Sorry for the marathon post, but hopefully it is enlightning.
OK, why is the opposition to District 204's referendum for a third high school being so shady?
After Citizens For Options (CFO's) repeated vicious assaults of misinformation and outright lies, the last straw for me was a satirical document posted on their website that was very ugly and degrading to Waubonsie Valley, the students, and the teachers. Currently in it’s place is a condescending message:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Top Ten reasons to vote Yes if you live on the north side was removed following emails from 'Vote Yes' supporters who obviously don't live in the WV attendance area - they didn't get the satire...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, I live in the WV attendance area and it made me mad. So mad that I wanted to know who was behind this organization spreading distrust and animosity throughout our district.
First I decided to look into the "public" face of CFO. Nancy Vickers, wife of George Vickers, had served as chairman until February 28, 2006. She was replaced, or has voluntarily stepped down according to public records on the Illinois State Board of Elections (ISBE) website. Neither George or Nancy has been quoted in the Daily Herald, Naperville Sun or Chicago Tribune regarding any 204 issue since November 4, 2005. According to ISBE records, Nancy Vickers and treasurer Peggy Bourg were replaced on February 28 by Katherine Nguyen in both positions.
Other prominent CFO supporters are Chuck Kern, who presents on behalf of the organization, and Ari Rosenthal. Ari Rosenthal has denied association with CFO, however, documents link him with this organization (see below).
After about 2 hours with a good search engine and a few phone calls, I was shocked at what I found out.
Some have accused CFO of using dirty politics to get what they want. Chuck has given misleading and incomplete presentations to the two most vocally upset groups, Brookdale Elementary PTA and Tall Grass HOA in hopes of using anger and fear to garner votes. In Kern’s CFO presentations, he claims that temporary additions and portables are ok, or that we really don’t even have a crowding problem. Consider the following newspaper excerpts from 2001:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
EMOTIONS RUN HIGH OVER TAX PROPOSAL IN INDIAN PRAIRIE
Chicago Tribune
February 25, 2001
Author: Tracy Dell'Angela, Tribune Staff Writer. Freelance writer Laura Zahn Pohl contributed to this report.
...At this point, Kern said he's not sure how he will vote on the education tax...However, he is vehemently against the building referendum, because he wants the district to build a third high school instead ...
The district, he said, isn't being realistic about the possibility of residential development in southwest Naperville.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Third high school needed in Dist. 204
Naperville Sun, The (IL)
February 2, 2001
I am writing in response to Joni Hirsch Blackman's column in the Jan. 28 Sun...I am a District 204 parent and have been reviewing the information available on the upcoming referendums.......Not only will we get a huge tax increase.
We will also get high schools with more than 1, 100 in each graduating class.
This is not acceptable.
What about the average student? Can you imagine the competition for parts in the school play? Or a spot on the basketball team? What about your child's class rank? Might he/she have a chance at being in the top 25 percent?
These are the questions we are voting on.
Yes, our schools need more seats and money....Vote "No" on Feb. 27.
Chuck Kern Naperville
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OK, so he was "pro" a 3rd high school in 2001. Or was he just "anti" whatever the school board was proposing? Or is he just bitter about his back to back defeats for a school board seat? Why is a high school with over 1,100 in each graduating class NOT ok in 2001 but it’s ok now? And why did he, as a member of the Citizens Advisory Counsel last year, recommend a 3rd high school as the best option?
Consider CFO’s funding. According to the only document filed with the Illinois State Board of Elections as of March 5, a person named Tom Coffee, employed by Silver Mortgage, listing an address of 6627 S. Kilpatrick Avenue in Chicago is the sole financial supporter of this organization. A simple reverse white pages look up reveals that this address is in the name of Theresa Coffey. So why would an out of towner with a suspect name and address be so interested in our referendum that he would give $3285 to oppose it?
Documents reveal two things. Sources have informed me that the entire $3285 amount was spent on one invoice from Door to Door Direct. According to the ISBE filings, this was spent on mailings. However, the invoice clearly states this money was spent on delivery only. Tom Coffey’s name is not on that invoice. The invoice lists a gentleman named Ari Rosenthal. His law firm of James Gustafson and Thompson, Ltd, specifically, Rosenthal himself, represented Coffey’s employer, Silver Mortgage, in a mortgage disciplinary order filed by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Banking (no. 2004-MBR-128 b). Silver Mortgage, a supposed "Partner in Education" with District 204, agreed to pay a $10,000 fine for their wrongdoings in this matter.
www.ipsd.org/about_partnerships.asp Rosenthal has been very involved in Naperville politics. He actively opposed the 2001 referendum and was a key player in the WE CARE 2 opposition. He is also associated with the Will/DuPage Taxpayers Alliance (WDTA). His most recent activity on the part of WDTA was to file complaints against the district in Will and DuPage Counties over the District’s ‘FAQs About the Referendum.’ These complaints were unfounded and dismissed immediately. Ironically, WE CARE 2 was suspected of skirting the law and shady, deceitful behavior:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FLIERS' JOINT DELIVERY RAISES QUESTIONS
PARKS BROCHURES, CAMPAIGN MATERIAL ARRIVE TOGETHER
Chicago Tribune
February 21, 2001
Author: Laura Zahn Pohl. Special to the Tribune.
Naperville Park District officials are investigating the joint delivery of the Spring 2001 Program Guide along with literature from WE CARE 2, a group that opposes the coming referendum questions in Indian Prairie District 204.
Both items were delivered over the weekend by a private delivery company in identical plastic bags. In many cases, they were rolled together and inserted into front door handles...
...The fact that Scott McKibbin of Naperville is a Park Board commissioner and vocal leader of WE CARE 2 appears to be a conflict of interest to parks and school officials and many angry residents. District 204 administrators have received dozens of calls, said Howard Crouse, associate superintendent of schools. "The people who call us are outraged," he said. "And we see this coincidence as something more than a coincidence."
...McKibbin could not be reached for comment.
.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
INDIAN PRAIRIE PROPOSALS' OPPONENTS FACING SCRUTINY
Chicago Tribune
February 22, 2001
Author: Tracy Dell'Angela, Tribune Staff Writer.
A recent marketing blitz by a group opposing the Indian Prairie school referendum proposals has led to complaints that the organization is violating state election laws by not filing campaign disclosure forms.
WE CARE 2 was contacted this week by state election officials, responding to a flurry of complaints from people arguing that the group had spent more than $3,000, the minimum that requires any political organization to file public documents itemizing their contributors and expenses.
The organization has distributed at least 10,000 leaflets against the referendum proposals to district homes and also has sponsored yard signs and newspaper advertising.
Rupert Borgsmiller, director of campaign disclosure for the State Board of Elections, said that he contacted one of the leaders of WE CARE 2, Ari Rosenthal, to notify him of the filing requirements.
"[Rosenthal] told me they are very aware of the reporting responsibilities and have every intention of complying with the law," Borgsmiller said. "I fully anticipate they will be filing something."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After that warning by state elections officials, WE CARE 2 did file "something":
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Referendum supporters outspend their opponents in District 204
Naperville Sun, The (IL)
August 8, 2001
Author: Melissa Franic
.....The opposition group, WE CARE 2, filed campaign disclosures of donations totaling $785 and one itemized expense of $735 to the Oswego-based Irish Printing Co. This money is in addition to $3,000 for yard signs, door-to-door distributions and a newspaper advertisement, according to the group's Ari Rosenthal.
...However, Biedron is doubtful the opposition group -- which ran a Web site, had yard signs and sent out numerous door-to-door documents -- could have run its campaign for less than $6,000, according to estimates of his own group's campaign costs.
"They matched us yard sign for yard sign," he said.
"In some cases they had two signs for every one of our signs."
"We priced everything we ordered," he added.
"I can't see anybody being able to ratchet their costs down that low."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rosenthal has also been accused of mudslinging and a ‘divide and conquer’ campaign in the past:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NEGATIVE CAMPAIGNING LEAVES WHEATLAND FACTIONS FRUSTRATED
Sun Publications (IL)
March 28, 1997
Author: Judy Hostert-Cassidy / STAFF WRITER
...With just days left before the April 1 election, both sides are accusing the opposing candidates for supervisor and trustee of negative campaigning.
The letter from Riley, which was delivered to the Post Office by WTRO officials but then retrieved before it could be delivered, made reference to an investigation into the previous township administration's financial dealings four years ago, just before the April 1993 election.
But the investigation found no proof of official misconduct or improper financial dealings on the part of any of the township officials and was dropped soon after the election.
The letter specifically targeted James Sapitro, an independent candidate for supervisor, and a township trustee from 1987 to 1993, stating Sapitro "and his cohorts were thrown out of office by voters in the last township election in 1993 for running the most inept administration in township history."
It goes on to cite the initial news stories about the investigation, referring to "alleged questionable financial dealings," and "alleged improprieties in township financial records." The letter further states "To our knowledge, neither Mr. Sapitro nor any of his cohorts accounted for these discrepancies."
Ari Rosenthal, vice president of the WTRO, said the township Republican Organization has "put nothing out. The letter was never sent out. There was a letter going out, but we pulled it. There is no letter.
"We've sent out two pieces," Rosenthal continued.
"One was about absentee voting, and the other was a blue-ribbon piece about the township candidates.
There's been nothing else from the organization, slamming anyone, particularly Jim Sapitro."
While Rosenthal said the decision to pull the letter came after a meeting with Riley, sources said the contents of the letter leaked to some township residents, who strongly objected to the WTRO about its content.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And how about the incorrect and misleading information that came out of WE CARE 2?
From the above referenced article:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
INDIAN PRAIRIE PROPOSALS' OPPONENTS FACING SCRUTINY
Chicago Tribune
February 22, 2001
Author: Tracy Dell'Angela, Tribune Staff Writer.
...Bob Biedron, co-chairman of Citizens for Continued Excellence in Education, which is backing the referendum proposals, said he is more concerned about reaching voters in the waning days before the Feb. 27 election than scrutinizing the campaign forms of the opposing organization.
But, he said, the delay is reflective of an organization whose members he contends have remained largely anonymous and have tried to mislead voters.
Biedron said "about 95 percent" of what has been published on WE CARE 2's materials and Web site is wrong or misleading. Rosenthal defended the information as accurate, although acknowledged some of the tax information has since been changed to reflect more recently provided data.
"The only thing important to me is passing both these [referendum proposals]," Biedron said. "But if they blow this down because of the confusion caused by this erroneous information, that's wrong."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
But what are their motivations?
WE CARE 2 was allegedly formed out of anger from a long ago boundary decision.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Opponents say District 204 tax increases unnecessary
Naperville Sun, The (IL)
January 21, 2001
Author: Melissa Franic
....The opposition group WE CARE 2 -- was organized last week, just after the District 204 board approved boundary committee changes that affect McKibbin and his neighbors in Naperville's Ashbury neighborhood.
....District 204 board member Jeanette Clark, who met with McKibbin on Tuesday to try to "get the issues out on the table," said she doesn't have a clear conclusion of what he's after.
From her understanding, McKibbin was not happy with how the district handled a few issues in the past, including the recent decision by the boundary committee.
"I understand there's two sides to every topic, obviously, and people might not agree with everything we've done," Clark said.
"But I don't think it's necessary to take a whole district down for it."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
And who is really to blame for our district currently being torn apart and why are we letting them get away with it again? Will the Tall Grass and Brookdale subdivisions fall victim to this same group of individuals that caused so much heartache and strife to the residents of Ashbury in 2001? Is the Naperville Sun psychic or did this article plant the seeds for CFO’s current campaign of ‘divide and conquer: north vs. south edition’? From 2001:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Time for healing in District 204
Naperville Sun, The (IL)
March 4, 2001
The bitterly contested Indian Prairie School District 204 election is over, and the district's residents will have some new school buildings, some new teachers, and some higher taxes.
Strangely enough, the district's tax increase proposals did not become bitterly contested until a scant few weeks before the election, when opposition coalesced around a group calling itself WE CARE 2.
Then the fur began to fly, with each group accusing the other of misrepresenting the facts.
We are not going to rehash the respective stands, or decree who is right and who is wrong.
Though we believe there were more good reasons to vote for the referendum questions than against them, we also believe there were valid concerns, as well as some that were not valid, raised by the opponents.
Unfortunately the debate became rancorous, and sometimes more heat than light was generated.
It seems to us many of the people involved in this took it much too personally, and what should have been a discussion of the needs of the district and the merit of the referendum questions got bogged down in the questioning of character and motive.
What we would like to see now is for everyone to join together and move forward for the good of the district.
This referendum fight was sort of like a civil war without borders.
Residents in both counties approved both issues, so it did not become a DuPage vs. Will, north vs. south contest.
This is good, because the district needs cohesiveness.
Rather, it was a neighbor vs. neighbor disagreement.
In Ashbury subdivision, which had both strong proponents of both questions and the leadership of the opposition, one resident told the Sun of enforcing a "no referendum talking" rule when friends got together for dinner.
But, as another Ashbury resident said, "Now we need to put this behind us and move forward."
We agree.
This issue is over, and it is time for residents to move on to other things, for the good of the district, the good of their children and the good of the neighborhood.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It seems as though whenever these individuals get involved in Naperville politics, things turn dirty. Enough with the misinformation, personal attacks, and mudslinging.
