Political signs vs. clutter control
Wheeling sign rule draws fire from resident
Originally published Monday, Dec. 17, 2007
By Nadia Malik
Daily Herald Staff Writer
For Wheeling, it's about controlling clutter, but for Chris Shefner, it's a matter of retaining his constitutional rights.
Shefner, a Wheeling resident, said he plans to fight a $25 citation he received for having two signs supporting presidential candidate Ron Paul in his front yard. Such signs have been a common manifestation of Paul's grassroots organizing effort.
Wheeling ordinances don't allow any political signs out on private property more than 30 days before an election. Residents also only can have one sign up per candidate.
"It's for aesthetic purposes mainly, to prevent accumulation of too many signs," said James Ferolo, attorney for the village of Wheeling.
It's an issue that has inspired controversy in other suburbs over the years, and at least one has backed away from such an ordinance.
A couple of years ago, Wheeling looked at extending the 30-day limit to 90 days, but trustees ultimately decided the policy was fine as is.
Mark Johnson, who is with the community development department in Wheeling, said the village received a complaint about Shefner's signs.
He said the protocol is to send several warnings to residents who violate the village ordinance and then hand out a citation.
Before this case came up, "we've never had anyone not comply," he said.
Shefner, however, says it's his property, and he should be allowed to have signs up in his yard whenever he wants.
"There's absolutely no reason for this kind of law to be around," he said. "It's my personal property; I should be able to put whatever I want in the yard."
The American Civil Liberties Union agrees with Shefner.
"We're always concerned when there are efforts to limit the capacity and ability of people to engage in free speech," said Ed Yohnka, spokesman for the Illinois chapter of the ACLU.
Adam Schwartz, senior attorney for the ACLU of Illinois, said he's sent a letter to Wheeling informing it of the organization's view.
He said presidential campaigns don't start a month before the election, so it's not realistic to create an arbitrary limit to signage.
"If this was a sign that said, 'Lower my taxes' or 'Support the troops,' it doesn't matter," Schwartz said. "People should be allowed to engage in basic First Amendment political speech."
Just last month, Buffalo Grove, Wheeling's next-door neighbor, changed its sign ordinance to drop a 30-day time limit because a candidate brought up the issue during the 2006 elections.
Buffalo Grove Village Attorney Bill Raysa said at the Nov. 19 board meeting that there have been several cases statewide regarding freedom of speech and election signs.
While the constitutionality of such laws isn't clear, Raysa said the 30-day time limit could come under scrutiny, and he recommended removing it to stay on the safe side. In a memo sent to the village board when the issue was under discussion, Raysa wrote:
"Although the Supreme Court has not considered the issue, the overwhelming majority of courts that have reviewed sign ordinances imposing durational time limits for temporary political signs tied to a specific election date have found them to be unconstitutional."
Other towns have had their share of political sign flaps.
Most recently, Hawthorn Woods was challenged for its rules, which require candidates to submit names and addresses of all political sign locations. That issue is still being resolved, although a tentative oral agreement could mean the ordinance won't be enforced.
A proposal in Algonquin to impose a limit of only one candidate sign per lawn failed earlier this year.
Ferolo, the Wheeling village attorney, said now that the issue has come up, he'll recommend the village board take another look at its ordinance.
However, that doesn't necessarily mean anything will change.
"Aesthetic purposes have been upheld in court, so long as you let people get their message across," Ferolo said. "Most villages have felt that with the 30-day limitation, you were still doing that while at the same time preventing too many signs accumulating."
Interim Wheeling Village President Judy Abruscato said political signs have been getting out of control in the village, and she thinks 30 days is more than enough time to show support for a candidate.
However, she said if it's brought up, she's willing to give the issue a second look.
"We're always here to help residents so that people don't feel that their rights are violated," she said.
Shefner said he plans on fighting the ordinance. He hasn't paid the fine, but he also hasn't received a court date from Wheeling yet.
He said that besides contacting the ACLU, he is looking for an attorney who can represent him if Wheeling doesn't overturn its ordinance.
"This is political; this is very important to people like me," he said.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Teen sues Dist. 214 over new silence law
Teen sues Dist. 214 over new silence law
Originally published Saturday, Oct. 27, 2007
By Nadia Malik
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Acting on a promise made earlier this month, 14-year-old Dawn Sherman on Friday filed a lawsuit against Northwest Suburban Township High School District 214 to fight the state-mandated moment of silence.
The district is planning to implement the law on Tuesday during morning announcements. The suit is believed to be the first seeking to overturn the new law.
Sherman's father, Rob, said they will be seeking an injunction Monday to prevent that from happening. The lawsuit was filed through Rob -- an atheist activist -- since Dawn is a minor.
He said the law violates the separation of church and state because it requires a moment of reflection on a daily basis.
"People shouldn't be stopping my education for prayer that they could be doing any time in the 18 hours they have the rest of the day," Dawn said.
Although the law doesn't require children to pray, Sherman said the name -- Silent Reflection and Student Prayer Act -- indicates that intent.
"The legislature does not have the authority nor the right in the constitution to promote religion in the public schools," said Gregory Kulis, Sherman's attorney. "It is clear by reading the act and the legislative history, the legislature is promoting religion."
Venetia Miles, spokeswoman for District 214, said she hasn't seen the lawsuit and can't comment on it.
However, she said the district will continue with the moment of silence unless otherwise ordered because it has a responsibility to obey state law.
Joseph Conn, a spokesman for Americans United, a group focused on separation of church and state, said the law seems to be a backdoor attempt to bring government-sponsored prayer into school.
"Teachers have the authority already to call for a moment of silence," he said. "When the legislature starts meddling in something like this, it's obvious they're doing it to appeal to voters."
However, he said it's up to the courts to decide where to draw the line on prayer and a moment of silence. Because the law gives prayer as only one option during the moment of silence, Conn said it's a little more complicated.
"It's hard to say where (the courts) will come down on this," Conn said.
State Rep. Fred Crespo, a Hoffman Estates Democrat, said when he sponsored the bill in the House, he never intended prayer to become an issue.
"If I for a second thought that the intent of the bill was to introduce prayers into public schools, I would not have sponsored the bill," he said. "It's definitely very clear that there has to be a line between church and state."
Crespo said the law doesn't give teachers a license to instill their beliefs into students. Instead, he said it's a chance to take a moment to pause in the midst of a busy day and reflect.
"I don't understand the merits of the lawsuit," he said. "Again, this is not asking (students) to pray."
Besides naming District 214 board members and Superintendent David Schuler, the lawsuit filed in federal court also names Patrice Johannes, principal at Buffalo Grove High School, which Dawn attends, Dawn's third-period teacher, Binh Huynh -- who would oversee the moment of silence -- and Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Blagojevich vetoed the bill but was overridden by the state House and Senate. Sherman said the governor is cited because he is responsible for enforcing state law.
If the judge doesn't agree to an injunction, Dawn said she would just sit at her desk and study for that moment. She's hoping, though, that eventually the law will be taken off the books statewide.
Originally published Saturday, Oct. 27, 2007
By Nadia Malik
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Acting on a promise made earlier this month, 14-year-old Dawn Sherman on Friday filed a lawsuit against Northwest Suburban Township High School District 214 to fight the state-mandated moment of silence.
The district is planning to implement the law on Tuesday during morning announcements. The suit is believed to be the first seeking to overturn the new law.
Sherman's father, Rob, said they will be seeking an injunction Monday to prevent that from happening. The lawsuit was filed through Rob -- an atheist activist -- since Dawn is a minor.
He said the law violates the separation of church and state because it requires a moment of reflection on a daily basis.
"People shouldn't be stopping my education for prayer that they could be doing any time in the 18 hours they have the rest of the day," Dawn said.
Although the law doesn't require children to pray, Sherman said the name -- Silent Reflection and Student Prayer Act -- indicates that intent.
"The legislature does not have the authority nor the right in the constitution to promote religion in the public schools," said Gregory Kulis, Sherman's attorney. "It is clear by reading the act and the legislative history, the legislature is promoting religion."
Venetia Miles, spokeswoman for District 214, said she hasn't seen the lawsuit and can't comment on it.
However, she said the district will continue with the moment of silence unless otherwise ordered because it has a responsibility to obey state law.
Joseph Conn, a spokesman for Americans United, a group focused on separation of church and state, said the law seems to be a backdoor attempt to bring government-sponsored prayer into school.
"Teachers have the authority already to call for a moment of silence," he said. "When the legislature starts meddling in something like this, it's obvious they're doing it to appeal to voters."
However, he said it's up to the courts to decide where to draw the line on prayer and a moment of silence. Because the law gives prayer as only one option during the moment of silence, Conn said it's a little more complicated.
"It's hard to say where (the courts) will come down on this," Conn said.
State Rep. Fred Crespo, a Hoffman Estates Democrat, said when he sponsored the bill in the House, he never intended prayer to become an issue.
"If I for a second thought that the intent of the bill was to introduce prayers into public schools, I would not have sponsored the bill," he said. "It's definitely very clear that there has to be a line between church and state."
Crespo said the law doesn't give teachers a license to instill their beliefs into students. Instead, he said it's a chance to take a moment to pause in the midst of a busy day and reflect.
"I don't understand the merits of the lawsuit," he said. "Again, this is not asking (students) to pray."
Besides naming District 214 board members and Superintendent David Schuler, the lawsuit filed in federal court also names Patrice Johannes, principal at Buffalo Grove High School, which Dawn attends, Dawn's third-period teacher, Binh Huynh -- who would oversee the moment of silence -- and Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Blagojevich vetoed the bill but was overridden by the state House and Senate. Sherman said the governor is cited because he is responsible for enforcing state law.
If the judge doesn't agree to an injunction, Dawn said she would just sit at her desk and study for that moment. She's hoping, though, that eventually the law will be taken off the books statewide.
Towns point fingers over airport
Towns point fingers over airport
Originally published Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2007
By Nadia Malik
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Wheeling Village Manager Mark Rooney, attacked by Prospect Heights officials last week, responded Monday by raising questions about hidden appraisals in a land deal that benefited Prospect Heights.
The Prospect Heights City Council sent a letter to Wheeling last week saying Rooney improperly pushed for a Wheeling fire station at Chicago Executive Airport, co-owned by both towns.
At Monday's village board meeting, Rooney -- who denies the accusations made in the letter -- said the issue stems from a meeting Nov. 28 between some officials from both towns.
At that gathering, Rooney said he wanted to ask Prospect Heights about appraisals for airport land that were never presented to the Federal Aviation Administration and Wheeling.
Last year, both Wheeling and Prospect Heights agreed to have the airport purchase 14 acres of land as a runway protection zone to buffer the airport's neighboring residents. An FAA grant made the deal possible.
Rooney said appraisals valued that property at between $10 million and $10.75 million. That report, from July 27, 2006, was given to the airport board and the FAA.
However, previous appraisals conducted on March 10, 2006 -- where the land was valued at $6.5 million -- and on May 16, 2006 -- where the property was given a $5.9 million value -- were never passed along.
Prospect Heights benefited from the higher price, since that land originally was part of a 28-acre tax-increment financing district created to bring an arena to the city. The arena plan fell through, and Prospect Heights was left with debt from the district.
Rooney recently discovered the discrepancy and said he wanted to give Prospect Heights officials a chance to explain.
"I was worried about the village of Wheeling's reputation," Rooney said. "We wanted to stay on good standing with the FAA."
Rooney said he was also worried about relations with the Illinois Department of Transportation, which plays a role in any acquisition of airport property.
"IDOT funds a great number of projects in Wheeling," he said. "We did not want to be held accountable by IDOT for the actions of Prospect Heights, which we knew nothing about."
Prospect Heights never responded to his question, Rooney said; instead, they sent the letter to Wheeling calling Rooney's conduct into question.
Pat Ludvigsen, acting Prospect Heights mayor, said the appraisals were done by the airport, so the city isn't involved in the issue.
"This had been reviewed by the FAA, so I have to make the assumption that everything was fine," he said. "This has been reviewed by so many people already; this is just an attempt by (Rooney) to smear somebody."
The Prospect Heights letter said Rooney threatened airport manager Dennis Rouleau's job if he didn't help push the fire station project.
Rooney said he's never threatened Rouleau's job and that the fire station proposal -- which Prospect Heights was well aware of -- is no longer on the table.
Rouleau said he didn't want to comment on the Prospect Heights letter and Wheeling officials said they wouldn't discuss personnel matters in open session.
"The only thing I will say is that I've had an outstanding career here at Chicago Executive," Rouleau said. "I've always been … professional in conducting my job, and I will continue to do so."
Originally published Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2007
By Nadia Malik
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Wheeling Village Manager Mark Rooney, attacked by Prospect Heights officials last week, responded Monday by raising questions about hidden appraisals in a land deal that benefited Prospect Heights.
The Prospect Heights City Council sent a letter to Wheeling last week saying Rooney improperly pushed for a Wheeling fire station at Chicago Executive Airport, co-owned by both towns.
At Monday's village board meeting, Rooney -- who denies the accusations made in the letter -- said the issue stems from a meeting Nov. 28 between some officials from both towns.
At that gathering, Rooney said he wanted to ask Prospect Heights about appraisals for airport land that were never presented to the Federal Aviation Administration and Wheeling.
Last year, both Wheeling and Prospect Heights agreed to have the airport purchase 14 acres of land as a runway protection zone to buffer the airport's neighboring residents. An FAA grant made the deal possible.
Rooney said appraisals valued that property at between $10 million and $10.75 million. That report, from July 27, 2006, was given to the airport board and the FAA.
However, previous appraisals conducted on March 10, 2006 -- where the land was valued at $6.5 million -- and on May 16, 2006 -- where the property was given a $5.9 million value -- were never passed along.
Prospect Heights benefited from the higher price, since that land originally was part of a 28-acre tax-increment financing district created to bring an arena to the city. The arena plan fell through, and Prospect Heights was left with debt from the district.
Rooney recently discovered the discrepancy and said he wanted to give Prospect Heights officials a chance to explain.
"I was worried about the village of Wheeling's reputation," Rooney said. "We wanted to stay on good standing with the FAA."
Rooney said he was also worried about relations with the Illinois Department of Transportation, which plays a role in any acquisition of airport property.
"IDOT funds a great number of projects in Wheeling," he said. "We did not want to be held accountable by IDOT for the actions of Prospect Heights, which we knew nothing about."
Prospect Heights never responded to his question, Rooney said; instead, they sent the letter to Wheeling calling Rooney's conduct into question.
Pat Ludvigsen, acting Prospect Heights mayor, said the appraisals were done by the airport, so the city isn't involved in the issue.
"This had been reviewed by the FAA, so I have to make the assumption that everything was fine," he said. "This has been reviewed by so many people already; this is just an attempt by (Rooney) to smear somebody."
The Prospect Heights letter said Rooney threatened airport manager Dennis Rouleau's job if he didn't help push the fire station project.
Rooney said he's never threatened Rouleau's job and that the fire station proposal -- which Prospect Heights was well aware of -- is no longer on the table.
Rouleau said he didn't want to comment on the Prospect Heights letter and Wheeling officials said they wouldn't discuss personnel matters in open session.
"The only thing I will say is that I've had an outstanding career here at Chicago Executive," Rouleau said. "I've always been … professional in conducting my job, and I will continue to do so."
Airport board finds old conflicts die hard
Airport board finds old conflicts die hard
Originally published Saturday, Oct. 18, 2007
By Nadia Malik
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Through talks of turning over a new leaf, the Chicago Executive Airport board on Wednesday still had the vestiges of past conflicts pop up.
Board members of the Wheeling-based airport, formerly known as Palwaukee, questioned its engineering firm on what information was passed along to a consultant.
The consultant, Airport Corp. of America, has caused problems on the board in past months. Several directors have questioned why John Kennedy, with that company, was hired and what work he had been doing.
Brian Welker, with Crawford, Murphy and Tilly, Inc., the airport's engineering firm, said Kennedy was concentrating on land acquisition and noise regulations.
However, board members said they still don't have a full idea of why he was hired by the board's former chair, Kevin Dohm.
Dohm recently resigned from the board after several members took up the question of how the consultant was hired without their approval.
The board's vice chairman, L. James Wylie, also resigned a few weeks after Dohm.
Welker said the consultant situation "put us in an extremely awkward position" since the board as a whole wasn't and still isn't aware of what Kennedy was doing.
The board also changed to whom the airport's manager reports. Previously, the airport's bylaws had the manager reporting only to the chair, but he will now report to the whole board.
The group also had the responsibility of electing a new vice chairman after Wylie's departure. Secretary Ralph Shepstone will take over for the next few meetings; however, he said he wasn't interested in keeping the job permanently.
Darlene Ahlstedt also joined the board for her first meeting since the Prospect Heights city council confirmed her appointment Monday.
Ahlstedt was chosen by the city to take Wylie's open seat; both Wheeling and Prospect Heights co-own the airport and choose two members each to appoint.
The chairman position is chosen by both the Wheeling village president and the Prospect Heights mayor. Both are still discussing who to appoint as the chair.
The remaining members of the board said on Wednesday they'd like to put the consultant situation behind them.
"I just hope that tonight is the beginning of the future of the airport," said Pam Arrigoni, the Prospect Heights city administrator, who also has a seat on the board.
Originally published Saturday, Oct. 18, 2007
By Nadia Malik
Daily Herald Staff Writer
Through talks of turning over a new leaf, the Chicago Executive Airport board on Wednesday still had the vestiges of past conflicts pop up.
Board members of the Wheeling-based airport, formerly known as Palwaukee, questioned its engineering firm on what information was passed along to a consultant.
The consultant, Airport Corp. of America, has caused problems on the board in past months. Several directors have questioned why John Kennedy, with that company, was hired and what work he had been doing.
Brian Welker, with Crawford, Murphy and Tilly, Inc., the airport's engineering firm, said Kennedy was concentrating on land acquisition and noise regulations.
However, board members said they still don't have a full idea of why he was hired by the board's former chair, Kevin Dohm.
Dohm recently resigned from the board after several members took up the question of how the consultant was hired without their approval.
The board's vice chairman, L. James Wylie, also resigned a few weeks after Dohm.
Welker said the consultant situation "put us in an extremely awkward position" since the board as a whole wasn't and still isn't aware of what Kennedy was doing.
The board also changed to whom the airport's manager reports. Previously, the airport's bylaws had the manager reporting only to the chair, but he will now report to the whole board.
The group also had the responsibility of electing a new vice chairman after Wylie's departure. Secretary Ralph Shepstone will take over for the next few meetings; however, he said he wasn't interested in keeping the job permanently.
Darlene Ahlstedt also joined the board for her first meeting since the Prospect Heights city council confirmed her appointment Monday.
Ahlstedt was chosen by the city to take Wylie's open seat; both Wheeling and Prospect Heights co-own the airport and choose two members each to appoint.
The chairman position is chosen by both the Wheeling village president and the Prospect Heights mayor. Both are still discussing who to appoint as the chair.
The remaining members of the board said on Wednesday they'd like to put the consultant situation behind them.
"I just hope that tonight is the beginning of the future of the airport," said Pam Arrigoni, the Prospect Heights city administrator, who also has a seat on the board.
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