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Post by Anonymous on Mar 19, 2014 10:45:56 GMT -6
You really should think about coming back to town. I'll consider it since you asked so nicely.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Mar 19, 2014 13:53:08 GMT -6
Weren't you the one that talked about a large group of neighbors fighting, the Police coming out and doing nothing? No, my neighbors don't fight. My neighborhood rocks. You are thinking of Jules. Have we just met Kyle? Haven't we had lengthy discussions on here in the past? Seriously. I'm honored that you lump me in with job and Oldtimer and that now I'm part of some "club", but disappointed that you don't have me pegged like you think you have job and Oldtimer pegged. Oh yes, I think you are right. My apologies then. So many people that leave Streator, it is hard to keep them all straight. We have had some lengthy discussions on here, as I have with many other anonymous people that are critical of most everything I say. However, no I don't think we have met. My name is Kyle Mitchell, I am a very visible member of the community, I'll be at the Council meeting tonight at 7:00, feel free to introduce yourself at any time.
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Post by helencrump on Mar 28, 2014 5:02:28 GMT -6
The fact that they choose to ignore your rants doesn't prove you are right. They probably have figured out long ago that there is nothing they can say that will satisfy you. As I've stated before, if you would have followed the zoning rules then you would have gotten a justification for any decisions made. You didn't follow the rules which is on you, not the city. The end result is that you don't really know what you are talking about when it comes to this zoning issue. I noticed you didn't answer if you had consulted a zoning professional about these issues. They chose to ignore me long before the Aquaponic issue even came up. Even if they did figure that their justification wouldn't satisfy me, isn't it a shame that even after I talk about the requirement going against our laws and being corrupt at public forum, they also don't have anything to tell the public that they feel would explain it to them. Instead the Mayor just blames business owners for not going to City Hall to find out what is required. Are you saying that the Mayor is full of crap, and people shouldn't go to him to find out what is required? How many of these professional zoning consultants do we have in Streator? Maybe not being able to go to City Hall and get the proper information and having to hire professional consultants to try to find out what our City will require is why we have so many empty buildings. The end result is a dying downtown. None of us have called them corrupt, and demanded any explanation. It sounds reasonable to most of us that you were referred to planning and zoning, and when you refused to do that, you were given an opinion. It also doesn't surprise any of us that you wouldn't like the opinion. I don't feel the need to hear them discuss it at all. They shouldn't b wasting their time on a subject that you have made it clear the owner wants no part of anymore. HHe shouldve started the ball rolling on his own, instead of involving someone with a vendetta against city hall.
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Post by helencrump on Mar 28, 2014 5:12:42 GMT -6
No, my neighbors don't fight. My neighborhood rocks. You are thinking of Jules. Have we just met Kyle? Haven't we had lengthy discussions on here in the past? Seriously. I'm honored that you lump me in with job and Oldtimer and that now I'm part of some "club", but disappointed that you don't have me pegged like you think you have job and Oldtimer pegged. Oh yes, I think you are right. My apologies then. So many people that leave Streator, it is hard to keep them all straight. We have had some lengthy discussions on here, as I have with many other anonymous people that are critical of most everything I say. However, no I don't think we have met. My name is Kyle Mitchell, I am a very visible member of the community, I'll be at the Council meeting tonight at 7:00, feel free to introduce yourself at any time. Jules is from out of state, and works out of town. She unfortunately rented in an unfriendly area. Had I known she rented, and didn't own, I would've let her know of a rental next to me before it was already gone. She would've been very happy here. My neighbors rock, too.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Mar 28, 2014 5:37:52 GMT -6
They chose to ignore me long before the Aquaponic issue even came up. Even if they did figure that their justification wouldn't satisfy me, isn't it a shame that even after I talk about the requirement going against our laws and being corrupt at public forum, they also don't have anything to tell the public that they feel would explain it to them. Instead the Mayor just blames business owners for not going to City Hall to find out what is required. Are you saying that the Mayor is full of crap, and people shouldn't go to him to find out what is required? How many of these professional zoning consultants do we have in Streator? Maybe not being able to go to City Hall and get the proper information and having to hire professional consultants to try to find out what our City will require is why we have so many empty buildings. The end result is a dying downtown. None of us have called them corrupt, and demanded any explanation. It sounds reasonable to most of us that you were referred to planning and zoning, and when you refused to do that, you were given an opinion. It also doesn't surprise any of us that you wouldn't like the opinion. I don't feel the need to hear them discuss it at all. They shouldn't b wasting their time on a subject that you have made it clear the owner wants no part of anymore. HHe shouldve started the ball rolling on his own, instead of involving someone with a vendetta against city hall. Do you speak for most of the people here? Why would it seem reasonable that I was referred to P&Z and refused to go and then was given an opinion? Did the Mayor tell you that? When you do see the letter, you will see that he did not refer me to P&Z for anything other than applying for industrial zoning. It does not say at all that it is an opinion. "My informal review has confirmed that such a use would require a rezoning to M1 Light Industrial". When I turned in my request for the formal review, our Zoning Administrator did not suggest at all that I go to the P&Z commission either. It will be interesting to see what the results of their formal review will be, wont it? Will it back up the Mayor's requirement or will they switch it up to something that is actually within our laws? Maybe I should have already asked about the process to appeal the results of the review, but now I will wait to see what the results are first. Does it really matter at this point if this building owner wants to pursue it? I think it is more about how our City handles perspective business and our lack of business here, than just this one project. Do we want businesses here or not?
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Mar 28, 2014 6:10:55 GMT -6
Now that it is finally starting to warm up, I hope that they get on rebuilding the front of the building before more of it falls and so that people can shop downtown without having to worry about it falling on them.
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Post by dog on Mar 28, 2014 6:23:15 GMT -6
It does not say at all that it is an opinion. "My informal review has confirmed that such a use would require a rezoning to M1 Light Industrial". If that is the text of the mayor's letter, that really confirms my suspicisons. By using the word "informal" he is stating it is nothing official or formal, and most people would realize that even if he didn't use the word "opinion" that is actually his opinion and not some legal ruling. I am glad you are following some type of official path now to try to clear this all up. I agree in this particular case, it could have been handled better by the city and by you. Now if you can move past this extreme justification thing and the city can change their approach a little, maybe something can actually be accomplished , rather than constantly having to swim in this cesspool.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Mar 28, 2014 6:52:28 GMT -6
It does not say at all that it is an opinion. "My informal review has confirmed that such a use would require a rezoning to M1 Light Industrial". If that is the text of the mayor's letter, that really confirms my suspicisons. By using the word "informal" he is stating it is nothing official or formal, and most people would realize that even if he didn't use the word "opinion" that is actually his opinion and not some legal ruling. I am glad you are following some type of official path now to try to clear this all up. I agree in this particular case, it could have been handled better by the city and by you. Now if you can move past this extreme justification thing and the city can change their approach a little, maybe something can actually be accomplished , rather than constantly having to swim in this cesspool. I disagree that it is just his opinion. The letter says that it was discussed with the City Manager and Director of Community Development. It is the results of his informal review, it is the requirement that our Mayor gave to a perspective business that went to City Hall to find out what is required. Are you saying that the results of the formal review will be a "legal ruling"? There should be a way to appeal it then, correct? Too bad our ordinance doesn't actually spell out a process for getting the correct information, no mention of a formal review of the zoning requirement of a business activity not listed. Maybe the fact that it is so hard to get the correct information is why we have so few businesses here? Shouldn't a perspective business be able to go to City Hall and get the correct information? I have a hard time just moving past our Mayor giving out a requirement that goes against our laws and then just ignoring requests for a justification for it. Why didn't his letter suggest that I ask for a formal review? The only option the letter provided was going to P&Z for a zoning change to industrial and called approval an uphill battle. Don't you think we need a different attitude and new way of doing things at City Hall? The Mayor putting the blame for the perception that they are uninviting to business on business owners, saying that they don't go to City Hall to find out what is required, certainly doesn't show me that they even recognize a problem, much less plan on changing their ways. It will be interesting to see the results of their formal review, won't it?
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Post by dog on Mar 28, 2014 8:49:49 GMT -6
If that is the text of the mayor's letter, that really confirms my suspicisons. By using the word "informal" he is stating it is nothing official or formal, and most people would realize that even if he didn't use the word "opinion" that is actually his opinion and not some legal ruling. I am glad you are following some type of official path now to try to clear this all up. I agree in this particular case, it could have been handled better by the city and by you. Now if you can move past this extreme justification thing and the city can change their approach a little, maybe something can actually be accomplished , rather than constantly having to swim in this cesspool. . Are you saying that the results of the formal review will be a "legal ruling"? There should be a way to appeal it then, correct? It will be interesting to see the results of their formal review, won't it?
I am not sure where you can make that a$$umption. All I am saying is that he specifically inserted the word "informal". The way I would interpret that would it would mean it is not a legal ruling and is not the cities official ruling. Not necessarily just in this case, but in any legal ruling, there should be a way to appeal it. My argument has never been that the city couldn't have done things differently in this case. My argument has been that they weren't guilty of anything illegal.
Why do you think he specifically used the word "informal" in his response? Give me a plausible answer to consider.
I would be interested in the results of a formal review. Things like aquaponics and other businesses not specifically listed in the zoning map, need to be addressed in a proactive manner to avoid any future possible conflicts.
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Post by dog on Mar 28, 2014 11:33:38 GMT -6
Now that it is finally starting to warm up, I hope that they get on rebuilding the front of the building before more of it falls and so that people can shop downtown without having to worry about it falling on them. Do you know if the building owner of this property is getting fined daily or has been threatened with a fine? Should the city be all over this property owner to fix an unsafe condition? I would think you would have been a little more vocal about having this problem fixed Kyle. I would think this would affect your business more, than fights that occur after your business is closed. Personally I would have to go thru a lot more trouble to get injured at the Mushro building than I would in front of this place. As a fellow business owner, I am not picking on this particular conditon. I know the weather hasnt been favorable and it will be an unexpected expense to fix the problem. I wish them luck and understand it might take a while to correct.
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Post by ohhenry on Mar 28, 2014 11:49:39 GMT -6
Now that it is finally starting to warm up, I hope that they get on rebuilding the front of the building before more of it falls and so that people can shop downtown without having to worry about it falling on them. Kyle Mitchell - mind your own business already - I am sure they are working on it. Worry about your own building and not everyone else's
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Post by ohhenry on Mar 28, 2014 11:52:30 GMT -6
Now that it is finally starting to warm up, I hope that they get on rebuilding the front of the building before more of it falls and so that people can shop downtown without having to worry about it falling on them. Do you know if the building owner of this property is getting fined daily or has been threatened with a fine? Should the city be all over this property owner to fix an unsafe condition? I would think you would have been a little more vocal about having this problem fixed Kyle. I would think this would affect your business more, than fights that occur after your business is closed. Personally I would have to go thru a lot more trouble to get injured at the Mushro building than I would in front of this place. As a fellow business owner, I am not picking on this particular conditon. I know the weather hasnt been favorable and it will be an unexpected expense to fix the problem. I wish them luck and understand it might take a while to correct. I agree - I have seen the building inspectors out there and a few different contractors. These people are in town all the time and own several other properties that I know of. I am sure they are working on the problem.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Mar 28, 2014 14:06:44 GMT -6
Why do you think he specifically used the word "informal" in his response? Give me a plausible answer to consider.
I would be interested in the results of a formal review. Things like aquaponics and other businesses not specifically listed in the zoning map, need to be addressed in a proactive manner to avoid any future possible conflicts.
Honestly? I think he knew that he was stopping a business unjustly; I think "informal" was his fall back, knowing that industrial zoning was not right. I know that you probably won't accept that, but you asked what I thought. With all my requests for justification and all the discussion on the matter, why do you think he never suggested a formal review? Our zoning ordinance says that is not meant to be all inclusive. Isn't adding a couple of business activities to our list of permissible uses just putting a band-aid on the real problem? If you put your arm in a wood chipper, would you just put a band-aid on it or pull your arm out first? Do you think that we can come up with all the types of new businesses that may want to ever come here in the future so that we can list everything? Maybe we need a different way for things to be done and a different attitude? Shouldn't there be a process for determining the correct requirement in a timely manner, instead of keeping businesses out with ones that do not follow our ordinances?
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Mar 28, 2014 14:20:59 GMT -6
Do you know if the building owner of this property is getting fined daily or has been threatened with a fine? Should the city be all over this property owner to fix an unsafe condition? I would think you would have been a little more vocal about having this problem fixed Kyle. I would think this would affect your business more, than fights that occur after your business is closed. Personally I would have to go thru a lot more trouble to get injured at the Mushro building than I would in front of this place. As a fellow business owner, I am not picking on this particular conditon. I know the weather hasnt been favorable and it will be an unexpected expense to fix the problem. I wish them luck and understand it might take a while to correct. I know it has been cold and nothing could really be done. That's why I made the comment that I did. The difference is that the City's building has been dilapidated, deplorable, and wide open for a long time. No one can get into the building in this thread, but the City's building has a wide open basement just beyond that fence and a wide open window accessible from the adjoining roofs. I would be willing to debate which one might create more of a safety hazard. I bet the private property building would start getting fines if they didn't take care of their problem. I really don't think that the City has any plans of doing anything with theirs.
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Post by Kyle Mitchell on Mar 28, 2014 14:28:01 GMT -6
Kyle Mitchell - mind your own business already - I am sure they are working on it. Worry about your own building and not everyone else's The condition of our downtown is my business because I have invested so much into it. Being able to walk down Main Street without having to worry about a building falling on you, is pretty detrimental to having a business in the area. Haven't you been worried about what I do at my building? I'll worry about what I want to.
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