The village board room at Peoria Heights Village Hall was full last week.

Residents were out in force to send a message to the board. They wanted a K-9 unit.

Peoria Heights resident Charles Gauf spoke to the board.

“I think the village needs that dog bad ... (The police) need all the help they can get.”
Gauf’s comments were met by applause.

The speculation was, however, the board would vote down the request from police chief Dustin Sutton, and, in the process, bite themselves in the rear.

In the end, however, by a narrow 3-2 vote, the board approved the $54,000 request, which includes a vehicle.

Yet, this did not happen before trustee Leonard Jatkowski had his say about why he did not like the proposal.

Part of the reason was personal. He did not like some comments Sutton made in a Journal Star article.

Sutton had said simply that some trustees did not like the proposal.

Jatkowski said he felt those comments were pointed directly at him.

Whether it was smart for Sutton to make such comments for an article right before the vote was taken is debatable.

For Jatkowski, to make it loud and clear his no vote was, in part, predicated on Sutton’s comments is not.

Jatkowski will argue he had other reasons for not supporting the proposal, and that he stated those.

But, with his comments about Sutton, he opened himself to this type of criticism.
Jatkowski was wrong.

There is an old saying that “Politics is the art of compromise.” Jatkowski had no compromise in him. He, instead, was full of venom. That venom poisoned the process and will poison Jatkowski politically if he is not careful.

Jatkowski can rest assured that at last some of the electorate will look at every no vote he casts from now on and wonder if it is pay back to someone. That does not help him lead.

The Peoria Heights Village Board has a reputation of being both progressive and  very political.

Being political is not bad. It is part of the game.

However, those who practice politics should know that after an aggressive disagreement, you are supposed to leave the disagreement at the table, and be able to go have a drink with your opponent.

That type of attitude was not present following the meeting.

Instead, we have a polarized situation with the police chief and a trustee. That does nothing to serve the electorate of Peoria Heights.

Someone on the village board needs to cure this political ailment, before the electorate decides to do it for them.