Belvidere skates into holiday season with new ice arena

By Shelby R. Farrell
Reporter
BELVIDERE – People from Belvidere and surrounding areas glided into the new Riverside Ice Arena at the grand opening the first weekend of December.
Hundreds of skaters went to the three-day event that included bucket races, slapshot competitions, giveaways and an appearance by Hammy from the Rockford Ice Hogs among other activities.
The new skating rink is a part of a $3 million overhaul of Doty Park on Locust Street. Belvidere Park District Marketing Manager Gabe Castillo said the park district and the city have been planning the new additions for over three years.
“This place is underutilized and had a lot of riff raff,” Castillo said. “In the past, we’ve had a lot of vandalism in this park, and we hope with the renovations and the time and effort that we put into that, that it keeps those who want to bring down Belvidere away and keep those who bring it back up.”
Security cameras were also added throughout the park to deter vandals and promote safety, but the main reason the ice arena was added was to give families more winter recreation opportunities.
Castillo said the arena’s original plans only included the splash pad and a “flood rink,” which freezes naturally as weather permits, but the Riverside Ice Arena has hundreds of pipes running beneath the ice to keep it frozen, even in 50-degree weather.
“Basically what a lot of people do, they put water on it and let the ice freeze, but to be able to run a consistent programming, ice lessons, which we have, and youth hockey,” he said. “To be able to do that, you need to be able to have some kind of consistency. I can’t have ice on one day and the next two weeks I don’t.”
Jet Etnyre is a 9-year-old hockey player from Poplar Grove, and he said the Riverside Ice Arena is now the closest to home, making a 20-minute drive into a 10-minute drive. He was at all three days of the grand opening, and he said he would probably continue going to the rink at least once a week.
“More people can get introduced to hockey and they’re starting leagues and that’ll just be phenomenal for people that like don’t have that much to do in the off-season in the winter when they usually do like football or basketball or something,” Etnyre said. “It’s just great.”
Although the new arena is starting new hockey leagues, Etnyre wouldn’t be able to play with the team because of his experience, which includes five years of playing hockey. Castillo said the new league, the River Otters, was designed for beginners because most people with experience, such as Etnyre, are already participating in leagues in nearby areas including the Rockford Junior Ice Hogs.
“Hockey is getting to be a big thing in towns, so opening a site is actually huge for people that like hockey and other people that want to get into hockey,” Etnyre said.
To make the sport more accessible for those interested, Castillo said the Belvidere Park District is providing full hockey gear for up to 30 kids who join the River Otters. An adult league is also in the works at the Riverside Ice Arena, as well as plans for a permanent locker rooms for hockey players or frequent users at the arena.
“I think the recreation is a key part to anyone’s life and there’s a lot of people out there that want to have some kind of winter recreation opportunity,” he said. “We’re trying to keep activities for the families year-round. There’s a lot of people out there that would love to skate and to give the opportunity to those kids who don’t know how to skate is the opportunity to learn how to and more closer to home.”
The new arena is offering free admittance during public skate times until Jan. 3, and skate rentals are $1.
To learn about what else the Riverside Ice Arena offers, visit belviderepark.org or call the Belvidere Park District at (815) 547-5711.

Above is from:  http://rvpnews.com/?p=4833

New Poplar Grove Administrator receives caution from... - Belvidere Daily Republican

 

New PG administrator receives caution from village trustee
By Bob Balgemann
Reporter

POPLAR GROVE - The second village administrator, Diana Dykstra, already has received a public caution from a village board member.

But it wasn't a negative kind of observation.

It came during Monday night's regular board meeting after Trustee Don Bawden saw her first administrator's report, which touched on 34 different issues. He urged her to pace herself so she didn't get burned out.

"It's not our intent to overwhelm you," he said.

The former Darien, Wis. administrator-clerk-treasurer started here Jan. 12, with the Feb. 9 board meeting being her second.

Communication among village officials and with residents continues to be a priority. In her monthly report, Dykstra reported on updating the village's web page. She said she found "there is a great demand for this form of communication."

For example, the page had 7,137 views between Dec. 1, 2014, and Jan. 26, 2015. The events/activities page was viewed 844 times; officials and staff page, 525 times; local news (there is a link to the Belvidere Daily Republican), 412 times; village board agendas, 339 times; and village ordinances, 216 times.

Village staffing is an area of interest among at least three village trustees, given the fact there are three people supervising four employees.

Dykstra said she met the Office Manager Maureen Brzinski and her assistant about office operations, workflow, financial software, reporting and office supplies. "There is much more that I will have to learn about the processes and positions," she said. "I would also like to eventually become trained as a back-up to staff operations."

She met with Village Treasurer Maria Forrest on financial issues, with a goal of presenting "public budgetary information in (a) format that is more transparent." They also discussed the capital improvements fund, the need for policy and inventory as recommended by the auditor.

There soon will be opportunity for that as the village currently is working on a 2015-16 budget for the new fiscal year, which will begin May 1.

A second public workshop on the new spending plan will be held at 8 a.m. Feb. 28 at village hall.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Growth Dimensions, marketing arm of Boone County and its municipalities, has been told by county officials to focus more on retail growth. Dykstra said she met with the new executive director, Jarid Funderburg, to discuss "roles, expectations, development leads and networking."

Poplar Grove is proposed to be part of an expanded enterprise zone, which would allow increased incentives to attract new business and industry. A decision by the state on that request could come as early as June.

Unhappiness has been expressed with the service being provided by the Belvidere Park District for Poplar Grove residents, south of Orth Road, who live within its boundaries.

Dykstra said she met with park district officials "to discuss opportunities, establish new relationships, look for improvements to parks, coordination of a park master plan and ability to provide Poplar Grove residents with more opportunities through their organization."

District officials suggested a movie night be held in Poplar Grove. "We will hear more about this relationship as they look to purchase more park land and develop more opportunities in Poplar Grove," she said.

A small group of village residents no longer is trying to deannex from the park district.

There were some resident contacts during the last month, she reported. One dealt with traffic back-up on Summit Street, which she said needs to be explored further. She also met with residents on their concerns following the recent snow events, most recently the storm that hit the weekend of Jan. 30.

(8) New PG administrator receives caution from... - Belvidere Daily Republican