Furniture Lounge on its way out of downtown Champaign
Furniture Lounge in downtown Champaign is having a big sale prior to its move to downtown Urbana: 75% off storewide through March 30. Vintage clothing is $5 a bag and records are 25 for one dollar. That's pretty much the best deal in town.
Dan Deacon’s new record dropped on Tuesday
Electronic musician Dan Deacon will be touring in support of his new record, Bromst, and on this magical mystery tour he'll be appearing at The Canopy on May 6. Unlike his show at The Canopy last year in which he twiddled knobs by his sweaty lonesome self, this time around he'll be backed by a 14-piece band. No kidding. Expect lots of mallets and keys and percussion. Hopefully he and the sound guy will be able to get on the same page this time around.
Here's a cut titled "Get Older" from Bromst, which is in line with his last record, Spiderman of the Rings.
Worth Sharing: Where The Wild Things Are trailer
Dave Eggers, a former university student at UIUC and famed author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, has decided to throw his hat into Hollywood's ring. Last year, he announced that he would be teaming up with Spike Jonze to adapt Where The Wild Things Are, to be released this coming October.
The long awaited trailer:
Audrey Niffenegger gets $5 mil book deal
I had the pleasure of meeting Audrey Niffenegger, author of the New York Times bestseller, The Time Traveler's Wife, when I was going to Columbia College Chicago. During our meeting, she spoke about her next book, which would take place at Highgate Cemetery in England. She said she would be researching the book by becoming a caretaker of the cemetery. Not only did she end up helping another New York Times bestselling author research his Newbery-winning novel, Neil Gaiman; Ms. Niffenegger's new book snagged an unprecedented $5 million dollar book deal.
It's nice to know in our nose-diving economy, the written word can still be so profitable. Now, if only I could make a small fraction of that $5 mil with my book...
Illini baseball avoids sweep in Florida finale
The University of Illinois baseball team won their final game against Central Connecticut State in Winter Haven, Florida, by a 6-0 count. The Illini went 2-3 overall in the Sunshine State, and return home for their Big Ten opener this weekend against Michigan State.
Wanna sell some ads for us?
Smile Politely has decided to seek a freelance advertising rep to help put the small businesses that make our town tick on the pages of our Web site. We are looking for a self-starter; someone willing to fly solo, and who knows (or wants to learn) the Champaign-Urbana ropes. We are looking for someone with a little advertising experience or someone who is currently studying advertising at University of Illinois. We expect our new rep to work a fair share of hours per week. We are not looking for someone who wants to sell businesses more than they need. We maintain a fierce independence, and the right candidate will fit into that mold with ease. Smile Politely compensates on a commission basis. If you're interested, email us at info [at] smilepolitely [dot] com, and we'll go from there.
Did you miss out on gas under two dollars?
Perhaps it'll go back down? Check for local gas prices here.
Historic Lincoln Hotel getting long-overdue renovation
William Gillespie wrote about its decrepit condition on this very site last week, and now comes the announcement that the Historic Lincoln Hotel is closing for a nine-month renovation.
Any suggestions for the new name?
Prairie Green Party denounces alleged illegal ballot placements
It seems like the Urbana mayoral elections are heating up.
From a press release just today:
The Prairie Green Party has denounced illegal ballot placement for the Urbana municipal elections. Phyllis Clark, Urbana City Clerk, did not conduct a lottery to choose ballot order for the April 7th consolidated general election, as required by state law. Greens are asking for ballots to be reprinted to repair the situation and bring the election in line with the law.
Illinois state law requires a lottery to determine ballot placement for established parties in general elections (10 ILCS 5/7-60). The Green, Democratic, and Republican parties are all established parties in Illinois and should have been included in a lottery, based on state law. Non-established parties and independents are placed on the ballot, after established parties, in the order they are certified.
Clark chose the ballot order for all candidates based on the order in which candidates submitted their petitions. The ballot order, from first to last, is Democratic Party, Republican Party, Green Party, and independents. This in direct violation of state law and would give an advantage to the Democratic Party candidates. Studies have shown a favorable impact for candidates listed first, including "Candidate Name Order Effects in Elections" by Jon A. Krosnick et al.
"We are calling for a legally conducted election," said Durl Kruse, Green candidate for Urbana Mayor. "From the Florida presidential debacle in 2000 to the current situation in Urbana, Greens have been fighting for fair elections. Although this may have been a simple mistake, situations like this erode the public's faith in our electoral system and need to be addressed."
Mayor Laurel Prussing stated that the ballot placement violation was an honest mistake based on bad advice. Last year, Citizens for Instant Runoff Voting attempted to introduce a referendum on Instant Runoff Voting, but had their petitions challenged and thrown off the ballot. The group based their signature requirement on advice from the Champaign County Clerk Mark Sheldon, which turned out to be incorrect. Prussing and Clark were on the election board that threw the referendum off the ballot.
"In both situations, we have an honest mistake made on bad advice by an election authority. We should follow the law across the board, regardless of who benefits. Should the law vary for elected officials? I think not," said Kruse.
The Prairie Green Party has called for this to be rectified, possibly by holding a lottery and printing ballots reflecting the new placement order. Republican mayoral candidate, Rex Bradfield, initially brought attention to this situation and has joined the Greens in calling for similar remedies. Although reprinting the ballots would bring an additional cost, the Greens said the cost would be worth having an election that does not violate state law.
"True democracy is priceless." said Kruse.
Your thoughts?
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Most Recent SPlog Comments
Oh nice! I’d totally vote for Matt Campbell!
“Smile Politely sports writer announces candidacy for city government.”
Snell and the little Hitlers of the neighborhood association need to chill out. Legitimate businesses should have the freedom to exist without having to endure the slings and arrows of ignorant and misguided opposition.
And without bloodshed. Sounds like the Savoy trustees aren’t as narrow-minded as some of their whiny pants constituents. Do you think quack Snell is already planning an asinine counterattack or is he still laying low after those “threats” against his person?
Excellent. I am glad sometimes American dreams are encouraged, rather than stifled.
Dollars to waffles says the study session will conclude that there is parking available in the Hill Street Parking Deck.
I can see requiring them to plug meters where they park, but the license fee thing sure sounds like some established business doesn’t like the competition and has an in with the city gummint staff.
This is pretty much ridiculous. However, I would hope that local businesses that aren’t opposed would step up and allow the Crave Truck in their private parking lots. That won’t solve the licensing issue though… (Insert not-so-subtle reference to Snell being behind the grand conspiracy to kill…
How convenient.
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Most Recent Comments
As a liberal conservative, and a person who favors taxes & services ... and also a sense of proportion; I savor the comic potential that still exists in this comments section. I’m pretty sure we can goad more anti-government rhetoric from confirmed progressives and government employees. If…
Did the Crave Truck get a permit to park in city metered spots and city right of way? Or did they just get a permit? The city clerk’s office seems to be a suspect here, but it’s not clear they did anything wrong. Did the Crave Truck…
High-profile whining. AKA Lobbying.
it’s quite choice. looking forward to seeing how it and its patronage grow and develop over the course of the year. could be a neat little ecosystem.
“It was at this point, before he started his business, that working with city employees should’ve raised red flags…” But they didn’t because: 1) The City Clerk’s office originally mis-interpreted the rules, or are indeed re-interpreting them. 2) Champaign’s brick-n-mortar merchants hadn’t yet started whining about The Crave Truck.
Super cool! Excellent track, Excellent band.
Looking forward to trying this place!
I’m in the middle (or the beginning or end, depending on how you look at it) of re-reading Slaughterhouse Five. What a great companion column.
Get yours early. The Rave’s CD will be available at Exile and at The C-U Flea on Saturday. C-U Flea details here: http://www.smilepolitely.com/news/sp_radio_podcast_c-u_flea_arrives/
I don’t know about Gerard and a random police sargeant. My (mild) outrage is based on this: “...he worked closely with Champaign City Clerk Marilyn Banks to make sure he was licensed properly as a transient food peddler, filling out the necessary paperwork and paying a $225…
Local Yocal pretty much nails it here. I suspect there will be merchants who oppose food trucks because they arguably don’t pay their fair share to locate their trucks in high traffic (high rent) areas. The food trucks take away business from rent payers, park in city…
Oh nice! I’d totally vote for Matt Campbell!
“Smile Politely sports writer announces candidacy for city government.”
I also got to visit Big Grove Tavern during the soft open and definitely enjoyed the pork belly the most of all the dishes I sampled. The cheesy grits and the vinegary pickled vegetables were a perfect compliment to the rich pork belly.
The Alan Partridge lookalike on the right in the first small photo has nothing to condescend to anyone about. AH HA!
Snell and the little Hitlers of the neighborhood association need to chill out. Legitimate businesses should have the freedom to exist without having to endure the slings and arrows of ignorant and misguided opposition.
represent, Matt.
Yeah, I’d agree that Transporter Room 3 is the worst house venue I’ve ever seen.
Food trucks are the start-up, small businesses of the future for those unable to afford real estate. No surprise, that merchants who pay rent, utilities, and maintenance on a property would despise the traveling competition. Or developers who build more empty retail spaces would want to close…
Not so much far-right Tea Party as a balanced, moderate viewpoint between letting businesses succeed and protecting society with reasonable regulations. In spite of what the city reps are saying, the interpretation of policy on this issue certainly has changed. Letting a business start up under one…
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Super cool! Excellent track, Excellent band.