Wednesday, April 15, 2009 9:38 PM CDT
Historic sites to re-open next week
By KURT ERICKSON, JG/T-C Springfield Bureau
SPRINGFIELD — More than four months after being laid off, Randy Jackson will be among 33 state workers heading back to their jobs next week.
As part of an agreement reached between the state and the union representing employees at 14 state historic sites, Jackson will return to Lincoln Log Cabin Historic Site near Lerna, where he has done just about every job imaginable over the past 27 years.
Other sites affected by the agreement include the David Davis Mansion in Bloomington, the Hauberg Indian Museum at Blackhawk State Historic Site in Rock Island, three sites in Randolph County, the Vandalia Statehouse and the Bryant Cottage State Historic Site in Bement.
The move comes after lawmakers earlier this month approved spending an additional $1.6 million to reopen the sites, which were shuttered in November during a budget stand-off between the General Assembly and former Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Jackson said he and his wife, Joyce, weathered the layoff by “getting back to basics.”
“We cut back on a lot of things,” said Jackson.
And, he said, he’s seen an outpouring of assistance from others.
“We’ve had tremendous help from friends and family,” Jackson said.
Lincoln Log Cabin is set to reopen on April 23 and be open Tuesday through Sunday, site Manager Matthew Mittelstaedt said. From May 1 through Labor Day, the site will be open seven days a week, he added.
Not all of the sites will reopen on April 22, which is the date when employees are set to return. Some facilities may need to undergo some maintenance before visitors can return, said David Blanchette, spokesman for the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency.
“We want to get the sites open as soon as possible,” Blanchette said.
Henry Bayer, executive director of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union, said it is important for the state to reopen the sites because they preserve the heritage of the state.
“The workers who staff these sites make a large contribution to the state, by keeping our history alive, educating our youth and enhancing the experience of tourists who come to Illinois,” Bayer said in a statement.
AFSCME now is working to reverse Blagojevich-related job cuts to the Illinois Department of Human Services, which processes such things as food stamps and medical assistance.
AFSCME spokesman Anders Lindall said federal stimulus dollars could be used to pay for the re-hiring of the 48 DHS workers laid off last fall. He said their services are important at a time when more people are struggling to make ends meet because of the economic downturn.
“Those offices are overwhelmed with applications for food stamps, medical assistance and other services,” Lindall said.
Staff Writer Dave Fopay contributed to this report.
Kurt Erickson can be reached at kurt.erickson@lee.net or 789-0865
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Rotty wrote on Apr 18, 2009 8:46 AM: