By Kathy Bergen
| Gov. Pat Quinn this afternoon signed
legislation that will oust the board that oversees the operation of McCormick
Place, the nation’s largest convention center.
The 13-member board of the
Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, known as McPier, will be replaced
with a seven-member interim board charged with examining how to overhaul the
way the agency conducts the trade show business. The interim board will take
over in 30 days.
The legislation was
overwhelmingly
approved by the General Assembly about a month ago.
Quinn will appoint three
members to
the state-city agency, one of whom must have academic credentials in
labor law
or human resources. Mayor Richard Daley will appoint three others, plus a
chairman.
A tug-of-war is under way for
seats
on the interim board, sources say. A number of existing board members
are
pushing to remain on the interim board, they say, which is causing
consternation among some industry leaders who would prefer individuals
with
strong trade-show credentials.
The ouster comes after the
city has
lost two major shows, both citing the high cost of doing business here.
Several
more shows are on the fence, seriously checking out alternative
locations after
years at McCormick Place. Among those weighing options are the National
Restaurant Association’s annual show and the International Home +
Housewares
Show, both mainstays in Chicago.
The convention business is
seen as
critical to the city’s economic health because it generates billions of
dollars
in spending by visitors from around the world.
Some legislative leaders
would like
the interim board report back to the legislature by May 1 in hopes that
legislation addressing McPier’s financial needs could be crafted before
the end
of the spring session. McPier is seeking approval to restructure its
debt
because tourism taxes are falling short of covering required annual
payments.
Quinn’s signature comes on
the same
day that officials from the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau and
McPier
met with more than 40 trade-show customers to explain their legislative
agenda.
In addition to the debt restructuring, the legislation would establish
McPier
as a public employer with the authority to negotiate contracts with
trade-show
labor, including those who work the hall for private contractors, and to
prohibit strikes. The goal would be to cut exhibitors’ labor costs.
The bureau and McPier
declined
comment after the customer meeting, and calls to several trade show
customers
were not returned.
With Quinn’s track record (such as his appointments to the CTA Board) he’ll probably appoint a couple of union members and a poverty activist.
Quinn waited until AFTER The primary to sign the bill and its gives him and Daley more power to KNIFE the unions. Dennis Gannon left before the MCPIER management balances its checkbook at the employees’ expense. All the previous wage savings/cuts/rules changes were never passed on to exhibitors. THE rich get richer and the temporary employees get you know what!
Quinn waited until AFTER The primary to sign the bill and its gives him and Daley more power to KNIFE the unions. Dennis Gannon left before the MCPIER management balances its checkbook at the employees’ expense. All the previous wage savings/cuts/rules changes were never passed on to exhibitors. THE rich get richer and the temporary employees get you know what!
A 30 day delay meant Plenty of political hacks and stooges took early retirement parachutes befoe they could be fired.
Quinn is a complete weasel.
Comment to John C: Who was the last Governor that took an interest in the viability of the Chicago Convention business?
I’m waiting… still waiting… yawn…
I worked as a caterer serving beverages at McCormick Place for several years and this news comes as no surprise. When you are charged $50.00 for a gallon of milk people notice. When you shut down VW at the auto show for several hours because their sound man plugged in his own sound board people notice. When you charge VW $2000.00 to have some barely literate “apprentice” perform the highly technical procedure of incerting the plug into the outlet people notice.
McCormick Place has allowed the unoins to call the shots for too many years and as a result they are losing business!! Go figure!!
When did stupid become so fashionable??
Let me get this right, you’re going to replace the Board but leave the CEO? A CEO who had no prior experience, appointed by Blago and allowed McPier to get to this point? Additionally, you waited until after you got elected to sign the bill? I understand Quinn has a soft spot for Veterans, but realistically, Juan Ochoa is not qualified for that position! So Quinn obviously doesn’t want to upset Hispanics and Gutierrez. I’m a democrat, but at this point, I may vote for a Republican Governor! REPUBLICANS…..take this and run wild with it, there are more people like me that will vote your way!!!
This article is an example of poor journalism and bias reporting. Why weren’t the existing board members listed and any discussion on how Mayor ’short shanks” will be controlling the majority of the Board selection. If it is true that McRipOff becomes a public employer, then that means non-union contracts should be allowed to provide services in a public facility, thus making competitive bidding the true driver of lowering cost. How can this happen? It is clear once again that these moves are a facade to make us all think that real changes have been put in place. The reality of this is it’s just a maneuvering game where we will likely see the same people on the existing Board put right back in the political positions they had in the first place. My belief is further supported by the headline itself, leading one to believe that the Board is actually ousted. Does it never end in this horribly run state, county and city.
Why would some remaining board members want to stay on?… Oh wait…. While other Convention Bureaus in the nation stuff envelopes and mass mail ‘em. In Chicago they stuff their OWN pockets and bank it…..
“… to have some barely literate “apprentice” perform the highly technical procedure of incerting the plug into the outlet people notice.”
“Incerting” must be a specialized skill, since it is not in any dictionary I could find.
Joe H answer is :::: GOV Edgar was the last governor to actually improve the place and support conventions in Chicago
Reality is: Thousands of NON connected people can and would do a far better job if politics was removed from the equation
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