Bugle Newspapers 9-16-21

se pT e MBeR 1 5 , 2 0 2 1 Vol . 6 5 i ss u e 4 8

# Bugl e n e W s

buglenewspapers.com

news from plainfield Joliet shorewood lockport crest hill Bolingbrook Romeoville downers grove Westmont Woodridge lisle niles Morton grove park Ridge & more

pag e 2 | Wednes day, SEPTEM BER 15, 20 21 | b ugle n e w s pa p e r s .c om

W e d n es day, s e p T e M B e R 15 , 2 0 2 1 | B u g l e n e W spap e R s. c o M | pag e 3

coVeR sToRy >>ReMeMBeRing 9/11

lewis university holds ceremony to remember 9/11 By cuRT heRRon for the Bugle

@BugleNewspapers sweditor@buglenewspapers.com

Lewis University rightly prides itself as an excellent academic institution that is always seeking to not only to provide its students with quality educational opportunities but also a school with a rich history of supporting individuals from local communities who are involved in law enforcement, fire protection and military service.

That’s why it was appropriate for the university to host a special 9/11 ceremony on Thursday at Convocation Hall that commemorated the 20th anniversary of the tragedy that stunned the nation on September 11, 2001.

Dr. Vesna Markovic, the Chair and Associate Professor of Justice, Law and Public Safety studies at the Romeoville campus helped to organize the event, which drew members of various law and public safety departments from the local area and was streamed so that students at the university could also watch the special ceremony.

“In my role, I teach and am the chair of the department, but I have been researching terrorism from the 1990s,” Markovic said.

“As I started teaching in the 2000s, the students were young but still old enough to remember what was happening. But over the years teaching terrorism and homeland security classes, they just get younger and younger and now with the undergrad classes, they weren’t even born yet when September 11 happened.

“For them, it’s something that we need to make sure that they remember that we are still vulnerable and we just need to have the kids know what happened. They’ve heard about it from parents and grandparents, so they know what it is, but they don’t have that lived experience.

“It’s not just that we’re a yellow-ribbon school, we have a Department of Military Affairs that was helpful in arranging this, and in the Criminal Justice Department, we have undergrad programs in criminal justice, forensic criminal investigations and paralegal studies. Although some of those students might be going into different areas of criminal justice, a lot of them want to go into law enforcement, whether it’s local, state or federal,

photos by Joe Glatz/lewis university

lewis university hosted a ceremony to remember the lives lost on september 11, 2001. There was a bell ringing ceremony by the Joliet fire department honor guard (above).

(Right) The lockport fire department had a huge american flag proudly displayed on a ladder truck outside the ceremony. so they need to know about this.

“And we have graduate programs with one focusing on criminal justice and one on security studies, which is specific to terrorism and homeland security.

And then you have the public safety administration in which a lot of the people that we saw today are alums of our program. Usually when something like a bombing or a fire happens, people run away from it, but these people run to it.

So we want to thank them for their service.”

University President Dr. David Livingston made the welcome address and Brother Ed Arambasich, O.F.M., the Chaplain for the Joliet Fire Department, was the featured speaker.

“It was an honor for us to be able to invite all of the first responders, the police and fire, and of course, our veterans, because we serve a lot of veterans here at Lewis,” Livingston said. “To invite them in

and honor them for their service on 9-11 and it was wonderful to have Brother Ed here to share his experiences. And of course, we were honored that Congressman (Bill) Foster was willing to come since he has an incredibly busy schedule.

“It was really a wonderful event.

Dr. Markovic put it together and did an amazing job and we’re really pleased with the event. I think it’s very important for our students, especially first-year and sophomores who weren’t alive and the juniors and seniors were one or two and they didn’t remember it.

“So these memorials are kind of a ritual way of teaching our students about this really significant event in the history of the United States and the way in which it’s shaped us as a country and a world, so we’re grateful to have this opportunity to present this for our students.

see ‘9/11’ page 4

pag e 4 | Wednes day, SEPTEM BER 15, 20 21 | b ugle n e w s pa p e r s .c om

‘9/11’ from page 3 Because of COVID, some of our students weren’t here, but they were watching it because we streamed it, so we were able to allow students to have access to this event and Brother Ed’s remarks. It was really a powerful day.”

Brother Ed Arambasich, a Joliet native, was the Chaplain of the New Orleans Fire Department on 9-11 and a short time later volunteered to go to New York City to provide spiritual support for those who were affected by the terrible events of that day.

“It’s important that we continue to remember and to not forget what happened so that we don’t take things for granted,” Arambasich said. “One of the things that I believe that we need to always remember is that we have more wonderful people out there who are doing good things than bad things.

“Our firefighters, our police officers and our military personnel, you couldn’t ask for better people. Their whole vocation is to serve and to hear how God is talking to them in doing this type of work. I’ve been

blessed by God to be able to serve in this capacity.

“There was a part of my life when I wanted to be a fireman, but it didn’t work out, but it worked out later in my life and now I’m able to be with them and I understand their life and they understand my life. Our lives are very similar since we know what it’s like to work as a team. One of the things that I’ve learned over the last almost 30 years is that we’re in this together. It doesn’t matter if you’re a chaplain, a captain, a firefighter or a lieutenant, we all need each other in the work that we do.”

The master of ceremonies for the event was Eric Wilson, a Lewis University alumnus who is the Eyewitness News Anchor at WTVO in Rockford.

The graduate of the school with a double major in Radio/TV Broadcasting and Theatre was privileged to be involved with the special ceremony.

“The fact that there are so many people, especially students on campus who weren’t alive when this happened have no recollection of it and even people who were young then don’t remember it,” Wilson said. “So it’s important to have an event

photos by Joe Glatz/lewis university

Lewis University President Dr. David Livingston gave the opening address and participated in a wreath laying ceremony in honor of the fallen Americans on September 11, 2001. like this, to not only remember what we lost, but to let them know exactly how life changed that day.

“It was an honor to be here. It would have been nice to be here for a different reason, but it means a lot that my former school from 30-plus years ago would think of me when they needed someone to do an event like this.”

Brother Pierre St. Raymond,

FSC of the University gave the Invocation and Benediction, University Provost Dr. Christopher Sindt recited the poem, “We’re Still Standing”, and U.S. Congressman Bill Foster of the 11th District also addressed the audience.

The ceremony began and ended with processional and tribute selections by the Joliet Police Department Pipes & Drum Corps,

who also provided “Taps” and there was a posting of the colors and they were later retired and also a wreath ceremony with the laying of the wreath.

Vanessa Hall of the University Choir sang the National Anthem while the University’s Gospel Choir performed both religious and patriotic songs, “Amazing Grace” and “God Bless America”.

W e d n es day, s e p T e M B e R 15 , 2 0 2 1 | B u g l e n e W spap e R s. c o M | pag e 5

feaTuRe

Gym named after former school board member former Troy Board member, downers grove teacher and coach, Terry Mcfadden, has Troy Middle school gymnasium dedicated in his memory The Troy Community School District 30-C recently dedicated its Troy Middle School gymnasium to former school board member J. Terry McFadden for his long term service to the school district and for his love of youth sports.

McFadden passed away June 11, 2020.

McFadden’s wife and family attended the ceremony, as did several members of the community and the school district.

“We, as a board, would like to express our appreciation and gratitude to J. Terry McFadden,” School Board Vice-President Dr. Cynthia Rasmussen Grabavoy said at the dedication, “for his years of service and dedication to this board and the community. . . He did walk that path of service in an exemplary and special fashion.

He granted us his gifts of clarity, discernment, persistence and speaking the truth.. . . Terry gave us his time, presence and wisdom, and in return, we were provided with his visions and dreams.”

Grabavoy said whenever students walk through the doors of the gymnasium, they will be touched by the dreams of McFadden.

“Terry will always be in our hearts at Troy,” she concluded.

McFadden served on the Troy School Board for more than 40 years and was elected for the first time when he was only 28 years old.

He was born in Joliet and attended Joliet East High School.

He was a natural athlete and the star pitcher on the school baseball team. He graduated from Illinois State University with a BS in Education, earned his MS in Educational Administration from Northern Illinois University and

subMitteD photo

a plaque honoring the late Terry Mcfadden will be mounted at the entrance of the Troy Middle school gym that now bears his name. The gym was recently dedicated in honor of Mcfadden, a long-time Troy school Board member, teacher and coach in downers grove and high school sports official. continued with post-graduate studies throughout his teaching career.

McFadden taught English at Downers Grove North and South High Schools.

He retired in 2007 after 35 years of teaching.

While at Downers Grove, he was an assistant baseball coach and a peer mentor. He also taught rhetoric at Joliet Junior College for many years. He positively impacted thousands of students.

He was a big supporter of youth sports, including serving as a

volunteer baseball coach in many local baseball leagues from pinto level to pony league.

He also coached his three sons and was an accomplished junior high, high school, and college basketball official.

He was also downstate official many times and twice officiated the IHSA State Finals. He was named Official of the Year.

A mock-up reveal of the plaque dedicating the space to McFadden was also unveiled at the event. The final plaque will be mounted at the entrance to the gym.

pag e 6 | Wednes day, SEPTEM BER 15, 20 21 | b ugle n e w s pa p e r s .c om

W e d n es day, s e p T e M B e R 15 , 2 0 2 1 | B u g l e n e W spap e R s. c o M | pag e 7

STATE

Energy bill heads to Pritzker, who says he will sign it

By JeRRy noWicKi capitol news illinois

The Illinois Senate put the final legislative stamp on an energy regulation overhaul bill Monday, sending it to Gov. JB Pritzker, who says he will sign it.

It’s the culmination of years of negotiation, and it marks a policy win on one of Pritzker’s biggest outstanding first-term campaign promises as the 2022 campaign heats up. The measure passed by a 37-17 vote, with Republican Sue Rezin, of Morris, joining Democrats in support.

“After years of debate and discussion, science has prevailed, and we are charting a new future that works to mitigate the impacts of climate change here in Illinois,” Pritzker said in a statement after the bill’s Senate passage. “(Senate Bill) 2408 puts the state on a path toward 100 percent clean energy and invests in training a diverse workforce for the jobs of the future. Illinois will become the best state in the nation to manufacture and drive an electric vehicle, and equity will be prioritized

in every new program created.”

The final proposal forces fossil fuel plants offline by 2045, spends billions of dollars to subsidize renewable and nuclear energy to prevent plant closures, incentivizes the adoption of electric vehicles, funds workforce training programs, and requires union labor on the installation of renewable infrastructure.

Advocates hailed it as a nationleading climate bill, while downstate Republicans warned of its impact on consumer bills and energy grid reliability.

Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, said it sets the state on an “aggressive and progressive” path toward decarbonization and renewable energy adoption, while leaving pathways for future General Assemblies to reassess the state’s energy needs through follow-up legislation.

“Our goal all along was to enact reliable renewable and affordable energy policies that put Illinois in a position as the nation’s leader.

That’s exactly what we’re doing here today,” Harmon said in closing floor debate. “Now, don’t get me wrong,

there will be more votes, there will inevitably be changes. Innovations that we can’t even imagine today will happen tomorrow and we or some other future group of legislators will act accordingly.”

investments, cost increases

The measure, Senate Bill 2408, aims to put Illinois on a path to a carbon-free energy future by 2050 by doubling the state’s ratepayer investment in renewable energy and further subsidizing the state’s nuclear fleet. It aims to increase the portion of the state’s energy produced by renewables from less than 8 percent to 40 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040.

The main provision in the bill that would push the state toward those ambitious goals is a massive

increase of more than $350 million annually to the pot of money funding renewable projects. It also provides that more than $300 million already collected for renewables will be spent for such projects instead of being refunded to ratepayers despite previous deadlines having passed.

The bill also provides $694 million in total over a five-year period to subsidize three nuclear plants owned

by Exelon Corporation, preventing the closure of a plant in Byron that Exelon said it would take offline Monday in the absence of legislative action. It issued a statement after the bill’s passage saying it would begin the refueling process.

Other expenditures include a $180 million annual investment in equitybased and “just transition” programs

aiming to diversify the renewable industry and to provide out-of-work fossil fuel employees with a pathway to renewable energy jobs.

The bill also provides subsidies to convert coal-fired plants to solar or energy storage facilities at about $47 million annually starting in 2024.

While the subsidies and investment programs are staggered in their implementation dates, the Citizens Utility Board estimates that it will cause an increase to ratepayer bills of about $3 to $4 a month over the next five years.

In terms of percentages, bill sponsor Sen. Michael Hastings, D-Frankfort, said residential electric bills would increase by about 3-4

see ‘eneRgy ’ page 13

pag e 8 | Wednes day, SEPTEM BER 15, 20 21 | b ugle n e w s pa p e r s .c om

W e d n es day, s e p T e M B e R 15 , 2 0 2 1 | B u g l e n e W spap e R s. c o M | pag e 9

cooK counTy

36,000 properties are part of first Tax Sale in more than 2 years 19,000 owners owe less than $1,000 Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas will conduct the first sale in more than two years of delinquent Cook County property taxes on Nov. 5, 2021.

About $163.4 million in unpaid 2018 property taxes (that were to be paid in 2019) is due on 36,000 homes, businesses and land. Less than $1,000 is owed on 11,744 properties in Chicago and 7,700 properties in suburban Cook County.

Pappas is sending owners of those properties a certified mailing informing them that their unpaid taxes are scheduled to be sold, which would put a lien against their properties. It is the first step in a process that can end with the loss of a property.

Owners can avoid the Tax Sale by paying the delinquent taxes and interest before the sale begins. To see if your taxes are delinquent – and to make a payment – visit cookcountytreasurer.com and select “Avoid the Tax Sale.” You can search by address or by Property Index Number (PIN).

“About 75% of the taxes offered for sale are for properties in majority Black and Latino communities,” Pappas said.

“That’s why Black and Latino

Houses Matter, my program to help homeowners find refunds and apply for tax exemptions, is so

important.”

Owners may be unaware the taxes on their properties are headed to the Tax Sale because the U.S. Postal Service has returned bills and subsequent notices on 17,702 properties.

Also, as many as 207 seniors may be missing a senior exemption and 184 seniors may be eligible for a senior freeze – two exemptions that could reduce their tax bill. “Everyone should visit cookcountytreasurer.com for more information,” Pappas said.

Per Illinois law, the annual Tax Sale traditionally is conducted 13 months after the due date but was delayed because of the COVID-19

pandemic. Pappas plans to conduct the sale for 2019 unpaid

taxes in May and for the 2020 taxes in November 2022.

pag e 1 0 | Wednesday, SEPTEM BER 15, 20 21 | b ugle n e w s pa p e r s .c om

W e d n es day, s e p T e M B e R 15 , 2 0 2 1 | B u g l e n e W spap e R s. c o M | pag e 11

oBiTuaRy

MoWReR Leon D. Mowrer, age 97, a longtime resident of Plainfield, IL, passed away Friday, September 10, 2021, at his home.

He was born December 9, 1923, in Joliet, IL. He was the cherished husband of the late Eleanor E. Mowrer, nee Jones. Beloved father of Kathy and son-in-law Paul Lutz.

Adored grandfather of Kristin (Michael) Upchurch and Paul (Kerri) Lutz. Loving great-grandfather of Arabella, Alyssa and Andrew Upchurch and Mason and Alayna Lutz. Dear brother-in-law of Ada Cline Jones, brother of Lee ( Judy) Mowrer, Kirk (Linda) Mowrer, Ron Mowrer and sister Sue May. He was preceded in death by his beloved mother, Anna J. (Koenig) Mowrer, brothers-in-law, Everette Jones and Harold Jones, sisters, Phyllis Surdey and Loretta Vining, brother Jimmy Mowrer and brother-in-laws, Cecil Surdey and Chandler May. Leon attended St. Johns School and Joliet Catholic High. He met the love of his life, Eleanor, while working as an usher at the Rialto Theater before the war. They were married on June 1, 1947 at the First Presbyterian Church in Joliet, IL. They were happily married for 68 wonderful years.

Leon enlisted in the Army in March of 1943. He served with the 63rd Infantry overseas in France and Germany and received two Bronze Stars for his efforts to help crack the Siegfried Line. While under fire he kept communications open.

Leon was extremely proud of his military service and his country.

When he came back from the War, he worked for the E. J. & E. Railroad as a machinist in Joliet and Gary and Whiting, IN. He retired after 40 years of service.

Leon attended the Plainfield United Methodist Church, was a lifetime member of Cantigny VFW Post 367 in Joliet, was a long-time member of American Legion Marne Post 13 in Plainfield, belonged to the Joliet Moose and the Elk’s Club.

He loved square dancing & traveling with Eleanor. Golfing was his passion as well as fishing. He was an avid model railroader & made beautiful model ships and planes. His model planes are displayed in the Aviation Center at Lewis University. He was a huge Cubs fan and frequently went to Meza, AZ for spring training.

In addition to his family, he leaves behind many wonderful friends. His family would like to thank the staff, Fab 50 members and preschoolers at Avery YMCA for taking him to their hearts.

Thankyou also to his friends and staff at American House Cedarlake for their friendship and care. Lastly, thank you to Residential Hospice, McKenzie, Amber, Jessica and Kathy and his caregiver, Elizabeth, for easing his last days.

Visitation will be from 9:00 -11:00 AM, Wednesday, September 15th at OvermanJones Funeral Home, 15219 S. Joliet Road, Plainfield, IL 60540. The service will follow at 11:00 AM at the funeral home. Burial will follow at Woodlawn II Cemetery, Joliet, IL. For more information, please call 815-436-9221 or www.overmanjones.com.

12 Wednesday,SEPTEMBER 15, 2021 | buglenewspapers.com

Phone: 815.4246.24241 >> Mon. - Fri. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. FAX: 815.4249.2415 email: classifieds@enterprisepublications.com IN PERSON: Enterprise Publications >> 2241556 Andrew Rd. >> Plainfield, IL

We d n es day, s e p T e M B e R 15 , 2 0 2 1 | B u g l e n e W spap e R s. c o M | pag e 13 ‘eneRgy ’ fRoM page 7 percent, commercial bills by about 5-6 percent, and industrial bills by about 7-8 percent.

The senior advocacy group AARP estimated that number could be as high as $15 monthly for ratepayers, but advocates for the bill cite estimates in the CUB range.

Sen. Donald DeWitte, R-St. Charles, cited the AARP estimate and a Crain’s Chicago Business analysis which showed the increase could be between $7 and $8 monthly.

“The fact is, no one knows how much this piece of legislation is going to cost Illinois ratepayers,” he said.

“What we do know is that it will be borne by all ratepayers in the state. I guess what we’re seeing and hearing today is that we’ll just have to watch our friends across the aisle pass this legislation, and then we’ll find out.”

The CUB analysis, meanwhile, said the investment in cheaper, renewable solar and wind energy could lead to lower costs for consumers over time.

Decarbonization, compromise

Large-scale renewable projects will be required to have project labor agreements to employ union labor, and non-residential labor projects, with the exception of small churches, will be required to pay a prevailing wage.

That stipulation was part of the final compromise that brought union and environmental groups together on the bill, along with decarbonization provisions for municipal power plants.

Specifically, two municipallyowned coal-fired power plants – a City, Water, Light and Power facility in Springfield and the Prairie State Energy Campus facility in Marissa – had caused a stalemate, as the plants and the lawmakers within their districts pushed back on the hard 2045 decarbonization date.

The final bill provides that the facilities must be carbon-free by 2045, and must reduce carbon emissions by 45 percent by 2035. If they can’t, they have three years to comply or shut down part of their generation capacities to come into compliance.

Other fossil fuel plants are required to go offline between 2030 and 2045, depending on the energy source and the level of carbon emissions.

With those plants going offline, nuclear energy, which provides more than half of the state’s energy mix, would become even more important.

But with only one nuclear plant in the MISO electric grid region which serves most of downstate Illinois south of Interstate 80, some Republicans warned of reliability issues.

Sens. Chapin Rose, R-Mahomet,

Rep. Marcus evans, d-chicago, introduces senate Bill 2408 on the house floor on september 9, 2021. and Terri Bryant, R-Murphysboro, said if the state’s fossil fuel plants are driven offline, Illinois will end up buying energy for a higher price from carbon-emitting power plants across state lines.

But Democrats say SB2408 specifically provides that the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Illinois Commerce Commission and Illinois Power Agency conduct a study at five-year intervals to determine whether renewables and nuclear are doing enough for grid sustainability.

If they’re not, Rep. Robyn Gabel, an Evanston Democrat who was one of the lead negotiators in the House, said the agencies could decide to leave some of the coal- or gas-fired plants online.

“The first wave of plants to close would be 2030, and so 2025 we’ll start the planning process in terms of grid reliability,” Hastings said in a news conference following the bill’s passage. “And through that we’ll determine, based on the planned closures, what’s the baseload generation going to be for the state of Illinois and we’ll make an assessment at that point whether or not we have to extend certain timelines, or put other measures in place.”

Hastings said inaction on an energy bill would have led to the closure of at least one nuclear power plant, driving up energy prices far beyond any increase included in the bill.

Republicans on the floor, including Sen. Dave Syverson, of Rockford, said they would have preferred a more targeted bill to prevent nuclear closures, but Democrats, including Harmon, said there wasn’t enough

legislative support for such an action.

“For a Republican legislator to say vote ‘no’ to this legislation would cause, in essence, at least, one-third to two-thirds of our nuclear fleet to go offline,” Hastings said. “That would cause an import of energy.”

equity, electric vehicles The bill directs the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to create the Clean Jobs Workforce Network program, which establishes 13 hubs in different communities across the state that rely on community-based organizations to provide job training and a career pipeline for equityfocused populations.

It also establishes a “Climate Bank” within the Illinois Finance Authority to help fund renewable projects, as well as a Jobs and Justice Fund, run by a nonprofit entity, aimed at ensuring “the benefits of the clean energy economy are equitably distributed.” Another program aims to train individuals recently released from incarceration for careers in the renewable energy field.

It also creates a Displaced Energy Worker Bill of Rights, requiring the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to give advance notice of power plant or coal mine closures and to notify workers of available assistance programs.

The bill also sets a goal of putting 1 million electric vehicles on Illinois roads by 2030, aiming to do so through incentives, such as offering rebates on the installation of charging infrastructure in certain communities, provided prevailing wage is paid on the construction labor.

It offers a $4,000 rebate for electric vehicle purchases starting in 2022, but Hastings said that’s only in counties covered by the preexisting Alternative Fuels Act, meaning Cook and collar counties, because they pay into a fund from which the rebates will be paid.

While Republicans objected to rebates not being available downstate, Hastings said he’d work with them to identify a revenue stream to fund rebates in those areas.

Supporters said the bill also makes it more difficult for utility companies to raise consumer rates year after year by ending a formulaic rate increase process and instead

bluestreaM.CoM

taking into account “reliability, resiliency, peak load reduction, supplier diversity, affordability, request response time, customer service performance, minimizing greenhouse gas emissions,” and other factors when a company seeks a rate increase.

The citizen advocacy group PIRG, however, opposed the bill, saying it was still too easy for utility companies to guarantee profits under the new bill language.

The measure also prohibits utilities from charging late fees to low-income residential customers, and from charging a credit card fee on any consumer’s bill.

pag e 1 4 | Wednesday, SEPTEM BER 15, 20 21 | b ugle n e w s pa p e r s .c om

W e d n es day, SEP T E M B E R 15 , 2 0 2 1 | b u g l e n e w spap e r s. c o m | pag e 15

pag e 1 6 | Wednesday, SEPTEM BER 15, 20 21 | b ugle n e w s pa p e r s .c om