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Business developments With the U.S. Cellular Coliseum starting its second year of operations with a one-month loss of $307,786, members of the Bloomington City Council’s oversight committee say they have a lot of work ahead of them. The committee was formed this spring as a result of numerous discussions about the Coliseum and its $2.5 million loss in its first year, which ended April 30. In general, the committee will look at setting goals for the Coliseum’s management group, Central Illinois Arena Management, and looking for ways to trim the already estimated $1.6 million deficit for this year, Mayor Steve Stockton said. The building that formerly housed a Baskin-Robbins on Main Street in Normal will be razed to make way for student apartments and possibly some retail space. But that won’t happen soon. Meanwhile work on the addition to Bedtime Boutique finally can go full-steam-ahead now that a plan for the building has been given approval. The Main Street Commission, which reviews any plans for property along the five-mile Main Street Corridor, approved demolition of the old ice cream store building at 704 S. Main St., Normal, and accepted revised plans for the lingerie store addition last month. But Normal’s town planner, Mercy Davison, said that because the Baskin-Robbins building falls in an area being studied for a possible tax increment financing district, plans for any changes are on hold. The city of Bloomington will bring down the Coachman Motel. In a unanimous vote, the Bloomington City Council approved a plan to demolish the dilapidated motel at 408 E. Washington St. and place a lien on the property for the estimated $120,000 to $150,000 in costs. Last year, the council approved filing a repair or demolish lawsuit in McLean County Circuit Court. Since then, the property has reverted to previous owner Wei Ye, who has been cooperating with the city. Ye plans to sell the building to local developer Ward Waller, who city officials said also is cooperating. Quality of life The next phase of construction on Bloomington’s Cultural District is already under way and will be much more visible to those driving by on East Street. Work on building Festival Park in front of the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts started with a very noticeable delivery of more than 80 truckloads of dirt and the ripping up of the bricks along the 100 block of East Mulberry Street, right in front of the building’s main entrance. Transformation of the former vacant lot and now closed street into the park will be much more noticeable, unlike the nearly 18-month renovation to the former Scottish Rite Temple that was largely invisible to the public until it opened in September. The renovation to the temple cost about $14.5 million. "People will be seeing progress on this all summer long," Cultural District Executive Director Bruce Marquis said. A new skate park, new playground equipment and more athletic fields top the list of projects this year for the city of Bloomington’s park and recreations department. A boccie ball court is planned for the next park the city will be building. Gaelic Park, a 10-acre neighborhood park at 3102 Cave Creek Road, will be added in 2008. The park has been planned for about seven years, according to parks director Dean Kohn. Other park projects and the pace of development of the subdivisions surrounding the site have delayed development of the $1 million park over the years. But now, Kohn said the project is at the stage where the city will seek a $400,000 grant from the state, and the city has budgeted $600,000 for it. City funding for Gaelic Park has not been affected by the city budget changes made to cover the estimated $1.6 million shortfall in operating the U.S. Cellular Coliseum. A carnival for all town of Normal employees last month at Fairview Park kicked off the United Way of McLean County 2007 pacesetter campaign. Normal was selected by United Way to set the bar for this year’s countywide fund drive. "This is a big day for the town, particularly the employees," City Manager Mark Peterson said. "Being the pacesetter is a tremendous honor. We would not have been selected if the United Way hadn’t felt very confident we can pull it off. The eyes of the county are on us. We really have to set the bar high." Patty Martinez, the co-chairwoman for the town’s campaign, said the goal is to raise 30 percent more than town employees raised last year, or a total of $50,000. "Our big push is for payroll giving," Martinez said. "We want to get more involved and others to increase what they give." Education Dixie Mills’ colleagues say the recently retired Illinois State University College of Business dean has built strong relationships on campus as well as off-campus. "She’s been very well received she’s well-known in the business community here as well as in Chicago," said Jim Moon, the business college’s associate dean. "Besides that, she’s been a real team player in the university, and has stayed connected with the other ISU colleges." Mills worked 27 years at ISU, with more than a decade as dean. Her first faculty position after doctoral studies was at the Normal campus, teaching in the finance department. Later she was tapped to head the college’s growing MBA program, eventually reaching the college’s top administrative role. "She worked her way up, and really had a career dedicated to Illinois State," said Moon. Starting July 1, Charles McGuire, ISU assistant provost, became interim dean of the college. He also has spent most of his career in the ISU College of Business. Mills will stay on through the end of July. Fifteen to 20 teachers will join Unit 5 classrooms this fall. The new positions are in addition to replacements for teachers who are leaving or moving and to 12 teachers who retire this month. The new jobs address continued growth in the Normal-based district, which topped 12,000 students for the first time in 2006. Preliminary enrollment figures for the schools show there will be more than 1,000 kindergarten students this fall, a new high in the district’s history, said John Pye, an assistant superintendent in charge of operations and human resources. Heartland Community College will take on managing the Challenger Learning Center’s operating budget — at least for the short term. The intention is to help the center maintain its financial stability and keep its educational programs functioning throughout the next few months while the center addresses its $900,000 debt, said Heartland President Jon Astroth. He described Heartland’s taking over operations as a short-term bandage and a concrete and visible way for the community to see efforts are being made to keep the Challenger center concept in Central Illinois. The nationwide chain of centers uses simulated space missions to teach topics ranging from science to teamwork. Heartland doesn’t intend to take on the burden of retiring that debt left over from the center’s launch in 2003, however. College officials will join a number of community leaders planning a fund-raising campaign to address that debt, Astroth said. Most Bloomington school administrators will get about a 3.5 percent increase in the coming year, although several will receive close to double that because of impending retirements. "Most administrators, office and technical staff received increases in the 3 1/2 percent range," said David Wood, the district’s chief financial and legal officer. There are exceptions for retirement packages, changes in job position and qualifications, he said. In addition, some administrators are employed for 260 days and others for 220 days. Superintendent Bob Nielsen will receive $165,360, which includes a 6 percent increase as part of a retirement package that takes effect for the final three years before retirement. Bloomington Junior High Principal Sue Silvey, also on the retirement track, receives a 6 percent increase and will get $113,642. Illinois Wesleyan University has re-established a faculty honor tied to one of its founders as it kicks off an effort to expand the number of prestigious endowed professorships for faculty. Marina Balina, a Russian studies professor and expert in Soviet-era children’s literature, has been appointed Illinois Wesleyan’s Isaac Funk professor. She’s the first to hold the title since 1921. The Funk position, IWU’s first endowed professorship, was awarded first in 1865. But the fund that paid for it was depleted in the first decades of the 20th century. IWU President Dick Wilson worked with the Paul A. Funk Foundation and other donors to replenish the professorship’s endowment and revive the honor. IWU now has 11 endowed professorships, each requiring an endowment of at least $500,000 to open. Heartland Community College leaders say years of declining state aid have shifted more burden of operating costs onto the shoulders of local taxpayers and Heartland students. The college’s latest operating budget of nearly $21.4 million is about 8.5 percent higher than last year’s. Of that budget, $9.1 million comes from local tax support, $7.6 million from tuition and fees and $3 million from state aid, said Rob Widmer, Heartland business and finance vice president. That wasn’t always the case. Decades ago, the generally accepted community college funding formula called for equal parts from those three categories. In reality, that equal division never happened, but it was much closer than what exists today, Widmer said. Over the years, the state aid has shrunk, "and the number keeps going down," he said. The pediatrics unit at BroMenn Regional Medical Center will relocate within the hospital during the next several months, a move that may serve as a precursor to other unit transitions in the years to come, the hospital’s chief operating officer said Wednesday. Pediatrics will remain on the same floor at BroMenn but will be moved to the other end of the medical center, Dr. Gary Hagens said. "The staffing levels of pediatrics have stayed the same," he said. "Our bed complement stays the same, and we will have available the same number of rooms." Hagens said the new location will be better for infants, children and their families because it will be closer to the medical unit. Each room will have a private shower. Earlier this year, medical oncology was consolidated onto the medical floor. Dental pain is the primary medical reason that children miss school and a partnership led by United Way of McLean County is attacking the problem. A free fingertip gum cleaner, information on how to use the device and tips on good gum care for infants are being mailed to parents of all newborns in McLean County, United Way has announced. The McLean County Health Department is including the cleaner and information in weekly mailings of birth certificates to parents of newborns. "This is a great idea. It’s long overdue," said Dr. John Van Scoyoc, a Bloomington dentist and immediate past president of the McLean County Dental Society. United Way, the health department and the dental society are partners in the program, called the Birth to Three Oral Health Initiative. A dental problem is the No. 1 medical reason that children miss school, Van Scoyoc said. United Way learned this in discussions with Heartland Head Start, The Baby Fold and the health department, said United Way President Greg Cott. In 2006, United Way convened a panel with representatives of social service and government agencies, the two hospitals, and educators to address the problem. BroMenn Regional Medical Center executives were "surprised and perplexed" by a recent national report card that showed BroMenn performing worse than the national average in treatment of heart failure patients. "We feel that BroMenn offers a very safe environment where high-quality care is rendered," Dr. Gary Hagens, BroMenn’s chief operating officer, told the Pantagraph. Hagens was concerned by the report results because they conflict with other reports that show BroMenn performing well in treatment of heart failure patients. Other hospitals in the Pantagraph area including OSF St. Joseph Medical Center in Bloomington performed at the national average, according to the report by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The federal government has been posting more information on its www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov Web site to allow consumers to get an idea of the quality of care of hospitals. That Web site was updated recently to include information that reflects mortality rates of heart attack and heart failure patients. Heart attack refers to an acute incident, while heart failure patients have chronic heart disease. BroMenn performed well in the care of heart attack patients. But for heart failure patients, BroMenn was among 35 hospitals nationally and two hospitals in Illinois that performed worse than the national average. The other hospital in Illinois was Advocate Christ Hospital & Medical Center in Oak Lawn. 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