If you’re trying to get a straight answer from one of Naperville’s city officials, it’s not an easy task. And the master of double-talk at city hall is city manager Doug Krieger. Odds are that somewhere in his office is a 3 X 5 poster with the following words emblazoned on it, “If you can’t convince them with facts, then dazzle them with B.S.” In a recent informal survey, about half of those questioned felt that he had no idea what he was talking about, while the other half felt he was clueless. It’s no wonder that he is a good dancer, since he tap dances around a lot of issues.
If a resident calls with a question or concern, they are asked to ‘send an email’, which typically doesn’t get answered. If you call again, you may be requested to submit a FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) form. When the city of Naperville’s website was hacked, and email was down for what seemed like a year, it was actually a blessing for city officials and especially the city manager’s office because they had a built in excuse why they couldn’t respond to resident’s emails. When email is up and running, city officials excel at going through email. It’s amazing how many emails the city manager’s office can delete within a few minutes. My guess is that the most often replaced key on the keyboard is the ‘delete’ key.
If calls don’t work (and they don’t), and emails don’t work (and they don’t), then a Naperville resident always has the option to step up to the podium during the Public Forum portion of the first and third Tuesdays of each month and address the council for three minutes (once the council tried to limit it to 30 seconds, but some council members found that to be pushing it a bit). The Public Forum of the meeting is typically the most entertaining portion of the evening for the folks watching, because council members look forward to it as they would a root canal.
Watch and listen as resident Jo Malik attempts to get a simple question answered. It turns into a four-on-one tag team wrestling match, when first, she gets the fuzzy math and double-talk from city manager Doug Krieger, then councilman McElroy gives her the shut-down/beat-down maneuver, followed by the city attorney’s ‘maintain decorum and control conversation’ edict, followed by the TKO from Mayor Pradel.
Residents might find it easier to be erased with the ‘delete’ key, than to be verbally pummeled by the council. That seems to be the message the council is trying to convey.
Accept it folks Naperville’s Robin Hood and his merry men of hacks and incompetents are only good at robbing the good tax payers to support their double dipping buddies, appointed cronies and overpaid managers starting with but not limited to the city manager, police chief, works engineering manager, chief counsel and the only liquor control board member who should take a few slugs of this brew before council meetings to stay awake.
To expect any cohesive and logical answer to questions from this crowd is to assume they care about anything except their bloated egos and raw power. The expression of putting beggars on horseback and they ride them to death comes to mind when describing this crew.
Last time it was Wehrli and Krieger trying to find a way prevent or limit citizen participating in the public forum. This week it’s McElroy’s turn. Is this ” quelling” of taxpayers organized or just random fits of attempts to “control” public information?
Has our Council has figured out that much of what their citizens have been warning them about was correct? Do they just need to shut them up and stop any further public attention to their folly. McElroy, the citizens are asking the questions that you and your cronies should have been. Aren’t any of these council members scratching their heads asking why customers would save a mere $1.00 a month if they don’t use their home energy 10 hours a day, when they need it the most? That’s what over 22 miillion dollars bought us?
The so called “smart meter” program is an expensive nightmare that, in my opinion, will lead to cost over runs, security breaches,sky rocketing equipment maintenance software update expense and now Department of Energy mandates that will break the backs of this small utility. Instead of providing low flat rate electricity to our homes our council of useful idiots, have complicated energy delivery to such extremes that the costs for such a system will be unaffordable as they can only spread the costs of this nightmare to about 57,000 customers. The over 70 million dollars for joining the IMEA for a lot of coal generated electricity isn’t going to help either. Mr. Curran, a Bolingbrook resident, who has choice in his electricity providers, doesn’t have to live with his own “management” decisions nor live with the consequences.
Naperville’s electric bills are higher than most communties, which was brought to Council attention during Public Forum. We need to have a choice in electric providers so we can bring competition to this government owned monopoly. Better yet, sell the electric company now, give each shareholder (property owners) a nice divdend check and let homeowners buy their power in the free market.
If the council won’t do their jobs, asking the tough questions, reading the contracts and keep on top of things, it’s up to the citizens to do so. Their hostility toward citizens that are taking their civic duty seriously and participating in THEIR government is getting scary.
Thank you Jo Malik for asking the questions. I want to know who the salesperson is for the compant that sold the smart meters to Naperville. How are the smart meter company is connected with the city. Does anyone watch the bank accounts of our city officials? I wonder if anyone had a financial kickback? Are there relatives of any city council people working for or paid by the smart meter company? I wonder if there is a way to track irregularities in pay or spending since the time the smart meters were approved? Home additions? Nice cars? Expensive vacations? Inquiring minds… The meters are a joke. Let the Naperville government run my thermostat? Are you f@%#£¥ kidding me?