THURSDAY
Dece mbe r 18, 2014 • $1 . 0 0
STRONG DEFENSE NIU holds SIUE to less than 50 points in victory / B1 HIGH
LOW
31 23 Complete forecast on page A8
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County Board to explore jail options By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com SYCAMORE – DeKalb County officials want 2015 to be the year they devise a solution for expanding the county jail. Although they didn’t take any votes or come to a clear consensus about the extent to which the DeKalb County Jail needs to be expanded, County Board members agreed Wednesday to explore their options next year. Those options range from how much
they want to spend to expand the jail, to whether to ask voters for a tax increase. “My preference is studying the issues and acknowledging them and making sure whatever we go forward with, it is the most wellt h o u g h t o u t Mark p l a n , ” C h a i r - Pietrowski man and Dis- Chairman trict 3 Democrat Mark Pietrowski said. In 2012, County Board
members approved a plan to expand the 89-bed jail to 163 beds with extra space left unfinished in the addition for future improvements. Considering inflation, County Administrator Gary Hanson said that plan would now cost about $31 million total, or about $2.5 million a year in bond payments and operational costs. “It’s the one, in my mind, that makes the most sense,” Hanson said. “But it only makes sense if we have the money.”
County Board members said in April they did not want to spend more than $23 million on the project because of the county’s bonding ability. This option would bring the jail to 133 beds, fewer than the jail’s average daily population of 141 inmates. Hanson also presented a $36 million option that would bring the jail to 219 beds. District 3 County Board member Riley Oncken, a Sycamore Republican, wasn’t in favor of the scaled down option.
“I think our goal needs to be finding a revenue source for the full build,” Oncken said. “And we build a mega-jail to go with our mega-dump.” County Board members have long discussed using fees from Waste Management’s landfill, which accepts up to 500,000 tons of garbage a year, to fund the jail project. Hanson said those fees would give the county between $1.4 million and $2 million for the jail expansion project. But the county could lose up to $2.5 million annually if
Helping furry friends
Sycamore’s sales tax agreements with two airline fuel-purchasing companies collapses under a legal challenge from the Regional Transportation Authority, which is arguing that the companies don’t actually buy the fuel in Sycamore. One possible revenue source would be a quarter-cent or half-cent sales tax increase that would require voter approval. Hanson said the tax increase would
See OPTIONS, page A6
NIU grad shot after leaving job in Texas 2004 alumnus works as a meteorologist at TV station By ERIC R. OLSON eolson@shawmedia.com
Photos by Monica Synett – msynett@shawmedia.com
Dr. Karen Studemann examines a new kitten Tuesday at TAILS Humane Society in DeKalb.
TAILS Humane Society’s new leaders embrace roles By DARIA SOKOLOVA dsokolova@shawmedia.com DeKALB – With a new executive director and several new employees among the changes in 2014, it’s been an eventful year for TAILS Humane Society. “Everything has been going great,” said Michelle Groeper, who took over as executive director in July. “We are taking in as many animals as we can and adopting out as many as we can and we are continuing to do adoptions in other locations in the [Chicago] area.” On top of placing close to 1,800 animals, TAILS programs, such as Catalyst Youth Program and Pawsitive TAILS Animal Assisted Activities, have been successful as well, Groeper said. Heather Short, TAILS development and marketing manager, has been with the organization for three months. She said she especially enjoys her fellow employees and their dedication to animal welfare. “My goal for the next year is to learn about the relation-
Volunteer Aimee Suiter carries a 2-month-old retriever/lab mix back to its pen at TAILS Humane Society on Tuesday in DeKalb. ship that TAILS has with its supporters and the community,” she said, “and find ways to strengthen that relationship
and build upon it so TAILS can continue to grow and expand its capacity to help more animals and the humans who
love them.” Short, who previously
See TAILS, page A6
Educators with Northern Illinois University’s meteorology program were shocked Wednesday after learning that alumnus Patrick Crawford was shot after leaving his job as a TV weatherman in Bruceville-Eddy, Texas. According to news reports, Patrick Crawford, a 2004 NIU grad, was shot three times in the parking lot outside KCEN-TV, an NBC affiliate serving Waco, Texas. Crawford has been the morning meteorologist at KCEN for the past two years, coming to the station from the New Orleans NBC affiliate. Police had not made any arrests in the case as of Wednesday evening. He was undergoing surgery for his wounds Wednesday morning, according to a story on the station’s website. Meteorology professor Dr. David Changnon said he immediately recalled Crawford, who he said was a hard worker focused on a goal of becoming a broadcaster. “He was one of those guys who cared,” Changnon said. “He came back to talk to students about his activities and tell them things they Patrick needed to do to prep for gradua- Crawford tion.” Compounding the heartache was that Changnon also taught Crawford’s wife, Heather Brinkmann, who graduated from NIU in 2011 and also is a meteorologist and web producer at KCEN. Crawford and Brinkmann were married in November 2013. “I’m in shock,” Changnon said, “and my prayers and thoughts are going out to him and his wife and his family, and others who have graduated in his class.” Staff Meteorologist Gilbert Sebenste also was floored by the news. “I’m just in shock. I don’t know what to say,” Sebenste said. “My prayers are with him and his wife Heather for a speedy recovery.” KCEN-TV released a statement Wednesday that said that Crawford was at Baylor Scott and White Hospital in Temple, Texas, in stable condition. His wife, who the station identified as Heather Crawford, was with him, the statement said. “We do not know who the shooter was or if he is connected in any way to KCEN or its employees,” the statement said. Many people are sharing their get-well wishes for Crawford on a Facebook page. Crawford backed up and drove to a nearby construction site where he flagged down help, according to a report from the Waco Tribune-Herald newspaper. Authorities described the suspected shooter as a white man in his 30s who fled the scene on foot. According to reports, Crawford and the man exchanged words before the man started shooting.
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DeKalb Salvation Army distributes toys in holiday spirit / A3
Consider gifting these coffee table books this season / C1
Negotiations continue between Kishwaukee teachers, board / A3
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