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About Peoria Pundit

Billy Dennis is a former reporter and editor at small daily and weekly newspapers in Illinois and Missouri. He comments on media, news and politics. He also owns and operates The Blog Peoria Project, which promotes community-based citizen journalism in his hometown, Peoria IL. Call me at (309) 863-5748 and leave a message.

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Recent Blog Peoria Project posts

• Maybe they just need to fire EVERYBODY at District 150 March 13, 2010
  They are being close-lipped about it, but WEEK/HOI is reporting that police are investigating whether there is wide-spread theft of equipment from District 150, which is being sold on the Internet. Naturally, the district’s critics and crowing about it.More evidence on how corrupt the entiore district is. It’s hard to argue that it isn’t true. Maybe th […]
  Billy Dennis
• Apocalypse World: Wish Fulfillment And Tootsie Rolls March 13, 2010
  Finding a game to please all of the role players in our group is a tricky task. We’ve had a couple, but the one that stands out, maybe cause it’s what we’re playing now, is a game called Apocalypse World (If you follow the link be aware there is swearing in the material). It’s a [...] […]
  Gabrielle
• Firefly failed, but… March 13, 2010
  Covering Peoria for 11 years, it was very easy for me to become jaded and dark, as the city and county invested in things that just didn’t seem to make much sense, and they turned out to be even bigger failures and calamities than even the skeptics had predicted at the outset. But before you [...] […]
  Billy Dennis
• Rainy Days March 13, 2010
  One key thing people always forget about......clean socks. […]
  @peoriajim
• Firefly craps out, and we have to pay off the loans March 13, 2010
  I am shocked, I tell you SHOCKED, that Firefly Energy crapped out and defaulted on its loan, leeving taxpayers holding the bag. Wait minute. No, I’m NOT shocked. In fact, I practically predicted it back in May 2007, right before the Peoria City Councilvoted unanimously to let National City Bank invest in the project secure that [...] […]
  Billy Dennis

PeoriaChronicle

• More historic quotes about Firefly March 13, 2010
  “In terms of company stability, Caterpillar owns 35 percent of Firefly, and Cat is a company that does its homework. This battery technology is unique and promising enough that Firefly had little trouble raising $20 million in private equity. Company officials figure 80 percent of that money is spent locally, so there’s economic spin-off.” –Journal [ […]
• Firefly closes, taxpayers left holding the bag March 13, 2010
  In May-June 2007, the City of Peoria and Peoria County pledged a combined total of $6.6 million as a guarantee for a loan from National City Bank to Firefly Energy, the darling Caterpillar spin-off and “poster child” of PeoriaNext. The source of the funds breaks down to $3.3 million in utility tax revenues from [...] […]
• Fresh Market to open in Peoria March 12, 2010
  The Journal Star reports that The Fresh Market is going to open a store in Westlake Shopping Center in the former Circuit City space. Fresh Market is a “specialty grocery store chain” based in North Carolina, and is similar to Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s. Their prices are high, but so is the [...] […]

Merle Widmer’s Peoria Watch

• FireFly & G&D Integrated March 14, 2010
  On 5/28/07, Jennifer Davis and Molly Parker wrote "Finding a FireFly Fix Over Breakfast" in their 'Word on the Street' Column in the JS. Quoting the column, " braving buckets of snow, former Mayor Dick Carver, current Mayor Jim Ardis, state Representative Dave Leitch and a Peoria businessman showed up for breakfast at Le Peep. Over t […]
• Why Peoria County Makes Gap Loans March 14, 2010
  It appears the City/County of Peoria had put in place, through an Inter-Governmental Relations Committee a long time ago, a City/County Loan Program with the aim of helping businesses in need of financial assistance to expand or begin operations.An early loan of $100,000 to United Scanning Technologies went bad in 1986. In time, this Loan Program was replace […]
• Keystone Money - FireFly Connection March 13, 2010
  Keystone money enters into the FireFly story in this manner: A number of years, Senator George Shadid secured a $10,000,000 loan from the State of Illinois to help bail-out Keystone who was in financial distress. Terms of the deal were that Keystone would pay the $10 million back to Peoria County to use as the county saw fit.Keystone did pay this money back […]

The Community Word

• Women’s History Month
• Long fight for U.S. Senate seat begins
• The gift of life
• Progress Report of Downtown Library’s Renovation
• Remembering — Straight Talk March 2010
• District 150 needs business, board to clean house
• Northern exposure — Dale’s Column March 2010
• I was banned — City Beat March 2010
• Stop Playing Politics With Our Lives!
• Be Still: Doors and Windows column March 2010

CapitolFax

• Reader comments closed for the weekend March 12, 2010
• This just in… March 12, 2010
• Claypool mulls a different run; Plus, news from the GOP Circular Firing Squad and the LG imbroglio March 12, 2010
• Question of the day March 12, 2010
• Legislative wrap-up March 12, 2010

CW Notes

• OSF SAINT FRANCIS HEART HOSPITAL ECHOCARDIOGRAPHY TEAM EARNS ACCREDITATION March 13, 2010
• ILLINOIS AMERICAN WATER ALERTS CUSTOMERS TO CHECK EMPLOYEE IDENTIFICATION March 13, 2010
• Annual Ladies Day Brunch at Washington Christian Church on March 27th March 13, 2010
• Youth Violence Community Forum to be Televised March 13, 2010
• Accelerated nursing program launched at Bradley March 13, 2010
• BENEFIT FUNDRAISER FOR BACKUS HOME MAKEOVER March 12, 2010
• Peoria Area Chamber of Commerce Showcases Local Businesses March 11, 2010
• Extension of SBA Recovery Lending Programs Will Support $1.8 Billion in Small Business Lending March 11, 2010
• Rotary Club of Peoria to Host Wheelchair Basketball Teams and Families March 11, 2010
• 12th Annual Safety of Seniors March 11, 2010

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