Business thrives in Poplar Grove

By Shelby R. Farrell
Reporter
POPLAR GROVE – The Village of Poplar Grove will soon see one local business expand and a new chain store appear as the village’s economy continues to improve.
The village introduced the plans for an industrial and economic development along Routes 76 and 173 in 2009 hoping to bring in new business to the village, and in May this year, Dollar General was the first to break ground as a part of these plans.
At the Village of Poplar Grove Board of Trustees meeting on Oct. 12, the members approved the final plat, or the map showing the land’s divisions, and they allowed the construction company to finally build some walls for the new store in the Poplar Woods subdivision on Route 76.
“I just saw a bunch of leveled gravel, and I saw the steel outside, so they’re about to pour the footing,” Village Attorney James Stevens said. “In the next three weeks, you’re going to see a building there.”
While bringing in new businesses, such as Dollar General, can help the village reach its economic goals, supporting locally owned businesses is just as important to the village’s growth. Arturo’s Mexican Restaurant at 107 W. Main St. is also expanding.
The owners, Arturo Torres and Zulma Rodriguez, bought the building adjacent to the east, which used to be the village’s old fire station. The old building is being transformed into a second dining area for the restaurant, and the entities were formed into one at the Oct. 12 meeting.
Torres said the second building’s grand opening is scheduled for Nov. 4, and the board congratulated the local, family-owned business on its success.
“I’m just so excited to your guys’ business grow in the community,” Trustee Neeley Erickson said. “It’s wonderful, and you guys go above and beyond. I can’t wait.”
The Village Board of Trustees might get more chances to get excited about booming business this year with the new Enterprise Zone.
“The Illinois Enterprise Zone Program is designed to stimulate economic growth and neighborhood revitalization in economically depressed areas of the state,” according to the Growth Dimensions quarterly magazine from this summer.
The program offers state and local incentives to bring businesses to areas that need revitalization. Some of the incentives include property tax abatements and reductions to building permit fees. The Belvidere-Boone County Enterprise Zone helped create more than 3,400 jobs and retained more than 2,000 jobs since 2005.
However, when the Illinois General Assembly amended the Illinois Enterprise Act, it forced all of the communities who wanted to be a part of a zone to reapply. Boone County, Belvidere, Poplar Grove and Capron partnered to apply as a larger, more defined Enterprise Zone, excluding residential areas and adding more commercial areas. While the state’s Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity certified the new zone, all official action has been delayed until the budget is complete.

Business thrives in Poplar Grove

Poplar Grove Village Board reaches higher levels of transparency

 

By Shelby R. Farrell
Reporter Belvidere Daily Republican
POPLAR GROVE –The Village of Poplar Grove Board of Trustees showed a new level of transparency while meeting over the results of an Environmental Protection Agency engineering evaluation.
The EPA evaluates the village every three years, but when Village Administrator Diana Dykstra started her report over the results, she said the board had never seen or heard about the engineering evaluation before.
“This has happened for many years, and you’re supposed to as a board review this, and I’ve been told that you guys have never seen these types of things,” she said. “You should have gotten the opportunity to review them at the board level.”
While the board getting to review the evaluation was new this year, Dykstra said the results were “no different.” The results outlines deficiencies that Dykstra said could be considered as non-violations, and it included a list of things the village could do to meet those requirements.
Dykstra broke the list down into four main updates that the village needs to make: updating the Cross Connection Control Ordinance, entering a private water/waste water treatment contract with Midwest Contract Operations, updating the Emergency Management Plan and a new coliform distribution sampling site plan. The village also has plans to continue updating energy meters and “documenting the valve exercises,” according to Dykstra’s plan.
She said the meters are being replaced on a regular basis, but there are still about 1,200 meters in the village that need updated. The village also entered an agreement with Midwest Contract Operations at the Oct. 12 meeting. The company will locate, inspect and record the conditions of all of the sanitary manholes in the village for no more than $5,000. At that meeting, the board also approved the resolution to the Cross-Connection Control Ordinance according to the EPA’s requirements.
“Our workload doesn’t end here,” Dykstra said. “Now we actually have to implement all of these things that we say we’re gonna do.”

Village Board reaches higher levels of transparency

Auditing company to act as interim Poplar Grove treasurer

 

By Shelby R. Farrell

Reporter

POPLAR GROVE – The Village of Poplar Grove’s Board of Trustees was quick to appoint its auditing firm as interim village treasurer after being without one for almost two weeks.

Maria Forrest submitted a letter of resignation to the Board of Trustees saying she would resign as of Sept. 15, and at a Special Village Board of Trustees meeting on Sept. 28, the trustees approved for Sikich, LLP to act as interim village treasurer, completing those duties as assigned.The board also accepted the letter of resignation at that meeting.

Forrest was the interim treasurer for the village from 2009 to 2011 when she was appointed, and there was no reason for her resignation in the letter, which was dated Sept. 15 and said, “Please accept my resignation effective today Sept. 15, 2015.”

At the special meeting, Village President John Neitzel thanked her for her time in the position where her duties and responsibilities included cash management and investing, debt management, payroll and pension administration, preparing financial statements, budgeting, financial planning and forecasting.

“Maria has been the appointed treasurer since 2009, and we’ve made such monumental progress through her work since then, and we thank her for her support and the contribution that she has made to the village,” he said.

Neitzelwas also elected in 2009, and the village was $450,000 in debt. Since then, the village implemented taxes and other ways of fixing the financial deficiencies, and in 2015, the village was able to fund more than $950,000 worth of capital improvements, according to a letter-to-the-editor that Neitzel wrote to the Rockford Register Star in August.

In the same article, he said the problems stemmed from the village growing from “a few hundred to our current population of more than 5,000 residents” in the last two decades and the village government not growing with the village itself.

To help further fix the gap, Village Administrator Diana Dykstra requested an audit from Lauterbach and Amen this year, which revealed problems with money handling and financial policies. The company gave the village 28 recommendations for their financial woes, which the board plans to implement at least a quarter of it by the end of the year.

Dykstra said that when she got Forrest’s letter to resign, she decided to ask the auditing for recommendations on where to find an interim treasurer.

“Sikich came highly recommended as one of the top three auditing firms in the state,” she said. “Lauterbach is one of the others as well, and so we wanted a different firm to perform those treasurer functions.”

She said there shouldn’t be much of a difference between using a firm versus appointing an individual to perform the duties, and the village will be assigned one person from the firm. She also said they won’t have to go through a learning curve because the people who work at Sikich, LLP are familiar with the software that the village treasurer would use.

“Our plan would be to have them do bank reconciliations, forecasting and reporting to the board, any journal entries that may be required and payroll,” Dykstra said. “I think the benefit is the skills and abilities of this audit firm to come in and possibly make recommendations to better practices based on government standards.”

Dykstra said the village should need the firm to fulfill these functions with a staff accountant in eight hours a week at $100 an hour, working under hourly wages. She also later said the village “won’t need the senior partner to come and do bank reconciliations,” which would cost $120 an hour.

“I think there will be a time frame where this cost will exceed our monthly allotment,” she said.

“However, it will clear up some inefficiencies. I feel confident this will balance out by the year-end to provide the additional guidance we needed and streamline those duties. The goal would be to make ourselves more efficient and when we are prepared to make a decision about the position, we will have a better understanding of what positions are needed.”

Above is from FACEBOOK:  Auditing company to act as interim Poplar Grove treasurer

Poplar Grove Airport top privately owned, open to the public airport in Illinois - Special - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

By Kimberly Watley
Correspondent

Posted Sep. 19, 2015 at 8:00 AM

POPLAR GROVE — In the 1960s, the world was changing steadily. In the countryside of Boone County, things weren’t much different.

Side-by-side, dairy farmer Dick Thomas and his son, Steve, tended to cows and worked the land that had been in their family since the 1800s.

A fellow farmer came by to purchase an outbuilding from Dick in 1967. Rather than come up the lane in a pickup truck, he arrived in a small craft airplane, landing alongside the pasture.

“He took me up for a ride. I was 15. I said, ‘Ooh! This is it! This is a whole new world.’ And it seemed more exciting and more fun than milking cows, baling hay and shoveling manure,” Steve said.

From that moment forward, flying would become an instrumental part of his life.

His father also was bit by the bug. Their mutual and instant attraction to flight got the wheels rolling and in 1972, using a portion of the farmland, Dick opened the first airport in Boone County.

Both received their pilot’s license and learned the ins and outs of running a successful small airport.

The lay of the land has changed dramatically. The two cattle sheds became hangars, the fields became runways, and the fresh dairy air has given way to flight patterns with contrails.

Dick sold the property to Steve, and over time, it was annexed and Belvidere Airport got more than a new name.

Poplar Grove Airport has since grown into a complete aeronautics community.

Adjoining the airport, Aircraft Maintenance Poplar Grove Airmotive isn’t just a maintenance shop, Steve said They inspect, provide maintenance and complete large tasks, including overhauling piston aircraft engines.

“We have customers we ship to as far away as Guam, Indonesia and Korea,” he said.

Bordering the outskirts as well is Bel Air Estates, a subdivision where residents have access to runways adjacent to their driveways. They have hangars next to their garages, all of which was another one of Steve’s visions that came to fruition.

Neighboring Poplar Grove Vintage Wings & Wheels Museum land was donated by the Thomas family. It offers outreach programs, flight camps and scholarships.

There is also a flight school at the airport where students as young as 14 can learn to fly.

“We have lots of past students who became instructors and are now captains for major airlines,” Steve said. “One of our instructors now looks to be headed in that direction, too.”

His wife, Tina, who he met in college, was studying to be a nurse. He took her up for her first flight in 1975. She ended up falling head-over-heels in love, and not just with Steve. By 1976, she had her pilot’s license

To read the entire article click on the following:   Poplar Grove Airport top privately owned, open to the public airport in Illinois - Special - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

Our View: Poplar Grove is the exception in a state too full of government - Opinion - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

It appears that the Register Star is backing off of the view of its original news article—SEE:  http://boonecountywatchdog.blogspot.com/2015/08/report-poplar-grove-incorrectly-billed.html   Based upon the Register Star’s limited coverage of Boone County, who persuaded the paper to write the original article on its special audit?

Both Poplar Groves Administrator and Village President responded with a letter to the editor.  SEE: http://boonecountywatchdog.blogspot.com/2015/08/village-administrator-turnaround-was.html and http://boonecountywatchdog.blogspot.com/2015/08/village-president-our-financial-house.html

 

 

By The Editorial Board
Rockford Register Star

Posted Aug. 23, 2015 at 5:18 PM

The things that the village of Poplar Grove was doing wrong don’t matter as much as what was done right.

All kinds of inefficiencies, such as haphazard record-keeping and disorganized cash management, were uncovered in an audit of the village’s operations.

“We asked for this independent review. Tell us our deficiencies and provide us the recommendations needed to put in place the necessary controls. This was a bold initiative very few municipalities have the courage to do,” village President John Neitzel wrote in a guest column that was published in Sunday’s Register Star.

Problems are getting fixed, a deficit is being turned into a surplus, and a growing village appears to be on the right track.

But for every Poplar Grove willing to ask for recommendations and implement them, there are hundreds — perhaps thousands — of other units of government in Illinois that are inept when it comes to handling taxpayers’ money.

Illinois has nearly 7,000 units of government. Some of them make sense: cities, counties, villages. But then you have fire protection districts, mosquito-abatement districts, buggy-whip districts. OK, we made the last one up, but we wouldn’t be surprised if there were an equally obscure taxing entity out there.

Illinois has the second-highest property tax rate in the country, according to the Tax Foundation. All those layers of government contribute to Illinois' high tax rates. To think otherwise would be naïve.

The only state with higher property taxes is New Jersey. What do New Jersey and Illinois have in common? Both are considered at the top of the corruption business, but that’s a topic for another day.

Winnebago County has 86 taxing bodies, and most of them have increased their levies during the past few tax cycles. You don’t see all of them on your tax bill, but you see enough entities to make your head swim.

Even if the big taxing entities — such as the School District, county and city — hold the line on their levies, the little guys still eat up a nice chunk of your change.

The situation is so ridiculous that no one noticed when one taxing entity went missing. As our colleague Chuck Sweeny pointed out in an Aug. 12 column, the Greenfield Sanitary District near Joliet exists in name only. The last known member of the board died a decade ago.

Oh, and because no one noticed, residents of the Greenfield district could be on the hook for $2,000 each to Joliet for sewage treatment. That’s money that was supposed to be collected over the years by the Greenfield district.

Joliet also is owed money by the South Ridgewood Sanitary District. We doubt the Joliet area is unique in its level of bureaucracy.

Instead of pushing legislation demanding that taxing districts look at ways to consolidate, the General Assembly wanted to make it easier to create a city or village. Gov. Bruce Rauner wisely vetoed that measure.

Kudos to Poplar Grove for its “bold initiative” and “courage.” We wish there were more Poplar Groves and a lot fewer of all those other taxing entities that don’t know what they’re doing.

Our View: Poplar Grove is the exception in a state too full of government - Opinion - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

Village president: Our financial house is in order - Opinion - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

By John Neitzel

Posted Aug. 22, 2015 at 3:51 PM

The recent article in the Register Star “Village finances a mess” Wednesday is misleading and not representative of the current state of the business in Poplar Grove as it relates to our financial picture.

The current village of Poplar Grove board approved the recent internal controls audit of our financial processes and procedures. While there were many process deficiencies listed in the audit, we requested the audit as the next evolutionary step in improving our processes and procedures and our quality of service to our residents.

As a newly elected official in 2009, the existing board at that time was faced with a $450K deficit. Through some very difficult budget decisions the presiding board was able to erase the budget deficit within two years and even began building a small reserve. Those early years, 2009 moving forward, came with great sacrifice by the board and our residents.

We were unable to make substantive improvements to infrastructure because funds were not available and the board chose not to take on additional debt. In essence we only spent monies on breakdowns and necessary repairs to keep our public works operations functioning. In addition to eliminating the budget deficit, the board was able to refinance the village’s bond debt at a lower interest rate and an improved bond rating that to date has saved our residents nearly $1 million.

For the first time ever since I have served on this board, this year we have established a capital improvement budget and are funding nearly $950K in capital improvements. We are currently operating with a reserve fund equal to eight months operational spend. It took the efforts of our staff and our elected officials to make the progress we have made.

As you can see, the actions described above prevent the village's finances from being warranted "a mess."

Poplar Grove’s evolution from a small rural community of a few hundred to our current population of more than 5,000 residents is representative of growth in our region over the past 20 years. With this growth, the expected services provided by the village grew exponentially. Were processes, policies, and procedures during this period keeping pace with the growth? I would say no. Were there more pressing budgetary and operational issues that prevented the attention needed in this area? Arguably I would say yes.

So let’s fast forward to the present. I would say our financial house is in order. We are operating with a surplus. This internal audit is the next logical evolutionary step that reviews our current processes and makes candid observations of our operation but, more importantly, identifies operational deficiencies and recommends the required actions to make corrections. The bottom line is, of course, to improve our performance to our residents and community. The board, and equally our staff, should be commended for taking this initiative and for their steadfast dedication to the village and maintaining our functional operation in spite of having little to no documented processes.

To cast the results of this audit as a negative for the village is misrepresenting the purpose. We asked for this independent review. Tell us our deficiencies, and provide us the recommendations needed to put in place the necessary controls. This was a bold initiative that very few municipalities have the courage to do.

The intent was not to air our “dirty laundry” and to be criticized for it. The intent was, and still is, to identify our deficiencies and fix them. Together, board and staff, we will.

John Neitzel is village president of Poplar Grove.

Village president: Our financial house is in order - Opinion - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

Village administrator: Turnaround was an amazing accomplishment - Opinion - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

By Diana Dykstra

Posted Aug. 22, 2015 at 4:08 PM

Internal controls is the new buzz word in an era of government transparency. It is a framework of best practices that are standardized by the Governmental Accounting Standards Board. It plays an important role in any organization as a practice to prevent fraud and promote transparency.

Potential weaknesses exist in every organization. Weaknesses are inevitable with government boards that consist of elected officials whose terms could run for four years, requiring no official education.

In 2009, the village of Poplar Grove was in a $450,000 deficit. By 2013, elected officials had accomplished the unbelievable: the achievement of an AA- bond rating and an increase in the unreserved fund balance (bank account) of more than eight months’ worth of operations. It was quite the amazing accomplishment.

Not many municipalities can say they have wanted to hire a company to come in and tell them what they might be doing wrong. With the village in such a great financial position, they certainly didn’t need to ask for this type of audit.

The village of Poplar Grove broke the mold.

They hired a firm to conduct an Internal Controls Audit of their policies and procedures. A full review of those practices led to roughly 26 recommendations.

The Governmental Accounting Standards Board is an independent organization not funded by any government organization. They basically set the bar for all accountants to use for best practices and standards. The audit reviews what practices are currently being used, and made recommendations on what the best practice is according to government standards and principles.

Even with the news of this report, this special audit creates a road map for officials to use in order to adopt new policies and procedures.

In an era when “trust” and “government” are not allowed to be used in the same sentence, I applaud the officials and employees in the village of Poplar Grove for recognizing the need, taking the lead in transparency and holding themselves accountable to taxpayers. This is how to replace trust in government.

Diana Dykstra is village administrator of Poplar Grove.

Village administrator: Turnaround was an amazing accomplishment - Opinion - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

Report: Poplar Grove incorrectly billed residents, needs to improve internal controls - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

POPLAR GROVE — Years of haphazard record keeping and disorganized cash-management procedures have cost the village of Poplar Grove a “significant,” but unspecified, amount of revenue and jeopardized finance and personnel files.

Earlier this month, the accounting firm Lauterbach & Amen completed a 21-page report for village leaders that recommended 28 changes to improve the village's internal controls. The report revealed several problems with the way village staff handles cash and other administrative duties.

According to the report, sensitive financial information and personnel files have been kept in unlocked cabinets in the front office of Village Hall, residents have been billed incorrect amounts for public utilities, and information on payments to employees has been downloaded onto USB devices that have been lost, misplaced or kept overnight by staff members as part of the transport to banks to initiate payment.

The evaluation found village employees and leaders have routinely ignored an ordinance requiring the Village Board to approve purchases totaling $2,500 or more. There have also been frequent delays in check deposits, sometimes for days or weeks at a time, and delays in posting revenue receipts into the village's accounting system, which "causes difficulty in investigating and identifying discrepancies," the report states.

In one bizarre example of the village's poor financial management, the report said staff members occasionally took money from a nearby soda machine to make change for residents attempting to pay utility bills.

“When you don’t have proper procedures in place, correct checks and balances, you open yourself up to a lot of scrutiny and things could happen that are faulty,” said Matt Beran, who oversaw Lauterbach & Amen’s evaluation. “You allow that there could be fraud happening, there could be some things going on. Those are your risks if you don’t actually do anything … and some of those things were actually (affecting) the village’s bottom line — they weren’t billing and getting money that they’re actually, rightfully owed.”

Because the village doesn’t maintain a formal rate schedule detailing utility charges for residents, there have been “several instances” in which rate changes were not communicated to village employees, resulting in lost revenue, according to the report. Employees also had different interpretations of how utility charges were calculated and applied.

To read  the entire  RR Star article :  Report: Poplar Grove incorrectly billed residents, needs to improve internal controls - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

 

To read the actual auditors report:  http://www.villageofpoplargrove.com/vertical/sites/%7BBB8156E5-19AE-4976-960A-C2DC686F7EB9%7D/uploads/VPG_Board_Agenda_Back-up_08-17-15.pdf

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

Belvidere Daily Republican: Problems mount at Poplar Grove's sewage treatment plants

 

By Bob Balgemann
Reporter

POPLAR GROVE - Village Trustee Jeff Goings summed it up this way: "It's just more and more."

...

He was referring to the increasing number of problems at the village's two sewage treatment plants, which officials say could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to correct.

A tip of the iceberg payment of $8,973 was approved Jan. 12 for replacement of blowers at the southside plant. Village Engineer Chris Dopkins said they were undersized and needed to be removed.

After listening to him provide an update on problems at the facilities, Trustee Ron Quimby asked, "So, plans we've been given for the north and southside wastewater treatment plants don't match what was actually done?"

"That's what we think," Dopkins answered.

That includes piping that is in a different location than what is shown on maps.

"There were a lot of change orders with this (southside plant) project," Quimby said. "If we're going to have to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars for improvements, I think we should go back and look at that."

The village now contracts with MCO to run the plant, with 2 1/2 of the company's employees assigned to do that work. Jason Voss heads the team and he provided the board with an update that included a possible problem with infiltration of storm water into the treatment process.

After all was said and done Dopkins told officials, "I feel bad for you guys. I will discount some of my time for what was spent last week."

In a follow-up interview, Quimby said he thought new Village Administrator Diana Dykstra having background in utilities would be helpful in dealing with all the problems at the two plants.

MCO reports directly to the board, but he said she would be overseeing the operation of the plants as part of her duties in running the village.

VISIT BELOIT, WIS. PLANTS

Meanwhile, trustees Owen Costanza and Jeff Goings recently visited the treatment plant in Beloit, Wis., to see how it was run. Quimby and Trustee Judi Zangs were scheduled for a visit last week.

"I think we're on the right track now, with MCO running our plants," Costanza said. "The problem is Poplar Grove plants were not taken care of. Evidence of that can be seen in the list of improvements that need to be done. Jeff Goings has been calling for this for the past eight years."

"Our guys should have been dedicated to (work at) the plants and not do snow plowing," he added. "MCO has dedicated 2 1/2 people to the plants."

So far, he said the village "has spent more than $100,000 to make the plants functional, compliant with the EPA" (Environmental Protection Agency).

Dopkins is preparing a priority list of improvements with two thoughts in mind. One, he said, would be projects that could be done if money was no object. The other would be projects that need to be done "to keep the plants reliable."
The lists also will have cost estimates for all the work.

Above is from:  (4) Belvidere Daily Republican

New Poplar Grove administrator has plenty to do... - Belvidere Daily Republican

 

New Poplar Grove administrator has plenty to do
By Bob Balgemann
Reporter

POPLAR GROVE - New Village Administrator Diana Dykstra spent much of her first day with Village President John Neitzel.

She met quite a few residents later that day, when a meet and greet open house was held at 6:30 p.m. in village hall. Thirty minutes later the regularly monthly village board meeting was held.

End result was a plate of issues that was quickly filling up.

Among those asking her to look into particular matters were trustees Owen Costanza, Jeff Goings and Ron Quimby. They were unhappy with the first village administrator, Mark Lynch, and on May 10 voted against keeping him for another year.

Not long after surviving the 4-3 vote, with Neitzel breaking the 3-3 tie in his favor, Lynch resigned and left the village on Jul. 31.

Enter Dykstra, former village administrator, clerk and treasurer of Darien, Wis., on Jan. 12.

Costanza, Goings and Quimby are concerned about the village having three supervisors for just three employees. It could be four supervisors, though not all consider Neitzel, a part-time village president, as having such responsibilities.

They consider Dykstra, Public Works Superintendent Jeff Strate and Office Manager Maureen Brzinski to be supervisors. While the title on the office door states "secretary," they say Brzinski is and always has been much more than that.

The way they see it, Strate supervises two public works department employees while Brzinski supervises a receptionist/secretary, who works in the office. Dykstra supervises all of them and runs the village's day-to-day operation.

FROM FOUR TO TWO

There used to be four public works employees but Lynch dismissed two of them, near the end of his tenure, and they have not been replaced. All public works people are represented, except Strate, under a union contract.

Costanza said he thought the village staff was too small to have three supervisors. "With everything being outsourced, why do we need a public works director?" he asked. "She did three jobs when she was in Darien."

He also would like her to review the recently approved "flow chart," which specifies who is responsible to whom. After looking at the workload, he would like her to "recommend a decrease or increase" in staff.

Costanza considers Neitzel to be a supervisor, though he's not involved in the day-to-day operation of the village.

"She has to make that call," Goings said of the staff structure and number of employees.

In Quimby's view, "let her (Dykstra) have free rein and decide on the structure. Do we have enough employees, too many, not enough? That will be up to her."

Lynch embarked on a similar path and thought the village needed a billing clerk and in-house attorney. A full-time treasurer also was discussed. While some money was proposed for that change in the 2014-15 budget, it did not happen.

As the Jan. 12 board meeting wore on, other issues were discussed that will require the new administrator's attention.

One of them was the growing number of problems at both sewage treatment plants.

Above is from:  New Poplar Grove administrator has plenty to do... - Belvidere Daily Republican

Ambulance Agencies Compromising in North Boone

 

UPDATE: POPLAR GROVE (WIFR) -- People in northern Boone County will soon know who exactly will be responding to emergencies should they need an ambulance.

North Boone Fire District #3 leaders say they realize Capron Rescue Squad District has the upper hand meaning North Boone will likely have to cave into what Capron wants North Boone's role to be.

"I really didn't think it'd be that hard to do something to serve the public, and that's all we ever wanted to do. We just would like to get along and work together. They have everything and I guess it would be up to them to give up something for us, and I understand that," says Ray Morse, president of North Boone Fire District #3 board of trustees.

Morse says negotiations with Capron were going smoothly today. North Boone Fire District #3 bought an ambulance this year and want to run it out of their Poplar Grove station but Capron Rescue Squad is a taxing body with jurisdiction over ambulance service in that area and has been for decades. Capron board president Owen Costanza says he would like North Boone's ambulance to act as a back up for Capron but North Boone originally wanted more.

"North Boone 3 does a great job at what they do; they're a great resource and we to work together with everybody," says Costanza. "We have to follow the structure that's put in place by us and the comments I've made is we will continue to follow the law and the protocols."

North Boone Fire District #3 says acting as Carpon's backup is likely the only thing they can do because Capron has jurisdiction and they hope to hammer out an intergovernmental agreement soon.

In the meantime, Boone County 9-1-1 will not be dispatching North Boone's ambulance to any emergencies until an agreement is reached.

We heard from sources that North Boone fire leaders walked out of the early morning negotiation with Capron Rescue Squad. We asked North Boone if it's true, and they said while they didn't say good-bye to the Capron Rescue Squad in person, they didn't walk out and are determined to come to an agreement on how they can help serve the area.

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UPDATE: BOONE COUNTY (WIFR) – North Boone Fire leaders say they need to clear the air as they continue to fight to expand their ambulance services.

The North Boone Fire District No. 3 and Capron Rescue Squad say they're working on an agreement, avoiding a legal dispute determining who can offer ambulance service in Poplar Grove.

Capron Rescue Squad has been the ambulance authority in North Boone District 3 since the late 50's, but this year North Boone decided to buy a and operate an ambulance out of its Poplar Grove station- a move than met much resistance from Capron Rescue.

Capron filed an injunction against North Boone Fire District 3 earlier this year, but dropped the lawsuit earlier this week when both sides agreed to discuss North Boone's role in offering ambulance services moving forward.

Those discussions have yet to take place but are scheduled for January 8th of next year.

"It's a little disturbing that we got so much friction from the Rescue Squad," said North Boon Fire District No. 3 board president Ray Morse. "They want us to come to a joint agreement where we'll be happy, they'll be happy and we can work together and that's all we wanted to do is work together."

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BOONE COUNTY (WIFR) – A plan to put more ambulances on the road, which could mean quicker responses in emergencies, has been put on hold.

The Capron rescue squad filed an injunction to stop the formation of the North Boone Fire Protection Number Three’s Ambulance Squad. Capron Rescue says the fire district needed to put a referendum on the ballot which didn’t happen.

"We're not against the fire department starting ambulance service the way the law is interpreted by our lawyer they need to go to referendum before starting an ambulance service. We felt they didn't do that, they didn't take the proper steps,” said Capron Rescue Squad Board President Owen Costanza.

The Capron Rescue Squad has been around since the late 1950’s and is funded through taxes. The board’s president, Owen Costanza says people who live within the Fire District would have to vote whether to pay an additional tax for that new ambulance service. However, when it comes down to it, Costanza says his squad has no problem handling the nearly 70 runs each month.

Terry Logan’s bar, The Stumble Inn is right next to one of the stations and say she doesn’t think there are enough calls to warrant the need for two companies.

"I don't know exactly how much these folks are utilized but without knowing that, I just don't see another, I just don't see the need,” said Logan.

We spoke with the fire chief who didn’t want to comment.

We’re told the Capron Squad is willing to work with the Fire District and Costanza says he has a standing offer for the Fire District to have an ambulance assist the squad when they’re overwhelmed with calls. The Capron Squad already works with three other ambulance services for those situations.

Ambulance Agencies Compromising in North Boone

UPDATE: First Responders Settling Ambulance Dispute in Poplar Grove

North Boone Fire leaders say they need to clear the air as they continue to fight to expand their ambulance services.

The North Boone Fire District No. 3 and Capron Rescue Squad say they're working on an agreement, avoiding a legal dispute determining who can offer ambulance service in Poplar Grove.

Capron Rescue Squad has been the ambulance authority in North Boone District 3 since the late 50's, but this year North Boone decided to buy a and operate an ambulance out of its Poplar Grove station- a move than met much resistance from Capron Rescue.

Capron filed an injunction against North Boone Fire District 3 earlier this year, but dropped the lawsuit earlier this week when both sides agreed to discuss North Boone's role in offering ambulance services moving forward.

Those discussions have yet to take place but are scheduled for January 8th of next year.

"It's a little disturbing that we got so much friction from the Rescue Squad," said North Boon Fire District No. 3 board president Ray Morse. "They want us to come to a joint agreement where we'll be happy, they'll be happy and we can work together and that's all we wanted to do is work together."

---

BOONE COUNTY (WIFR) – A plan to put more ambulances on the road, which could mean quicker responses in emergencies, has been put on hold.

The Capron rescue squad filed an injunction to stop the formation of the North Boone Fire Protection Number Three’s Ambulance Squad. Capron Rescue says the fire district needed to put a referendum on the ballot which didn’t happen.

"We're not against the fire department starting ambulance service the way the law is interpreted by our lawyer they need to go to referendum before starting an ambulance service. We felt they didn't do that, they didn't take the proper steps,” said Capron Rescue Squad Board President Owen Costanza.

The Capron Rescue Squad has been around since the late 1950’s and is funded through taxes. The board’s president, Owen Costanza says people who live within the Fire District would have to vote whether to pay an additional tax for that new ambulance service. However, when it comes down to it, Costanza says his squad has no problem handling the nearly 70 runs each month.

Terry Logan’s bar, The Stumble Inn is right next to one of the stations and say she doesn’t think there are enough calls to warrant the need for two companies.

"I don't know exactly how much these folks are utilized but without knowing that, I just don't see another, I just don't see the need,” said Logan.

We spoke with the fire chief who didn’t want to comment.

We’re told the Capron Squad is willing to work with the Fire District and Costanza says he has a standing offer for the Fire District to have an ambulance assist the squad when they’re overwhelmed with calls. The Capron Squad already works with three other ambulance services for those situations.

UPDATE: First Responders Settling Ambulance Dispute in Poplar Grove

Balgemann on Facebook: New Administrator for Poplar Grove/Higher Electric Rates across Boone County

Poplar Grove may hire help to find new administrator
By Bob Balgemann
Reporter
POPLAR GROVE - Village officials are moving toward hiring a consultant to help them find a new village administrator. But they may have jumped the gun by forwarding resumes to a former Machesney Park executive whom they have not officially approved.
Questions arose during Monday night's village board meeting, resulti...ng in a brief delay in retaining the services of Bob Mullins. The primary stumbling point was the lack of specifics as to the scope of work to be done for $50 an hour, not to exceed a total of $1,500.
Trustee Ron Quimby brought up the need for a contract that would contain those kinds of details.
It had been stated at the Oct. 6 finance committee meeting that Mullins would provide Poplar Grove with the names of five candidates. There were no other details.
Trustee Jeff Goings said he couldn't understand why the village was going to spend money on a regional search, when Village President John Neitzel and Trustee Don Bawden earlier conducted a national search at no charge. Their efforts led to the employment of Mark Lynch, who resigned effective May 31 after the board voted 4-3 to retain him for another year.
"That took us an enormous amount of time," Neitzel recalled. "He (Mullins) has the local expertise, which is important."
Mullins was Machesney Park's administration and finance director for 10 of the 11 years he worked there. He was the first village administrator before retiring in 2011. "He is well respected in the area," Bawden said.
Trustees Owen Costanza and Goings expressed concern that some resumes already had been sent to Mullins. That caused Village Attorney Jim Stevens to say that no longer should be done. "We've got the cart before the horse a little bit," he said.
Rather than have to call a special meeting, the board voted 4-2 with Costanza and Goings dissenting to allow Neitzel to sign a contract with Mullins, once one is received and approved by the attorney.

BELVIDERE TWP ELECTRIC BILLS TO SEE AN INCREASE
BELVIDERE - Belvidere Township residents are among the last in this area to see an increase in their monthly electric bills.
The board of trustees has agreed to remain in the electric aggregation program, renewing the kilowatt use rate at 7.14 cents per hour for the next 36 months. That's an increase of almost 2 cents an hour from the 5.229 that was in effect since the program started Jan. 1, 2013.
Township Supervisor Pat Murphy said under the lower rate, homeowners saved an average of $275 a year, with the township as a whole saving $450,000.
Boone County, the village of Machesney Park and Harlem Township also have approved rates considerably higher than what had been in effect for the past two years.
Karen Herbert, president and CEO of the Institute for 21st Century Energy, said the increase was because of new U.S. Environmental Protection Regulations (EPA).
She said the Obama Administration wants to reduce carbon emissions by 42 percent in 2030. But she added that a study showed more aggressive standards would increase American electric bills by $17 billion and cost 224,000 jobs nationwide. That while reducing global emissions by just 2 percent, far short of the announced goal.
"The president's war on coal will create a significant blow to the economy in exchange for very little environmental benefit," she said.
Information obtained by Boone County Administrator Ken Terrinoni stated the new regulations could cause the closing of 30 percent of the coal-fired electric plants in this country.

(1) Belvidere Daily Republican (Facebook): Emotions high as Poplar Grove denies special use permits

Belvidere Daily Republican

March 18

By Bob Balgemann
Reporter
POPLAR GROVE - The Poplar Grove Village Board has voted 6-0 to deny issuing two special use permits needed to develop a 304-unit mobile home park on two parcels along South Poplar Grove Road.
But the issue isn't over.
Jim Hursh, attorney for the developer, said after Monday's March 10 board meeting that the next stop would be circuit court for a review of the decision.
Emotions ran high among many of those in a standing-room only crowd that packed two large rooms at village hall.
Village President John Neitzel more than once asked residents not to applaud when a speaker said something they liked.
He also admonished a man who criticized Hursh after the attorney said there were procedures to be followed and that they had clearly been met. He asked that emotions be set aside and that those procedures be considered.
"How dare you come to our town and say that," the man challenged. "You don't even live here."
Not in Poplar Grove, perhaps, but Hursh said he was a lifelong resident of Boone County and lived on Beloit Road.
Neitzel called for order and reminded those in the audience that no one had interrupted them while they were at the podium. He said the same respect should be shown the current speaker.
Eighteen people addressed the issue with 17 of them in opposition to the mobile home park. Petitions signed by more than 300 men and woman against the project were turned in to Village Clerk Martha Suhr.
Mark Petersen and others were concerned about the impact on the school district and public services. Others addressed the park being in a flood zone, further deterioration of Poplar Grove and damage to personal property by storm water.
"Protect our people, our taxes and our future," resident Glen Herrmann said.
Doug Clark said he had seen a drastic downturn in the village. His fear was that what he referred to as "a trailer park" would not draw the right kind of people.

Above is BDR’s Facebook:  (1) Belvidere Daily Republican

Belvidere Daily Republican: News in Brief

Comments to be limited at mobile home park meeting

Feb. 16, 2014

By Bob Balgemann

Reporter

POPLAR GROVE - The next stop for the proposed 304-unit mobile home park on South Poplar Grove Road will be Feb. 24, before the village's administration committee.

As part of that evening's regular monthly meeting the committee, consisting of three village board members, will consider the two-part recommendation of the planning and zoning commission. During its Feb. 4 meeting, the commission recommended approval of rezoning the 71-acre property from LI, light industrial, to R-5, mixed residential district. But it recommended denial of the requested special use permit, which is needed for the project to happen.

Protocol allows visitors to address the administration committee at the beginning of the meeting. They must fill out a sheet, stating their name, subject, turn it in to the chairman and limit their comments to five minutes.

In this case, committee Chairman Ron Quimby said Feb. 9 that he would ask speakers not to repeat what was said during the P&Z meeting, which was a public hearing on the proposal.

"This is not a public hearing," he said. "It's not a debate or a forum. It's a meeting of the administration committee."

If new information is presented, he said the committee will have to decide whether to refer the issue back to P&Z for further discussion.

Once the public comments portion of the meeting is over, he said those in the audience would not be allowed to make additional statements while the committee is discussing the matter.

Transcripts and minutes will provide committee members with detailed information on what transpired during the P&Z meeting, he said. Beyond that, member Don Bawden was in attendance.

The committee will have three options on Feb. 24: make a recommendation for consideration by the full village board in March; allow the matter to die in committee; or send it back to P&Z for additional discussion.

Pritchard questions delay in state budget BOONE COUNTY - State Rep. Bob Pritchard, R-Sycamore, is asking why Gov. Pat Quinn needs five more weeks to prepare his proposed 2014-15 state budget.

But he answered his own question with the following statement: "It is painfully obvious, however (that) he is afraid to tell voters before the (March 18) primary election how much he needs to cut spending to balance the budget. Or that he wants to continue the current income tax rates."

"We all knew this day was coming, when the income tax (increase) was passed with its provisions to roll back rates," he added.

Pritchard, who represents Boone County in the General Assembly, said if legislators were sincere about lowering the tax rate, the governor should have been trying to reduce spending rather than fighting efforts to manage programs more efficiently; reduce fraud, which has been estimated at over $1 billion; and help those who can to get off government programs.

The governor's Office of Management and Budget and the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability already have their budget estimates for the new year.

"Delaying the budget address and not revealing his fiscal priorities make it even harder on the House appropriations committees, as they draft the budget by May 31," Pritchard said. "Waiting until March 26 (for the governor's budget) delays the entire process, builds expectations in groups for more funding than is available and forces last-minute decisions."

A related consequence, he said, is that school districts across Illinois must announce staff reductions by the end of March due to cuts in state funding and have only a few days to make their decisions.

Of the delay, North Boone Community Unit School District Superintendent Steven Baule said, "it will require that we make deeper than normal reductions in force at the March board meeting. Due to the uncertainty of the state budgeting process and the potential of even greater loss of general state aid and other state funding, North Boone may be looking at making deeper than normal staff reductions at that time."

 

News in Brief Beverly Materials to seek early renewal of quarry permit

Feb. 13, 2014

By Bob Balgemann

Reporter

BELVIDERE - Beverly Materials LLC isn't going to wait until January 2015 to request renewal of its special use permit to mine more than 200 acres at the Plote Quarry off Town Hall Road.

The Belvidere-Boone County Planning Department is working up material for that public hearing, which will be scheduled before the county zoning board of appeals at its March meeting.

Meanwhile, the county health and human service committee, in concert with the county health department, has agreed with a revision to the process for checking water quality, through samples taken from three monitoring wells on the quarry property.

First, Patrick Engineering, which is taking the samples for Beverly Materials, will have the reports professionally certified. That is not currently being done. Second, a county representative may accompany sampling personnel and take a split sample from the one collected by Patrick Engineering. The county then will have its sample sent to a different laboratory for testing. That cost is estimated to be $300, based on $100 for each well. Bill Hatfield, director of environmental health, sent those options and others to the committee at its Feb. 6 meeting.

The precautions are being taken on behalf of residents living near the quarry, who are on well water. They expressed concern about the quality of water through spokesperson Sherry Branson, during a public hearing last year on Beverly's request to extend the special use permit, which should have happened three years ago.

Branson was at the committee meeting and on behalf of residents who live near the quarry thanked members for agreeing to have split water samples, which would be independently tested. Samples are to be taken quarterly. But Hatfield said weather kept Patrick from taking the samples in December and January.

"The ideal situation is No. 3," said committee member Marion Thornberry, referring to the split samples. He agreed that Beverly Materials should pay for to have the county's samples tested.

Hatfield also provided other options, which the committee rejected. "I don't like (options) four or five because the county would be spending money," member Kenny Freeman said.

Board of Health re-elects officers BELVIDERE -

The Boone County Board of Health has re-elected officers for the coming year. Kent Hess, M.D., returns as president; Jim Cox as vice president; Allen Sisson as treasurer; and Kathleen Taylor as secretary. The votes, all unanimous, came during the board's Feb. 3 meeting, with seven of the 11 members present.

Dr. Hess' current term expires in 2016; Cox and Sisson in 2015; and Taylor in 2016. Board members are appointed by the county board chairman, with the advice and consent of the full county board.

The election had been on the board agenda for several months, but continuously was postponed for various reasons. "I hate to keep putting this off, but we barely have a quorum," Sisson said. A quorum is needed to do business and it takes six of the 11 board members.

Board member Dean May pointed out that only seven members were present while Taylor added, "Those who regularly attend are here."

The board of health oversees the county health department.

 

North Boone teachers one step closer to strike

Feb.13, 2014

By Tricia Goecks

Editor

POPLAR GROVE – The Poplar Grove United Methodist Church was the site of a rally of nearly 100 North Boone educators as they move closer to a strike. On Feb. 6, the North Boone Educators Association (NBEA) voted with a 97 percent margin to authorize the teacher’s union to set a strike date.

The union has been negotiating a contract with the North Boone Community Unit School District #200 school board since June. The parties declared an impasse and are currently working with a federal mediator to resolve the remaining outstanding issues.

The three major sticking points are merit pay, two tier salary schedule and the union’s demand for “just cause” discipline.

The NBEA’s talking points describe the merit pay issue as “based on administrative whims creates a toxic work environment, stifling creativity and teamwork and ultimately undermining student achievement.”

According to the Board of Education proposal, teachers who receive a needs improvement or unsatisfactory would not receive automatic step increases. According to the Board proposal, similar scales have been put in place in other area districts.

According to the Board of Education’s proposal, it “retains the intent of recent Illinois laws related to the ability to reduce the least proficient teachers as opposed to the newest teachers when reducing overall staffing.”

“We are concerned because the principal will rate you. It lends itself to be subjective,” said Poplar Grove Elementary School fourth grade teacher Heather True.” You wonder if it would be in their best interest for someone who is newer and paid less to give them better ratings.”

The teachers are rated according to the Charlotte Danielson framework for teaching that divides teacher responsibility into four categories: planning and preparation, classroom environment, instruction, and professional responsibilities. Teachers expressed concern that their job performance was rated on attendance of after school activities.

“The two tier salary pay scale pits people against each other. It is not something that builds the school district up,” said True.

The NBEA talking points asked “why would new teachers come to North Boone knowing they will permanently make less than their peers? Why would we alienate young teachers who represent our District’s future?”

The NBEA’s talking points on just cause state “when we feel we have been treated unfairly, disciplined without a good reason or ‘just cause,’ we want the right to challenge that decision.”

“We know there are some staff who have tenure and seniority, it would be cost effective for them to find fault,” added True.

“If someone should bring up a charge against a teacher, there would be a panel, the administrators, the union, to investigate to find out if it happened and if there were a reason to reprimand the teacher or let them go,” said True. “They want to eliminate that, and we would not be afforded that protection.”

According to the BOE’s proposal, it is willing to add just cause language in the event of a discipline issue that would result in a teacher’s termination. The BOE proposal states that teachers are currently protected under state law.

As of press time, the results of Monday night’s mediation were not determined.

“It has been a long process. Hopefully the positive that will come out is everyone can come back with something workable and we’ll go forward and be renewed,” said True. “I hope.”

Check on these and other BDR stories by clicking on the following:  rvpnews | Belvidere Daily Republican

Residents crowd meeting to oppose Poplar Grove mobile home park development -

 

Associate Planner Gina DelRose said there are concerns about whether the project would disturb wetlands, like the site plans indicate, or how usable the recreational space would be since it would be located in areas that frequently flood.

Residents said they are worried about the type of people these mobile home parks would attract to the community.

Jim Hursh, who is representing the applicant, and Tim McCarty, project manager, assured community members Tuesday that the wetlands would not be disturbed and signs would be placed on the property notifying residents about these areas.

McCarty said all units would be high-end, and if community members were blindfolded and walked inside one of the units, they would not be able to tell the difference between the manufactured homes and other area homes.

"Nobody in this town would be embarrassed about (the units)," McCarty said.

The applicant's reassurances weren't enough to win support of the project from the Planning and Zoning Commission nor staff with the Belvidere-Boone County Planning Department.

Read the entire article by clicking on the following:  Residents crowd meeting to oppose Poplar Grove mobile home park development - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

BDR: Featured Stories

Hometown Christmas buttons, prints now available

Nov. 12, 2013

BELVIDERE – The Belvidere Hometown Christmas buttons and prints, featuring an illustration of Pettit Chapel by Dave Worrell, are now available for purchase. Buttons are $2 and may be purchased at Alpine Bank, Belvidere Cemetery, Blackhawk Bank, Boone County Museum, Byron Bank, Castle Bank, Changes Salon, Keen Age Center, O’Brien & Dobbins Snyder Drugs, PNC Bank, Poplar Grove State Bank, Snyders Pharmacy, and Union Savings Bank.

Unframed and un-matted prints may be purchased for $10 at the Chamber of Commerce office, 130 S. State St., Suite 300.

Bring your buttons into the PNC Bank front foyer, 130 S. State St. during Hometown Christmas on Friday, Dec. 6 to check if you have won a prize.

 

News in Brief: 

A.   Wind farm cross-examination may continue Nov. 26

Nov. 12, 2013

By Bob Balgemann

BELVIDERE - It's been almost one year since the Boone County Board voted 7-5 to approve a majority of the revisions for wind farm regulations.

Among them were decommissioning and road conditions.

One issue - setbacks - was sent back to the zoning board of appeals for public hearings in an 8-4 vote. Now the public hearing portion of that process has come to an end. But the board isn't quite ready to make a recommendation for consideration by the county board.

Associate planner Gina DelRose gave the staff report at the October zoning board. Cross-examination from the audience began afterward, but it did not finish. So the cross-examination may continue at the Nov. 26 meeting of the ZBA, which begins at 7 p.m. in the county administration building, 1212 Logan Ave.

There are four other zoning cases that night and it has yet to be determined if they will be heard first, or if the cross-exanimation will lead off the next board meeting.

Once the cross examination concludes the ZBA will begin its deliberation and, ultimately, offer a recommendation to the county board.

While the public hearing portion of the process has ended, there is a public comments portion on the county board's meeting agenda. Each speaker is allowed a maximum of five minutes to address an issue, whether on the agenda or an opinion, concern or some other observation.

Staff is recommending a 1,000-foot setback as currently is on the books.

Mainstream Renewable Power, based in Dublin, Ireland with an office in Chicago, is proposing an 8,000-acre wind farm for the northeast corner of the county. Up to 100 turbines standing about 529 feet tall would be located on that land.

Boundaries are Grade School Road on the west, Wisconsin state line to the north, McHenry County line on the east and North Boone School Road to the south.

b.   E.P.I. issue debated

BELVIDERE - From the standpoint of Boone County Board of Health Vice President Jim Cox, the issue surrounding the E.P.I. Fruit Processing and Packaging building in Poplar Grove has been going on "forever."

Board members said in July that they wanted closure for the building at 101 East Ave., which has been condemned.

But when board member Jack Spotz asked for an update at the Nov. 4 meeting Bill Hatfield, director of environmental health, said he had contacted the attorney for owner Louis Tenore and told him "he needs to get back to me. We have to determine if that's a cistern or a well on the property. He (Tenore) sealed it so now he has to unseal it."

Cox asked why county state's attorney Michelle Courier isn't being asked to file a lawsuit "and bring this to a head."

"We're working on it," Hatfield replied. "But you issue a warrant and you can't find the guy."

Poplar Grove Village President John Neitzel said last summer the village could take over the building, but then it would be responsible for demolition costs.

County board Chairman Bob Walberg already has said the county doesn't have the money to help tear it down.

 

BPD gets Dodge Durangos with details for dogs

Nov. 12, 2013

By Troy A. Bruzewski

Editor

BELVIDERE – The Belvidere Police Dept. will be driving its dogs in some newer digs.

Belvidere’s city council recently approved the purchase of two new SUVs for its police department, used to transport the unit’s two canines. BPD was authorized to purchase two 2014 Dodge “Special Service” Durangos and the subsequent customizing required for the K-9 unit. Funds for the vehicles and customizing were provided by Federal Asset Forfeiture funds.

Chief Jan Noble said the vehicles must initially meet the standards of a police vehicle, in addition to the eventual additions for canine transportation.

“It’s definitely a police service vehicle with heavy duty options, because these cars are subject to long hours of being driven and a lot of hard use,” he said. “It must also provide protection of the dog in case of a rollover.”

The selected bid for the vehicles was awarded to Thomas Dodge of Orland Park and a canine insert was acquired from American Aluminum. The insert is a pre-fabricated and pre-welded insert that replaces the vehicles backseat.

The approved cost of the two vehicles and the customizing, was not to exceed $73,194.

911 coordinator position

The city council also approved paying 1/3 the cost in employing a 911 coordinator position. The other two equal portions of the cost would be provided by Boone County and the 911 board.

Approval was given to fill the position in June of 2014, at an annual salary of approximately $37,000 per year.

 

Civil suit filed against child-porn convict

Nov. 12, 2013

BELVIDERE – A man arrested by Belvidere Police and eventually sentenced to 10 years in prison for aggravated child pornography and a weapons charge, is now facing a civil suit.

Richard K. Yohn, 50, of Belvidere, faces a $40-million lawsuit by the mother of a 12-year-old girl who claims her daughter continues to suffer trauma from being sexually assaulted by Yohn. The lawsuit, filed in St. Clair County Circuit Court, alleges the girl was assaulted and battered by Yohn, along with forcing her to pose for inappropriate photos they say he posted online.

The suit alleges the sexual abuse began in 2006, when the girl was six-years-old and continued until March 2010. One month later, BPD was contacted by Litchfield police regarding Yohn and an alleged predatory criminal sexual assault. BPD detectives and patrol officers located Yohn at a home on Bradley Lane and detained him. Police also seized a computer, multiple hard drives, a camera and nearly two dozen guns.

While Yohn was held on a $500,000 bond, special agents from the United States Secret Service in Chicago examined the seized items. In July 2012, he pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to possessing child pornography and was sentenced to 10 years.

“During the course of the sexual assault and battery and abuse described above, defendant intentionally and maliciously threatened the plaintiff with great bodily harm, causing her to be in fear for her life, and further, inflicted injury on the plaintiff through intentional, malicious, unjustified, harmful, and offensive sexual contact without plaintiff’s consent,” the suit states. “(The) defendant made plaintiff undress, posed her in a sexual manner, and then photographed her; he thereafter publicly disclosed those photographs by distributing them on the Internet.”

The suit continues in saying the girl has suffered academically, endured depression and low self-esteem and is battling suicidal tendencies. Her mother claims she also has suffered physical and psychological trauma.

See the BDR’s current stories by clicking on the following:  rvpnews | Belvidere Daily Republican

PG trustee balks at agreement with Capron Rescue Squad

 

Nov. 1, 2013

By Bob Balgemann

POPLAR GROVE - The village's administration committee has become the first governmental body in northern Boone County to consider an intergovernmental agreement with the Capron Rescue Squad.

It basically states that the village will utilize ambulance service from Capron Rescue before calling someone else.

The agreement as written brought immediate opposition from committee member Don Bawden.

While it's a village-wide agreement it would not apply to subdivisions south of Orth Road, because they are not within the squad's 144-square-mile district. Still, Bawden said there were too many questions to be answered at this point for some of those subdivisions, such as Bel-Air, Prairie Green and the Knolls, to make that kind of a decision.

Ambulance service for that area is provided by Lifeline in Belvidere.

Beyond that, Boone County's 911 dispatch center decides which ambulance is assigned to a call for help. Proximity of the ambulance to the location of the emergency is part of the decision-making process, as is availability.

There is a back-up plan in place for use when the primary ambulance is busy. For Capron Rescue, mutual aid comes from the Harvard Rescue Squad for the northeastern side of the district and from Harlem-Roscoe for the northwest side, with Lifeline filling in the rest of that area.

Village President John Neitzel pointed out Capron Rescue, which is being renamed North Boone EMS to more accurately reflect its service area, has been covering north Boone since 1957.

Doing 'very good job'

"I personally think they do a very good job providing that service," he said. He added that North Boone Fire District 3 was considering the operation of an ambulance service. As a resident and taxpayer, he said he saw that as a duplication of service and additional expense for taxpayers.

Bawden said he disagreed with that "big time."

He said the agreement didn't specify it was for the area north of Orth Road and that he would never call an ambulance that's one-third further away.

Village Attorney Roxanne Sosnowski said she briefly reviewed the agreement, which came from rescue district attorney Jim Hursh, from a legal standpoint. "I sent a number of revisions to Mr. Hursh and have not received a response," she said.

She confirmed that the 911 dispatch center would send the closest ambulance to the call for assistance. She said she did know if the agreement was "a legal edict" as to which ambulance is called first.

"I can't vote for something that's not true, resolution or no resolution," Bawden said.

Neitzel suggested further discussion on the matter and obtaining suggestions from counsel. "Mr. Bawden has some good points," he said.

In the meantime, suggested revisions to the agreement will be sent to Hursh, Neitzel and village administrator Mark Lynch.

Poplar Grove Village Trustee Owen Costanza also is president of the Capron Rescue Squad District Board of Trustees. He was not at the committee meeting but said Oct. 29 that residents north of Orth Road already approved use of the Capron Rescue Squad when they voted in favor of paying a tax to help finance the service. The proposed intergovernmental agreement merely is an extension of that, he said.

The agreement also will be presented at some point to the Capron, Caledonia and Timberlane village boards, Boone County government and the unincorporated Candlewick Lake community.

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Boone County has need, but emergency shelters are absent

Oct. 31, 2013

By Bob Balgemann

BOONE COUNTY - Danice Loveridge says she receives telephone calls all the time from people in need of a place to escape a variety of problems.

But there aren't any emergency shelters in this county of 54,000 and space is limited in its much larger neighbor, Winnebago County.

"All we have is hotels and that's a maximum of one week," the chair of the Boone County Homeless Project task force said at its Oct. 25 meeting. "There is no money available from the city (of Belvidere) or the county. Yet there truly is a need, especially now that it's getting colder. It's difficult to be staying in cars."

Remedies, a local organization, has two apartments but she said they usually are full. And they're not considered to be shelters. Remedies has an office in Boone County but it's for counseling, she said.

Loveridge said Belvidere House is not suitable for women. Beyond that, she said the county health department "has issues with them."

Belvidere's new mayor, Mike Chamberlain, was at the meeting and he said the state of Illinois "shut them down last year and made them delouse the place."

"We don't have the demographics in Boone County to apply for funding," he added.

The bottom line, Loveridge said, is "we have an issue here. How we've been dealing with it is we have been moving it to Winnebago, DeKalb and McHenry counties. I don't know what to do about it. It's hard to get state and federal dollars based on our counts."

She said Boone County's point in time counts of the homeless, conducted twice a year, are combined with the counts in Winnebago County. Funds for local use also are combined with Winnebago's and she said, "We have been trying to determine how much of that money is ours. But we have not been able to get those numbers."

Currently, federal funding is focusing on transitional housing and permanent housing. "We have some units of that in Boone County and it's helping, but it's slow. The piece that we're missing is how to help these folks who need emergency shelter."

Boone County United Way representative Teri Carter said no local churches are able to take on that kind of a project.

Also Oct. 25, Loveridge said the task force has a new survey for the homeless relating to jobs. Two basic questions are whether they are working and, if not, why aren't they working?

"There is a direct link between jobs and being housed," she said. The goal is to connect the homeless with available jobs.

 

News in Brief

Oct. 31, 2013

By Bob Balgemann

Capron Rescue seeks formal agreements in service area

POPLAR GROVE - Capron Rescue Squad has been serving northern Boone County since 1957. Now, it is seeking intergovernmental agreements with the villages of Capron, Caledonia, Poplar Grove and Timberlane, along with the county and unincorporated Candlewick Lake, to make that coverage formal.

Poplar Grove is the first village to receive the request.

The resolution states in part that Poplar Grove "recognizes the desirability of providing ambulance services to its community in a manner that provides the most timely, efficient and cost effective service delivery for all their respective citizens ..."

It also states that Poplar Grove agrees to "use the services of Capron Rescue Squad before seeking the assistance from other ambulance service."

North Boone Fire District 3 is studying the possibility of including ambulance service for the area now served by Capron Rescue.

Owen Costanza, president of the rescue district board of trustees, said the other villages and Candlewick will be contacted and asked to put the resolution on an upcoming meeting agenda.

Capron Rescue also has changed its name, to North Boone EMS, to better reflect its coverage area of 144 square miles.

Township decides issue

BELVIDERE - The Belvidere Township Board of Trustees has decided not to pay the fee for renewal of the certified appraiser's license for Anita Taylor, a former deputy assessor for the township.

Assessor Diann Helnore made the request for payment of the $530 fee before Taylor resigned, effective Oct. 15.

While Helnore subsequently withdrew the request, the township board voted 5-0 Oct. 22 to formally deny payment of the fee.

Helnore initially asked if the township had paid the renewal fee for her predecessor, longtime assessor Bob Falkenstein. With the request being withdrawn and now formally rejected, that question has not been answered.

Beloit Road bicycle path

BELVIDERE - Completion of a bicycle path linking Prairie Field park off Fairgrounds Road with Belvidere North High School will be partially done before winter weather returns.

Belvidere Township Supervisor Pat Murphy said Oct. 22 that the remaining portion of the walkway would be roughed in and rolled during the current construction season. Then, in the spring, an asphalt surface would be applied.

"We will be inspecting to be sure the pitch is correct and that it's ADA (American Disabilities Act) compliant," he said.

Trustee Richard Nelson asked who would be responsible for the liability?

"It's on (District 100) school board property," Murphy replied. "They're primary on the insurance."

Officials said earlier they hoped to finish the walkway this year. But Murphy said, "The opportunity to get blacktop has been tough."

Shaw Road weight limit

BELVIDERE - Enforcement of the weight limit along Shaw Road, south of the U.S. 20 Bypass, continues to be talked about at Belvidere Township board meetings.

It also was discussed at the Oct. 10 city-county coordinating committee meeting. Co-chairman Dan Snow asked county administrator Ken Terrinoni about the matter, because enforcement involves both the city of Belvidere and Boone County. Terrinoni said it wasn't aware of it but would check into the situation.

Terrinoni said Oct. 25 that he talked with county engineer Rich Lundin, who explained the township had posted a new weight limit for that stretch of Shaw Road, which made it a township matter.

"It will always be a concern," township Supervisor Pat Murphy said at the board's Oct. 22 meeting. "We're not receiving as many calls (about truck traffic) as before, but there were quite a few," he said.

Shaw Road had been regularly included on the township board's agenda, but wasn't there Oct. 22.

 

City-initiated Hometown Market wraps up second season

Oct. 31, 2013

By Bob Balgemann

BELVIDERE - The Hometown Market, an initiative of the city of Belvidere, has concluded its second year off State Street, next to the Boone County History Museum.

And how did everything go, what with this season being on a new day and at a new time? Pretty well, according to Mayor Mike Chamberlain and associate planner Gina DelRose, who coordinated it.

As far as Chamberlain is concerned, the market will be back again during the summer of 2014. He said a debriefing would be held soon, to discuss what went well and what changes, if any, need to be made.

The market featured everything from produce to pastries to purses. There was a massage therapist, sales of Avon products and live musicians.

Children were not forgotten. Cricket the Clown was there to entertain, along with a friend who painted little faces.

In all, a lot of variety and for the most part cooperative weather. Attendance ranged from a high of 150 to a low of 10, but that was on a rainy day.

There were eight new vendors this year as the market changed from Thursday afternoon to Saturdays from 1-5 p.m.

Hours may change again in 2014, possibly opening at 10 a.m. and closing at 3 p.m. "The number of shoppers dies off after 3 p.m.," DelRose said.

Evening hours are another option, though she said there would have to be food and some kind of live entertainment.

Produce vendor Joan Fidder was there in 2012 and said she did pretty well this year. Closing day on Oct. 12 was a bit slow and her offerings were limited, down from the usual five ironing boards full of different goods.

Has large garden

She said she likes to be around people and she loves gardening. She has a 20-by-70-foot garden in back of the Boone County Conservation District complex off Appleton Road. She also has two small gardens at home.

"I mainly do craft shows," she said. "There's a big one coming up in Pecatonica." But it's possible that she will return to the circuit in New Jersey because "that's where the money is. I do that by mail; you don't need a permit because it's considered wholesale."

Some of the businesses at the market were in an incubator status, trying to build clientele through awareness with an ultimate goal of moving into a storefront somewhere in or near the downtown.

One business succeeded in doing that last year but none took that step in 2013.

Cricket the Clown was successful in landing some birthday parties but her summer was cut short when she had to leave to care for a relative, who became ill.

There also was a craft table for kids to put their creativity to work, while their parents shopped. When she was unable to line up enough live entertainers, DelRose used a radio to provide background music.

She said Mayor Chamberlain and the city council ultimately would decide if the market returns for a third year. "They gave me a budget for advertising," she said. "On days when we advertised there were more shoppers. There is a Facebook page, too. They'll (vendors) use it to advertise what they're going to have that day."

A survey will be sent to vendors to get their thoughts on the market's strengths and weaknesses.

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