When I began to write for the Mahomet Daily two years ago, I told myself I wasn’t going to be a reporter who puts spin on articles. There are a lot of things that go on in this world, and everyone wants to throw their opinion and perspective into the ring. A lot of time, I think people who comment on every facet of this world believe, in some way, that commentary is news.
I don’t believe a writer’s opinions or political beliefs have a place in news venues. I believe people can look at facts and think for themselves. And so, I just tell you what is going on in our community through a filterless lens. Sometimes that is very difficult to do.
I have been to more board meetings than I can count. While I have been absent at times, I have also listened to Trustees ask questions and watched the rhythm of how staff presents things to them.
On the Village side of things, there are a lot of road construction projects and equipment purchases to maintain roads. On the school district side, there is a lot of curriculum discussion, updates on facilities and projects during the summer months. There are also Chamber of Commerce, Planning and Zoning, Economic Development Commission, Mahomet Township, Champaign County Forest Preserve, organization, church, committee and event meetings.
Each entity has a purpose in the way this town works. Each entity has a vision for the betterment of this community. And after watching these groups unfold over the last two years, I believe each entity has an agenda.
I think the agenda part of this is what makes reporting just the facts so hard. I think this is why commentary has become news. The agenda isn’t explicit. It’s not often something you hear in just one meeting or two. Not something that comes out in one decision. Not something I can cover in one article.
But when you watch an organization, or how those organizations work with each other over a period of time, that agenda begins to creep into your mind, and there comes a time when you are not sure what is fact and what is being fabricated to make the agenda look pretty.
I can’t say I believe any one board, any one staff or any one member of these entities has something up their sleeve. Maybe it’s my naivety, but I believe everyone has good intentions. All the facts show that everyone wants to work towards the betterment of this community within their jurisdiction and means.
But because of the way things play out, and because I’m beginning to see the whole picture of how things work in this community, I’m not always sure what is truth and what is fact.
I’m beginning to see there is something missing from the puzzle, and so presenting facts sometimes feels like I’m shorting you of the big picture, too. Sometimes I get the feeling that everyone is on the same team, but the team as a whole, is very unhealthy.
I sat in yet another meeting Thursday night. The Mahomet Chamber of Commerce (disclaimer: I am also on the Chamber Board of Directors) hosted a candidate’s forum at the Mahomet Public Library. The mediator, a Chamber board member, asked “emailed” questions to the three contested school board candidates: Jenny Parks, Ken Keefe and Cheryl Melchi. He also asked “emailed” questions to three uncontested Village Board Trustees: Bruce Colravy, Don Lynn and Bill Oliger.
And so I bring to you the reason for this editorial. If I just reported the questions and answers, you might think the Village board is doing everything wrong. And because of this, I have wrestled with what to share with you in this piece.
I’m not even sure if you care because there were only seven people in the audience, and about 15 questions asked overall. Of those seven people, two were journalists, one is a school board member and the other is the Mayor. Not only do Mahomet Daily statistics show that board meetings and agendas aren’t on the forefront of everyone’s minds, but over the countless meetings I’ve been to, I’ve only seen a few people in the audience.
The school board candidates were asked about their vision for the school district, and how they see that vision fall into place. All three candidates talked about financial responsibility throughout the school district, technology and science within the classroom and the potential for Sangamon Elementary to be moved over to Churchill Road behind Middletown Prairie Elementary.
While all the candidates agreed that a sound financial outlook was key to any growth and development, the candidates also noted that the community needs to figure out how to get additional businesses into the area to help support the tax base. The Village, Mahomet Township, the Mahomet Public Library, Mahomet Police Department, the Corn Belt Fire District, the Champaign County Forest Preserve and Mahomet-Seymour School District are primarily residential tax-based entities.
Parks and Melchi supported moving Sangamon over to Churchill Road. They supported looking into selling the current Sangamon building to a developer so that they can use the land for commercial use. Melchi said the topic is hard because the building means a lot to the community, and Keefe believes the board should be sensitive to the Mahomet resident’s interests.
Keefe, a proponent of science in primary education, said he would support hiring additional staff to come into the classrooms so students could be exposed to science during the day. Melchi and Parks said science education should be included in the daily curriculum, and teachers should integrate the material into other lessons through reading and technology.
Seems simple enough. Candidates were asked about current obstacles the school district faces and how their election would help solve those problems.
But then the tables turned. After the Village Trustees introduced themselves, they were quickly knocked back into their seats, and put on the defense. They began to answer questions about why Village will not complete the fiber optic loop in support of business growth, why the Village purchased a mower from Savoy, why the Village hired Patrick Brown as the Administrator, why the Village cannot replace the water main along Main Street and why the Village does not promote the qualities unique to Mahomet (most of their replies had to do with financial limits).
Not once were these candidates asked about their vision for the future of Mahomet as the school board members were. Instead, the questions posed the Village as the problem behind the stunted commercial growth in this town.
In my mind, if I were to just tell you the facts of Thursday’s night, the question and answer, you would not witness the unbalanced approach to the forum. It was almost as if the Village is to blame for the problems of the community, and the other entities and residents are off the hook.
While I do not agree with many decisions the Village makes (and I will say, my residential tax dollars do not go to the Village-nor do I want them to- because I live in an unincorporated area-as do about half of 61853 residents), I do not believe the Village is the only entity at fault (or the only ones we should congratulate) for how things are in our town.
Not once were the Trustees asked about what steps they have taken to promote business growth. Because although many things they’ve done have not panned out the way they thought they would, the Village has spent money to make sites developer ready within the TIFF district along IL-150 and worked to maintain roads within the community.
Why weren’t they asked about what they have done, what they plan to do or even where they stand on an issue? Because groups, including the Chamber, believe the Village should do more to promote commercial growth within the Mahomet community.
I don’t pretend that I know everything that goes on behind the scenes. I’m not present in the private meetings and discussions that go on outside of the public forum. But I feel like we are coming to a stand-off point in this discussion of where and how Mahomet grows to sustain our way of life. It seems we want a small, residential community with good schools and recreational opportunities. And it also seems like leaders in this community want to have those light commercial businesses here to help bring in jobs, opportunities and the tax base.
This spring, approximately 200 additional residential lots will become available within the Village district. And over the next couple years, barring a catastrophe this town, will see another residential boom. With the tax burden lying on residents, and potential State budget cuts, leaders throughout this community know that there is a need for businesses to come into Mahomet to help carry some of the load.
But is it just the Village’s responsibility? What are the responsibilities of these other entities? When will leaders in this community start to put their agendas aside, and come together with each entities strengths, to overcome some of Mahomet’s weaknesses?
I think what we are seeing is that there are a lot of pieces to the puzzle set here in this community. We have great schools. We have decent roads. We have land ready for business development. We have many, great businesses here already. We have two amazing forest preserves. We have a beautiful library. We have a lot of things here. We have all the pieces. We are already a great community.
We see this in the fact that people continue to purchase and build houses in our community to call it their home, too. And this is because of the hard work of the Village, the school district, the forest preserve, the library and the fire district,among others, over time.
The truth is, there have been few times in my 35 years when I’ve seen government have the answers to our problems.
The interesting thing I see through Mahomet Daily statistics is that businesses, local amenities and our school district’s success are also very important to you, too. I think this is awesome because it appears the resident’s vision is aligned with the school and Village boards.
So what responsibility do the residents have in this picture? To just elect officials and sit back, waiting to see what decisions they will or will not make? And then get upset with them? Like I said, I rarely see anyone at meetings.
I also rarely see business owners at Village or school board meetings. Do they have a responsibility to step up in this picture, too?
We are in a transition time once again. We get to define what this community has been. What this community will be. What this community needs. What this community wants. And what it already has.
Yes, the Village has a role. The school district has a role. Businesses and organizations have a role. And so do the residents. We have to stop pushing agendas around, and start talking as a group, not as separate entities. We have to come together to focus on and highlight our strengths so that we can fill in the blanks of our weaknesses. There has to be a plan in place. Everyone has to know their role.
This includes you, too. Government entities aren’t just FOR the people. They ARE the people. If these questions were emailed in, then the community also has a responsibility to participate. Don’t just sit behind a computer, emailing your questions in; come ask them yourselves. Call your representatives. Talk to a variety of board members (all listed above). Talk to a variety of staff members. Come to the meetings. Volunteer your time or resources. Run for office.
It is our right as American citizens to show up and speak up. Just don’t forget, leave your agendas at home. Bring your strengths. And be involved.
