I hope that you will find the
following suggestions constructive.
First off: Several months ago,
Alderman Martinez reminded Waukegan residents to empty-out our bags of
recyclable goods directly into recycling receptacles, instead of placing sealed
bags of recyclables into the bins.
I’m happy to comply with this request;
in fact, this advice saves us all money on trash bags. But I do have one
concern: If the receptacle tips over on windy days, then the recyclables are more likely to
fall out, and blow all over the place, if they are not bagged,
than if they are bagged.
So I’d like to ask – the next time
you have a chance to renew the contract with the company providing the
recycling receptacles – that you please ask that contractor to provide
residents with receptacles that don't lock, but can snap securely closed, and can still
fling open easily when the receptacle is flipped upside-down.
This will help keep the areas around
the trash bins clean, while getting the recycling taken out efficiently and
with minimal waste.
Second: Drivers heading north
on Green Bay Road, and turning right onto Washington Street, are not
sufficiently informed that they will have to make two complete stops before
turning.
This intersection is monitored by
camera, and people are being ticketed for failing to stop twice. So if the city
is going to profit off people who fail to stop – and if people are going to be
honked at by drivers who don’t know what the rule is at that intersection –
then the city should install signage which is sufficient to
get the point across (that drivers need to stop twice).
Therefore I propose installing
– at the southeast corner of Green Bay and Washington – either: 1) an additional stop sign; 2) a second white stop line, painted onto the street; 3) a sign which reads “inch out and stop
again before turning”; or all of the above.
Third: Some of these meetings last way
too long. No sane person wants to still be in a government building at 10:00
P.M. (including, I think, you, yourselves).
I hope that any and all aldermen who
agree with me on this, will propose an amendment to the city council’s by-laws,
which would shorten meetings from three hours to one-and-a-half hours (by
meeting four times per month instead of two), or else an amendment which would
shorten meetings from three hours to two (by meeting three times per month).
A rule to dismiss at 9:30 P.M., automatically, would also solve this problem.
Fourth: Several months ago,
there was some concern expressed, regarding the duration of aldermen’s speaking
time.
Therefore, I ask whomever is
interested, to propose a three-minute limit upon the total duration of each
alderman’s general comments (which, unless I’m mistaken, are currently
unlimited). This proposal would afford each resident – and each alderman – the
same amount of speaking time.
Fifth: It has been more than four
months since a video from the regular meetings of the Waukegan City Council
has been posted to the WaukeganTV channel on YouTube.
Please ask someone to update your channel; the
public needs to see what’s happening here, from home, so that they don’t have to
endure these long meetings.
Thank you.
Written and published on August 17th, 2025.
Delivered, with edits, on August 18th, 2025.
Edited on this blog on August 19th, 2025.
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