ChicagoClout

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The City of Chicago Department of Water Management has a great important duty, to provide safe drinking water. Part of the job is making sure all employees are trained to look out for dangerous situations that could leave Chicagoans with an un-protected water system. Today while investigating a home on the 1100 block of Menard, We found a contractor hooked up to a fire hydrant and dug up a front lawn to connect to a (B-box) Shut off valve in the parkway. I asked the contractor what they were doing and they said, "They took it upon themselves to locate a leak". The contractor had no permission to work on this supply piping. The leak desk was not aware of their presence. When I took pictures, they quickly drove away. The card they gave me had the name William Doyle a Field Technician for ADS and IDEX companies, I recall this company with nice contracts and good connections with the Chicago Water Department. Last time I saw them, a worker was sleeping on the job. I informed the leak desk, the Inspector General, Plumbers Local 130 Union, and the Laborers 1092 Union. It really takes some balls (for lack of a better word) to touch a Municipal Water System with no permission and no Plumber's License. Of course, if these guys get hooked up with the right goons from the Plumber's Union, they can "get" a Plumber's License. I also touched again with Robert Walsh of the Plumbers Union regarding the use of unlicensed Investigators, this practice must stop. It must stop and not by illegally giving Plumbing Licenses away to people that drop money or do politics. Protect your job Chicago Union Workers. Patrick McDonough

Posted by at 10:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)

Mayor Daley covers Chicago's Boys Town Statue with Condom This picture was taken in the North Halsted area of Chicago. As many gay men get older they travel a little further north to the Andersonville (48th Ward) of Chicago. Gays have always been staunch supporters of the Democratic Party and Mayor Daley. Pardon the pun, but I think this statue is aimed more towards the man and not the women. I never gave it a second thought but Mayor Daley has failed to give enough jobs to gays in Chicago. I also think Mayor Daley should allow gays to marry in Chicago. I would like to put a condom on the bean in Chicago because it is ugly and the STD's are a curse to both straights and gays. Maybe someday Chicago leaders like Ron Huberman and future Chicago Mayor Patrick Daley should hold hands together and demand equal rights for gays. Obama needs to address this issue soon. Mayor Daley needs to address the VD issue in Chicago, Catholic or not, it is time. Photo by Patrick McDonough.

Posted by at 6:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

Make sure you read about Chicago Clout contractors tied up with the Department of Water Management and O'Hare Airport. Mr. McDonough, you give money to both Illinois political parties? Why? The Chicago Sun-Times Watchdogs and Fran Spielman keep the Chicago Sun-Times in business. Patrick McDonough They gave big, they got big: Big deals for Blago's big donors 'Pay-to-play' probe looking at firms that were big Blago donors February 9, 2009 BY TIM NOVAK and CHRIS FUSCO As part of their "pay-to-play" probe of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, federal investigators are examining state bid proposals and other records from 18 heavyweight engineering and construction companies that made hefty political contributions and got big contracts from the state and from City Hall, records show. In all, the companies have made more than $3.6 million in campaign contributions since the mid-1990s, a Chicago Sun-Times analysis shows. Federal investigators are examining state bid proposals and other records from companies that made large political contributions and got big contracts from the state under then-Gov. Rod Blagojevich. (John J. Kim/Sun-Times) Mayor Daley took $64,800 from the companies before he put a self-imposed ban on accepting campaign cash from city contractors in the wake of the Hired Truck scandal. Since 2004, 11 of the companies have gotten $183 million in city deals. This latest window into the continuing Blagojevich investigation comes from a federal subpoena that was served on the Illinois Department of Transportation on Dec. 11 and made public in the wake of a successful open-records lawsuit filed by the watchdog group the Better Government Association. None of the businesses named in the subpoena has been accused of any wrongdoing. At least one of those companies received a separate subpoena of its own. "I have responded to the subpoena; 22 boxes have been sent," said Diane French, executive vice president and general counsel for DLZ Illinois, an engineering/design firm. French declined to say whether the company is working on any state-funded projects in Illinois. She also would not comment on the firm's former lobbyist, John Wyma, a longtime Blagojevich associate identified as "Individual B" in the criminal complaint prosecutors filed when they arrested Blagojevich in December on charges that included the explosive allegation that he'd try to sell an appointment to the U.S. Senate to replace President Obama there. Another firm named in the subpoena is Globetrotters Engineering Corp., headed by Niranjan Shah, recently named chairman of the University of Illinois Board of Trustees. Globetrotters has gotten hundreds of millions of dollars in city and state business, and one of its subsidiaries helps run concessions at O'Hare Airport. Shah said his company gets government contracts on merit, not as a result of the thousands of dollars in campaign contributions he has given to Blagojevich and others. "I don't think we got any special treatment," Shah said. "We are very careful. We're a very good firm. We do lots of good projects. We have been in business for 35 years." Blagojevich's former chief of staff, Lon Monk, was Globetrotters' lobbyist the last two years. Shah said the relationship ended in December, when Monk's contract expired. In the criminal complaint against Blagojevich, Monk is the "Lobbyist 1" who is part of an alleged shakedown scheme of a potential Blagojevich campaign contributor. Other firms named in the subpoena include: • • Castle Construction and MBB Construction, both owned by Robert Blum, a onetime business associate of former top Blagojevich fund-raiser Christopher G. Kelly. Castle was general contractor for the $38 million Emil & Patricia A. Jones Convocation Center at Chicago State University, which was dedicated last year. The company also has done extensive work at O'Hare and at Chicago Public Schools buildings. • • Knight E/A Inc., an engineering company that has been linked to powerful Downstate businessman Peter Fox and indicted former investment banker Nicholas Hurtgen. In 2004, the wives of Fox and Hurtgen owned stakes in the company, which has gotten Illinois Tollway work and was picked by the Blagojevich administration to be construction manager for the $40 million World Shooting & Recreational Complex in Sparta. Fox said he and his wife have "no active involvement" in Knight and have sold most of their stock since 2004. Knight's lobbyist is Paul Rosenfeld, a Blagojevich associate identified as "Lobbyist 2'' in the criminal complaint against the governor. • • Teng & Associates Inc., which is identified in the criminal complaint as "Engineering Firm 1." Teng "received in excess of $10 million from the State of Illinois during each of fiscal years 2004 through 2008," according to the complaint, and Blagojevich allegedly was contemplating seeking more campaign cash from the firm in exchange for tollway business. Rosenfeld also worked as a lobbyist for Teng. • • McDonough Associates, which has gotten $39 million in tollway contracts since 2002. Brian J. McPartlin, a former Illinois State Toll Highway Authority executive director, announced in October he was leaving the agency to work for McDonough. But then McPartlin decided not to take the job after Blagojevich's Dec. 9 arrest. McDonough, Teng, Knight and MBB are named in a similar subpoena delivered to the tollway authority on Jan. 27.

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It was not too long ago when I had a conversation with a frustrated City of Chicago, Department of Water Management employee Thomas Morris. I have tried to help many people go in the right direction to make sure their disputes against the City of Chicago get resolved in a fair and reasonable manner. A common theme is evident almost every time, the offended person made multiple attempts to address the issue with grievance forms, conversations with bosses and management. By the time people come to me they are very frustrated, bitter, and wits end. The conversations with Thomas revealed a very upset Hoisting Engineer that had about as much as he could take. I assist him in the right direction and the process to make corrective measures have begun. I wonder why Chicago Unions sit on the sidelines while employees fight alone. One of the better Unions representing Chicago City Workers is the Laborers Union 1092, I give that Union under the LoVerde leadership the highest rating. Thomas Morris is pictured with Michael J. Greco, his Attorney. Possible Co-counsel includes Russ Stewart, a Federal Level Attorney of the highest ethical standards. I wish good luck to Mr. Morris in his attempts to enforce his legal rights. Mayor Daley should be aware of this and other disputes costing Chicago Taxpayers millions of dollars due to managers that take political consideration before common sense. Taxpayers will be on the hook for millions more! The Shakman Violations in Chicago never stop! Photo taken by Patrick McDonough at Patrick Daley's old business (MSS). Than business is boarded up now!

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