Peru mayor was not truthful in his apology about Pistol Shrimp theme nights, aldermen say

Four Peru City Council members said Monday that Mayor Ken Kolowski was not truthful in his apology statement last Tuesday about comments he made regarding Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp theme nights at a committee meeting that took place the night prior to his statement.

The council members also said at Monday’s meeting the mayor’s apology statement last week pointed fingers at the Peru police chief and Peru City Council for taking offense to his comments, and that the mayor allowed people on social media to criticize the police chief without stepping in.

The council members also distanced themselves from the mayor’s remarks, saying the comments don’t reflect their views or that of the city of Peru.

According to the mayor’s apology statement, which he shared on Facebook, he brought up at the committee meeting a complaint he had received from a resident saying the resident would not be attending any more Pistol Shrimp baseball games at Schweickert Stadium at Veterans Park if the team continues to host Pride Night. Pride events are hosted across the country as a way to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community. The Pistol Shrimp hosted Pride Night on June 8.

According to Kolowski’s statement last week, he asked the committee if it objected to the theme night. After receiving no objection, Kolowski said he further asked if the Pistol Shrimp wanted to have a Black Lives Matter themed night, if it would be OK. The Pistol Shrimp did not have a BLM themed night in 2023.

Alderman Mike Sapienza agreed the discussion was about a complaint the mayor received about the Pistol Shrimp baseball team theme nights, but Sapienza disagreed with the mayor’s portrayal of how it was said.

“Chief Raymond asked ‘Mr. Mayor, we were there every night and there were no issues. Which theme night was the complaint?’” Sapienza said Monday, recalling the Oct. 2 meeting. “And you, Mr. Mayor, you replied, ‘Well, we had that pride night.’ That’s what you said. The basic reply from several of the council was that’s OK, if they don’t like the theme night, they don’t have to come to that night’s game, they have choices.

“Mr. Mayor from that you said, ‘What about BLM?’ Someone loudly on the council said, ‘What?’ And then, Mr. Mayor, you continued emphatically with ‘you wouldn’t want them here would you?’ That wasn’t a question, that was an exclamation. It’s how you say things. That’s what I heard you say, that’s what you should apologize for.”

The Oct. 2 meeting was not recorded for the public, nor was it tape-recorded for record keeping. The Clerk’s Office said the routine is for the minutes to be processed for approval at the next committee meeting. Shaw Local News Network requested the minutes of the meeting Tuesday, but they have not been provided. Shaw Local News Network has since filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the minutes or any official records of the meeting.

The Public Services Committee regularly meets in open session. Aldermen Jason Edgcomb (chairman), Bob Tieman, Tom Payton and Rick O’Sadnick are committee members. Edgcomb, Tieman, Payton and O’Sadnick were contacted Oct. 3 and declined to comment.

Payton said Monday the meeting minutes may not reflect the full story.

“If you’re looking for a gotcha moment, you’re not going to see that,” Payton said. “What you’ll see is what was said, but what you won’t see is the demeanor and how it was said.”

Council members continued Monday by saying the mayor’s apology statement led residents to criticize the police chief.

“As I’m sure you noticed on Facebook after your statement, for some reason I can’t understand, our police chief got lit up by several members of the community,” Edgcomb said. “All the police chief ever did that day was ask what event someone had complained about because she was doing her job, because she was asking if something was not reported she didn’t know about.”

Edgcomb said the chief told the committee the police were present at every theme night and had no documented issues at any of them.

“Your statement made it look like she got upset with you because you said someone complained about Pride Night,” Edgcomb said. “I don’t think anybody sitting in this room that was there that night believes that that’s what the situation was, but all the people who read your statement on Facebook do believe that. That’s not fair to her. ... It’s not fair to the council either.”

Alderman Andy Moreno said he agreed with the other three council members recollection of the Oct. 2 meeting. Moreno said the mayor’s apology statement made everyone else look like the bad guys. He also said public officials are held to a higher standard and they should set examples of transparency, ethics and the truth.

After the four council members spoke, Kolowski responded.

“I’d like to reiterate my apologies for everything I misspoke on,” Kolowski said. “I didn’t mean to offend the council. I didn’t mean to offend the chief. My apology was written not to hurt anyone or throw anyone else under the bus. I take full responsibility for it. I said that in the newspaper. My intent is to bring people together, my intent is to always bring people up, not down. I apologize to anyone I may have offended, the council, the chief. I’m sorry from the top, middle and bottom of my heart. And I didn’t mean to offend anyone. I did not, in any way, try to take away the responsibility. I apologize.”

Kolowski told the newspaper in an Oct. 3 interview following the release of his apology statement: “I’m owning this mistake. No one here but me is responsible for this. It’s not who I am. It’s not what I ever dreamed to be. I don’t raise my children this way. I ran for this job to help people, not hurt them.”

Illinois Valley Pistol Shrimp GM June Keeley said last week neither the city of Peru, nor the mayor, has contacted her or any team staff regarding their theme nights. Kolowski had said in his statement Peru staff was planning to meet with the Pistol Shrimp management at a future date to review the 2023 season and look ahead to 2024.

Each council member made it a point to say the mayor’s comments were his own and not reflective of the community. Edgcomb said Monday he doesn’t believe Kolowski has a “bigoted bone in his body.”

“That’s not who we are,” Edgcomb said. “That’s not what we represent here.”