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U.S. OPEN: A DAY ON THE UNFAIRWAY
City adds a perk for trained observers
LOCAL COMMENTARY, B1
OREGON, A8
TELEGRAPH Tuesday, June 21, 2016 n SERVING DIXON AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1851
DIXON | CITY COUNCIL
City gives boat owners the slips Council members approve plan for new 4-slip boat dock near Peoria Avenue Bridge BY RACHEL RODGERS rrodgers@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5529 @rj_rodgers
DIXON – The City Council approved the construction of a four-slip boat
dock Monday, with room for future expansion. Union-based Team Reil Inc. will build the dock slightly east of the Peoria Avenue Bridge for about $39,891. That cost could be closer to $31,000
if city crews handle the installation, which would be overseen by Team Reil, City Manager Cole O’Donnell said, but added that the council should approve the full amount as a contingency. This council began discussing install-
ing boat docks at its March 15 meeting, about a year after recalling $40,000 in Crundwell recovery funds previously set aside for docks by the former members. SLIPS
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ROCK FALLS
DIXON
The Rock Falls Community Development Corp. has sold its office at 309 First Ave. to Blackhawk Hills Regional Council. The new owner plans to move in July 1. SVM file photo
They’ll see what develops Development group sheds office, volunteers retool for new mission BY PAM EGGEMEIER peggemeier@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5570 @pam_eggemeier
Availing himself to some relief Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
With temperatures topping out at just above 90 on Monday, it was a perfect day to cool off at the splash pad at Vaile Park in Dixon, which is just what 2.5-year-old Lorenzo Eppard did. Temperatures will cool off a bit today, dropping to the mid 80s, but then Mother Nature will turn the area into one big splash pad when she delivers some severe thunderstorms Wednesday. After that, the mercury will climb back up into the upper 80s by the weekend.
ROCK FALLS – The Rock Falls Community Development Corp. is without a building, but a core base of volunteers is working to reinvent the nonprofit organization. RFCDC has sold its structure at 309 First Ave. to Blackhawk Hills Regional Council, and the new owner plans to move in July 1. Blackhawk Hills, a six-county regional planning organization, is now at the Pignatelli & Associations building at 102 E. state Route 30. The future of the development corporation has been uncertain since the city decided to terminate its financial agreement that provided $100,000 a year for the nonprofit’s operational expenses. The contract officially was ended by vote of the City Council on Jan. 5, leaving the RFCDC to rely exclusively on donations. DEVELOPS continued on A54
STERLING SCHOOL BOARD
Shorter contract will bring pay raises, higher deductibles State budget battle casts uncertainty over negotiations, prompts district to opt for 1-year deal BY CHRISTOPHER HEIMERMAN cheimerman@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5523 CHeimerman_SVM
STERLING – Sterling Public Schools teachers and support personnel should have a new contract as of Wednesday night. It’s a 1-year deal, yet another
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example of state-funded bodies’ trepidation because of inaction in Springfield. Sterling Education Association and Sterling Association of Educational Support Personnel both have ratified the tentative agreement, and the school board is expected to follow suit
INDEX
ABBY.................... A7 BUSINESS.......... A10 COMICS................B5
at Wednesday’s meeting. Employees will get a 2 percent pay bump for the 2016-17 school year, but in turn will pay higher insurance deductibles through the district’s new provider, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois. Both negotiating teams would have liked to have landed on a longer-term
CROSSWORD.....B10 LIFESTYLE............ A7 LOTTERY.............. A2
OBITUARIES......... A4 OPINION............... A6 POLICE................. A2
contract, if state funding weren’t such a quagmire. “The rationale for it only being 1 year is the uncertainty of the state and its finances,” Superintendent Tad Everett said. CONTRACT continued on A84
Today’s weather High 83. Low 64. More on A3.
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