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December 3 , 2015 • $1 .0 0
DAILY CHRONICLE
CHICAGO FOOTBALL WEEKLY INSIDE TODAY HIGH
38 27 Complete forecast on page A8
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SERVING DEKALB COUNTY SINCE 1879
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D-428 considers its debt options By BRITTANY KEEPERMAN bkeeperman@shawmedia.com DeKALB – Residents could see a property tax spike if District 428 doesn’t restructure its bonds, but refinancing could cost the school millions more in the long term. The school district issued four referendum-approved bonds in pieces between 2008 and 2011 that totaled $110 million to finance DeKalb High
School, repurposing the old high school building and rennovating elementary schools. The district now is looking at options to restructure its debt service. Debt service payments have been fairly level since, but are set to jump in 2017, according to information presented by the school district’s financial adviser, Elizabeth Hennessy, who also advises the city of DeKalb.
Receive breaking news texts Text the word DCNEWS to 74574 to subscribe to Daily Chronicle breaking news text alerts. Message and data rates apply. The average homeowner paid about $339 in property taxes toward debt payments for the school in 2014, but that could jump to $515 in 2017 and be up to $653 in 2028 if the bonds aren’t restruc-
tured. Bonds were orignally structured anticipating climbing home assessment values, which hasn’t been the reality. If things stayed the same, debt payments would drop off after 2028 but recommended
options include stretching the debt for more than a decade, which could keep property taxes level for homeowners but could cost the district millions in the long term. Two options were presented at a city-hosted meeting Wednesday. Both included extending debt payments to stabilize increases in property taxes. “It will cost more in interest over time,” Hennessy said. “Whenever you take bonds
and stretch them out, that will be the case. … You have a steady payment each year, albeit for six years longer than originally scheduled. Payments will still go up, but at a slower level.” The first option is to refund bonds in 2018 and 2020, which would mean that in 2017, the average homeowner would only see a $7 increase in
See DISTRICT 428, page A6
At least 14 dead in Calif. shooting
RENOVATING THE DEKALB LIBRARY
12-plus wounded as banquet is attacked By AMANDA LEE MYERS and JUSTIN PRITCHARD The Associated Press
Photos by Danielle Guerra – dguerra@shawmedia.com
Working on top of scaffolding Monday in the new main lobby of the DeKalb Public Library, Alfonso Sanchez clears a ledge of the balcony so the glass can be moved. The back wall is the exterior wall of the old library that was used in the design of the new main lobby.
The next phase
DeKalb Library to close as $25.3M expansion project continues Voice your opinion
By BRITTANY KEEPERMAN bkeeperman@shawmedia.com DeKALB – Residents should stock up on enough books, comics and movies to last for awhile before the weekend is over. The city’s library will close for six weeks starting Monday as the next phase of the $25.3 million expansion project begins. The library will reopen Jan. 18. Library staff will spend the time moving into the new building and completing extensive training on new equipment and systems. “We’re embracing technology in a big way,” said Dee Coover, library director. The library has been undergoing an expansion project that will triple its size by increasing space from 19,000 square feet to 65,000 square feet. The next phase will involve opening the new three-story, 46,000-square-foot addition to the
How often do you visit your public library? Vote online at Daily-Chronicle. com. “We want to give tours to groups and families while we are closed,” Coover said. “We want to practice our skill sets. … When we reopen in January, we will have everything in ship-shape.” Patrons will be able to use neighboring libraries while the library is in transition. Malta, Cortland, Sycamore and Maple Park libraries accept DeKalb library cards. Patrons can drop off books at those libraries or in the book Daniel Jones wheels a cart of sound panels Monday to the large meeting room drop at DeKalb while the library in the lower level of the new addition of the DeKalb Public Library. is closed. DeKalb resident Christine public in January while the ex- should be completed next July. Brovelli-O’Brien and her 4-yearisting Haish Memorial Library Officials encouraged families to old daughter, Charlotte, stocked building – which was built in 1930 come by the library for a tour See LIBRARY, page A6 – is renovated. The entire project while it is closed.
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WHERE IT’S AT
Classic tale
Eatery closing
Mental health
“Miracle on 34th Street” premieres at Stage Coach Theatre / C1
Mudslingers Cafe in Sycamore will be closing this month / A2
Dekalb County leaders discuss care options / A3
Advice ................................ C3 Classified....................... C5-6 Comics ............................... C4 Local News.................... A2-4 Lottery................................ A2 Nation&World...................A2
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. – At least two heavily armed attackers opened fire on a banquet at a social services center for the disabled Wednesday, killing 14 people and seriously wounding more than a dozen others in a precision assault that looked “as if they were on a mission,” authorities said. About four hours later, police hunting for the killers riddled a black SUV with gunfire in a shootout 2 miles from the late-morning carnage, and a man and woman with assault rifles, handguns and “assault-style clothing” were killed, San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan said. A third person who was spotted running near the gunbattle was detained, but Burguan said it was unclear if that person had anything to do with the crime. The shooting at the social services center occurred at a holiday celebration for workers, not the disabled. It was the nation’s deadliest mass shooting since the attack at a school in Newtown, Connecticut, three years ago that left 26 children and adults dead. Police shed no light on the motive for the massacre. David Bowdich, assistant director of the FBI’s Los Angeles office,
See SHOOTING, page A2
AP photo
Two women embrace at a community center where family members gathered to pick up survivors after a shooting rampage that killed multiple people and wounded others at a social services center Wednesday in San Bernardino, Calif.
Obituaries .........................A4 Opinion...............................A7 Puzzles ............................... C3 Sports..............................B1-4 State ...................................A2 Weather .............................A8