It's all about pandering for City Council/Mayoral votes.

- Look-up who receives SECA funds
- Look-up the names of the folks that manage/work at the Children's Museum

- Look-up the campaign contribution disclosure for each candidate.

Do you think we have a pattern here?

The Children's Museum was a bad deal for the taxpayer. I'm not sure how something like that is even legal for the city to single out one non-profit organization and basically give them free rent forever. If it isn't illegal it sure ought to be.

The taxpayers totally got snookered by the city council and city staff over the Smart Grid. The city council and city staff have all known about this for at least a couple of years and kept it all secret and buried it in the city budget somewhere. That ought to be cause for reconsideration for voters in terms of any of the existing city council members when they are up for re-election next. Clearly the current members of the city council have no respect for "Of the people, by the people, for the people." It is more like we are subjects in a dictatorship than we live in a republic where we can TRUST those whom we elect to represent us and what WE want out of government. What a total failure of public trust.

The amount of "politics" played by department heads and city administrators these days is just unbelievable. Nothing but a pack of suck ups who will do anything at any cost if it can make themselves look good and keep them in a favorable light with the city council in terms of salary, benefits, perks, bonuses, etc. There used to be a time when government employees didn't earn a bonus and didn't get perks. Anyone remember that clown that was the Ex Dir at the Park District and what he did with his perks and government credit card?

Maybe we would be better off going back to the days before bonuses and perks. In the private sector one of the first things that gets cut during lean economic times are pay raises and bonuses.... something government employees don't seem to understand or grasp. If they can't understand when a bonus is appropriate and when it isn't appropriate then maybe using a bonus is the wrong type of incentive to be using with these kind of people.

Is the city going to implode financially? Too soon to tell for sure. Could happen if nothing changes, that is for sure. In some ways, while it would be a painful experience to go through, that might just be the best thing to happen to Naperville to finally force it to pull it's collective head out of Mayberry and deal with reality.

With the recession, budget deficit, and smaller city hall staff does anyone know why we still have a budgeted position for an assistant city manager? How many other middle manager "assistant" type positions still exist and why haven't they been trimmed?

It doesn't really matter if the city is out of money or not. The police department budget has to be managed as do all other department budgets. If the police department can't manage their staffing levels and payroll costs then they don't just get to go loot some other department just because they may be managing their budget a whole lot better.

Another point of consideration is that there is and always will be some excess cash sitting around for emergencies or contingencies... that is the nature of the beast when a city operates things like their own electric department. For example, the city hopes there won't be a lot of electrical equipment failures or storm damage, but if it should happen the city has to have enough cash on hand to restore power and that might mean buying new equipment or paying a lot of overtime to workers.

I, for one, definitely don't want the police department (or any other department for that matter) raiding the city coffers just because they have tunnel vision when they demand a pay raise and don't care where the money is going to come from.

Now having said that, it isn't exactly rocket science for city administration and city council to know exactly what their fixed payroll cost will be from year to year... with a degree of allowance based upon actual staffing levels. It also isn't rocket science to know what all of the union contracts call for in terms of pay raises from year to year as well as what year contracts will be negotiated. IF the city council and city administration had done their job properly in prior years they would have taken earlier opportunities to avoid the bloat and fat and waste. AND they would have budgeted for this fiscal year based upon a reasonable forecast of what the new labor contract cost were anticipated to be. If they had done their job properly they should have been at least reasonably close to whatever was negotiated in the end. IF they fell short just a bit in their projection then using contingency funds would have been appropriate to make up the gap.

Sure, they ALL new there was a budget deficit going into the fiscal year and the police new full well other city departments were getting the knife first while the city council held off cutting police staff. AND the police union demanded a raise in a recession knowing full well there was a budget deficit. Well they got their pay raise, but they got it the expense of some fellow police officers jobs... and as always the most junior officers with less seniority got let go first. Despite all the sable rustling I don't buy it for one minute that the officers with seniority who knew they wouldn't be touched care one bit that some new guys got pink slips. In fact, they are all betting there is now going to be some extra overtime hours in the mix for all of them with less officers competing for whatever overtime is available.

I also don't buy the argument about less officers equals more crime. Naperville has hardly any crime as it is and the number of police officers and staffing levels is far more of an art than it is a science. Truth be known Naperville would have to cut quite a few more police officers before there was any kind of an upward blip on the crime statistics... and most of that kind of crime is petty stuff anyway. If we look at the most serious crime none of it would have prevented if we had half the police or twice as many... because police do not prevent that kind of crime... they just respond to whatever has happened after it occurs. So, at the end of the day do I really care if we don't have enough police officers to handle all of the shoplifters and scammers running around at local businesses? Not really. It is petty stuff mostly and a lot of cities have stopped doing the kind of stuff Naperville does and the strip malls and shopping centers have to rely on their own security force at their own expense... as it really should be.

Just checking here - and this has nothing to do with the Cops - but does anyone really believe the City is out of money, and if they do believe it ..... why? NOT because that is what they tell us I hope - they tell us a lot of things that are flat out untrue .... press releases are at best half true, and this group ALWAYS finds money when the council wants to do something, or they want to give a bonus or a raise to a director or manager. It's all about priorities, and this group value's only themselves. Everyone, everywhere, has to stop taking their word for anything, and insist on proof before accepting anything the City has to say.

I think the Naperville Police Union President knew damn well those six officers would get laid off if the coppers got their raises......shame on both sides.

I say fire more cops and firemen. They are overpaid and need to go.

Joe Naper,

You wrote: "Wherli will be the top vote getter on council... "

I'm not so sure that Wherli will even get re-elected much less be the top vote getter.

Wherli got elected more on his family name than as a result of anything he had accomplished personally to be elected for a first term.

As for what he has accomplished in his first term... well if being a loud mouth, heavy handed clod stands for anything then maybe he has accomplished something. The we can add on extra points for being an impulsive foot in the mouth who doesn't think before speaking.

More importantly look at Wherli's voting track record... it is simply terrible. Up until the last six months or so he was upside down with how he voted on everything. I don't know if he all of sudden got religion or if someone far wiser than he told Wherli he better get his voting in order if he hoped to get reelected. In my book three and a half years of screwing up his job and our city doesn't get ignored just because he finally figured out what he was supposed to be doing in the last six months. Anyone who can't do any better than that on the learning curve doesn't deserve a second chance or a second term.

Mostly Wherli squandered an opportunity to serve Naperville and most people have now seen him for who and what he really is. Wherli simply isn't representative of the average voter in Naperville and the average person doesn't want someone like Wherli representing them.

Peggy,
Just doing what people have been doing for over 200 years... poking fun at elected officials. I think they are all good people, including Kenn. Kenn will not be your next mayor however. George will get re-elected but will realize in doing so that it will be his last term. Wherli will be the top vote getter on council, Feiseler will narrowly get re-elected. Firstenau is the wildcard in this. Not really sure how the voters will react to him this go. Time will tell...

Joe,

You wrote: "Miller: An anatomically correct Kenn doll. Plastic brain and all."

True! There's really not much going on between his ears is there?

Got to say every time I see Miller's face with his cheesy used car salesman smile my hand instinctively reaches out to make sure my wallet is still there...

i know the current trend is all about the police lay offs... but does everyone forget that there are disruptions in Ambulance services too. It was more brilliant thinking to "Brown out" fire stations and reduce the number of fire personnel working. Which means that there are certain fire stations that do NOT have paramedics working with the ambulances. So, even thought you live near a fire station, and you call an ambulance,,, that ambulance could be coming from across the city to get to you. Whats this city's answer,,,,, PAY DOWN THE CARILLON DEBT.

Peggy,
These meetings are entertaining to watch! You can not find better tv anywhere. That being said let's do a quick rundown of the cast. From left to right on your screen...
Broadhead: Liberal prototype. Can't think on her own and surely can't speak on her own. Does anyone ever understand the point she is ever trying to make? Most likely our next Sec. of State...
Feseler: Crazy nut that will say anything that springs up in his head even if it makes no sense to anyone, including him.
Miller: An anatomically correct Kenn doll. Plastic brain and all.
Krause: Old man that sometimes wakes up and pulls face out of his bowl of soup only to mumble something. Each morning he isn't sure if he should be wearing his Krause for council button or the one that says Krause for mayor.
Pradel: I'd rather view an out of tune tv channel with static on it. That would add more thought to the conversation.
Firstenau: This man would like all women to put their birka's back on. That way they can't see him whenever he cries at a council meeting.
Boyajian: I'm right. You're wrong. Now do as I say.
Wherli: Daddy! Please help me... they're not playing nice...
Hinterlong: What is going on here? Really. I have no clue what any of this is about...

I wonder how many of you watched the most recent budget workshop. These videocasts are so telling. The men sitting on the right side of the bench do all the talking and are clearly in charge. They have all the answers, direct staff on what to do next and rarely ask for consensus from the rest of council. The mayor just lets them run. The rest of the council never checks them on their runaway behavior because they're afraid of them. It's a sight to see. My husband and I find these events as entertaining as most TV programs. You have to wonder, do any of those guys ever listen to anyone else? Have they ever watched themselves after a meeting and if so what do they make of their own performances?

Im glad the Naperville Police have finally got a cut in their budgets as well as officers considering the lack of crime, horrible attitudes of officers within the town, and lack of professionalism that is shown by the department. You might as well hire a blind plumber to fix your toilet, then call the Naperville police for crime assistance

Joe Naper,

You've got it right about Miller. Bumbleweed has got to go. What does that leave us with.... Krause? I'd sooner vote for Hugo Chavez than Krause. He is a total waste and everyone knows it. Typical real estate hack who is in it only for the name recognition trying to drum up more business for his pathetic office.

Maybe a viable 4th candidate will emerge as a write-in?

At present it looks like the next term is going to be filled by Miller. I'm no fan of Miller and wouldn't vote for him in a heartbeat if there was a better alternative than Bumbleweed or Krause. Truly a lesser of evils decision but if it means finally putting Bumbleweed out to pasture I guess I can learn to live with Miller for a couple of years.

Thank goodness we are now protected from Miller doing too much damage with the new term limit rule!

To Taxed Enough Already many comments ago,
What's not funny is that DF will STILL probably get voted back in! Not enough residents vote and he'll get 4,000 faithfuls to show up and vote while others in the community watch it happen. Get ready for another four years. So the $1million+, we can all just get used to it. This blog carries no weight.

No strikes allowed? Even better. All the BS above from union people shows no respect for leadership. It really does sound like a real union now. Too bad you cannot strike - then it would be official "more money every year for less work - ra ra ra!". I still think Naperville is run well, but I do think there should be an audit every year, if there is not one now. Are you sure about that, or are you just blowing smoke? $10,000 bonus linked to performance - meaning good performance managed within budget, and not requiring to raise taxes in a bad economy, is OK with me. 2011 specific objective #1 should be as follows however: "Reduce tax needs by 10% while meeting budget and performance targets (like snow removal, training initiatives, cutting waste)" I would pay $11,000 BONUS FOR THAT IN 2011!!!

La Cuca,
Miller? Are you nuts? Backstabbing, two-faced, pandering, flip-flopping political hack.
At least with Pradel we know what we get...

Time for the State's Attorney, or Attorney General to get involved. This is a mess that the City's Legal Department, City Manager, or City Council can't handle. What a mess. Be great if the press was around to investigate this stuff.

Police Union/All Unions-Support Miller, full page ads against Fieseler, FURSTANO, and Pradel. It's our only hope.

Anon @ Dec 9, 12:28,
Wherli is the one that stood up for the cops when they got sued by Firstinau remember? How soon they turn on the one guy up there that stood up for them!
I'm pretty sure those two still don't get along and righfully so. Furstinau is out for blood with the cops no doubt, but this contract is making the cops look really greedy. They are WAY overpaid and I'm tired of hearing the "they leave the house in a bullet-proof vest" stuff too. All they do is drive around in brand new cars, pull over the hot moms for speeding and all have egos the size of Texas. We can not afford the contracts that these unions are getting. Those on council that supported this contract, and buying the DCM are the ones in trouble this April. They are spending money like drunken cops... the cops are the only ones that can afford it!

As said above, no one planned to step forward and finance the pay of the 6 cops out of their own pay, their own taxes, etc. That is pretty sad of course, but it is reality. Tell me one thing, why in a time of job loss, pay cuts, poor economy, would the city raise people's taxes, give raises, and not cut the pay/benefits of the city workers? I don't get it - not a single government or quasi-government institution took a pay cut. If not in times of poor economy, then when will/can they cut someone's total compensation which has moved out-of-line with benchmarks.

The bold step would have been - an immediate freeze of all pay, while a study is conducted. The study would include benchmarking with private industry and similar jobs elsewhere, and forcasting the response to various actions - like a strike against pay cuts. Assuming a strike would occur, a company would immediately look to hire new people to fill vacant posts, or close a plant and move to the SE USA, etc. A strike is a problem though, because the skills are not universal in business/manufacturing - a real risk.

In the case of public workers, the skills are pretty universal - a cop is a cop is a cop; or a mechanic is a mechanic is a mechanic, etc. So in a place like Naperville, where the pay/benefits are great, and the only time a cop has to pull his gun is to clean it, why would the city not take 3 months to receive new job applications from seargents, 5-year cops, 10-year cops, etc....as a means to prepare for a very real possibility of a strike?

Then offer a five year freeze, or one time 10% cut in benefits/pay, never to be clawed back, with future linkages to CPI, or some other measure that removes arbitrary/unethical raises, some changes in benefit plans that remove arbitrary huge raises "when times are good", etc. If the cops (hate to target these guys) or other city workers strike, then fire and replace them with workers who will take 10% less (maybe even 20%) who have been interviewed, have a track record of good performance, etc.?

Now would be the opportunity to fix the budget going forward. Why is this so hard to understand? Is it just too much work? Are votes at stake? Why is this not done in especially government roles that are universal? Answer me that question because I dont get it. In fact, the complete opposite is done - raises are give! In an election year big raises are given, especially at the state and federal levels. Yes, the complete opposite of rational, logical thinking. Now when times get good again, are they going to try the above? No, they are going to give even larger raises because the "times are good".

I love my city, and it is pretty well run, but most cities are not run well, and over-compensation is the norm. What naperville does have going for it, is the attractive place to work. So the city and the school districts should use the desire of others to work here, as negotiation leverage.

The City Council put on quite a show tonight - supporting Krieger, who can't say three words in a row without muttering uhhhhhhhhhh. Now there's a leader for you! They have made a serious mistake by letting go of those Police officers. Furstenau and Wherli puffing out their chests and acting like they are such tough guys - how embarrassing! The labor board is going to overturn what they've done anyway - and if anyone in Naperville is paying attention, anyone running for re-election will be out the door in April. Smarter move for all of them would be to resign and just leave town.

Does anyone find it odd that we Napervillians are paying more than most for police service? How many major crimes do we really have in this town? I for one think the police deserve fair pay....I have several relatives that are chicago cops and they put their lives on the line every day. Here in Naperville, cops become mayors, cops become the head of the park district (by the way what qualifies one to be the head of the park district?) it is almost like we live in a police state.

The Dupage County States Attorenys call us the Peoples Republic of Naperville for a reason, even they think it is excessive. Ever see the bicycle patrol outside the bars/restaurants in downtown naperville on their radios. what do you think they are doing? I think that is not legal, but then again...who can prove it? We have too many officers now, I think the layoffs are justified.

My brother's experience is not the ONLY one whose pay that goes up. As I mentioned, many other companies have in their structure paid raises locked in yearly. Many of my students get their raises after 3 mo, 6mo etc.

Why would I expect govt positions to get at least some raise from my tax dollars? Because I certainly would want and expect a raise, some type if I was not in the public sector and would want that for others in the public sector. They still have to pay for their utilities etc that go up. I have no choice but to pay for gas if it goes up. Well govt jobs are costing more for many reasons. It may be their gas or whatever and yes we would have to cover that if we want the same services. If I want less service then no I would pay less. I prefer more services. I stated not all people are getting raises. I said I am aware what is going on but I was counter arguing that not everyone is getting hurt. Many are still getting their raises or perhaps a bit less raise if tied into company success for the year but they are still getting some. Are you voluntarily going to your boss and saying, I'll freeze my salary? I'll bet not! You probably would want a raise right? Then why shouldn't all people try for a raise. It is just that the few at the top of some companies are screwing with America and their employees that they are hurting the rest of us. This is the corruption you need to get rid of. And gas prices someone needs to figure what the heck is going on what that & put it on wikileaks!

Anonymous 10:49...

Well I would agree that anyone who is not needed should not be there,but what were those 6 cops doing? Does anyone even know? Twiddling their thumbs? If they were not needed then they should have been let go long before any contract was settled. This was not the case, so it does not appear that is the reason.

You have to be careful on "low performance". You first have to say why is it occuring? There may be reasons that can be changed. It is very costly to fire, hire new, train etc so it may be cheaper to just fix the low performance. This is something also that administrators do not look at & many times a pure accountant will not see. It is like saying a child is low performing in school so get rid of them. No! You try other methods to help them perform better. You could say that if the employee is low performing then perhaps the supervisor is the one that should be looked at. Perhaps he/she is the one who is not training the officer properly or is not motivating them. There are MANY reasons why someone does not perform properly, just like there are MANY reasons a child may not be performing well in school. A factor, Arne Duncan, who has never taught, also forgets!!

Outsourcing...totally disagree. Though there are some wonderful part time officers or teachers, there are many disadvantages that are not worth the cheaper cost. Love to see who they get to be officers or teachers. Of course it would be the cheapest so then...This would also be the same corporate America which has gotten us into this economic mess in the first place. I can just imagine what they will do if they were to make these decisions now. Hmmm lets teach the kids how to "work the books" so it looks legal.

"Not paying attention"???? Again, you have to be careful with general comments like this. I was at the light stopped behind another not long ago and the woman behind me, who was stopped, was the one not paying attention & hit the gas when the light turned green. If the officer was me his car is crashed but even if he is watching it happen from his rear view, not much he can do about it. He doesn't have to really pay attention at this point. Someone runs a red light not much you can do even if you are paying attention. And please do not forget, officers are human beings just like you & I. We tend to hold them up at high standards, yet forget they are human.

Socialized employment by govt? Well, I do expect my tax dollars to fix the pot holes in the road, protect me from fires and the luney people who can't seem to behave in prosocial ways. I expect them to protect my planet and to make sure that others are not taking advantage of me. What happens when corporate America now pays officers and judges. This would not be the land OF the people but of those who can pay. It is pathetic it already is the way in cases & has been in the past. Heck, it would be no different than paying for a body guard in school...who ever can pay the guy the most has his protection that day. There was already a case of a town that the fireman allowed a man's home to burn down because he had not paid his city taxes (or whatever for the fire service) yet! Just pathetic! Can you imagine, it would be like if you didn't pay your cable bill and they shut you off, now you get no police or fire protection. And how are they going to keep track of that from month to month? That would take cost so much! You have a heart attack? Sorry we can't send an ambulance! Go to a mall & maybe the mall paid for the service. Your child gets hurt at a friend's house and they have not paid? Do they come because the child who is hurt has parents who paid or not because the house he is at has not? How long is it going to take for them to figure out what to do? Hey but all the druggies and gang bangers can figure out which houses have not & then find a safe haven!

And why would you be so mean to not allow officers and teachers to have raises like anyone else? They are saving your lives, protecting you & educate you & your children so you can make even more money than many of them but they do not deserve raises like any other career? That is just heartless. Heck, Santa is probably getting raises each year at the mall for standard of living adjustments. There rent, taxes, gas, food, utilities go up just like anyone elses! I take it you don't have a family member who is a teacher or an officer. It is so easy when you have never lived a day in their shoes. Heck, why don't we outsource them to people outside our country? Might as well? We can bring people in at much cheaper rates huh!

Life is not as simply as you make it out to be. Sounds like you are Mr. Potter or Scrooge!

OWVY wrote:

JQP...Not all are! My brother is no ex & he gets a raise with his yearly evaluation & no union! He gets a end of the year bonus etc. Just because you are an officer or teacher does not mean salaries should freeze. We have to pay for the increases of gas and food, utilities also. My rent went up $75 this year a month. How do I pay for that? Leave teaching?

Do all employees in the private sector need to have their pay frozen before you would be in favor of the same treatment for public employees? Have you been following the news the last couple of years? Your brother is a very lucky man if he's still getting pay increases and bonuses. You are trying to use anecdotal "evidence" to justify business as usual in times that are anything but ordinary. As for how you should pay your rent, I don't know; but do you think it's fair to get the money to pay for it by raising taxes on people whose income has actually gone down as their expenses have increased?

JQP...

Not all are! My brother is no ex & he gets a raise with his yearly evaluation & no union! He gets a end of the year bonus etc. Just because you are an officer or teacher does not mean salaries should freeze. We have to pay for the increases of gas and food, utilities also. My rent went up $75 this year a month. How do I pay for that? Leave teaching? If you move up working even at McDonalds you get more pay. I'm not totally heartless here or not working on reality of some people's lives today. I know what is going on, but it just does not make sense for anyone to have to take a freeze. If they want us to continue to pay for gas, rent etc and then stimulate the economy by buying "wants" vs needs, at least a few, then you can't freeze salaries. You have to find another way to work on the problems of the economy. And quite frankly the people should not have to make up for the problems that companies, Walstreet etc created. Again, just watch what you are buying for Christmas & watch while you are in line what others are buying. How many are still putting up outdoor Christmas decorations/lights? Some very elaborate? Some are buying more. That is costing money! People can buy more decorations and pay for Christmas lights and then say we can't afford 6 officers. There are clearly more than in the past who are really hurting. Who may not have a Christmas at all. Children who will be hungry or stop believing in Santa Claus much earlier than in the past because they may get nothing, and that is very sad. I hope everyone will consider doing a bit more for others this Christmas, but again if you freeze salaries even donating will be harder for many. I don't want your salary frozen either. I'm sure you don't want yours frozen, so we should not wish it on others. We should be fighting for everyone.

I just purchased items from two of my cousin's children as fundraisers for their school and community baseball team. What are the fundraisers for? I don't want to take $ necessarily from our chilidren, but if I had to decide between new team uniforms and having a fundraiser to keep an officer, the choice would be an easy one. The children can do without the newest uniform. Again, I'm also not saying if there is any inefficiency it shouldn't be taken care of. It should be taken care of under any economic time. The community should find ways to keep those officers. They should care about them also. Have a fundraiser for them to save their jobs. Figure out what it would cost you to keep your outdoor lights off or figure out if you can go one more year without that new flat screen tv and donate that same $ to them.

One Who Values You wrote:

Yes, companies are closing and people are being laid off but those same people will try for the best paying job also. This is at any level of position or career. Doctors are raising their prices, my acupuncturist raise her prices, how do we pay for this? Officers are paying for the same things as I am. It is a vicious circle but telling them they should freeze their salaries is not the answer.

I agree with much of what you said about the historical contribution of unions to society. But I think that public employees, including police officers, need to have some sensitivity to what the people who ultimately pay their salaries are experiencing right now. The reason they should accept salary freezes is because that is what we are experiencing---at least, those of us who are lucky enough to still have jobs. Actually, the people who've only had their salaries frozen are the lucky of the lucky, because many of us have had our pay reduced, or benefit contributions increased, and our 401K matching reduced or even eliminated.

-JQP

Hmmm Hmmm Hmmm Hmmm Hmmmm.......

Unions are all corrupt?!

There are corrupt Physicans. Should we get rid of the AMA?

There are corrupt Dentists. Should we get rid of the ADA?

There are corrupt Lawyers. Should we get rid of the ALA?

There are corrupt Politicians. Should we get rid of our Govt?

There are corrupt Professional Athletes. Should we get rid of the Sports Unions?

There are corrupt Ministers, Priest, Preachers. Should we get rid of all organized Religion?

There are corrupt Military personnel. Should we get rid of our Military?

There are corrupt Researchers. Should we get rid of all research?

I know you are not saying getting rid of "officers" as an entity but the point I'm making is you don't get rid of the whole organization because there are some corrupt people. You get rid of the individuals. Just like you would take a lisence away from a doctor from being corrupt, you should get rid of the corrupt people within the Unions not the whole organization.

Those who are Anit-Union likely did not experience what it was like when Unions were not in place. Go ask your grandparents or great grandparents. All their hard work you will be throwing away. They do not remember what working conditions were like. They do not remember days when pay was based on race, gender or who you knew. They do not remember when there was no system in place for a grievance. Please don't turn me into the Norma Rae of this blog! :-) You may not think these issues are relevant today, but if you get rid of Unions, just watch what happens under the excuse of "we can't afford it", "it is not necessary" ETC. Ask those who work at Walmart what they would place on their Christmas Wish List for their place of employment. I can't tell you how many people working for corporations who don't have unions & complain about things going on and have no way to do anything about it. Many have been fired for trying. There are corrupt things going on in Unions just like many other areas of life, but lets work on removing it rather than getting rid of the genuine contributions of them.

On previous similar topics many would state, "You should just be lucky to have a job in today's economy." How are officers any different than anyone else? They do not have to pay higher prices for gas, taxes, etc? No one else is asking for a higher pay or trying to find a job with higher pay right now? I know all my students are. People are going back to college to get careers with higher pay. Everyone is trying to get as much pay as they can. Why should they not try to get all they can. Everyone is. Yes, companies are closing and people are being laid off but those same people will try for the best paying job also. This is at any level of position or career. Doctors are raising their prices, my acupuncturist raise her prices, how do we pay for this? Officers are paying for the same things as I am. It is a vicious circle but telling them they should freeze their salaries is not the answer. Then they buy less and that effects the economy as well. I would rather pay for officers, firemen and teachers than many other positions. I'm sorry but I can certainly do without fast food more than an officer. Now, there are many people who are just trying to pay rent or feed their children, but look at all the "shopping" for the holidays. What are people buying? Just shoes and underwear? Again, our grandparents & great grandparents will remember when that is all they got,if that. Our perspective of how "ad off we all are" is skewed by what we were use to. I have students trying to just pay for tuition with their family needs, but then I also have students coming in the classroom with new laptops, IPhones, IPads, IPods, expensive shoes and purses ETC! They are living better than I am!

I'm VERY EAGER to see what happens when a decision is official handed down. I find is very interesting all these govt officials who bad mouth unions were once in bed with them! They rely upon them to get votes!

The only hope to curtail this problem is to simply get rid of the city human resource department in terms of having any responsibility for salaries and pay scales. The same is true of getting city managers completely out of the picture with union bargaining.

Instead, what we need is a city commission that would be charged with overseeing all compensation, benefits, and retirement programs. A commission that would report to the city council and be composed of Naperville citizens who would be appointed by the city council to represent the financial interests of all Naperville residents.

anon, I did mention leaders/managers as part of the problem. Read it again. At this point the supervisors/leaders/managers/admin people who are not in unions are a major part of the problem. They have essentially morphed into the same group as the public union leaders. They want those raises, so they can benchmark off the unions, and get their raises. This is the case for city leaders, school administrators, etc. at local and state levels - and I would not be surprised if the feds are the most abusing of that self-enrichment scheme. So when I mention unions, it is an old story of more money for less work (hey, I suppose if I were in a union, then I would do the same thing). However the trand over the last 25 years, is the admin leaders who really used to be a tool of citizens, keeping a lid on pay and benefits. These administrative leaders are now THE MAIN PROBLEM, enabling the union gains, so they can get their increases - the main goal from day 1 of any negotiation. It's an insult to community service, to taxpayers, to new/future public servants, and to America. They think this will pass too, but it will not this time. By the way the first American city in Michigan asked to go bankrupt, but the state would not allow it because it would reduce their credit rating. The beginning of the end for wasteful spending and out-of-line pay/benefits hopefully.

I love Naperville, a city that is as about well run as any other BEST PLACE TO LIVE, so I bash with love. However, there will be carnage all around us, and that will spill over. I do not want to speak of gloom and doom, because actually, this will be the best thing that ever happened to American cities and states. They will finally run out of rope, and will deal with the fiscal problems, and hopefully, put controls in place so this NEVER happens again. Fingers crossed anon fingers crossed my fellow citizen!

Good to see another 4 police jobs on the city council chopping block. Noticed one of them was a social worker and the savings was $101K.

Got to say that one surprised me... a social worker employed in the police department. It didn't specify if the person is providing social services to the police officers, the public, or both though that does seem like a job that is not consistent with the mission of a police department.

Even the salary is way out of whack with what most social workers earn elsewhere. Which leaves me wondering what other and how many other similar positions exist in the police department because having a social worker is definitely and clearly on the FAT side of the equation and every ounce of FAT should have been trimmed before rank and file police officers were let go.

However, I am in agreement with others considering the overall lack of crime we simply have way too many police officers and we do need to trim the overall police force to more economically reflect the amount of police protection that is needed for the actual amount of crime.

ManUpNaper,

You can't use a rational argument with the Police Union. They don't care about keeping everyone employed. They knew that some cops were going to get fired. They know how everything works. That's their lie. They watched it happen, then, as planned, try to get them rehired, and it might work. I'm really curious to see what the Council Bozos do here. Fieseler will make a motion to get them rehired, and??? I'm sure some back room deals are getting cooked up here. Maybe they will find a bag of money under the Mayor's desk?

Maybe Manup - if I was a Union guy - but I'm not, in fact I work for a small company here in Naperville, private sector as everyone calls it, and we have had cost of living increases 2 of the past three years. The people I am talking about are friends of mine who are not union employees or management at the City, and when I say no raises what I mean is 0% increases, with benefit cuts, which as even you should know, leads to a lower, not a higher paycheck and net income.

Keep saying that Public makes more than private sector - I'm sure you believe it, and I'm sure someone out there does, but of the people I know personally, it simply isn't true.

Clearly, you hate unions - you option - but while you are screaming about how they are ripping you off, where are your comments about City Management raises and perks? City Manager get's 5 digit bonus while non-union workers take cuts and are dismissed. City leadership conitinues to get $400 car allowances while laying off workers and cutting your services. City leaders spend millions on pet projects while ignoring the needs of others in their communities and offices.

Leadership 101 is you don't ask your people to do things you wouldn't do yourself - or maybe that is moral leadership - seems to have gone by the wayside these days. I know it probably sounds crazy to you, but maybe, just maybe, if the people who profess to lead this City, or any organization for that matter, did more than just talk about how others should give things up for the good of the City, maybe if they tried it themselves (and no, someone who has a million and gives back a couple of thousand in an effort to look good doesn't count City Council - a REAL sacrifice would be needed) - maybe then all the talk of taking less to save more would ring more true. Speaking of truth of course, a small dribble of it coming out of City Hall wouldn't hurt either. Who do you know who wants to give up anything for someone who has consistently lied to them? An INDEPENDENT audit of the City financial status showing that the things they say are true, and a detailed accounting of what they have spent all City (i.e. taxpayer) money on might help as well.

Union bash, and put down City Workers in general all you want - but lets not forget where the problems originate, or take the word of people who've openly lied to us, at face value. Just as an afterthought, do consider that even those evil Union workers you degrade are people too - people who have families. They could just as easily have been you or me or your son or daughter or mother or father. Are they all wonderful, generous people? Probably not, but some are, this I know from personal experience. Is Management at the City somehow better or more worthy? Absolutely not.

Face the fact that the police union leadership knew exactly what was going to happen. Face the fact that the police union leadership sold the newest and youngest and least senior police officers down the river at the expense of any other union member who had more seniority.

Everything else is just bluff and bluster trying to present an image that the union cares.... give me a break... the police union doesn't give two hoots about the newest union members when given the choice against other longer term union members.

Like all union members even the more senior members would like to work less hard so they are all for protesting and picketing and doing whatever might help reinstate the lowest seniority officers... buy lets call a spade a spade... if the police union looses and the 6 police officers stay fired all of the other police union members still get to keep their pay raises... and that is all this was about anyway.

Keep your eye on the ball. Always follow the money. Those 6 police officers got sold down the river by their own union even though 200 other union cops held the pig down while they put lipstick on it. What a hoot!

"Works their fingers to the bone in an effort to do everything possible for the City, the reward for them will be, as it has been, zero". To the bone? I don't think so, even though you will say it is a figure of speech. And you got a raise, but still call it zero. Only a union guy would call a raise "zero". I know a guy who spent $200,000 getting undergrad and masters degrees, worked for a top high tech company, then was asked to take a 10% pay cut. Why can't the public unions do the same thing to assure that the most people remain employed - take a pay cut to keep working and redo the benefits to benchmark private industry. The unions always benchmarked private industry until they started making more than private industry. Give something back already, or risk losing it all. Your choice. There are activities already afoot to declare changes made to the Illnios Constitution illegal - and that will lead to the gutting of union pensions - something long overdue. Why needed - because the public unions and administrators (your leaders and managers) took too much from the rest of us. You better voluntarily give up some major ground now, before you lose a lot more later.

About this quote: "Those are the situations where a union is not only a good thing, it is the ONLY alternative 90% of the workforce has. No Union in that situation, the rich get richer - and those who do the work don't have a chance to succeed."

Look, what exactly do you mean by those who do the work, and don't have a chance to succeed? What is success - more money or being a decorated top performer in any organization, who gets bonuses for delivering real value to the organization - like streamling processes and saving costs, like developing new training programs that make better performing organizations. No not that union look at one and only one thing - more money for less work. The utopia for most union people. I say most, because some union people will not say it to their comrads but they know this truth, and many who do not work at the level of pay received. My dad was one of those folks, who led the way for the modern unions, by getting some very basic wage, safety and work rules in his plant. However, when he retired he said the union was all about more money for less work. Yeah, I saw it first hand - in a union family.

The more you throw out those tired stories, the more likely you will eventually have to be crushed to save the community. It is unfortunate, but that's where we are headed. And you are right about those in admin using you to benchmark their own pay - as if they are in a union. You will miss those leaders because they are the ones who clear the way for your raises. And you always get a raise because that assures those leaders get a raise. The ublic is well aware of this ponzi scheme and will have to crush that as well. Just like Governor Christi is doing in NJ. And it is hard to believe we need to look to NJ for direction - the union of union states.

When Christi is done, Illinois will stand as the number one most unionized and corrupt state in the union. And you know what that means? Mass exodus of people and companies who are tired of being taxed and spent to death. But you public unions and administrators will think that this too will pass, until you finally are walking out of the building with your stuff in a box, and no pension at all.

Anon 11/22 11:33;

You hit the nail with your last paragraph. Both sides are to blame. Here's a news flash, both sides know exactly what was going to happen when the Union accepted the City's offer. Whoever is blogging about no layoff language in the contract, please stop. Go get the contract, look at the page that says layoffs on it and read it. Did the City muck it up by not negotiating? Probably, but that won't matter. They can negotiate this week and they'll get the same result. What would those negotiations be like?

City: We're going to lay off cops to pay for your raises.
Union: Why not use taxpayer reserves to pay for the raises? Or how about some new taxes?
City: Ahhhhh, ummmm, no.
Union: How can we get out of this?
City: You can't-NEXT!

The Union knew that there would be layoffs, and who would be laid off, and the City knew that they had to cough up some amount to buy them off to avoid a bigger arbitration settlement. Funny thing is that if the cops got bigger raises, more cops would be canned-and they knew that.

Their only hope is a fear campaign to get more taxpayer cash. How about a restructuring plan? Nah, that's too hard, more cash. They could give a hoot about public safety. It's public money that they want.

Tom,

"This thing is rotting from the top."

Yeah, we know. And it is also rotting from the bottom. Let's not forget the long line of police, fire, ambulance, and other city workers scraping the cream off the top at all kinds of events around the city... shall we mention Ribfest as one over the top example of self-serving union rules that put all kinds of union workers collecting overtime pay at what is supposed to be a community wide charity event?

The unions are not shy about what they ask for in terms of compensation, benefits, retirement, etc. The taxpayers can only expect the managers and administration to get a significantly higher percent of the sam because they are supposed to oversee and manage the whole mess. The more you union guys demand the more we end up paying the managers and administrators.

Despite all the bravo and finger pointing it doesn't escape many of us that both the union and the managers and the administration really like the way things are otherwise there would be more concrete steps underway to change how things are done.

Having observed how things are done and how things have been done in Naperville it is pretty disingenuous for one group to be blaming another group. There is enough blame and greed to be spread around to each and every one of the various groups that have all equally had their hand out at one time or another.

"Educate yourself on Unions"...... hmmm, can you give me one instance where unions have made things better for the community? How about Detroit? Michigan? Peoria? Big 3 Automakers?

You might be surprised that most of us are very aware of the corrupt nature of unions, which is another word for price fixing!

There is a lot of bloat in city hall and it goes to pay for the pet projects that are thrown around each year and bonuses to top staff. The year that employees were talking voluntatry days off to save jobs, the folks in CMO were getting bonuses! Does this make sence? Wake up folks, Tricky Dick isn't the only one costing you a fortune. This thing is rotting from the top. That is why all of the employees are going to unions for help. This is sad, the great City of Naperville falling apart.

Furstenau said it right - ask each person commenting - at the big turnout for cops at the City Council meeting - if they would fund the 6 cop jobs out of their taxes, and they would probably say "NO". I add - ask the cops if they would take cuts in their salaries and benefits - to fund the 6 cop jobs - and they would say "NO". Ask the teachers, firemen, politicians, and other public unions the same questions about their own comrads and they would say "NO". SO don't blame the average citizen for public union jobs, because the public unions are the ones who are sacraficing safety, education and welfare for their own self-enrichment. They earn more $ than company counterparts for the same work, and higher salaries. They have pensions that continue to grow even after they retire. They get career ending bump ups for the sole purpose of juicing the retirement payouts. They have zero pay linked to performance. They get overtime and a salary. So public unions are the ones to blame for higher education costs, diminished health care to the elderly, and unbelievably, the under funding of special needs for children. ALL in the name of self-enrichment at the expense of all other essential needs of America. In some people's view, their leaders - and most politicians who do their bidding so they too can stay in office for self-enrichment - are irresponsible traitors to the American dream. If you cannot freeze or lower compensation now, then when is their going to be a better time of leverage in negotiating. We need more Governor Christis (NJ) in America.

They City can lay off cops, the City can't negotiate a contract that says nothing about layoffs, then turn around and do it three days later. Layoffs have to be negotiated under Union contracts, plain and simple.

The Police accepted a 0% increase, with 12.5 for insurance, and the City Council voted no on that. It's been reported, possibly the Daily Herald??? Still think the City negotiated in good faith?

No one should lose their job in this whole thing - except the City Manager and a handful of his inner circle. With any luck, the City Council members who are running will be voted out in April. That is the only hope that any of this will stop.

Anon 4:14:

You don't make any sense. You say the City can fire cops, then say that they can't lay off cops. They can lay off cops, and I'll bet, unless the City totally screwed this up, which is possible, there is language in the contract that says how layoffs happen.

Also, you are telling me that they cops accepted a 0% raise? How is that possible? I don't believe you.

As for the City Manager, I think that he should be canned for creating the whole mess. He did lie. That I believe. But, the lie was to cover up the inept decision, made by the City Council, to give any raises at all.

A cop from another town told me he could care less about who gets layed off as long as he gets his raise. In Naperville's case, what do the cops want? I live here. Stay away from my reserves and don't cut any more of my services. You are lucky that only six went out the door.

One thing is for sure, I don't think that other City employees should be punished/fired, to pay for Police raises. If that happens the City will implode. Nobody will care about the jobs they do.

One last commen\t, loved the Furstenau BS at the last Council meeting. He has a problem with people in his yard, calls the cops, and three cars come. Three! THEY HAVE NOTHING TO DO IN THIS TOWN, BUT SCREW AROUND WITH KIDS PARTIES AND PEOPLE WALKING IN OTHER PEOPLE'S YARDS. THERE IS NO CRIME HERE. WAKE UP!

JQP,

Nope, not in Illinois.

In Illinois, the fact that both parties met, both parties discussed, and both parties came to an agreement without a need for arbitration pretty much makes any claim of bad faith negotiating a mute point.

The police union would be well advised to learn the legal definitions of good faith and bad faith. To some lawyers and to some judges it is kind of like pornography.... they know it when they see it, but can't define or explain it.

As a general rule, bad faith generally occurs when a party enters into negotiations or continues to negotiate when intending not to reach an agreement with the other party. This may sound simple at face value. The difficult to impossible task is proving the intent. The fact that both parties actually reached an agreement only makes proving the point even more difficult.

Even if the police union thinks the city outright lied to them doesn't make a significant difference. Both parties commonly lie to each other during negotiations, they shift and distort the truth to their advantage, manipulate facts, statistics, etc. A lie on one side, obviously is always a lie made by the "other side", can not be used as an advantage if the complaining party also lied or made t heir own fraudulent claims during the negotiations. Ever heard of two wrongs don't make a right? Everything the police union stated, claimed, or presented during negotiations will be put under an electronic microscope. The city will simply say they lied, we lied, everybody knew the other side was lying to each other and why and informed, rational decisions were made by responsible adults knowing all of the circumstances surrounding the negotiations. It's pretty hard to call the other party a wife beater when your own wife has a black eye and you've got swollen knuckles.

Of course the police union has their "pride". We all know after the DF lawsuit how much "pride" the city can muster. Everyone probably better get settled in and watch once again while all of the plaintiff and defense lawyers get rich and nothing much else happens on this one.

One thing that does not make sense to me is why the city would not have mentioned the possibility of layoffs and used it as a bargaining tool when the new contract was being negotiated. Would it have been a violation of labor laws for the city to do this? Or is it possible the Police Union is pulling our leg when they act as if this came out of the blue once the contract was signed.

Great comments fellow bloogers. Some ramblings...

Agree the Krieger is a puppet. He'll get blamed and canned for the mess at some point. Just get rid of Marshall too. At least Krieger is smart. Marshall is a brainless, double-dipping ex-cop. Go outside and get an old gatekeeper.
I can't understand how people think the the City will lose some sort of unfair labor practice trial and cops will be reinstated. The City can lay off cops and they did. I think that the PD needs to look at how they can put people on the street and quit investigating some lesser crimes. The Union attorney who said something about firing a burglary investigator and not being able to investigate a recent burglary. Really? Tamara, this is s smart community. Cut the crap. You telling me that we have one burglary investigator? We prolly have 20.
We do not have the crime to support the size of the PD. We expanded to meet the PD's wants-when we had money. They must prioritize.
I have to admit, Furstenau is something else. He loves the cops. Dick, remember the lawsuit? You don't like cops and they don't like you. They will not listen to you.

I noticed this morning that the secondcitycop.blog has this issue as thread number two this morning. The handling of this labor negotiation by the city administration is probably going to attract more widespread attention as the handling of the matter progresses during its legal challenges. In addition to spending more hard earned taxpayer money on legal expenses for what in my opinion is simply retribution by the city against the police union, we now have our community portrayed in a more negative manner.

This is the same City Council that, for years, has used severely inflated interest rates to estimate how much money needed to be put away for the police and fire pension funds then, in the eleventh hour of having to pay for their mistake, petitioned the Illinois General Assembly to change the rules so that the millions in delinquent funds would never have to be paid. How long do you think any of us would get away with that regarding our electric bill?

As for taxes, I am a long time resident of Naperville and YES, I would be willing to pay higher taxes to keep the police officers and firefighters on the job. Ladies and gentlemen, our police force in particular is largely responsible for how Naperville is viewed by the world. The gang violence and insanity that is prevelent all around us has consistently failed to take root here in Naperville. The FEAR of getting caught is what keeps it at bay in Naperville and that is directly related to our police force.

So, just how much additional taxes would it take. As I estimate it, it would be no more than $100 per parcel to make up a $5M shortfall. My taxes are already almost 20% lower than a comparable home in Aurora in the same school district. When you think about it, that $100 investment may keep your homes value up by thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars. If crime gets a grip here, as it has in so mant cities our size, your homes value will most surely fall. Look at it as an investment in your future.

Additionally, the City Council has failed to sufficiently look at funding alternatives. It has made no effort to buy out older employees. To do so would surely cost far less than laying off police officers only to have to retrain them later. There are a number of police personnel who are above the minimum age for retirement who may be interested in retireing. That has not been looked at. Think about it, if there is an 18-year-old "wacked-out" intruder in your home in the middle of the night, do you want a 25-30 year old police officer chasing him down or one that is 50 something? Keep the young officers. They are the future of the organization. They are OUR future as a City.

Just think, if a councilmen had not sued the city and cost a million dollars maybe we could have the protection we need and deserve... But, who needs that it is his right to spend our tax money as he sees fit and deprieve us of our basic necessisities... maybe we can ride a bike a to the hospital and save money on the paramedics and ambulances?

The six officers are going to go. Simple as that. The city council didn't have the balls to do it in front of a noisy crowd, but it will happen eventually. And there will be more city jobs axed as well.

I know that may upset some, but first you have to understand the relationship and protection that exists between the city council and the senior managers at city hall and all of the deals they already have in the works, pet projects, grant applications, etc.

None of us knew about the Smart Grid until it was too late.
None of us knew about the Children's Museum until it was too late.
None of us knew about the Navistar deal until it was too late.
None of us knew about Nike Park until it was too late
None of us knew about all of the construction project spending this year until it was too late.

Does anyone actually believe there isn't a whole laundry list of other pet projects in various stages of development where city staff and the city council have made informal promises to do certain things that are also going to cost some more big bucks this year, next year, and in the years to come?

Where in the world do you think the money is going to come from to pay for all of these grand plans and pet projects?

As long as we continue to elect political dinosaurs to represent us they will continue to think we want them to behave like political dinosaurs. Nothing will change until enough people get fed up and demand change by voting new people in office.

Anyone who is a new candidate for office has a golden opportunity to leverage this to their advantage. All they have to do is launch a campaign built on honesty, integrity, trust, respect, accountability, and transparency. It's not likely any of the "old guard" would be eager to get into a public debate on any of these values.

I think my bassist, Robbie Krieger from "The Doors", could run the City of Naperville better then Doug Krieger, who needs to be shown "the door".

Is it possible that Grant Wehrli is the biological son of Dick Furstenau? They both act like spoiled brats!!! I think Dick fathered Grant, but the Wehrli family adopted him at birth...Conspiracy Theory #13....

The City Manager has all the power in this town. He drafts the ordinances, he puts the items on the City Council Agenda, and he does the hiring and firing. The City Council is mostly reactive to what Krieger wants to do. It's rare to see the council really set direction for the city.

So here's a question worth asking: what was the point of bringing up the police head count item at the last council meeting? Whether that agenda item was passed or rejected had no effect on anything. The cops were already fired and would stay fired regardless of whether or not the council formally lowered the police head count. Neither would voting against that agenda item have brought the cops back.

That whole show Tuesday night was pointless.

Did Krieger even consult with the council before he axed those six officers? Did he bring the agenda item just to provide 'political cover' for himself with the union and its members? "Hey, the council lowered the head count so I can't bring anybody back now even if I wanted to."

Or was it the other way around? Word has it that the council voted down a previously proposed contract that presumably Krieger brought to them. Did Krieger bring a salary freeze proposal to the council that they rejected in favor of the 9.3% fiasco? Did that force Krieger to offer a contract he knew the city could not afford? Were the firings not a retaliation against the union, but the city mangers only possible response to a contract he was forced into by the council?

We may never know the answers to these questions because those meetings between the city manager and the city council were not open to the public.

As I wrote in my blog, the city and the police union deserve each other. Bumblers are they all. The citizens of Naperville deserve better.

http://www.libertywatchman.com/2010/11/napervilles-dumb-and-dumber.html

Claimsmark - Exactly right - I doubt anyone would notice the difference if we started with these positions. No reduction in services at all, and efficiency would likely increase x 10.

The grandstanding by some of the council last night was horrible. Saying that there's nothing they can do except lay people off is complete BS. How about some realistic revenue sources? How about the $2 a month for garbage collection people pay when it really costs $12 a month? You're telling me residents won't understand paying $12 a month for garbage? A tall latte costs almost $5; a martini downtown costs around $10 - you are telling me that $12 a month for garbage is outrageous? How about a home rule sales tax? You're telling me that people aren't going to shop in Naperville if there is .25% - 1% additional sales tax added onto a bill? Newsflash, Naperville is the only community in the entire Chicagoland area that doesn't have it. People aren't flocking to Naperville to avoid paying the tax in other towns. If I'm downtown Naperville and something catches my eye, I'm going to get it. I'm not going to sit and contemplate if it might be 1% cheaper someplace else.

When are politicians going to do the right thing instead of saying things to get re-elected?

I was in attendance at the meeting last night. It is my opinion after listening to the reasoning of some of the council members that we should lay off 3 council members and furlough Krieger for 60 days in the upcoming budget period to further efforts to reduce expenses. Department heads should also be furloughed for the same period of time as well. I really do not see why we need the level of administrative government staffing at the current levels given this economy and considering potential budget shortfalls. It just does not make sense to not make these cuts too.

LaC - they will save themselves quite a bit of money if they reinstate the officers - if they don't, they will have to fight with the labor board, that will cost the city HUGE, and ultimately, they will lose because they broke the law - then the money spent fighting this losing cause will be wasted, and the City will have to give the officers their back pay as well. They are wasting everyone's money even as we speak, but arrogance has cost this City so much money already they don't even realize when they are doing it,

MUST ask, why should anyone believe that the City can't afford these or any other salaries right now? I know they SAY that they can't, but they say a lot of things that just aren't true. I am a resident too - and as such I am beyond sick and tired of this City Council and ALL their grandstanding. The most telling line of all last night was probably by Mr. Furstenau - when he said "I am going to explain this because some of YOU'S (nice) just don't understand". Here is the thing - we actually DO understand Mr. Furstenau ....... what this City Manager and the entire City Council needs to do right now is try something brand new - listening to the residents of this City, and listening to the people who actually do the work we as residents need. QUIT trying to tell us all how and why you are so right, and try listening and understanding and consider the fact you folks are so out of touch that you haven't heard a word the people you are supposed to represent are saying.

I'm sure many of you watched the City Council meeting last night. Some comments.

Police-we get it. We'd all, maybe not all, rather have more officers, and in a good economy we could have lots of cops inside and out. Now we can't. You clearly don't care about anybody but yourselves. I'm a taxpayer, most of you are not. Yes the City Manager lied. He lies all the time, move on. Let us decide how many of you we need.

Council-coulld you have done any more to undermine yourselves and the City Manager? Could you have done more to split the staff? Mayor, it is your job to present a united front. You said it in the paper. YOU FAILED. You people are dangerous and foolish-was that Top Gun?

Mayor-resign. Please resign. You are not capable of managing a meeting let alone leading a community in chaos. Miller and Krause-you should make something of this. Don't sit back-attack!

Fieseler-you deserve your own line here. What are you thinking? Is it grandstanding, knowing that you didn't have the votes? If so, you give these six people false hope, then what? If you're truthful, you are just irresponsible. How can you possibly think that this is a good thing? It's humane? What about the other employees you axed? How is that humane and this not?

I can't wait to see the next episode. Honestly, I hope they vote to reinstate the six cops. If there is no revolution after that then we have failed.

From some posts received it appears one blogger is trying to have a debate with him/herself. Please let's not go there.

Thank you,
The moderator

As is opften the case with union negotiations, the union sold out it's individual members by demanding more than could be afforded and "winning".

The City has been clear in all of the meetings that it is way short on bucks and can't afford it ------ yet the union insisted on more. So, they got it at the cost of some individual member's jobs.

That is the way it is, and has been, for decades.

Anon 11/15 9:41,

Agree with your logic on the good faith part, and the seven points, but not on the comment about the Union portraying the City Manager and Council in a bad light. I don't have a problem with their statements. They did lie. The Union won't get anything out of it, but it was a lie. It's not illegal, just unethical, shows poor judgement, and lots of other bad things. They, like the Union, want their cake as well. Push the Union to the wall, make an offer, have the offer accepted, whoops, blame the arbitrator, who never ruled on the matter, whoops, then fire some people without talking to them, whoops again.

I'm all for less cops in total but more on the street, and streamling the departments, all of them, not just Police, but the way it was handled showed inexperience and poor judgement. They could have said nothing and been fine. Just stupid people, pushing their chests out, spending our money.

One last shot. I do hope Mayor McCheese looses, he is terrible, but he won't lose. Someone needs to attack him. That probably won't work, but it's got to be better than saying what a nice guy he is. Here's something I heard recently. He employs two people. Two. To do what? The City has let a bunch of people go, and somehow we need two people to hold the scissors at the ribbon cutting? The fish stinks from the head down.

Anonymous | November 15, 2010 2:59 AM

Another costly lawsuit won't help them, but a new City Manager and an honest accounting of the City resources certainly could. City Council will need to change too, but that is what elections are for.

Anonymous | November 15, 2010 9:41 AM
Proving the City negotiated in bad faith will be simple because there is an inked signed contract. Legally, the City has to negotiate Lay-offs - they didn't. Simple. Beyond that, to prove the City set the police up is equally easy, because the City Council voted down the agreement that had no pay increases, and 12.5 percent on insurance. If the City had signed that agreement, they knew they would look bad when they laid off officers, which was their primary goal so that they could intimidate the other unions. Don't worry, it won't cost much, the City will lose this one so fast they won't have time to waste much money.

I do have to say, I must have missed it when you became the spokesperson for the residents in Naperville? Funny though, everyone I talk to feels exactly the opposite. White there isn't a lot of sympathy for the 3% increases, there is a lot LESS sympathy for the City being able to afford Museums and Statues and Bell Towers and Tax Breaks for Marriott, and Bonus's for upper Management, yet not being able to pay the people who actually do the work in the City. (this is not limited to Police by the way, the City hasn't taken care of it's non-union workers in years).

You do realize as you write this tha. the Police force has already taken significant layoffs right? Last year? Police no doubt didn't like that either, but they didn't protest etc.... because it was done legally, not an underhanded attack like we have just witnessed. You also realize that the City has been laying off non-union personnel for the past two years as well right? YET, while they say this "pains" them, it apparently doesn't pain them enough to give up their own bonus's, or prevent them from "finding" money when there is something someone on the City Council really wants to do.

As I've said before ... love the police, hate the police, love the unions, hate the unions - this isn't really about any of that. This is about the complete lack of integrity that is Naperville City Government, and it can't be tolerated any longer by anyone who cares anything about this City.

Proving the city failed to negotiate in good faith when there is an inked contract is nearly an impossible task. When contracts talk fail and an agreement can't be reached then there may be grounds for failing to negotiate. However when negotiations end and both sides ink a deal the door is pretty much closed in terms of not negotiating in good faith... if the City wasn't negotiating and if the the Police Union wasn't negotiating then how in the world did they get to the point of signing a contract? Beyond to vague allegations and failure to present any true facts in terms of how or when the city failed to negotiate in good faith all this really represents is "buyers remorse" in terms of the Police Union who now want the court to renegotiate the contract for them after the fact now that they have woken up and realized what they actually agreed to. Don't be surprised when this one gets dismissed at the first hearing.

And just so the Police Union is clear on how many Naperville residents feel:
1. The Police Department is excessively overstaffed.
2. The Police Department command structure needs to be reduced.
3. The Police Department pay scale is excessive.
4. The Police Department overtime pay is not being properly managed.
5. The Police Department pension system needs major reform.
6. The Police Department benefits are excessive.
7. The Police Department employee contribution to benefits is inadequate.

While the Police Union feels their status quo should be maintained and the cost of maintaining it found by shifting funds from other areas in the budget there are many Naperville residents who feel the entire city budget is out of control and needs to be reduced and managed more professionally. As one example of this... it isn't a question of not buying a Children's Museum and spending that same money on police officers instead, rather it is accepting the realization that we don't need to own a Children's Museum AND we don't need as many police officers.

What is kind of insulting and aggravating to many Naperville residents is the attempt to portray the city manager and the city council in a bad light by the police union. Everyone knows the mayor is a retired police officer. Everyone knows he has supported everything and anything the police department has wanted the entire time he has been elected. He has bent over backwards to take care of and watch out for the police department and with the same union mentality allowed the police department to get so out of control that we are now dealing with the issues that are before us today.

The Police Union took advantage of and used the mayor to advance their agenda for many, many years. Well, times have changed. By all indications there is a growing number of people who are fed up and want the mayor replaced. No doubt he is a nice guy and a tireless cheerleader of Naperville. However, a retired "Officer Friendly" with a high school eduction doesn't have what it takes to lead one of the largest communities in Illinois through the financial mess we are in. The entire structure and management of Naperville needs to be reengineered and the current mayor has too much baggage tying him to the past to objectively do what needs to be done to set a course for the future nor does he have the skills and experience to even know how to go about getting the job done.

Expect to see the current mayor voted out of office. Once the Police Union looses their staunchest cheerleader on the city council the Police Union can expect to see a lot more department reform coming their way.

I remember watching a city council meeting a few years ago and a lady stepped up to the podium and asked why a child molester continues to work at the police department. She was met with blank stares and received no answer. Just wondering....has this EVER been addressed?

To anon 11/14. All very noble, print it up and enclose it in a basket of food for the families of the non-union employees who ARE going to take in on the chin. How is yet another costly lawsuit over this mess going to help them?

La C - you are right about one thing, the City Manager is just dancing to the beat of the City Council. Sadly, neither the City Manager, nor the City Council, has the integrity to be honest with the residents, or the employee's, and so long as that is the case, no one will trust anything that comes out of the City Managers office. That is really the source of the entire problem - the Council spends on whatever it wants to, but clearly, it doesn't want to spend on taking care of it's people. SO, along comes a contract with the Police, and they decide to play this little game to "show those nasty police officers whose boss", and expect that once they do that, all the other unions will just quiver and fall into line at their feet. Better yet, they get to scare the employee's they've been taking advantage of for the past two years so they wouldn't dare start a union of their own.

Only thing is, everyone is so incredibly sick and tired of the games, that it isn't going to work. The police aren't going to take it on the chin and just go away - the labor board with likely reinstate those 6 officers, and the only ones who will come away looking like fools will be the City Manager and the Council who made the offer in bad faith.

All of the employee's are beyond tired of watching this group suddenly "find" the money whenever they want to do some ego project or help out one of their friends ..... but cry about how tough it is out there whenever pay day comes along. On top of all that, the residents are tired of watching their tax dollars flushed down the toilet. No mater what the tax rate in the City is, no one wants to fund a private failing museum, no one wants to waste millions on a smart grid that they also have to pay consultants to convince them they really do wan, no one wants another statue on the river walk, no one wants another sister city, no one wants to support City Council favored charities through SECA., and no one believes it takes 10 mil of OUR dollars to convince Marriott to take on the premier Hotel location in the City. People are sick and tired of watching Government doing only itself favors, Managers taking $20,000 bonus's, and having this same group dismiss the concerns of anyone who they deem less important than they are.

If it was as simple as police raises, you might almost have a point, but this is so much more complicated than that - this isn't a one incident happening, this is the type of incident that defines this Council and this Management. No excuses for Mr. Krieger "only doing what the Council tells him so he can keep his job". How much is your integrity worth? If any of the City Council members can't figure out yet that they need to move on, it will have to be explained to them. The protest is a start, but it is only that. People aren't a little upset and going to get over all this the way they always have in the past. WE are all going to remember - WE aren't going to let anyone forget - and until the employee's and the residents are treated with the respect they all deserve, this group is not going to get a moments peace.

For you PD supporters out there, I do understand your issue with the City Manager and City Council. They have problems with the truth. But the real victims here are the other City employees not Police Officers. You could have lost people a long time ago. But, the City does need you, so you got a stay of execution. Now, you cost them money. You should have taken nothing and asked for no cuts, but you didn't. You want your cake-and most of you, except for six people, get to eat it.

The City Manager may have said everything was looking better, but that has nothing to do with your deal. Your deal is exclusive to you. To pay for your raises you lose people. The Council is running this show. They direct the City Manager. Blame them. He's trying to keep his job by doing whatever they say.

Also, I think your little protest will only fuel the fire. I think you should do it, because we all want to see what happens to you. Finally, move people out of the building and put them back on the streets. I have friends that are cops. You get older, you want to stay inside, you have seniority, and you protect yourselves. There is no reason that we have to lose people on the street. If the Manager and Council let that happen, they have failed.

Well all this hand wringing is interesting, it misses the point. The NPD has been over staffed for years, and cuts are welcome and over due. Besides, if they wanted to save their jobs, why don't they dust off their radar guns and heavily patrol streets like 75th and Rt 59? They could probably pay for their budget in one week on those two race tracks alone.

La C -

EXCEPT - anyone in the City who pays any attention to what the City Manager has been up to the past several months does NOT blame the cops. Anyone who has paid a minutes attention knows full well the Ctiy is a mess, and that it isn't the fault of the police department.

All the contract arguments will be settled soon enough. The Labor Board will take care of that, so argue it all you want, but their decision will tell you where the truth lies. If the Cops were just trying to play people, they wouldn't have taken the contract there. The City is required to negotiate IN GOOD FAITH, that IS the law, and clearly, they didn't do that - then Mr. Krieger had the nerve to come out publicly and lie about the deal being made by the Arbitrator, not the City? Why do that if the contract had been negotiated in good faith??? This was a show, designed to intimidate the other Unions in the City, and not surprisingly, it has done exactly the opposite.

Claimsmark:

Awesome. My name comes up in threads I stay out of.

My reputation precedes me!

ANON 11/12 12:10am who I suspect is What the ? but no matter who. I doubt people like What the ? are going to allow law enforcement in Naperville to be turned over to the corporate world. Now the City Council make consider it so they can buy more bell towers and museums but I would like you to name some communities where municipalities have turned over law enforcement duties to private companies and disbanded their police forces. Too funny you nut.

Anon -

The front line is what you cut last, not what you cut out of some sense of fairness.

While I don't think anyone working for the city should be getting a raise right now, to answer your question – Yes, the sworn officers should be retained even at the expense of the non-sworn NPD personnel. They're the ones directly involved in defending us. Prioritize. A sworn officer can always answer the phones, push some paperwork, or perform some other function as needed; however, a non-sworn NPD employee cannot come out to my house and make an arrest if needed.

I like your comments about communities outsourcing their policing functions to the sheriff, as if this is an enticing option. Do you think those communities are doing so simply to save money, or perhaps because they're so broke they have no other option? And how many of these communities do you think the sheriff is going to be willing to take on?

You say you want to have the police operate more like the private sector. OK, just what private sector position is comparable? What other job entails the need for legal knowledge, split second decisions, hazardous conditions, and seemingly thankless customers? Just wondering....

T.B.

P.S. A permit to picket? Really? Sounds like a 1st Amendment issue to me. I've heard or parade permits, but never a "picket" permit. Maybe Scott Huber can answer this for us.

June, the truth hurts the Beaver.

Here's more. The contract, like every other Union contract that anyone else has, contains layoff language-even if it says there will be no layoffs duing the duration of this contract. The City, like any employer, can lay anyone off, any time. The Police are pandering to the masses.

Anon, you're right. They would never give up their raises to keep Officers. If they were truly concerned about safety in the community, they would. They want it both ways. Raises and no cuts. Can you imagine what other City workers must be thinking? That place has to be a mess. Krieger lost the cops, everyone else is under their desks blaming the cops, the Council (who is running the show and has no experience managing anybody) is drinking martinis at home (except DF who is at Hooters).

So, Mayor, the guy who leads us. What are we supposed to do? Anyone read the DH article where he siad he was just sooooo sad that they asked for raises. Soooo, sad. HE IS THE MAIN PROBLEM. HE IS WEAK.

Anonymous | November 12, 2010 12:10 AM

You haven't got a clue about what the City has been up to, so until you fill yourself in, I'd be careful passing judgments that are patently incorrect.

Just out of curiosity, when was the last time you turned down an increase from an employeer? Did you ask them when it was offered to you if they were sure they could afford it?

The state of the City Budget according to the City manager has changed every time he has spoken for the past several months. It is possible, if not probable, that the City is in perfectly good shape and could completely afford the pay THEY OFFERED. Unless you have proof to the contrary, I'd suggest you move on to comment on something about which you have some actual knowledge.

Fun!

Anonymous | November 12, 2010 12:10 AM | Reply

Every word and every assumption you make here is incorrect. If the Police Union "should have known" then why in the world could the CITY MANAGER not tell them, or anyone else what the plans for this years or next years budget were??? If the Police should have known, the City Manager, and City Council, certainly should have KNOWN, and also, given an ounce of Integrity, would have said.

Did the Police Union ask for a no lay off clause or guarantee in the union contract?? Did they get one??

The only thing that is relevant are the terms agreed in the contract.

If the police union made ASSUMPTIONS and then they turned out to be incorrect they can only blame themselves.

The city has a budget and every department should be expected to come in at or below budget. Any department that goes over budget isn't being managed correctly, effectively, or efficiently.

The police union knew or should have know what the city budget and the police department budget is for this year and what is proposed for next. If not, they didn't do their homework.

At the same time the police union should have been able to figure out what they were demanding at the bargaining table and how that amount in terms of pay raises and retroactive pay, etc was going to impact the current and future year budget.

It doesn't take much work with a four function calculator to determine that the new salary scale is going to exceed the budget. Since Naperville isn't the US Government it isn't as easy as just printing more money like the feds are prone to do in a similar situation.

So something had to give. Possibly the police union was thinking that what was going to give was 6 jobs in the fire department or 6 jobs in the finance department, or 6 jobs in the street department... anywhere but 6 sacrosanct police officer jobs.

Seems somewhere in city hall someone has finally started laying down the line and demanded that department heads toe the line on department budgets. Step one in the right direction. If the police chief can't live within his budget then we need a new police chief.

At the same time the police officers knew full well the city was running a deficit yet they demanded a pay raise. And they demanded a pay raise percentage that no one in the private sector is getting.

If those 6 police officer jobs are so sacrosanct then let's see the entire police officer union ban together and agree to no pay raise so those 6 officers can keep their job. That very thing has happened countless times in the private sector. But that is not what is happening. All 178 police officers want the pay raise and they want the 6 officers to keep their job and get a pay raise too. The police union wants their cake and wants to eat it too. Sorry money doesn't grow on trees.

The law enforcement community better keep an eye on what is happening in other related areas. There are already private prisons because the private sector can manage and operate prisons more cost effectively than the government. There are other state and federal prisons who are outsourcing many of the jobs to independent contractors. Private security firms are on the verge of outsourcing entire municipal police departments in a growing number of communities in several states. Communities in hundreds of cities, including dozens in Illinois, are shutting down their local police department and contracting with the county sheriff because it simply is a more economical way to provide police protection.

The days of the local police department and a police union having a stranglehold on the local community are numbered and the message is loud and clear... get your cost of operations under control, get your benefits in line with the private sector, or you will end up being replaced.

LaCucaracha: Go back to Mexico!!!!

La C .... there is no reason to believe the Police knew there would be layoffs if they accepted the offer. No where in the offer was there any note made of that, and if you watch carefully, you will notice that no one at the City has ever even said they were told. The City will say they should have known etc..., but the truth is, there is no reason to believe the Police knew any such thing.

Here's the thing about the "they should have known because of the budget crisis" etc..... As recently as maybe 6 weeks ago, Doug Kreiger was telling everyone who would listen how much better things were getting (note that he was trying to discourage unrepresented employee's from Unionizing at this time) - that he didn't know that any RIF would be necessary - that the budget for this year was in balance, and that there was approx $2,800,000 to be made up for 2012. This was reiterated by the City Council at their tax levy meeting. They could balance the 2012 budget by keeping tax bills stable (using a slightly higher percentage rate because of the decline in home values) .... but they "challenged" the City Staff to find $2,800,000 in savings for them.

ANYONE who might be following all of that, would have NO REASON to believe that the City was in such CRISIS that an offer they themselves extended was going to leave them in such a horrible hole that laying off 6 office 3 days later was going to be the only possible solution.

Like the police, hate the police .... love the Unions, hate the Unions, none of that matters here, what matters is that this City Manager, this City Council, and this City Staff, lied flat out - this time to the Police Union, but can anyone possibly believe they wouldn't do exactly the same the residents or any other person who works for/with them?

You realize too that the City says they didn't want it to go to an Arbitrator because they were afraid the award would be worse than what they had to offer. You do realize of course that the Arbitrator WOULD have considered the City's ability to pay in whatever decision it made, and that the City would have lost their ability to say the deal was too great a burden to bear at that point?

In MANY cases a situation like this is the fault of both parties, but this is not one of those cases. This was the City punishing the Police Union, and trying to make an example of them for the rest of the City Union personnel, as well as those employee's who are considering organizing at this time. It was game playing, and they did it VERY VERY badly, and at the expense of 6 police officers who had absolutely nothing to do with the situation.

The City should be overwhelmingly embarrassed by what they have done - there should be resignations and/or firings, and the upper management/council owes the entire City, residents and staff, an apology.

Instead of a customer bill of rights for the silly smart grid, perhaps a pledge of integrity by all those involved would prove more valuable.

For those who think the City broke some kinda law ----- want to share it with the rest of us?

Newsflash for you: there is no law preventing layoffs.

Anon,

You wrote: "According to the current budget, there are/were 179 commissioned police officers."

That would seem to indicate even AFTER the laying off of 6 officers police staffing would actually be better than was previously reported by June.

Maybe additional cuts should be considered. If we don't need all of these patrol officers then do we really need all of these investigators either? What about shrinking the size of the command structure and completely removing a couple of layers?

What about a no double dipping policy between sworn officers and civilian police employees? What about reducing the amount of staff allocated to helping fight crime outside of Naperville? What about outsourcing some of these jobs/functions/duties to private companies or independent contractors?

There are many, many opportunities to reduce cost and waste and to use financial resources more wisely. So far not a lot of real effort has gone into making significant cuts and more smoke and mirrors more than anything else has been used trying to maintain the status quo and just ride out the storm.

The spin from both sides is interesting. Here's my take.

The PD certainly knew that accepting the City's offer would result in layoffs. They even know who would go. The process is in the contract. So, they LIED.

Krieger stupidly blames the arbitrator. He didn't have to. He's inexperienced. He could have said, um, nothing. I believe he does have to talk to the Union before he fires people. Even if he didn't he should have, then fired officers. So, he LIED.

Now, the Police want to tell us that OUR community is unsafe. How many cops actually live in Naperville? Not many I'd guess. So, FEAR MONGERING.

What's missing? Where is the Police Chief in all of this. The City Attorney says that the Police Department can operate with seven fewer officers. Really? How does she know that? I thought she ran the legal group, not the Police Department. I wonder if Dial gets blamed for all of this? It makes sense and allows Krieger to save his job.

In short, I think that the City had to cut cops to pay for the contract. I think that the cops knew that. The cops would rather see anyone from any other department go before them. They are truly selfish. I think the CIty is firing a shot over other Union's bows-which is fine by me.

Fire more cops-get rid of the ones sleeping in the building, and keep the same number on the street. Fire the City Manager. Get someone with 20 years of City Manager experience and stabilize the City, He has had years to do it and failed.

According to the current budget, there are/were 179 commissioned police officers. Total police dept employees are/were 284. It was 310 in 07-08; 299 in 08-09; 285 in 09-10; and 284 in 10-11. That number will be reduced by the current layoffs.

http://www.naperville.il.us/emplibrary/FY11AOB.pdf

pg 103 ff (pg 131 ff of pdf)

Contract Law 101. It takes two parties to both agree to ink an agreement.

So the City of Naperville made an offer. If the Police Union didn't like the offer it never should have accepted the offer.

From what the Police Union is saying it sounds like they didn't read the agreement or they didn't understand what they were agreeing too. Buyer beware or stop and get legal advice before signing. No one held a gun to the police union and made them sign.

Just because the City made an 11th hour offer before arbitration was to begin changes nothing. No different than a settlement reached before a jury reaches a verdict. All perfectly legal. If the Police Union doesn't understand Illinois law then how in the heck can the Police Union members enforce it effectively? Despite all of these police officers having at least a college degree they don't seem to grasp the basics of what transpired.

Sounds like a bunch of spoiled kids who are having a temper tantrum because they don't always get their own sweet way. Expect to see this complaint/lawsuit get dismissed promptly.

What is really funny in all this is that the City Manager was running around telling employee's how much better things were getting, and that the deficit wasn't bad, definitely manageable, as recently as a month or two ago. Of course at that point, he was trying to keep people from Organizing with AFSCME, so that story suited him. It really was only after the Police accepted this offer THAT THE CITY MADE, that he again began crying about the dire financial position of the City. Point is, let's not jump to conclusions here and just accept Mr. Kriegers word that things are "dire". How a City goes from a deficit of 2.8 million or less (when the City Council met a few weeks ago this was the figure), to the now 5 - 7 Million is interesting. Creative accounting is nice, but I wouldn't trust my future or that of anyone else on the "word" of Doug Krieger. It's been a long time since the City Manager has had any kind of relationship with the truth.

When I was layed off in 2002 I felt shocked but definately NOT alone. If I had gone back to my office and refused to leave they would have had me arrested. This would happen to anyone else as well. So now I see that our layed off cops are refusing to leave their jobs, will they be arrested? I doubt it. Just for the record boys your jobs left you so get over it. There is life after a lay off...believe it and stop whining.

Last time I checked you needed a permit to picket in Naperville.

Will the Naperville Police Department Union pull a picket permit application? Will the application be approved?

And if the Naperville Police Department Union picket gets unruly the who is going to arrest them?

Who guards the centurions?

I appreciate the what the police do for the City, but there is a new reality. We can no longer guarantee employment, give out 3% raises each year and fund a pension system that lets an officer put in their time, "retire", take another job in another town and then collect a pension from that town.

It is not the officer's fault, it the fault of a Union that knows this compensation is unsustainable. Finally, the City has made a decision about what we would like to have and what we need to have in terms of staffing. Now the Union starts the name calling, accusing the City of negotiating in bad faith and fear mongering.... Oh we will be so unsafe, Oh how can this happen to the brave men and women that "walk the thin blue line".... Cut elsewhere, dont put the city at risk.

Well most people are lucky to have jobs, much less get guaranteed annual raises and pay alot more than what the new contract asks the police to pay for health insurance. If the Unions dont get it, the member should. If they dont like their job, I bet there are ALOT of very qualified Veterans, looking for work who would gladly "walk the thin blue line" in Naperville after really putting their lives on the line for us.

An article today says that the city made the offer on this deal immediately before the arbiter became involved. If that is the case, then the city has a definite problem on their hands.

Let's get back to the initial posting by the Naperville Sun editors at the top of this thread that said, in part, "City Manager Doug Krieger said he could see no alternatives other than layoffs to balancing the budget, adding that more personnel cuts could follow."

I don't know about the majority of people, but I do know that my household lives by a written monthly budget. I know exactly how much money comes in and how much money goes out every month. As such, except for emergencies, there are few surprises. I live within my means; so I don't sign contracts up front for items I know I can't afford (like Doug Krieger is doing with the police department contract). Krieger's actions are simply irresponsible and inexcusable, and as such, he should be ousted. If the city's budget is so close to the edge that half a dozen police officers' salaries are putting it into the red, then we obviously don't have any dollars left over to provide for Krieger's severance pay, bonus, or pension as the door hits him in the butt on his way out of town.

TB, who do you think they have been laying off for the past 2 years, to cut 10 percent from the department? That would be the paper pushers that answer your 911 call or handle prisoners or pick up your stray pet or accept payment on your parking ticket or fix all the department technology, etc. They are the positions doing more with less. The sworn have thus far been affected almost exclusively by attrition. No one wants to be discarded, but would it be more acceptable to you to have one group get almost a 10 percent raise all the while paying less for better health benefits, then lay off the other group (no raises, less benefits)?

If I saw the management of the City putting the interests of the citizens at large first, layoffs of city workers would not bother me like this does. It is my opinion emergency workers and city workers in general who provide the front line services the city has obligated itself to deliver should be the last to be laid off. The problem of course is the award is not a significant amount of money when you consider expenditures on this so called green energy grid, the green energy plant downstate under construction and way over budget, (you don't hear much about it, another failing of the journalists in town) of course the $3.5 MIL for the Childrens Museum purchase, expenditures on Sister City programs to name a few examples of wasted taxpayer dollars. Lets no make any mistake about this, the lay off has little to do with money and all about retribution. It is my opinion Doug Krieger is a liar when he or anyone else in city government maintains the position that we cannot afford the decision of the arbitrator. The City of Naperville has plenty of money. The issue is how the City of Naperville wants to spend it. And I for one am pleased they union is challenging the city with a labor violation complaint. You can add to my short list legal expenses associated with fair labor law violations as more wasted taxpayer dollars. I think I will make some time next Tuesday to be at the rally and march to the hall. I hope there wiil be a good showing. It may be very interesting.

Thank you, June, for an informed opinion. Anon was running at the mouth with too little info. Someone who starts a sentence with “everyone knows” usually doesn't.

It was extremely disappointing to see six officers let go and none of the support staff. No offense to the support personnel, but the officers are on the front lines and we need them more than we need paper-pushers.

Where is Krieger's (and the city's) priority. Millions for pet projects left and right, but cuts to safety. As I've argued in the past, every dime helps and there are plenty of places to save. How about ending curbside leaf collection? Maybe the money saved keeps one PD job. “Wealthy” cities like Park Ridge bag and sticker all their leaves. Why not here? What other freebies do we take for granted that we don't really need? Where's the city's priority? Safety? Or leaves, bell towers, museums, test tracks and hotels?

T.B.

Well June,

The last time I saw numbers posted on the city website it indicated about 200 plus officers... their numbers not mine. If you have something factual to back up 150 bring it on.

However, the police department still has a listing posted naming every police department employee and it totals 305 people. Their list, not mine. On the outside chance that through retirement, resignation, etc that the total number of sworn officers is down to 150 then it makes it even more lopsided in terms of having 1 support person for every sworn officer. Someone needs to take a red pen to that list because it is chock full of waste.

Having 20 officers per shift in a city of 140,000 people the is about 35 square miles means we have one officer for every 7.000 residents and/or about one officer for every 1 3/4 square miles of area. Considering the overall crime rate that seems a little excessive, but as you pointed out there is vacation, sick days, etc. to consider.

Now that you have pointed out that we have 80 patrol officers and 70 "bosses" of various titles I'm even more upset. That is almost one boss for every patrol officer. That is just unnecessary and inefficient. Cut out the waste in middle management. These officers are highly trained, highly educated and they don't need to be "supervised" to death like some kind of unskilled laborer do they?

Bring in some outside efficiency experts to make t he cuts because it is clear Chief Dial doesn't have the will or the objectivity plus he has a vested interest in justifying his own inflated salary because of the sheer size of the department. If he won't find more ways to trim the fat and be more efficient then we either need to replace him with someone who will or bring in some outside experts and do it for him. And if we have to hire outside experts then we should all wonder why we are paying him because he obviously is not being an effective or efficient administrator. Maybe he should spend less time writing opinion pieces for the newspaper and spend more time trying to find ways to make his department more efficient.

Mr. Anonymous: You need to get your fact straight before shooting off your big yapper. There are about 150 sworn officers at NPD. Out of that 150, approximately 80 are assigned to the Patrol Division. The other 70 officers are made up of Sergeants, Commanders, Deputy Chiefs, and Investigators. The Investigations unit is then made up of Major Crimes, General Assignemt Crimes, Juvenile, and Student Resource Officers. Now back to Patrol Division...of the 20 officers per shift, 2 are allowed to be on vacation, and throw in a sick call or 2, and Patrol is running lean. I will agree with you on one topic..Doug Krieger has no clue how the police department is run...I doubt he even knows where the police department is located at. This clown needs to go...not the police officers. Trust me...when you really need a police officer and have to call 911, your opinion will change...

So it's ok with you then anonymous that the City breaks the law bargaining in bad faith, takes perks for themselves, and wastes millions in tax money? Police get a raise or they don't, doesn't matter to me, it is the complete lack of principle displayed by this City Management that bothers me. How can that NOT bother anyone who lives in the town????

Six officers? With this budget mess it should be more like 60. The fat on the city payroll is out of control and hasn't even been touched with what has been done to the city budget to date.

The Naperville Police website lists a total of 305 police department employees. The last time I saw the number of sworn police officers it was just over 200. With the attrition it is probably now down to right around 200.

That still leaves one support person for every two sworn police officers which is just ridiculous.

Everyone knows the city is running 4 shifts of police officers... 200 divided by 4 is about 50 officers per shift. Yet today the Naperville Sun reported the City Manager as stating there are 20 officers per shift and then goes on to contradict himself by saying there are only 14 officers working the midnight shift. Well 20 times 4 equals 80 and 80 is a heck of a lot less than 200 so where did all of these officers go? Or is the City Manager just referring to the number of officers on the street? If we have 20 sworn officers on the street and 30 sworn officers not on the street every shift plus all of these support people one has to start asking what are they all doing?

Are we building a government employment bureaucracy or are we operating a lean police department with enough officers on the street to keep things reasonably safe for the citizens of Naperville? All of our police officers have been required to have a college degree for something like at least the last ten years, maybe even longer, to even get hired; plus they receive tons of continuing education at our expense and get reimbursed to continue their formal education. A police department that is that highly educated does not need a hierarchal, out dated supervisory structure that dates back to the turn of the last century. It is time to reorganize the police department once and for all and get rid of all of the fat and waste with out of date and out of touch middle management positions and get sworn officers out from behind desks and back into patrol cars. And while we are at it maybe someone can inform the City Manager how many police officers really work over on Aurora Avenue...

I am not nearly as concerned about public safety as I am about the loud statement this makes about the lack of credibility of our city manager, Doug Krieger, and any of his management team that was involved in these negotiations. The police union bargained in good faith to reach its agreement, and no one apparently forced the hand of Krieger's team to sign the contract that included these pay raises. Period. Krieger's actions are underhanded and slimy, and they say all I need to know about his lack of credibility and character. I'm sure Krieger would argue otherwise, but public servants don't get to grade their own report cards -- we citizens get to do that! Krieger has failed the citizens of this fine city and irreparably tarnished the credibility of our city manager's position in the eyes of the suburban community. He will no longer get any respect because he simply doesn't deserve any. The best Krieger can do now is to step down in shame (and without severance pay, bonuses, pension, etc.).

Typical posturing by this City Manager and City Council. Two years of layoffs, and their solution to their own overspending? More layoffs. People have to remember that Childrens Museum purchase - bet 3 Million Dollars could have paid a lot of Police Officers as well as other workers. OR maybe if we had stuck to the original budget on that Smart Grid and put it in place over several years instead of grabbing at the ego fueling Government Grant that ultimately cost the City a minimum of 2 Mil more than it needed to? Could have funded that second brush pick up if we'd lived without that Tracey Statue on the Riverwalk. 10 Mil in tax incentives for Marriott so they will buy and renovate the Holiday Inn Select? Looks like a pretty good location for Marriott, free market should be plenty of incentive for a business to buy and operate a hotel there? Maybe some incentive really was necessary, but 10 Million? Yeah right. What if we sold that wonderful test track that the City likes to pretend someone uses?

Maybe we could have touched on a few of those perks City Management enjoys? How much was that Bonus the past two years Mr. Krieger? And if we threw in the amount handed out to say the top 5% of Management? Car allowances? Really? Those people who you lay off, and those who have worked for you without a penny in pay increases for the past two years actually pay for our own cars! Can you imagine that!

Doug Krieger and friends haven't told the City or the staff the truth in so long no one would recognize it if they tried. It's a very sad state of affairs, and the very people who should be embarrassed by this think they have everyone fooled. I wonder what number Naperville will rank in the Best Cites category by next year? If these people are allowed to continue running the City into the ground, we won't even make the list.

Don't just blog people, VOTE come April! Meantime, don't let these folks think they have you fooled - write, e-mail, call, visit City Hall and let the City Council and this City Manager know we aren't all idiots, and we care more about our City and our City Services than we do about their pet projects and their perks.

"All it takes for evil to win is for good men to do nothing." Do something!