* A big crowd is expected for the upcoming IDOT move hearing…

A July 31 hearing on whether more than 100 Illinois Department of Transportation jobs should be moved to southeastern Illinois will be held in the state Capitol, and officials are already expecting an overflow crowd.

The legislature’s bipartisan Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability decided to hold the hearing in Room 212 of the Statehouse, in part because it is already set up for hearings. The room is the largest hearing room used by the General Assembly.

Even so, COGFA expects the crowd to be too large to fit into the space. Another 250 chairs will be set up in the Capitol rotunda, along with a large video screen and speakers.

* I’m pretty sure that this photo is gonna come up….

That would be the proposed site for the new IDOT traffic safety headquarters. The photo was taken during Harrisburg’s March flooding this year and has been making the rounds of state workers for the past week or so. A local TV station did a story on the situation last night…

Controversy surrounding the new IDOT building in Harrisburg after pictures surface on the internet. Those pictures were taken during the flooding in March, they show the new home for the IDOT traffic safety division surrounded by water. Opponents of the IDOT relocation claim the building suffered extensive flood damage. But the owners say that’s not the case.

Tracey Wyatt heads the Southeastern Illinois College Foundation, which owns the old Allen Miller building in Harrisburg, he says he’s thrilled it was one of the few buildings in town without flood damage.

“From where we were at on the day after the rain stopped the water never got within three inches of the building,” said Wyatt.

But it’s hard to tell that from the aerial photos that have been circulating on the internet. Sites posting the pictures say the building saw flood damage. Wyatt says he wants the truth to be told.

“Without context that aerial photograph of course looks bad but three inches of water can look like three feet of water from the air,” said Wyatt.

The Harrisburg mayor’s office flatly denied last week that the building was damaged by the flood.

…Adding… You might get a better perspective of the water’s depth by clicking here. It looks like the water was pretty shallow in some areas and some areas maybe not so shallow.

* Meanwhile…

The Blagojevich administration may want the Division of Traffic Safety of the Illinois Department of Transportation to move out of Springfield, but at least its chief is getting some thanks for the job the division is doing.

MIKE STOUT, director of the division, who makes $105,888 annually (that includes a recent raise of $200 per month), got a bonus this spring of $7,245, said PARIS ERVIN, IDOT spokeswoman.

Ah, the fun we’re having.

       

37 Comments - Joe Schmoe - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 8:45 am: So what do we do? Row, row, row our boat to work? This administration is not only insane. Let’s ask OSHA if the working conditions are OK… - He Makes Ryan Look Like a Saint - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 8:49 am: So, Now pictures lie? There is no way a building is that water tight to say water was not in the building. Not to mention the sanitation plant behind it that was flooded so not only was it flood waters, but raw sewage. These guys are unreal. - Bill - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 8:52 am: lol, I wish that would happen to all WalMarts in Illinois. Stout is going to be the richest guy in Harrisburg if they really make him move. - Ucster - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 8:56 am: Looks great! Maybe CMS has some other cesspools that IDOT can move into. - wordslinger - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 9:01 am: I missed the advent of this bonus program. I’m not a state employee basher by any stretch. But in this state, under any administration, the awarding of taxpayer-funded bonuses at the discretion of a political appointee isn’t right. Merit pay increases for some measurable accomplishments, okay. - Fan of the Game - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 9:11 am: Agree with wordslinger. As a public employee, I would like a bonus at the end of the year, but I’ve never received one, nor should I. Arbitrary bonuses for public employees should not happen. - 618er - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 9:28 am: “From where we were at on the day after the rain stopped the water never got within three inches of the building,” said Wyatt. - 618er - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 9:30 am: Sorry… “From where we were at on the day after the rain stopped the water never got within three inches of the building,” said Wyatt. I love quotes like this. What about 2 days after the rain stopped, when it crested, did you visit with your ruler to determine it was still inches away from the building? - Anonymous - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 9:32 am: If ANY governor but this one had proposed moving Traffic Safety out of Springfield, I believe the move would not have been quite so controversial. Yes, there would still be plenty of reasons to question the wisdom of such a move, and there would be some strong objections. But I suspect the debate would not be nearly as heated or emotional as it has been. There are a number of factors that have come together to create a “perfect storm” of protest in this particular case: 1. Blago’s long history of dissing Springfield in general. 2. The thousands of state jobs that have already disappeared from the capital one by one or in small groups. 3. Blago’s history of (mis)handling budgetary and personnel matters, favoring his allies, punishing enemies, rewarding himself at other’s expense. 4. AFSCME contract talks going on at same time, with widespread talk of large increases in health insurance costs for everyone (not just the union workers). 5. Blago’s open talk of moving even more state jobs, which, based on past history, everyone assumes means “moving state jobs from Springfield.” 6. General angst about the state of the economy with rising gas prices, food prices, unemployment, etc. The result is that many Springfield residents — not just the IDOT or Traffic Safety people — feel a line has to be drawn or else it will be the “beginning of the end” for life as they know it here. Now that might be a bit exaggerated, but Blago certainly loves to cast his battles in apocalyptic, good-vs-evil, end-of-the-world terms, and if that’s the kind of battle he wants, he certainly got it here. - Ghost - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 9:47 am: Keep in mind that the State will have to re-imburse every employee who moves for the cost of moving. Now consider that there are more jobs in the Springfield area. Many of those employees have spouses who will be unable to find work in Harrissburg. So in net effect you will be increasing the number of unemployed. If they do nto move then the employees become unemployed in Springield, which will also be loisng jobs. But my fav part of the spin, the cost of the “lease”. Springfield has 3 buildings which are State owned which have pace for the entire unit!! If you really want to save money move them inot an already owned State bldg, like the former FBI bldg sitting with empty floors etc. - Princeville - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 9:59 am: Anybody ever drive around a Walmart (any Wlamart) to see just high those loading dockdoors are? For kicks and giggles, I did just that this weekend. - Little Egypt - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 10:02 am: OK, so the water never came closer than 3 INCHES from the door. How do the people get their cars into the parking lot and then walk from their cars into the building? It makes no difference if it was 3 inches or 300 feet. Flooding is still a problem in that area and the workers would be unable to get to work. - Just My Opinion - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 10:04 am: Talked with Larry Bomke yesterday at a car show in Cantrall and asked if the people attending the hearing on July 31 were going to be “screened” like they were in Harrisburg. He said it was his understanding the crowd would be 50/50. How about this for a bet - all supporters allowed in the hearing room, all protesters allowed in the rotunda to watch by closed circuit TV. That’s Blago’s version of 50/50. - Little Egypt - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 10:06 am: Bill, I’m betting David Phelps (Rep. Phelps’ uncle) is richer than Mike Stout and he’s also a current employee of IDOT. - VanillaMan - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 10:07 am: This is a political decision made by a politically dying governor. Just as our state legislators await Rod Blagojevich’s end of term, many other Illinoians who may be impacted by this man’s partisan decisions, are awaiting his end. Rod Blagojevich is the most unpopular governor in the United States. He has no credibility. Yet, due to his currently held political position, this disliked governor is impacting Illinois families based on political whims. He is destroying businesses, families and governments because of retribution. People are standing around waiting for this man to give them either a swift kick or a free bus ride. It is time to stop the Blagzilla from taking eveyone else down. - blueinaredstate - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 10:08 am: Surely someone has (or can get) a snapshot of this building before or after the flood. A quick comparison of how much wall is underneath those floodwaters will demonstrate how close the water really got to that building. - Little Egypt - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 10:11 am: Hmmmm, just wondering, with the flood waters this high around the building in Harrisburg (even though claims are that the water never entered the building), would the toilets still flush? Would there be water suitable for drinking out of the fountains? Was power disrupted? Wouldn’t an emergency generator be needed to at least keep the computer mainframes running? How will the building be protected from looters while it is sitting empty waiting for flood waters to recede? - curious george - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 10:12 am: Why would the taxpayers want to buy a building in a flood plain??? I and many others have viewed the disastrous Harrisburg 2008 flood photos at: www.harrisburg-il.com/photos/index.html These show a multitude of businesses and residences in flood conditions…many along the 400 to 700 block of Commercial Avenue in Harrisburg including the old Wal-Mart/SeICF property. Even if the water didn’t get within “3 inches” of this building it is very easy to see that many had more than three feet of water encroaching upon them. What would prevent it from happening again? I believe Harrisburg residents and businesses, given the choice, would like to move to higher ground after all the flood damage and no access to flood insurance at that time. Just Google “2008 Harrisburg IL Flood” , there are many locally made You Tube and MySpace video and other personal accounts of the misery of this flood. As far as the perspective of the aerial photos of the flood and the building in question after the flood there is another website that sheds some light on that for what it’s worth concerning the statement… “…But it’s hard to tell that from the aerial photos that have been circulating on the internet. Sites posting the pictures say the building saw flood damage. Wyatt says he wants the truth to be told. “Without context that aerial photograph of course looks bad but three inches of water can look like three feet of water from the air,” said Wyatt. Take a gander at www.theworkingmanshow.com it raises some unanswered issues. - iPhone - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 10:48 am: The Working Man strikes again… and that guy isn’t even on the air down here in Carbondale anymore. If the water didn’t actually penetrate the building, I’d sure like to see some photographic proof of that. That still leaves the question of how the employees would get to work if the levee gets breached again. - Cheswick - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 10:50 am: There was at least one article in the SJ-R that said the state is going to purchase one-half (48%) of the building from the Foundation. Do any lawyers here know how that works? Does the building go condo, or what? Just curious. Also, should we consider that while the governor has the affected employees and many of people of Springfield and beyond all up in a frenzy about him “dissing” Springfield, that maybe that’s a only a byproduct of his real motivation for this move? Just a theory: I’m thinking that maybe what’s really happening here is the governor sending a message to Bill Cellini that if he talks to the feds, the gov will pull more offices out of Cellini properties. Obviously, this wouldn’t bankrupt Cellini. However, many of the properties are owned by other entitles and Cellini (and Somers) only manages them. Is this too much of a leap? - Anon - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 12:11 pm: Wordslinger, bonuses are a device this administration has used to replace the majority of real merit increases–not an add on. In essense, they prevent cumulative growth of non-union state salaries and reduce pension liability. If they were a good thing for employees, the unions would be asking for bonus programs. They aren’t. - 618er - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 12:37 pm: Let me get my tinfoil hat on straight here…. OK there might be an interesting political scenario here. Imagine if you were to move jobs with the very real motivation of saving money. Getting out of an expensive lease seems to be a good idea. Moving them to a depressed area of the state seems like a good idea on paper, pumping money into the local economy. Of course one would expect the local legislators, mayors, to sound off on either side, that would be expected. If it succeeds, no matter what the cost, you have successfully helped a depressed area of the state. Yeah!!! If this committee of seemingly do nothing legislative representatives blocks it, well then one has a press conference stating that he is trying to help all the people of Illinois, but the big mean General Assembly doesn’t want to help poor southern Illinois… Yeah!! Just a thought…. - Little Egypt - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 1:00 pm: 618er - rational scenario; however, I believe by now everyone in Illinois sees through Blago and his feud with Madigan and would not point fingers in the direction Blago would want us to. Cheswick, I wouldn’t bet on Cellini NOT talking to the Feds in order to protect his income generated during a Dem administration. At this point, Cellini (as well as any other unindicted, possibly indicted, future defendants) would be trying to save his own hide. Cellini is diversified enough that not collecting another dime from the State for leasing one of his properties will hardly make a dent in his lifestyle. - Ghost - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 1:14 pm: Cheswick, I think the Cellini angle is very far fetched. It appears this move is payback for not supporting the recall amendment. - Cheswick - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 1:52 pm: Thanks for replying. Little Egypt, true about Cellini, himself. But, what about the other property owners he represents. Do you think he cares about them enough to keep quiet to protect their interests from Blago’s reorganizing of state offices? For instance, this part owner of the Traffic Safety building: http://www.rumseyrancheria.org/government/council/ “The Tribe is the largest landlord to the State of Illinois through its ownership of several buildings in Springfield, Illinois.” I’m not necessarily pushing this theory and realize it’s pretty far fetched. - 618er - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 2:12 pm: Egypt, I don’t think I can give the His Excellency that much credit….. - Yellow Dog Democrat - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 2:24 pm: The water is clearly up to the window sills. Maybe the water only got up to 3 inches deep inside, but ANY standing water inside the building is a very, very bad sign. Mold, mold and more mold. And what about the next time it rains? What does the insurance report say? - Can't Use My Nickname - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 3:47 pm: The Traffic Safety move to Southern Illinois is for economic development. What statutory authority does IDOT have to do economic development in areas other than building and maintaining highways? I also thought, and I could be wrong, that CMS is charged with purchasing or leasing buildings. What statutory authority does IDOT have to purchase a building? - Little Egypt - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 4:03 pm: It’s all so very interesting. Blago is treating the State offices like they were private industry. Since we are losing private jobs, he thinks he can play musical chairs with State agencies and fill a void in other parts of the State. He thinks it’s his responsibility to make sure that every impoverished portion of the State sees an increase in employment, even if it is doing in the strangest manner I have ever seen. Hey Rod, here’s a news flash. You can save a heck of a lot of money if you outsource every single State job to Mexico - including your own. That won’t help the unemployment numbers in this state, but it sure will save a heck of a lot of money. - NIEVA - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 5:04 pm: The water did not get in the building but it rendered it useless for several days. I sat out in front of it for several shifts and it was very close. And yes the sewers were inoperable along with no power. Across the street a strip mall with a Kroger and several other stores all went under to the tune of several million dollars in damage! - lets make it easy - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 6:12 pm: would someone please go out to this buiding with a yardstick and a camera there has to be a visable water mark, place the yardstick next to the building and then take a picture of the yardstick and the water mark and send it to rich i am sure he will be more than willing to post the picture please remember to have the yarstick numbers facing out with the 1 inch mark at the botoom this will settle this once and for all lets make it easy and quit fighting about something that for one side or the other should be easy resolve - lets make it easy - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 6:14 pm: more info if the building has been cleaned powerwashed to one of the telephone poles and get a laser level an shoot it at the building then go measure where the laser hits the building make a mark take a picture and again send it to rich - Can't Use My Nickname - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 6:58 pm: Neiva - thanks for speaking out. Can you tell me if they were sandbagging inside the building by the back garage doors? - Gregor - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 7:05 pm: Song to go with that picture: “One of our submarines is missing” -Thomas Dolby - NIEVA - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 7:18 pm: This all happened so quick there was no time to sandbag. Again there was no water on the building and no cleanup afterward. - NIEVA - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 7:20 pm: And if any went in through the rollup doors that area is all concrete floors so it would have done little damage. - Little Egypt - Monday, Jul 14, 08 @ 9:24 pm: NIEVA - “And yes the sewers were inoperable along with no power.” Well that answers one of my questions. The employees will not be able to flush or drink. Now that’s the kind of building I want to work in for the next several years. One that has water in the “back door” but it’s a concrete floor so there’s little damage. Right. I prefer not to work in a stinking cesspool and I would bet there’s no one else who would want to either. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.