Well, this was a surprise.
A breath of fresh air.
Since the controversy to bring the Gotion battery plant into the area in 2023, the public comments at the Manteno village board meetings have been lively.
For the most part, there are citizens blasting the board for the move. There are times when Mayor Tim Nugent is mockingly called “Timmy” and he, the board and staff members have been portrayed as crooked, incompetent or both.
For the most part, Nugent and the board members exercise their right of not engaging in debates, which infuriates the anti-Gotion faction even more. Those people fear the communist influence of a Chinese-run company and have safety concerns as well.
The April 1 election will not feature Nugent, who is retiring from being the mayor. But it will feature trustee Joel Gesky running for mayor with a slate of those favorable to Gotion.
Annette LaMore, a former trustee, is running for mayor and her slate is filled with anti-Gotion candidates.
Needless to say, this election hasn’t been all that nice so far and a member of LaMore’s Freedom Party slate, Paul Motel, has heard enough.
Motel used his time at the Jan. 20 meeting to urge civility from both sides.
“I just wanted to take a moment this evening to talk about what I witnessed this past weekend,” he said. “I’ve seen it a little bit beforehand, but this past weekend has been really bad.
“A lot of people – supporters of both groups – are just speaking in an ill-mannered way. Nasty. They are just downright nasty to each other in the social media groups of our community.”
He added that the hostility is not needed.
“Everyone has the right to express their opinion,” Motel said. “It sets a poor example for new residents. It’s going to be counterproductive in attracting more new residents.
“We are adults. We should act accordingly. We’re going to have disagreements. We’re going to have opposing views. That doesn’t mean we run home to type on our phones or keyboards to just be nasty with each other. We can be civil.”
Nugent was absent from the meeting but Geske, who filled in for him as Mayor-pro-tem, said “Paul – that’s absolutely one thing we can agree upon. I 100% support it from the very start and that has been my position all along. Thank you.”
Pier coming to Legacy Park
The board voted to award a bid to Tenco Excavating of Bourbonnais form more than $984,000 for Phase 2 work at Legacy Park.
The project will include a pier at the fishing pond. A path to the pond will also be a part of the new construction.
People that care about our town should review facts in the Gotion matter.
Facts should be printed and sent out in a mass local mailing.
Those elected to represent us should act and speak in a dignified manor.
It should be made clear to residents of all involved persons that cannot behave in this manor so that we do not make the mistake of trusting them in their important positions.
Are there residents who are not on the board who are in favor of this deal? I can’t imagine why they would be unless they were being paid off. Even crooked Pritker supports this deal.