Media

Heat increases on Decatur landlord: City accused of moving slowly on complaints

From the Decatur Herald & Review -

By KENNETH LOWE - H&R Staff Writer July 28, 2008

DECATUR - Robert Maulding was angry when he spoke at a recent Decatur City Council meeting about the situation at the apartment building at 735 W. Decatur St. Maulding, whose house is near the 30-unit building, said its equipment is not in working order and the structure has become a site of criminal activity that keeps residents and the neighborhood inside after dark.

Maulding, who knows many of the tenants, said law-abiding residents of the apartment building live in constant fear.

"I spoke to this council two and a half months ago," Maulding said. "In that time, we've had six assaults, a murder, a rape and who knows how many burglaries."

The crime analysis office of the Decatur Police Department shows police received more than 300 calls from the 700 block of West Decatur Street within the past six months, many of them regarding violent crimes, ranging from unlawful use of weapons to domestic violence or battery.

For the entire article, click here.

Mattoon puts form of government question on November ballot

The City of Mattoon elected representatives voted to place on the November ballot a change in the form of government. Today's (7/16/2008), Herald & Review provided a report about this decision << click here. Mattoon currently operates under the commission form of government with a professional adminstrator and is placing the alternative of selecting an council/manager form of government before the voters. While we are not fans of the council/manager form of government, we understand that it works effectively in some communities.

Decatur Must Speak With One Voice (???)

Following last February's refernedum to vote to retain the manager form of city government (not a vote on adoption of a strong mayor or aldermanic system), the Herald and Review wrote another editorial and commented this time on the need for the community to "speak with one voice". Following below are key excerpts that we think are interesting and relevant to the current debate. We have also included below the start of the editorial and links to the actual search which brought it up. For our comments see the main blog.

....Voters on Tuesday retained the council/manager form of government by a 59 to 41 percent margin....

.... The numbers are significant. More than 18,000 people voted on the issue. Nearly 60 percent of voters said that the current form of city government is the best for the city of Decatur.....

...... But no one should be blind to the fact that 41 percent of those who voted, 7,464 voters, were upset enough with city government operations to change to the commissioner form of government for at least the next few years. The reasons for those votes vary, but they shouldn�t all be ignored.....

....It's also safe to assume that at least some of the 59 percent, 10,605 voters, who voted to retain the council/manager form of government also have issues with city government and concerns about the future of the city....

....Bringing more unity to the community will require some compromises. Maybe it's council members elected by districts, while retaining the city manager form of government. Maybe it's an agreement on the type of successor to City Manager Steve Garman. Maybe it's making sure more people have a voice on community issues. Most likely, it's all of those things and more.....