1-Front
Serving Bureau County Since 1847
Thursday, August 1, 2013
‘It’s not always about money’ Arthur Walters is 2013 Tiskilwa Citizen of the Year
Rates: Decrease and increase Princeton looks at new revenue for sewer upgrades By Donna Barker dbarker@bcrnews.com
PRINCETON — Utility rates and service charges could be adjusted in coming months in an effort to get funds for repairs to Princeton’s sewer system.
At this week’s special planning session for the Princeton City Council, Princeton City Manager Jeff Clawson presented a proposal which would decrease the electric utility service charge rate and increase the sewer service charge, the sewer usage rate and the garbage rate. If approved by
By Goldie Currie
See Walters Page 4 Year 167 No. 92 Two Sections - 36 Pages
98213 00012 1 7 © Bureau County Republican
the council, the overall increase would be about 3.72 percent. The monthly utility bill for the average residential customer would increase from $211 per month to $219. Looking at the electric utility, Clawson recommended the council suspend
See Rates Page 4
More people, more unemployment
gcurrie@bcrnews.com
TISKILWA – The Tiskilwa Village Board has selected Arthur Walters as the 2013 Citizen of the Year. Walters is a lifelong resident of Tiskilwa and dedicated 29 years of his life to the local fire and EMT squad. His goal was to achieve 30 years with the department, however, he was forced to retire a year early when he was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS, or commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease). “I was just one year shy of my goal,” he said. Walters was born and raised in Tiskilwa. He worked as a truck driver and mechanic and lived in the Joliet area for a short period of time before returning to Tiskilwa. “I’m kind of a small town guy,” he said referring to his decision to move back. “It’s nice to visit, but it’s better to come home.” To Walters, Tiskilwa has it all — friends, family and community. “It’s just a nice place to be,” he said. Walters’ dreams of becoming a volunteer fireman began when he was a child. “You know little boys. They either want to be a fireman or an astronaut,” he said. “A fireman seemed more feasible in a small town.” His father had also been a fireman in the community for 25 years, and a lot of his friends, including current village President Randy Philhower, were joining the department, so he stepped up to the plate with them. Outside of his home life, Walters devoted his life to fire and EMT. He became
NEWSSTAND PRICE 75¢
U.S. Census Bureau releases latest statistics By Ken Schroeder news@bcrnews.com
BCR photo/Terri Simon
Getting a glimpse of yesterday Sheffield Historical Society Board member Cleo Lanham works on a display of Western Rams High School memorabilia at the Sheffield Historical Society. The society is hosting an open house and dinner in the park event from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday. The open house and tours of the facility will feature the new Western High School room, the revolving display room and the new doctor’s/dentist’s office display. The dinner will be held at the adjacent Veterans School Park (at the Sheffield Community Center in case of rain) and will include hamburgers, hot dogs, sides, drink and dessert for $6, or $2 for children under 5. Special music will be provided by Jack Ness, and a bake sale will be held. All proceeds will benefit the Sheffield Historical Society.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Unemployment in U.S. Congressional District 16 totaled 10.7 percent, according to figures just released from the U.S. Census Bureau. Of the 370,499 people in the district’s labor force, 39,599 were listed as unemployed in the 113th Congress survey. There’s also been an increase in the number of people in the district with 7,977 new residents reported. The total number of residents is 713,840. The congressional district covers parts of DeKalb, Ford, Stark, Will and Winnebago counties, and all of Boone, Bureau, Grundy, Iroquois, LaSalle, Lee, Livingston, Ogle and Putnam counties, as of the 2011 redistricting which followed the 2010 Census. All or parts of Belvidere, Channahon, DeKalb, Dixon, Loves Park, Machesney Park, Ottawa, Morris, Pontiac, Rockford and Streator are included. Baby Boomers still account for the largest age demographic with more than 14.7 percent of the population between 45 and 54. Median age for the district is 39.4 years of age. As is typical across the country, women outnumber men slightly 359,602 to 354,248. The overwhelming majority of residents are white with Hispanics making up less than 10 percent of the population and blacks less than 5 percent. The largest source of employment in the district is the education and health occupations with more than 23 percent finding employment there. More than 10 percent of all housing in the district is vacant, with just more than 42 percent of the residents moving into their current homes since 2005. The majority of households earned more than $35,000 in 2011, with a median income of $52,101. However, 11.6 percent of the residents live below the poverty line. More than 89 percent of the district population aged 25 and older has a high school diploma or GED, while just less than 20 percent have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree. These numbers and more can be found at the U.S. Census Bureau’s My Congressional District website at http://www.census.gov/ mycd/?eml=gd. Comment on this story at www. bcrnews.com.
For breaking news, sports and current weather conditions, go to bcrnews.com
FREE
SKIN CANCER
SCREENING
SATURDAY, AUGUST 3 8AM - 12PM
2200 MARQUETTE ROAD, PERU · 815.224.7400