In a lawsuit filed against Cicero and Town President Larry Dominick, former Town President Ramiro Gonzalez alleges he and his family are being prevented from using their properties in town as punishment for his speaking out against the new administration.
Gonzalez also is suing to get his last paycheck. Gonzalez, who served one term as town president after being chosen in 2002 to succeed convicted former Town President Betty Loren-Maltese, was ousted by Dominick in 2004 following a no-holds barred race. Town spokesman Dan Proft on Thursday called the lawsuit “frivolous” and “political skullduggery by disgruntled hacks.” He said the Gonzalezes’ construction plans violate long-standing building codes.
The family sees things differently. In the eight-count complaint filed Wednesday in Cook County Circuit Cook, Gonzalez, his wife, and two of his brothers are suing Dominick, the town and town attorneys claiming they have unfairly stonewalled the family’s construction plans.
The Gonzalezes claim they received all the necessary permits to build or occupy three properties in Cicero, but that once Dominick took over, his administration issued stop-work orders.
As the home for Gonzalez and his wife was being built on South 61st Avenue, the site was inspected and no code violations were found, the suit alleges. The Gonzalezes claim they spent more than $460,000 constructing the house.
The suit also says Gustavo Gonzalez, Ramiro’s brother, built a home on South Central Ave. and even though it passed all inspections, an occupancy permit was denied after it was finished in May 2005. The suit claims Gustavo Gonzalez spent $260,000 on construction.
In the case of Adalberto Gonzalez, Ramiro’s other brother, the family is stuck in a no-win situation, their lawyers say. He has amassed about $15,000 in fines for not having a fence around his property, a vacant lot on South Central Avenue, the suit claims. But the town won’t grant a permit for the fence, according to plaintiffs’ attorney William Harte.
Not true, said Proft, adding Adalberto Gonzalez was told he needed to level the lot before erecting a fence.
The lawsuit also claims that while Ramiro Gonzalez was called as a witness in a town case, Dominick sent Cicero police to enter his South 61st Street property. There was no warrant and plywood was removed to gain entry, the suit says, and when a witness saw what was happening and began to take pictures, he was chased by police.
Cicero Police Supt. Anthony Iniquez did not return a call Thursday seeking comment.
After the election, the complaint says, Gonzalez “remained politically active and spoke out publicly on issues of public importance.” The suit lists allegations Gonzalez made against Dominick and his administration.
The suit claims that Dominickand his attorneys “conspired among themselves to punish plaintiffs for their political stands against Dominick and Dominick’s administration and conspired to intimidate them from future speech and future political activity as well as future efforts to expose the corruption within the Dominick administration.”
Neither Dominick nor Ramiro Gonzalez could be reached for comment.
The suit asks that the actions taken by the town be suspended, and that damages be awarded in excess of $675,000 for money already invested, fines, legal fees and emotional distress.
Gonzalez also wants his final paycheck of $5,300, which the Dominick administration has withheld unlawfully, the suit says.
“We have no idea what he is talking about,” Proft said.
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solkon@tribune.com
