Let’s start out with a few examples and you, the reader, can draw your own conclusions of which category these individuals fall.
Let’s start with Peoria Park District President, Tim Cassidy who, a couple of years ago, told the NAACP and the Moss Avenue Neighborhood Association that the Riverplex was breaking even financially.
FACT – At the time Mr. Cassidy made these statements there was an official 2001 actual document showing that the Riverplex had lost $1,187,845.00. Worse than that, the Riverplex combined operation lost over $7 million in their first 40 months of operation. This figure is thru December 31, 2004. (JS 2005) The PPD financial statement for 2005 will not be published until June 2006.
“Park District nears deal for softball fields” reads a headline in JS on 11/07/03. “Construction will probably begin in 2005 because there is no money in 2004 budget”. (Quote from Cassidy in JS same date and article)
FACT – No land has even been purchased or determined for this site and it is now 2/06. I am told the park has an “understanding” on some land supposedly swapped with Bradley’s takeover of Meinen Field, now Shea Stadium. (See JS article 8/26/04) “BU arranges land swap with park district. We’ve made the trade with Bradley” quote from Mr. Cassidy in the JS. (See if you can find it on the assessor’s book down at the courthouse. You can’t because the swap of property visible to the public, never happened.) I’ll blog more on this “deal” later.
Next are some statements in the JS attributed to Bonnie Noble, PPD Superintendent:
Article in the JS on 12/12/03 titled “Park officials set to discuss softball site.” A quote from Mrs. Noble in the article says “board members have been working on this for several months and this project could provide Peoria with enough fields to host the Girls National Softball Association’s 2006 regional fast-pitch tournament.”
FACT – JS article on 1/19/06 states “Two Tazewell County cities will host the girls National Softball Association’s Class B World Series expecting 200 teams. Other tournaments will bring at least several hundred more teams to Eastside, Morton, Pekin, Mossville, ect. Peoria is not mentioned because none are coming to Peoria unless they can play in the RP. Further quotes say these tournaments are projected to bring about $11-13 million to the area. (Mostly east of the river) Another quote states that “Peoria Park District is expected to have built a $1.5 million “state of the art” complex by 2006.” These quotes are in the same article.
On 6/16/99 in the JS, Mrs. Noble is quoted as saying the RecPlex, as it was then called, “would operate about $300,000.00 in the red in its second year as a “worst case” scenario. Even in it’s fifth year (we’re there) the deficit “in it’s worst case scenario” still will be about $167,000.00.” She is further quoted “Approximately 17,028 households in the Benfield study area have a meaningful interest in the fitness center, all of whom are likely to join the proposed center. Fourth year projections are a profit of $187,058.00.”
FACT – For the FIFTH straight year, the PPD has had to sell new bonds totaling over $16 million including principal and interest this year alone of $650,000.00 payment on the ORIGINAL Rivplex bond with final payment to be made in 2021! The 2006 new bond of $3,350,000.00 was not mentioned in the JS. What was mentioned at the end of an article in section B on 11/03/05 was that the park had passed a 2006 budget of $48.8 million up from $44.8 million in 2005. Homeowners will pay a tax to the park of $242.00 per assessed valuation of $100,000.00. The budget included a cost of $11.25 for each person served at the RiverPlex.
What was not mentioned is that the park is over $25 million in debt today even with the yearly pay-down of other existing bonded indebtedness.
JSEB wrote on 2/22/03 “RiverPlex programs worth small price”
FACT – The Peoria Park District has financially strapped itself with the RiverPlex despite repeated statements to the press to the contrary. The Journal Star has been very quite on the subjects for a couple of years. The PPD doesn’t have the money to build softball fields and its now too late to build them without adding considerably more debt plus the softball fields would lose hundreds of thousand of dollars per year in operating costs.
The JS knows that the swap for Meinen Field of property of like value never took place but since the JS said it did, it did. Well, it didn’t. Find it on public record and prove me wrong.
The promised skateboard park is a joke compared to Pekin’s and other cities even smaller than Peoria and cities with much smaller budgets. The location lends itself to an accident waiting to happen. It is so remote and the site is so blocked out that it is impossible to police. Ask any skateboard user about the skateboard and its location and see what they say unless they live next door. If you live next door, or anywhere, I guess it is better than nothing.
On 6/1/03, a letter to the editor appeared in the JS over the name of Roger Allen, Chairman of the Finance Committee of the PPD. He writes “The RiverPlex is not $480,000.00 in the red. It makes me wonder about the news department of the Journal Star.” Again he wrote in the JS on February, 2003, “Park Board is financially sound: reducing bond debt. The park district continues to demonstrate sound financial leadership.”
FACT – The adverting budget for the PPD in 2006 is again over $800,000.00 of which a large part of it goes to support the RiverPlex. The RiverPlex is selling memberships at least 20% below the private sector. Clubs competing in the private sector are supporting the RiverPlex with their own tax dollars!
An article appeared in the JS on January, 2005 stating that “Park employees to receive bonuses” with Mr. Cassidy stating that “we’ve been able to get thru the last couple of years with balanced budgets.” Recently, the superintendents pay was raised from $126,000.00 to $130,000.00 a year with full benefits including a retirement package
An article in the JS on 11/10/05 read “Park Board approves golf fee hike.” An increase of $25 was eventually approved.
In the 2006 bond issue is a figure of $136,000.00 for Golf Learning Center Debt Service and $15,000.00 for roof repair at the center.
FACT: Golfers were promised no hike in golf fees. Yet Mr. Cassidy promised “I hear loud and clear the improvements needed to make our golf course more competitive but we can’t do that under our operational budget.”
Take all this in consideration as the PPD struggles to raise the $32,000,000.00 for the new zoo; a zoo that will in NO way support itself without at least a $15 million dollar endowment. Hang on to your pocket book if you live in the park tax district and own property and be careful about what you wish for. Wishes sometimes come true with unintended consequences.
I will write another blog on the same theme shortly. What you have read is factual. It is all on record.
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