Posted in Commodius Maximus, Crain's Chicago Business, Look For The Union Label, Mad Cows, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Springfield, Taxes, Topics Of Interest, Unions on November 15, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Join Crain’s for our final Power event of the year on Monday, November 27 featuring Illinois Governor JB Pritzker. In a sit-down interview with Crain’s Group Publisher and Executive Editor Jim Kirk, they’ll discuss the Governor’s goals for his second term in office, including economic initiatives he has planned to bring new business to our state.
Purchase tickets here.
Posted in Crain's Chicago Business, Property Taxes, Real Estate, Resident Spotlights, Topics Of Interest, Zoning Board on July 29, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Credit: Coldwell Banker Realty
When their 4-year-old, Abby, said she wanted to live in a castle, “I made her a castle,” Ryan Gopin says. He added turrets, battlements and even a pair of small balconies where the royals can stand and wave to their subjects.
Thirteen years later, on July 26, the Gopins put the five-bedroom, 7,500-square-foot house on Saville Row in Barrington Hills up for sale. Priced at $1.9 million, the castle is listed with Robbie Morrison of Coldwell Banker Realty.
Abby Gopin, who was not available for comment, “likes it a lot,” even though she’s grown out of her princess phase, Ryan Gopin says.
The family, which includes a son as well, is moving to Florida. Gopin, a general contractor, recently sold his heating and air conditioning business here and is opening a similar one in the Sunshine State.
Inside, the house is mostly more conventional, with neutral-toned formal rooms, marble countertops in the kitchen and contemporary finishes like a thin-rimmed soaking tub beside a wall of stone.
There’s also an indoor pool, where the royal family can swim out of sight of the paparazzi.
Read more from Crain’s here.
Posted in Barrington Education Association, Crain's Chicago Business, Deception, Elections, OP/Ed, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Springfield, Taxes, Unions on November 3, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Crain’s Chicago Business’ editorial board is endorsing a ‘no’ vote on Amendment 1. Two Crain’s columnists did so, also, because of the unchecked power it would grant government unions.
Crain’s Chicago Business is the newest editorial board asking Illinoisans to reject Amendment 1.
Prior to the editorial board’s endorsement, two of their columnists wrote against the amendment as well as The Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune, Daily Herald and News-Gazette in Champaign.
In addition to editorial boards, a prominent Democrat, former Chicago 43rd Ward Ald. Michele Smith, endorsed voting “no” on Amendment 1.
Crain’s endorses a no vote because of the effect Amendment 1 would have on Illinois’ business climate. Voters will decide its fate Nov. 8.
“In fact, it’s the very last thing this state needs. Bestowing special constitutional status on unions would give companies one more reason to avoid Illinois.”
This year, businesses such as Tyson, Citadel, Boeing, Caterpillar, FTX and Highland Ventures announced moves out of Illinois. McDonald’s restaurants said its headquarters’ future in Illinois is uncertain.
When Gov. J.B. Pritzker visited the Crain’s editorial board, he discussed impediments to businesses coming to Illinois. The state’s fiscal mess creating tax uncertainty and Chicago crime were on his list, but the editorial board had a third.
“Though Pritzker didn’t list it, there’s a third impediment – one the governor was eager to back away from in our Oct. 12 conversation. It’s the perception that labor runs the show in Illinois, making it costlier to do business here and nearly impossible to solve the biggest budgetary burden we face as a state – namely, the unfunded obligation of about $130 billion that every man, woman and child in this state owes to our public employee pension systems.”
They said passing Amendment 1 would be a major mistake.
Read more here.
Posted in Appointments, Better Government Association, Big Red, Board of Health, BOHICA, Building Department, Conflict of interest, Contests, Crain's Chicago Business, Cuba Township Road District, Deception, Elections, Equestrian Commission, Ethics, Illinois State Board of Elections, LeCompte/Anderson Commercial Horse boarding amendment, Mac's Property Management, OMA, One Barrington Hills, OP/Ed, Politics, Property Taxes, Real Estate, Riding Club of Barrington Hills, Road construction, Roads & Bridges Committee, The New Normal, The Other Half, Transparency, Village Attorney, Village Board, Village Code, Village President, Village Treasurer on September 30, 2022| 1 Comment »
Last Winter, the Village of Lake Barrington published the following in their seasonal newsletter:
“Lake Barrington’s Ethics Commission
Did you know that the Village has an Ethics Commission? The independent commission adds to the overall transparency of our government and serves to investigate complaints alleging violations of the Ethics Chapter of the Village Code. We are proud to report that this 3-member Commission has never once had to meet regarding a violation!”
Their Municipal Code actually devotes a chapter to ethics, and the main page of their website contains a link to, “Report a Concern.”
As previously chronicled in this publication, if one searches our Village Code, keying in the word “ethics,” the result reads, “No Matches Found.”
Our Village needs an Ethics Commission. How else could parties involved in complaints present their respective cases to determine if ethics violations did, or did not, occur? Listed below are typical practices that might arise in our Village, and in our opinion, may warrant investigation, understanding that there are no implications as to guilt or innocence of any on the list:
For these and other reasons, our Village needs to appoint an Ethics Commission to act as ombudsmen, when any question of potential maladministration or ethics violations is considered or occurs.
Candidates for this proposed commission could come from existing appointed Village bodies, ones whose objectivity would be unquestioned.
The perfect candidates for this roll are the incumbent members of the Board of Heath. They are highly qualified, underutilized, and would prove to be an effective force in maintaining ethical governance of the Village of Barrington Hills.
Related: “Our predominantly pusillanimous Village Board (Part 1),” “Our predominantly pusillanimous Village Board (Part 2),” “Better Government Association Commends Passage of Chicago Ethics Ordinance–Sees More to Do,” “What happened to ethics reform in Illinois government? Why watchdogs have some hope,” “Meanwhile, One Barrington Hills makes amends, extinguishes website and turns the volume down,” “Learn from your (big) mistake, Laura, Bryan, Dave and Tom,” “Agreed”
Posted in 220, Better Government Association, Cook, County, Crain's Chicago Business, FPDCC, News Media, Politics, Property Taxes, School Districts, Taxes on August 1, 2019| Leave a Comment »
Tucked on the outer edges of southern Cook County, suburban Park Forest was built to help answer a housing shortage in the 1940s as GIs flooded home from World War II. Before long, it became a model of suburban living, featuring enviable public schools and an attractive downtown shopping center anchored by a Marshall Field’s.
Today, the legacy department store is long gone. The high school, Rich East, is facing such low enrollment that it is being considered for closure. And, as of 2017, financially strapped homeowners were stuck with the second-highest property-tax rate in Cook County.
Among them is Ryan Dupée, who is being billed more than $3,800 in property taxes for a modest, ranch-style home he and his wife bought under foreclosure four years ago for just $25,000.
“It’s a shocker and it’s disappointing because your money could go to other things,” Dupée said, adding that while they aren’t paying a mortgage the property taxes are difficult for them to handle, especially since he’s between full-time jobs as a quality assurance auditor.
Read the full Better Government Association investigation here and realize what we already knew – it’s not just Barrington Hills.
This story was co-published with Crain’s Chicago Business, as part of a Crain’s Forum project on affordable housing.
 | joefargo3767 on Report: Illinois home to 2nd w… |
 | Darren on Editorial: Abe Lincoln‘s gener… |
| joefargo3767 on 220 Board to form referendum a… |
| joefargo3767 on Gov. Pritzker’s dishonest spin… |
 | Pot. on Venezuelan Migrant to Chicago… |
 | john j pappas on Venezuelan Migrant to Chicago… |
 | Odd on Special Roads & Bridges Co… |