This week’s edition of the Park Ridge Journal brings a trifecta of holiday cheer.  

You can deck your halls with the City of Park Ridge’s 5% tax levy increase (“Aldermen Approve 5% Increase In Property Tax”).  You can jingle your bells with the Park District’s more modest 2.95% increase (“Park District Eyes $5.2 Million Property Tax Levy”).  Or you can let Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 really roast your chestnuts with its 11% tax increase (“Dist. 64 Agrees On $54.4 Million Tax Levy, 11% Increase”).

But before you start spiking the egg nog over the fact that the recent triennial re-assessment sent your home’s assessed value soaring by 25-40% while your market value actually may have declined by 10-15%, you might want to hoist your mug of glogg in a toast of good cheer to those lucky folks who own Napleton Cadillac. 

That’s because it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas for Napleton – and for PRC Partners, which is likely to purchase the old Napleton Cadillac property for more condos and/or townhouses.  City Manager “Tiny Tim” Schuenke and the City’s Finance and Budget Chairman “Richie D” DiPietro are eagerly cutting a deal that will give Napleton $400,000 of the City’s TIF revenues to pay for the environmental cleanup of the old Napleton Cadillac site – which Napleton contaminated during all those years it was running a profitable dealership there. 

Apart from the financial concerns, it sure seems like wrongheaded policy to effectively reward environmental polluters by bailing them out from the consequences of their conduct, especially when the polluter clearly has the ability to pay its own way.  Is that the kind of message we, as a community, should be sending? 

And as if that weren’t enough, the City is ready to cut a tax revenue sharing arrangement with Napleton whereby the City will share any sales tax revenues generated by the new Napleton (formerly Tom Noe) dealership on a 50-50 basis once Napleton crosses a certain tax threshold – which is looking to be around the $225,000 the City says it has collected in sales tax revenue from Napleton during the past 12 months.

Why the giveaway?

One reason being floated by the City is that the Napleton deal is a lot like the giveaway to Bredemann when the City bought the Toyota and Buick properties for TA2.  You know how it goes: We let the first guy fleece us, so it wouldn’t be fair not to let the second guy do the same.  And the standard party line on these kinds of deals is that if you don’t give businesses such “incentives” they will leave for other communities. 

That kind of rationalization reminds us a lot of the scene in Mel Brooks’ “Blazing Saddles,” where the black sheriff holds a gun to his own head and stops the onrushing white citizens in their tracks with the warning: “Next man makes a move, the [N-word] gets it!”  Sure, an auto dealership that’s been located in our town for the past X number of years might pick up and leave.  But let’s face a simple fact: If a multi-million dollar business will pack it in over the kind of dollars we’re talking about here, it’s commitment to the community isn’t worth “a pitcher of warm spit” (borrowing a term John Nance Garner once used to describe the vice presidency of the United States).

What we’re really talking about here is something that’s becoming more and more prevalent in Park Ridge: Greed, pure and simple.  And also the increasingly well-known ability of savvy and well-connected businessmen like Bill Napleton and Joe Bredemann to pretty much have their way with a lifelong bureaucrat like “Tiny Tim” Schuenke, and a rubber-stamp official like Richie D.

But let’s not forget about our mayor at this festive time of year:  Howard “Old Fezziwig” Frimark, who amazingly saw nothing wrong with leading the City’s “Napleton” negotiating team even though Napleton Cadillac gave Frimark’s mayoral campaign $1,000 [pdf].  When somebody on the Council raised a question about the apparent conflict of interest, Frimark’s response was to disclose – at the January 22, 2007 Council meeting [pdf] – simply that he had “an economic interest with Napleton Cadillac,” without explaining the nature of that interest (or if it was, indeed, limited to that $1,000 campaign contribution), the extent or dollar value of that interest, or how long it had existed.

So sing a chorus or two of “Silent Night,” Park Ridgians, and worry not for Napleton and PRC.  Visions of sugarplums – and our tax dollars – are already dancing in their heads.

Early Retirement…Or Evacuation?: At its meeting this past February 19th, the Park Ridge City Council, with the blessing of Mayor Howard Frimark, adopted an “Early Retirement Incentive” program (ERI) designed to give senior City employees a financial incentive to retire early by contributing City money to their pension fund. 

The reasons given for such a program are principally two: it’s supposed to save money in the long run by replacing the more senior, highly-paid employees with younger, cheaper ones; and it brings in “new blood” and “fresh ideas.” 

Frankly, we have never been fans of this kind of program because it seems like the replacement personnel tend to cost almost as much as the folks they replaced (and, if they are any good, they soon get raises that close whatever initial gap there may have been); and because they rarely provide enough new good ideas to justify themselves on that basis.

Plus, if the old guys and gals weren’t providing enough value for their salary and benefits, why were they kept around as long – and paid as much – and they were?

Since the ERI was passed, we have seen Public Works Director Joe Saccomanno, Asst. Development Director Brian Emanuel, Community Preservation and Development Director Randy Dangerfield, and City Manager Tim Schuenke all tender their resignations.  Rumor has it that some, if not all, of them found some additional impetus toward the exit by the increasingly political environment of City Hall.

Rumor also has it that Mayor Frimark is doing the old “Here’s your hat, what’s your hurry?” to Police Chief Jeff Caudill because he wants to install one of his cronies in that position.  Leading contenders?  Speculation centers on former PRPD officers William Hominick and Bob Kristy, with the dark horse candidate being a current member of the Des Plaines P.D. who is married to a close Friend of Frimark.

Cop Shop Fever: Now that the School District 64 Educational Services Center (“ESC”) building has been labeled a no-go, the Park Ridge P.D. is back in the hunt for a site for the big new cop shop it insists on building rather than renovating (and perhaps adding onto) the current facility. 

Forget about the fact that the City already owns two parcels – the old public works property at Greenwood and Elm, and the Courtland parcel just south of City Hall that the City bought almost two years ago specifically for a new cop shop.  The City is looking for a new site, and we have to wonder if the main impetus is private profit rather than public benefit.

As Richie Daley and his cronies in Chicago know so well, there’s money to be made from real estate deals between favored developers and public entities whose management either understands what’s going on or is about as business-savvy as a zucchini. It’s pretty well known that the property near the AT&T building is back in play.  A couple of parcels on N. Northwest Hwy. have also been hinted at.  Not surprisingly, when we tried to check the ownership of those parcels, we were stonewalled by land trusts and Limited Liability Corporations that conceal the identities of the true owners.  That’s the way the game is played when you’re trying to fly an “insider” or “sweetheart” deal under the public’s radar.

And that’s why we suggest that before the City buys another piece of land for any reason, it should insist on a full written disclosure under oath from the nominal seller as to the identity of each land trust beneficiary, each LLC member, each corporate shareholder, and each limited or general partner that has any interest in the parcel. 

Where big bucks from the public treasury are being paid out, the public deserves to know exactly who’s receiving them.

A Salute To Park District President Marty Maloney: Recently the Herald-Advocate printed a letter from one of our editors praising Park District president Marty Maloney for his principled vote against keeping Oakton Pool open for another big money-losing season (“A Profile in Courage,” Nov. 29 [pdf]).

Oakton Pool is a classic example of financial mismanagement of our tax dollars by public bodies, something on which the Park Ridge Recreation and Park District does not have a monopoly.

What business person in his/her right mind would keep open an enterprise that was consistently losing $50,000 to $70,000 a year because it didn’t have enough customers, it had too high overhead, and there was no realistic prospect of turning the situation around?  But even though Oakton Pool has been hemorrhaging red ink for years now, the Park District Board and Staff – save for Maloney – don’t have the nerve to close the spigot because it keeps a tiny-but-vocal minority of citizens happy.

But because we aren’t just critics, we will offer the Park District a solution: If Oakton Pool is as much of a treasure to the community as its fans claim, let’s see them put their money where their mouths are.  Let them all “subscribe” for an “Oakton Only” swim pass that will be priced at a premium calculated by the Park District to permit Oakton to operate on a break-even basis this summer.  If enough subscriptions are received by a March or April deadline, Oakton opens for another season; if not, it doesn’t.

Or…the Park District can keep the Oakton spigot open and watch another $50-70,000 of our tax dollars go down the drain.

“Hello, Kalo!” – Part II: Our recent bit about the Kalo Foundation’s putting the arm on the City of Park Ridge for $5,000 to fund a program and exhibition at the Park Ridge Public Library (“Kibbles And Bits,” 11-26-07) caught the attention of some Kalo-ers, who thought we were unfairly picking on this good cause.

We have no grudge against the Kalo Foundation, and we have previously admitted that $5,000 isn’t a big hit to the public purse.  But we also oppose any policy that provides public funding of private foundations whose purpose and function have no clear connection to the provision of essential municipal services.  And we like it even less when the finances of the private foundation seeking public funding are not readily viewable by the public, so that the taxpayers can judge for themselves whether the foundation is a serious endeavor rather than more of a hobby for the people involved in it.

Our tip to the Kalo Foundation:  Put your finances – your budget, your balance sheet and your profit and loss statement – on your website.  And come up with a “business plan” – which you can also post on your website – that explains exactly what you want to do and a concrete plan for getting it done.  Or just stop asking for our tax dollars and truly be a “private” foundation.

If you’ve looked at our “banner” you know that the motto of PublicWatchdog is a quote from Thomas Jefferson: “Information is the currency of democracy.” 

More than fifty years after televisions became commonplace in most homes, we can watch the workings of the United States Congress and the Cook County Board from the comfort of our own easy chairs.  But if you want to see for yourself what our City Council is up to, you either have to hike down to City Hall or wait for the local papers to come out and hope that (a) they actually covered the meeting; and (b) they reported the important stuff accurately and completely.

But all that may change if Ald. Dave Schmidt (1st Ward) has his way.  Schmidt wants the City to start televising Council meetings live – and to replay recorded meetings – on the City’s public access channel that apparently was de-activated due to non-use.  According to Schmidt, “a better-informed public would be well worth the cost” of setting up and operating the system.  We agree.

But leave it to City Hall to find a way to gum up a good idea and keep the voters in the dark.  According to a recent story in the Herald-Advocate (“City meetings on TV could cost taxpayers $131,000+ in first year,” November 22)[pdf], the City wants to set up a Cadillac broadcasting system when a Chevy would be enough.  It’s an old government trick: If you don’t want something, make it so expensive that it becomes financially unattractive.

Instead of installing cameras only in the Council Chambers at a relatively modest cost (approximately $50,000, as best as we can estimate from the sketchy numbers the City has released), Finance & Budget Committee chairman Ald. Rich DiPietro (2nd Ward) and the bureaucrats have come up with a grand plan that requires the installation of cameras in at least three rooms at City Hall and one room at the Public Works building.  But that’s not all.

Although simply televising the meetings would be a quantum leap beyond what we currently have – which is nothing – live and recorded television broadcasts apparently are not enough for Richie D and the Killer Bs (as in “Bureaucrats”): They also want live streaming video and recorded video online because they “have a feeling most people would view it that way.” 

Here’s a suggestion: Wire up the Council Chambers only, so that the citizens can watch the Council meetings live and via taped re-broadcasts on cable access.  Then work out the scheduling so that most, if not all, of the various committees can hold their meetings in the Council Chambers rather than in two other City Hall rooms or the Public Works building.  And, at least for now, forget about wiring up the three extra venues, as well as about the streaming Internet.  That should save at least around $80,000 right off the bat, if not more.

Mark Twain is credited with comparing the making of laws to the making of sausage, and suggesting that people who like either shouldn’t watch them being made.  Being able to watch our City Council in action on television might not be pretty, but at least it would let the average voter see for himself where all the baloney is coming from.

Most of you probably have never heard of Linda Szczepanski.  Until recently, neither had we. 

But “Linda Ski,” as she is known in some quarters, might be one of the bigger “players” in Park Ridge politics by virtue of being the political hired-gun not only to Mayor Howard Frimark but also to two of his wing-men: Ald. Jim Allegretti (4^th Ward) and Ald. Tom Carey (6^th Ward).

We found out about her in researching “Hello, Kalo?” (”Kibbles and Bits,” November 26), where we questioned the wisdom of any local government body spending tax dollars on privately-owned special interests – like the City is considering doing for the Kalo Foundation, albeit at a relatively paltry $5,000.  We noted the potential for undue influence where members of such special interests have close ties to the government body from whom the funds are sought. 

Although the marquee names on the Kalo Foundation board of directors may be Vice-President Nancy Frimark, the mayor’s wife, and Secretary Sharon Curcio, the long-time executive director of the semi-secretive but now-disbanded Economic Development Corporation under several prominent chairmen (including Howard Frimark), we found it interesting that Szczepanski’s name also appeared there.

Why?  First of all, because Linda Ski is a Niles resident.  But more importantly, because she is a public relations professional and political operative who has been Mayor Frimark’s political “go to” gal since at least February 2005.  He paid her almost $28,000 during his 2005 mayoral campaign, before loaning her earlier this year to Allegretti and Carey for their aldermanic campaigns – which, in turn, paid her at least $4,000 and $4,300, respectively, for her services.

Or did they?  Actually, we’re not quite sure how much money Linda Ski got from the Allegretti and Carey campaigns because it’s not clear who was really paying her bills.  Schedule B of the “Allegretti for Alderman” D-2 campaign disclosure form [pdf] reports that Allegretti’s fund paid “LMS Political Solutions” (which stands for “Linda M. Szczepanski” and also goes by “LMS”) $4,008.05 this year; and Schedule B of the “Citizens for Carey” D-2 [pdf] shows payments totaling $3,581.29 to LMS and a payment of $709.65 to Linda Ski directly.

But while the Illinois State Board of Elections Campaign Disclosure website shows LMS [pdf] receiving five (5) separate payments in 2007 totaling over $2,300 and Linda Szczepanski [pdf] receiving six (6) separate payments totaling over $4,100, all of those payments are shown as having come from “Friends for Frimark for Mayor.”  Carey’s D-2 also reveals that “Friends for Frimark” provided $3,127.73 of the $7,025 in total contributions the Carey campaign took in.

And just to complete the circle, the “Friends for Frimark for Mayor” D-2 for 2007 [pdf] discloses those contributions to “Citizens for Carey,” shows no contributions going to “Allegretti for Alderman,” but does show a $750.36 contribution to “Friends of Robert Kristy,” the campaign fund for the Frimark ally who lost his 7^th Ward aldermanic race to incumbent Frank Wsol.

One additional point of interest: Szczepanski is currently employed as Vice President of Empower Public Relations (www.empowerpublicrelations.com), the p.r. firm that just so happens to be representing Maine Twp. Trustee and Republican candidate for a 12^th Judicial Subcircuit judgeship, Laura Morask.  So it looks like Linda Ski’s reach also may extend into Maine Twp. government.

What’s the bottom line on all this – other than perhaps somebody needs to be a bit more diligent with their paperwork?  Maybe it’s that if Allegretti and Carey want to be taken seriously as “independent” voices for their constituents rather than Mayor Frimark’s puppets, they have to overcome at least an inference that they owe their political souls to Frimark.  Or maybe it’s that we just need to pay a bit more attention to the “who knows whom” of Park Ridge government, and to a certain paid political propagandist with the cozy relationship to City Hall.

But one thing is certain:  If you’re looking for someone who moves in the “right” circles of the current City of Park Ridge administration to put in a good word for you or your organization, Linda Ski is somebody you should know.