Making Progress to WHAT?

By:  Diane Benjamin

The Council meeting last night was short.  The video is below.  Public Comment starts at 4:05.  I hear most of the Council was busy doing other things instead of listening to the speakers.  There are some CAN’T MISS comments, including Judy Stearns, Alton Franklin, Gary Lambert, and Joe Walden.

We always hear government isn’t run like a business.  Obviously not, but Tari never fails to justify spending because that’s how business does it.

Watch his ending comments starting at 43:27.

Tari claims every large business belongs to professional organizations.  That’s true Tari, but they spend their own money.  Taxpayers aren’t forced to fund what companies choose to belong to.  The City of Bloomington does choose and they spend taxpayer money to do it.  Travel is frequent and the benefits of attending aren’t visible.

One of the commenters during public comment brought up the Illinois Municipal League travel reflected on Bills and Travel, so Tari took the opportunity to extol the greatness of the meeting.  He specifically talked about a session he attended hosted by Kelly Cofer of The Retail Coach.  This is his website:

Cofer gets paid to “Create Economic Activity” in cities.  Tari goes on to explain the first place Cofer checks is downtown.  If downtown is stagnant or declining he claims the political leaders don’t understand economic development.  The pictures on Cofer’s website appear to be downtown areas.  Coincidence?

Tari’s idea of  creating economic activity is tax breaks, TIF districts, or flat out forcing taxpayers to fund operating deficits.  Think Cofer is any different?

Tari stated “cities don’t make progress if they stay isolated in silos” and “if you don’t understand what’s going on . . “.   He also mentions city leaders have to know trends out there, issues, problems, and innovations.

Silos?  Is that some kind of slam on farmers Tari?  Some kind of slam on traditional Americans?

Is it government’s role to be “Trendy”?  Government has no money they don’t take from citizens.  Do you really want “trendy government”?  Whatever the current trend is could be gone tomorrow and so is your money!

Tari lives in a world where government knows all and must control all.  “Making Progress” is never defined.  What are you making progress to Mayor?

Here’s what citizens see under your version of “progress”:

  • a 4% Amusement tax
  • a 4 cent a gallon gas tax
  • increased utilities tax for phones, natural gas, and electricity
  • an increased sales tax
  • proposals for more new taxes:  sewer, water, property, solid waste

Mayor:  Your “progress” is bankrupting citizens.

“Making progress” is a line frequently used by big spenders.  Watch for it again and again and again and again.

Meanwhile, it’s obvious that Tari will never understand real capitalism instead of the crony kind.  Government intervention prevents people from bringing their products to market and other people from getting the products they want.

It could be worse, Tari could be teaching economics instead of political science.







14 thoughts on “Making Progress to WHAT?

  1. Everything he touches turns to kaka! That’s progress in that simpleton’s head! We have a railroad, now how da tar and feathers for Mayor S***T for Brains & the 7 Stool Specimens?


  2. “We produce comprehensive demographic and psychographic profile reports encompassing the Downtown Retail Trade Area.”

    “The workshop is geared towards existing merchants who are interested in expanding their merchandise offerings and/or pursuing new retail concepts and entrepreneurs who are interested in exploring new business opportunities.”

    Seems like this coaching is intended for the private sector. Is there a need for remedial reading comprehension by the Mayor?


  3. Let me get this straight. SILOS??!! Well the silos i am familiar with hold FOOD for LIVESTOCK which is sold by farmers (a private concern-and NOT able to exist unless, they MAKE money)
    Back in 1970 when I delivered the daily paragraph to the Regional Planning Commission, which at THAT time was on the 2nd floor of the Illinois House, ONE of THEIR bright ideas to “hype” downtown was to make the streets ONE way,well, geez, just a FEW years the city reversed that GREAT idea.
    Now, this Cofer “guru” Which is probably related to Farr somehow, says Down/UPtown HAS to have development! Let’s suppose that SALES taxes are raised, say 1% so people DON’T go downtown, so it goes stagnant-like old grain in a silo, and don’t make money, SO, we raise the sales tax 1% MORE because people aren’t spending as much, so I guess maybe it’s more like a WASHER in “spin” cycle.
    BOTTOM LINE, you NEED VIABLE shops/things of interest, in ANY downtown area that DRAW people there, I don’t care if it’s fire eating midgets riding albino unicorns or Hurdy-Gurdys whose monkey can quote Einstein, then and only then people show up, and see “WHAT ALL ELSE” is in town! Some “guru” guy don’t make that happen, I don’t care HOW much crap he feeds you! Maybe I should be a consultant, heck, I’d get a free lunch and could give up farming!


    1. “Silos” is the new psycho-babble-buzz word to replace “bubble” or isolation as opposed to “global.” There is another type of silo which contains nuclear missals used for destruction and annihilation. Which way is Bloomington headed?


  4. Time for the people of Bloomington to STOP THE FREE LUNCH CROWD & put them on a diet of paid for by them lunches and lower tax rates. They r just like a forest fire the more you feed them the bigger they get the bigger they get the more they want to consume. Time to STOP the vicious cycle of BOTH city councils. They have OUTGROWN their usefulness to the communities. Now all they want to do is consume more and more.


  5. I’m with DDJT on the above point! Only TWO things that “theoretically” work on what he’s talking about, and that’s NUCLEAR FUSION and a PERPETUAL MOTION MACHINE, and one burns itself out and the other is impossible. Basically, they BOTH consume their energy! As IF our city folks had any or they’d READ their packets, and know about “Hyper pensions” etc.


  6. First I see this in the flypaper this morning,
    “BLOOMINGTON — Aldermen voted unanimously Monday to reinstate a 9-year-old preliminary plan for the proposed Cedar Ridge subdivision in southwest Bloomington even though the city is waiving development fees.”

    “In a December 2006 annexation agreement the city waived $868,384 in development fees to support the development”

    I would have told the developer your chances have expired. If you want to develop then here are the current fees in 2015. This isn’t 2008. No wonder this city has financial problems. Just another city hand out.

    Now I see the Great Escape business is wanting to relocate. Hmm makes me wonder if someone or group is going to push once again for the YMCA to relocate there liked they planned before. Of course under a social program funded by the tax payers.


      1. I remember when Tom Boitnot was running the grocery store there. I want to say maybe Hundman forced them to close because they weren’t earning enough money.

        The B/N high dollar rollers, Hundman, Verkler, Owens, Brady, all over extended themselves. I never heard the out come on the bank loan that who was it Owens, Hundman and someone else were involved in where the bank wanted their money and their lawyer claimed they didn’t co-sign the loan.


    1. The whole arrangement is related to “low income” housing grants. This Council keeps blaming previous administrations for the woes of the city and yet they perpetuate the nonsense. Tenner was smirking and reminded everyone that it was in the original agreement–meaning, it’s not HIS fault.


  7. Very good! All the messages are telling them to stop taxing so instead they double down. Hales attends all these seminars and meanwhile 1.3 million gets away from him!##But Council is oblivious. Beyond sad.

    Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE smartphone


    1. Annual spending on PCards is +/- $1.5M. Start adding up the perks, waivers, accelerated payments and subsidies and the Structural Deficit would disappear with $7M to spare.


  8. It is clear Mayor Renner has no confidence in the people of Bloomington. His faith lies with big government intrusion directed by him into the lives of the people. We need a Mayor who believes in ability of the people to make their own choices and chart their own course.


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