Springfield, IL (CAPITOL CITY NOW) – It came to him in a dream.
Arguing against a proposal for a tourism district downtown, former Ald. Joe McMenamin said he dreamt of Abe Lincoln’s law partner, William Herndon: “In the dream, Willie Herndon is saying, the city council is responsible for downtown. Don’t let these other people try to grab it. Don’t let unelected, unaccountable persons get involved with downtown.
“Abe Lincoln was also in the dream.”
McMenamin was referring to an appointed five-member board to oversee the tourism district as part of the proposal, making its way through the Illinois General Assembly. The board would guide projects such as the BOS Center expansion as well as locate a new movie theatre in the area.
Former Springfield mayor Jim Langfelder (pictured, back to camera) did not claim any nocturnal visits by historical figsss’ity’s corporate boundaries, as do all the hotels that will generate the majority of the hotel-motel tax dollars for the proposed $200 million initiative. Unfortunately, some people are trying to cloud the issue of providing the best transparency and accountability to the citizens of Springfield.”
Aldermen stripped out the entire resolution except for the first sentence, one of support and optimism for the Scheels Sports Park. The original measure, sponsored by Ald. Roy Williams, reflected the frustration and unhappiness over the situation. The version that passed included only the first section of the four-section original. Alds. Shawn Gregory, Roy Williams, Larry Rockford, and Lakeisha Purchase voted No on the final ordinance. Mayor Buscher provided the sixth Yes vote to make it a victory. Ald. Jennifer Notariano had left the meeting by that time.
