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POOR CONDITIONS
The open letter in the Sept. 3 Illinois Times concerning conditions at the Lincoln Tomb followed just two weeks after arborist Guy Sternberg called attention to the sudden death of the historic oak tree at the Vietnam Memorial site. Sternberg maintained that the tree died of poisoning at the hands of poorly supervised Illinois Department of Natural Resources maintenance personnel, an opinion shared by other arborists. While the destruction of this irreplaceable tree is only the latest example of the incompetence of IDNR management, conditions at the Lincoln Tomb go beyond incompetence and can only be explained by a general indifference to our precious historic sites by both the Pritzker administration and by our local city government.
The Lincoln Tomb site is arguably the most historically significant and prestigious state-owned site in Springfield, and a draw for tourists from all over the U.S. and the world. It should receive the highest possible level of maintenance. However, the grass is typically in need of mowing and the entire site is in a state of obvious decay. I have visited the site frequently over the last year and found the restrooms to be dirty, ill-smelling and with inoperable faucets at some wash basins. The paving stones on the patio in front of the Tomb have heaved, sunk or become misaligned, creating an unsightly and potentially hazardous condition. Staff, if present, were rarely, if ever, uniformed as they were in past administrations, and were difficult to distinguish from tourists.
The worst conditions were in the Tomb itself. The palladium leaf covering the ceiling of the rotunda, which was fully restored less than 20 years ago, was hanging from the ceiling like so many sheets of fly paper. I strongly suspect that this failure is largely due to the inability of poorly trained staff to regulate climate within the structure. At the American Legion Pilgrimage event on Lincoln’s Birthday this past February the heat in the Tomb was so oppressive that a number of participants felt ill and had to leave the building. The staff, not having any idea how to regulate the thermostat, merely propped open the door. The blast of cold air coming into the rotunda merely caused the furnace to work all the harder. Very similar conditions existed the following April at the Lincoln Death Day wreath laying, causing some participants to exit in the midst of the event.
People visiting this site cannot help but form lasting opinions about the state of governance of both Illinois and Springfield. I doubt that those opinions are entirely favorable. What they see is a decayed, neglected, mismanaged state historic site of international significance located in a state capital increasingly characterized by derelict commercial buildings, trash blowing in the streets and unenforced traffic laws. It wasn’t this way through most of my 80 years in Springfield and should never have been allowed to reach this embarrassingly sorry state.
James Leinicke
Springfield
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
Deb Martin is a wonderful advocate (“Helping people to heal,” Sept 3. She’s a great lady, and I admire her work and passion. In honor of her son, many families are helped and supported.
Julie DeBrun Stinnett
Via Facebook.com/illinoistimes
IT CAN BE DONE
CWLP as well as bid contractors will get the lead line removal done (“Lead-aches,” Sept. 3). Our company is one assisting in removing lead and installing copper lines to services – 9,000 services divided by 10 years is 900 each year. Divide that by 260 working days each year, that equals 3.4 services each working day to achieve that goal (which doesn’t include weekends).
We can do two or three a day, depending on how difficult each service is – each one varies from four to eight hours, depending on different variables. With two or three companies doing bids and each company doing two to three a day, that’s six to nine each day. And there is federal grant funding to assist these lead projects.
Please have patience, as CWLP also has to attend to emergency water breaks alongside these lead replacement projects. That’s why other contractors are doing them, too, not just CWLP.
Corey Bolt
Via Facebook.com/illinoistimes
JUST THE START
We’ve seen that the city will replace (the water lines) up to the sidewalk – then we have to pay for the rest of it. Not a lot of people have that kind of money.
Rob Van Meter
Via Facebook.com/illinoistimes
This article appears in September 24-30, 2026.
