THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | WEEK OF APRIL 20, 2008
Park Dist. Chief Tired of Waiting
By TOM ROBB
Journal Reporter
To wait or not to wait, that is the question plaguing the Glenview Park Dist. and its Executive Director Chuck Balling.
Balling is waiting to hear if Governor Rod Blagojevich's office will award the park district a $400,000 grant for work on a $4 million improvement project for Community Park West they applied for, or will at least give them a waiver to award the bid for the work without penalty.
Tired of waiting, Balling went to Springfield to express his concerns personally.
"The state's delay in announcing the OSLAD (Open Space Land and Development program) awards puts this project and the work of many at risk," Balling told a joint hearing of the Appropriations and Agriculture committees of the State Senate on Wednesday, Apr. 16 in Springfield.
Under state law, if a bid is awarded before a grant is awarded, the grant is disqualified.
"Approximately 85 potential local governmental agencies currently have projects pending," Balling said at the hearing. "The Governor's office has elected not to release the funds (normally released in January or February) or announce the results of applications presented to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources last summer."
Balling said if the park district waits much longer, they would lose an entire planting season.
The Glenview Park Board will vote at tomorrow's (Thursday, Apr. 24) meeting on whether to accept a bid for work on the park.
Balling and State Sen. Susan Garrett (D-29th) said they were assured that budget officials from Blagojevich's office would contact them to let them know if they received a grant or waiver by last Monday, Apr. 21. As of 4 p.m. Monday, neither Balling nor Garrett received that call.
Kelley Quinn, a spokesperson for the Governor's Office of Management and Budget, said most grants are being held until a $750 million budget gap is filled.
Garrett and Balling said they are looking for an answer as to why a simple waiver of the rules could not be granted so they could award the contract without losing the potential grant.
Katie Ridgeway, a spokesperson for Blagojevich who heard Balling's testimony in Springfield is looking in to the waiver question but did not have an answer by press time.
The Park Board is expected to grant the bid tomorrow even if the waiver or grant is not given.