Friday, February 20, 2009

The Belvidere Daily Republican. - Village of Poplar Grove prepared for expansive growth

I found this very interesting, particularly the balloon note which the residents will have to pay in 5 years.  Click and see what you think.

The Belvidere Daily Republican. - Village of Poplar Grove prepared for expansive growth

Thursday, February 19, 2009

CNN explains the auto sales tax feature of the Stimulus Plan

Well it will not be very much money to most of us.  It is equivalent to deducting the sales tax  from your taxable income.  You will get back the sales tax times your marginal tax rate.  If you are in the 15% marginal tax rate, that is 15 cents on each dollar of sales tax.

Click below for CNN’s article.

Auto sales stimulus cut back - Feb. 12, 2009

What Federal Stimulus will Boone County receive?

On February 13, 2009 Illinois Department of Transportation announced the $693 million projects that were “shovel ready” and “can be on the special letting in early April”.  There is only one project in Boone County --$3,150,000 for resurfacing Route 20 from Farmington Way to McHenry County Border.  Click on the photocopy to enlarge.

IDOT April 1 IDOT April 2

What will Republican governors do with the Stimulus Bill?

The Guardian Newspaper from England writes of Republican governors considering to refuse  federal stimulus funds on ideological grounds.  Click to view the Guardian article.

World news Feed Article | World news | guardian.co.uk

In case the link no longer is showing this story, click on the small icons which follow.

Guardian 1 guardian 2

Has anyone heard of Midwest Ice Cream?

I have lived in Belvidere for twenty years and never heard of Midwest Ice Cream, Belvidere, Il.  I call the toll free number on the FDA announcement several  times which was busy each time.  Then I call Dean Foods, located at 630 Meadow, Belvidere.  I found out that Midwest Ice Cream LLC was Dean Foods.  My thoughts are:  it is sad what a reputable company has to do to protect its name, reputation and business;  all over a problem which apparently was caused by  some one else.

Looking at the situation from another view, Midwest Ice Cream has always technically been the name of the Belvidere Plant.  Research indicates that Dean allows a great deal of independence to its individual plants and plant managers. Dean markets and operates under many names.  However it is interesting that the name listed  in local phone directories and other  references for the Belvidere facility is Dean Foods.

 

Click on the photocopy to enlarge.

Midwest Ice Cream

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

February Update: Beginning FY 2009 Income for Boone County Government Down 7.6%

The shortfall in revenues is growing and is now $98,190 or 7.6% below the projections of $1,297,731.  These numbers compare unfavorably with the  January numbers which were $33,188.78 or 4.27% below December/January projected revenue. See discussion of previous report at: http://boonecountywatchdog.blogspot.com/2009/01/income-reports-from-county-government.html Two taxes with the largest difference from projections are Personal Property Replacement which is $21,807 short  or 21.67% below projections and  the state income tax which is $38,131 short or 14.43% less than projected.   The running totals reported this February are shown below.  All figures were supplied by the County Administrator, Ken Terrinoni, to the County Finance Subcommittee.  Click on the copy to make it larger.

Here are my calculations:

PSB  141778.05 + 144409.66 +136185.88  =  422373.59                                                                      -5264.73/422373.59 =  -1.24%

CST ¼   87305.69 + 86368.04 + 82929.99 = 256603.72                                                                           -14427.07/256603.72 = –5.62%

Sales 1 %  86644.94 + 92482.07 + 74697.06 =  253824.07                                                               ---18460.87/253824.07 = –7.27%

PerProRep   25695.16 + 74935.62 = 100630.78     -21806.68/100630.78= –21.67%

State Inc  113270.88 + 151027.84 = 264298.72     --38130.75/264298.72 = –14.43%

Total Projections=  422373.59 + 256603.72 + 253824.07 + 100630.78 +264298.72 = 1297730.90

Total Shortfall  = –5264.73 + –14427.07 + –18460.87 + -21806.68 + -38130.75 = $98,190.0    98190/1297730= 7.57%

Feb Income page 3 fe income 2feb income 1Feb income 4

Feb income 5

Boone board delays peaker plant verdict - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

This appeared in the ROCKFORD Register Star on Thursday, February 12, 2009.  Below, I have  cut and pasted the article in case you have trouble reaching the link.

Boone board delays peaker plant verdict - Rockford, IL - Rockford Register Star

 

By Kevin Haas

RRSTAR.COM

Posted Feb 12, 2009 @ 12:46 AM


BELVIDERE —

Boone County Board members delayed a decision Wednesday that could bring a peaker power plant to rural Boone County.
The board voted 9-3 to postpone the decision to its next meeting after some members felt more research was needed into the plant’s effect on property values, among other things.
“We owe it to the property owners around the project, we owe it to the citizens of Boone County ... to make sure we are completely informed and make an educated decision,” said Anthony Dini, board member.
Developers said the delayed vote does not push back their plans to start construction in fall 2010 and bring the plant online by May 2012.
“There’s a lot of work we have to do. We have nine to 12 months of permitting to go forward with,” said Jeff Greig, vice president of Burns & McDonnell, the architectural and engineering firm behind the project.
Power Ventures Group LLC wants to bring a 100-megawatt natural-gas fired peaking power plant to a 20-acre site east of Garden Prairie Road and south of Interstate 90 in eastern Boone County.
The facility is intended to operate during times of high energy demand — especially hot summer days — to provide stable electric power to the region.
The facility is bordered by I-90 to the north, but otherwise surrounded by farmland. Neighbors to the would-be project said the sound and sight of 12 exhaust stacks, which could be as tall as 75 feet, will lower their property values. They also don’t want to see prime agricultural land lost.
It has board members weighing whether the good of creating construction jobs and a higher property-tax base outweighs the loss of farmland.
The facility would employ four to eight people once online but would create about 125 construction jobs at its peak, developers said.
“I understand the country is going through a rough time right now, as is our community, and nation. But what about all the years that my neighbors and I have contributed valuable tax money to our economy? Does that not count for anything?” said Kevin Ernesti, a neighbor who opposes the project. “Farmland is becoming scarcer every day. You can’t make more farmland. What we have is all we will ever have.”
Staff writer Kevin Haas can be reached at 815-544-3452 or khaas@rrstar.com.