On March 23rd, 2020, the Urbana City Council held a meeting that brought scrutiny from citizens. Urbana City Council member Shirese Hursey took part in violating the Illinois Open Meetings Act by holding a meeting that did not allow for public access or public input. The meeting was held behind…
On March 23rd, 2020, the Urbana City Council held a meeting that brought scrutiny from citizens. Urbana City Council member Eric Jakobsson took part in violating the Illinois Open Meetings Act by holding a meeting that did not allow for public access or public input. The meeting was held behind…
On March 23rd, 2020, the Urbana City Council held a meeting that brought scrutiny from citizens. Urbana City Council member Maryalice Wu took part in violating the Illinois Open Meetings Act by holding a meeting that did not allow for public access or public input. The meeting was held behind…
Urbana citizens are upset and feeling shutout from their own government after Mayor Diane Marlin literally locked out citizens and the press from access to public meetings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 23, 2020, the Urbana City Council met at their scheduled meeting time in their usual…
On March 19th, 2020, the Champaign County Board attempted to hold their first electronic board meeting in an effort to promote social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. District 4 County Board Member Jim McGuire called the virtual meeting an “utter failure”, due to constant audio feedback and distortion, disconnections, and…
On March 19th, 2020, the Champaign County Board attempted to hold their first electronic board meeting in an effort to promote social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. District 4 County Board Member Jim McGuire called the virtual meeting an “utter failure”, and one citizen who watched the meeting described it…
On March 13th, 2020, Illinois Mayor Deborah Frank Feinen issued an executive order declaring an emergency in Champaign, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The ordinance, which provides the Mayor with unprecedented powers, received widespread criticism both locally and nationwide. Included in the executive order are measures that grant Mayor Feinen…
On March 13th, 2020, Illinois Mayor Deborah Frank Feinen issued an executive order declaring an emergency in Champaign, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The ordinance, which provides the Mayor with “extraordinary powers”, was drafted and summarized at the March 13th City Council Meeting by City Attorney Fred Stavins. Included in…
The follies and tribulations of the Urbana Civilian Police Review Board (CPRB) process continue to add up at virtually every meeting or action of the board and related City staff. Communications from a citizen show that “Community Relations Specialist” Preston James failed to mail required documents to a complainant after…
On March 16, 2020, the Urbana City Council met to discuss and vote on a “Temporary Emergency Ordinance to Address the COVID-19 Virus Pandemic”. The City of Champaign, which immediately abuts Urbana to the West, passed such an ordinance three days prior, and was met with national scrutiny for their…
