Lombard calling. I love the idea of brick paver sidewalks in downtown Lombard. They look beautiful for a year or two but now they’re all settling, creating a trip hazard and weeds are growing through them. Who’s responsible for maintaining that? Somebody come out and pull the weeds. At least weed whack so the weeds are not a foot high. How do we get that done? This is atrocious. This is the gateway to Lombard.

Your concerns were forwarded to the Village of Lombard which provided the following response:

“The bricks do require more maintenance than typical sidewalks and the Lombard Public Works Department repairs trip hazards as they are found and reported. Other routine maintenance such as removing weeds, snow and ice is the responsibility of the adjacent property owner. Please contact the village’s Code Enforcement Division at 630-620-5750 to report property maintenance issues.”—blm

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Hey Union Pacific Railroad: Villa Park is not a freight yard. Park your freight trains elsewhere and do not block our crossings and emergency vehicles.

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Hey Villa Park, how can you put up with parked freight trains blocking your grade crossings, sometimes all three at once for a half hour or longer? What are your village leaders doing to alleviate this major safety hazard?

Village of Villa Park Village Manager Rich Keehner Jr. responded to your inquiry: “The village has expressed its dissatisfaction with our blocked railroad crossings. The village’s ordinance is preempted by the Federal Railroad Safety Authorization Act of 1994 (“FRSA”)[i]. FRSA grants the Secretary of Transportation the authority to prescribe regulations and issue orders for every area of railroad safety, including developing and implementing solutions to safety problems at grade crossings.”—JAC

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Illinois is in desperate straits financially. However, the politicians in Springfield apparently have no clue or don’t care. Last year they voted themselves a raise, which they don’t deserve. The citizens of Illinois deserve better, but they can’t get that until Madigan and others like him are no longer in office. The problem is not Democrat or Republican; the problem is power-grabbing, uncaring, clueless politicians. Until we understand that they will continue their carnage and we will suffer.

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I just read Peter Breen’s column, and I am sorry that he got shouted at on the floor of the general assembly.  But in fairness, he was making a hypocritical statement for cheap political points while the cameras were rolling. Rookie mistake.  Peter, you need their help to pass your legislation. Stop thinking of it in terms of a them versus us situation. If you can’t learn to work with “them,” you are not representing our interests.  

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The Fourth of July fireworks show in Lombard was just spectacular this year. No drunks, no drugs, no greasy aroma in the air. Kids playing frisbee, families having a good time. The fireworks’ boom, bang and fiery spray against the clear night sky made it a perfect Fourth of July evening. And the finale had us all on our feet and cheering. Of course, fireworks cost money and need our donations. Where do I send mine for next year’s show?

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OK, SPEAK OUT readers. Everybody’s telling the country of Greece, “You’ve got to make some hard choices. You have to cut back on your spending.” Who’s telling them that? Why doesn’t the United States cut back on spending? We’ve got how many trillions of dollars in debt and yet the Federal Reserve keeps printing fiat money. And, Cook County is in debt. Chicago is in debt. The whole state of Illinois is in debt. DuPage County is in debt. What really drives me crazy is, why am I paying taxes for DuPage County Airport? For whom, the wealthy out here who should be paying their own bills? Come on, politicians, stop this nonsense and stop ripping off us overburdened taxpayers and stop asking us to pick up the tab for the wealthy politicians. Please do something and do it now.

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Illegals are gaming the system in the sanctuary system. They financially devastate these cities and they bring epidemic, infective diseases to us: measles, whooping cough, TB and even leprosy. The criminal element among them rob, rape, murder and somehow get released back into our society. A president’s job is protect the citizens, to uphold our laws and constitution. This president does not. He is ruining lives, our justice system, our country, giving deals to Iran that we the people don’t trust or want. But the emperor reigns and citizens be darned.

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Hi. I know this won’t get in the paper but I’m still saying women are the worst drivers on Earth. They should have their license taken away. They’ve all got Walmart licenses. I was alongside one the other day; she was on the phone and smoking a cigarette. She’s a great driver. She’s got a Walmart license. Thank you.

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I’ve lived in Illinois all my life and lived through a lot of governors. We’ve never had a governor who wanted to just shut the state down because he wants to have everything his way. You don’t go around defunding things for autistic children, handicapped vehicles for people in wheelchairs, you don’t go around defunding the people who really need things. It’s he said, she said, we all do this. Mr. Rauner is just like all the other Republican governors who have run their states into the ground. You can say what you want but thank goodness we have Democrats in Springfield because all Republicans seem to know is steal from the needy and give to the rich. How much money does this man make a year and he’s worried about helping the needy? He needs to be shipped out and sent off somewhere.

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Lombard calling. For all you fans of Scott Walker, I just worked out the numbers, and by the way, SPEAK OUT, thank you for providing the numbers. If our current budget in Illinois passed, but we had Wisconsin’s tax structure, we would be over $4 billion in budget surplus. Thank you.

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Hello, this Lombard calling. Four teenagers about age 14 tried to steal my purse at a grocery store. Parents, do you know what your kids are like? Public, watch your back.

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Hi, Lombard. Has anyone else noticed how plentiful the Jewel farm stand is? I walk in and there are oodles of grapes, mountains of strawberries and all kinds of wonderful, plentiful fruit. But, I’ll be darned if the last time I went, they didn’t have figs; that’s OK, it was still wonderful. Thanks, Lombard. Bye.

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I live near Madison Meadow park and I just want to say what a pleasant first week of July it was this year without the Taste of Lombard. For the first time in 20 years, I didn’t have to sleep in the basement with the furnace fan on to drown out the pounding music. Even the Fourth of July crowd was much better behaved. Isn’t it amazing how people behave better when you don’t have alcohol?

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The misinformation-peddling, Rauner-obsessed SPEAK OUT contributor noted the state income tax rates of Illinois and some neighboring states in the July 8 paper. The commenter failed to mention our state’s property taxes, which are the second-highest in the nation behind New Jersey. Also omitted were our state’s high sales taxes, gasoline taxes, liquor and tobacco taxes, estate taxes, etc. How about the claim that Illinois is “the third wealthiest state in the nation?” What a crock. The state has billions in unpaid bills and the worst credit rating of any state in the country, not to mention over $100 billion in pension liabilities. The commenter also noted that Rauner made $60 million in 2013. I’ll note that Rauner paid over $14 million in federal income taxes that year, as well as more than $2.8 million in Illinois income taxes. I wonder why the Rauner-obsessed commenter didn’t mention those numbers.

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Lombard, how can you get rid of chipmunks? Thank you.

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Each and every day I say a prayer; a prayer for this great republic and its people. We are going wrong and the people are suffering. The American people have lost focus and are divided and pulled in so many directions. God help us.

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My husband, who is a big, strapping, hulking guy, is afraid of nothing, or so he claims. He won’t even go out for a walk in the evening because he’s afraid of little itty bitty mosquitoes.