Like a flashback to the harrowing scene of freshly clubbed skater Nancy Kerrigan asking “why”, Councilman White too was left clubbed and asking “why”. In White’s case, his wound came when Councilwoman Taylor abruptly raised concerns over White’s participation in off dais discussions on service grant awards which directly involved the Community Career & Networking Center. A charity led by White’s spouse.
Taylor’s motion to reduce the award, as a result of White’s involvement, passed by a super majority vote … but not before a string of bewildering actions on the dais.
Those strange actions began when Councilman Holzhauer responded to Taylor’s motion by deeming Taylor’s concerns as being political. Talk about deflection. Who cares why she brought it up? Isn’t the point whether or not White should have been involved in the allocation?
Holzhauer supported the full award despite the clear conflict and his repeated calls for transparency during his time in office. Does Holzhauer’s desire for transparency stop once a political ally is impacted by it?
Then it all just got stranger.
White returned to the dais after having recused from the actual vote and promptly advised the council that he listened in on their deliberations (what!?!?).
Then White continues by discussing the award that he just recused from (you can’t do that!).
Then White said he’d been involved in this allocation for years (doesn’t that make this worse?).
Then White berates Taylor for bringing up her concern on the dais without calling him first (which backfired when Taylor responded by saying that White has not returned a call from her ever).
Kudos to Taylor for putting the taxpayers first and for bringing her motion forward. Kudos to Patrick Kelly, Josh McBroom, Nate Wilson, Paul Leong, and the Mayor for joining Taylor and voting to reduce this tainted allocation.
Shame on Holzhauer and Longenbaugh for ridiculously voting to support the original award despite the clear absurdity of it. If the allocation impacted anyone other than a political supporter, we know full well neither would have supported it.
This conflict would never have been revealed without Taylor’s motion. Let’s hope Taylor continues to bring her Tonya Harding pipe to future meetings…
This saga can be watched at the link below during the Service Grant agenda item and then the New Business parts of the agenda. See link here: https://naperville.granicus.com/player/clip/1608?view_id=4&redirect=true&h=75aedb460094350ce896574ed8b0d763
Why do we have service grants at all? If citizens want to support these groups, then donate directly! Politicians taxing businesses and services to redistribute to NGOs is just buying votes from special interests.
Well put Gerald!!
I believe Kim White’s same group gets over 100K in Seca grants annually too. I might not have that completely correct though. I’m sure someone will correct me if I am wrong.
We just had a city council election not too long ago. I appreciate this site so we can stay informed on what is happening. This is a great example, of some folks doing the job as voters intended and other’s doing their own bidding. This vote should have been unanimous, and I for one will remember those at the next council election that voted for Naperville and those that voted for politics and a kick back.
City council still passed the rest of the proposed social services grant allocations with an adjusted amount.
Jennifer Bruzan Taylor said she believed it was an “unintentional mistake” on Benny Whites part
It has always been a bit shocking to me that Benny would vote on anything related to his wife’s non-profit. It is clearly a direct conflict of interest and kudos to Jennifer for raising awareness of his ethical lapse. Even more concerning are those members of council that fail to see this as a failure of good ethical judgment. How much more of a direct financial transaction does it have to be? Voting to allocate dollars to an organization that an elected official is the Executive Director of is as direct as it gets.
Can anyone confirm that Kim White’s non-profit gets a large SECA grant every year too? How much is it? I heard over 100k. If this is true, why does city council allow that?
While Kim White is its Executive Director, I encourage readers to consider the merits of the Career & Networking Center (CNC).
Its mission is “[t]o empower job seekers in their quest for employment by providing resources and support through coaching and partnerships.” To the extent the CNC succeeds in its mission, it shortens periods of un/under-employment for local and regional residents. This helps retain local property owners, consumers and taxpayers.
If you have concerns about the CNC’s performance, I encourage you to do your homework before reaching a position on its funding. I can attest that its services follow best practices and that its coaches are as good, if not better, than professional outplacement coaches.
If you have concerns about transparent and accountable government, I stand with you. Institute change. But let’s not cast aside a valuable local resource as a byproduct.