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ONE BIG CLUSTER “L”UCK

Why, in God’s name, would the chairman of the Lake Geneva Police and Fire Commission make a motion (at last week’s meeting) that the commission should seek outside nominations for the position of the police chief, soon to be vacated with the coming of Mike Rasmussen’s retirement in September?  The reason given made no sense: “just to see what’s out there.”

The chairman of that commission, serving his record-setting fourth term, is Jim Conners, former mayor of some very controversial pursuit.  Conners was supported by Chuck Saul, a member of the commission, but works as a Chicago realtor.  Both of these men spoke about having little or no interest in looking internally for a new chief, instead of letting everyone attending the meeting feel as if they are only interested in an outside candidate.  There are two outstanding candidates for the position currently working for the Lake Geneva Police Department.

Those would-be chief applicants are Lieutenant Edward Gritzner and Lieutenant Bridget Way.  These two lieutenants have been with the department for many years, and both are highly decorated.  What’s going on, and why isn’t one of them an obvious shoo-in?  That question leads to another question.  What’s going on with the Business Improvement District’s sheriff’s investigation?  That investigation was re-opened, as it turns out, not by the chairman of the BID’s board, as previously and erroneously written about by the Geneva Shore Report, but by Mike Rasmussen, the current police chief of Lake Geneva.

The investigators at the sheriff’s department hadn’t bothered to interview the board members of the BID who’d generated the complaint upon which the investigation is supposed to be based.  What’s one alleged point that may be crucially valid in the coming results of this investigation?  Allegedly, some of the money that was supposed to be paid to the BID was actually paid to the First Congregational Church based in downtown Lake Geneva.  That money was allegedly directed toward a local charity named “Side-by-Side,” which is administered by that church.  Who is the treasurer of that church?  Lynn Conners.  Yes, the wife of the chairman of the police commission.

Why was Speedo not made chairman of the police commission is another question to be answered.  After Conners and Saul, the third member of the commission to vote for Conners as repeat chairman was Len Jegerski, the U.S. government paid for the leader of the local American Legion (yes, the feds pay him a large salary to run that fiefdom of an organization). This is the same guy who has dominated the Lake Geneva Post for so many years, going all the way back to his participation in the bogus sub-lease he gave to the ‘guys with the Legion’s little hot dog stand located on Wrigley Drive in Library Park.

There is a cluster of a mess going on with the Lake Geneva Police Commission.  Speedo is the hold-out in supporting the local department personnel and the elevating of one of the two very qualified in-house candidates, and he’s the outsider?  Incidentally, Lieutenant Gritzner was present at the commission meeting where Conners made his play to not only ignore local talent but to specifically not consider it.  How is Conners, once more, deeply so mired in the cluster of the BID investigation, Side-by-Side, the First Congregational Church and maybe so much more?  Incidentally, that same Jegerski fellow is also a Delavan developer.  How are the local developers, almost one and all, involved in all this and other chicanery?

Why is the current city treasurer leaving and why can’t the city keep a treasurer or clerk for any decent length of time?  Where is our quiet, unassuming, but ever available and diligent, mayor in all of this?