Saturday, March 24, 2007

That's a lot of bananas


According to published reports, Morris paid its city attorney $257,486 last year. Assuming an hourly rate of $110, is he claiming to have spent 2,341 hours on city business? That would be 341 hours more than a typical 2,000 hour work-year. If so, this would be quite a feat, considering that our city attorney also represents Gardner, Mazon, Carbon Hill, the 911 Board, etc, and has a busy private practice besides. He must be working around the clock! Besides this, the city paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to other lawyers to handle the airport condemnation suit, and hundreds of thousands of dollars to yet other lawyers to handle the landfill matter.

31 comments:

positivemorris said...

Wow! Is this true? I am going to file a f.o.i.a. and see for myself.

Anonymous said...

Job posting found on the Illinois Department of Employment Security website:

Job Order ID: 314773
Job Title: ASSISTANT CORPORATION COUNSEL
Hours per Week: 36-40
Duration of Work: On-Going
Shifts Available: Days
Type of Work: Full Time
Salary Range: $68,213 - $91,411 plus benefits

Employer: City of Elgin
Contact Address: 150 Dexter Court
Elgin, IL 60120

Anonymous said...

It would make an interesting 60 minutes segment...

Anonymous said...

It used to be an honor to be the city attorney, now its all about the bananas.

Anonymous said...

Why do all the outside attorney bills first get sent to Belt's office before city hall? Is there fee sharing going on because the two outside attorney's were hired by scooter for landfill and airport issues. Their fees added up to over $600,000.00 last year alone. $260,000.00 a year for a job that was done in 2001 for 72,000.00 a year. Why do the mayor and tax payers put up with such flagrant bullcrap? I understand that their family's are related but give me a break. They must have one hell of a Christmas get together.

Anonymous said...

He should be ashamed of himself. I was listening to two lawyers laughing about this subject in a coffee shop a month ago. I did't think it was funny.

Anonymous said...

With all the money he made last year he can buy his own damm fire truck.

Anonymous said...

Paying lawyers seems to be a bigger priority than settling the police contract.

Anonymous said...

Scotter used to be a good guy::; Its amazing how money changes a person. He is not the same guy we all used to know, he thinks hes a little better now;;;; thats ok I have lost all respect for him; The thing that amazes me is how the rest of them at city hall just move over, let him run the show, and then approves his paycheck, Dicky, ya better change your ways or there won't be another term;;;

Anonymous said...

The alderman are just as responsible, maybe even more.

Anonymous said...

Greed? Nepotism? Lawyer bills under the last administration were under $70,000. Counting fees paid to the landfill lawyer and the airport lawyer, There has been about a TEN-FOLD increase in what the city pays lawyers since Bob Feeney was mayor.

Anonymous said...

Not that long ago in 1991 Frank Black the city attorney then purchased all 600 acres of airport property and managed to put a full year in for a total of $40,000.00. Buying land is lawyer 101 you do not need to spend $ 460,000.00 on your buddy's from Chicago to come down to broker a deal. Unless your a idiot like a fox.

Anonymous said...

I don't think Bob Fenney was related to Mike Massino.

Anonymous said...

MAYBE WE SHOULD GET A GROUP TO GETHER AND GO TO A MEETING OURSELVES AND QUESTION THE MAYOR ABOUT HOW MUCH MONEY HAS BEEN SPENT ON ATTORNEY FEES IN THE PAST YEAR;;;;;;;;; IT DOES NOT APPEAR THE ALDERMAN ARE GOING TO DO IT;;;;;UNLESS SOME OF THE NEW ONES COMING ON WILL;;;;;;;;;;;;

positivemorris said...

I'm sorry to say that I am seeing what is going on in this City.

Anonymous said...

The Baum building was a little more than that roll of hundreds you have in the picture. Give him a break can you dream what the taxes must be on that building. He better put in 3000 hrs this year.

Anonymous said...

City hall workers have been told to keep politics to yourself and off the blogs or get fired. "No city attorney bill jokes" but its ok for the mayor's helper a far left loon talking about one of her nutty weekend lefty demonstrations in between painting her toes.

Anonymous said...

Tell me someone, why is the city attorney at every meeting, I don't mean just the council meetings, he is at every committee meeting also, ahhhh thats right its so he can bill the city for a few more hours. I don't understand, I've been on boards before, and if we would have had an attorney at every meeting the members would had crucified us, and they should have. Not only is he at every meeting,(so the alderman are intimated) he runs the meetings. I didn't realize he was an elected official;;;;;;;;;;im sorry Dicky I don't get it, it appears you can't run the show, so u bring your cousin-in-law lawyer to the meeting to make your decisions for uuuuuuuu!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Get the Coal City Courant and read the Soundoff that jumps on 35 different subjects. It is pure Micetich philosophy that has been repeated countless times in City meetings. He forgets he wrote the same story in last years State of the City address that the Icon took up three meetings to complete-it was too long for one meeting. He even had it published with the good parts about learning alot of things from his golf buddy "Kup". You got it, good ole Kup has got him in his back pocket. Now CC wants to dump it's attorney for the Morris guru, the one that is trying to work 24 hours a day.

Anonymous said...

you can't have him he's ours!!!!

Anonymous said...

Go to hell cc you can't afford him.

Anonymous said...

How bout we trade off our attorney from Morris for your administrator in Coal City, neither one really does the job but at least your guy is cheaper than ours.

Anonymous said...

You people have really sunk to a new low. Mr. Belt is a person and does not deserve this kind of ridicule. You all are just jealous of his money and his hair.

Anonymous said...

What is a one horse town like cc talking or even thinking about hiring a Chicago style attorney like scooter anyway? give me a break.

Anonymous said...

I think scooter is billing more than trying.

Anonymous said...

Is Micetich serious when he says Kennedy Homes was "unable to pay fees and run sewer to our plant" ? This company could buy the entire town!

Anonymous said...

How about the Mazon almost attorney connection with Morris City Hall? Tell me you have not forgot the financial backroom deal to send Morris money south to Mazon for land to build a new City Hall? By he way, we are not hearing much about the new building with the walnut paneled Mayor's office with a back door exit. Oops, did I let out a secret?

Anonymous said...

PLease post under the correct heading numbskull.

Anonymous said...

Someone needs to investigate the city's near-purchase of the Carson House property for the site for the new City Taj Ma Hall. There were some very questionable events, and very interesting relationships, much of it documented in related litigation.

Is this Cicero-style cronyism? Is Dickie Loren Maltese in charge, or is someone else running the show?

Anonymous said...

In which issue of last year's MDH was the $257,486 number published for the city attorney's billings?

Anonymous said...

There should be a movie about the antics at city hall, called "Dick and Scooter's Execllent Adventure"