Journal Editor

A blue ribbon committee is in the process of being formed by the Illinois Crime Commission to conduct an inquiry into the probable issuance of a 10th casino license in Illinois as well as the questioned awarding of billboard rights in Des Plaines.

Former Illinois State Senator and gubernatorial candidate Patrick O'Malley is a member and spokesman of the panel. He said members of the Lisle-based Illinois Crime Commission have been studying Des Plaines' billboard controversy for the last month and have decided to launch a formal inquiry into the matter.

The purpose of the committee will be to investigate and analyze a number of issues that have recently surfaced such as the issuance of the state's 10th casino license," said O'Malley during a telephone interview Tuesday. "In conjunction with that, information has arisen recently on the matter of billboards in Des Plaines which suggests that this should be part of the panel's work."

O'Malley explained that the advisory crime commission is in the process of recruiting members of the special committee. A formal announcement of who will serve will soon be made, he said. It will number between five and 10 members.

O'Malley declined to give details about the panel's focus on the pending casino inquiry. It's believed, however, that the committee will focus in part on how the Illinois Gaming Board decided to grant the license to the Isle of Capri to operate in Rosemont. In addition, a focus will be on how and why the Illinois Attorney General is blocking the Gaming Board's decision in favor of a Rosemont gambling operation.

Concerning billboards, O'Malley said the Crime Commission has been following recent developments of how Premere Outdoor, Inc. was awarded the rights to erect 10 billboards in Des Plaines by City Council members. Those developments have been published in a series of recent articles in the Journal & Topics Newspapers.

"We want to look at the process, criteria and issuance of those rights," said O'Malley. "We're biting off a lot here. Billboards are part of the whole story."

Since early September, the Journal & Topics has published a large number of stories about the city's awarding of those billboard rights to Premere in July 2003. The city's agreement with Premere allowed the company to erect the 10 billboards on sites along the Northwest and Tri-State tollways. In exchange, Premere would pay the city a per sign impact fee, annual inspection fees, and $25,000 per year for three years to fund local fire works displays. Securing the right to own billboards can be a lucrative venture. Owners can charge as much as $20,000 to 40,000 per month for a two-sided billboard located along a major tollway and near a large airport such as O'Hare.

In the Journal articles, it was revealed that James Dvorak was an officer and shareholder of Premere Outdoor and Premere Media, both companies involved in locating billboards in Des Plaines. Dvorak, a convicted felon and former Cook County undersheriff and Cook County Republican Party chairman, has been a close friend of Bill Schneider, Des Plaines' former acting city manager for years. Schneider resigned his job with the city earlier this year after his friendship with Dvorak became public and after he admitted to Mayor Tony Arredia that he was convicted of mail fraud in the mid-1990s. Dvorak, it was also learned, was employed by a company hired by the city in 2001 to provide marketing services of property across from O'Hare earmarked for redevelopment.

I addition, the Journal & Topics articles unveiled that Dvorak and two other individuals were the shareholders of Premere Outdoor stock when it was sold to Lamar Outdoor Advertising in July 2003. At a City Council committee inquiry last week, officials and the public were told that Lamar paid Premere $10.5 million for the rights to erect the 10 billboards. Half of that sum was placed in an escrow account and later returned to Lamar after the company decided it was not going to pursue erecting five of the 10 billboards. The rights to those five billboards are in the process of being sold to media giant Viacom which owns CBS television and Paramount Pictures. Viacom has told the city that intends to vigorously pursue acquiring those billboard rights.

At Monday night's City Council meeting, aldermen and the public learned that the City of Des Plaines will soon ask the Cook County State's Attorney and Illinois Attorney General to conduct a formal investigation to determine if any criminal conduct has taken place in connection with the billboard matter. In mid-September, three top city officials met with a representative of the U.S. Attorney's Office to discuss concerns about the Premere agreement.

City Attorney Dave Wiltse said yesterday (Thursday) that he plans to first ask the U.S. Attorney if it will conduct a criminal investigation. He also said he will forward more documentation to the federal agency including a report he recently compiled on the matter. If the U.S. Attorney declines, Wiltse said he will ask the state's attorney and attorney general's office if they will.

"We're not drawing any conclusions," said O'Malley. "We will be independent, impartial and fair."

O'Malley said that it's highly likely that the Crime Commission will also conduct public hearings on the casino and billboard inquiries.