8.39% increase in Boone County Taxes?

How is this possible?  Where are the increases?

 

See the statement from the county’s website/Board Doc’s as shown below[https://www.boarddocs.com/il/boone/Board.nsf/files/9DLTUC790A23/$file/Truth%20in%20Taxation%20Hearing_201311191557.pdf]  explains it quite well.

Only 1.7% is an increase in the current tax revenue over last year’s, 3% is because of the Veterans Assistance Commission  referendum and 3.6% is for additional property on the the tax rolls.

Your personal increase in tax for the county should reflect the 1.7% PTELL increase and the 3% VAC.  The additional 3.6% increase in property will not effect you unless your property was not on the tax rolls in prior years.

 

The Belvidere Daily Republican Featured News

Truck parking issue returns to county board

Nov. 19, 2013

By Bob Balgemann

Reporter

BELVIDERE - The question of whether Mladenko Josipovic is allowed to park a semi-tractor and trailer on his 5.2 acres along Caledonia Road is up for reconsideration Wednesday night (Nov. 20) by the Boone County Board.

The issue has been on a roller coaster ride since the requested special use permit was first considered last summer.

Unanimous recommendations for approval came from the zoning board of appeals (ZBA) and planning, zoning and building committee (PZB), the latter a standing committee of the county board made up of five county board members. Planning staff recommended denial, primarily because of the proximity to so many homes.

The county board voted 10-1 to deny the special use at its Sept. 18 meeting.

But Josipovic appeared at the Oct. 2 PZB meeting and asked that his case and the county board vote be reconsidered. The committee agreed to forward the matter to the county board for discussion on Oct. 16.

County board members then voted 7-5 on Oct. 16 to reconsider their action of Sept. 18. County state's attorney Michelle Courier said a vote to reconsider automatically would table the issue until the November meeting.

Josipovic neighbors John and Christina Porto have been at all the meetings, steadfast in their request that the special use not be granted.

Points to remember

They plan to be at the Nov. 20 meeting with John Porto asking the board to consider the following points before making a decision:

At the Aug. 27 ZBA meeting Josipovic swore under oath that as soon as he applied for a special use permit on June 20. He reduced the number of trucks on his property to only his own and that he would park the semi-cab in his garage, with only the trailer parked outside.

Porto plans to ask the board to remember that photographs and letters of violation were sent out, showing that promise was not kept.

He also plans to remind the board that at the Sept. 18 meeting he and his wife submitted more photographs of the semi parked outside. They also complained that his tractor was still idling along the property line, near their home. And they expressed concern about Josipovic blocking both lanes of Caledonia Road while backing his tractor and trailer on to his property.

Interim planning director Kathy Miller, in an e-mail sent to county administrator Ken Terrinoni and county board chairman Bob Walberg, stated Josipovic said he was out of town Sept. 18 and unable to attend the board meeting.

Porto will ask the board to remember his submitting documents containing information that Josipovic returned home about 5 p.m. that night and also filed a police report the same evening.

It is Porto's opinion that the county board denied Josipovic's special use permit because of his continued noncompliance and absence from the Sept. 18 board meeting. In addition, he said no valid reason was given for reconsideration of the Sept. 18 vote.

The reasons for denial still hold, the Portos believe, and they are asking the board to uphold its Sept. 18 action.

Bliss said in a follow-up interview that he had visited the Josipovic property after Oct. 16, when he was in the Candlewick Lake area on other calls, and did not see either the tractor or trailer.

 

Growth Dimensions launches new website

Nov. 19, 2013

BELVIDERE – Growth Dimensions announced the launch of its new website: www.growthdimensions.org. The new site is designed to showcase the character of Boone County and its business community.

The website also includes the professionally produced video entitled Boone County Anthem.

Belvidere-Boone County is strategically located in relation to major expanding markets for goods, services and suppliers. The area is part of the budding I-39 and I-90 Logistics corridor, close to major employment centers and is served by interstates, rail and air service.  Boone County is the heart of the Midwestern industrial belt and is only one hour from Chicago.

Major corporations in automotive, food processing, and manufacturing grow and prosper in Boone County, including Chrysler, General Mills, Dean Foods, Grupo Antolin, Franklin Display Group and others.

The new website, a virtual repository for economic development information for Boone County, offers a streamlined user experience. The new sleek and vivid site features pages covering topics of: Business Growth, Workforce Development, Community Living, as well as News and Events. Other important components include demographic, labor and educational statistics, maps, current images, featured sites and buildings, and information on incentives such as the Belvidere-Boone County Enterprise Zone. The site enables the user to easily access all of this useful and timely information in a clear-cut and organized format. The website was designed with the mobile visitors in mind, automatically adjusting itself to fit different screen widths to accommodate computers, tablets, and mobile phones.

Then Boone County Anthem video weaves together business, workforce, and the quality of life in Boone County to tell the story of why this is a great place to live, work, and play. We invite you to view and share the video.

 

Boone County real estate transactions recorded Nov 5-8

Nov. 15, 2013

BOONE COUNTY - Following is a list of the Boone County real estate transactions recorded during Nov. 5-8.

Recorded Nov. 5

135 Lamplighter Loop SE, Poplar Grove, $70,500, Federal National Mortgage Assoc. to Dustin Coursey.

4135 Chandan Blvd., Poplar Grove, $99,900, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. to Della Springer.

3000C Trillium Tr., Poplar Grove, $50,000, Edmund Der to Mariola E. Kordek.

8779 W. Ridge Dr., Belvidere, $162,900, Federal National Mortgage Assoc. to Thomas White and Beverly White.

Columbia St. lot, Belvidere, $29,919, Smith Investment Co, LLC to Central Commodities, Ltd.

Recorded Nov. 6

288 Edgewood Lane, Belvidere, $105,000, Mary Drexler Collins, trustee, to Adam M. Hodzic.

384 Prairie Knoll Dr., Poplar Grove, $134,900, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. to Melissa S. Behm and Linda A Hoving.

Recorded Nov. 7

1712 Foxfield Dr., Belvidere, $117,500, Dennis A. Paul to Claudia Vazquez.

13850 Beaverton Road, Poplar Grove, $164,900, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. to Emilio F. Vallez and Sarah J. Vallez.

501 Bounty Dr. NE, Poplar Grove, $74,000, Federal National Mortgage Assoc. to Cynthia Speer.

8785 Sheffield Dr., Belvidere, $81,500, Thomas Boettcher and Helen Boettcher to PMI Acquisitions, LLC.

669 Illinois Rt. 173, Caledonia, $44,000, Lyle R. Spencer to Tammie R. Marks.

Caledonia Road acreage, Caledonia, $105,000, Gordon D. Lucas, trustee, to Dennis Luckey.

Recorded Nov. 8

1407 Iles Ave., Belvidere, $124,900, Wells Fargo Bank NA, trustee, to Steven M. Riley and Lydia R. Riley.

200 Staffordshire Dr. NE, Poplar Grove, $69,701, Judicial Sales Corp. to American Homes 4 Rent Properties Five, LLC.

1015 Maple Ave., Belvidere, $40,000, Secretary of HUD to Andrew Anderson.

1621 Kirby Ct., Belvidere, $198,000, Federal National Mortgage Assoc. to David E. Dunham and Lisa M. Dunham.

706 Tuneberg Ct., Belvidere, $80,000, Ron Davison to Rosa Maria Altamore.

To read Belvidere Daily Republican’s recent features go the the following:  rvpnews | Belvidere Daily Republican

BCJ: Editorial & Letter to Editor

The articles shown below appeared in the November 15, 2013 Boone County Journal which is available free at merchants across the county and on line at:  http://www.boonecountyjournal.com/news/2013/Boone-County-News-11-15-13.pdf#page=1

Editorial on Animal Service Building: 

The Belvidere Daily Republican Featured News

Rosecrance to celebrate new Belvidere location

Nov. 15, 2013

BELVIDERE – The community is invited to visit Rosecrance’s newly opened Belvidere office at 915 Alexandra Drive for a Chamber of Commerce Ribbon Cutting and Open House starting at 4 p.m. Dec. 4. The event goes until 6 p.m.

Behavioral health services were moved to the new location in October from a smaller site in the community. The move allows Rosecrance to serve more clients and offer new services, including an intensive outpatient program for adults in treatment for substance use.

The office provides a range of services for individuals with mental health or substance use disorders, including mental health assessments, crisis intervention services, individual counseling, social skills groups and case management.

The Belvidere Chamber of Commerce has scheduled a ribbon cutting at the new location for 4 p.m. Staff will be available at the open house to provide information about Rosecrance programs, and refreshments will be served. Guests are asked to RSVP to Jo Lyttle at 815.387.5607 or jlyttle@rosecrance.org.

 

Resident encourages county officials to move more quickly on new building

Nov. 15, 2013

By Bob Balgemann

BELVIDERE - Boone County officials think they're moving along quite nicely toward construction of a new building for the animal control department.

Not so with resident Robert Christianson, who thinks the county should be further along at this point.

He and Paul Larson, chairman of the health and human services committee, agreed to disagree during the committee's Nov. 7 meeting on how much progress has been made so far.

While the meeting had moved past the public comments portion of the agenda, Larson recognized Christianson several times and allowed him to speak from the audience.

The first occasion came after the standing committee of the county board looked at available options for construction of a new building. One of them was lease/option that Christianson, who has a lengthy background in real estate, said should not be underestimated.

There was some discussion about whether the health department had inspected the existing animal control facility off Appleton Road. Had that been done an official inspection, committee member Marion Thornberry said the building would have had to be closed.

"I went out there last week and there were ants coming out of the fax machine," he said. "I asked the health department if they had gone out there and they said, 'no.' They're afraid to go out there and shut it down because they would be in more trouble."

Christianson spoke for a second time at that point, saying the animal control project "has been kicked around and nothing gets done. It's frustrating to me that this has happened."

Larson took exception to those comments, saying, "We have been pursuing it. We are making progress down that trail. But government does not move rapidly."

"This topic has been on the agenda for 20 years," Christianson countered. "There are some on the (county) board who don't think this is a priority."

Larson also took exception to that observation, saying the county board was behind the project.

It was his opinion that working through an architect or a lease/purchase arrangement should be pursued.

 

Committee supports consultant seeking higher jail per diem

Nov. 15, 2013

By Bob Balgemann

BELVIDERE - The Boone County Finance, Taxation and Salaries Committee has voted unanimously to recommend hiring a consultant to negotiate a new contract for housing federal prisoners in the county jail.

County board members are expected to consider the recommendation at their Nov. 20 meeting.

Joe Summerill, senior principal in The Summerill Group LLC, based in Washington, D.C., made a detailed presentation to the committee at its meeting Tuesday, Nov. 12. He said he was confident he could negotiate a new per diem of $79.12, up from the current $65, for each U.S. Marshals Service inmate lodged at the jail.

He formerly was the chief contracts attorney for the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

In October there were 20 federal detainees among a total population of 85 in the Boone County jail. That number included 57 local inmates and eight from DeKalb County.

Summerill said there is a need in the region, within two hours of Chicago, for more beds to accommodate federal inmates. There only are three jails in this area that accept those prisoners - Boone, Ogle and McHenry - with the Ogle jail at capacity. Kankakee County, south of Chicago, also has federal inmates.

Boone County sheriff's Lt. John Hare, the jail commander, said the $65 per diem had been in effect since the county began housing federal detainees.

Boone has lower rate

That rate is lower than the $75 per diem charged by Ogle and the $85 charged by McHenry and Kankakee. Summerill said his company has contracted with McHenry County and expects its per diem to increase to $110.

He said he had taken a preliminary look at the Boone County Jail operation and came up with a new per diem of  $79.12.

With the U.S. Marshals Service looking for more beds, he said it was realistic to believe Boone County could increase its average daily population of federal inmates to 28. That would increase the annual revenue from the current $427,050 to $808,600, he said.

A three-year contract, which he said he wanted to secure, would bring in $2.426 million compared with the current $1.281 million.

Before the vote was taken committee member Cathy Ward looked to County Administrator Ken Terrinoni for his thoughts.

He said he was undecided coming into the meeting. But after hearing Summerill's presentation, he said, "I'd say 'do it.' If we don't generate additional revenue it's going to be a tough three-to-five years. To me, it's all about the revenue."

Questions from members of the committee, he said, satisfied his concerns.

Committee member Karl Johnson had a number of questions. He asked Hare if he could handle 28 federal inmates without having to hire additional corrections officers?

"Today, yes," Hare answered, adding it would depend solely on how many local inmates and those provided by DeKalb County were in the jail. "I don't think I want to turn away any DeKalb  prisoners," he said. With the number of detainees changing every day, he said, "I prefer to see it as fluid as possible."

Another five officers would be needed if the county opened up another 20 beds at the jail.

Part of the committee recommendation included paying $40,000 for Summerill's services, with $20,000 required up-front. The money would come out of the county's contingency fund.

"We do have the space" at the jail, committee Chairman Paul Larson said. "If we can utilize that it's a win-win for everyone."

For the BDR’s recent features click on the following:  rvpnews | Belvidere Daily Republican

Transform Rockford summit draws more than 1,000 - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

After more than 1,000 people heard brutal facts Thursday night about Rockford's poverty, crime and joblessness, Carla Towns couldn't hand out blue rubber bracelets fast enough to attendees with these words stamped on them: Transform Rockford.

"It's a great plan for all of us to come together to make this happen," said Towns, 26, a local bank employee and a member of Rockford Hip Hop Congress.

She was referring to the Transform Rockford effort spearheaded by a group of businessmen and civic officials to turn Rockford from what Forbes calls a miserable city into an enviable one. Thursday's meeting at the Coronado Performing Arts Center was the group's first public meeting aimed at engaging the public.

Tom Gendron, chairman and CEO of Woodward Inc. who is leading the effort, said he is "shocked by the level of dysfunctional behavior in the community. There is a negative vibe in the community, and I can feel it."

Gendron, who lives in Colorado where Woodward is based, has dozens of family members who live in the area. And Woodward is building a $300 million factory in Loves Park to make airplane parts. He and a handful of local businessmen have pledged more than $3 million to get the Transform Rockford effort going.

Read more by clicking on the following:  Transform Rockford summit draws more than 1,000 - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

Here are the slides from the presentation:  http://transformrockford.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/TRES11.14.13_Final.pdf

Transform Rockford’s website:  http://transformrockford.org/

Agenda: Belvidere Township, Tuesday November 19, 2013, 5:ooPM

AGENDA

BELVIDERE TOWNSHIP

REGULAR MEETING OF THE TOWNSHIP BOARD

8200 Fairgrounds Road

November 19, 2013 – 5:00 P.M.

I. Call to Order/Roll Call

II. Pledge of Allegiance

III. Public Input

IV. Discussion and potential action on approval of Prior Meeting’s Minutes

V. Discussion and potential action on Transfers

VI. Reports

a. Supervisor’s Report

b. Highway Commissioner’s Report

c. Assessor’s Report

d. Clerk’s Report

e. Trustee’s Report

VII. Unfinished Business – Discussion and Potential Action May Occur on the following items:

1. 2^nd Reading - Discussion and Potential Action of Adoption of Tax Levy

VIII. Legal

a.

b.

IX. New Business

1. Review Closed Session Minutes

X. Discussion and Potential Action on Treasurer’s Report and Approval of Bills

XI. Closed Session

XII. Adjournment

Next Meeting: December 3, 2013 @ 5:00 P.M.

Officials: Overlooked inspections caused Belvidere’s NDK explosion - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

BELVIDERE — The 2009 fatal explosion at a synthetic quartz manufacturing plant in Belvidere was caused by corrosion in the walls of a pressure vessel that went uninspected for years, officials announced Thursday.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board determined that staff at NDK Crystal, 701 Crystal Parkway, ignored safety recommendations to inspect the interior walls of the vessels, even after a consultant warned the company about the dangers of the operation.

The Illinois Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Safety did not adhere to state regulations by conducting internal vessel inspections, either, instead relying on NDK to complete the inspections. It didn’t verify that the inspections were taking place.

If someone would have inspected the interior walls of the vessels, he would have learned that the material coating the steel vessel walls was not protecting them from corrosion.

Click on the following to read the  entire story:  Officials: Overlooked inspections caused Belvidere’s NDK explosion - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

The actual government report is on line at: http://www.csb.gov/csb-finds-fatal-2009-ndk-explosion-resulted-from-stress-corrosion-cracking-of-high-pressure-vessel-crystal-maker-failed-to-inspect-or-test-vessels-and-to-heed-earlier-warning-about-risk-to-public-/