The mayor is advocating the construction of a new city hall building at a cost of $9.3 million. This does not include the cost of the land, or the nearly $600,000 the city has already spent on architects.Despite the hefty price tag, the mayor has never brought this controversial project to the full city council for a vote.
37 comments:
Hey taxpayers! Get the K-Y ready!!!!!!!
Get ready tax-payers for this one. $11,000,000.00 for a city hall that is not even needed. Walk into city hall some afternoon you will be the only one in the place besides the ladies working behind the counter. At one city council meeting two city hall workers said there was no need of such a building and they work in city hall every day
A police department is sorely needed in Morris. The property adjacent to city hall was purchased just for that years ago but somehow that wasn't good enough. The city needed to buy and plans to build the Taj Mahal right next door to the business of certain alderman that is in charge of finance. I hope the message that the voters sent to city hall this last election is taken by our alderman seriously to stop these shinanagens going on by the a few elected pols.
What will be MDH headline for this boondoggle?
This is nothing compared to what almost happened when the city tried to buy property on Liberty Street a few years ago. That deal was rumored to be tainted with questionable appraisals, cronies, and hidden ownership interests. Some honest aldermen put a stop to that deal.
When i read about all the wasteful spending going on at city hall it drives me crazy. I am on the verge of selling my house because i can't afford the property taxes anymore and i've lived in Morris and this house for over thirty years.
Do you think this mayor will try to name the building after himself like the last mayor did with airport?
Sledge, did you notice that even the appaiser from that Librty st. building and the airport property gave $900.00 to Dickie last year.
ATTENTION MAYOR AND ALDERMAN, Quit trying to turn our lovely small town into Northbrook. If you want to live like that and pay outrageous property taxes by all means be my guest. Some of us retired folks are making hard decisions between paying property taxes and buying medicine. Please keep our beautiful small town the way you found it. God Bless you, and i will ask god to grant you the wisdom during these trying times.
Sledge, can you help me with a very difficult problem? which came first the chicken or the egg?
A yes vote for this budget is a yes vote for the new city hall. $11,000,000.00 give a break. I would like to see mandatory drug testing done on all that are involved.
I know who is feeding you your info. All these complaints seem to fall in line with everything Darrell Brown is against.
Bad idea for Darrell.
tricky dicky shame on you.
So, 10:59, what is your point, that Darrell Brown is against cronyism unnecessary spending?
10:01. Get a clue. Morris is not the same small podunk town you knew 30 years ago. Its called progress and growth. It's not the 1950's anymore. Younger people in this town, mostly dems are going to move it closer to modernity as all the old farts die off. And don't tell me to move if I don't like it. I work here and pay taxes just like you. I also am paying into YOUR social security so when I get to be YOUR age there won't be any left for us.
10:59, you should relax and take a deep breath, people can disagree about a building without it being a bad idea for someone. I am going to pray for you.
to clueless "notahayseed": with the internet easy access to data, we can now tell more easily we're getting hosed. Go on real estate websites, check property taxes, check state income taxes. We are paying some of the highest taxes around! You'll easily find homes costing 2 to 2 1/2 times as much as yours, with the owner paying half as much property tax.
Isn't it amazing how dems like hayseed love to pay taxes?
12:44, thirty years ago would be 1977 not 1950's. With all that anger you have inside you probably won't see my age. But i hope you do
What did the city pay for the land?
Dickie's new City-TajMa-Hall!
Just throw up a pole building and plant a garden out back. Who knows, maybe we can grow something for those left-handed cigarettes. What happened to spending wisely?
How is it that the city can spend $600,000 on architects without the city council voting?
Even in 1977 this town was still living in the 50's. The MDDP is finally moving out of the 1920's by having Elvis impersonators (what is this vegas?)instead of deeeelite and her band of geriatrics. No intelligent person under 50 likes elvis. Ever see that concert on the lawn thing in the summer or at lunch time with the bank? It's nothing but old farts who have nothing better to do than pull up with their walkers and wheelchairs and watch some lamer singing barry manilow when theyre not on their computers berating local politicians. This town sucks.
Has Dick lost his F'en marbles over this building?
Rumor is that tricky dick is going to try to have the budget approved before the new aldermen are seated. Shame on you dicky.
Attention Taxpayers: Your property taxes are sky high thanks to boondoggles like the new city hall building.
This building is being built with money from Tax Increment Financing (TIF). TIF is property tax money that should have gone to public schools, but was instead diverted to the city for purposes of new infracture or other expenditures to lure new businesses to the area. The businesses, in theory, would then pay more in property taxes and sales taxes than the schools lost to TIF.
However, the city is now misusing the TIF money for the new city hall. This expensive new building will not pay any property taxes, it will not generate any sales tax revenue, and it will not create jobs. The schools get screwed, and you, the taxpayer, have to pay the difference with ever higher property taxes.
Hey Loaf, I did some research of not listed property but sold property. Some towns make it easy by publishing it in the paper, but not here so it was a bit more difficult. Who lives on the east side of town, or at least owns a lot of property there? I found homes with $250-$275k selling prices on the east side that all had property taxes HALF that of less expensive homes from the west side or unincorporated Morris. The assessed values on the east are half that of the assessed values elsewhere, yet they all sell for the same price! I think we have found a smoking gun!
Dear Redskins, Could you PLEASE find a corner of an office to stick our City Administrator Middelton in. Thanks
Charlie Coaler
In these uncertain times for the city of Morris, this is so irresponsible of the mayor and city council to be spending like drunken sailors. The mayor and council has been told by their landfill attorney that the city potentially could be on the hook for 17 million dollars for closure and post closure of city landfill anytime. Do they think that the city clerk is just going to write a check when the time comes. Also the mayor and Brian Fenney have been told by their TIF attorney that TIF money cannot and should not be used for NEW CONSTUCTION of city hall building in the district. If somehow they are able by law to use TIF funds for building it DOES go against the spirit of TIF and what it was meant for. I wonder if the new alderman have been briefed on that little tidbit? It is this kind of unprofessinal business decision making by a few that has put the city in deep du du like the landfill boondoggle that has and will cost the taxpayers plenty. Normally large expenditures like this go out for referendum like the schools do but it was decided a year ago that a snowball in hell had a better chance than a new city hall being built in Morris.
Does dick and brian have the color of the draperies picked out and not the votes to pay for them?
Dick has lost touch with the average taxpayer so he can have a new office.
8:06, you are so so wrong about the creating job argument. This building will take at least 2 more full time cronies to keep the floors polished and windows clean.
Dick some advice, always buy the draperies and furniture together. I made that mistake one time and i just hate myself everyday for it, you go girl.
Dick and Brian have robbed the schools and the taxpayers in order to build a lavish monument to themselves. Who suffers? Children, senior citizens, and people on fixed incomes.
Don't forget Swezy. He'll fight to the last to get his name on the new city hall. It's his legacy.
This whole 9.3 million dollar building or whatever its suppose to cost is so wrong! The only thing right about it is, we really need more space, both at the police department and city hall. However, we dont need 9.3 million dollars of TIF money used on a city building, built on prime property, taking away from tax dollars generated, when the intent of TIF was to be used to help benefit blighted areas to be put back on the tax rolls. Again, everyone knows we need the space but build a modest building in the downtown area, possibly across from the present city hall, and let the police take over the present building. Sell the prime property on Rt. 47 for business development so it can be put on the tax rolls. I know 911 would love to have the present city building for their dispatch center however, thats their problem. let them find something else. Now take the 9 million over to the east side and figure out something to do with the old paper mill like you all have been promising to do for the last 30 years. Even if all you do is level everything there, you've accomplished something, heck ya never know by some form of luck you may even be able to put something back on the tax rolls from that property. It's not really that difficult, it just takes a little common sense. I assure you, the average person in Morris is not against a new city hall, but they are against spending the kind of money you want to spend.
Mr. Swezy wrote Voice of the People piece in MDH promoting the Taj Mahal and TIF money grab. I'm sure he wants his name on the building. Sledge, please address his double talk and financial sleight of hand.
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