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SWTION 2 I'Xt.K 1-I'l.AIM)KAI.KR--FRIDAY. AI'KII. IS. 1977 PlIBMC PHLSK (The Plaindealer invite* the publie to u«e thin <*»luiiin hh an expreHHion of their view on MibjeetN of general intereMt in our community. Our only requewt in that the writer* give-Nignature, full ad- drena and phone num­ ber. We a«k too, that one individual not write on the same nubjeet more than onee eaeh month. We reserve the right to delete any material whieh we consider libelous or in objeetional tawte.} POINTS TO PONDER "Dear Editor: "Much has been made of the fact that city officials did not know of clerk's fees. They could have known. It wasn't necessary. "The State of Illinois and county offices did not consult local councils about ap­ pointments. It had nothing to do with city salaries. It seems hard to get that point across. It was explained with many other points in a published letter some months ago. I now find that some people did not read it. I can have copies made for anybody interested. It is still a surprise to many that I fur­ nished office space, equipment and clerical help for many years without cost to the city. It has never occurred to me to ask the city to go back and pay for those years. "Thirty-eight years of day and night service to the city is appreciated by many. They have been kind enough to tell me so "Some of my personal records were left in the City Clerk's office when I retired. If I had anything to hide, that would have been stupid. "I have yielded to the wishes of true friends in writing this letter. The subject seems to have had enough airing. Their opinion is that McHenry must move forward. "My salary was com­ paratively low for many years. Some time after taking over the duties of city collector, it was found that a clerk could also be paid for that responsibility. Water and sewer billing had been done by a city collector, not in the clerk's office. Guess I was naive enough to think it was in recognition of years of service. "A few months before I retired. City Attorney Bernard Narusis made a remark that I was doing the work of a city manager. I- couldn't take that much credit. Others deserved to share credit. However, he recognized what was being done in handling some very big projects without any horn tooting. "After much research, Alderman William Bolger presented a report to the City Council on Oct. 18, 1976, showing that clerks throughout the county received fees exactly the same as in McHenry. Unfortunately this was not picked up by the news media. , "Officials at higher levels were not aware of the changes in the amendment to the State Constitution. i-- "The Department of Con­ servation, with offices in Springfield, did not know of the change: The department's recent letter to clerks, dated Feb. 17,1977,stated: 'No longer may they consider these fees as personal compensation'. Note - 'No longer'. "After over half a lifetime of conscientious service to the City of McHenry, I would Mke to enjoy a few years of retirement without attempts to smear my character. Maybe I am entitled to that much. "Respectfully, "Earl R. Walsh" MORE ON CLERK FEES "Dear Sirs: "I had hoped the last word was said long ago on the matter of our city clerk's fees and the 1971 Illinois Constitution; however, it seems several persons have felt it necessary to dwell on the subject, most likely to make it a pre-election issue. "Since our aldermen felt it their duty to overrule the city attorney's opinion on the legal position pf the City Council and instead motion that the matter be dropped, I fail to understand why others can't do the same. After all, don't we elect the aldermen we feel will do the best job possible for us? And if so, why do we dispute their decisions? We may at any time contact our aldermen to discuss city problems or issues. If we don't feel they will present our views to the City Council as we wish, we may attend the City Council meeting and speak ourselves (after having asked to be put on the agenda). "Backto the problem, though. "I am afraid I must agree with Alderman Bolger about the question of why this entire audit and the sequences following it were handled in such a strange manner. "There is no doubt that it is good that the matter has sur­ faced and now been corrected. It is unfortunate that our mayor or other city officials weren't aware of this change in the 1971 Illinois Constitution so that they could have corrected the procedure at the time the law was altered. Now it is too late to erase the problems this whole issue caused. "Perhaps Mr. and Mrs. Becker don't realize how ex­ tremely difficult it would be to determine the amount our previous clerks would owe for the! fees they collected. The insurance monies that had to be repaid were recorded so the amounts were known. "Everyone knows that there are laws for a government to run by. However, there are times that these laws are not quite as important as the amount of damage they can sometimes do to innocent people and thank God there are still people who agree. "Terry Wilde and Earl Walsh have done no intentional wrongdoing while they served as city clerks. Why must they be constantly subjected to the unnecessary publicity they receive? They did their jobs as best they knew how. "There are many unan­ swered questions about the clerk fee hassle. Not only the money issue people seem to have stuck in their minds but also the question of why McHenry's procedure and McHenry's clerk(s) were so indelibly splashed through the county's publications when the same auditor uncovered the same situation in our neigh­ boring town and' for some reason chose to keep that quiet. Perhaps this question should be debated awhile. "I'd like to close my article with just two questions: Did God create us to be computers going only by the programming we have fed into us or did he make us human beings capable of erring_ but im­ portantly able to feel com­ passion, understanding and concern for ourselves as well as others? "Valorie Hobson "4308 Sioux Lane" ZONING POSTPONEMENT "Editor: "Having served for eight years as an alderman on the McHenry City Council, I would be the last to deny that politics plays somewhat of a role in some decision making. I cer­ tainly question that which took place prior to and at the April 4 meeting concerning the Rt. 31 zoning. "I cannot call to memory another such incident when a motion was made to defer on a recommendation of the Zoning board. I am absolutely sure that in my eight years of ser- vifce it never happened coin­ cidental with an election. "I would particularly question the statements ot Alderman Datz where on one hand he states he was in at­ tendance at both the Plan commission, of which he is chairman, and the Zoning board hearing where he states (Plaindealer quote) 'we heard and saw a lot of information about this whole problem that is not available to us now'. He then votes to defer action till May 2 for 'lack of information'. The information, at these hearings is supposed to be public information and if it was available, as Alderman Datz says it was, why could he not or perhaps the same person who made it available at the hearings, make it again available. It isn't as though they didn't know it was oh the agenda. "It is quite obvious to me that a lot of people wasted an evening by coming to the Council meeting! expecting results onthe zoning matter. There is more than one source of information relating how some aldermen were sure on Saturday, April 2, that the zoning matter would be post­ poned at the April 4 meeting. This would be quite at variance with some of the statements at the meeting about 'just as soon vote the issue tonight'. "Jerry Rogers "4316 W. Shore Drive" MORE ON REZONING "Dear 'Pulse' "I fail to see how the City Council members plea of 'ignorance' as to the matter of rezoning the 12 acres on Route 31 can be viewed as anything except a political farce. "Surely the City Council does not take the voters of McHenry for complete idiots...or do they? "Geri Neubauer "2918 W. Virginia "Country Club Subdivision" Reflect your lifestyle 7. . Create a new interior dimension with panels Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home! Whether you are the type who frequently enjoys en­ tertaining others or just relaxingiwith family mem­ bers, the interior of your home mirrors your life style. Active entertainer!!! 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Now, wall panels break away from the conven­ tional paneled look by introducing innovative surface treatments antl di­ mensional effects for to­ day's interiors. Some of the texture is subtle. Panels with special color-toning on real hardwood face verfeer sup­ ply the customized look of leather to suggest a salute to skilled craftsmanship. Other textures are bolder with embossed vertical grooves and random cross- scoring to simulate a nar­ row board effect, so popu­ lar in the decorating trends currently sweeping the nation. Spy Reports During World War 11, a Japa­ nese spy based in Washington, DC. reportedly told his su­ periors that there was nothing to be gained by bombing the Capitol. He said that if only one building were destroyed, noth­ ing would be accomplished. "They've already got two other b u i l d i n g s c o m p l e t e l y s t a f f e d d o i n g t h e s a m e t h i n g , " t h e s p y reported. • ••••••••• ELECT ROBERT L. BLAKE City Treasurer Mature pecan trees need fertilizing in early March. Check with your dealer for the right time and type needed in your area. ENTRUST THE CITY'S PUBLIC FUNDS TO A MAN OF EXPERIENCE AND INTEGRITY WHO WILL MAKE THEM WORK FOR YOU. This is the first time Bob Blake has sought public office but it is an office he has been preparing for all his life in McHenry. He is currently the chief ac­ countant for Gearmaster, Incorporated of McHenry. Before that, he operated his own accounting firm. This experience will enable him to make sure that the city gets the maximum interest possible on city funds. There will be no idle funds when Bob Blake is city treasurer. (PAID FOR BY CITIZENS FOR BLAKE, WILLIAM J. BOLGER, CO-CHAIRMAN) * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ^ * i l ^ i ^ * i ^ * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * One Candidate Who Stands Out From The Rest ROBERT G. SCHMALING FOR ALDERMAN OF WARD I I believe in responsible local government, which works for the people. I am concerned with the problems facing our city, and feel that I can use my experience to benefit the people of McHenry. 20 Year Resident of the City end Ward • 25 Years in Construction Trades • Charter Member of the McHeniy Rescue Squad • 13 Years with the Same Local Firm MAYOR 'Usurer Overmen WR ward SCHMALING