Uhm, don't we have the same schools?

Ah, so she's saying that 153 is superior to 161.

Better schools?

http://www.schooldigger.com/go/IL/district/15420/search.aspx

http://www.schooldigger.com/go/IL/district/19530/search.aspx

From what it sounds like TeacherMom, it's a good idea you keep your laundry inside :)

Yes, Jim, better schools.
http://webprod.isbe.net/ereportcard/publicsite/getReport.aspx?year=2011&code=070161530_e.pdf
http://webprod.isbe.net/ereportcard/publicsite/getReport.aspx?
year=2011&code=2011StateReport_e.pdf
Not to mention our teacher salary and administrative salary is lower and so is what we spend per child. But really that's not the point. I love the Flossmoor area, and where my parents live is still a nice area, but I think the focus here is a little off. The mayor is answering a question about their dog ordinance when he should be worrying about the break-ins happening in the vacant houses, lowering taxes, and making his schools better to help increase property values. I would be willing to bet that the majority of people paying some of the highest mortgages in Flossmoor that have children, are not sending them to Flossmoor schools. Also, a house in Flossmoor that just sold for $208,000 (a steal) is going to be paying around $25,000 in taxes. How does that make any sense. I want to see Flossmoor succeed because it does effect the high school that we do share. H-F is a great community with a great high school and outstanding park district that you can't find most other places. Bottom line, if a dog is loose, call the police if you don't know the owner. Then, move on and let Mayor Braun worry about more important things.

Bottom line - My point was, here is a list of questions that readers wanted the mayor to answer, and he picked dogs being unleashed? http://homewood-flossmoor.patch.com/articles/vote-questions-for-flossmoor-mayor-paul-braun
President Hofeld did talk about chickens in one of his minutes with the mayor, however, it wasn't his first minutes segment. He has talked about some pretty controversial things.

TeacherMom- you may want to do your research before posting "better schools" comments...Operational expenditure per student is lower in 161 and test scores higher. http://iirc.niu.edu/District.aspx?districtID=07016161002
http://iirc.niu.edu/District.aspx?districtid=07016153002

I stand corrected on the school subject. I had brought up the wrong site in doing my research. I still feel that out of the two suburbs, Homewood is a better place to be. :)

Wrong again - a majority of the people in Flossmoor Estates send their kids to Flossmoor schools. I'm sorry you are so down on Flossmoor. Good thing you live in Homewood!

TeacherMom , you sound like a hillbilly. Go live somewhere else if you need a pick up in your driveway so badly. And why do you want a God awful car used for teenage drivers? Please stay out of Flossmoor if you want to bring it down to your level.

I'm saddened seeing comments such as this one from ABetterFlossmoor. It would be nice if we on our community patch could respectfully disagree without neighbors, including those from neighboring villages, without resorting to personal attacks.

I meant to say with OUR neighbors. (sure would be nice if Patch would let us edit our comments. :~\ )

Linda is right. I was not making personal slams on any person here. If ABetterFlossmoor feels better about themselves by throwing punches, freedom of speech lets them do that. It's just sad that my comment was taken that personally. I grew up in Flossmoor and still have family and friends in Flossmoor. I live in Homewood and have a child at H-F. I was simply stating that I think Flossmoor needs to do a better job at enticing potential buyers by lowering taxes and getting rid of or changing some of their ordinances. If people buy a house and are paying $25,000 in taxes, they should be allowed to do some of the things that Flossmoor says they can't. Worrying about dogs on leashes should not be the mayor's top priority, or the community's, for that reason. There are a lot more important things to worry about, that's all I'm saying.

Cats also take care of mice and rats. Don't have a mice or rat problem? That's because you have neighborhood cats. My cats are indoor only cats but I appreciate the neighborhood cats. By the way, electric fences are inhumane. Every get zapped by one to feel what it's like? I have. It hurts like heck. I'd never do that to a pet. Never.

Unfortunately, hanging laundry in Flossmoor is not a rumor (unless they've changed the ordinance). I do agree with the cat thing. It is cruel to have them outside.

I don't have an electric fence - never have, never will, but many people do and it's not for me to judge them on using them to keep their dogs safe and confined. My dog is trained to stay in our yard without any kind of fence,

I respect your opinion. At the same time I don't appreciate outdoor cats. Where we live, hawks and owls do a good job eating mice, moles, voles, and baby rabbits, and I've never seen a rat here, though predator birds eat those too. Outdoor cats live shorter, less healthy lives. They get hit by cars, trucks, and trains, contract disease, and are often lost. Around here many times a year a family is heartbroken when their cat never comes home again or contracts a life-altering or fatal disease, or parasites that can infect other pets, and even people. Owners of outdoor cats are often, though not always, irresponsible pet owners. Often those cats are not spayed/neutered, leading to large numbers of unwanted and feral cats that end up in shelters and euthanized. And often they're not immunized. And I for one do not appreciate their poop and parasites in my garden where I grow food, or in ornamental gardens where I walk and use my hands.

<< My dog is trained to stay in our yard without any kind of fence, >>
Many dogs are ...until they're not. Dogs are ANIMALS and have instincts that cannot be trained away....

Juvenal, I agree. Still, in my case it works. Our dog is 12 years old and he's never, ever been 'at large.'

TeacherMom, your comment illustrates why the ordinances and neighborhood association rules should be available online. According to Ryan in the comments of this previous Patch article, http://homewood-flossmoor.patch.com/articles/minutes-with-the-mayor-flossmoor-edition, hanging laundry is not against Flossmoor ordinances: "I got an email from Flossmoor Village Manager Bridget Wachtel that sheds some light on this issue. There is NO village ordinance prohibiting clotheslines. HOWEVER, residents CAN enter into homeowner association covenants to establish more regulations. Such as the case in Heather Hills where clotheslines have indeed been prohibited."

Thanks Linda for clarifying the laundry thing. So in my original post, I'll substitute hanging laundry with the removal of the toothbrushes. Silly ordinances :) And you are so right, I searched the internet for a list and it isn't available. Maybe Ryan can get Bridget Wachtel to post them.

Why don't you report this person if they are doing this on a regular basis??

I have DJ.

I still have a hard time understanding why all of you are quick to complain here but have never confronted this man who is there everyday at 4:30 like clockwork. Are you afraid of him? I don't get it. Simply ask him (in a civil manner, of course) to respect our parks and pick up after his dog. Bring him a roll of bags. Why do the police have to solve everyone of our minuscule complaints?

Yes, this was a pretty poor choice for a first question...this should have been one of the lowest priority questions...

You don't think he does that? Nevermind that our property taxes were just reduced this year due to our reduced assessments from the county. Have you considered moving to Naperville, Barrington, Winnetka? Our taxes are small in comparison. The mayor could make that shift but that means bringing in big business to subsidize the cost. Let that be Homewood's approach (and Barrington and Naperville's, while were on the subject). I rather enjoy the quaint, local feel of Flossmoor. And I'm ok with paying the taxes so long as our schools are still good, our parks are beautiful and our neighborhood is safe (not to mention unique with it's attractive housing stock).

Mike B, as you stated “our property taxes were just reduced this year due to our reduced assessments from the county,” realistically since the county reduced the taxes, it’s not anything we can give our mayor credit for. I ‘m tired of hearing people comparing our village to Naperville, Barrington, Winnetka, Hinsdale etc. Where can you actually and honestly start an apples to apples comparison? The village’s leadership just pumped over $2 million on improvements to 198th Street in the TIF area (“the road that goes nowhere”) and has also recently approved nearly a half a million dollars for acquiring most of the TIF property. According to your statement, “The mayor could make that shift but that means bringing in big business to subsidize the cost,” does this infer that our TIF area, that the village has now sunk nearly $3 million property tax dollars into, will still remain to languish off the tax rolls and become our liability for more than the 20 years it has already? By the way, Homewood’s TIF approach has put millions of TIF dollars back into their community. Tonight, at the scheduled board meeting, the village residents are about to be faced with a $7.3 million dollar water system improvement referendum. I don’t know or care about how much money you are willing to pay in taxes but I think most of us are fed up with the property taxes that are way out of line with the actual property values and what we get for them in our still wonderful village.

Flossmoor Family, on the contrary, I'm highlighting their apples-to-oranges reality in light of the difference of funding sources. I'm genuinely curious, how do you not see the investment in improved infrastructure (water and sewer mains, roadways, etc...) in the 198th street area as a pursuit of future commercial developments?

Mike B you state, “The mayor could make that shift but that means bringing in big business to subsidize the cost. Let that be Homewood's approach (and Barrington and Naperville's, while we’re on the subject).” You sound as if you are against an economic development “shift” in Flossmoor by sending the commercial development to Homewood, Barrington etc. with this statement. If there was an actual site development plan for what-went-where in the 96 acre TIF footprint that actually included the 198th Street improvements, then it would make sense to spend $2 million on a road with no curb cuts, water taps etc. What happens if a future developer may come and 198th Street runs down the middle of his development footprint plan? I guess they will have to tear Flossmoor’s $3 million investment out. I did see the need and brought it up at board meetings for logical infrastructure improvements in the TIF but not until there is an actual development and engineering plan approved by the village on someone else’s dime. This seems to me to be poor (no) planning in my estimation, maybe they have a crystal ball, and all the TIF incentive money is spent.

I see what you're saying now. I have a little faith that they are making the 198th street area attractive to potential developers; we're no longer in a time where those outfits see community development as the cash cow it once was. Spend money to make money; I'm not saying this is the greatest approach, but I'm also not proclaiming to have a better one. Of course I would like to see the Village attract business. Sorry for the confusion, my comment was referring more to the big box stores that residents tend to associate with diminishing neighborhood charm. I recall the backlash when Homewood residents got Best Buy...until they saw the tax money they would be receiving.

Flossmoor Family - I have lived in Flossmoor since 1974 and I remember when Flossmoor was able to be compared to Naperville, Barrington, Winnetka, Hinsdale etc. And ranked higher than Naperville as well.

Whats the status of the Ken Norman McMansion across from the high school?

My family considered and ultimately rejected moving to Flossmoor for this very reason. While the sale prices seemed great, the taxes were way out of line with the actual values. Also, we were not impressed with the direction of the schools, so the prospect of paying private school tuition on top of $15-$20K a year in property taxes made no sense. It's really a shame, because we loved the community and the housing stock.