tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7671777.post4075214343194396101..comments2023-10-21T05:31:04.705-05:00Comments on Merle Widmer's PEORIA WATCH: Caterpillar Layoffs ContinueMerle Widmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08788275198834985986noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7671777.post-53997752731937179452009-03-11T16:23:00.000-05:002009-03-11T16:23:00.000-05:00Our library system is a pathetic joke. If it is h...Our library system is a pathetic joke. If it is horrible to keep a basic public amenity open, one that all communities have, then we as a community are dieing. You won't have the rising 20-30 year olds coming here to pay your businesses to stay open as the population moves out and dies off. They want their families to be able to have as good competitive gain as others do in other places in our country. Should we just close the libraries? <BR/><BR/>Basic amenities are basic amenities and how pathetic would it be if we were the only "city" nationwide without a library. The only issue I see is Peoria has a lack of ability to make itself attractive, which may not appear important to some, but it matters greatly to new talent that is vital to keep a community alive and thriving. A 200 dollar room hotel is by far a stretch and a blatant waste of taxpayer money but ICC? ICC is a public funded institution and is for the better of the community as well. <BR/><BR/>Taxes suck but sometime unfortunately we do have to keep up with the Joneses. It parallels on so many levels of our lives. A privately funded library would hold no function in our society and would fall into disuse in the day of blogs and internet. Are blogs even a reliable source of info when anyone with a computer can write one? I know no one here wants to become the next Detroit, but Detroit got where it is today based on pure self interest which has eroded people's interest in themselves. Even nearby communities such as Morton or other districts have abysmal educations systems in comparison to other communities our size in new growth development. <BR/><BR/>You want to see public functions that work well? See Davenport or Bettendorf, IA. I believe they even manage to do it even on a lesser tax rate. It’s not that the things we are wanting are wrong, it’s that the system we have is wrong. Where does the money go? It doesnt show in what we have by any stretch of the imagination. Getting rid of the tax burden wont help it on its own. It will still find a way to waste, we need to weed out the waste and get our city functioning like it should be.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7671777.post-52100380912990544912009-03-02T12:22:00.000-06:002009-03-02T12:22:00.000-06:00At least that CAT executive's "several million dol...At least that CAT executive's "several million dollar home" is real economic activity, unlike the so-called stimulus bill from Obama.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7671777.post-16914578555548227702009-03-02T12:17:00.000-06:002009-03-02T12:17:00.000-06:00Oh, I forgot, the Peoria Park District is still as...Oh, I forgot, the Peoria Park District is still asking for at least $5 million to complete a $32 million dollar zoo, a $27 or $17 million dollar zoo, its guesswork as little information on the zoo costs and opening appears in the stripped down Journal Star. Maybe it is opening in the spring as some say, or in mid June as some say, still spring, I guess, school starts in mid August, summer as some say.<BR/><BR/>And I keep forgtetting ICC's priority new building spending of $31-35 million.<BR/><BR/>And the Southern Gateway.<BR/><BR/>Both the City and the County appear to be stuck with our investments in In-Play and RiverStation. No, the County didn't lend any money to Tilly's now out of business.<BR/><BR/>The County has other investments (loans) to local business.<BR/><BR/>Stay tuned.Merle Widmerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04267875223386924271noreply@blogger.com