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Post by dumdave on Aug 29, 2013 9:19:29 GMT -6
What he is referring to is going back to the old style of government where each council member ran a department. This would be a huge step backwards. The current form of govt works. Where would we be without a city manager? Most likely worse off. Who would want to be mayor of Streator and run day to day operations for $20,000 a year. You get what you pay for. Nobody in their right mind would take on such a task for so little compensation. That form of govenment led to the switch to a City Manager style. I believe the majority of the commisioners ended up in the pokey for soliciting bribes.
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Post by father of two on Aug 29, 2013 9:27:22 GMT -6
That was back in the late 50's early 60's. the switch to this came when the council couldn't decide on a fifth member to fill a vacancy.
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Post by Anonymous on Aug 29, 2013 10:49:04 GMT -6
He manages a city. If you had the credentials to do so, what compensation would you expect to receive? With the way our city has been headed the last few decades, what do you think would be appropriate? I feel the salary he is receiving is the compensation I would expect to receive for that job in this town. The direction this town is heading can not be solely placed on the shoulders of the people running it. Hear me out (watch someone pick and choose what line to quote - I'm not referring to you Masked Man) Look at the overall economy in the whole country and our own government in this entirely mucked up State of Illinois. Then we need to look at ourselves in the mirror and at the people with whom we share this town/world. Ideally everyone would take some pride in every aspect of their lives, including having a strong work ethic, pride in the home they occupy (whether they own it or not), respect for the law and those who enforce it, and respect for their fellow man which should be evident in their daily interaction whether that be online or in person. Oh, how I wish we lived in that kind of world. Instead I can name four houses off the top of my head that drive me insane by the condition they are in, two are abandoned and in my own neighborhood. They were left there by people who chose to walk away and not deal with the hassles of upkeep anymore. The other two houses I see were beautifully cared for and sold a few years ago. The current owners/occupiers of those homes have ruined them in a few short years. No excuse. They have been destroyed by people with no respect for this town or their neighbors and the area they live in. Nothing ticks me off more than a nice neighborhood of working and prideful homeowners having to deal with the lazy bums of society. It seem much more prevalent now than when even I was a kid growing up here. So citizens need to step up to the plate and start taking personal responsibility for their town and themselves, too. I expect the city to try their darnedest to encourage new businesses and industry to locate here, to keep our roads as in good of shape as feasibly possible given their limited funds to do so, to maintain law & order for us, and everything else that goes into making a city run. But, I expect our PEOPLE to give it their all too and very few of them do. Or else the ones that outnumber us with their slovenly ways just seem to stand out more. That's my long rant in answer to your question what do I think the job is worth. If you stuck through to read that in its entirety, then thank you. lol
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Post by no1inparticular on Aug 29, 2013 19:08:36 GMT -6
With the way our city has been headed the last few decades, what do you think would be appropriate? I feel the salary he is receiving is the compensation I would expect to receive for that job in this town. The direction this town is heading can not be solely placed on the shoulders of the people running it. Hear me out (watch someone pick and choose what line to quote - I'm not referring to you Masked Man) Look at the overall economy in the whole country and our own government in this entirely mucked up State of Illinois. Then we need to look at ourselves in the mirror and at the people with whom we share this town/world. Ideally everyone would take some pride in every aspect of their lives, including having a strong work ethic, pride in the home they occupy (whether they own it or not), respect for the law and those who enforce it, and respect for their fellow man which should be evident in their daily interaction whether that be online or in person. Oh, how I wish we lived in that kind of world. Instead I can name four houses off the top of my head that drive me insane by the condition they are in, two are abandoned and in my own neighborhood. They were left there by people who chose to walk away and not deal with the hassles of upkeep anymore. The other two houses I see were beautifully cared for and sold a few years ago. The current owners/occupiers of those homes have ruined them in a few short years. No excuse. They have been destroyed by people with no respect for this town or their neighbors and the area they live in. Nothing ticks me off more than a nice neighborhood of working and prideful homeowners having to deal with the lazy bums of society. It seem much more prevalent now than when even I was a kid growing up here. So citizens need to step up to the plate and start taking personal responsibility for their town and themselves, too. I expect the city to try their darnedest to encourage new businesses and industry to locate here, to keep our roads as in good of shape as feasibly possible given their limited funds to do so, to maintain law & order for us, and everything else that goes into making a city run. But, I expect our PEOPLE to give it their all too and very few of them do. Or else the ones that outnumber us with their slovenly ways just seem to stand out more. That's my long rant in answer to your question what do I think the job is worth. If you stuck through to read that in its entirety, then thank you. lol While I agree with much of what you've said, I have some things I'd like clarity on as well... First, does the City not have an obligation to identify the owners of abandoned properties, and cite them accordingly?...Isn't that why certain vacant homes were leveled recently?...There are now 2 vacant & burned houses on Cotton Street, one carefully boarded up by the owner, the other a dangerous attraction for thieves, trash, and pests... Next, there are a lot of people who do, in fact, take pride in their homes...Including me who, as a renter, has done many improvements to my house without being required to...Yet driving down my street is like navigating the surface of Mars due to pot holes...Then again, I live at the South end of town (still in La Salle Co) where we seem to be the last on the list while the North end is moving further North, and receives far more consideration when it comes to improvements...Seriously, it's not "all about the park" to some of us...We should matter too... Finally, there are an abundance of people in Streator who have stellar work ethics...The sad TRUTH is that there are simply NO JOBS...Unlike those who revel in showing up at work in their sweat pants, looking disheveled - some of us REFUSE to work in such tacky environments due to the drama/drugs associated with them...These employers claim to be "Professional", but are far from my meager standards of that..."Professional" usually means that dress codes are implemented & enforced, drug raids aren't occurring at the business, and employees having the ability to read past a 3rd grade level... While I've only been here for a few years, I haven't seen such decline in my entire life...It's truly sad to see a town in its own death throes...
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