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U.S. OPEN: A DAY ON THE UNFAIRWAY LOCAL COMMENTARY, B1
OREGON, A8
dailyGAZETTE
Tuesday, June 21, 2016 ■ SERVING ROCK FALLS, STERLING AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1854
STERLING | CITY COUNCIL
Loft project: Making progress in increments Public hearing clears path for new TIF district as part of financing for affordable housing complex was set up in 1984 for the County Market and library plaza area. That TIF expires in 2019, and must be amended to accommodate the new East Central Business District TIF. The new TIF district in the East Third Street area is part of several financing layers put together for the Lawrence Lofts project by the Rock Island
BY PAM EGGEMEIER peggemeier@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5570 @pam_eggemeier
STERLING – The city conducted public hearings Monday for two TIF districts – one that is set to expire soon, and a new one that will replace it. The West Central Business District
Economic Growth Corp. “With the other TIF expiring in 2019, this project couldn’t be done without another TIF,” said Matt Keegan, an attorney at Ward, Murray, Pace & Johnson. “The amendment to the existing TIF removes that 2.3-acre parcel and brings it into the new one.” The Lawrence Lofts project calls for
20 affordable housing units to be built on the vacant floors above the Whiteside County Courthouse. Construction can’t begin on the $5.5 million project until the new TIF ordinances are approved by the City Council. LOFTS CONTINUED ON A5
ROCK FALLS
ROCK FALLS
They’ll see what develops
Photos by Philip Marruffo/pmarruffo@saukvalley.com
Food: Slippery when wet ABOVE: A cormorant lost its lunch Monday along the lower dam in Rock Falls, as its midday meal slipped through its beak. Though this one had a tough time, the birds are considered experts at catching small fish, floating low on the surface of water before diving in to grab a bite to eat. According to the Audubon guide to North American birds, their diet varies with season and place, but can include fish, crabs, shrimp, crayfish, frogs, salamanders, eels, and sometimes snakes, mollusks and plants. Their population has varied through the years, declining in the 1920s, but gradually increasing through the 1950s, before dropping off again throughout the 1960s, likely due to the effects of persistent pesticides. After DDT was banned in 1972, the birds began to flourish again. In some regions today, wildlife management agencies have culled the birds’ populations out of concern that they would crowd out other colonial waterbirds. BELOW: The elusive fish must have whet the bird’s appetite, because the feathered fisher was back for more – and this time, lunch didn’t get away.
Development group sheds office; volunteers retool for new mission BY PAM EGGEMEIER peggemeier@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5570 @pam_eggemeier
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 SVM file photo been uncertain since the city decided to terminate The Rock Falls Community its financial agreement Development Corp. has sold that provided $100,000 a its office at 309 First Ave. year for the nonprofit’s to Blackhawk Hills Regionoperational expenses. al Council. The new owner The contract officially was plans to move in July 1. ended by vote of the City Council on Jan. 5, leaving the RFCDC to rely exclusively on donations. Now without a building, director, or secretary, the scaleddown board of directors basically plans to start anew. DEVELOPS CONTINUED ON A5
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
$1.00
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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 A8
Today’s weather High 83. Low 64. More on A3.
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