the meeting was more or less uneventful. In other words, Village business got done.
That’s nice to hear for a change.
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