SEOPCO Referendum Forum

I've been on the board of the Southeast Oak Park Community Organization (SEOPCO) for almost a year-and-a-half now.  It's a great organization that's currently being lead by Jim Kelly and Michelle Chapman-Reinstra.  I love being a part of this group because we are not a hastily-formed group bent on NIMBY-ism.  We strive to make all of Oak Park, but especially Southeast Oak Park, a better place to live.  Tonight we sponsored a public forum at Irving School on the upcoming District 97 tax referendum that's on the ballot this spring.  I served as timekeeper for the debate, and honestly, I was more than a little nervous.  It's not that I don't know how to keep track of time (altho Baird may occasionally argue that point). My nervousness stemmed from what had happened at prior forums. One of the panelists who participated in our forum this evening claimed bias against an earlier forum, and was threatening to sue the PTO that sponsored that previous forum.  The idea that, if I made a mistake in keeping time and that mistake was construed as bias, which might in turn put my fellow board members at risk for a lawsuit...well, it was rather nerve-wracking.

Our forum started on time, was well-run and well received, and very informative.  I was able to accurately keep time.  We received lots of positive feedback about the evening.  You can listen to the debate here.

If you live in Oak Park and haven't already done so, please take a few moments and get informed on this important issue.  And then , please make sure you vote next month!