Serving the Forreston area since 1865
FORRESTON Journal November 27, 2014 Volume 152, Number 31 - $1.00
State Bound
Thanksgiving
The Cardinals completed a late drive to defeat Galena 28-20 to earn a trip to state. B1
Tow Fund Plans
Happy Thanksgiving. Enjoy the holiday and spend time with friends and family.
Ogle County Sheriff Elect Brian VanVickle has plans to clean up the tow fund. A7
Zoning request raises questions for homeowners By Chris Johnson Reporter A large crowd gathered in the Forreston Public Library Nov. 20 to discuss a zoning request for the subdivision on Ill. 72 across from the Forreston High School. Property owner Jon Ludwig, JML, LLC., made the request to re-plat the Prairie Ridge Subdivision as Village East Estates. Part of the request included adding business lots and duplex lots to the development. More than 30 attended the public hearing held before the planning commission meeting. Ludwig’s attorney Gary Gehlbach of Ehrmann, Gehlbach, Badger, Lee & Considine, Dixon, summarized the petition during the hearing. “One is to change the original plat,” said Gehlbach. “The issues revolve around three things. This goes back to the hearing held a year ago in May.” Gehlbach said the plan was redesigned to address concerns raised during that meeting. “Part of the proposal is for duplexes on five lots,” he said. “The proposal is to reduce the lots to 15.” The original development in 2000 called for more
than 80 lots in the proposed development. Since then the development was only done on Hewitt Street. Currently eight homes have been build along Hewitt Street. “Our proposal is to take the B-1 designation and strip out retail sales,” said Gehlbach. “It would be office use. There is nothing in the preannexation that says we can not change.” Gehlbach said they could make the effective date after the original 15 year preannexation was approved. “We are hoping this would This color coded map provided by Jim Ludwig’s attorney shows the properties that were discussed during the planning commission meeting. The dark orange along Ill. 72 designate duplexes, the purple is business 1, and the spur development,” he said. Additional objections dark red is business 2. The light yellow are vacant lots. raised last year were lighting and parking. Gehlbach said these can be addressed by village ordinances. The recommendations “My purpose is to keep made by the Forreston Forreston viable,” said Planning Commission will 1 • Remove retail sales from B-1 9 • Tract 1 rezoned from R-1 to B-1 was Ludwig. “What is there is not go into effect unless the full 2 • Create new B-2 business district a split vote 3-3. working.” village board overturns the for retail sales. 10 • Tract 2 rezoned from R-1 to B-1 was The development was recommendations by a 3/4 3 • Revise setback requirements of a split vote 3-3. originally created by Harlan vote. R-3 to allow for duplexes. Heaton said a split vote is not a and Lola Mae Diehl and Dick Village attorney Jack 4 • Approve preliminary plat of recommendation for or against the vote. Crosby of Crosby-Adelman Heaton said this means Village East Estates These will not go into effect unless the Realtors. that six of the seven on the 5 • Approve final play of Village East village board votes to approve them. Ludwig has since board would need to vote Estates. purchased a portion of the to change the results of the These five were unanimous votes. lots in the development along planning commission. The planning commission is made up of 6 • Rezone lots 1-3 from R-1 to B1 Hewitt Street. All six of the village Grant Sketo, Monty Cotter, Don Cook, Don approved 4-2. Jim Hursh, Sreenan & trustees and the village DeWall, Jim Phillips and Mark Kuelling. 7 • Rezone lots 4-8 from R-1 to R-3 Cain, Rockford, attended the president would vote on the Sketo and Kuelling voted no on items 6 approved 5-1. meeting as a representative recommendations. and 8. Sketo voted no on item 7. 8 • Rezone Tract 3 from R-1 to B-1 as of several homeowners in the The board should discuss Sketo, Phillips, and Kuelling voted no on a buffer approved 4-2. subdivision. the recommendations on items 9 and 10. Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. Turn to A3
Planning Commission recommendations Recommended
No recommendation
How they Voted
Newly-elected officials will take the oath of office By Vinde Wells Editor Newly-elected Ogle County officials will take the oath of office and begin their new terms on Monday, Dec. 1.
Sheriff Brian VanVickle, State’s Attorney Eric Morrow, Clerk Rebecca Huntley, and Treasurer John Coffman, who were elected Nov. 4, will be sworn in by Judges Robert Hanson and John B. Roe in the morning.
Hanson will administer the oath of office to eight county board members that evening at a special county board meeting at 5:30 p.m. at the courthouse. Newly elected board members are J. Nick Bolin,
Holcomb, for District 1, Patricia Nordman, Oregon, for District 2, Bobbie Colbert, Rochelle, for District 3, Bruce W. McKinney, Rochelle, for District 4, Daniel Janes, Stillman Valley, for District 5, Lee Meyers, Byron, for
Headed to State
District 6, Rich Gronewold, Forreston, for District 7, and Lyle Hopkins, Polo, in District 8. Once the new board members are in office, the county board will elect a county board chairman and vice chairman. County board chairman Kim Gouker gave a certificate of appreciation for service
Nov. 18 to retiring county board member Kim Kirkolis, Davis Junction, who did not run for re-election. Gouker also had certificates for retiring Sheriff Michael Harn and State’s Attorney Mike Rock, neither of whom attended the meeting. Both were defeated in the March primary election.
Snowstorm delayed plans to get statue protected from snow By Vinde Wells Editor
The reactions from the Forreston Cardinals were varied but they had one thing in common. They were celebrating the win knowing they would be headed to the state final after defeating Galena 28-20. Pictured are #61 Nick Wilson, #42 Spencer Cruthis, #79 Dalton Blatter, #25 Dylan Hensley, and #78 Jacob Cunningham. A full story on the game appears on B1. Photo by Chris Johnson
In This Week’s Edition...
Agriculture, A7 Church News, A5 Classifieds, B10-B16 Entertainment, A6 Fines, B9
Marriage Licenses, A4 Public Voice, A10 Property Transfers, B7 Sheriff’s Arrests, B6 Service News, A4
A early snowstorm Monday put a halt to plans to get the Black Hawk Statue under wraps and protected from the winter weather. After months of waiting for state approval of a contract for restoration work to begin on the 103-year-old statue, a crew finally began erecting a scaffold at the site on Friday, Dec. 21 with plans to finish on Monday. However, a persistent rain turned quickly to sleet and then snow by 9 a.m. Monday, delaying the rest of the work to protect the 50-foot concrete statue that stands on a high bluff overlooking the Rock River at Lowden State Park, near Oregon. Dr. Andrzej Dajnowski, the conservator for the
Social News, A4 Sports, A14, B1, B2, B3 State’s Attorney, B9 Weather A3
project, said Friday that he had received a contract for the work from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR), and planned to sign it and return it for final approval. Created by sculptor Lorado Taft in 1910 as a tribute to all Native Americans, the statue draws thousands of visitors each year. It was unveiled and dedicated in 1911. The effects of time and weather have caused parts of the statue to crumble and fall off. Dajnowski said Friday that the plan was to first put up the scaffolding around the statue, then put a roof over it to keep off snow and ice, and then to wrap the scaffolding in protective mesh. He said the scaffolding Turn to A3
Deaths, B5, B6 Norma Buchanon, Lillian M. McCanse, Darlene A Snyder
Published every Thursday by Ogle County Newspapers, a division of Shaw Media • www.oglecountynews.com