Monday, August 18th at 7:30pm
Urbana Free Library Auditorium
210 W Green St
The Champaign County Nursing Home faces a fiscal crisis due to the County Board's neglect of their oversight responsibilities. The home recently moved into a newly-built $24 million facility and has an outstanding reputation for care, yet preservation of the home's mission to serve all County residents in need is threatened by questionable management practices. The County Board recently hired an outside contractor, Management Performance Associates, to administer this essential public resource. Residents and workers both fear that the legacy of poor management decisions will fall most heavily on them.
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Monday, July 21st at 7:30pm
Urbana Free Library Auditorium
210 W Green St
With gas prices higher than ever, peak oil production in sight, and the threat of global warming looming, the need to reduce our reliance on the automobile is greater than ever. Modern society is constructed based on movement of ideas, but comparative energy efficiency in transportation has only become a critical factor in the last few decades. Shifting the work of moving people and goods to more energy efficient models increasingly relies on the time-tested virtues of rail-based modes, both nationally and locally. A short presentation on the green virtues of railroads and light rail systems will be followed by time to answer audience questions and to discuss the politics of a transition to more efficient transportation modes.
National convention
Leaving Thursday, arriving Sunday. Tom, Susan, Walter, and Joe are going.
In attendance: Tom, Mike, Walter, Mark
We discussed the county board campaigns and a possible joint fundraiser. Due to scheduling conflicts, we decided that the individual campaigns should hold fundraisers until August when everyone will be in town.
PRAIRIE GREEN PARTY CALLS FOR PUBLIC MANAGEMENT OF NURSING HOME
CONTACT:
Walter Pituc
Champaign County Board District 7
217.819.1591
votewalter@gmail.com
Kostas Yfantis
Champaign County Board District 7
217.840.6780
kostasyfantis@gmail.com
Joe Futrelle
Champaign County Board District 8
217.390.2971
futrelle@prairiegreens.org
Mike Lehman
Champaign County Board District 9
217.344.5609
lehmanforagreencounty@earthlink.net
URBANA, IL - The Prairie Green Party of East Central Illinois called for responsible, public management of the nursing home as the Champaign County Board prepared to vote on a proposal to contract out nursing home management with Management Performance Associates, a private management consulting firm.
"The Champaign County Nursing Home must be adequately funded in order to fulfill the public's commitment to care for our senior citizens," said Mike Lehman, the Green Party candidate for Champaign County Board, District 9. "We don't need a management consultant to tell us we need to fill beds and dramatically reduce attrition among full-time nurses," he said. "Making needed improvements to nursing home management will not address the problem that the home was underfunded by the 2002 referendum that set the tax rate at only 3 cents of a possible 10 cents." Lehman supports continued public management of the nursing home and a tax referendum to raise revenue to "break even" levels.
Green Tea discussions will resume next month.
ARTICLE LINK
Events and tabling
We've reserved a total of 17 Saturdays of the Farmer's Market starting June 7 at a cost of $230. Mike will loan Greens a canopy and table for the Farmer's Market. Joe has the Prairie table. Joe or Mike can lend a plastic tub for materials. Approved $500 for County Fair outside booth. ($400 fee, $100 liability insurance).
This month's topic is:
- "Biofuels, the carbon cycle and mid west agriculture". Professor Evan DeLucia from the U of I plant biology department will lead the discussion.
In attendance: Joe Futrelle, Mike Lehman, Walter Pituc, Mark Mallon, Trey Davis, Don McClure, Kostas Yfantis, M. Short, Susan Rodgers, Tom Abram
1. Slating update
Mike turned in his paperwork, Tom sent the press release, and Mike and Tom were both contacted by the News-Gazette about it.
The Prairie Green Party is running four candidates for Champaign County Board this year, and we want to hear from you, the public, about what you would like to see from your county government. Join our candidates and members this coming Monday at 7:30 PM at the Urbana Free Library for an open, public exchange of ideas as we shape our local platform and develop policy priorities for our exciting campaigns.