Yes, it's as empty as it looks
MARION, Ill. - A press release as issued by Illinois Star Centre Mall underscores a couple of things: The abject corruption in the way the city of Marion has been run for who knows how long, and the fact that people don't want to hear about it when real media writes about it.
Because we did, for YEARS...and everybody sat with their thumbs tucked up their nether regions saying "Naw, thayut ain't goin on!!"
It is, and it has been, and here's the presser, which appears on their Fecesbook page.
Date: August 28, 2018
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASECity of Marion Sued over Mismanagement of Funds
Illinois Star Center Alleges Improper Use of BondsOn August 22, 2018, owners of the Illinois Star Center filed an Amended Adversary Complaint against the City of Marion seeking an Equitable Accounting from the City of Marion as it relates to the financing of the Illinois Star Centre Mall and surrounding area in Marion, Illinois.
This Adversarial Complaint relates to the Chapter 11 Petition for Bankruptcy filed by Illinois Star Centre, LLC.
In response to a recent Freedom of Information Act request, the City of Marion acknowledged that it either destroyed or otherwise did not maintain documents regarding the financing of public improvements related to the development of the Illinois Star Center Mall.
According to the Amended Complaint, a review of the available Ordinances, Financial Documents and Bonds related to the financing of the mall reveal potential fraud including:
(1) The existence of several unexplained transfers, totaling several million dollars, out of designated accounts that were established to pay off the bonds that were used to pay the developer of the mall and surrounding area,
(2) The City continues to Assess and Levy taxes on the mall when it appears that all of the bonds related to the development of the mall and surrounding area should have been paid off.
(3) It does not appear that the bond fund proceeds that were earmarked for the development of the mall and surrounding area were used in accordance with the requirements of Illinois’ Special Service Area Tax Law.
(4) It appears that the City has improperly commingled Bond Fund proceeds.
(5) It appears that the City unfairly gerrymandered the Special Service Area which was established to fund the development of the mall and surrounding area which unfairly burdened Illinois Star Centre, LLC. with all of the tax liability while arbitrarily excluding three of the four anchor stores and other surrounding businesses that clearly benefited from the improvements.The filing of the Adversarial Complaint was authorized by Dennis Ballinger, Jr., managing partner for Illinois Star Centre, LLC, because the City would not voluntarily cooperate with the requests for additional financial information to determine what, if anything, was still owed on the bonds related to the development of the mall and surrounding area. Ballinger informed the City that the additional information was needed because a potential buyer of the mall had been identified and needed the information to perform its due diligence.
The Marion Mall was originally developed by Eddie Debartolo, Jr. in the later 1980s after his company received approximately $24 million in incentive payments. Shortly after receiving the incentives, Debartolo’s company sold the mall.
We began covering the corrupt doings of the powers-that-be in Marion in 2013. We continued for the next couple of years, pretty much wrapping it up in 2015 with this piece (you'll have to get an e-Edition membership if you want to read it, but it's fairly lengthy and comprehensive). The whole unbelievable TIF District debacle in Marion is outlined in a series of articles that can be found at this link. TIF (tax increment financing) has been abused in Marion and indeed in Williamson County for decades. This practice - which abates taxes for a chosen few who "develop" areas, like what the obnoxious Doug Bradley has been doing, screwing up roads and causing accidents for years - diminishes tax dollars for other, rightful taxing bodies like school districts, ambulances, fire departments and other entities. Bradley, along with other cronies of his and former mayor Bob Butler, have been endowed with this largesse for years. Now, them chickens have come home to roost.
We wish the Mall all success. It's a nice mall. We like shopping at Dillard's and the shoe place out in what's left of the retailers in the mall itself (the mall is largely empty). But its presence has been, apparently, for little but someone to dip their hand in the honeypot. Hopefully, that's all coming to an end...and maybe, some criminal charges.