Full Text of HR1456 99th General Assembly
HR1456 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives wish to thank Tom Weisner for his hard work as | 4 | | Mayor of the City of Aurora; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, In his more than 11 years as Mayor of Aurora, Tom | 6 | | Weisner has propelled the former "blue collar town" into the | 7 | | 21st century as a high-performing, progressive city by | 8 | | strengthening neighborhoods, revitalizing Aurora's riverfront | 9 | | core, promoting sustainable development practices, developing | 10 | | a top-notch telecommunications infrastructure, and vastly | 11 | | reducing crime; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, By focusing on public-private partnerships to | 13 | | spur revitalization, Tom Weisner successfully cleaned up | 14 | | polluted riverfront areas and breathed new life into Aurora's | 15 | | downtown urban core, most recently through the creation of | 16 | | RiverEdge Park, a spectacular new music venue on the banks of | 17 | | the Fox River; and
| 18 | | WHEREAS, Under the leadership of Tom Weisner, Aurora has | 19 | | experienced a significant decrease in crime, a trend | 20 | | highlighted by national media in 2012 when Aurora reported zero | 21 | | homicides; he also took strong and early action during his | 22 | | first term to blunt the effects of the Great Recession, cutting |
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| 1 | | costs and improving efficiencies in order to maintain a high | 2 | | level of services for Aurora residents; as a result, Aurora | 3 | | continues to be one of very few Illinois cities to maintain a | 4 | | AA rating for both General Obligation and Water Revenue bonds; | 5 | | and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, Tom Weisner has made the development of a skilled | 7 | | workforce a priority for Aurora in order to ensure a growing | 8 | | economy and plentiful job opportunities; he led the effort to | 9 | | create new educational structures in Aurora, from early | 10 | | education (SPARK) to STEM education (Aurora University John C. | 11 | | Dunham STEM Partnership School), to high school skills training | 12 | | (Pathways to Prosperity); and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, Tom Weisner assumed the Chairmanship of the | 14 | | Chicago Metropolitan Mayors Caucus in November of 2013; he is | 15 | | the Kane/Kendall representative to the Chicago Metropolitan | 16 | | Agency for Planning (CMAP), a member of the Illinois Municipal | 17 | | League Executive Board, and a past President of Metro West | 18 | | Council of Governments; he was appointed as Director of the | 19 | | Illinois Toll Highway Authority by Governor Pat Quinn and | 20 | | serves as chair of the Strategic Planning Committee at the | 21 | | Tollway; he is the founding Chairman of the Northwest Water | 22 | | Planning Alliance, a collaborative planning organization | 23 | | involving municipalities and counties in a five-county area of | 24 | | the Chicago suburbs; he also serves as Chairman of the Board |
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| 1 | | for OnLight Aurora, a public-private partnership created to | 2 | | connect Aurora schools, hospitals, and businesses to a 50-mile | 3 | | fiber optic network; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, Tom Weisner was the founding Chairman of the | 5 | | Aurora East Educational Foundation, Chair of the Quad County | 6 | | Urban League, and a board member of United Way, Family | 7 | | Counseling Services, and several other non-profit | 8 | | organizations; and | 9 | | WHEREAS, Prior to being elected Mayor, Tom Weisner served | 10 | | the City of Aurora for nearly 20 years overseeing a number of | 11 | | city operations, including emergency management, public | 12 | | properties, and organizational development; he and his wife, | 13 | | Marilyn, also served in the Peace Corps, assisting rain forest | 14 | | dwellers in the highlands of Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands; and
| 15 | | WHEREAS, Tom Weisner serves as a model of hard work, | 16 | | integrity, and dedication for the people of the State of | 17 | | Illinois; therefore, be it
| 18 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 19 | | NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we | 20 | | thank Tom Weisner for his hard work as Mayor of the City of | 21 | | Aurora and wish him great success and happiness in his future | 22 | | endeavors; and be it further
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| 1 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 2 | | presented to Tom Weisner as a symbol of our esteem and respect.
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