IT’S YOUR WRITE
Jeff and Kim Gurba
Crystal Lake
Walkup would represent voters
To the Editor: McHenry Board Chairman Joe Gottemoller is a classic case of a politician who represents special interest groups. Joe’s law practice represents developers and Realtors. The result is support of projects that benefit his clients at the expense of taxpayers. Joe worked to install a power plant in Oakwood Hills despite the opposition of voters. He represented the Fraternite of Notre Dame commercial development. He worked to bias the Unified Development Ordinance in favor of development that often could raise taxes. Michael Walkup represents no special interest group and would objectively evaluate the impact of projects on property taxes. He fought to stop a $100 million traffic interchange that would have raised taxes and harmed local business. He was instrumental in reforming the
Joseph L. Daleiden Woodstock
Schofield’s strong commitment
To the Editor: I’m writing in support of Carolyn Schofield’s candidacy for state representative. I first met Carolyn when she was on the Crystal Lake City Council working to get a rain barrel ordinance in place for the city. She was wonderful to work with and was committed to getting things done. Carolyn still has a strong commitment to the environment and to water issues in her role on the McHenry County Board. As Mike Tryon, the only state representative with a degree in environmental sciences, prepares to retire, I can think of no better person to fill his shoes than Carolyn Schofield. We need an environmental voice in Springfield to help protect our precious resources for our future generations. Because Carolyn Schofield has an engineering degree with an environmental specialty, she would be a perfect replacement for him. Please vote for Carolyn Schofield. Pat Dieckhoff Crystal Lake
Regna is the choice
To the Editor: In studying the Republican candidates for McHenry County state’s attorney, I see two distinct choices. Dan Regna is a 23-year resident of McHenry County, while Patrick Kenneally moved here last summer from Lake County. Dan Regna has 21 years of legal experience, while Patrick Kenneally has only eight years. Dan Regna served nearly 10 years as a prosecutor, while his opponent has served only seven years as a prosecutor. Dan Regna has more than 11 years in private practice with broad experiences in administrative, business, criminal defense, family and real estate law, while Patrick Kenneally has no private practice experience. Dan Regna has 18 years of honorable military service, while Patrick Kenneally has no military service. Dan Regna has volunteered extensively in our local community, while Patrick Kenneally has not. Clearly, Dan Regna is the McHenry
29 HOW TO SOUND OFF We welcome original letters on public issues. Letters must include the author’s full name, home address and day and evening telephone numbers. We limit letters to 250 words and one published letter every 30 days. Election-related letters are limited to 150 words. The deadline to submit an election-related letter is 5 p.m.
March 9. All letters are subject to editing for length and clarity at the sole discretion of the editor. Submit letters by: • Email: letters@nwherald.com • Mail: Northwest Herald “It’s Your Write” Box 250 Crystal Lake, IL 60039-0250
County choice to be our state’s attorney.
are put in the paper as news.
Bob Vogel
John Meyer
Gottemoller puts people first
Tirio’s specific plan
Woodstock
To the Editor: I have known Joe Gottemoller for as long as I have served as mayor of Crystal Lake, and I have personally observed him to be a leader who always puts the people in our community ahead of any special interest groups. As the chairman of the County Board, he has worked tirelessly to support the people who live here, irrespective of where in McHenry County they happen to live. In addition, Joe’s professional demeanor and respectful attitude is refreshing in this era when many choose negativity and insulting commentary in their interactions. Joe is a consummate professional who represents McHenry County very well at the state and federal levels and has proved he can bring about positive change at the county level while maintaining the highest level of integrity. We could not ask for a better County Board chairman than Joe Gottemoller. Aaron T. Shepley Crystal Lake
Who is behind the ads?
To the Editor: Regarding the Feb. 5 Another View, “FCC is not doing enough for democracy,” it seems to me this would be the perfect thing for a newspaper to cover, not the Seattle Times opinion, but the Northwest Herald telling its readers who is behind the groups funding local ads. I think it would be nice to have it printed daily in the paper, kind of like a running tally of who is behind them. Isn’t that what the news is supposed to be doing, keeping us informed? While the FCC may have a role, reporters should be digging up these facts for their readers, not just cutting and pasting from the Seattle Times, Bloomberg, the Washington Post and all the other publications that
Cary
To the Editor: The perfect is the enemy of the good? No. The generalization is the enemy of the good. This election season, we hear many generalizations and diversionary aphorisms. There is one political candidate with a specific plan to save money for McHenry County: county recorder candidate Joe Tirio. His stated intention is to merge the office out of existence and save millions of dollars by so doing. The perfect should be the mentor of the good. And the perfect is very specific. Susan Handelsman Woodstock
Bleachers responsibility
To the Editor: Crystal Lake Mayor Aaron Shepley plans to recoup fines in the bleacher case by spreading the cost of the lawsuit among the residents of School District 155. The residents of District 155 had nothing to do with the approval of the bleacher plan. The members of the school board are the responsible parties. The members of the school board – present and past – who voted in favor of building the bleachers without regard to city code, affected property owners and residents of the district should be responsible for the fines. They also should be responsible for reimbursing the owners of the properties that backed up to the bleachers for the costs they incurred in the lawsuit. None of the costs should be borne by residents of the district. The school board’s action in this case is just another example of governing bodies taking action without regard to how it affects the people of District 155 they represent. Phil Arendt
Cary
• Saturday, February 13, 2016
To the Editor: We would like to express our thanks to Crystal Lake Mayor Aaron Shepley, City Council members, planning and zoning commissioners and staff for their support and doing what was right for the city and the residents of Crystal Lake regarding the Crystal Lake South bleachers. We thank the police department for its help when it was needed. We send a huge thank you to our amazing neighbors and our family who went through all of this with us and were a great source of strength, comfort and support. Many thanks to Tom Burney and his team for everything they did for us. We were so lucky to have you by our side. We were asked by a reporter recently if, thinking back on it all, was it really worth it? Although the past three years have been a nightmare for us, we believe it was. We stood up for our rights, and that is always a good thing. Plus, we taught our children how to stay strong even under terrible scrutiny and bullying. They are proud of us, and we are so very proud of them. We have in the past few years met some unbelievably kind people and, unfortunately, some who weren’t, but the good definitely outweighed the bad. Lastly, we thank District 155 for doing the right thing. It took a while, but you finally came to your senses. Possibly an apology from D-155 will follow, but we won’t hold our breath.
Mental Health Board to save tax dollars. He worked to stop additions to the $40 million surplus fund of the nursing home board. Mike would represent only the voters.
OPINIONS | Northwest Herald / NWHerald.com
Bleachers saga worth it